High School Boys’ Postseason Soccer to Begin Play on May 15th

By Slaten Swords · Tuesday, May 9th, 2023 at 3:19 pm CDT

Prep Boys’ Soccer- The Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) released the postseason brackets for soccer and here’s the matchups for some of our local schools.

In Class 1A Substate 5, West Liberty earned a bye as the #1 seed along with the #2 seed Mediapolis. Danville and WACO will square off against one another with the winner taking on West Liberty.

Danville won their matchup earlier this season in a 3-2 finale that needed penalty kicks to decide. Colton Leichty had 15 saves for the Warriors with Colin Pealer scoring two goals for the Bears.

Mediapolis will face off against the winner between Columbus and Wapello.

Central Lee is the #4 seed in the Class 1A Substate 6 and they will take on Hillcrest Academy at Central Lee. The winner will have to go against the #1 seed Pella Christian.

Class 2A Substate 5 will see Mt. Pleasant travel to take on Solon with the winner going against the top seed Davenport Assumption. Keokuk will battle against Burlington Notre Dame with the winner taking on Central DeWitt in round two.

The Panthers and Nikes will battle on May 11th to end the Panthers regular season.

Fort Madison and Burlington will tango in Substate 4 Class 3A with Fairfield crossing paths with Clear Creek-Amana. In Substate 8, Washington will face off against Carlisle.

Round one will get underway on May 15th for Class 1A and 2A. Class 3A and 4A will have to wait until May 16th for their first-round matchups. The second round will take place on May 22nd and the final substate games will be on May 24th. State soccer will begin on May 30th and run through June 3rd.

For a full list of the brackets visit: IHSAA Postseason Brackets

McKenzie Vradenburg to Join Truman State’s Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field Program

By Slaten Swords · Tuesday, May 9th, 2023 at 2:55 pm CDT

(Pictured left to right: Jason Egli, Gail Egli, McKenzie Vradenburg, Jaykla Vradenburg, Track Coach Scott Meth, Cross Country Coach Caylon DeVaul)

WACO- McKenzie Vradenburg will continue running at the collegiate level after signing her letter of intention to attend Truman State University and join the Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field team. Vradenburg will also be majoring in Criminal Justice. She talked about all of the factors that went into her decision,

“I actually like their campus and I like how it wasn’t too far from home. I was looking for something that was far enough where I felt like I can’t just go back every weekend, but also close enough that if I want to come and visit I can. They have an indoor and outdoor track, which I think I’ll be able to use that a lot with my training and everything and I just met the team and I just really bonded with them and I really enjoyed the atmosphere the team was giving me.”

Vradenburg has left her mark in the history book of WACO as she touts a school record in the 200 meter dash with a time of 28.55 seconds, which she set this year beating her previous mark of 29.70 seconds from a year ago. She is a conference champion in several events, and she qualified for state last season as she competed in two events. Vradenburg finished 23rd in the 4×100 meter relay and 22nd in the 4×200 meter relay at the state tournament last season.

WACO will be hosting the state qualifying meet this Thursday, May 11th, and Vradenburg was quite candid about her feeling heading into the meet,

“I’m a little nervous, I’m kind of excited to try and go out and compete. Our distance medley has been doing really good this year. So, we’re going to try and see if we can PR (personal record) again in that and our 4×100, 4×200 we’re doing all right in that and we’re going to see if we get better at that too.”

To qualify for state in Class 1A, the top place winner in each event plus the next 14 best performances statewide will advance to the state meet. If there are ties, the highest qualifying meet place winner will be the qualifier. There will be no more than 24 qualifiers in any event.

Vradenburg was smiling from ear to ear when talking about her next step,

“I’m super excited for college and I feel like it’s just going to be great for me. I’m so excited to go out and meet new people. I love doing new things, and being in a new school, new atmosphere, meeting new friends I think that’s going to be really great for me.”

The Bulldogs recently competed in their conference meet and brought home Conference Champions and National qualifiers.

