FERGUS FALLS, Minn. — An employee of a northwestern Minnesota automotive raceway was fatally struck by a race car as he crossed the track in an ATV on Wednesday evening.

Police said Scott Engfer, 68, was serving as a track official at the I-94 EMR Speedway and was driving the ATV across the track during a race around 5:30 p.m. when the crash happened.

First responders from several agencies, including the Fergus Falls Police Department, Fire Department and Ringdahl Ambulance, were at the scene. Lifesaving measures were administered before Engfer was taken to the Fergus Falls hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

He was also a board member with WISSOTA Auto Racing, which promotes dirt track racing in the Upper Midwest.

In a statement, WISSOTA said: “All of us at WISSOTA are heartbroken and devastated by the tragic accident that claimed the life of WISSOTA Board Member, I-94 EMR Speedway Staff Member and friend Scott Engfer. We offer our sincere condolences to Deb, the Engfer family, all of Scott’s friends, colleagues, and acquaintances during this unimaginably difficult time as we all grieve this painful loss. Times like these remind us how precious life is. We ask that you please respect the privacy of the family at this time and offer your support in any way you can.”

The incident remains under investigation by authorities.

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St. Paul Johnson running back Justice Moody exploded through the Central defense on a 68-yard touchdown run on Thursday afternoon, scoring the final points of his team’s 26-8 victory at James S. Griffin Stadium in St. Paul.

On the home sideline, Central quarterback Charlie Doerr dropped his head as he sat alone on the end of the Minutemen bench.

Moody carried three times for 100 yards and caught two passes for 22 yards and a touchdown. Meanwhile, the Johnson Governors came up with a big win as St. Paul’s five programs will vie for the Skyway TC-Red subdistrict this season, just one reason for Doerr’s disappointment.

A play that left him despondent shortly before Moody’s dagger began with a heave towards the right corner of the end zone with 9:32 remaining.

Central receiver James Brown had a step on Johnson’s Dea’majeon Henderson-Moore. But by the time the slightly underthrown pass arrived, the Governors defensive back had cut in front of Brown, leapt high and made an interception that changed the game’s trajectory. Central trailed 20-8 at the time.

“We had to get a stop and our defense played tremendous,” said Johnson coach Richard Magembe, whose team avenged losses to Central the past two years and improved to 2-1. “As long as we’re hustling, there’s always an opportunity for a turnover. (Henderson-Moore) is known for plays like that.”

Doerr finished with 17 carries for 52 yards but took a pounding while doing so, limping off the field after the game with a sprained knee.

“He always gets back up, no matter how hard he gets hit,” teammate Damarius Palmer-Bell said.

Doerr, a junior, completed just one of his nine pass attempts for 14 yards.

A first-year varsity starter, he said he doesn’t yet have the best connections with his receivers and was somewhat intimidated during the first half. He saw Brown make a sharp cut towards the end zone’s back corner, but produced a jump ball instead of hitting him on a line.

“Props to the corner for getting it,” Doerr said. “And of course, then they go score.”

Johnson took an 8-0 lead in the first quarter when Ali Farfan threw 16 yards to Anthony Stevenson, who slipped behind Brown at one of the end zone’s front pylons. Farfan threw to Moody for the 2-point conversion.

Johnson, which has won only four of its last 18 games with Central, pushed its lead to 14-0 with 3:27 remaining in the second quarter on Farfan’s 29-yard throw to Stevenson. The conversion attempt failed.

Central (0-3) couldn’t run out the clock at the end of the first half, turning the ball over on downs at its own 39-yard line just 11 seconds before intermission. The Minutemen committed a personal foul on a tackle and Farfan soon hit Moody on a 9-yard pass. The conversion attempt failed and the visitors led 20-0 heading into the break.

Central got on the scoreboard after a Johnson punt snap scuttled through Eloy Kang’s legs and out the back of the end zone for a safety with 7:28 remaining in the third quarter.

On the ensuing possession, five Doerr runs in seven plays propelled a drive that ended with Willie Harris plowing home on a 4-yard run. The conversion attempt was no good and the hosts trailed 20-8 with three minutes remaining in the third.

Henderson-Moore’s interception and Moody’s second touchdown rescued Johnson, which savored the triumph against its city rival.

