All of the Antelope County volleyball teams will play in the D1-7 subdistrict volleyball tournament at Norfolk Catholic next week.
On Monday, Oct. 29, the 16-11 Neligh-Oakdale Warriors are the #4 seed in the tournament and will take on #5 Plainview (13-13) in the first game at 5 p.m. The winner of the N-O vs Plainview match will advance to play top-seeded Elkhorn Valley at 7:30 p.m on Monday. In an all-Antelope County matchup, #2 Elgin Public/Pope John will play #3 Clearwater-Orchard at 6:15 p.m. on Monday. The winner of the EPPJ vs OC game will advance to play the match 3 winner in the subdistrict championship on Tuesday, Oct. 30 at 7 p.m. A poor performance cost the Elkhorn Valley volleyball team, as the Lady Falcons fell to Chambers/Wheeler Central in three sets, 25-18, 25-19 and 25-19, in the semifinals of the Niobrara Valley Conference tournament Tuesday at West Holt.
“I thought we were in every single set clear till the end, but we didn’t have the energy we needed to (win the set),” stated EV mentor Emily Vaughn. “It’s disappointing potentially going into the conference finals. We put ourselves in this place and wanted to do well, but the energy wasn’t there that we needed to win.” After digging themselves in an eight-point hole in the first set, the Lady Falcons used a 10-5 run to cut the deficit to three thanks to a Hannah Ollendick kill, block and ace. CWC responded with a 10-6 run to win the set. The second set started as a back-and-forth battle, with nine ties and four different lead changes. After CWC used an 8-1 run to take control of the set, EV answered with a 7-2 run to cut the deficit to one. Two blocks and a kill by Taylor Jean Peter gave the Lady Renegades an all important 2-0 set lead heading into the final set. The third set started the same as the second, with both team fighting tooth and nail for momentum, but the Lady Renegades used a 6-1 run to take control and claim a 20-15 lead. EV refused to give up and responded with a 4-1 run to cut the deficit to two, but CWC scored the final four points to take the set, and the match. “That was a good team we played and we had opportunities, but we didn’t pull it together mentally,” Vaughn said. Amber Miller led the Lady Falcons with a double-double after recording 14 digs and 12 assists, to go along with six kills. Ollendick collected six kills, a block, an ace and eight digs, Sierra Rystrom tallied five kills, two aces and seven digs, Olivia Nall had two kills, three aces and 10 digs and Haley Fleetwood added two aces and 17 digs. CWC (22-6) faces Ewing in the NVC title match Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Niobrara. Elkhorn Valley (17-9) looks to bounce back Friday against county rival Elgin Public/Pope John in the third-place match of the NVC tournament at 6:15 p.m. at Niobrara. “We need to rebound, learn from this game and know that every single game from here on out is going to be against tough competition,” Vaughn concluded. “We have to come back with some energy and fire, otherwise it’s going to be a short season.” Despite a valiant effort, the Elgin Public/Pope John volleyball team fell to Ewing in three sets, 25-21, 25-14 and 25-17, in the Niobrara Valley Conference tournament semifinals Tuesday at West Holt.
"I was really happy with the way the girls came out," said EPPJ coach Tina Thiele-Blecher. "Ewing is a great team and they have guns coming at all times, from everywhere. Our defense didn't quite adjust as much as I'd hope." Both squads fought tooth and nail in the opening set, as there was seven ties in the first set. The Lady Wolfpack went on a 4-0 run to tie the match at 21, but the Lady Tigers ended the set with a 4-0 run after Ashley Koenig's kill. "We came out in that first set on fire and ready to go," Thiele-Blecher recalled. "We played them so tight in the first set, that we wanted it too bad in the second set and could not get anything going our way." Ewing opened the second set with a 7-1 run and cruised to a nine-point set win. "At this point and time of the season, everybody is going to bring their A game," said Ewing coach Suz Funk. "You have to be prepared for every point. We knew they were going to get their shots, we just needed to stay focused and handle it the best we could." Following a Kayce Kallhoff kill that tied the third set at six, the orange and black went on a 13-5 run to claim a 19-11 advantage. Koenig scored the final three kills for Ewing to win the set, and the match. Haley Zegers led the Lady Wolfpack with eight kills and six digs. Kaylee Martinsen recorded three kills, an ace, four digs and a block, Allyson Wemhoff tallied three kills, five digs and 10 assists, Kallhoff accounted for four kills and six digs, Harlie Bode added three blocks and Anna Heilhecker pitched in 16 digs. The Lady Tigers used a balanced attack to seal a spot in the NVC title match. Four