Mt. Pleasant 7th Grade Sweeps Conference Championships in Track and Field

By Slaten Swords · Tuesday, May 9th, 2023 at 11:54 am CDT

SEIMS Conference Meet- The Mt. Pleasant grade school showed off their athleticism at their conference meets as the boys’ and girls’ 7th grade teams walked away with a conference championship and both 8th grade teams took second place.

For the 7th grade girls’ team, Ellie Freeman took home wins in the 100 meter dash (13.95 seconds), the 200 meter dash (28.89 seconds), and joined Taylor Williamson, Abby Shelangoski, and Paisley Jalas in the 4×100 meter relay that took first with a time of 56.09 seconds. Williamson, Jalas, and Shelangoski teamed up with Alayna Wilson to win the 4×200 meter relay. Megan Newton grabbed first place in the 100 meter hurdles with a time of 18.43 seconds. Shelangoski picked up an individual gold in the 200 meter hurdles with a time of 33.09 seconds. The 4×400 meter relay team of Newton, Molly Baker, Izzy Sloat, and Josie Dykstra took first place. Sloat then leaped 14 feet 8.5 inches to win the long jump. The Panthers won by 40 points with a team total of 172.

The 8th grade girls’ team captured 121 points and second place behind Ottumwa. The 4×100 meter shuttle hurdle team of Scotlyn Roen, Linzy Striegel, Jayde Yoder, and Bathsheba Bowman grabbed first with a time of 1 minute and 13 seconds. Nevaeh Beans took first with a time of 1 minute and 5 seconds. Bowman snatched another win for the Panthers in the 200 meter hurdles with a time of 31.59 seconds. Paige Newton, Jenna Schwartz, Beans, and Monroe James won the 4×400 meter relay and Ja’Kiyah Sanders leaped 15 feet 1 inch to win the long jump.

For the 7th grade boys’ team, Ryan Helling won the 200 meter dash with a time of 25.79 seconds, and the 400 meter dash with a sub-one minute time of 58.82 seconds. Griffen Jones took the 200 meter dash with a time of 31.24 seconds. Caleb Shepherd, Khanon Koller, Jones, and Gunner Ortiz-Beckman won the 4×400 meter relay with a time of 4 minutes and 25 seconds. James Thiengmany, Koller, Isaiah Lange, Kaden Schadt grabbed the gold in the 4×100 meter shuttle hurdle. The Panthers scored 122.5 points on their way to the conference championship.

The 8th grade boys team was paced by Hoang Quang as he took first place in the 100 meter dash, the 400 meter dash, and the long jump with a leap of 18 feet 2.5 inches. Franky Lopez won the 100 meter hurdles with a time of 15.48 seconds and the 200 meter hurdles with a time of 28.33 seconds. Lastly, the 4×100 meter shuttle hurdle team of Brody Clark, Owen Lord, Keegan Heaton, and Lopez grabbed first place with a time of 1 minute and 9 seconds.

Sports, May 9th

By Slaten Swords · Tuesday, May 9th, 2023 at 6:33 am CDT

High School Track and Field

Mt. Pleasant will be hosting the state qualifying meet on May 11th.

Central Lee will travel to Tipton to compete in their state qualifying meet on May 11th.

WACO will host the Class 1A District 10 state qualifying meet as Danville, New London, and Winfield-Mt. Union will also be competing at the meet on May 11th.

High School Soccer

The Mt. Pleasant girls team was able to fend off Fort Madison late in the game to come out on top 3-2. Elly Manning led the Panthers with two goals with Charice Auwerda picking up a goal and an assist. The Panthers will travel to take on Burlington Notre Dame on May 11th.

The Mt. Pleasant boys team fell to Fort Madison last night 11-2 on the road. Down 3-0 at halftime, the Panthers attempted to become more aggressive offensively and Fort Madison jumped at the opportunity. Dylan White converted both goals for Mt. Pleasant. The Panthers will take on Burlington Notre Dame on May 11th on the road.

The WACO boys team will take on Wapello tonight.

The Central Lee boys team lost to Burlington Notre Dame last night 2-1. Hunter Lillie scored both goals for the Nikes.

