Milliron receives junior hockey top honor

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New Richmond native Tanner Milliron has been named as the top goaltender in the Superior International Junior Hockey League for the 2011-12 season. Milliron plays for the Wisconsin Wilderness, based out of Spooner.

In 33 games this season, Milliron leads all SIJHL goalkeepers in multiple categories, including wins (28), goals-against average (1.55), save percentage (.937) and shutouts (seven). His average, save mark and shutout numbers not only pace the SIJHL, but they are also the best of any puck stopper in the entire 133-team Canadian Junior Hockey League.

Milliron led the Wilderness to the SIJHL championship. Last week the Wilderness was ranked fourth among all the Canadian Junior Hockey League teams.

Todd Nelson

New Richmond’s Todd Nelson is now a Saluki. Nelson began a new position last week as the first assistant coach in the volleyball program at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale.

SIU hired a new coaching staff, with Todd Ingram as the head coach. Ingram selected Nelson to be his top assistant. Nelson joins SIU after serving as an assistant coach at the University of Denver.

Nelson was also one of three finalists for the head women’s volleyball coaching position at the University of Montana.

Southern Illinois is the latest stop in a lengthy coaching resume for Nelson. Before coaching in Denver for six years, he coached three years at Marquette University, three years at Indiana State University and four years at the University of Minnesota-Duluth. Nelson graduated from UMD in 1998.

Megan Plourde

Junior middle blocker Megan Plourde received her second postseason All-America honor, being named to Volleyball Magazine’s All-America third team.

Last month, Plourde was selected to the AVCA All-America third team. Along with senior Katelyn Steffan, who was also named to the third team, the duo became the ninth and 10th All-Americans in program history.

For the 2011 season, Plourde was the NCAA’s top blocker after averaging 1.71 blocks per set. The Somerset native currently ranks fifth in the program’s record book with a career-total 461 blocks. She is on pace to finish her career in second place with 610 total blocks. Along with her outstanding blocking, Plourde had 248 kills, third-highest on the team. She is majoring in business administration.

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