Sports, February 8th

By Slaten Swords · Thursday, February 8th, 2024 at 6:30 am CDT

High School Basketball

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team will host Burlington tonight at 7:30 pm. The Mt. Pleasant boys’ team will travel to Fairfield tomorrow, February 9th, at 7:30 pm.

The Mediapolis boys’ team will take on Tipton tonight at 7:30 pm at home.

The Central Lee boys’ team will face off against Davis County tonight at 7:30 pm on the road. 

Girls’ Basketball Regional Pairings

Regional basketball is set to begin for Class 1A tonight and classes 2A and 3A will begin on Saturday, February 10th. Here’s a look at our local matchups.

In Class 1A Region 7, Lone Tree will host Winfield-Mt. Union. 

Danville will take on Burlington Notre Dame with the Bears acting as host. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 6:45 pm. 

Both games are set to begin at 7 pm tonight with the winner of the two games competing against one another. 

In Class 1A Region 8, WACO will face off against Hillcrest Academy at home and New London will travel to #15 Holy Trinity Catholic. KILJ AM 1130, 98.5 FM, and kilj.com will be covering the Crusaders and Tigers. Both games are scheduled to start at 7 pm tonight.

For Class 2A Region 6, Van Buren County hits the road to face off against Pleasantville on Saturday at 7 pm. Columbus will host West Burlington on February 13th at 7 pm.

In Class 3A Region 1, Mediapolis will host Central Lee on Saturday at 7 pm.

In Class 3A Region 5, Fairfield will take on the top seed Solon on the road and Washington will host Davis County. Both games will take place on Saturday at 7 pm.

The Regional brackets for classes 4A and 5A were released and Class 4A Region 1 is the place for Southeast Iowa basketball.

Mt. Pleasant will hit the road to take on Oskaloosa for the second time this season as Oskaloosa won that matchup 55-17. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 6:45 pm.

The winner of this game will take on #1 Clear Creek-Amana, who boasts a 20-0 record. 

On the bottom half of the bracket, it will be a Southeast Conference matchup between Fort Madison and Burlington. These two have traded games this season with the Grayhounds winning round one 47-39 and the Bloodhounds taking the most recent contest 58-48. 

The winner will be tasked with a road matchup against Keokuk. The first-round is scheduled to begin on February 14th at 7 pm.

Boys’ Basketball District Matchups

The Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) has released the brackets for District play set to begin tomorrow, February 9th, for the Class 1A preliminary round. All games will start at 7 pm. Here’s our local matchups.

In Class 1A Substate 5: District 9, New London and Columbus are set to rumble tomorrow at New London in the preliminary round with the winner moving on to play the top seed, #5 Winfield-Mt. Union. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call.

The first-round games will be played on Monday, February 12th, and Danville will take on Sigourney at home. Burlington Notre Dame will host Wapello and WACO will face off against Pekin at home.

In District 10, Holy Trinity Catholic holds the top spot and will compete against either Seymour or Tri-County on Monday at home.

Class 2A, Substate 4 District 7 will be headlined by the undefeated #8 West Burlington Falcons. Central Lee and Louisa-Muscatine will compete on Monday with the winner moving on to face off against the Falcons.

On the bottom half of the bracket, Mediapolis will host Van Buren County on Monday with the winner to move on and travel to West Branch on Thursday, February 15th, for the second-round matchup.

The brackets for classes 3A and 4A will be released on Monday with their first-round matchups taking place on February 19th.

High School Wrestling

New London and WACO will travel to Wilton to compete in districts. Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union will wrestle at Solon, while Mt. Pleasant will travel to Fairfield with Burlington Notre Dame, Keokuk, and Mediapolis also in attendance. Districts will take place on Saturday, February 10th, at 10 am.

High School Bowling

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team will be heading to Oskaloosa on Monday, February 12th and the boys’ team on Tuesday, February 13th, to compete in the state qualifying meet. Burlington and Keokuk will also be making the trip.

College Basketball

The #2 Iowa women’s team will host Penn State tonight at 8 pm.

The Iowa State women’s team will compete against Oklahoma on Saturday, February 10th, at 6 pm at home.

The #14 Iowa State men’s team will host TCU on Saturday at 1 pm.

The Iowa men’s team will face off against Penn State on the road tonight at 6 pm.

