Clay County News

Fourteen Clay County Athletes qualify for State Track Meet

SUTTON - The Clay Center Lady Cats track and field team saved their best performance for the most important meet of the season as they scored a season-high 112.33 points to claim the District D-3 Title.

The Clay Center boys finished fourth while the Harvard girls and boys finished fifth and ninth, respectively.

All in all, the two teams combined for 14 State qualifiers.

For Harvard, Alyssa McDowell, Selena Longoria and Megan McDowell will all be making the trip to Omaha Burke next Friday.

Alyssa McDowell captured first place in both the highh jump (5-feet-2) and the long jump (15-feet-1).

Longoria won the shot put (37-feet-7.25) and was second in the discus (98-feet-2).

Megan McDowell stood second in the pole vault with a season-best 7-feet-10. She narrowly missed in the high jump, finishing third behind her sister and Giltner's Stasia Ott.

The Harvard boys had no qualifiers, but freshman Jake Nachtigal came close, taking third in the 110-meter high hurdles.

For Clay Center, Alex Johnson won both the shot put (49-feet-5.5) and the discus (134-feet-3).

Broddrick Dillon also wn gold in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.0 seconds.

Andrew Malone (400-meter dash) and Jair Perez (3,200-meter run) also qualified.

For the district champions, Abby Sorensen qualified in three events.

She again won the triple jump (34-feet-0) and was second in the long jump to McDowell with a mark of 15-feet-0.75.

Sorensen, along with teammates Steph Hoyt, Ashley Boman and Natalie Jeziorski, was also on the winning 400-meter relay team.

Another relay team, the 3,200-meter foursome of Ceirra Tompkin, Jill Baxa, Brooke Yates and Jeziorski, also finished first for Clay Center with a time of 10:42.0.

Hoyt (300-meter hurdles), Tompkin (3,200-meter run) and Yates (1,600-meter run) all qualified individually as well.

Clay Center's girls 3,200-meter relay team will open the State Meet on May 16 at 9 a.m. as the first race of the event.

Class D makes up half of the morning session friday at the State Meet.

All classes run finals through the day Saturday.

Lauber Seed Farms receives high distinction

GENEVA - Effective Feb. 27, 2008, the six member companies of Nebraska Seeds Inc. received the most up-to-date International Standard Organization (ISO) quality management certification - ISO 9001-2000 - for field planning, planting, rogueing, detasseling, crop protection, harvesting, drying, shelling and storage of irrigated hybrid seed corn.

The certification indicates that the seed production companies all comply with the 19 quality standards in the ISO 9001:2000 management system. This includes verification and validation of seed quality and purity at each stage of production, checks and balances for all production processes, and well-trained personnel.

"As ISO certified companies, our operational procedures are continually being evaluated for maximum output in quality and efficiency," says Jerry Lauber, Lauber Seed Farms, Geneva, NE "This ensures our customers consistent quality and the best product possible."

Seed quality management involves the use of properly set and operated harvesting equipment, thorough seed inspection and grading. Purity management involves field inspection and isolation programs, checks on variety information at harvest, equipment clean-out procedures, and identification of seed stock bags and inventory.

The six Nebraska Seeds, Inc. member companies are:

Beebe Seed Farm, Inc., North Bend, NE

Cast Farms, Inc., Beaver Crossing, NE

Gangwish Seed Farms, Inc., Shelton, NE

Gleason Farms, Inc., Wood River, NE

Lauber Seed Farms LLC, Geneva, NE

Petersen Farms, Inc., Grand Island, NE

These companies are former grower-owners of NC+ Hybrids, Lincoln, NE. In March, 2005 NC+ Hybrids was acquired by American Seeds, Inc. (ASI), a Monsanto holding company. Simultaneous with the ASI acquisition, Remington Hybrid Seed Company acquired the Hastings, NE. and Grand Junction, Iowa seed production faculties. The former grower-owners of NC+ Hybrids formed Nebraska Seeds, Inc. and entered into a long term seed production agreement with Remington to continue to produce top quality seed corn.

