Alumni Tracker: June 2014

Ty Vincent

Spencer Merle and Jordan Lugowksi, two ex-Tigers who earned all-Missota Conference honors last spring, are playing amateur baseball this summer for the Miesville Mudhens of the Cannon Valley League. Merle played for Century College this spring, one of the top-rated junior college nines in the country.

Ty Vincent, another former Tiger and a member of the University of St. Thomas baseball team this spring, is playing summer ball for another Cannon Valley team, the Randolph Railcats...Ex-FHS three-sport athlete Nick Davis, who played college baseball at Concordia University in St. Paul, is on the roster of the Elko Express of the Dakota-Rice-Scott League.

When Farmington opens it 2014 season on August 29 against state-power Wayzata at Tiger Stadium it will mark a a family reunion of sorts. Former Tiger and University of Wisconsin-Lacrosse player Ben Froehling, the son of Tiger head coach Mark Froehling, is a sophomore line coach at Wayzata...Former Tiger assistant coach Jeff Whitney is now the head football coach at St. James High School.

Unless the Missota Conference reappears at some future date, a handful of track Tigers will forever be all-Missota record holders. Senior-to-be Justin Hyytinen clocked the best-ever conference time in the 3200-meter run this spring and Hyytinen, Nehemiah Rockett, Ryan Parco and Devon Webb set the all-time league standard in the 4x400 relay at the same meet.

Two previous Tiger relay teams, the 2005 4x200 foursome of Jordan Hauschild, Otimio Masso, Cody Eich and Josh Jackson and the 2007 quartet of Hauschild, Masso, Luke Sturm and Jackson owns the best-ever conference time in the 4x100 relay.

Nadia Lorencz

On the girls' side of the ledger, the Tigers finished with five all-time Missota Conference marks, including Nadia Lorencz (now running for Michigan State) in the long jump and 100-meter hurdles; Alyssa Parco (now running for Brigham Young) in the 300-meter hurdles; the 2010 4x200 relay team of Parco, Erin Hickey (now running for Minnesota-Duluth, Maria Kiminski and Amy Kiminski (both running for the College of St. Benedict) and the 2012 4x400 relay quartet of Parco, Alicia Hett, Megan Graham and Isabelle Ferm.

Former Tiger track standout Kaitlin Mincke wrapped up her collegiate running career at the University of Minnesota by running the 1500-meter run at the NCAA regional meet held at the University of Arkansas two weeks ago.

Lakeville South, who beat the Tigers in the championship game of the Section 1AAA softball tournament and eventually went on win the state tournament, was coached by former Tiger coach Rob Laden.

There's still time to sign up for the annual Louie Schmitz Memorial Classic golf fundraiser set for next Friday (June 20) at Southern Hills Golf Course. The event raises monies for scholarships for FHS students as well as helping to pay participation fees for eligible youth athletes. The registration fee of $100 includes 18 holes of goal with cart, food and refreshments and a post-tournament dinner. For more information contact former Tigers John Barger (952-240-6793 or johnbarger@frontiernet.net) or Bobby Schmitz (schmitzr21@gmail.com).