The Bison were down the majority of the game, but were hoping to bounce back after a tough loss to Wayzata last week.

“We just wanted to come out here, compete and show what we’re made of,” Senior Zach Zrust said.

Zrust dominated last week against Wayzata in his first game back after a tough injury last month. He continued fighting hard during the second half last night, finishing with 11 points.

It’s been tough to adapt without Zrust playing the past few weeks according to Senior Will Pool.

“I feel like we’re almost already back to normal, or very close. Having someone down there to toss it in there and know they’ll go to work really helps our flow,” Pool said.

Both the Bison and Skippers played a very defensive and physical game.

“We had a lot of contested shots, and we gave up too many offensive rebounds,” Pool said

With only 10 minutes left in the game, the Bisons’ momentum completely shifted. They took the lead and fought until the very last second.

Minnetonka hit a game-tying 3-pointer in the last minute of the game. The Bison hustled to inbounds and get the ball past half court.

Zrust was underneath the basket with 3 seconds left and hit the game winning layup.

“That felt amazing to finalize the win. It’s good that the game went in our favor,” Zrust said.

The Bison are now 13-6 and their next game is at Eden Prairie Friday, February 11.

“Edina’s always been a team we’ve been pretty evenly matched with,” Senior Norah Burke said. 

It was a constant back and forth the entire game, Edina maintaining the lead for the majority of the game. 

Junior Jordan Anderson had a really impressive game especially for it only being her 4th game back from her knee injury. 

“It’s super amazing [to be back] and know that all my hard work has paid off,” Anderson said. 

Anderson played an amazing defensive game having multiple rebounds and constantly going after the ball. 

“It’s more fun when you play more physically, and be able to know you’re strong,” Anderson said. 

Anderson wasn’t the only player who worked hard defensively, the entire team pulled their weight to close in on the win.

Norah Burke, who describes herself as a more defensive player, really pulled her weight with multiple defensive stops throughout the game. 

“I’ve never been a scorer. My role is defense and rebounding, I’ve adapted to that role,” Burke said. 

Burke said that the team is constantly in the weight room and always working to improve from the previous game, win or lose. 

“You’ve got to be in shape and you’ve got to fight,” Burke said.

The last 10 seconds of the game were definitely the most exciting and intense moments of the night. 

The Bison had a fast break opportunity and Senior Brooke Gunderson drove to the basket to score the final and winning layup of the game. 

“It was definitely nerve racking, having a wide open layup at the end. I knew I had to make it,” Gunderson said. 

The moment Gunderson’s shot went in the crowd went wild. 

“It felt really good. I felt ecstatic, and I’m happy we beat Edina because we’ve been rivals with them for a long time,” Gunderson said.

The Bison played the next day against the Andover Huskies and had a tough loss 64-67. The Bison’s next game is at Wayzata, Friday, February 4.

This game brought up a huge milestone for Senior Antonio Bluiett. He became the 8th basketball player in Buffalo High School history to surpass 1,000 career points.

Bluiett hit the milestone with a free throw late in the 2nd half. He effortlessly made his shot and the crowd went wild.

“It feels good, but I’m glad it’s over. Don’t have to worry about that anymore,” Bluiett said.

Without a key player, Zach Zrust, the team has been forced to adjust since his injury last week against Hopkins. 

“I think we’ve adjusted way more with Zach being hurt,” Senior Will Pool said. 

Struggles for the team showed up pretty early as well.

“Guarding their big guy was a struggle, and we had a mismatch down low,” Will Pool said. 

“[We] did some uncharacteristic things on defense,” Bluiett said.

The Bison have now lost 3 in a row. 

Even with struggles, there were plenty of things going right for the Bison. 

“Usually we’re pretty locked in defensively, and I think today we were pretty solid, just had a couple lapses,” Bluiett said.

The Bison are now 10-3 after a tough loss, being back at home Thursday night against Minneapolis Southwest.