different players recorded double-digits points led by Brenna Wagner's 10 kills, four blocks and three aces. Tiana Thramer had nine kills, three blocks and an ace, Sidney Stallbaum accumulated seven kills, two aces and two blocks and Koenig contributed eight kills, a block and an ace. "We did a better job in the serve and pass game," Funk said. "When you serve aggressively and pass well, you have a lot more options. When we pass the ball, we have a lot of options to use. We kept their blockers going from pin-to-pin and kept them out of their system. It worked for us tonight. Kudos to the girls, they did a great job passing. They were focused and knew what they needed to do." Ewing (26-1) plays Chambers/Wheeler Central in the NVC championship match Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Niobrara. "We need to stay focused," Funk added. "We'll watch game film, fine tune on that and watch them (CWC) play. They are a great ball club, so we need to go to school and try to learn on them." Elgin Public/Pope John (18-11) faces county rival Elkhorn Valley Friday in the NVC third-place match at 6:15 p.m. at Niobrara. "Tonight is still going to help us for next week (for sub-districts) and next week is a little more important than this week," Thiele-Blecher concluded. "The NVC is tough and I told them to be proud of being here tonight. There's nine other teams practicing tonight instead of playing here. I'm proud for them even being here tonight." ![]() Elkhorn Valley dominated Neligh-Oakdale on Monday night in the quarterfinals of the Niobrara Valley Conference tournament. Elkhorn Valley won 25-15, 25-22, 25-17 and advances to Tuesday’s semifinal against Chambers/Wheeler Central at 7:30 p.m. in Atkinson. Ewing will take on Elgin Public/Pope John in the 6:15 p.m. match. The Falcons jumped out against the Warriors early and used a hefty front-row attack to keep the Warriors battling for position. Hannah Ollendick put down a match-high 15 kills for the Falcons while Amber Miller had eight kills and Olivia Nall and Sierra Rystrom each added seven more. Miller also had 24 set assists and 14 digs as she continued to be the Falcons’ go-to player in all fascists of the game. The second set was much more evenly matched as the Warriors stayed close to Elkhorn Valley, despite spending much of the set running down passes. At 21-20, the Falcons pulled away against the fatigued Warriors and used the momentum to complete the three-set sweep. Haley Kerkman had seven kills to lead the Warriors while Amanda Dietz added six. Definsively, Kerkman had 14 digs, and Paige Furstenau picked up 10. With the win, Elkhorn Valley is guaranteed to play both Tuesday and Friday, which will be the consolation and championship matches. Neligh-Oakdale is off until subdistricts begin Monday, Oct. 29, at Norfolk Catholic. Also in the D1-7 district will be Elkhorn Valley, EPPJ, Clearwater-Orchard and Plainview. Neligh-Oakdale 15 22 17 Elkhorn Valley 25 25 25 Neligh-Oakdale: Paige Furstenau 10d, 2sa; Trinity Kurpgeweit 3k, 1a, 4d; Brooke Frey 1k, 2d; Amanda Dietz 6k, 1b, 1sa; Shelby Pitzer 1k, 6d; Haley Kerkman 7k, 1a, 14d, 9sa; Claire Whitesel 6d, 4s; Josey Booth 2d, 1sa; Kristen Snodgrass 1k, 8d, 2sa. Elkhorn Valley: Olivia Nall 7k, 2a, 2sa; 8d; Bria Gale 2d; Carney Black 1k, 3sa; Haley Fleetwood 1a, 14d; Amber Miller 8k, 7a, 14d, 24sa; Hannah Ollendick 15k, 12d, 3sa; Kaylee Bacon 2k, 1b, 3d; Sierra Rystrom 7k, 8d, 1sa. The Elgin Public/Pope John volleyball team earned two three-set sweeps over Niobrara/Verdigre and Boyd County Monday in the opening day of the Niobrara Valley Conference tournament.
A balanced attack led the Lady Wolfpack to a sweep of N/V, 25-18, 25-4 and 25-16. Five different players recorded at least four kills in the match led by Kayce Kallhoff and Haley Zegers’ eight kills and seven digs apiece. Kaylee Martinsen collected six kills, six aces, two blocks and seven digs, Harlie Bode contributed five kills, Kirsten Krebs tallied four kills, six assists and three blocks, Grace Rittscher added three aces, Anna Heilhecker had two aces and 13 digs and Allyson Wemhoff recorded a double-double with 16 digs and 18 assists. EPPJ ended the night with a three-set win over Boyd County, 25-25, 25-8 and 25-23, to seal a spot in the NVC semifinals. Martinsen led the way with 10 kills and two blocks. Zegers pitched in six kills, five blocks and 10 digs, Krebs and Kallhoff each tallied four kills, while Kallhoff added 14 digs, Bode contributed five kills, two blocks, Wemhoff tallied 10 digs and 23 assists, while Heilhecker accounted for 20 digs. Elgin Public/Pope John (18-10) faces Ewing in the NVC semis today at 6:15 p.m. at West Holt. The Niobrara Valley Conference tournament kicked off with a bang Monday night as Clearwater/Orchard, O'Neill St. Mary's and Ewing took the floor in the opening night of the conference tournament.
