Lester Prairie High School - Prairiette Yearbook (Lester Prairie, MN)

Page 39 text:

1939 FOOTBALL TEAM TOP ROW- Coach Falk, Merlin Groenke, Walter Schneider, Harold Lemke, Gordon Her- man, Donald Splettstazer, Raymond Radtke, Superintendent E. J. Erickson. BOTTOM ROW- Orval Birkholz, Roland Schmidt, Kenneth Norman, Captain Clyde Beise, Harry Elliott, Harold Schneider, Wayne Cutzman. 1939 FOOTBALL SEASON Silver Lake 0 Lester 45 Stewart 0 Lester 50 Silver Lake 8 Lester 44 Humboldt 0 Lester 27 Renville 7 Lester 34 Brownton 18 Lester 56 DISTRICT TOURNAMENT Hector 20 Lester 23 Four lettermen were lost by graduation: E. Spleiss, captain, Eugene Daggett, Oscar Rolf, and Ardin Gutzmann. Three of the four lettermen graduating were regulars on the champion- ship '38 team. An undefeated season was regarded as highly improbable by everyone except probably the coach and players who were an optimistic team. Mr. Foster was succeeded by Mr. Falk, a Hamline University graduate. Returning lettermen for the '39 season were A. Spleiss and Gutzmann at ends: Schmidt, center: Elliott, fullback: Norman, half: and Captain Beise, quarterback. The '39 season started out with a very impressive showing. In the first three games, the team won by decisive margins. With an increase in tougher competition, the team had to fight for its victories. The climax of season play was a 27 - 0 victo1'y over St. Paul Humboldt's six-man team played on the St. Paul Athletic Field under lights. This was some- thing entirely new to football fans and players in Lester Prairie. Another championship playoff was scheduled between the Eastern and Western half win- ners. The playoff was again scheduled at Hector, the same field the Lester boys won the cham- pionship on the year before. It was a new foe, in Hector western half winners. Hector High had an edge on the Lester team playing on their home field. This turned out to be true with Lester trailing the whole game until with 56 seconds to go, Lester behind 17 - 20, Elliott, on a pass play, ran the ball for a touchdown spelling V-I-C-T-O-R-Y for Lester High. All District awa1'ds were again presented with Elliott, from Lester, receiving the only nom- ination.

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FOOTBALL SEASON 1938 Silver Lake 18 Lester 38 Delano 14 Lester 44 Brownton 19 Lester 50 Delano 19 Lester 85 Silver Lake 0 Lester 38 DISTRICT TOURNAMENT Renville 24 Lester 31 From the previous season's records in football, fans in Lester Prairie realized there were football players as well as basketball and baseball in Lester High. The season opened with the entire squad of lettermen returning with the exception of Howard Ernst, center and capt. of the previous season. Other returning lettermen were Kenneth Norman, halfbackg Oscar Rolf, centerg Bud Daggett, endg Clyde Beise, quarterbackg Agmar Spleiss, end: and captain Eldor Spleiss, Ardin Gutzman was the first man to receive a serious inju1'y. A1'din received a broken arm during '38, Games were scheduled much easier in the '38 season with an increase in the interest of the sport. Five games were scheduled: two with Silver Lake, two with Delano, and one with Brownton. Coaches of the ten six-man teams in District Twelve elected to hold the first six-man tournament in District Twelve history. The winners of the eastern half to meet the winners of the western half in a grand finale at Hector. Lester being undefeated in the eastern half we1'e to meet Renville winners of the western half. The day scheduled for the championship play-off was handicapped by a wet field. Lester edged out victorious by a 24 to 31 margin. Eugene Daggett, end, and Eldor Spleiss, captain and full back received all-district nomina- tiong this completed another year of undefeated competition. .f 2 ,Af ' . .lf rs xXt Q7 L5 5 iflitgiii YLLNTS L-:ST STQMJ

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1937 - '38 BASKETBALL SEASON Lester Chisago City 25 Lester 20 Hutchinson 17 Lester Silver Lake 29 Lester 32 Brownton 19 Lester Hutchinson 15 Lester 24 Central 17 Lester Central 24 Lester 19 Glencoe 17 Lester Glencoe 8 Lester 24 Watertown 22 Lester Holy Trinity 28 Lester 32 Holy Trinity 14 Lester Watertown 28 Lester 22 Brownton 10 Lester Silver Lake 15 DISTRICT COMPETITION Lester Hutchinson 24 Lester 18 Brownton 13 Lester Glencoe 21 Lester 19 Olivia 14 REGIONAL COMPETITION Lester 31 Lynd 34 Lester 19 New Ulm 21 In '38 Lester High enjoyed a new deal in their basketball history. Under Coach Foster, Lester attained the highest heights a Lester team has ever accomplished, this being the first and only Lester team to win a district basketball championship. With a new gym, a new coach, and new equipment, a new standard in team morale was cre- ated which probably accounted for most of the team's success. Coach Foster and his Fosterites were given a banquet at the end of the season, Rollie Johnson of WCCO being the principal speaker. All members of the A and B squads were pre- sented with sweaters, the A squad receiving monograms and gold basketballs. 1938- '39 BASKETBALL SEASON Lester 15 Howard Lake 21 Lester 22 Brownton 14 Lester 20 Mpls. South 31 Lester 19 Central 9 Lester 33 Hutchinson 11 Lester 22 Glencoe 26 Lester 56 Silver Lake 12 Lester 31 Brownton 21 Lester 16 Central 14 Lester 32 Howard Lake 20 Lester 30 Glencoe 31 Lester 43 Silver Lake 18 Lester 18 Hutchinson 11 1939 TOURNAMENT Lester 44 Danube 16 Lester 30 Glencoe 28 Lester 42 Bird Island 11 Lester 28 Hutchinson 38 The '38-'39 season started out with as much enthusiasm as the year before. Lester lost only two members of the championship '38 team - Howard Ernst through graduation and Jim Maetzold having transferred to Red Wing. Other lettermen returning were: Eugene Daggett, captain of '38 and '39 team, Eldor Spleiss, William Ernst, Oscar Rolf, Clyde Beise, and Kenneth Norman. Agmar Spleiss and Howard W1'oge earned berths on the '38-'39 teams besides letter- men returning. The team did not seem to be able to get going, losing their opening games to Howard Lake and Mpls. South. The team kept improving as the season progressed and by tournament time they were in full stride. The hi-light of tournament play was Lester's victory over Glencoe in the semi- finals. Glencoe defeated Lester twice during the season. The setback that was hard to take was the defeat at the hands of Hutchinson who Lester High had defeated twice during the season handrunning. It was a spirited Hutch team that came on the floor to upset the Lester High boys. Hutchinson went on to win the Regional and represent District 12 in the State Tournament. Again Eugene Daggett was placed on the mythical All-District Teamg Eldor Spleiss also received All-District award making it the second straight year that two Lester men were chosen.