First Rankings for Softball

By Slaten Swords · Tuesday, May 23rd, 2023 at 4:08 pm CDT

Prep Softball­– The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union released the first rankings of the softball season and three out of the five champions from last year do not enter this season as the top team.

In Class 1A, Twin Cedars defeated Southeast Warren in the championship game last year. This year Twin Cedars almost started outside of the top 15 as they snuck in with the #13 ranking. Additionally, it was not a great start to the season for the Sabers as they fell to Wayne 17-2. Southeast Warren enters as the top ranked team. Martensdale-St. Marys finished 3rd last year and enter the rankings in 2nd with Remsen St. Mary’s in 3rd. Highland comes into the season ranked 10th and St. Ansgar rounds out the top 15.

Iowa City Regina is looking to repeat as state champions after taking down Wilton 6-4 last year and they enter this year as the favorite. Lisbon ranks 2nd with Central Springs taking the #3 spot. Wilton is ranked 6th despite their runner-up finish last season. Mount Ayr competed in the state tournament last season; however, the Raiders do not find themselves ranked in the top 15. South Hardin rounds out the top 15 for Class 2A.

For Class 3A, last year’s champion Mount Vernon starts this year ranked 5th. Williamsburg is the favorite this year with Davenport Assumption assuming the #2 position after their runner-up finish last year. PCM closes out the top 15 as they finished last season with a 16-12 record.

Dallas Center-Grimes continues the trend created in Class 1A as they finished as last year’s runner-up and this year’s favorite for Class 4A. Fort Dodge ranks 2nd and North Scott in 3rd. Last year’s champion Winterset enters this season ranked 10th. Similarly, Winterset fell to 9th ranked North Polk to start the season 4-2. Two of our local teams find themselves ranked in the top 15. Burlington enters ranked 11th after making it to the state tournament last season where they went 0-2 to Winterset and Norwalk. Fairfield is ranked 13th but lost their season opener 10-6 to Van Buren County.

Last year’s Class 5A champion is this year’s favorite in Waukee Northwest. Valley is ranked 2nd with Southeast Polk taking 3rd. Fort Dodge is not ranked inside of the top 15 despite being last year’s runner-up. Muscatine enters the season ranked 7th despite finishing in 3rd place last year. Iowa City Liberty rounds out the top 15 after finishing 28-14 last year.

5 Tigers to Compete at the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships

By Slaten Swords · Tuesday, May 23rd, 2023 at 12:03 pm CDT

Iowa Wesleyan- The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Outdoor Track and Field National Championships begin tomorrow and run through May 26th. Here are the qualifiers for Iowa Wesleyan.

The women’s team will have three competitors at the meet. Bri Hunter returns to nationals as she looks to improve upon her 24th place finish in the shot put from last year when she threw 12.33 meter (40 feet 5.5 inches). Hunter enters the field ranked 14th after a season best throw of 13.69 meters.

Faith Younce and Allison Morris will both be competing in the 5000 meter RaceWalk. Younce enters with the 9th fastest time and Morris ranks 11th heading into the event.

For the men’s team, Kenny Tucker and Logan Lucas will compete in the 5000 meter RaceWalk. Tucker enters with a season best time of 25 minutes and 36 seconds, which ranks him 15th in the field. Lucas rounds out the event rankings in 16th with a season best time of 26 minutes and 10 seconds.

Indiana Wesleyan will be hosting the three-day event with the Tiger men competing on May 25th at 4:15 pm. Hunter will be throwing the shot at 1:30 pm on May 25th. Lastly, Younce and Morris will be competing at 3:25 pm on May 25th.

Two Pickup Crash

By Theresa Rose · Tuesday, May 23rd, 2023 at 9:54 am CDT

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office investigated a two vehicle crash Monday morning at about 8:30.  Patrick Whaley of Columbia, Missouri was driving a pickup truck south bound in the 3400 block of Highway 27. Whaley signaled to pull to the side of the road.  At the same time Jeff Roby of Fruitland was southbound also driving a pickup, Roby said he saw Whaley’s signal but was blinded by the sun.  The Roby pickup rear ended Whaley’s. Roby complained of some chest pain but was cleared by the ambulance crew at the scene. Neither driver was charged.

Sports, May 23rd

By Slaten Swords · Tuesday, May 23rd, 2023 at 6:33 am CDT

High School Soccer

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team will take on Central DeWitt on the road tonight.

The Danville boys’ team fell to West Liberty last night 10-0. The Bears finished the season with a 5-5 record.

The Central Lee boys’ team was eliminated from the postseason after losing to Pella Christian last night 6-0. The Hawks end the season with a 6-9 record.

For girls’ soccer, Burlington Notre Dame will take on North Scott and Fort Madison will take on SEC foe Burlington. Both games will be played today.