Girls Track Leaders (April 30)

100

Mindy Cloet, Sut (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 13.03

Katie Benton, SC (4-15-08 @ Blue Hill) 13.56

Jessica Osterhaus, Sut (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 13.58

200

Mindy Cloet, Sut (4-15-08 @ Tri County) 27.25

Macy Steinhauer, Sut (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 27.56

Keri Shaw, SC (4-21-08 @Doniphan-Trumbull) 27.70

400

Keri Shaw, SC (4-26-08 @ Milford (SNC)) 60.00

Abby Sorensen, CC (4-15-08 @ Superior) 65.67

Randa Rose, Sut (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 67.46

800

Beth Kohmetscher, SC (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 2:35.55

Jill Baxa, CC (4-29-08 @ Doane (Freeman Invite)) 2:41.00

Dayna Kathman, D-T (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 2:41.30

1,600

Brooke Yates, CC (4-26-08 @ York (CRC)) 6:02.30

Beth Kohmetscher, SC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 6:04.22

Tausha Lee, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 6:08.40

3,200

Ceirra Tompkin, CC (4-26-08 @ York (CRC)) 12:58.90

Morgan Woodbury, CC (4-29-08 @ Doane (Freeman Invite)) 13:25.50

Tausha Lee, D-T (4-21-08 @Doniphan-Trumbull) 13:39.70

110 hurdles

Keri Shaw, SC (4-15-08 @ Blue Hill) 15.62

Macy Steinhauer, Sut (4-15-08 @ Tri County) 16.53

Ashley Schmitz, D-T (4-15-08 @ Blue Hill) 17.19

300 hurdles

Keri Shaw, SC (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 48.60

Macy Steinhauer, Sut (4-26-08 @ Milford (SNC)) 48.90

Steph Hoyt, CC (4-29-08 @ Doane (Freeman Invite)) 50.30

400 relay

Sutton (4-26-08 @ Milford (SNC)) 52.60

Clay Center (4-29-08 @ Doane (Freeman Invite)) 54.40

Harvard (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 55.65

1600 relay

Sutton (4-26-08 @ Milford (SNC)) 4:24.80

Sandy Creek (4-21-08 @ Doniphan-Trumbull) 4:32.70

Doniphan-Trumbull (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 4:36.00

3200 Relay

Clay Center (4-29-08 @ Doane (Freeman Invite)) 10:40.70

Sutton (4-26-08 @ Milford (SNC)) 11:00.30

Doniphan-Trubull (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 11:04.70

High jump

Alyssa McDowell, Har (4-15-08 @ Superior) 5-feet-6

Megan McDowell, Har (4-26-08 @ Superior (TVC)) 5-feet-0

Anna Keller, Sut (4-15-08 @ Tri County) 4-feet-10

Long jump

Alyssa McDowell, Har (4-26-08 @ Superior (TVC)) 15-feet-6

Abby Sorensen, CC (4-29-08 @ Doane (Freeman Invite)) 15-feet-3.5

Breanna Bailey, CC (4-9-08 @ Quad County) 14-feet-0

Triple jump

Abby Sorensen, CC (4-15-08 @ Superior) 34-feet-5

Jessica Osterhaus, Sut (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 33-feet-7

Jena Schlatz, D-T (3-14-08 @ Doane Indoor) 30-feet-.5

Discus

Selena Longoria, Har (4-26-08 @ Superior (TVC)) 102-feet-11.5

Jessie Sorensen, CC (4-29-08 @ Doane (Freeman Invite)) 95-feet-7

Stephenie Stones, Sut (4-15-08 @ Tri County) 93-feet-9

Shot put

Selena Longoria, Har (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 37-feet-6.5

Jessie Sorensen, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 35-feet-3

Renee Schlatz, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 31-feet-9.5

Pole vault

Ashley Boman, CC (4-29-08 @ Doane (Freeman Invite)) 7-feet-9

Megan McDowell, Har (4-15-08 @ Superior) 7-feet-6

Kortney Hoover, Har (4-26-08 @ Superior (TVC)) 7-feet-0

Sutton Fire Department conducts controled burn of Sutton garage

SUTTON - The Sutton Volunteer Fire Department sent a few of its members to do a controled burned of a garage last Saturday.