OC opened with a three-set triumph over O'Neill St. Mary's, 25-21, 25-20 and 25-23. "It was a good start to the conference tournament," stated OC coach Sierra Summers. "I am proud of how the girls came out with of fire and a will to win." The Lady Cyclones jumped out to a quick 9-1 lead thanks to three Katie Stearns' aces, along with three kills and two blocks by JoCee Johnston. At 21-17, Julian Tuttle recorded her 1,000th career assist on a Stearns' kill. "It feels really good," Tuttle said. "I've worked really hard for it and I know it's not a huge achievement for a good setter, but getting it within two years I'd say is pretty cool." After dropping the first point in the second set, OC rattled off 10 unanswered points. Taelyn Switzer recorded four aces during the run. Trailing by 14, the Lady Cardinals went on a 17-3 run to cut the deficit to two. OC scored five of the final seven points and ended set with a Johnston kill. Despite winning the last set for the sweep, the Lady Cyclones were plagued with errors. The green and black had to overcome 17 errors to win the last set and the match. Tuttle collected 26 assists and an ace in the match. Johnston recorded a match-high 14 kills and three blocks, Stearns tallied six kills, three aces and two blocks and Switzer accounted for four aces. "We did a really good job of talking in the first game," Tuttle noted. "We all stayed low and we knew that St. Mary's knew our weaknesses because we had played them so many times. We covered well and hit well. That really helped." Sybil Scofield led the Lady Cardinals with eight kills, two blocks and two aces. Jadyn Eby had three kills and four aces, Abby Hedstrom added two kills, Katie Pongratz pitched in a block and an ace and Abby Everitt pitched in a kill and an ace. OC gave the top-seeded Ewing everything they could handle, but fell in three-sets to end the "We were struggling with our passing," spoke Ewing coach Suz Funk. "We always tell them we can't use three attacks if we're struggling with out passing. OC is a good team and they took us out of system a lot of times. They were blocking well. We needed to hit the shots and the angles we practiced. They're a great team." The Lady Cyclones punched the host Lady Tigers in the mouth to start the first set with quick 4-1 lead thanks to two kills and a block by Johnston. "We did a really good job of not being intimidated," Tuttle said. "We knew Ewing is a really good team and they've been (good) the last couple of years. We knew it was going to be a really hard game and I'm really proud for us sticking through it so well." Trailing by one, the Lady Tigers went on a 9-2 run in the first. Four different players recorded a kill during the run. An 11-6 run by OC cut Ewing's lead to one, but the Lady Tigers ended the set with two kills by Ashley Koenig. After Switzer gave the Lady Cyclones a 3-2 lead with back-to-back aces in the second set, Ewing ended the set on a 23-9 run to win the set. "We talked about picking up the tempo of the game and running a quicker offense, so we could get them out of system and make their blockers run side-to-side," Funk said. "That helped us get some open shots." After playing five hard-fought sets Monday night, OC ran out of steam and committed 13 errors in a 25-14 set loss to end the match. "We came out and played really tough," Summers said. "The girls really worked hard to stay with them and continued to do what they could to earn every point. I am so proud of the effort that was put out on the floor and the way that they fought." Johnston led the Lady Cyclones with nine kills and two blocks. Switzer added three aces and two kills, Stearns collected three kills and an ace and Tuttle contributed 18 assists. The Lady Tigers were led by Brenna Wagner's eight kills, four aces and four blocks. Sidney Stallbaum tallied 10 kills, an ace and a block, Koenig recorded seven kills and an ace, Summer Schroeder accounted for three blocks and two aces and Tiana Thramer had four blocks and three kills. Ewing (28-1) advances to the NVC semifinals and faces Elgin Public/Pope John Tuesday at 6:15 p.m. at West Holt. "We need to stay focused, practice and take one game at a time," Funk commented. "The NVC is a tough conference and everyone is going to bring their A game. Everybody wants to go on, so we have to prepare for every game." Clearwater/Orchard (18-12) and O'Neill St. Mary's (4-23) bow out of the NVC tournament and participate in the sub-district tourneys next week. "In the postseason we should be OK," Tuttle concluded. "Our sub-district is doable if we play like we played tonight. If we play like we played tonight, we should be able to get out of it. We just have to hope for the best." The Santee volleyball team forfeited its Niobrara Valley Conference tournament opener against Neligh-Oakdale.
The Lady Warriors advance to the quarterfinals of the conference tournament and play Elkhorn Valley tonight at 7 p.m. at Tilden. The Neligh-Oakdale football team earned the 11th seed in the Class D1 playoffs and will travel in the first round to play No. 6 North Central in Springview at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 25.
The OC Cyclones earned the third seed in the Class D2 playoffs and will host No. 14 Brady at 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 25, in Orchard.
The Elkhorn Valley football team saw its 2018 season come to an end Friday night in a 74-20 loss to Laurel-Concord-Coleridge, 74-20.
It was an offensive shootout in the first quarter, as the two teams combined for 52 points. Leading 38-14 after the the first, the Bears outscored the Falcons 36-6 in the remainder of the game. Braedyn Ollendick recorded 186 yards of total offense and scored a rushing touchdown. Josh McFarland ran for 59 yards and returned a 73-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, Adam Miller caught five passes for 83 yards and Prestin Vondra scored a two-yard TD. Elkhorn Valley ends its season with a 2-6 record. Elkhorn Valley 14 0 0 6 - 20 Laurel-Concord-Coleridge 38 30 6 0 - 74 Elkhorn Valley - Passing: Braedyn Ollendick 10-28-2 119 yards. Rushing: Josh McFarland 16-59. Braedyn Ollendick 15-67. Brock Schaecher 2-6. Adam Miller 206. Prestin Vondra 1-2. Receiving: Adam Miller 5-83. Brock Schaecher 3-33. Josh McFarland 2-3. Laurel-Concord-Coleridge - Passing: Izac Reifenrath 6-10-0 95 yards. Rushing: Austin Brandt 9-125. Izac Reifenrath 11-161. Nolan Ohlrich 8-30. Lucas Rasmussen 3-3. Noah Schutte 1-4. Evan Schmitt 1-2. Receiving: Noah Schutte 3-63. Ty Erwin 3-32. Two Antelope County runners sprinted their way to medals in Class D of the 2018 Nebraska State Cross Country Championships in Kearney on Friday.
