The new school year is here. It will be a completely new beginning for some, for others it provides an opportunity to continue moving along a path they have already started. There will also be those who will see it as an opportunity to press the reset button, starting with a clean slate. All three scenarios are telling of the Rugby Panther athletic teams and where they are at this point in time.

Cross Country

The Rugby boy and girls cross country team will be counted on to deliver once again, led by head coach William Jansen and Jennifer Bartsch, assistant boys and girls coach.The 2024 cross country team will be looking to continue the great showing Rugby teams of the past have shown. Some athletes were apart of those earlier Rugby teams and will be looking to use the experience gained from those campaign to set the tone this year and for future Rugby teams

The 2023 Rugby Girls placed top two at the Regional and top three at the cross country state. The Boys team finished top three at Regional and top five at State.

During the 2023 season the Rugby girls finished fourth at the Northwood cross country Invite with a score of 99, while the boys finished second overall with a score of 99. At the Mandan Kiwanis Invitational the Rugby girls finished fifth with 119 points, while the boys finished 8th, scoring 275 points.

At the 7th Annual Devils Lake Grahams Island Invitational, the Panther girls finished 2nd with a score of 42 points, while the boys finished 2nd scoring 58 points. The Rugby crew continued a string of strong performances at the Blue & White Invitational as the girls finished fourth with 107 points and the boys finished 6th with 26 points.

The hosting of the 29th Annual Rugby Booster Club Invitational was when the Panthers cross country teams pressed their feet on the gas. The girls finished first with an 83 points score while the boys placed 8th with 209 points.

By time the Panthers got over to the Cooperstown Bible Camp meet they were in top form with the state championship around the corner. The girls placed first overall in the 5000 meter run finals at Cooperstown with 31 points,while the boys finished in second place with 140 points.

The Rugby girls were all in at the ND Class B East Regional cross country Championship, placing first with 54 points. The boys finished fifth overall with 194 points scored.

After showing what they were made of all season, the Rugby girls capped their season by placing second at the 2023 NDHSAA Class B State cross country Meet, cementing what had already been an impressive season.

The Panther 2024 girls cross country roster will include junior Hannaah Senechal, a four time All-Region and four time All-State athlete; Sophomore Keyara Lundstrom, a two time All-Region and a one time All-State athlete; Mya McNeff, a senior and one-time state meet participant; Evyn Jacobson, a Sophomore and two time All-Region. The team will also include 2023 state meet participants in senior Ashlyn Dibble, Sophomore Mauvlyn Kirchofner, junior Sara Schmaltz, freshman Kathryn Kuntz and junior Jaelyn Lunde.

Returning to the boys team are: senior Holdyn Jacobson, who has made two All-Region teams; sophomore Brayden Green, who has made one All-Region team; senior Jenner Johnson, who also is a one time All-Region team member. They will be complemented by 2023 State Meet Participants: sophomore Austin Duchscher; senior Maddex Kirchofner; 8th Grader Zeke Puente; freshman Sawyer Brossart; sophomore Dane Whorley; junior Damien Herman and freshman Liam Wurgler.

There is still time for prospective athletes to try out and be added to the team as roster spots will not be finalized until practice starts.

As the team moves forward they will be without some of their top athletes from last season.Those who have graduated include the likes of Brooklyn Bartsch, the 2023 NDHSCA Girls Cross Country Outstanding Senior Athlete. Bartsch is also a 5 time All-Region, 4 time All-State and 6 time state participant. Amelia Shepard, a 3 time All-Region, 3 time All-State and 5 time state participant has also graduated. Tressa Arnston and Haylee Jundt will also be missing from this year’s girls team.

The Boys will be without the recently graduated, Connor Klein, a 4 time state participant.

Practice for both the boys and girls teams will start on Monday, August 12, 7:00 pm at Johnsen Field in Rugby.

The Panthers first meet is Saturday, August 24, in Jamestown at Parkhurst Recreation Area. Rugby is scheduled to compete at the East Region meet on Saturday, October 12 in Cooperstown at Cooperstown Country Club. The State Class B meet will be held on Friday, October 25 in Jamestown at Parkhurst Recreation Area. There are more meets to be added as the schedule is not finalized at this time.