This Day in Sports History

1936 – First-ever NFL Draft: the Philadelphia Eagles select Jay Berwanger from the University of Chicago as the first pick. The first Heisman trophy winner opts not to play in the NFL.

1945 – Paul Brown agrees to coach the new American football expansion team in Cleveland, which would later be named the Cleveland Browns after their coach.

1960 – Boston Celtic Bill Russell becomes the first NBA player with 50 rebounds in a game with 51.

Father and Son Squabble Leads to Injury, Death for Dad

By Yorke Prough · Thursday, February 8th, 2024 at 6:17 am CDT

A disturbance broke out around 7:23pm on Monday, January 22nd in Keokuk. Officers with the Keokuk Police Department arrived on scene to 416 Burke Street just three minutes later.

A thorough investigation revealed that 84-year-old Gary L. Rockenbach received injuries during a physical altercation with his son, Craig L. Rockenbach. Allegedly, the assault took place after a disagreement over food.

The Lee County Ambulance Service arrived on scene at 7:31 after being requested by the officers, and Gary was transported to a medical facility at that time.

Craig Rockenbach was arrested at 7:34 p.m. for Assault Causing Bodily injury, a serious misdemeanor. He was transported to the Lee County Jail.

One week later, the Keokuk Police Department received additional information in regard to the internal injuries that Gary Rockenbach suffered. The Lee County Attorney’s Office was given this new information, and the original charge was amended and changed to Willful Injury Causing Serious Injury, a class C felony.

Gary Rockenbach succumbed to his injuries in a medical facility and the police department was made known on February 1st. This is an ongoing investigation, and an autopsy has been requested to determine the cause of death.

An arrest is merely an accusation supported by probable cause and all defendants are presumed innocent unless convicted in a court of law.

Gas and Diesel Price Both Fall – Weekly Fuel Report

By Yorke Prough · Thursday, February 8th, 2024 at 5:53 am CDT

The price of regular unleaded gasoline fell 4 cents, averaging $2.83 across Iowa according to AAA.

Crude Oil Summary

  • The price of global crude oil fell this week on the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) by $1.82 per barrel and is currently priced at $73.82.
  • Brent crude oil fell $2.54 and is currently priced at $79.14.
  • One year ago, WTI crude sold for $77.14 and Brent crude was at $82.92.

Motor Fuels

  • As of Wednesday, the price of regular unleaded gasoline averaged $2.83 across Iowa according to AAA.
    • Prices fell 4 cents from last week’s price and are down 47 cents from a year ago.
    • The national average on Wednesday was $3.15, up 1 cent from last week’s price.
  • Retail diesel prices in Iowa fell 3 cents this week with a statewide average of $3.54.
    • One year ago, diesel prices averaged $4.22 in Iowa.
    • The current Iowa diesel price is 40 cents lower than the national average of $3.94.
  • Wholesale ethanol held steady and is currently priced at $2.16.
  • The current Des Moines Terminal/Rack Prices are $1.97 for U87-E10, $2.27 for Unleaded 87 (clear), $2.49 for ULSD#2, $2.77 for ULSD#1, and $1.79 per gallon for E-70 prices.

 

Heating Fuels

  • Propane prices averaged $1.59 per gallon statewide.
  • Home heating oil prices averaged $2.94 per gallon statewide.
  • Natural gas prices fell 15 cents at the Henry Hub reporting site and are currently priced at $1.97/MMbtu

 

Tips for saving energy on the road or at home are available at energy.gov and fueleconomy.gov.

Girls’ Basketball: Mt. Pleasant on the Road for Panthers’ First-Round Regional Contest

By Slaten Swords · Wednesday, February 7th, 2024 at 6:41 pm CDT

Mount Pleasant, IA- The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union has released the brackets for classes 4A and 5A as everyone prepares for postseason basketball. Here’s how the bracket shook out for our local teams.

All eyes will be set on Class 4A Region 1 for southeast Iowa. Mt. Pleasant (4-15) will hit the road to take on Oskaloosa for the second time this season as Oskaloosa won that matchup 55-17. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 6:45 pm.

The winner of this game will take on #1 Clear Creek-Amana, who boasts a 20-0 record.

On the bottom half of the bracket, it will be a Southeast Conference matchup between Fort Madison (12-5) and Burlington (10-9). These two have traded games this season with the Grayhounds winning round one 47-39 and the Bloodhounds taking the most recent contest 58-48. Burlington is searching for their first winning record since 2010-2011.

