×

Former Dodger visits

Great-granddaughter of Magnusson plays for Maroons

File photo Former Fort Dodge standout and Dodger Hall of Famer Floyd Magnusson during his playing days. Magnusson's great-grandaughter, Mia Cataldo, plays for the Dowling girls.

Jolyn Cataldo loves taking a trip down memory lane, revisiting the trail of nostalgia she remembers from growing up in Fort Dodge.

Cataldo is the daughter of the late Fort Dodge legend Floyd Magnusson. Her granddaughter, Mia, is a starter for the ninth-ranked West Des Moines Dowling girls basketball squad.

Jolyn always enjoys coming back to town.

“I needed my Fort Dodge fix,” Cataldo laughed. “It’s just a very special place to me. I love coming back home.”

Cataldo’s childhood memories are flooded with sports highlights because of her father. Magnusson was an all-state athlete at FDSH (Class of 1943) who was originally from Gowrie. He was inducted into the FDSH Hall of Fame in 1972.

Magnusson was a former University of Iowa National and Webster County I-Club President as well. He was a Hawkeye player in 1943 and 1944 before entering the Navy’s V-5 program during World War II.

Magnusson returned to Iowa City in 1947, and spent the next three seasons as a regular. From 1956 through 1974, he was a decorated official at the major college basketball level. During an incomparable 10-year period of time, Magnusson was an official in three Final Fours.

It was a special return to Fort Dodge on Friday for many reasons, as Jolyn also came to watch Mia play basketball in the Dodger gym. Mia is a junior for the Maroons.

“It was fun cheering for my granddaughter,” Cataldo said. “I was rooting for Dowling, but I was still wearing my Dodger red. I took a lot of pictures. This is a special place to my Dad and our family.

“I know Dad was watching.”

Cataldo, a 1968 Fort Dodge graduate, left town in 1969 and has lived in Des Moines ever since.

“Since my dad died, I don’t get back (to Fort Dodge) as often as I would like to,” Cataldo said. “We take a trip down memory lane every time back — it’s like listening to your favorite record.

“This time we came back early and drove around, looking at the different houses I lived in, the schools I went to, and then we visited the cemetery.”

When she stepped into the Dodger gym, Cataldo really savored the moment.

“I love to see the trophies and all the faces from the past,” Cataldo said. “It’s just great memories of a great town.

“I will be up Memorial Day to put flowers on Dad’s grave and visit all my spots again.”

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today