Boys Basketball

       Isaiah Baker led four Gobblers in double figures Thursday night, but they still fell to the Cherry Tigers on the road 83-64. The game was just five points at the half, but the Tigers had a stronger second half to stay unbeaten at 4-0 while dropping the Gobblers to 1-2 on the season. Baker led the Gobblers with 18 points while Caleb Smith finished with 14, Isaac Asmus had 13 and Bo Sanford had a strong game with 11 points. Noah Moss had 6 points and Tyler Boyd had 2 to finish up the Gobbler scoring. Coach Landon Janzen after the matchup, "We played with great energy but didn't execute on the offensive side down the stretch. We tried to force too many shots which turned into long rebounds and points."

Gobblers  34 30 64

Tigers        39 44 83

     The Gobbler JV picked up a 47-18 win over the Tigers. Jordan Goeritz led the way with 18 followed by Tyce Jorgensen with 10, Jeremiah Franzen with 9 and Isaiah Fowlds, Lenny Hughes, Jayden Janzen and Max Hagel each had 2 points.

     The Gobbler "C" Squad posted an exciting 33-31 win. Jayden Janzen led the Gobblers with 19 points.

    The Gobbler "JH" also traveled to Cherry. The 7th grade lost 50-17. Coach Garrett Lee after the game, "Our kids are really starting to work as a team." The 8th grade played a close one, losing 32-29. Lee after the game, "It was a hard, tough battle. The entire team worked hard together but couldn't pull out a win."

      The Aitkin Gobblers bounced back from a one-point loss on Tuesday with an impressive 58-40 victory over Pine City in the home opener Friday night. Isaac Asmus who was honored before the game for surpassing the 1,000 point mark led the way with 28 points, but he had lots of help. Noah Moss came out and put up 16 points while Bo Sanford had 6, Isaiah Baker had 4, Caleb Smith had 3 and Isaiah Fowlds added a free throw. The Gobblers got off to a quick 3-0 lead on a free throw by Asmus and a bucket from Baker. After a Dragon hoop, Sanford buried a three and Baker scored to make it 8-2. That brought a Dragon timeout with 14:52 left in the half. After a Smith three the Dragons went on an 11-0 run taking the lead at 18-13. Moss scored followed by an Asmus free throw and another Moss bucket and the game was tied at 18-18. Moss drove to the hoop for a 20-18 lead, Asmus scored, Moss hit a runner and Asmus nailed a put-back and it was a Gobbler 11-0 run and a 26-18 advantage. Asmus finished the half with a three-point play and a nine-point halftime lead for the locals. The Dragons scored the first two points of the second half, but Asmus ignited an 8-0 run with two buckets underneath, a thundering two-handed stuff and another hoop and it was 37-22. It was 41-26 when Isaiah Fowlds hit a free throw and Asmus meshed a pair of gifters. The Dragons had a spurt and cut the lead to 40-30 but that was it as Asmus converted a three-point play, Sanford nailed a three and Moss finished off the scoring with a bucket. Coach Landon Janzen after his first varsity win, "I thought we played really well, especially on the defensive end. Our goal is to hold the opponent under 50 points a game and we did that tonight. We were able to get the ball inside to Isaac and he knows what to do with it. Noah came back after a tough night Tuesday and put the ball in the hoop. We got beat in the transition game Tuesday, but we did a lot better tonight. Nice to get that first win on the board." Moss talked about his turnaround, "I just lacked confidence against C-I but I talked it over with the coaches and they gave me a lot of support, and I put things together tonight." The Gobblers were also able to get the ball to Asmus frequently against the Dragons and that really helps the offensive attack, "We started kind of slow tonight and after we saw how they were going to play of the defensive end, we made some adjustments, and I was able to get some good shots underneath." 

Dragons    20 20 40

Gobblers   29 29 58

       The Aitkin Gobbler JV team picked up a nice win Friday over Pine City. Jordan Goeritz and Tyce Jorgensen each scored 14 to lead the Gobblers to a 52-35 win. The Gobblers jumped off to a quick 7-0 lead on a pair of buckets by Isaiah Fowlds and a three by Goeritz. Later in the half it was Jorgensen with a three for a 12-4 lead. Two baskets by Goeritz and a bucket from Fowlds made it 20-4 and the Gobblers were off and running. They eventually pulled out to a nineteen-point lead at the break. Jayden Janzen opened the second half with a pair of hoops for a 42-19 lead, and the Gobblers went out to a big lead and the victory. Isaiah Fowlds added 8 points followed by Janzen with 5, Franzen with 4, Noah Hughes with 3 and Lenny Hughes and Drew Proctor each with 2 points. 

Dragons     15 20 35

Gobblers   36 16 52

      The Aitkin "JH" Gobbler boys basketball teams split a pair with visiting Grand Rapids Thursday. Aitkin won the 8th grade game 42-37 and lost the 7th grade matchup 50-23. Coach Garrett Lee, "Both teams did well, I'm very proud of all of them."