• Rachael Noble
• Norah Burke
• Jager Sorenson
• Brooke Gunderson
• Lauren Feddema
• Lindsay Hartman
• Macie Guida
• Zach Zrust
• James Lindquist

Q: What has the last four years meant to you?

Rachael Noble: Working together on and off the court.

Norah Burke: The last four years have meant a lot to me. I’ve grown a lot as a person and a player, and I’ve overcome a lot of mental and physical challenges. I know I’m still not a perfect player but I’m very proud of how far I’ve come as a teammate.

Jager Sorenson: It meant a lot, because I’ve always been working to get up to this varsity level. With a bunch of my friends that are on the team and we always have one goal, get to state.

Brooke Gunderson: It’s been fun playing basketball and getting a new coach. That’s helped us a lot.

Lauren Feddema: We’ve had a lot of different teams over the years. People are leaving or graduating, but I feel like we adjusted very well and made memories with what we had.

Lindsay Hartman: Building relationships with your teammates. Learning about teamwork and working together on and off the court. The importance of family outside your actual family.

Macie Guida: These past four years have been an experience I will remember for a long time. It means a lot to play with my friends.

Zach Zrust: These past four years have meant a lot to me. Being able to play for Buffalo is a great thing. Also the fact that I get to play with my friends that I’ve known my whole life is great too.

James Lindquist: I’ve made most of my friends here and made some of the best memories

Q: What work have you put in the off season that brings you to where you are now?

RN: Every Summer we would come in three days a week. Coming in and lifting together.

NB:  During the off season I always shoot around when I can, either with friends or in my backyard. If I’m working on homework I’ll throw on either an NBA or girls college basketball game and simply take it all in.

JS: We work everyday. Offseason we have a bunch of camps. We workout in the morning at 7 a.m. 

BG: We play a lot of AU with the comets and practice at home.

LF: I also play a lot of AU and shoot hoops in the gym whenever.

LH: We had summer camps almost all summer long. I played on an AAU team and I know some other girls did too, so that’s just another thing we’ve done.

MG:  In the offseason I play AAU which is essentially an extension of my season. I lift and go to camps and I really never get too much time off but I enjoy it!

ZZ: In the offseason, I’ve done summer camps and also have done practice on my own.

JL: In the summer, I get up at 6:30 am 4 days a week. Before and after school practice too.

Q: What impact have the coaches made on you?

RN: Taught that you’ll get what you work for.

NB: The new coaches this year have had more of an impact on me already in the first month than any coach has in years. They push us to be better everyday, and it’s amazing because they believe in us. Metcalf trusts and believes in us as players, and we trust and believe in her as a coach, the chemistry is simply unmatched.

JS: They are always there for us and support us.

BG: Our past coach helped make memories and impacted who we are today. 

LF: Our new coach has really pushed us to be the best we can be, and that’s helped us a lot

LH: I think this year especially with new coaches they’ve just really emphasized how important it is to put 100% effort, 100% of the time and you’ll get out what you put in. 

MG: The coaches this year have been really great by setting an example or what it looks like to work hard and succeed in and out of sports.

ZZ: The coaches have impacted me a lot. Thay have also pushed me to be my best and continue to do that. I wouldn’t be as successful as I am without them.

JL: Ortmann is one of best guys I’ve ever met and one of my favorite coaches ever.

Q: What is the difference between when you first started and now?

RN: I was very scared and not willing to use my full ability. The goal is confidence, doing what you do best.

NB: I first started playing basketball when I was four, so as you can imagine I’ve changed a lot. More recently though, throughout the years I’ve noticed a difference in my role on the team. Everyone wants to be a scorer but in reality not everyone is, and that includes me. My number one job is defense and rebounding, and once I accepted that everything started flowing for me more.

JS: I started playing whenever I could walk. We had these little hoops around our house up until now.

BG: I used to play for fun, but now it’s more competitive and for the future

LF: I guess I get better through the years.

LH: I started really young, my older sister played, so I just took after her. Confidence has grown and I have matured more.

