KILJ’s Information Center reported on many events in the community last week. FOCUS takes a look at a couple of those stories. To view KILJ news stories, please access KILJ.COM/News Tab.
Early Childhood Conference Registration is Open
Registration is open for Southeast Iowa Early Childhood’s annual Early Childhood Conference. The conference is being held from 8am – 3:30pm on Saturday, April 25, at the Fairfield Arts & Convention Center, 200 N. Main Street in Fairfield and is free. Sessions are available for HHS childcare credit hours. Receive hands-on tips and fun talks to boost little learners’ growth during the Early Childhood Summit! Discover fresh ways to support little learners and connect with a community dedicated to nurturing young minds. Reserve your spot!
Iowa DOC: A Second State Penitentiary Suspends In-Person Visitation
The Iowa Department of Corrections (DOC) and the Anamosa State Penitentiary are suspending all in-person visitation, effective immediately, due to ongoing safety and security concerns. The Iowa DOC made the announcement this week and explained they are taking appropriate steps to ensure the safety of staff, incarcerated individuals, and visitors.
According to the press release, the suspension will remain in effect until further notice from the Iowa DOC. Access to video visitation will remain available according to the standard schedule.
Last month (Thursday, March 26), The Iowa Department of Corrections (DOC) and the Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility suspended all in-person visitation in the main building, until further notice.
Mt. Pleasant Man Faces Domestic Abuse/Child Endangerment Charges
Joshua Zaiontz, 34, of Mt. Pleasant faces domestic abuse and child endangerment charges following an incident on Tuesday evening, April 7, at a residence in Mount Pleasant.
Zaiontz was charged with Domestic Abuse Assault, first offense, a simple misdemeanor, and two counts of Child Endangerment, both aggravated misdemeanors. He was arrested and transported to Henry County Jail. A no-contact order has been requested for both the victim and the two children. Bond has been set at $4,500 cash or surety. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Friday, April 17th, and a bond review hearing has been requested and set for April 29th.
According to court documents, the Mount Pleasant Police Department responded to a Mt. Pleasant residence on Tuesday, April 7 at about 6pm following a report of a disturbance with yelling in the background. No physical altercation or weapons were reported at the time of the call. Upon arrival, officers found that Zaiontz had been pinned to the floor by others inside the residence and was detained for investigation.
Court records state that Zaiontz, who does not reside at the address, allegedly entered through the front door and moved toward the victim in an aggressive manner. According to court documents, a witness intervened between the two, and an additional witness physically restrained Zaiontz. Court records also indicate that two juvenile boys—ages 13 and 6—exited the residence through a window on the opposite side during the incident. The victim told officers they feared Zaiontz was going to physically harm them.
Court documents note that Zaiontz and the victim have been married for 11 months but have been living in separate households for approximately one month. The two share the juvenile boys.
MPCSD Board of Education Regular Session Meeting on Monday (4/13/26)/Full Agenda
The Mt. Pleasant Community School District Board of Education will meet in regular session at 6pm on Monday, April 13 in the High School Media Center, on S. Grand Avenue. Items on the agenda include a public hearing regarding the FY2027 certified budget, class of 2025 graduation rate, board committee reports, among other business. There are two considerations to approve “reduction in force termination” of two district employees. The entire board agenda can be accessed HERE.
The agenda can also be found on MTPCSD.org. This meeting is open to the public except for a “Negotiations Discussion” which is exempt from the open meeting law.
Henry County Attorney to Bring Two Items before the HC Board of Supervisors – Monday 4/13/26
The Henry County Board of Supervisors will meet at 10am on Monday, April 13 at the courthouse in Mt. Pleasant. There are two items on the agenda which will be presented by Henry County Attorney Becky Wilson. The first is a discussion, debate and possible board approval to hire part-time, temporary outside attorney counsel to work on public information requests. The second item that Wilson will bring before the board is an “Employment Separation Agreement” along with a board discussion and possible board approval. This meeting is open to the public. The KILJ news department will provide a complete report following the meeting. Listen live or refer to KILJ.com under the NEWS tab.
Sports, April 11th
High School Track and Field
The Eastern Iowa Track Festival will run today at Iowa City West High School with Columbus, Danville, Mediapolis, Van Buren County, Washington along with the WACO, Wapello, and New London boys’ teams and Mt. Pleasant girls’ team competing.
The Fairfield boys’ team will hold a track meet on Tuesday, April 14th, with Mt. Pleasant, Central Lee, and Van Buren County making the trip.
High School Soccer
Wapello was swept by Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union last night with the girls’ team losing 3-0 and the boys’ team falling 9-0. Neveiah Garza scored two goals for the Wildcats in the girls’ game.
Wapello will host West Branch today with game one at 11 am.
The Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union boys’ team will participate in the Hudson Classic today, while the girls’ team will travel to Mediapolis on Tuesday, April 14th, at 5 pm.
The Central Lee boys’ team shutout Sigourney-Keota last night 4-0 with Zach Estrada knocking in two of the goals for the Hawks. The Central Lee girls’ team was on the wrong end of a rout, losing 13-1 to Washington. Charlee Clay had the lone goal for the Hawks.
The Washington boys’ team followed suit with a dominant 11-1 victory over Highland last night.
Washington will get back to conference play on Monday, April 13th, with a showdown against Burlington with the girls’ team at home and boys’ team on the road and both games starting at 5 pm.