High School Golf

Day one of the boys’ state tournament got underway yesterday and through 18 holes Mason Shelledy of New London is tied for 30th as he shot 15 over. Dawson Barthole is in 1st place with a score of 3 over. The tournament will conclude today.

In Class 3A, Roman Roth of Washington leads the field after shooting 1 over through 18 holes.

The New London girls’ team and Olivia Hines of Mediapolis will be competing in the state tournament with day one of the two day tournament starting on May 25th.

Deerwood Golf Club will be sponsoring KILJ’s coverage of both state golf events.

High School Baseball

Mt. Pleasant will travel to take on Clear Creek-Amana tomorrow, May 24th.

Winfield-Mt. Union will face off against Pekin tonight.

New London will travel to take on West Liberty tomorrow at 7 pm.

Danville will start their season against Mediapolis tonight.

Central Lee fell to Fort Madison 12-2 last night. The Hawks will travel to face off against Burlington Notre Dame on May 26th.

High School Softball

Mt. Pleasant escaped a 7th inning jam to come away with the opening day win over Holy Trinity Catholic 6-4. Ella McNamee got the scoring going with an RBI double in the bottom of the first inning to score Sage Burchett. Addison Clark tallied her own RBI double to give Mt. Pleasant a 2 to 0 lead.

The Crusaders would tie the game up in the 3rd inning after an error and an RBI triple by Brooke Mueller. The Crusaders and Panthers traded a run to keep the game tied at 3. Some nifty baserunning and an RBI single by Jolynn Martin made it 6 to 3 Panthers. With the Crusaders down to their final two out, Mary Hellige clobbered a solo home run to make the score 6 to 4. Martin was able to navigate her way out of the problem and pick up her first win as a Panther going 7 innings and notching 5 strikeouts. The Panthers will host Mid-Prairie on May 26th and the Crusaders will travel to take on West Burlington tonight.

Winfield-Mt. Union will host Pekin tonight to start their season.

Danville will host their opening day today against Mediapolis.

Central Lee will take on Highland on May 25th at 7 pm.

Iowa Wesleyan Athletics

The NAIA National Championship meet will take place tomorrow, May 24th, for outdoor track and field.

This Day in Sports History

1981 – Puerto Rican boxer Wilfred Benítez at 22 years old becomes the youngest 3-division world champion in history by knocking out WBC World Super Welterweight champion Maurice Hope in 12 rounds in Las Vegas.

2001 – Marco Siffredi becomes the first person to snowboard down Mount Everest via the Norton Couloir.

2021 – PGA Championship Men’s Golf, Ocean Course Kiawah Island: Phil Mickelson becomes oldest major winner in history at the age of 50; wins his 6th major by 2 strokes over Brooks Koepka and Louis Oosthuizen.

 

 

 

 

Iowa Crop Progress and Condition Report

By Theresa Rose · Monday, May 22nd, 2023 at 4:33 pm CDT

May 15-21, 2023

DES MOINES, Iowa (May 22, 2023) – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig commented today on the Iowa Crop Progress and Condition Report released by the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. The report is released weekly April through November. Additionally, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship provides a weather summary each week during this time.

“Damp conditions early last week eventually gave way to warmer and drier weather, which allowed many farmers across the state to wrap up planting,” said Secretary Naig. “While the haze from the Canadian wildfires will dissipate by mid-week, forecasts show the warmer and drier conditions will stick around all week.”

The weekly report is also available on the USDA’s website at nass.usda.gov.

Crop Report

Cooler than normal temperatures and relatively dry weather helped Iowa farmers to 4.8 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending May 21, 2023, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Farmers were still planting corn, soybeans, and oats this week, although planting activities were nearing completion.

Topsoil moisture condition rated 5 percent very short, 20 percent short, 71 percent adequate and 4 percent surplus.Subsoil moisture condition rated 7 percent very short, 25 percent short, 65 percent adequate and 3 percent surplus.

Ninety-five percent of Iowa’s expected corn crop has been planted, 9 days ahead of last year and 12 days ahead of the 5-year average. Sixty-five percent of the corn crop has emerged, 6 days ahead of last year and 4 days ahead of the average. Eighty-four percent of Iowa’s expected soybean crop has been planted, just over a week ahead of last year and nearly 2 weeks ahead of normal. Forty-three percent of soybeans have emerged, 8 days ahead of last year and 6 days ahead of average. Ninety-four percent of the expected oat crop has emerged, 8 days ahead of normal.Eleven percent of the oat crop has headed, 9 days ahead of last year and 10 days ahead of the average. Oat condition improved to 80 percent good to excellent.

Eight percent of the State’s first cutting of alfalfa hay has been completed. Hay condition declined to 66 percent good to excellent. Pasture condition rated 58 percent good to excellent.  Reports of livestock turned out to pasture were received again this week, overall livestock conditions are good.