MG: I think the difference between when I first started playing basketball is that women are getting more recognition. There are many super talented female athletes, even in our conference and I think they are finally getting talked about more.

ZZ: A difference from back then to now is my work ethic and love for the game. My work ethic has gotten me to where I am today and my love for the game has continued to push me to where I’m at now. 

JL: When I started, I didn’t like it. It was something my dad made me do, but now I love getting to play with my friends.

Q: What’s your favorite memory?

RN: Probably the road trip to Moorhead two years ago.

NB: Last year Rachael Noble hit a game winning three pointer against Edina at home.

JS: Our last home game against St. Paul Central when that one kid [Robert Brown, St. Paul Central Senior] came in and made the two three-pointers.

BG: Probably hanging out in the hotel and hot tubs and stuff

LF: Definitely the Brainerd Trip

LH: Any long bus rides just because we were always talking and laughing.

MG: My favorite basketball memory is getting up early in the Summer and working hard with all the girls that truly want to be in the gym getting better.

ZZ: My favorite basketball memory was last year. We were playing Eden Prairie at home, and it was a close game the whole time. I was playing well in this game and it became a situation for a game winner. Ortmann drew up a play for me to catch it and score, which ended up happening. I scored a game winner and finished with 27 points.

JL: This whole year has been fun because we’re winning

These seniors have made an impact on our school on and off the court. With all their hard work and determination, they’ve brought it all. As their senior year comes to an end and they go off to live their lives, we wish them the best of luck in the future, regardless of basketball!

Braccini has been after this record since he started skating for the Bison, scoring 34 points as a sophomore. In his next season Jake totaled a whopping 64 points in his Junior season. He then followed that with a solid 39 point year, securing the record.

“When you go play your rivals for the playoffs it’s pretty awesome,” Braccini said. “I wasn’t thinking about the record at all, because I knew if I thought about that too much I wouldn’t play good. I ended up staying loose and said to myself ‘ If you break it, you break it, just focus on the win’, and that helped me get there.”

Jake ended the season on a high note despite the loss and will go down in history as the top scorer to ever put on a Buffalo Bison jersey.   

To qualify into the state tournament you must be top two in your section. There are 8 sections in class AAA and Ruhr took second place in the section 5AAA to secure his spot in the 120 pound class tournament.

“The thing that excites me the most about state is the atmosphere and being able to say I went to state, that feeling of accomplishment.” said Ruhr upon qualifying. Although Ruhr didn’t place this year, he has high hopes for what senior year will bring. “I would like to finish my senior year as one of the top six at state.” 

There is one thing that separates Ruhr from the rest of the high school athletes, the fact that he doesn’t actually go to high school full time. This year Ruhr is taking one quarter class at BHS, but other than that he is fully home schooled, and has been all his life. “I like the flexibility of being home schooled,” said Ruhr, “being able to do things on my time and not worry about due dates for everything.”

Home schooled or not, Ruhr had a great year of wrestling, and it should only be expected that more great things will come.

“When I played St. Michael in lacrosse it wasn’t so much that I cared if we won or lost because I don’t get too beat up over it, it is a lot just beating them because they are just so mean on the field. Beating them just feels good.” Sophomore Lily Hershley says about her experience playing the rivals.

The rivalry takes place in even the more calm sports. “Even with baseball being a more mellow sport there is definitely a lot more energy in the game. The preparation to play St. Michael is always just more intense than playing any other team.” Senior David Watermiller explains.

The boys baseball team defeated a top ranked St. Michael 6-5 in a thrilling game. St. Michael was ranked 13th in the state at the time and looking for another bid at state. “It’s nice to finally beat those guys, you can just tell they’re all cocky pricks,” stated David.

The boys and girls of the track and field team understand the frustration and rivalry that come with competing  against St. Michael too. “It’s different with track and field, but it does start to get old seeing them win in just about everything” said Senior Jordan Thielman. Both the boys and girls track teams suffered losses to the St. Michael track team.

