Fall sports season approaches as ISD 166 holds Aug. 11 meeting

ISD 166 will hold a fall sports meeting Tuesday at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The meeting will give parents and students an overview of Minnesota State High School League expectations and bylaws for student-athletes.

The school’s fall athletics programs are scheduled to begin before the start of the school year. Most teams will begin practices in the coming weeks and compete in their first meets and games before the end of the month.

ISD 166 offers three fall sports: boys and girls cross country, volleyball and football.

Cross Country

Cook County High School’s cross country teams compete as the North Shore Storm through a partnership with Silver Bay and Two Harbors.

The boys cross country team competed at the state meet last year after placing second at the Section 7A meet.

The girls team finished its season with a sixth-place finish at the section meet.

April Wahlstrom is the team’s head coach, with Emma Spoon and Chandler Litterst serving as assistant coaches.

“They had a really good season. I know they placed very highly,” Cook County Activities Director Mike Theismann told WTIP. “My understanding is that they should be just as competitive or even better this year.”

The North Shore Storm will open its season an Aug. 27 meet at Chub Lake.

Volleyball

Cook County’s girls volleyball team finished 9-17 last year with a young roster.

“They had a lot of underclassmen playing some major roles on their varsity and JV level, but they have a lot of those student-athletes returning who will be sophomores, juniors, as well as some seniors this year,” Theismann said.

Theismann, who runs a summer weight training program, said he has seen a noticeable increase in volleyball players attending training sessions.

The volleyball team will be coached by Colette Mueller, who served as the JV coach last year. Charles Hathaway and Reese Wright will coach the JV team, while Claire LaVigne will coach the C-squad.

The Cook County Vikings will play their first home game against Cherry on Aug. 31.

Football

The football team is coming off an undefeated regular season and a trip to the state tournament.

Only two seniors from last year’s team graduated, returning much of the 2025 roster for this season.

“High expectations,” Theismann said. “Guys have really put a lot of work in.”

Steven Anderson returns for his fifth year as head coach. Theismann serves as the JV coach, assistant varsity coach and defensive coordinator. Keaton Riley is the offensive and defensive line coach. Odin Jorgensen coaches the seventh- and eighth-grade team, assisted by Chris Smith.

WTIP spoke with Theismann about the upcoming fall sports seasons, construction of new facilities at the school and the benefits of extracurricular activities. Audio of the conversation can be found below.

Josh Hinke August 11, 2026