Sports

Be listening for our sports updates at 6:10am, 7:20am, 8:20am, 12:20pm & 5:20pm on Hometown Radio KEYL AM1400 & FM 103.1 and 99.7FM Hot Rod Radio 

Area high school sports schedule

(Events are subject to change due to weather conditions or other factors)

Thursday, October 8, 2026

Tennis - Girls - Staples-Motley & Crookston at Thief River Falls 3:00pm

Tennis - Girls - Section 6A Quarterfinals - Long Prairie-Grey Eagle/Upsala/Swanville at #1 Foley 4:00pm

Tennis - Girls - Section 6A Quarterfinals - #5 Osakis at #4 St. John's Prep 4:00pm

Tennis - Girls - Section 6A Quarterfinals - #6 New London-Spicer at #3 Sauk Centre 4:00pm

Tennis - Girls - Section 6A Quarterfinals - #7 Melrose at #2 Minnewaska 4:00pm

Cross Country - Boys & Girls - Bertha-Hewitt, Parkers Prairie, Verndale, Ashby, Ottertail Central, Wadena-Deer Creek, United North Central & Alexandria Community Christian at Ottertail Central Invite at Balmoral Golf Course 4:00pm

Soccer - Boys - Morris Area at Long Prairie-Grey Eagle 5:00pm

Soccer - Girls - Melrose at St. John's Prep 3:30pm

Soccer - Girls - St. Cloud Cathedral at Little Falls 3:30pm

Volleyball - Melrose at Montevideo 4:30pm

Volleyball - Browerville-Eagle Valley at Long Prairie-Grey Eagle 4:45pm

Volleyball - Swanville at Upsala 4:45pm

Volleyball - Breckenridge at Staples-Motley 4:45pm

Volleyball - Hillcrest Lutheran Academy at Parkers Prairie 5:00pm

Volleyball - Wadena-Deer Creek at Bertha-Hewitt 5:30pm

Volleyball - Osakis at Benson 5:45pm

Volleyball - Morris Area at Sauk Centre 5:45pm

Swimming & Diving - Girls - Holdingford at Albany 6:00pm

Friday, October 9, 2026

Swimming & Diving - Girls - True Team Section Meet - Sauk Centre, Melrose, Holdingford, Little Falls, Albany, St. Cloud Tech, St. Cloud Apollo/Cathedral, ROCORI, Sartell & Sauk Rapids-Rice at St. Cloud Tech 2:00pm

Football - Pillager at Perham 6:00pm

Football - Upsala/Swanville at Maple Lake 7:00pm - On 1400AM & 103.1 FM Hometown Radio KEYL

Football - Osakis at Royalton 7:00pm - On 99.7 FM Hot Rod Radio KXDL

Football - West Central Area at Long Prairie-Grey Eagle 7:00pm

Football - Ashby/Brandon-Evansville at Browerville-Eagle Valley 7:00pm

Football - Ottertail Central at Parkers Prairie 7:00pm

Football - Bertha-Hewitt at Cromwell-Wright 7:00pm

Football - Sauk Centre at Minnewaska Area 7:00pm

Football - Holdingford at Melrose 7:00pm

Football - Barnesville at Staples-Motley 7:00pm

Football - Wadena-Deer Creek at Frazee 7:00pm

Football - Redwood Valley at Kimball 7:00pm

Football - Little Falls at Albany 7:00pm

Football - Benson at Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa 7:00pm

Football - Mille Lacs at Verndale 7:00pm

Football - Paynesville at St. Cloud Cathedral at St. John's University 7:00pm

Saturday, October 10, 2026

Volleyball Tournament - Parkers Prairie, Staples-Motley, Barnesville, Sebeka, Park Rapids, Fosston, Underwood, Kittson County Central, Pierz, Hillcrest Lutheran Academy, Detroit Lakes, Benson, Henning, Thief River Falls  Walker-Hackensack-Akeley at Perham 9:00am

