2017

Gunman Stephen Paddock killed 58 people and injured more than 500 more shooting at a crowd of concert-goers across the street from his 32nd floor window of the Mandalay Bay Hotel.

Ball don’t lie! The Minnesota Lynx avenged their controversial loss to the L.A. Sparks in game five in 2016, winning their fourth official WNBA title (and, unofficially, their fifth; I'm just sayin'). Sylvia Fowles led the way in both the regular season (19 ppg and 10 rebounds) and in the finals (19 and 13). 

#17 Dynasty Minnesota Lynx The Minnesota Lynx had always struggled. In their very best seasons, 2003 and 2004, they were 18-16 and lost their only playoffs. By 2010, they were 167-235 (.415) and going backwards—.371 from 2006 to 2010. They were criticized for failing to get Lindsey Whalen in the 2004 draft, saying they would have had to weaken the team. Well, how much weaker could they get?  Then, in 2010, the Lynx pulled the trigger, sending Renee Montgomery and the #1 draft pick in 2010 to Connecticut for Whalen and the #2 draft pick in 2010. But, Lindsey was not a miracle worker, not immediately. The Lynx, in fact, went from 14 wins in 2010 to 13 in 2011. Things began to really turn around the following year as the Lynx picked Maya Moore with the first overall pick of 2011. She joined Seimone Augustus, who had been the #1 overall pick in 2006; veteran forward and defensive specialist Rebekkah Brunson; and Whalen in what quite suddenly became a formidable unit.  Taj McWilliams-Franklin was the post for a couple of years, then Janel McCarville for a couple. Then, in 2015, the Lynx acquired Sylvia Fowles though, by now, Augustus and Whalen were past their prime. Their best team was in 2013, when they went 26-8 and swept all seven playoff games.  The secret of their success was that their nucleus varied in age from Brunson (born 1981) to Moore (born 1989). They all peaked at different times, and as one declined, another emerged. Then there was coach Cheryl Reeve, who was more or less constant—that is, a great coach throughout the Lynx’ great streak.

#20 Coach Cheryl Reeve So, who is Cheryl Reeve? Is there another significant Minnesota sports coach about whom so little is known? What we do know is that she has won four WNBA titles. She has the best winning percentage of any female coach, and she has more postseason wins than anybody. What you probably don’t know is that Cheryl Reeve is a brainiac. She played high school basketball, and played in the New Jersey state finals. She went to LaSalle, where she was an OK college player, but she got a degree and an MBA in computer science, won a MAAC and also an NCAA post-graduate scholarship, and was a Rhoades Scholar nominee. Reeve was an assistant coach at LaSalle and George Washington for seven years, then got the head coaching job at Indiana State, where she stayed for six years. She moved to the WNBA in 2001. She was an assistant at Charlotte, Cleveland and Detroit. In Detroit, she worked for Bill Laimbeer and won NBA titles in 2006 and 2008. She took over as GM but the team was soon disbanded.  She became the head coach of the Lynx in 2010 and has served ten seasons through 2019. She had great, great talent, but they played together as a team, with great precision and at a rapid pace. Reeve had something to do with that. Her new challenge is to build a second contender. If she can do that, her legacy as one of Minnesota’s greatest coaches should be assured. Right now? Who couldn’t win with Augustus, Fowles, Moore and Whalen?

• The Minnesota Vikings went 13-3 and defeated the New Orleans Saints in the NFL divisional finals on a last-second 61-yard   walk-off pass from Casey Keenum to Stefon Diggs. It was called the Miracle of Minneapolis, and it too avenged a painful loss, this one to the Saints in the 2009 “bountygate”/Brett Favre game. But, the Vikings lost to the Philadelphis Eagles 38-7 the following week.

#29 (tie) Event

Minneapolis Miracle

The Minneapolis Miracle took place on January 14, 2018. Or, in other words, it happened in 2017—that is, as a part of the 2017 football season. The Vikings went 13-3 and got a home playoff game with the 11-5 New Orleans Saints and QB Drew Brees. Despite the better record and the home field advantage, the Vikings were underdogs. The Saints had of course beaten the Vikings in the 2009 NFC final, 31-28 in OT, as they pounded Viking QB Brett Favre and paid one another bonuses for hitting and hurting opposing players.

Now the Vikings roared out to a 17-0 halftime lead. But, then, the wheels came off. The Saints dominated the second half, taking the lead at 21-20 with just 2:20 on the clock. The Vikings came back for a field goal at 1:32 to lead 23-21, but New Orleans matched it just 28 seconds later to lead 24-23. With time running out, QB Case Keenum threw a pass up the right sideline. Stephon Diggs caught the ball, Saints safety Marcus Williams missed on a half-hearted attempt at a tackle, and Diggs was off to the races. It was the first game in NFL playoff history to end with a walk-off touchdown as time expired. 

Was it revenge for the bountygate game? Maybe even for the Hail Mary game of 1975? No. Those both happened with a Super Bowl on the line. To complete the revenge scenario, the Vikings needed a win the following week against the Philadelphia Eagles for a return to the Super Bowl for the first time in more than 40 years. It didn’t happen. For the second time this century, they lost the NFC final by more than 30 points. This time the score was 38-7.

• The Minnesota Gopher softball team (56-5) repeated as Big 10 champions behind all-America pitcher Sara Groenewegen (31-4, 0.63) and were rated #1 in the nation at one time. The Mankato State softball team won 64 games and the NCAA D2 title. Pitcher Coley Ries won 41 games with a 1.05 ERA.

• The St. Thomas women’s basketball team won their seventh straight MIAC title and got to the NCAA D3 semi-finals undefeated, but lost to finish 31-1. The Elk River girls upset Hopkins 64-60 to win the Class AAAA state basketball title. It was Hopkins’ sixth final in seven years, in which they now dropped to 4-2.

Year	Athlete of the Year	Team of the Year	Coach of the Year	Event of the Year
2017	1. Sara Groenewegen, Minnesota Gopher softball 2. Sylvia Fowles, Minnesota Lynx 3. Harrison Smith, Minnesota Vikings	1. Minnesota Lynx   (33-9 including playoffs, WNBA champion) 2. Minnesota Vikings (13-3 including playoffs) 3. Minnesota Gopher softball (56-5, Big 10 champion)	1 (tie). Allister (Big 10 champion) Lori Meyer, Mankato State softball (Northern Sun, NCAA D2 champion) 2. Reeve 3. Ruth Sinn, St. Thomas women’s basketball (MIAC champion)	1. The Minnesota Vikings shocked New Orleans 29-24 with a walkoff 61-yard TD pass. 2. The Minnesota Lynx beat the L.A. Sparks 85-76 in game 5 of the WNBA finals. 3. Elk River beat Hopkins 64-60 to win a state girls basketball championship.