The owner had wanted the garage burned for some time, and the rainy, calm weather on Saturday provided the perfect opportunity for the Sutton firefighters to perform the duties.

Sutton Community Senior Center holds special meeting to discuss financial situation

SUTTON - More than 100 community members attended a Sutton Community Senior Center town hall meeting Tuesday night.

According to signs posted around Sutton, the meeting was to address "the closing of the Community Center."

At the meeting, Sutton deputy clerk Amy Skalka discussed the current financial situation of the center. As of now, the 2008 projected budget will be nearly $7,000 short of covering its expenses.

"I guess that's why we're here tonight - to try to get a cash flow, to get a plan," she said.

The item favored by those in attendance was to take pledges to help make up the deficit. Some community members stayed after the meeting to sign up in order to be contacted about a possible pledge campaign.

Mary Kunz, who has been a Sutton resident for eight months, informally asked how many of those in attendance were willing to contribute to keep the place open. About 10 raised a hand.

But at the meeting, it was apparent that closing the center is not an option.

"We've got to keep the doors open," Kunz said. "I quickly learned that this is the focal point of the community. It just seems that people wouldn't mind being taxed to get this place run right."

City administrator Virg Ulmer said that, as long as the facility has its current tax increment financing agreement, it cannot be operated by the city. He added that no grant money is available for operating costs.

"The bottom line is, there's not enough events here," Ulmer said.

The tax increment financing agreement expires in three years, according to Roger Miller, president of the Sutton Community Senior Center board, which operates the center. %o% He said he believes the board should set up a fund to help defray the operating expenses.

"There should be an endowment fund with money raised. It won't solve our problems tonight...I'm not backing down," Ulmer said.

Miller said that they had sent an inquiry to Sutton alumni about a possible endowment fund, and received no response. That was three years ago, he said.

Ulmer said that the financial situation isn't major.

"We don't have a large financial problem here," he said. "There's no large crisis here."

Another facet addressed was communication.

"The good news is we got everyone together tonight," Skalka said. "There hasn't been much communication."

After the meeting, community members were invited to provide e-mail addresses to receive a newsletter about the center's happenings.

Skalka said that she was pleased with the meeting.

"I think it went pretty good," Skalka said. "The communication is a huge thing, just making sure there's no confusion."

Additionally, nearly $800 was given to help the center. The Sutton Community Senior Center is a 501C3 corporation so any gifts are tax deductible.

Skalka said those who wished to give money could so by dropping it off at the Sutton City offices.

This story was originally posted on April 30, 2008.

Monday meeting to address 'lack of funds' for Community and Senior Center

SUTTON - The Sutton Community and Senior Center will host a town hall meeting Tuesday night.

According to signs posted around Sutton, the meeting is to address "the closing of the Community Center."

Roger Miller, President of the Sutton Community and Senior Center Board, said that a "lack of funds" was the reason for the meeting. As far as any specifics, Miller only said that those interested will "have to find out at the town hall meeting."

Sherrie Bartell, Sutton city clerk, said that part of the problem stems from the Employee Works program that provides training and work for people 55 and older. A janitor that has worked at the center for one year, has been asked to move. Bartell said the original paperwork called for two years of work before the janitor could move to a new position.

"The community center doesn't have enough funds to pay him for this next year," Bartell said.

Bartell assured that the facility is not closing for the meantime but there are some things that need to be addressed.

"Right now it is not closing," she said."They have a few problems."

This story was originally posted on April 27, 2008.

Monday meeting to address 'lack of funds' for Community and Senior Center

SUTTON � The Sutton Community and Senior Center will host a town hall meeting Tuesday night.

