Football
Kotelnicki named Sioux assistant
Former UND standout linebacker Josh Kotelnicki now is a Sioux assistant coach.
UND announced the hiring of Kotelnicki on Wednesday. He will coach outside linebackers and also will be the special teams coordinator.
Kotelnicki played for the Sioux from 1997 through 2001 and was a starter on the UND 2001 national Division II title team.
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"Josh's passion for this program, coupled with his broad coaching experience, make us a better team immediately," UND coach Chris Mussman said.
Kotelnicki spent the 2007 season as a defensive graduate assistant at Kansas State, where he worked primarily with outside linebackers.
Prior to last season, Kotelnicki was the defensive coordinator at Truman State of Missouri and helped the Bulldogs to a four-win improvement from the previous season. Also, it was Truman's best defensive season since 2002.
Kotelnicki began his coaching career with Murray State of Kentucky, where he served as the linebackers coach and assistant offensive line coach for two seasons.
While at Murray, Kotelnicki helped the Racers improve their pass defense from 64th nationally in 2002 to fourth in 2003. He also helped the team's offense to a school-record 2,849 rushing yards.
UND begins spring practice Monday.
MEN'S BASKETBALL
Winona St. 67, Grand Valley St. 54
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SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- Jonte Flowers scored 29 points as Winona State overcame a five-point deficit Wednesday night to oust Grand Valley State from the NCAA Division II tournament.
The quarterfinal victory kept alive the hopes of the No. 3 Warriors, who won the 2006 NCAA title but lost to Barton in last year's 77-75 final. The only regular-season loss for Winona State (36-1) was a one-point overtime defeat to St. Thomas, another Minnesota team, in the seventh game.
Grand Valley State (36-1), the nation's No. 2 Division II team, saw its unbeaten season and title hopes extinguished. The Lakers scored the final 18 points of the first half to lead 29-24, but Winona State opened the second half on a 17-3 run, with Flowers scoring 13 points.
The Lakers went without a 3-point basket for nearly the first 30 minutes but extended their 3-point shooting streak to 631 games when Jason Jamerson connected with 10:19 remaining. They finished 2-for-19 on 3-pointers, spoiling Callistus Eziukwu's 19-point, eight-rebound effort. Grand Valley State teams have hit at least one trey in every game since the shot was added in the 1986-87 season.