“We could have performed way better than we did,” Stevenson said. “We stooped down to their level, but we got our revenge, which is what matters.”

Farfan completed 8 of 17 passes for 84 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception. He also ran seven times for 28 yards and teammate Jacoby Wiggins carried six times for 60 yards. Stevenson’s only two catches went for touchdowns.

Johnson hosts Highland Park on Sept. 19 and Central visits Minneapolis Southwest the same day.

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Thursday turned into a playoff preview for the Minnesota Lynx.

Entering the regular-season finale, if the Lynx beat Golden State they’d begin the postseason against the expansion Valkyries, whom they were unbeaten against. A loss meant they would get a Seattle team that beat them twice in four regular-season matchups.

The defense was strong throughout, the offense turned it up in the final quarter, and the Lynx prepped for the playoffs with a 72-53 victory over the Valkyries.

Game 1 of the best-of-three, first-round series between the No. 1 and No. 8 seeds is Sunday at Target Center.

Finishing 34-10, Minnesota tied the 2023 Las Vegas Aces for the most wins in a season in WNBA history. The Lynx finished 20-2 at home.

Natisha Hiedeman led the Lynx with 21 points, and potential league Most Valuable Player Napheesa Collier finished with 19 points, making eight of 10 shots, including three triples in four attempts to add another mark to her stellar career.

Collier is the second player in league history to finish with a 50-40-90 percentage for field goals, 3-pointers and free throws. Her final splits are 53.1%/40.3%/90.6%. Washington’s Elena Delle Donne did it in her 2019 MVP season.

The Lynx shot 43.3%, including 9 for 17 in the fourth quarter when they pulled away.

On Fan Appreciation Night, pink wigs were handed out to the Lynx faithful in honor of the StudBudz duo of Hiedeman and Courtney Williams. The duo keyed a fourth quarter start that quickly bumped a six-point lead to 13.

Dribbling off the wing, Hiedeman did a pump fake, stepped around a defender and scored on a scoop. A trey by Kayla McBride was followed by a Williams steal that resulted in a fast-break layup by Hiedeman.

Hiedeman swished another triple and scored on a layup to make it 59-41.

Averaging 8.8 points per game coming in, Hiedeman’s total made it the fourth time in five games she has scored at least 20.

Coming off a Tuesday loss in Indiana, a game where the Lynx lacked the needed aggression, Minnesota found ways to get back to what made them so successful in their own end.

How good was the aggressive Minnesota defense?

Golden State’s point total was the lowest against Minnesota this season. Its 22 first-half points, the fewest in a half by a Lynx opponent this season. The Valkyries’ eight first-quarter points tied for the fewest in a quarter by a Minnesota foe.

Losers of three straight games after winning five in a row, Golden State (23-21) was just 9 of 33 from the field in the first half, missing all 13 3-point tries and turning the ball over 12 times. It finished with 21.

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A grand jury has indicted a 36-year-old man in the April fatal shooting of his 72-year-old roommate in their South St. Paul apartment, the Dakota County Attorney’s Office said Thursday.

The indictment charges Jacob John Audie, 36, with one count each of first-degree murder and second-degree intentional murder in connection with the killing of Michael Maurice Schille at an apartment building on 12th Avenue off Thompson Avenue.

Jacob John Audie (Courtesy of the Dakota County Sheriff’s Office)

Audie was previously charged with second-degree intentional murder, not premeditated.

According to the criminal complaint, Audie called 911 about 8:45 p.m. April 11 and reported that he had shot Schille. Schille was found in the back bedroom with a television remote in his hand; he had a gunshot wound to the side of his face. He was declared dead.

Police arrested Audie in the apartment building’s parking lot. He gave a statement to police, saying he lived with Schille for the last year or two. He said he helped care for Schille and clean the apartment.

Audie said he used Schille’s AR-15 rifle to shoot the man once in the cheek area in Schille’s bedroom, according to the complaint, which doesn’t give a motive for the shooting. Officers located an AR-style rifle in the living room.

Audie remains in custody at the Dakota County jail in lieu of $1 million bail ahead of his next court hearing scheduled for Tuesday.

If convicted of first-degree murder, he faces the mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

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