According to signs posted around Sutton, the meeting is to address �the closing of the Community Center.�

Roger Miller, President of the Sutton Community and Senior Center Board, said that a �lack of funds� was the reason for the meeting. As far as any specifics, Miller only said that those interested will �have to find out at the town hall meeting.�

Sherrie Bartell, Sutton city clerk, said that part of the problem stems from the Employee Works program that provides training and work for people 55 and older. A janitor that has worked at the center for one year, has been asked to move. Bartell said the original paperwork called for two years of work before the janitor could move to a new position.

�The community center doesn�t have enough funds to pay him for this next year,� Bartell said.

Bartell assured that the facility is not closing for the meantime but there are some things that need to be addressed.

�Right now it is not closing,� she said. �They have a few problems.�

Clay County News ties for best newspaper in Class C division at State Sweepstakes contest

LINCOLN - The Clay County News was a big winner at the 2008 Nebraska Press Convention.

The newspaper received 18 awards in the Better Newspaper Contest and tied with the Gothenburg Times for the top newspaper spot in the Class C division for newspapers with a circulation of 1,500 to 2,800 subscribers.

Additionally, former Clay County News reporter Charis Ubben received the Outstanding Young Journalist Award for the weekly category and the newspaper received the Freedom of Information award for all daily and weekly newspapers.

First place awards included: Photo Page for "Portraits of an Ice Storm" by Darren & Cassie Ivy; Public Notice and Its Promotion; In-Depth Writing for "Under Pressure" by Kathlene Jordan; Best in Class for being top newspaper in division; Best Lifestyles pages; Freedom of Information Award.

Second-place awards included: Feature Photography for "From Dusk 'til Dawn" by Darren Ivy; Single Retail Advertising Idea for "Blackberry Winter" by Karisa Troester; Sports Column by Darren Ivy; Editorial by Darren Ivy; Spot News Photography for "Fiery Field" by Darren Ivy; Youth Coverage.

Third-place awards included: Feature Photography for "Working on the Railroad" by Cassie Ivy; Sports Action Photo for "Acrobatic Catch" by Darren Ivy; Use of Color for "Fourth of July Celebration"; Classified Section; Agricultural Advertisement for "American Ethanol" by Darren Ivy; Special Multiple Editions or Sections for "Grafton 125 year celebration."

"This was a tremendous year for our newspaper and staff members," said co-publisher Darren Ivy. "We are very humbled and proud to have had such success with all the great community newspapers that there are in this state."

At the State Convention, which was held at the Cornhusker Hotel, Mark Rhoades of Enterprise Publishing in Blair was elected the new president of the Nebraska Press Association, while Deb McCaslin of the Custer County Chief in Broken Bow was elected as the new president of the Nebraska Press Advertising Service.

Boys Track and Field Leaders (April 15)