The Central Lee girls team ended up on the losing end of their contest with Burlington Notre Dame 5-2. Aburee Boyd netted one for the Hawks. The Class 1A Region 3 contest for Central Lee will be against Mid-Prairie on May 17th.

High School Golf

The Mt. Pleasant boys team’s next competition will be tomorrow, May 10th, for the 3A sectional meet.

The Mt. Pleasant girls team will compete in the SEC conference tournament tomorrow.

The boys teams of New London, Winfield-Mt. Union, Danville, and Holy Trinity Catholic will compete in the 1A sectional meet tomorrow.

The conference champion for the girls Southeastern Iowa Super Conference is New London after shooting a 355; Highland took 2nd place with Louisa-Muscatine in 3rd. Winfield-Mt. Union finished in 5th place. Alli Humphreys led the way for the Wolves with a 107 for the course. New London will host the Regional on May 12th with Winfield-Mt. Union also in competition.

High School Tennis

The Mt. Pleasant boys team competed at their District meet yesterday and Xavier took 1st and 2nd place in the singles and 1st place in doubles. Fairfield’s Garrett Flanagan and Jace Hannes took 2nd place. In doubles for the Panthers, Jake Ensminger and Owen Vansickle won their first round matchup 6-2 and 6-1 but fell in the second round. Gavin Ross and Phoenix Watson were eliminated in the first round. In singles, Tim Cam fell in the first round. Elliot Cook moved on to the second round but fell to the eventual District champion Charlie Legrand of Xavier. The Panthers will take on Marion in their Substate meet on May 12th.

The Mt. Pleasant girls team will compete at their singles and doubles regional assignment tomorrow, May 10th.

Iowa Wesleyan Athletics

The Tiger baseball team took third place in the CAC tournament and had two members named to the All-Tournament team. Cauy Massner tossed seven quality innings allowing four runs and striking out six batters in their win against Florida National University. Carlos Vicente earned a spot on the team after notching six hits (0.375 batting average), which included three doubles, and tallied 3 RBIs in their three games.

The Tigers outdoor track and field teams will compete at the North Star Athletic Association Championships taking place on May 11th.

This Day in Sports History

1975 – Brian Oldfield shot puts 22.86 meters (‘unofficial’ world record, due to his professional status) in El Paso, Texas.

1987 – Oriole Eddie Murray is the first to switch hit home runs in 2 consecutive games.

2018 – Manchester City smashes EPL records in 3-1 win over Brighton – most goals (105), most points (97), and most wins (31).

 

 

 

Tom Septer

By Theresa Rose · Tuesday, May 9th, 2023 at 5:46 am CDT

Tom D. Septer, 68, of rural Fairfield passed away on Sunday, May 7, 2023, at the Henry County Health Center in Mt. Pleasant.

Tom was born on September 6, 1954, at the Jefferson County Hospital in Fairfield, the son of Carl V. and Virginia (Avery) Septer.  Tom graduated from Fairfield High School in 1972.  He was united in marriage to Nancy Vorhies in 1974.  He later married Tina Raker in 1976.  Tom worked from Farm Service for a number of years and later went on to work for the Walmart Warehouse until his retirement.  He enjoyed fishing, hunting and collecting guns, but most especially spending time with his grandchildren and great grandchildren.

He is survived by his wife, Tina of rural Fairfield, his children, Chad (Brandy) Septer of Birmingham and Cory (Samantha) Septer of Fairfield, 4 grandchildren, Madison, Nichole, Caden and Emma and two great grandchildren, Charlotte and Chandler, two brothers, Doug Septer and Brian Septer, and two sisters, Judy Aplara and Carla Septer, (Doug Dye) and a sister-in-law, Diane Septer all of Lockridge.

Tom was preceded in death by his parents and one brother, Terry Septer.

Cremation has been entrusted to the care of Murphy Funeral Home of Mt. Pleasant. No services are planned at this time.

Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.murphyfuneralandmonuments.com

Murphy Funeral Home of Mt. Pleasant, is caring for his arrangements.