“It was hard losing to them last year with knowing a lot of the kids, so we were extra prepared for the game,” said Senior Kevin Kemp. It was a close game all the way through with a 6-6 tie at halftime. “We knew it was going to be a hard game but if we played well, we were going to win,” stated Kemp.

After the third the boys were down by three and needed some people to step up. Senior Brady Hartman came to the call by finishing the game with 4 goals. But it was Senior Gavin Welch scoring the game winning goal with just 2 minutes to play. “I was able to use my speed to beat him to the net, and then I had a good finish low on the goalie,” said Welch.

The Bison wrap up their season Friday with a game against Hutchinson. The boys have had a good season with only three losses, and hope to make a run in a tough section 8 for boys lacrosse.

On October 9, 2007, Sam Munoz was involved in a car accident that eventually took his life. Every year since then, the Bison Baseball community gets together for the Sam Munoz Memorial Game to celebrate his life and raise money for the Munoz Scholarship fund, which goes out to one senior on the team pursuing a baseball career in college.

This year, the Sam Munoz game is especially special to one Bison Baseball player. Senior Josh Munoz played in his last Sam Munoz Game to honor his older brother.

“This game means a lot to me and my family”, said Senior Josh Munoz. “It’s obviously very special because it’s for my brother. I just think it’s really cool because baseball was the sport he was very passionate about obviously and I carry the same passion as well and holds a lot of meaning to me, my dad, and my family.”

For the last four years, Josh has been able to play in the memorial game rather than being a spectator, adding even more meaning to the game of baseball for Josh.

“It’s definitely a lot cooler being on the field rather than just watching when I was younger,” said Munoz. “The game still meant a lot to me when I was younger, but being on the field holds a whole new meaning. I’m in a different focus when I’m on the field.”

The Sam Munoz game always attracts a big crowd adding a lot more energy to the game for all the players.

“I’ve played in the Munoz game for four years and I think it’s a great way to celebrate Sam’s life since baseball was such a big part of his life and of his family’s life. I think it’s one of the most fun games to play in, it’s always a nice night and brings out a good crowd,” said Senior Luke Merz. “I think at times it might be a little hard for them because they’ll have memories come up. But I think this game is a great way to celebrate his life because that’s what Sam would have wanted.

There were a lot of added emotions for Josh in this game, being that it would be the last one he would play in, but he handled them very well going 2-3 at the plate and scoring 2 runs.

“I just wanted to go out and give it my all, I was just praying that we would succeed in the game for my brother,” said Munoz.

Josh Ortmann graduated from Buffalo High School in 2007, where he set a team record for all-time points. Ortmann played his college basketball at St. Cloud State University, where he led the Huskies to a final-four appearance.

Coach Ortmann is very excited to coach this young talented team. He will hope to continue the legacy that Mr. Guida left behind. “It’s an exciting opportunity. I’ve been able to play for coach Guida and now I get to build off a lot of the expectations that he left behind.” Ortmann said. “I will continue to lead the Bison in a positive direction and I can’t wait to get started coaching this group.”

There might be some nerves going into a coach’s first season, but not for Ortmann. “I wouldn’t say that I’m nervous. I’m very excited about the opportunity ahead and I can’t wait to get to work and lead this team to success.” Ortmann said.

“It was a cold start to the season, but at least we were able to get out on the course this early,” said Junior Jake Ramsey

Co Captains Senior Hunter Bruhn and Junior Gunnar Goodmanson look to lead the way for the bison this year. There are high expectations for the team, with all former varsity players returning from last year.

“If we peak at the right time, we definitely have a chance to go to State,” said Bruhn. Goodmanson agreed, adding that as long as each player shoots what they’re capable of, he has no doubt that they could make a run.

With the team consisting of all upperclassmen but one, Sophomore Ben Zitur has some added pressure.

“Surprisingly I’m not that nervous,” said Zitur. “I have experience playing varsity from last year and I’ve improved throughout the time in between.”

The Bison took second place out of five teams at Pebble Creek. It was a good start to the season, setting them on the right track for a chance at State.