Spring is here, and summer is just around the corner — and the Minnesota Department of Transportation is taking advantage of a strangely light winter to get an early start on road construction season. With nearly 200 construction projects scheduled for every corner of the state, motorists will want to prepare for potential delays and detours before hitting the road. Local and state officials are also emphasizing the importance of driving with great care in work zones. ...

The St. Peter Area Robotics’ Nordic Storm (FRC 3018) team qualified for the FIRST Robotics Competition Championships after winning the Minnesota 10,000 Lakes Regional Tournament on Saturday, April 6 in Minneapolis. The world championships will be held April 17-20 in Houston, Texas, and this is the first time since 2016 that the Nordic Storm FRC team has qualified for this event. The Nordic Storm (FRC 3018) team joined forces with...

Minnesota’s top grillmasters are coming to the Nicollet County Fairgrounds to smoke out the competition in the largest barbecue competition in the state. On the weekend of May 10-11, the Minnesota Barbeque Society is returning to St. Peter for their second year in a row to host the 25th Anniversary Minnesota in May Barbeque Contest. Around an estimated 100 teams will be competing for $14,000 in prize money across several meat smoking competitions over the weekend. ...

After a tumultuous first couple of weeks to open the spring season, the St. Peter boys tennis team began to find a groove this week with five matches over the course of five days. With wins over Waconia, Worthington, New Prague and St. James and a lone loss to Mankato East, the Saints improved to 4-5. The final match of the week came Monday evening when St. Peter traveled to St. James for a battle of the Saints. Having suffered a doubles competition loss to...

With weather continuing to delay the St. Peter baseball team’s home opener, the Saints took to the road for a pair of tough matchups this week beginning with a Thursday showdown against Mankato East followed by a Saturday morning game with Stewartville. St. Peter held its opponents to a combined four runs this week, defeating the Cougars 6-2 before suffering a 2-1 loss to the Tigers after taking the early lead. ...

In a few short months Mandy and Cullen Kennedy of St. Peter went from amateur dancers to performing a 90s hip-hop dance routine on stage in front of hundreds of people raise money for suicide prevention. On Saturday, April 13, the Kennedys were invited alongside 11 other couples from Brown, Carver, McLeod, Nicollet, Renville, Sibley, and Wright counties to compete for the coveted mirrorball trophy at 2B Continued’s fourth annual Dancing Like the Stars Gala. ...

After outscoring their opponents 21-1 in the first two games of the season, the St. Peter softball team fell for the first time Friday in a 4-0 home loss to the Belle Plaine Tigers. With the loss, the Saints fall to 2-1 (1-0 BSB) on the young season. The offense for St. Peter was limited to just three hits in the game, with Nora Whipps getting onto base twice with...

Monday evening, the St. Peter track and field program hosted New Ulm and Windom Area in its first home meet of the 2024 spring season. The girls squad cruised to a first-place finish with 165 points, 75 more than New Ulm, while the boys also finished first with 128 points, 28 more than New Ulm. Girls highlights began with Liliana Prunty earning third in the 100 meter dash with a time of 13.96. In the 200m dash, Vivian Hendrickson finished first with a time of...

When patients suffering from severe drug addiction and mental illness have nowhere else to go, they’re often referred to the Community Addiction Recovery Enterprise (CARE) program in St. Peter, which offers treatment to chemically dependent adults with some of the highest support needs. But the state-run CARE program is now at a crossroads, as a recent proposal from the Minnesota Department of Human Services would shut down the program and repurpose the facility to expand patient capacity at the Forensic Mental Health Program at the...

While the St. Peter Regional Treatment Center stands as one of the largest institutions in the St. Peter community, it’s not often that the patients inside have a chance to share their voice. During the Arts Center of Saint Peter’s fourth biennial exhibition, “Changing Minds,” artists and musicians behind the mental health campus’ gates are given a rare platform to showcase their talents for the wider public. The exhibition, which...