 

Thomas “T.J.” Pratt,

By Theresa Rose · Monday, May 8th, 2023 at 4:36 pm CDT

Thomas “T.J.” Pratt, 62, of Mt. Pleasant, died Friday, May 5, 2023 at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City.

Per T.J.’s wishes, there will be no funeral service or family visitation. A private family burial will be held. Friends may call to sign the register book from 12 Noon to 7 PM on Friday, May 12 at the Kimzey Funeral Home, 213 N. Main Street. Pleasant. Online condolences may be directed to www.kimzeyfh.com

Thomas Jeffrey “T.J.” Pratt was born September 5, 1960 in Roswell, New Mexico. He was the son of Dr. Carl William and Geraldine May (Pelisek) Pratt. He grew up in the Southwest United States until his family moved to Clarinda, Iowa and later to Tama/Toledo, Iowa.

T.J. entered the United States Marines following his completion of high school. He was inducted on May 25, 1978 in Sioux Falls, SD. He rose to the rank of Lance Corporal, last serving with the 4th Battalion of the 1st Marine Division of 29 Palms, CA. He was honorably discharged on August 31, 1982 at 29 Palms.

T.J. then began his collegiate studies at the University of Montana. He graduated in 1993 with Bachelor of Science degrees in Forestry, Organic Wildlife and Transitional Wildlife and minors in Botany and Zoology.

Nearly all of T.J.’s working career was with the Department of Corrections for the State of Iowa. He served 27 years as a Storekeeper II at the Mt. Pleasant Correctional Institution. He retired in January of 2023.

Survivors include a brother, Phillip Pratt of Astoria, NY and a sister, Ann Pratt of Marshalltown, IA as well as friends in the Mt. Pleasant area who made up his “adopted family”.

His parents precede him in death.

Georgia Gwinnett Sweeps Conference Championships for Softball and Baseball

By Slaten Swords · Monday, May 8th, 2023 at 4:22 pm CDT

Conference Champions- Georgia Gwinnett College showed up for the Continental Athletic Conference (CAC) tournaments in a big way by winning both the baseball and softball championships.

The softball championship was a bit more dramatic for the Grizzlies as they lost game one 8-6 in extra innings to USC Beaufort. The second game was all Georgia Gwinnett College as they won 6-1 being Alexa Good picking up the win in the circle to capture the Grizzlies sixth straight CAC title.

On the baseball side of things, the Grizzlies outscored their opponents 33 to 1 to reach the championship game. 5th ranked Georgia Gwinnett College kept up that same momentum in the championship game today to win 27-4 over Fisher College. Jon Ponder and Braxton Meguiar each hit home runs in the win as the Grizzlies defended their title.

The NAIA baseball and softball world series opening rounds will begin play on May 15th.

Iowa Crop Progress and Condition Report

By Theresa Rose · Monday, May 8th, 2023 at 4:13 pm CDT

May 1 – 7, 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.

“Over the last week, farmers made significant planting progress before late-week thunderstorms brought much needed moisture along with unwanted hail and high winds,” said Secretary Naig. “Rain chances continue this week, but weather outlooks through mid-May are shifting towards warmer temperatures and somewhat drier conditions.”

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

Crop Report

Mostly dry weather and warmer temperatures meant Iowa farmers had 5.7 days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending May 7, 2023, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Conditions allowed farmers to make significant strides planting corn, soybeans, and oats.

Topsoil moisture condition rated 6 percent very short, 27 percent short, 64 percent adequate and 3 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture condition rated 8 percent very short, 33 percent short, 56 percent adequate and 3 percent surplus.

Forty-one percent of Iowa’s expected corn crop was planted during the week ending May 7, 2023, resulting in 70 percent planted, 12 days ahead of last year and 1 week ahead of the 5-year average. Six percent of the corn crop has emerged, 6 days ahead of last year but a day behind average. One-third of Iowa’s expected soybean crop was planted during the week ending May 7, 2023, for a total of 49 percent planted, 11 days ahead of last year and just over a week ahead of the average. Ninety-six percent of the expected oat crop has been planted, just over 2 weeks ahead of last year and 10 days ahead of normal. Oat emergence, at 61 percent, moved from being behind normal a week ago to 9 days ahead of last year and 4 days ahead of the 5-year average.