Neligh-Oakdale senior Cole Belitz was the top area finisher, placing 12th in a time of 17:50.7. Elkhorn Valley sophomore Hunter Bennett wasn't far behind, as he claimed the final medal of the boys race for 15th place in 17:58. There were 143 boys in the competition. Both runners shaved significant time off of their first state appearances in 2017. Belitz ran 55 seconds faster this year and moved up 42 places. Bennett ran 32 seconds faster and gained 27 places. Emma Bixler, a Neligh-Oakdale junior, made her state debut in the Class D girls race. Bixler finished 24th out of 144 girls, crossing the finish line in 21:40. Warrior coach Rick Eickholt said both of his runners, Bixler and Belitz, set new school records for state meet finishes. The previous boys record was held by Tyler Pedersen (18:31 in 2003) and the girls was held by Kasi Grosserode (21:54 in 2014). They are also the school's highest finishers at state and Belitz is Neligh-Oakdale's first medalist. "I definitely think it was a great way to cap off my cross country career," Belitz said. "I'm glad I don't have to run anymore races, but I'm definitely glad that it ended in a medal. All of the hard work paid off. Being able to come here two times and finish with a medal is pretty awesome." Bennett said he was pleased with his state race as well. "I think today went pretty good overall," he said. "I just wanted to get a medal. I kind of used Cole to keep my pace and I just wanted to stay close to him because I knew he was going to medal. Hopefully next year we can get higher and bring the full team." First year coach Janet Rood said she was proud of Bennett's performance at state. "Hunter, I think, just felt like he had nothing to lose today," Rood said. "He's not a senior so it wasn't his last race. There was no pressure, he was just going to give it all he had and see how it turned out. We knew he was going to be in the top third, so he just gave it his all. I'm so proud of him. And the finish was incredible." With all of the runners crossing so quickly and some in packs, it was difficult to see what place they earned. The Falcon coach said she was "on pins and needles" waiting to find out the official results, but when she learned that Bennett had earned the last medal slot, she felt "overwhelming excitement." "I couldn't believe in my first year of coaching that I have a state medalist, so it was just overwhelming all together," Rood said. "I am just really proud of him." As Neligh-Oakdale's coach wrapped up his 25-year career at state, he got a little choked up expressing his feelings on his final state cross country meet. "Obviously there are all sorts of emotions at this time," Eickholt said. What most people don't understand is that, as a coach, you feel what your athletes feel. I know Emma is kinda beating herself up right now, but I'm so proud of the season she had. She was deserving of a medal. It just didn't work out today. That's why everyone has to show up and the cards played out like they did. She is, even though she didn't bring home a medal today, one of the top 15 runners in the state in Class D." Holding back tears, he said Belitz's finish was a great way for both of them to end their careers. "As far as Cole, it was a perfect ending to 25 years, I'm so proud of him," Eickholt said. "Like I said, I've got all sorts of emotions right now. A lot of good ones, a lot of memories. It's time to hand it over, and the program will be in good hands. Coach (Kali) Bohling has been an amazing asset to our team." The Neligh-Oakdale Junior High football team completed its perfect season with dominant 38-0 trouncing of Lutheran High Northeast earlier this week.
An 18-yard touchdown pass from Aiden Kuester to Bryson Gadeken opened the scoring for the Warriors in the first. Kuester then connected on a 25-yard score to Gadeken and a Chase Furstenau two-point conversion reception, gave N-O a 14-0 lead at the end of the first. Carson Whitesel opened the second quarter with a 44-yard pick six and Kuester found Landon Schrader for the two-point conversion. A 26-yard Kuester touchdown run and five-yard pass to Schrader sent the Warriors to the break with a 38-0 lead. The Eagles' coaching staff elected to forfeit the second half and the game was called. In just one half of football, the Warriors gained 220 yards of offense. Kuester led the way, going a perfect four-for-four passing for 120 yards and three scores and also added 50 yards on the ground and a TD. Gadeken caught three touchdown passes for 48 yards, Schrader had a touchdown reception, Austin Rudolf ran for 29 yards and caught a pass for 12 yards and Whitesel recorded 21 yards on the ground. Kuester paced the defense as well with 13 tackles. Whitesel collected seven tackles and an interception, Rudolf added three tackles, Colson Krebs picked off a pass and Gadeken, along with Furstenau, each tallied a tackle. Neligh-Oakdale ends its season with a perfect 6-0 record, the first in program history. Elkhorn Valley hosted Parents Night on Thursday for volleyball and girls golf as it recognized seniors and their parents.
The Elkhorn Valley volleyball team wrapped up the regular season with a pair of wins on their home court Thursday night, sweeping Bloomfield and Madison on Parents Night.
The Falcons dominated Bloomfield with a 25-6, 25-9 win before topping Madison 25-17, 25-23 in the night cap. Hannah Ollendick put down 19 kills on the night for Elkhorn Valley while Amber Miller had 10 kills, 21 digs and 28 set assists. Sierra Rystrom had 11 kills. Elkhorn Valley will be back in action Monday night as they host Niobrara Valley Conference action. The Falcons will play the winner of Santee/Neligh-Oakdale. Madison 17 23 Elkhorn Valley 25 25 Elkhorn Valley: Olivia Nall 4k, 10d, 3sa; Bria Gale 1d, 1sa; Carney Black 2k, 4d, 1sa; Haley Fleetwood 1a, 12d, 3sa; Amber Miller 6k, 4a, 15d, 17sa;Hannah Ollendick 12k, 11d; Kaylee Bacon 1k, 1d, 1sa; Sierra Rystrom 6k, 1a, 2d, 1sa. Bloomfield 6 9 Elkhorn Valley 25 25 Elkhorn Valley: Olivia Nall 2k, 3a, 1b, 7d, 2sa; Bria Gale 1d, 3sa; Carney Black 1k; Haley Fleetwood 2a, 10d; Amber Miller 4k, 1a, 6d, 11sa; Hannah Ollendick 7k, 1a, 6d; Kaylee Bacon 1k, 1a, 3d, 1sa; Sierra Rystrom 5k, 2a, 2d. The Elgin Public/Pope John football team wrapped up the 2018 campaign with a 56-14 victory over Winside Thursday.