 

Weather Summary

By Theresa Rose · Monday, May 22nd, 2023 at 4:31 pm CDT

Provided by Justin Glisan, Ph.D., State Climatologist, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship

Canadian wildfire smoke was pervasive over Iowa on several days of the reporting period as a less active storm track brought widespread, though below-normal rainfall. Most of Iowa’s weather stations reported deficits of at least an inch with northeast and southwest stations slightly wetter. Temperatures were below normal across portions of western and northern Iowa with near-average conditions over the rest of the state; the statewide average temperature was 60.7 degrees, 2.1 degrees below normal.

Showers with moderate rainfall continued across northeastern Iowa through Sunday (14th) afternoon with temperatures ranging from the low 50s north to the 70s south. Thirteen stations near the state’s eastern border reported over an inch of rain with Elma (Howard County) observing 2.75 inches as totals tailed off rapidly farther west. A low pressure spinning over Missouri brought additional showers to southwestern Iowa through the early morning hours on Monday (15th). Heavier rain was reported in slower moving cells, producing a pocket of 1.50-3.00 inch totals in Decatur County; Lamoni registered 2.75 inches with many southwestern stations that reported rainfall receiving at least 0.50 inch.

Light rain lingered over southern Iowa as sunny skies prevailed in northern Iowa where highs pushed into the upper 60s and low 70s. Winds shifted to the northwest overnight with Tuesday (16th) morning lows hovering in the low 60s statewide as clouds gradually diminished southwest. Daytime highs rose into the upper 70s and low 80s with low humidity and sunny skies. Cloudless conditions and light, variable winds were observed into Wednesday (17th) as Iowans experienced pleasant afternoon conditions. Daytime highs ranged from the mid-60s northeast to the low 80s southwest. Southeasterly winds developed through the nighttime hours in advance of a cold front to the west.

Thursday (18th) morning lows stayed in the 50s as dense Canadian wildfire smoke mixed down into the lower atmosphere across northwestern Iowa. Afternoon highs reached the low to mid-80s at many stations as the cold front moved into central Iowa. Thundershowers formed in the late afternoon as upper-level smoke overspread the skies behind the boundary. Rainfall totals reported at 7:00 am on Friday (19th) were generally under 0.20 inch, though a handful of stations reported higher totals ranging from 0.25 inch at Monticello (Jones County) to 0.52 inch in Randolph (Fremont County).

Morning lows were still in the 60s in southeastern Iowa, while behind the front mid-40s to low 50s were experienced. The rising sun’s color was vivid as the smoky haze remained into the afternoon with daytime highs in the upper 50s north to mid-60s south. Starry skies reigned into Saturday (20th) with chilly mid to upper 30s registering in western Iowa while the 40s blanketed eastern Iowa; the statewide average low was 41 degrees, 10 degrees below normal. Light wind and sunny skies remained through the day as upper 60s and low 70s produced ideal late spring conditions. Pockets of fog were observed into early Sunday (21st) with lows in the 40s to low 50s.

Weekly rain totals ranged from no accumulation at western and northern Iowa stations to 3.04 inches at Lamoni Municipal Airport. The statewide weekly average precipitation was 0.29 inch, while the normal is 0.92 inch. Airports in Ames (Story County) and Waterloo (Black Hawk County) reported the week’s high temperature of 85 degrees on the 18th, on average 12 degrees above normal. Atlantic (Cass County) reported the week’s low temperature of 34 degrees on the 20th, 17 degrees below normal.

Join the Mount Pleasant Community Band

By Theresa Rose · Monday, May 22nd, 2023 at 10:04 am CDT

As Director Adam Creager likes to say, they are getting the band back together!  It’s time to bring the Mount Pleasant Community Band back together for the 2023 summer season.  The band is always looking for fresh new faces and players to add to the mix.  Rehearsals begin June 13 and will be held at 7 pm June 13, June 20, June 27, possibly July 5 and July 11.  The concerts are held on Thursdays June 15 to July 13 in Central Park at 7 pm except for the last one which be held at the Henry County Fair.  For more information contact Adam Creager at the Mt. Pleasant Middle School or at 319-931-6315.

Agenda for Next Henry County Board of Supervisors Meeting

By Theresa Rose · Monday, May 22nd, 2023 at 9:50 am CDT

AGENDA

 May 23, 2023

Approve Agenda

Approve Minutes

9:00 Jake Hotchkiss, Engineer Weekly Update

9:30 Decision on County Convenience Fee for Out of County Driver’s License

10:00 Public Hearing and Open Bids to Sell Tax Certificate 202 E Spahr Mt. Union, IA

Other County Business as time allows

Supervisors Sub-Committee Updates