Football

The Rugby Panthers football team will welcome the new season under the stewardship of a new head coach, Tyler Green. The start of a new season will afford the Panthers an opportunity to rest the clock and have a fresh start after finishing the 2023 season with a 1-and-8 record, with a victory coming against Park River Aggies in a 22-16 score game. The Panthers will be counting on players’ development, fierce competition and health to take steps forward in 2024.

“I have high expectations for the season. We are looking to have a turn around season. We play to be competitive and have some fun doing it.” said head coach Tyler Green.

Some of the players that will be counted on to help the Panthers turn things around are Taytum Risovi, Tucker Volk, Kolton Bohl, Bryce Zeitz and Cole Anderson, amongst others.

Key Players that will not be returning to this year’s team include the likes of Austin Schneibel and Micah Musser, who were selected as members of the 2023 Region 2 All Region Team. The other graduates include Hudson Hjelden, Cy Walker, and Dane Heidebreder, who received honorable mention for the 2023 Region 2 All Region Team.

The news season presents an opportunity for younger players to seize the moment and take the next step forward. A few players that will be returning from significant injuries and are expected to contribute this year are running back Jose Ortega and tackle Landon Zietz, who missed all of last year with an injury.

The Rugby Football assistant coaches are Isaac Ripplinger, Levi Lemer and Luke Bacon.

The Panthers first practice will be on August 8th and the first game of their season will be on Aug 23 against the Nedrose Cardinals. Throughout the 2024 season, the Panthers Varsity Football team will play a total of ten games.

“We obviously want to improve on our overall record from last year, but more specifically our run game and our run defense,” said Green.

Volleyball

The Panthers volleyball team is excited to kick off the season with head coach Jessica Fritzl leading the charge. The junior varsity coaches are Deb Goven and C coach Olivia Erpelding, while the junior high team will be coached by Alyssa Mattern and Suzanne Darling.

Rugby volleyball will be aiming to get things back on track like the Rugby teams of the past and anticipate having a better season this coming fall.

“I am looking to our returning players to bring a new level of confidence into our season and get back into the regional tournament and turn heads after our tough season last year.” said head coach Jessica Fritz. “We are eager to build on our program’s success over the years and bring it back into this season.”

The 2024 Panthers will have returning to the team the following hitters: Lacie Deplazes, Katie Sullivan, Reese Gullickson, Alli Blessum, Sam Blessum and Brylee Amyotte, along with rolls setting specialist Jesse Wolf.

The Panthers girls are ecstatic as they welcome the return of Brooklyn Hager to their lineup. Hager, a three sport athlete: having played volleyball, softball and basketball, suffered a knee injury that deprived her a year of competition. Ava Jacobson is a player that is primed to help contribute to the Panthers in their 2024 campaign, where she will be counted on to help out with setting.

The Volleyball girls who will move forward without their recent graduates: setter Kaedyn DeMontigny, hitter Haley Solem and libero Taylor Pritschett.

The girls will begin practicing on August 19th, with their first game coming on September 3rd against North Star, a non a non-region team that offers great competition at the start of season as a way of preparation for the rest of the season. This season they are scheduled to compete in three major tournaments, one of which will include the Des Lacs Burlington Tournament.

“Our biggest goal would be to improve our overall confidence on the court. We were a young team last year and this year we are looking at that experience to lead us into a stronger finish than last season.” said head coach Fritz. “We are hoping to make a solid statement again in our district and region. With our height and athleticism we are hoping to bring that into our play.”

Golf

The Rugby Golf Girls will be coached by Angie Zietz and Lance Zietz. The varsity team will have experience in the lineup as the following players will be returning for another season: Ashlyn Dibble, Brooke Kleespie, Marly Santjer, Tallie Dosch and Avery Santjer.The girls squad will be complemented by new additions: Addie Mack, Helen Medalen and Bella Grove.

The first practice will be on August 5th, for which they have less than a week to prepare for the first exhibition of the season.

“We are going to work together to get these girls focused on course management and know where to miss. Working hard but also having fun is key to success. We start practicing on August 5th.” said head coach A. Zietz. “The girls head to South Heart August 11 for a 2 day tournament starting the 12th. We come back to a JH/JV meet in Velva and a varsity meet on the 16th also in Velva! We are excited to see where the season takes us.”