The Wolfpack jumped out to a quick 22-0 lead in the first quarter and took a 48-6 advantage into halftime. Hunter Reestman led EPPJ in his final game rushing for 107 yards and four touchdowns. Kyle Schumacher ran for 89 yards and a score and caught a 43-yard TD pass. Conor Ramold passed for 69 yards and a score. Austin Bauer led the defense with two sacks and 12 tackles. Cory Romej and Schumacher each tallied 10 tackles and Joey Getzfred recorded a sack and an interception. Elgin Public/Pope John ends its season with a 2-6 record. Winside 0 6 8 0 - 14 EPPJ 22 26 8 0 - 56 Elgin Public/Pope John - Passing: Conor Ramold 2-5-0 69 yards. Rushing: Hunter Resstman 15-107. Kyle Schumacher 11-89. Cory Romej 8-38. Layne Bullock 6-17. Conor Ramold 4-18. Norman Grothe 4-(-3). Receiving: Kyle Schumacher 1-43. Adam Dreger 1-26. The Neligh-Oakdale Schools honored parents of the 2018 football team Thursday night before the Warriors' regular season finale against Lutheran High Northeast.
Members of the football team, along with managers, were introduced in front of the N-O faithful with their families. Check out all the photos from Thursday's parents' night! Costly mistakes at inopportune times, cost the Neligh-Oakdale football team against Lutheran High Northeast, 50-26, Thursday at Warrior Field.
"We played a good football team and for a good portion of the game we played them toe-to-toe," stated N-O coach Ron Beacom. "We did a pretty good job once we settled in and got more physical with them." Two big runs by Jaxson Kant gave the Eagles an early 8-0 lead. The Warriors answered with an eight-play, 59 yard drive ending in a Brock Kester 11-yard touchdown pass to Austin Rice. The two-point conversion was no good and N-O trailed by two. On the ensuing drive, Kant found Tanner Koss for a 22-yard score. N-O had a promising drive and was inside the LHNE 20-yard line, but Ben Gebhardt picked off a pass and went the other way for a pick six. A two-yard touchdown plunge by Kant with under five minutes remaining in the half extended the Eagles' lead to 30-6. "They (LHNE) played really well right from the start and we dug ourselves a hole," Beacom recalled. "We had to change the way how we went about it (the game). I'm pleased with the way our kids played hard and we battled." The Warriors responded right before the half with a 25-yard TD pass from Kester to Jayden Arehart. Both defenses clamped down to start the third until Kant broke free for a 49-yard touchdown run midway through the third. Arehart responded with a 48-yard scoring run on Neligh-Oakdale's next series to make the score 38-20. However, a 17-yard TD reception by Gebhardt and a four-yard TD run by Kant put the contest out of reach and clinched an outright district title for LHNE. N-O found the end zone one final time as Kester plowed through an Eagle defender for a 10-yard TD run. Miscues and missed opportunities plagued the Warriors all night. The maroon and white failed to score any points off of two LHNE turnovers or multiple turnover on downs. N-O racked up 60-plus penalty yards and turned the ball over three times. "You have to be more disciplined when you're playing a good team," Beacoms said. "This is the type of group you're going to see in the playoffs and you can't afford to make mistakes. On fourth-and-one, you can't end up with fourth-and-six because you jumped. We did that a couple of times. Early on, it felt like we had kids trying to do too much. They weren't trusting their reads, weren't disciplined and we gave up big plays. It's the little things. It tells me that we're close, but we have a long ways to go if we want to be the football team we want to be and we're running out of time." Kant led the Eagles with more than 350 yards of total offense and six total touchdowns. The 50 points was the lowest LHNE had scored all season and entered the game averaging more than 68 points per game. "We defended them pretty well and I'm pleased with our kids," Beacom added. "We're never happy with a loss, but the way our crew battled I feel good about the direction we're heading." Arehart rushed for 101 yards and a score, while also adding 27 receiving yards and a TD. Kester passed for 128 yards, two scores, rushed for 53 yards and a TD. Rice caught five passes for 74 yards and Andrew Herley ran for 54 yards. Neligh-Oakdale (4-4) opens the playoffs with North Central Thursday at 6 p.m. "We'll know Saturday morning what this means for sure," Beacom concluded. "We'll have to travel and we know we're in, we know that. Now it comes down to them making a decision. It's a great time of year at this time because the teams that want to play and want to get better and compete, keep playing. And the teams that are ready to move on and go to winter sports season, go on to winter sports season. It comes down to us making decisions like what kind of goals they want to set and the process of setting those goals. They can't set limits, let's set some lofty goals and see if we can go get them." Lutheran High Northeast 14 16 14 6 - 50 Neligh-Oakdale 6 8 6 6 - 26 Neligh-Oakdale - Passing: Brock Kester 8-31-2 128 yards. Rushing: Jayden Arehart 7-101. Andrew Herley 15-54. Brock Kester 10-53. Conor Dempsey 1-20. Receiving: Austin Rice 5-74. Jayden Arehart 2-27. Andrew Herley 1-27. The Clearwater/Orchard football team was not in the sharing mood Thursday afternoon as the Cyclones clinched their first outright district title as a consolidated program with a 52-14 victory over Chambers/ Wheeler Central/Ewing at Clearwater.