The first hay condition rating of the season was 1 percent very poor, 4 percent poor, 33 percent fair, 52 percent good and 10 percent excellent. Pasture condition rated 43 percent good to excellent. Some cattlemen were still waiting for pastures to put on more growth before turning out their cattle.

Weather Summary

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

Iowans experienced ideal conditions for field work and planting during much of the reporting period. A late-week active storm track brought widespread rainfall along with severe thunderstorms. Even with widespread wetness, unseasonably dry conditions persisted. Temperatures were more variable than the previous week with warmer conditions north to cooler readings south; in between, near-normal behavior with the statewide average temperature coming in at 56.0 degrees, 0.1 degree above normal. A cut-off low pressure center over the Great Lakes dominated the weather pattern as it spun showers into eastern Iowa through Sunday (30th) afternoon. Daytime highs varied from the mid-40s east, where clouds and rain were present, to the upper 50s west under clearing skies. Very strong northwesterly winds built in through the day with sustained speeds in the 30-40 mph range and gusts above 50 mph; Spencer Municipal Airport (Clay County) observed a 59-mph wind gust. Clouds quickly diminished overnight with Monday (1st) morning lows in the upper 30s and low 40s. After a brief lull in stronger winds, speeds increased through the afternoon hours with upper 50s and low 60s reported under sunny skies. A band of clouds moved north to south across Iowa into early Tuesday (2nd) morning, though starry skies were visible for most of the night. Strong northwesterly winds persisted with pleasant temperatures in the low to mid-60s. Winds finally died down before sunset on Wednesday (3rd) with morning lows in the low 30s north to upper 30s south under cloudless skies. Daytime highs pushed into the upper 60s and low 70s with light and variable winds and clear skies. Temperatures on Thursday (4th) afternoon were several degrees warmer, hitting the low 80s at multiple stations after morning temperatures bottomed out in the 40s with winds shifting to the south under clear conditions.

Spotty thundershowers formed in extreme northwest Iowa later in the night with a more widespread shield of rainfall forming Friday (5th) morning. The sluggish disturbance moved across central and eastern Iowa where temperatures held in the low to mid-60s. A second band of stronger storms pushed through northern Iowa prior to sunrise on Saturday (6th) before fizzling out around noon. Rain totals were highest in west-central Iowa where several stations measured at least an inch with widespread 0.25 – 0.50 inch totals over Iowa’s middle west-to-east one-third; the statewide average rainfall was 0.40 inch. Southerly winds boosted daytime temperatures into the upper 70s and low 80s over southern Iowa where southerly winds brought in higher dewpoints. A few severe-warned cells fired in southwest Iowa before diving across the Missouri border. Additional severe thunderstorms formed several hours later and overnight into Sunday (7th) in southeastern Iowa. These storms brought locally heavy downpours along with hail and straight-line wind reports across Van Buren, Henry and Lee counties. Many stations in southeastern counties also measured totals from 0.40 inch at Columbus Junction (Louisa County) to 1.17 inches in Augusta (Lee County). Heavy dew and dense fog were observed at 7:00 am over much of the state with cloudy skies and lows in the upper 50s to mid-60s.

Weekly precipitation totals ranged from no accumulation at several Iowa stations to 1.76 inches at Redfield (Dallas County). The statewide weekly average precipitation was 0.50 inch while the normal is 0.89 inch. Little Sioux (Harrison County) and Sioux City Municipal Airport (Woodbury County) reported the week’s high temperature of 86 degrees on the 4th, on average 18 degrees above normal. Chariton (Lucas County) and Vinton (Benton County) reported the week’s low temperature of 25 degrees on the 3rd, on average 16 degrees below normal. Four-inch soil temperatures were in the upper 50s north to mid-60s south as of Sunday.