100

Keath Wetovick, D-T (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 11.00

Broddrick Dillon, CC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 11.47

Travis Hand, D-T (4-1-08 @ Red Cloud) 11.62

200

Keath Wetovick, D-T (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 22.70

D.J. Hurst, D-T (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 23.60

Broddrick Dillon, CC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 24.50

400

D.J. Hurst, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 52.70

Andrew Malone, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 53.80

Kelan Buhr, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 54.50

800

Andrew Malone, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 2:14.00

Phil Gosser, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 2:18.60

Ethan Lang, SC (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 2:20.00

1,600

Ryan Engle, Har (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 5:04.50

Beau Toben, D-T (4-1-08 @ Red Cloud) 5:16.30

Nick Williams, D-T (4-1-08 @ Red Cloud) 5:22.44

3,200

Jair Perez, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 10:53.60

Ryan Engle, Har (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 10:57.24

Nick Williams, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 11:30.40

110 hurdles

Jesse Schmitz, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 16.90

D.J. Pfeiffer, D-T (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 17.40

Jake Nachtigal, Har (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 17.86

300 hurdles

Ryan Fjeldheim, D-T (4-1-08 @ Red Cloud) 44.00

Kyle Johnson, Sut (3-35-08 Clay County) 45.60

D.J. Pfeiffer, D-T (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 45.80

400 relay

Doniphan-Trumbull (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 45.40

Clay Center (4-9-08 @ Quad County) 47.42

Sutton (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 47.86

1600 relay

Doniphan-Trumbull (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 3:44.00

Sutton (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 3:46.90

Clay Center (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 3:53.31

3200 Relay

Clay Center (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 9:25.70

Harvard (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 9:34.11

Doniphan-Trubull (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 9:34.40

High jump

Travis Hand, D-T (3-20-08 @ Star Relays) 6-feet-1

Aaron Armon, D-T (4-8-08 Heartland) 5-feet-10

Jake Merrill, D-T (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 5-feet-8

Long jump

D.J. Hurst, D-T (3-25-08 @ Red Cloud) 20-feet-6

Travis Hand, D-T (3-14-08 @ Doane Indoor) 19-feet-10

Kelan Buhr, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 19-feet-2

Triple jump

Kelan Buhr, D-T (3-20-08 Star Relays) 41-feet-9

Ryan Fjeldheim, D-T (3-25-08 @ Red Cloud) 39-feet-4

Taylor Schlautman, Sut (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 38-feet-4

Discus

Tony Roth, CC (4-9-08 @ Quad County) 130-feet-0

Alex Johnson, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 122-feet-3

Devin Finecy, D-T (3-25-08 @ Red Cloud) 96-feet-3

Shot put

Alex Johnson, CC (4-8-08 @ Quad County) 50-feet-9.5

Tony Roth, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 42-feet-9.5

Seth Ross, Har (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 37-feet-7.5

Pole vault

Kyle Johnson, Sut (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 10-feet-6

Derek Bennett, CC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 8-feet-6

Jamison Nejezchleb, SC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 7-feet-6

Nels Johnson, Sut (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 7-feet-6

Girls Track and Field Leaders (April 15)

100

Mindy Cloet, Sut (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 13.03

Jessica Osterhaus, Sut (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 13.58

Ashley Boman, CC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 13.68

200

Macy Steinhauer, Sut (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 27.56

Mindy Cloet, Sut (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 27.59

Alyssa McDowell, Har (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 29.10

400

Keri Shaw, SC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 61.65

Abby Sorensen, CC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 65.76

Randa Rose, Sut (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 67.46

800

Beth Kohmetscher, SC (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 2:35.55

Dayna Kathman, D-T (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 2:41.30

Randa Rose, Sut (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 2:43.50

1,600

Beth Kohmetscher, SC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 6:04.22

Tausha Lee, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 6:08.40

Morgan Woodbury, CC ( 4-9-08 @ Quad County) 6:08.56

3,200

Ceirra Tompkin, CC (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 13:09.87

Morgan Woodbury, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 13:37.70

Brooke Yates, CC (4-9-08 @Quad County) 13:41.12

110 hurdles

Keri Shaw, SC (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 16.10

Macy Steinhauer, Sut (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 17.80

Courtney Spongberg, Sut (3-25-08 Clay County) 17.96

300 hurdles

Keri Shaw, SC (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 48.60

Macy Steinhauer, Sut (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 49.60

Claire Bergen, Sut (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 54.96

400 relay

Sutton (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 53.21

Harvard (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 55.65

Clay Center (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 56.6

1600 relay

Sutton (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 4:31.60

Sandy Creek (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 4:35.70

Doniphan-Trumbull (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 4:36.00

3200 Relay

Doniphan-Trubull (4-4-08 @ Wood River) 11:04.70

Clay Center (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 11:13.60

Sutton (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 11:28.80

High jump

Alyssa McDowell, Har (3-13-08 @ Doane Indoor) 5-feet-4

Megan McDowell, Har (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 4-feet-10