"It feels great because we've been putting in so much work the past few years," spoke OC senior Jacob Long. "It feels great to finally have something accomplished that hasn't been done for a while." OC was able to overcome sloppy play to capture its sixth-straight win to end the regular season. "We came out really aggressive today," stated OC mentor Jeff Shabram. "In some of our games, it feels like we get penalized for being aggressive and we have to clean up this penalty business here. It's something to work on definitely." It was all Cyclones to start, scoring on their first six drives of the contest. Long had a big first half, finding the end zone five times and accumulating 150 yards of offense in the first 24 minutes of play. "It doesn't matter who is doing well as long as we're playing as a team," Long said. "As long as we're playing as a team, we're going to go pretty far. I think we're one of the better teams out there if we play together and if we're clicking." The Renegades broke through in their opening drive of the third quarter with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Cole Duba to Justice Metschke. Houston Marino scored the Cyclones' final touchdown on a three-yard run. On the final play of the game, Xavier Hobbs scrambled for a six-yard score for CWC/E to end the contest. Despite committing numerous penalties and racking up 50 yards in penalties, OC was able to cruise to the win. "We got behind the sticks with some penalties and had some long yardage situations, but they responded," Shabram noted. Metschke led the Renegades with seven receptions for 115 yards and a TD. Duba completed 13 passes for more than 150 yards passing and a score. Long led the Cyclones offense with 100 yards on the ground, three rushing touchdowns, 74 yards receiving and two receiving touchdowns. Kester completed seven passes for 103 yards, threw for two touchdowns and added 60 yards rushing and a score. Clay Thiele led the defensive effort with three sacks, a forced fumble and five tackles. Long collected nine tackles, Ryan Wilhelm recorded two sacks and Zach King recovered a fumble. Clearwater/Orchard (7-1) hosts Brady Thursday, at Orchard, at 5 p.m. "We need to clean a lot of things up, but I think we're peaking at the right time," Shabram concluded. "Hopefully we can keep this thing going through the postseason." CWC/E 0 0 8 6 - 14 OC 24 22 0 6 - 52 Clearwater/Orchard - Passing: Chris Kester 7-13-0 103 yards. Austin Pokorny 0-1-0 0 yards Rushing: Jacob Long 8-100. Chris Kester 10-38. Eli Macke 10-38. Houston Marino 6-25. Tyler Bellar 1-7. Tommie Peed 1-3. Mason Hoke 1-0. Austin Pokorny 3-(-6). Receiving: Jacob Long 4-74. Blake Hoke 1-13. Clay Thiele 1-13. Eli Macke 1-3. Before Thursday afternoon's football game, both the Clearwater and Orchard high schools honored the seniors and their parents.
The underclassmen were introduced on the sideline, while the seniors were greeted by their family. Check out our photo gallery of all the boys with their families. The Clearwater/Orchard volleyball team pushed its win streak to four after two big victories Tuesday evening.
The Lady Cyclones opened with a three-set triumph over Plainview, 13-25, 25-16 and 25-21. "I am so proud of the girls and their energy," stated OC coach Sierra Summers. "We played with intensity and lots of fire to come back from eight down to get the win. They worked so hard to overcome their mistakes to get the win. " JoCee Johnston paced OC with 19 kills, two blocks and four digs. Katie Stearns tallied six kills, two aces, two blocks and five digs, Julian Tuttle recorded two aces, five digs and 22 assists, Taelyn Switzer accounted for three aces and Avery Cheatum added nine digs. In their second match, the Lady Cyclones swept O'Neill St. Mary's, 25-13 and 25-21. Johnston again led OC with 10 kills, two aces, three blocks and seven digs. Cheatum and Stearns each contributed four kills, a block and an ace, Maryssa Long served four aces and had five digs, while Tuttle pitched in 19 assists. Clearwater/Orchard (16-10) travels to Ewing to face St. Mary's in the opening round of the Niobrara Valley Conference tournament Monday at 6:15 p.m. The winner takes on the top seed Ewing at 7:30 p.m. "We are looking forward to entering next week's conference matches," concluded Summers. The Elgin Public/Pope John volleyball team saw its six-game winning streak come to an end Tuesday in a hard-fought loss to Burwell.
The Lady Longhorns won the match, 27-25, 25-21, 19-25 and 25-23. Kaylee Martinsen led the Lady Wolfpack with 13 kills, nine blocks and four digs. Haley Zegers tallied six kills, two aces, six blocks and 17 digs, Kayce Kallhoff contributed nine kills, three blocks and six digs, Harlie Bode had eight kills and three blocks, Kirsten Krebs accounted for four kills and four digs, Anna Heilhecker recorded three kills, an ace and 16 digs, Grace Rittscher added two aces and five digs and Allyson Wemhoff pitched in four aces, 21 digs and 33 assists. EPPJ (16-10) hosts the opening round of the Niobrara Valley Conference tournament Monday against Niobrara/Verdigre at 5 p.m. It is hard to believe the 2018 cross country season is nearly complete. After months of hard work and dedication, three Antelope County runners accomplished their ultimate goal, a trip to Kearney for the 2018 Class D state cross country meet.
