by Bridget M. Rohrer
Staff Writer
Football players from the University of La Verne have now found themselves in a position they are not too familiar with. Today at 4 a.m., the Leos began their travels to St. Cloud, Minn., for the first round of the NCAA Division III national playoffs. They will be playing St. John’s University tomorrow at noon.
Collegeville, Minn., is home to the men’s college of St. John’s. The campus is situated on 2,400 acres of woodlands and lakes, but is only 10 miles west of St. Cloud. Most students that do not live on campus commute from either St. Cloud or St. Joseph’s, which is four miles down the road and home to the women’s college of St. Benedict.
The players are in for a treat this year with the weather. In 1991, Collegeville experienced a blizzard over Halloween and felt the cold for the remainder of the winter. This year it has been warmer, with temperatures being in the 40 to 50 degree range.
Although St. John’s is located in the country and away from most of the urban lifestyle, students can find entertainment in a number of places.
“A lot of our students go to the movies or to dinner in St. Cloud,” said Tom Nelson, sports information director. “If the students are looking for nightlife, they can drive an hour to the Twin Cities [St. Paul and Minneapolis] and find it with no trouble.”
Nelson went on to say that people think that because the school is so small and all men, that they do not have much fun. This is not true—they work very closely with St. Benedict’s when hosting multitudes of social events.
The area was settled in the 1800s when the people learned that a living could be made in mining granite. This is an industry of the past; however, another industry has taken its place and along with the farming, it is a prosperous community. These days while driving down the road, paper mills can be found lining them. Champion Paper Plant is among those and one of the leading ones in the country. Also in St. Cloud, retail businesses make up a great amount of the city’s income. Because St. Cloud is the only community in a number of surrounding townships, retail businesses do quite well.
“If you don’t go to the Twin Cities, you go to St. Cloud to shop. Most of St. John’s staff lives in St. Cloud as well, making shopping there routine,” said Nelson.
St. John’s is a small school that is affiliated with the Roman Catholic church and sponsored by the Benedictine Monks of St. John’s Abbey, one of the largest monasteries in the world. Nelson was quick to point out that there is much activity from several areas of life. From colleges to monasteries to shopping and industry, central Minnesota is full of activity, and awaiting the arrival of the ULV football team.