Cross Country - Boys & Girls - Staples-Motley, Albany, Alexandria, Becker, Chanhassen, Chaska, Fergus Falls, Marshall, Mounds View, ROCORI, Roseville, Saint Thomas Academy, Sartell, Sioux Falls Washington, St. Paul Highland Park, Stillwater, Thief River Falls, White Bear Lake, Willmar & Windom at the Lions Meet of Champions at Arrowwood Resort in Alexandria 10:00am

Swimming & Diving - Girls - True Team Section Meet - Sauk Centre, Melrose, Holdingford, Little Falls, Albany, St. Cloud Tech, St. Cloud Apollo/Cathedral, ROCORI, Sartell & Sauk Rapids-Rice at St. Cloud Tech 12:00pm (noon) 

KEYL and Hot Rod Radio are proud of our Sports Director - Kevin Houdek 

KEYL/KXDL Sports Director Kevin Houdek honored with WCCO Viewers’ Choice For Best H.S. Football Announcer In Minnesota 

Kevin Houdek has been calling games for the Long Prairie-Grey Eagle Thunder for 30 years. His knowledge of the teams and the game sheds a bright light for those who can’t attend.

“People all over the country [listen in],” Houdek said. “A guy from Browerville that’s down in Arizona, I’ll get a text from him every once and a while, you know, saying, ‘Great game.'”

On this night, the Thunder are playing the Staples-Motley Cardinals. Both teams were 0-2 — and hungry for a win.

“It’s not life or death,” he said. “It’s to have a good time and stay professional, and remember you’re broadcasting for two teams, not just your home team.”

Kevin Houdek (credit: CBS)

Sports teams and the media often clash, but Houdek has earned the respect of Activities Director Dan Zetah.

“Our coaches … really like him and respect him,” Zetah said. “He’s very savvy with the numbers, with stats. You ask him a stat about something, he’s got it right there.”

Listening to Houdek — as he delivers names and stats with computer-like precision — might be overwhelming to some, but it’s like poetry to someone who’s into the game.

“I think you can get some broadcasters … that can maybe get a little more opinionated or maybe get negative more, if you want to use that term. He doesn’t get that way at all,” Zetah said.

And it’s clear that Houdek loves his work.

“It’s so much fun,” he said. “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve appreciated it even more. Even at this level, I go to a game and every night I know somebody’s going to do something amazing.”

So if you’re ever driving through central Minnesota on game night, tune your radio to 1400 AM to hear the small-town guy who, in his own way, has hit the big time.

“A teenager’s going to pull off a big play, or they’re going to play their best game ever, and everybody’s having fun, and I’m having fun, too,” Houdek said.

-- Courtesy WCCO

 

KEVIN HOUDEK NAMED SID HARTMAN MEDIA AWARD WINNER

 

He was recognized at the 11th Annual Minnesota Football Honors on April 29 at U.S. Bank Stadium.

 

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - April 16, 2018 - Longtime radio sports director and broadcaster Kevin Houdek will receive the Sid Hartman Media Award from the Minnesota Chapter of the National Football Foundation. He was recognized at the 11th Annual Minnesota Football Honors on April 29 at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Houdek has spent 30 years as the sports director at KEYL/KXDL Radio in Long Prairie, Minnesota. Last fall he won WCCO TV’s Viewers’ Choice Award for Best High School Football Announcer. Houdek has been providing play-by-play for the Long Prairie-Grey Eagle Thunder for three decades.

In addition to football, Houdek has broadcast other high school sports including volleyball, boys’ and girls’ basketball, boys’ and girls’ hockey, wrestling, baseball and softball. He has covered Minnesota State High School League state tournament games for many of those sports for his station and the Minnesota Sports Broadcast Network.

Houdek is a Minnesota native who attended Danube High School before getting his associate’s degree in radio and television broadcasting at Brown Institute in Minneapolis. He is also a volunteer coach for youth baseball and wrestling and women’s slo-pitch softball, and is a 15 year veteran of the Long Prairie volunteer fire department.

The Sid Hartman Media Award is named after the Star Tribune’s most famous sports writer who is still covering local teams at age 98.