The winner will be tasked with a road matchup against Keokuk (17-3). The Chiefs grabbed the conference crown but come off a loss against Iowa City West 53-39.

The first round will begin on February 14th at 7 pm.

A Preview of Class 1A’s First Round Regional Matchups

By Slaten Swords · Wednesday, February 7th, 2024 at 6:30 pm CDT

Girls’ Basketball- The first round of Class 1A Regionals is set to kickoff tomorrow, February 8th, at 7 pm so it seems appropriate that we preview the upcoming matchups for our local teams and look at the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union’s final top 15 for classes 1A, 2A, and 3A for the season.

Class 1A Region 7

On KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, it will be Danville (16-4) hosting Burlington Notre Dame (10-10). The Nikes have had a mixed bag of a season after experiencing the high of knocking Holy Trinity Catholic out of the top 15 earlier this season and taking their spot to the low of a harboring a 6-10 record.

Danville had a terrible start to the season, no mincing words. An 0-4 start and the Bears seemed to be destined to stay in hibernation for much of the season. However, the defense woke up ferociously as the Bears average 18.2 steals per game and have rattled off 16 straight wins.

It will be a battle of the guards with senior Jaeda Molle (14.4 points per game) of Danville facing off against fellow senior Lauren Krieger (17.8 points per game) for the Nikes. Danville has won both matchups this season, but Burlington Notre Dame has won 8 of the past 10.

Winfield-Mt. Union (4-14) will have the tough task of riding up to take on Lone Tree (18-3), the second-highest seed in the bottom half of the bracket. The Wolves and Lions will have to shake off the rust as they both enter the game with an albatross hanging around their neck of losing streaks (WMU-4, Lone Tree-2).

The Lions will have the advantage with a defense that generates 20.7 steals per game, while the Wolves turn it over an average of nearly 28 times per game. Madisen Kellogg, a sophomore for Winfield-Mt. Union, will have to step up and have a monster game as she nearly averages a double-double of 16.7 points per game and 9.1 rebounds per game. Lone Tree will lean on Finley Jacque’s 15. 9 points per game as a sophomore.

Winfield Mt. Union showed a lot of improvement in their second matchup against Lone Tree this season but have still been outscored 131 to 72 in the two matchups.

Class 1A Region 8

On KILJ AM 1130, 98.5 FM, or kilj.com, you can tune in to hear Jeff Broeg call the matchup down in Fort Madison between #15 Holy Trinity Catholic (18-2) and New London (1-19). The Crusaders are back in the top 15 for the second time this season after a dominant win over Lone Tree, 50-26, to claim the Southeast Iowa Super Conference crown.

Senior Mary Kate Bendlage is a problem that Southeast Iowa has not had a solution for as she’s averaging nearly a double-double a night with 21.8 points per game and 8.9 rebounds per game. Natalie Randolph has stepped up with 13.8 points per game.

New London’s lone win of the season occurred back in mid-December in a narrow 50-48 victory over West Burlington. The only time the Tigers scored over 40 points in a game this season. They’ll depend on Mylee Miller as she is the only Tiger averaging double figures at 10.1 points per game to complement her 7.2 rebounds per game.

The Crusaders have won the past 22 games in this series, outscoring the Tigers 133 to 46 in their two matchups this season.

WACO (12-9) will get to host their first-round matchup against Hillcrest Academy (6-14). The Warriors have finished the year strong with a 6-1 record in the last 7 games as the defense has not allowed an opponent to score more than 43 points in a win.

The Ravens have picked up two wins at the end of the season to help snap a 6-game losing streak. Teams have found a way to shut off their offense with the most points the Ravens have managed to score in a loss is 42 (three times).

WACO has won both matchups this season by narrow margins of just six and seven. But this has been a trend since 2014 as the Ravens haven’t won in the past 12 games. Senior Emma Wagler will lead the Warriors with 12.8 points per game, while Claire Withrow, a sophomore, will look for an upset as she averages 14.3 points per game.

Nevertheless, as any coach will tell you a game is not won on paper, so we will find out tomorrow night who will advance to keep their state tournament hopes alive.

Highschool Speech Team Results from Large Group

By Yorke Prough · Wednesday, February 7th, 2024 at 2:40 pm CDT

The Mount Pleasant Speech Team had 4 teams compete at the district Large Group competition recently.