Elkhorn Valley sophomore Hunter Bennett and Neligh-Oakdale junior Emma Bixler and senior Cole Belitz advanced to the state meet after placing in the top-15 at last week’s district meet. Bennett and Belitz are making their second appearance at the state meet, while Bixler is making her state cross country meet debut. “It is really special (to make it to state) because I missed out on my opportunity last year,” Bixler said. “I felt like I had to do this. I feel like I have accomplished the first thing, going down there, and now I have to prove myself at the actual race.” A tough break at last year’s district meet helped motivate Bixler this season. After just missing out on qualifying for the state meet last season, Bixler was determined to end her season at Kearney this season. “Last year, I knew I only had two years left and knew I had to make it next year,” Bixler continued. “I wanted to go (to state) two years and coming into this year, I had to prove to myself that I was stronger than I was last year.” Bennett has seen a big jump from his rookie season to this year. “I think I practiced harder and tried a little bit more,” Bennett stated. “I took things more serious and thought about what’s at the end of the year.” Belitz has also seen a big improvement from last season to this year, which he credits to his rigorous summer workout. The senior Warrior recorded more than 300 miles this summer, the most by any runner under N-O coach Rick Eickholt. “I ran a lot more than I did the last few summers,” Belitz said. “The most important thing is you have to get a lot of miles under your belt and it makes a three-mile race a lot easier when you can go out and run five miles easily. That’s a good thing to do in the summer and just that little bit I increased this year helped me this much. I wish I would have known about it back when I was a freshman or sophomore so I could have improved on it then. Who knows where I’d be now, but it’s definitely important you get that done over the summer.” Last week’s race was one of the toughest districts in the state, with more than 50 returning state qualifiers between the boys and girls races. The quality of competition and hilly course has helped prepare the three runners for the rigorous course at Kearney. “The competition was a big help, so you know who to look out for,” Bennett said. “With the course, you know how to pace yourself and know what to run.” Based on last week’s district times, Belitz is ranked 15th and Bennett is 27th in the boys race, while Bixler is 34th in the girls race. However, the times may be skewed because not all of the district courses were 5,000 meters and some were more difficult than others. “Last year, my trip down to Kearney, I wasn’t expected to place real high or anything,” Belitz said. “I wasn’t worried to run or anything, so I just went out there and ran. Last year, I didn’t have really any nerves, but this year I think I’m going to have more nerves because I’m supposed to place a little higher and I’m right around that top-15 area.” All three runners hope to have a solid showing and know they have the potential to finish the 2018 season with a medal. “I want to do my best and put my best race forward since it’s the last race of the year,” Bixler said. “I want to shoot for as high of a goal as I can. Whatever that may be.” “I want to place in the top-15,” Bennett added. “I have to stay with the people I know that will be up there, I have to keep a good pace and not start too fast so I have something left to finish.” While Bennett and Bixler still have more opportunities to make a return trip to Kearney, for Belitz this is his swan song and he plans on ending his high school cross country career with a bang. “My last race ever came a little quicker than I thought it would,” Belitz concluded. “I’m glad I’m getting a chance to run at Kearney again and I’m going to try to get in the top-15. Finishing last year, I didn’t even think I’d have a chance to place this year. I put in a lot of work over the summer, got some good input from my friends and I got a lot done. Here we are at the end of the season and I have a pretty good chance (of placing). I got one more race to see if I can get it done.” The Class D girls state race begins at noon on Friday and the boys race starts at 1 p.m. at the Kearney Country Club. Monday night’s volleyball match between Elkhorn Valley and O’Neill had the feeling of a playoff matchup as both teams fought tooth and nail in the contest.
It took five sets but when the dust had settled, the Lady Eagles stood victorious. “The girls worked really hard and they never gave up,” stated EV mentor Emily Vaughn. “they came out really strong in that first set and we kind of backed off in the next two sets. I was excited to see them come back and fight in the fourth (set). The fifth we just couldn’t quite get on offense.” “I thought it was a great game,” commented O’Neill coach Angie Robertson. “Elkhorn Valley really pushed us. We have big games tomorrow, so we came in here trying to conserve energy. We tried to keep our energy consistent, but we got stuck in a rut a couple of times.” The Lady Falcons used an early surge to take the first set, 25-21. Tied at six, EV scored 13 of the next 17 points to claim an 18-10 lead. The Lady Eagles responded with a 7-0 led by Brianna Bauer's four kills. The deficit was too much for O'Neill to complete the comeback as Amber Miller won the set with a kill. O'Neill bounced back early in the second set to claim an early 7-2 lead. EV chipped away at the lead and eventually tied the match at 16 on a Haley Fleetwood ace. The Lady Eagles ended the set on a 9-1 run to take the set, 25-17. Five different players recorded a kill led by Haylee Kaufman's six kills. “Senior night is always hard to adjust emotionally,” Robertson said. “That first set we came out stagnant and it took us a little bit to figure out our game. We always say swing to win. We’re not ones to tip and we adjusted.” It was all O'Neill in the third set as the home squad won, 25-9. A 6-1 run to start followed by a 12-1 run put the set away early. The Lady Falcons did not help their cause by committing 13 errors in the set. Both teams battled back-and-forth for the momentum, but no one was able to take a clear advantage in the fourth set. The fourth set had 10 different ties and the largest lead was by EV at 11-7. Tied at 23, a crucial net violation gave the Lady Falcons set point and Miller won the set with a big block, 25-23. “In that set we worked smarter, not harder,” Vaughn said. “We found some shots that worked for us, served tough and kept them on their heals. That’s just a side-out mentality. They get a point or two, we have to find a way to counter back and get on the attack.” The Lady Eagles regrouped and jumped out to a 6-0 lead to start the fifth set and cruised to a 15-5 set win to capture the match. “Our main goal was to get up on them before we got to their main servers that we had trouble passing with,” Robertson said. “We did a better job of that in the sets we won.” Five different Lady Eagles had at least six kills - with four attackers recording double-digit kills. Kaufman led the way with 13 kills, an ace and two blocks. Bauer tallied 14 kills, two blocks and 19 digs, Blair Gutshall recorded 11 kills, four blocks and two aces, Makayla Hilker accumulated six kills, 26 digs and two aces, Meg Schluns had 12 kills and 12 digs and Alyssa Eichelberger added 51 assists and 14 digs “We have a young setter (Eichelberger) and we push her to make all these different sets and she’s doing a fantastic job,” Robertson noted. “We like to move the ball around. We know we have a hard hitter in Brianna Bauer on the outside, but she gets targeted a lot. We had to figure out what else we’re going to run when she is getting blocked and they have done a great job. Tonight was one of the best team efforts we’ve had.” Miller led the Lady Falcons with eight kills, three aces, two blocks, 24 digs and 6 assists. Sierra Rystrom and Hannah Ollendick each tallied six kills, Ollendick added two aces, four blocks and 20 digs, Olivia Nall contributed four kills, tow blocks and 18 digs and Haley Fleetwood served three aces and 12 digs. O’Neill (16-8) travels to Wayne for a tri-match today to end its regular season. “This is a perfect way to go into conference games,” Robertson said. “Elkhorn Valley always comes in here and they never want to lay down without a battle. They’re one of the scrappier teams we play and they’re aggressive. This was an outstanding way to start our week off.” Elkhorn Valley (14-8) hopes to end its season on a high note Thursday as the Lady Falcons host Bloomfield and Madison starting at 5 p.m. “We’re looking forward to ending the season at home and getting another home match or two,” Vaughn concluded. “The girls are playing well. I hope we come back, respond in a couple of big games, take care of business Thursday and go on from there.” The Niobrara Valley Conference announced the matchups for the upcoming volleyball tournament today.
