North Dakota State head football coach Craig Bohl declared his team leaner and more physical after the team's winter conditioning program.
"The physical changes an athlete can make gives us a great chance to win," he said. "We'll physically be a different football team."
Senior center Rob Hunt led the way with top lifts in the bench press (455 pounds) and power clean (370). Senior defensive lineman Dwight Summerville had the best squat lift at 550 pounds.
NDSU had five players bench over 400 pounds and 19 squat at least 300.
That fact was not lost on new offensive coordinator Tim Albin, who noted three offensive lineman benched at least 400.
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"We didn't have anybody at Nebraska who could do that," he said.
NDSU begins spring practice on March 26. The annual spring game is set for April 24.
-- Jeff Kolpack
McLean breaks record
The college hockey career of Fargo South graduate Mike McLean came to end last weekend with a loss and a record at Army.
The senior defenseman played in 135 straight games, breaking the old Army record of 127 set during the 1996-97 season.
McLean was a co-captain for an Army team that finished with a 12-18-3 record. Prior to his Army career, McLean played with the Fargo-Moorhead Ice Sharks, a now-defunct junior team. He is a 1998 Fargo South graduate, where he was a member of Team North Dakota that placed third at the Chicago Showcase.
-- Forum staff reports
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NDSCS men hire assistant
Peter Sambu has been named assistant men's basketball coach at North Dakota State College of Science.
Sambu joins NDSCS after four years as head coach at Southern Alberta Institute of Technology in Calgary.
"We had some very fine student-athletes from Canada and Peter is a big reason for that," said Craig Irwin, NDSCS athletic director and head men's basketball coach. "He has a passion for excellence and is a proven winner in the college game."
Sambu replaces David Richman, who took an assistant coaching position at North Dakota State.
The Wildcats (28-5) finished the season last Tuesday with a 93-86 overtime loss to No. 6 Southeastern Illinois in the NJCAA District 16 tournament.
-- Forum staff reports
Hanson leads Northern
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Northern State (S.D.) center Michelle Hanson continued her seasonal improvement with the women's basketball team. She led the Wolves in scoring, blocked shots and was second in rebounding and was a first team all-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference pick.
The junior from Fargo North had 340 total points, which was up from 190 as a sophomore and 18 as a freshman.
"Pretty consistent," said Wolves coach Curt Fredrickson. "The biggest thing she did for us is add a
3-point scoring threat from the center position."
As the team's tallest player at 6-foot-1, Fredrickson said the Wolves needed Hanson to play the low post more than she had in the past.
"In high school, she didn't play the low block much, but we needed her to play there," Fredrickson said. "It's been an adjustment for her."
The Wolves went 13-15, 9-8 in the NSIC.
-- Forum staff reports
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Inside information
The Fargo Flyers captured the North Dakota state Bantam hockey title Sunday with a 7-3 victory over the Grand Forks Wheatkings. The Flyers defeated Minot and Grafton in overtime on their way to the title. ... Mayville-Portland won the North Dakota state junior gold hockey tournament held in Watford City last weekend. Mayville-Portland defeated Sidney, Mont., in double overtime in the championship game, with Cody Braaten scoring the game-winning goal. ... NDSU's curling club placed fourth at the recent national tournament held in St. Paul, Minn. ... Jim Diederick of Fargo defeated Arnie Gerdes of Minneapolis 255-194 to win the Fisher Motors Bowling Shootout held in Minot, N.D. Diederick went 10-0 in match play. Other placewinners from Fargo-Moorhead were Tim Pausch (fourth); Ralph Hennebry (sixth) and Dave Schick (24th). There were 130 bowlers from four states competing for the top prize of $5,000. ... Three NDSU women's basketball recruits are ranked in the top six in their respective Minnesota classes in scoring. Austin's Lisa Bue is second in Class 3A at 21.3 points a game. East Grand Forks Sacred Heart's Ali Sonstelie and Climax-Fisher's Brenda Slyt are fifth and sixth respectively at 20.8 and 20.4. ... Bison heavyweight wrestler Joe Bryce was named to the Division II academic all-American first team. He carries a 3.67 in biology education. As a team, NDSU had the seventh-best GPA in Division II at 3.24. ... For the second straight year, 12-year-old Dylan Quigley of Moorhead placed first in the all-around competition of the North Dakota State Gymnastics Championships held last weekend in Mandan. Quigley, who competes for the Red River Valley Gymnastics team in Grand Forks, N.D., will compete in the regional gymnastics competition
April 3 in Minneapolis.
-- Forum staff reports
