With  the perfect record in conference the Bison are at the top of the Mississippi 8. They look to keep that streak going this week with a game in Monticello on Friday the 29th.

The Bison’s next home game is February 1 against STMA. This will be the second meeting between the two conference rivals this season. In their first meeting the Bison won 58-50

The Buffalo Girls’ Basketball team has kept it rolling this week with two big Conference wins.

Their most recent victory was on Friday, January 8, at Becker. This was the girls second road game of the week but they came out on top 59-51. The game before that was on Tuesday at Rogers. The girls pulled out a eight-point victory over them, 51-43.

This week improved the girl’s record to 10-2 overall and 5-0 in Conference. The Bison are the only remaining undefeated team in the Mississippi 8.

The girls next game is Tuesday, January 12, in Zimmerman at 7:30 pm, and their next home game will be a week from this Saturday against Brainerd at 6:00 pm.

“If we would have knocked down a few more free throws or play a little better defense toward the end of the game we could’ve pulled it out.” Said head coach Scot Sorenson.

On Friday night the girls had played Monticello. This was the first home conference game. The Bison came out on top 54-45. The win gave them their 6th straight  to start the season.

The girls are off to an impressive start this season at 6-1. Sorenson has been coaching on the squad for 11 years and in his time the girls have never had just one loss in the first 7 games. The Bison were in the state tournament last year and if they keep up the success it looks as if they can defend their section championship.

The girls next game is Tuesday December 22 in St. Michael at 7:30 p.m. STMA is on of Buffalo’s biggest rivals and the game should turn out to be a good one.

Last Thursday the girls played their opening game against Elk River.  The game was also close but the Bison came out on top 52-48. Kristen Jeske and Molly Muntifering lead the team to victory with 12 points a piece. Jeske is the only senior on the team this year.

“It really isn’t that big of a deal.” Said Jeske, ” It’s the 2nd year that I have been the only one playing in my grade and I think playing with so many different people has made me a better player.”

The girls are of to a great 2-0 start and look to keep up the success. The girls went to the state tournament last year and look to return again this year.

“It’s hard to tell right now [If this years team is better]. Said Jeske, “Im going to keep a positive attitude and do what I ca to help the team.”

They played in Coon Rapids tonight Tuesday December 8 before the guys. Their first home game will be on Saturday December 12 at 4 pm against Tartan. Tartan is a team the girls have not played before but they should pose as a challenge.

“It was a practice to get the rust out (from last season) and learn new faces.”

With nine new faces this year and only one returning senior, Kristen Jeske, the Bison have a very young squad which means they don’t have as much varsity game experience.

“Losing that experience hurts,” said Sorenson, “but that leaves a lot of doors open for playing time.”

One advantage of having a young team is that in future years the girls will have the experience and talent to know what to do.

Last season the Bison were 16-13 overall and were tied for 3rd place in the mississippi8 conference title. Despite not being conference champions the girls went on to win the section 8AAAA championship and get a bid in the state tournament. Unfortunately for the girls they lost in the first round of state to Centennial 62-58 in a very close game. The girls goals for this season are win the mississippi8 conference and defend their section 8AAAA title.

The team’s first game is in Elk River on December 3 at 7 p.m.

“Elk River has two solid posts and two really good guards and they play a physical game,” said Sorenson, “so we need to crank up the tempo because they are going to try and get us back since we got them twice last year.”

The Captains are not yet selected for this years team but since Jeske is the only senior on the team that means there will be at least one junior captain.

“That is ok because we have a strong group of players below them that can step up and be leaders.” Said Sorenson.

The superintendent Jim Bauck proposed a recommendation to the school board to renew the current levy and keep funding equal and not to add any new funding. This new levy if passed would not add any new taxes but will keep BHM stable with where they are at and make it easier on the district.  So that they would not have to do any extra funding and they don’t have to worry about the money they are getting from the state.

“The renewal will provide budget stability for the district to the degree we can control locally, without increasing taxes,” Bauck said, “In over 30 years in education, I have never seen state funding so unstable.”

The levy was passed with much ease. The vote was not even close to being turned down. This will make it so much easier on the district and probably a lot less stressful for them too. They can keep the schools running smoothly and the way they did this last year even after all the cuts and increases in fees. Since the state funding is down the district still has a safety blanket.

Most students may not even know what the “Hall of Fame Award” is. All they see is the 48 pictures hanging in the main entrance of the school. What they don’t know about those students is that they are some of the best students that BHS has ever seen.

“The hall of fame members at BHS are students who represent the school in a positive way,” Said counselor Mark Jones, “Whether it be through academics, athletics, clubs, or organizations.”

All of the staff are first given a list of seniors in the spring. They nominate seniors that they feel should be in the hall of fame and represent the school well. After the initial voting the top ten girls and guys are then put on a ballot and the staff votes for a winner from each gender. Those winners then get their picture put up in the front of BHS.

“Every hall of fame member that is chosen usually has left a lasting impression on the school.” Said Jones.

The Hall of Fame award is a very honorable award to receive. It is one that not just anyone can get. It is an award that has to be earned.

Their regular season was wrapped up two weeks ago with two conference games. The first was scheduled on Tuesday against Monticello but because of weather the game got moved to Wednesday at 4:30.  The Bison played a tough game against the Magic but fell short, losing 2-1. This was the second time they lost to Monticello this year and it was a tough loss because it dropped the Bison in the conference standings. The second game was on Thursday at 7 p.m. against St. Michael after the boys game. The Bison once again played a tough game but the scored ended up tied 2-2.

Story Continues after the slideshow.
Photos by Dan Hanson, Maggie O’Donnell, and Joel Morehouse

The Bison  finished with a 9-7-2 regular season record and finished 3rd overall in the Mississippi8 conference. Their overall record this year was 10-8-2 and they lost in the 2nd round of sections. Last season the Bison made it all the way to section championship and won. They headed to state and put up a great fight. They weren’t as fortunate this season but they have a lot of returning girls that are going to be seniors next year.

In the second half the Bison came back out with some intensity and fire. They knew they needed to score and thats exactly what they did. Juniors Shana Roberts and Olivia Haggerty both scored a goal as the Bison beat Apollo 2-1.

“This win was pretty important,” Said junior defender Maddy Aguirre, “The last time we played them they played pretty physical and we wanted to get them back by beating them at home.”

The Bison are 9-6-1 this season and they are in first place in the Mississippi8 with a 5-2 record against conference opponents. Their next game is against Monticello on Tuesday at home and the last regular season game is against St. Michael at home. Both games are very important for the Bison. They need to win to stay at the top of the conderence and to have a high seed in sections.

“I was very impressed with the behaviors of our seniors,” Said principle Mark Mischke. “(Class color day) is a unique privilege that most schools don’t do.”

In the atrium the seniors started chanting 20-10, 20-10 and at the end they added a loud “SENIORS.”

The day then went on as any other class color day with the seniors ruling the school and maybe a few freshman shaking in their shoes! That is the point of class color day. It is a day to recognize and roast the seniors as it is their last run and a day to welcome the freshmen to the high school.

Mischke also said that the day went very well because of the leadership of each class and he is looking forward to next year.