Students in Kathy Lorenz's Langdon (N.D.) High School classes have been sporadically showing up wearing North Dakota State apparel lately. If the goal is to get on the teacher's good side, it's better than an apple.
Her daughter, NDSU point guard Katie Lorenz, has made an immediate impact as a freshman on the women's basketball team. Although the North Central Conference has been a tough road to navigate, she nonetheless has fought her way through it.
She's started all 17 games, averaging 9.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists. She's shooting 48 percent (24 of 50) from 3-point range. In the body language department, her composure has been unfreshmanlike.
In the stands, Keith and Kathy, her parents, have enjoyed the ride. They like the program. They like the parents and the coaching staff.
They are officially Bison converts.
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For three decades, Keith and Kathy were die-hard Sioux fans. They are UND graduates from the 1970s. While in college, they went to most of the men's basketball games -- the women's program had yet to materialize -- and have fond memories of hockey games in the old barn.
Langdon natives, they returned to their hometown.
But they always cheered for their college alma mater.
"We've always been big UND fans," Kathy said.
The change, of course, came when Katie signed with NDSU during the NCAA early signing period in November of 2001. Later that season, Keith and Kathy went to the Bison and Sioux game at Engelstad Arena, knowing Katie would be wearing a Bison uniform this year.
"We walked amongst all the Sioux sweatshirts," Kathy said. "We said we have to convert in a hurry. We're wearing our Bison gear. Not that we still wouldn't cheer for the Sioux but when it comes to basketball, we're Bison backers."
Taking a cue from her parents, Katie was a Sioux fan her entire childhood. She was a regular at UND summer basketball camps.
"I guess we were pretty set on Katie going to UND all those years," Keith said. "Even late into her junior year, she was 100 percent Sioux. But they (the Bison coaches) didn't give up. They went hundreds of miles to watch her play. I think Katie just recognized that, the fact their starting guard (Donnie Luecke) graduated last year and that made for a good chance for her to step in."
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Hence, most of the UND apparel in the Lorenz house got boxed up and shipped to a second-hand store. The "abrupt change," as Keith calls it, has made for some amusing comments in Langdon.
If Kathy sees a UND shirt in her class, she jokes "those aren't allowed anymore." Especially this week with NDSU playing at UND Saturday night.
"The Sioux backers around here have been really good about it," Keith said. "They're going to cheer for Katie, too. Win or lose, we're still going to have fun with it. It's still a game ... but we want to win."
Readers can reach Jeff Kolpack at (701) 241-5546 or jkolpack@forumcomm.com