 

Ensemble Acting received a I rating (advanced to State): Sarai Sanchez, Madeleine Smith, and Abbey Perry

 

Reader’s Theatre received a II rating: Izabelle Mathews, Hailey Parrot, Bethany Drury, Lexi Murphy, Delania Hourihan, and Katherine Tansey.

 

Improv received a II rating: Sarai Sanchez, Hailey Parrot, and Izabelle Mathews

 

Short Film received a I rating (advanced to state) Moroni Sanchez, Katherine Tansey, and Madeleine Smith.

 

After the State competition the Short Film group was invited to All-State on February 17th!

A huge congratulations to these students who have put in many hours and effort along the way. Good luck to those on the 17th for All-State.

Deloris Watznauer

By Yorke Prough · Wednesday, February 7th, 2024 at 1:57 pm CDT

Deloris Nadine Watznauer, 93, of Fort Madison, Iowa, passed away at 12:45 a.m. Wednesday, February 7, 2024, at the West Point Care Center in West Point.

She was born on August 12, 1930 in Fort Madison, Iowa, the daughter of Harry and Anna (Moncrief) Davolt. On June 25, 1949, she married Floyd Leo Watznauer in Fort Madison, Iowa. He preceded her in death on April 26, 2023.

She is survived by her son: Randy (Judy) Watznauer of Fort Madison, Iowa; daughter: Rhonda (Duane) Burkhardt of Carlisle, Iowa; several nieces, nephews and sister-in-laws.

She was preceded in death by her parents; husband Floyd; five sisters: Evelyn Taylor, Laura Ewing, Deloma LaFontaine, Ruth Freeman, Mary Hughes; six brothers: Harry, Harold, John, Floyd, James and Raymond Davolt.

Deloris was a 1948 graduate of Fort Madison High School. She worked at Sheaffer Pen Co., Blue Grass Dairy, Fisher Pharmacy and Easter Foods. She was a member of Holy Family Parish in Fort Madison. Deloris enjoyed reading, traveling, playing cards, watching the Chicago Cubs and most of all, spending time with her family.

Her body has been entrusted to Schmitz Funeral Home for cremation.

A graveside service will be held at a later date at Hillcrest Memorial Park in Fort Madison, Iowa.

Burial will be at Hillcrest Memorial Park in Fort Madison.

Memorials have been established in her memory for Compassus Hospice or PAW Animal Shelter.

Schmitz Funeral Home of West Point is assisting the family with arrangements. Online condolences may be made to the family at www.schmitzfuneralhomes.com.

Milton Dean Bass

By Yorke Prough · Wednesday, February 7th, 2024 at 1:55 pm CDT

Milton Dean Bass, 84, a resident of Birmingham, passed away Tuesday, February 6, 2024 at his home.

Friends may call after 1:00 p.m. Tuesday, February 13, 2024 at Behner Funeral Home in Fairfield with the family receiving friends from 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Funeral services celebrating his life will be held at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, February 14th at Faith Christian Outreach Center in Mt. Pleasant with Pastor Monte Knudsen officiating. Burial will be at Maple Hill Cemetery in Birmingham. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Faith Christian Outreach Center or Birmingham Fire Agency.

Dean was born February 6, 1940 in Burlington, the son of Leo and Maxine (McMillan) Bass. He served his country in the United States Army. Dean married Sandra Pool, August 28, 1966 at Zion Bible Church in Douds.

Dean worked as a machinist for John Deere Ottumwa Works for 30 years. He enjoyed camping, landscaping, horticulture, spending time outdoors, and going out to eat. Always up for an adventure, he enjoyed making their yearly trip to Branson, Missouri. Dean was active citizen in Birmingham, giving his time and service on the city council and as fire chief. He will be remembered in Birmingham for his beautiful flowers at their home and as an expert in outdoor illumination.

Those left to honor his life are his beloved wife, Sandy; children, Dion Bass of Birmingham, and Mindy (Scott) Keehner of Staunton, Illinois; granddaughters, Kylee and Kolbie Bass, and Koral and Korryn Keehner; sister, Janet (Jim) Zeitler of Milton; brother, Duane (Mary) Bass of Ottumwa; and nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; and nephew, Rusty Bass.

Online condolences may be made to Dean’s family by viewing his obituary at www.behnerfh.com.