Central Lee will play at home on Tuesday with the girls’ team taking on Fort Madison at 5 pm and the boys’ team squaring off against Fairfield at 7 pm.
The Burlington Notre Dame boys’ team squashed WACO last night, 10-0, while the girls’ team tied Monmouth-Roseville, 1-1. The Nike boys’ team will face off against Fort Madison at home on Tuesday at 5 pm.
The Danville boys’ teams will travel to WACO on Tuesday at 5 pm.
The Mediapolis girls’ team will take on West Branch on Monday at 6:30 pm at home, while the boys’ team will host Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union on Tuesday at 7 pm.
Mt. Pleasant will face off against Fairfield on Monday with the boys’ playing at home at 4:30 pm and the girls’ team competing on the road at 5 pm.
High School Golf
The Central Lee and Holy Trinity Catholic boys’ teams participated in the Lee County tournament yesterday and the Hawks handled business, winning by 23 strokes over Fort Madison, while the Crusaders finished in last place with 377 strokes. Central Lee’s Caleb Larson paced the field with an 18-hole score of 75 with Carter Jones and Kaden Swan wrapping up 3rd and 4th place, respectively.
Brock Scheetz carded a 90 for 11th place to headline Holy Trinity Catholic’s effort with Nathan Box finishing in 15th place with a round of 93.
Central Lee will host Holy Trinity Catholic on Monday, April 13th.
The Southeast Conference will compete against one another on Monday with the girls’ teams going to Fort Madison and the boys’ teams traveling to Washington.
Van Buren County will hit the road to face off against New London on Monday.
Columbus will look to bounce back on Monday at home against Winfield-Mt. Union.
The Mediapolis boys’ team will compete in the Golden Hawk Invitational on Tuesday, April 14th.
High School Boys’ Tennis
Fairfield will travel to Mt. Pleasant on Monday, April 13th.
College Signing
Mt. Pleasant’s Jaymisen Rich signed his letter of intent to continue his football career at Simpson College next year with a focus on Health and Exercise Science. Rich is now the second lineman from the 2025 Panthers to commit to play football at the collegiate level after helping the program go 7-3 last season, delivering 21 pancakes to help pave the way for the team to rush for 1,603 yards and 24 touchdowns and their first trip to the postseason since 2010.
There’s a certain disposition needed to be a lineman, one spelled out perfectly by Second Team All-District member,
“You get to hit people. I mean, I like being one because you can, especially being a center, you can kind of run the offense. And I just like it because you’re with the guy crossing you all game. And so, it’s you versus him every play. And then offensive linemen, we’re like our own little team up there of five. And you really come close to those guys with double teams. And, you know, you’re always together. So, working together and seeing, like, long runs and everything, it just really makes it all worth it.”
Southeastern Community College
The baseball team will stay at home to face off against Indian Hills Community College in a doubleheader today.
The softball team will travel for a doubleheader against Illinois Central College on Monday, April 13th.
College Baseball and Softball
The Iowa baseball team fell to #14 USC yesterday, 9-2. Kooper Schulte gathered an RBI off of a sacrifice fly. The Hawkeyes will look to even the series today at 4 pm.
The Iowa State softball team split their doubleheader with #19 Oklahoma State yesterday, losing game one 8-3 and taking game two 12-0. Reagan Bartholomew clouted a double and a solo home run in the victory. The Cyclones will look to win the rubber match tomorrow, April 12th, at noon.
The Iowa softball team got back in the win column in dramatic fashion to start the Dr. Christine Grant Classic, defeating Georgia Tech, 2-1. Serayah Neiss tossed the complete game gem for her 50th career win, striking out five. The Hawkeyes will play a pair today with a rematch against Georgia Tech at 1:30 pm and a matchup against South Dakota State at 4 pm.
This Day in Sports History
1921 – KDKA in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania broadcasts the first radio sporting event, a boxing match between lightweights Johnny Ray and Johnny Dundee.
1966 – 30th US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Jack Nicklaus becomes the first back-to-back Masters champion winning an 18-hole Monday playoff against Tommy Jacobs and Gay Brewer.
1989 – First playoff goal scored by a goalie, Ron Hextall of the visiting Philadelphia Flyers shoots into the Washington Capitals empty net while his team is short handed in a 8-5 win.
Three SE Iowa Counties to Receive DOT Funding for Bridge Replacement
The U.S. Department of Transportation announced this week that Iowa will receive over $64 million in federal aid to help replace 67 bridges and culverts in poor condition across the Hawkeye state. Over 40 counties in Iowa will receive funding including Henry County, Des Moines County, and Lee County in southeast Iowa. The two awards will be administered through DOT’s Competitive Highway Bridge Program (CHBP). U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley’s office issued a press release stating this was created as part of the Grassley-backed Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The funding will support the replacement of 67 city, county and state-owned bridges and culverts in poor condition.
Iowa leads the nation in the number of structurally deficient bridges
All Counties where projects are located from these grants include: Allamakee, Black Hawk, Bremer, Buchanan, Buena Vista, Cedar, Chickasaw, Des Moines, Dickinson, Dubuque, Emmett, Floyd, Guthrie, Hancock, Henry, Howard, Humboldt, Ida, Jackson, Johnson, Keokuk, Kossuth, Lee, Madison, Marion, Mitchell, Monona, Montgomery, Muscatine, Osceola, Page, Pocahontas, Pottawattamie, Poweshiek, Scott, Shelby, Sioux, Story, Warren, Washington, Webster, Woodbury and Worth.