Anna Keller, Sut (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 4-feet-8

Long jump

Breanna Bailey, CC (4-9-08 @ Quad County) 14-feet-0

Danielle Harms, SC (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 13-feet-11

Jessica Osterhaus, Sut (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 13-feet-11

Triple jump

Jessica Osterhaus, Sut (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 33-feet-7

Abby Sorensen, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 33-feet-1

Jena Schlatz, D-T (3-14-08 @ Doane Indoor) 30-feet-.5

Discus

Selena Longoria, Har (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 100-feet-1

Jessie Sorensen, CC (4-9-08 @ Quad County) 90-feet-10

Renee Schlatz, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 86-feet-6

Shot put

Selena Longoria, Har (4-1-08 @ Sandy Creek) 37-feet-6.5

Jessie Sorensen, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 35-feet-3

Renee Schlatz, D-T (4-8-08 @ Heartland) 31-feet-9.5

Pole vault

Megan McDowell, Har (3-13-08 @ Doane Indoor) 7-feet-0

Ashley Boman, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 6-feet-6

Kortney Hoover, Har (3-25-08 @ Clay County) 6-feet-0

Natalie Jeziorski, CC (4-4-08 @ North Loup-Scotia) 6-feet-0

Filles fall in championship game against Perkins County

LINCOLN - The Sutton Fillies fell behind 9-0 to start Saturday's Class C2 championship game against Perkins County and never could quite get over the hump in a 62-49 loss.

Sutton trailed 19-14 after the first quarter and 32-24 at halftime.

Nine-straight points off of two Courtney Spongberg three-pointers and one Courtney Stone three-pointer, brought the Fillies within one in the third quarter, but Perkins County answered with a run of its own to open up a cushion again and held on for the victory to cap off an undefeated season.

Sutton ended the season with a 23-2 record.

Spongberg led the Fillies with 19 points, while Jamie Van Kirk added 12 and Stephanie George chipped in nine.

Fillies advance to Finals

LINCOLN -�The Sutton Fillies advanced to the Class C-2 championship game at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Bob Devaney Sports Center with a 51-40 victory over previously unbeaten Cambridge on Friday afternoon.

The Fillies jumped out to an early lead and never trailed against Cambridge.

It was a stark contrast to the opening game in which the Fillies trailed the entire first half against Elmwood-Murdoch before rallying for a 59-54 win.

Check back for more updates.

Fillies advance to District Final against HTRS

SUTTON - After getting past Deshler 56-46 in the finals of the C2-2 subdistrict, the Fillies of Sutton turn their attention to Friday's district final contest against Humboldt-Table Rock-Steinauer.

HTRS enters with a 17-6 record and knocked off Johnson-Brock (16-6) with a 51-42 victory in the subdistrict finals.

Three of the Lady Titans losses have come at the hands of Class D2 No. 1 Falls City Sacred Heart and another two have come to Johnson County Central.

The only Class C2 squad to defeat the Lady Titans was Johnson-Brock, which bested HTRS 61-51 at home on Feb. 8.

Among the Lady Titans' most impressive wins was a 55-47 victory Over Concordia (18-5) on Dec. 28 and a 45-44 victory over Meridian (15-5) in the first round of the Mudecas Tournament in January, where HTRS finished fourth after losses to Sacred Heart and Johnson County Central.

The game will be at Fairbury High School at 7 p.m. on Friday.

Sutton will be looking for a return trip to the State Tournament after missing for the first time in six seasons last year.

Carlson second at State Meet

OMAHA - Sutton's Aaron Carlson took second place in the 119-pound wieght class at the Nebraska State Wrestling Championships Saturday.

Carlson suffered a takedown to West Holt's Michael Frickel and was later pinned.

Carlson finished the season 41-2 and was only the fourth Mustang to advance to the champiosnhip match at State Tournament. He joined Mike Lambie (1975, 145) and Mike Robinson (2001, 140) as Mustangs to finish second at State.

Paul Ulmer, who took first at 185 pounds in 1987, remains Sutton's only State Champion.