      Aitkin Gobbler senior Isaac Asmus became the 14th player at Aitkin to reach the 1,000 point mark at C-I Tuesday night and the first Gobbler since Hunter Nissen in 2021 to reach the coveted mark. I've seen all 14 of the men and women to reach 1,000 points and here's a capsule of each player including total points and the year they achieved the 1,000 point plateau.

1,619-2014 Nathan Ehnstrom, the all-time leader, was an outstanding scorer and ball-handler as well as being a floor leader for the Gobblers.

1,564-2009 Emily Mehr, second on the list and the top girls scorer at Aitkin. She was a great inside player as well as an occasional outside threat and a warrior on the boards.

1,538-2011 Meredith Chaput, a wonderful all-around player who would have certainly scored over 1,600 points if not for a late season injury in her final season. She could carry her team at any time.

1,292-2010 Nick Sundholm, a sniper in every sense of the word. He could send it up from any distance and was very effective. Also, a great ball-handler and a floor leader.

1,097-2016 Nathan Davies, a deadly shooter from the corner and an outstanding floor leader for a big man. He could run the fast break as well.

1,076-2021 Hunter Nissen, a great inside and outside player who could put up some big numbers in the scoring column and the rebounding stat sheet.

1,064-1999 Randy Gilbertson, what a nice ball player, not only a scorer but a ball-handler that could get the ball up the floor against any press.

1,060-2017 Taylor Ehnstrom, she could light up the scoreboard, a tenacious defender and rebounder as well as an excellent ball-handler.

1,048-2018 Maggie Fellerman, she was a great rebounder and if she got the ball under the basket, she was going to put the ball in the hoop. Good shooter for a taller player.

1,048-1986 John Tibbetts, oh what a shooter he was. He was the 2nd Gobbler to eclipse 1,000 points and he could light it up on any given night. Great ball-handler and floor leader.

1,047-1983 Mike Hillman, the first to hit the coveted mark and deadly from 10 feet in and good luck trying to take a rebound away from him. The first real big man in a Gobbler uniform.

1,040-1998 Liz Woodrow, the best free throw shooter in Gobbler history and excellent ball handler and a great shooter. Still top ten in Minnesota history, 269 of 322 free throws for her career and top five in free throw percentage for a season hitting 92-102 in 1998.

1,000-2001 Jennifer Straughn, a very tough player under the basket and an excellent shooter as well. Also, very strong on the defensive end of the floor.

      We'll add Isaac to the list at the end of his career.

      Isaac Asmus became the 14th player to score 1,000 points at Aitkin High School, but the Gobblers lost a season-opening matchup at Crosby-Ironton 74-73. Asmus reached the milestone early-on in the game and went on to score 23 points to lead the Gobblers. Caleb Smith hit six three-pointers for 18 points while Andy Hanson added 11, Isaiah Baker had 9, Noah Moss and Jack Jacobson each had 4 points, Tyler Boyd had 3 and Bo Sanford had a free throw to complete the scoring. Asmus talked about reaching 1,000 points, 

"It was fun getting it against Crosby. A lot of hard work and hours in the gym got me there. Now I'm hoping to reach 1,000 rebounds this year." It was a close game all the way with the Rangers leading at the half by two. Coach Landon Janzen after the loss, "We played them tough, didn't do the little things we need to do down the stretch. Time to regroup and get ready for Pine City on Friday."

Gobblers     42  31  73

Rangers       44 30 74

       The Gobbler JV scored a 45-30 victory over the Rangers. Jeremiah Franzen and Isaiah Fowlds each scored 10 to lead the way while Tyce Jorgensen added 9, Lenny Hughes had 7, Jayden Janzen and Jordan Goeritz each had 4, Drew Proctor had 3 and Mason Williams added a free throw.

      The Gobbler "JH" boys teams played in Hibbing Tuesday and lost a pair of matchups with the Bluejackets. The 7th grade lost 57-23 and the 8th grade dropped a 50-35 decision. Coach Garrett Lee after the trip, "The nine-man 7th grade team worked hard for the first time playing together. They all did great. The 8th grade showed a huge improvement from last year. They are really starting to work as a team. Looking forward to seeing both teams improve this year.

(action shots by Abbey Presto and Melanie Boyd)

     Monday was a big day for Gobbler senior Isaac Asmus. He made a verbal commitment to attend and play basketball for the University of Wisconsin-Superior Yellowjackets. The soft-spoken redhead, who looks to have a big final season at Aitkin, took some questions from his favorite sportswriter.

What was the deciding factor in making the decision to attend UWS?

Isaac-"It had the right family fit for me. Another reason is the coaches and players made me feel at home. I like their style of play and how close they are to home."

Were you considering other schools?

Isaac-"I looked at Concordia-Moorhead, Northwestern, Morris, UW-Stout and St. Johns."

How about your role and goals for your final season as a Gobbler?

Isaac-"I want to guide the team as a leader to a good season, and I hope to accomplish great things. A goal for me this year to reach 1,000 rebounds, (722), as well as 1,000 points, (998), and try my hardest to help my team get as far as we can in Sections this year."