Coaches, years coaching Head coach: Jesse Lager 10 yrs Assistant coaches Nate Nimps 3 yrs, Jake Powers 10 yrs, Chad DeBlieck 10 yrs, Steve Alger 6 yrs, Chad Salzwedel 10 yrs, Steve Schultz 1 yr, Jaxson Witty 2 yrs, Brandon Stoffregen 3 yrs, Justin Block 3 yrs, Pete Otterness 5 yrs, Matt Ulman 3 yrs, Scott Jaeger 3 yrs, Matt Beckel 3 yrs, Joe Loula 3 yrs, Jeremy Walter 3...

Coaches, years coaching Aaron Rothenberger 18th season (12th as head coach) Bob Messerli 8th season as assistant coach Will Miller assistant coach 1st season Magnus Soderlund assistant coach 1st season ...

Coaches, years coaching Head coach: Neil Doose 15th year Assistant coach: Steve Walker 1st year in St. Peter, 10 years in St. James Key Players Kaiden Brovold (12th) Kaiden had a solid 2023 year for the Saints dropping his average...

St. Peter Youth Wrestling competed at the NYWA State Wrestling Tournament April 4th-7th, and brought home plenty of hardware. The Saints had eight individual state place winners, the highest number ever in a single season. In order to qualify for state, wrestlers must place top two at a local district tournament, and top three at one of five regional tournaments around the state. State brackets are composed of the top 16 wrestlers across the state. ...

As the new look St. Peter boys tennis team continues to develop, they competed in a pair of duals at Gustavus Adolphus College. Facing Princeton, the Saints fell 4-3 with the final game being decided in an 8-6 third set, before they fell 6-1 to Pine City. With the losses, the Saints open the season with an 0-4 record as the team, with only three returning varsity starters, looks to build continuity. ...

Friday evening, the St. Peter softball team opened its 2024 spring season against the Hutchinson Tigers at Jefferson Fields. The game featured a pitching gem from freshman Devyn Welp as well as a balanced offensive attack that allowed the Saints to cruise to a 6-1 victory. Welp, making her first start for the varsity team, pitched the complete game, striking out 11 batters while allowing just a single walk and four hits. She also went 1-3 at the plate to help her own cause in...

Ecumen’s new adult day services program, which opened its doors in the First Lutheran Church of St. Peter last August, hosted Rep. Jeff Brand (DFL-St. Peter) Friday, April 5 for a two-hour conversation on his work in the Legislature. The adult day program is designed to provide opportunities for seniors and adults who live with a caregiver or are in adult foster care to get out of the house and come together for shared recreational activities. Between the hours of 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m....

Hundreds of people turned their eyes to the sky outside the Gustavus Adolphus College Schaefer Arts Center on Monday afternoon, hoping to catch a glimpse of the once in a generation solar eclipse traveling across North America. While St. Peter isn’t in the path of the total solar eclipse, Minnesotans could potentially see nearly 75% of the sun was obscured by the moon during Gustavus Solar Eclipse Extravaganza, which lasted from 1 to 3 p.m. ...

Whoever says glam rock is dead hasn’t been to the St. Peter Oktoberfest. The big hair and even bigger sounds of the 80’s will be rocking the Nicollet County Fairgrounds as four classic rock bands have been scheduled to take the stage for the celebration’s 13th annual outing. The St. Peter Ambassadors recently announced that Mankato-based cover band IV Play and 80s glam rock tribute band The Hype will be headlining Oktoberfest’s Friday Sept. 27 and Saturday, Sept. 28 concerts respectively alongside openers Rough House...

St. Peter School District voters are invited to the polls April 9 to cast ballots on the St. Peter Middle School building referendum question. Early voting continues through April 8. Those who plan on voting early can either vote by absentee ballot or in-person by visiting the Nicollet County Auditor’s Office. Starting Feb. 23, district residents have been able to vote via absentee ballot or in-person at the Nicollet County...