The first two rounds are scheduled for Monday, Oct. 22. The semifinals are Tuesday Oct. 23 and the third-place and championship matches are scheduled for Friday Oct. 26. Ewing received the top seed after a perfect regular season. The Lady Tigers host the winner of Clearwater/Orchard and O'Neill St. Mary's at 7:30 p.m., after the OC and St. Mary's match at 6:15 p.m. Neligh-Oakdale plays Santee Monday at 6:15 p.m. in Tilden and the winner faces the No. 3 seed, Elkhorn Valley at 7:30 p.m. Elgin Public/Pope John hosts Niobrara/Verdigre Monday at 5 p.m. The winner of the EPPJ-N/V match faces the Boyd County and West Holt winner at 7 p.m. at Elgin. Tuesday's semifinals will be held at West Holt and the final day of the tournament is at Niobrara on Friday. Throughout the month of October, communities and organization across the country show their support for breast cancer awareness.
During athletic events, players are seen donning pink and honor breast cancer survivors, and those who have passed, throughout the month. One local gym is showing their support through a special event, which is open to the public. CrossFit 1026, a gym in Norfolk on West Omaha Avenue, is hosting a national event to raise money for breast cancer awareness, cleverly known as Barbells for Boobs. “This is our first time doing Barbells for Boobs and we’re excited to have it start here,” stated CrossFit 1026 owner Ryan Goodwin. “It’s a nationwide event that takes place during October. We have funding throughout the year.” Barbells for Boobs is a national event started in 2011 by Zionna Hanson after her best friend, at the age of 26, was diagnosed with breast cancer. Although Hanson’s friend, Cecy, had insurance and a referral from her physician, Cecy was initially denied breast screening services by medical professionals and was recommended for “mammography at age 40”. For the past seven years, Hanson has grown Barbells for Boobs into a global multi-million dollar organization, which drives social change. “Our mission for Barbells for Boobs is to mobilize people to take action in breast cancer,” Goodwin said. “We diagnose, while also using fitness and community, as a way to promote breast cancer awareness and create a community that advocates detection, fitness and wellness.” It is not uncommon to see CrossFit gyms across the United States take part in a greater cause. Gyms all over the U.S. have different workouts and events every year to benefit the community or honor community members. “We’re huge on community,” Goodwin added. “We love to see people succeed and when one person succeeds in our gym, it helps the whole community as a whole. Each individual that comes in here and does a workout, feeds off each other. They see one person doing well or working hard, they have another individual to do some friendly competition with or push the other. We’re really big on family and community.” Goodwin was affected by breast cancer and thought this event was a great way to honor those who have been affected by this disease “It’s a great way to give back to the community,” Goodwin said. “My mom was an individual who has been affected by breast cancer. I thought it was a great way to give her some acknowledgment and some props for fighting something that affects a lot of people worldwide.” Barbell for Boobs starts at 6 p.m. on Friday at the CrossFit 1026 site. The event begins with an opening ceremony, followed by a kids workout (burpees for boobs). Adults then complete the workout “Helen Meets Grace.” “Helen Meets Grace” is a two-person team workout consisting of three rounds of a 400 meter run, 21 kettlebell swings and 12 pull-ups. Then the team must complete 30 clean and jerks as fast as possible. The day concludes with a BBQ for all the participants and their families. “We like to gather after big events like this,” Goodwin said. “After a long, hard workout we feed each other and get everybody some energy and nutrients, and also get to know each other. A lot of times when we’re working out, we do the workout in an hour and people have other obligations and things they need to get taken care of. They go and do their thing and don’t get to talk, chat and figure out who it who in the community. It’s a nice way to reconnect with each individual.” It is a free-will donation event. Goodwin has setup a fund-raiser page at https://www.barbellsforboobs.org/fundraisers/CrossFit-1026 and hopes to raise $1,200. Participants can reserve a spot for the event on the CrossFit 1026 Facebook page. Even if the workout portion is not for you, a person can still make a donation for this great cause and attend the event to cheer on the competitors. As of Monday, the gym was a quarter of the way there. “When you come for the workout, we just ask for a donation,” Goodwin concluded. “You can donate $2 or $10, but know that $120 helps one individual for our event. This money goes nationwide for every individual who might want detection at a younger age or who needs help.” Friday will be a day full of sweat, fun and bonding for a great cause. |
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