Carlson advances to championship match

OMAHA - While none of the other Clay County wrestlers were able to advance to the medal rounds of the Nebraska State Wrestling Tournament, Sutton's Aaron Carlson advanced to Saturday's 119-pound championship bout with an 11-3 victory over Howell's Chris Bartling.

Carlson will battle West Holt's Michael Frickel, who downed Friend's Seth Kucera with a third-period pin in the semifinals last night.

Kucera dealt Carlson his only loss of the season in the championship bout of the district tournament last week.

All championship matches will be aired live on NET at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Upper Big Blue NRD Board of Directors Met Jan. 24, 2008

YORK -�The Upper Big Blue NRD Board of Directors met Thursday, January 24, 2008, at the Upper Big Blue Natural Resources District office to discuss and vote on January's committee actions and reports.

BOARD OF DIRECTOR POSITIONS for 2008

Upper Big Blue NRD board members were nominated and votes were cast to fill board positions for 2008 as follows: Curtis J. Friesen of Henderson - CHAIRMAN; Linda L. Luebbe of Beaver Crossing - VICE CHAIRMAN; Mike D. Nuss of Sutton - SECRETARY; Bill Stahly of Milford - TREASURER; Douglas L. Dickinson of Seward - NARD (Nebraska Association of Resources Districts) REPRESENTATIVE; and Yvonne C. Austin of Staplehurst - NARD (Nebraska Association of Resources Districts) REPRESENTATIVE ALTERNATE.

UPDATE: CERTIFICATION OF IRRIGATED ACRES REPORTING:

The NRD Board approved certification of 12,547 irrigated acres through Jan. 10, 2008. This brings the total to 1,135,295 certified irrigated acres District-wide. If the District Average Ground Water Level falls more than 1.62 feet below the Spring 2007 District Average Ground Water Level, then allocation of ground water will begin. The District Average Ground Water Level is determined each spring by measuring the static ground water level in over 500 wells across the NRD.

A violation list of landowners who have not reported their irrigated acres and other required information is available at the NRD. Past due notices were sent with a specific deadline for response. The Upper Big Blue NRD Board of Directors authorized the issuance of complaints against those individuals on the violation list who have not submitted irrigated acres reports as required by the District Ground Water Management Area Rules and Regulations.

FLOW METER COST-SHARE news: Sixty-two flow meters have been installed this month and the NRD staff has inspected and approved these installations. The NRD Board approved payment of $30,701.74 in cost-share for these 62 meters. Cost-share money for the Flow Meter Program has come to the Upper Big Blue Natural Resources District in the form of a $900,000 grant from The Nebraska Environmental Trust. The total grant amount will be disbursed over a three-year period. All the funding for this program has now been committed and a waiting list is at full capacity because of the popularity of this program.

LATE PERMIT CONSIDERATION

Smith Plumbing and Well Service constructed a domestic well for Mike Bjorkman of Phillips, Nebraska in the NE � of Section 29-T11N-R7W, Hamilton County. The well was equipped with a 60 g.p.m. pump. State law requires all wells greater than 50 g.p.m. to be permitted by the NRD prior to construction. This well complies with all NRD regulations. The NRD Board approved the late permit.

RECHARGE LAKE MAINTENANCE:

On Sept. 18, 2007 the Upper Big Blue Natural Resources District voted to work with the Nebraska Public Power District and WY-Ad Utility Contractors, Inc. to lay an electrical line from the main line on the District's east property line to the picnic area at the Bruce L. Anderson Recreation Area at Recharge Lake at a cost not to exceed $4,000.00. WY-Ad Utility Contractors, Inc. have trenched and laid the conduit and four sweeps at the cost of $3,520.00. Nebraska Public Power District has laid the electrical line, set the transformer, power pole and light. It is all hooked up and working. The NRD board passed the motion to pay WY-Ad Utility Contractors, Inc. in the amount of $3,520.00.

WILD NEBRASKA PROGRAM District news: The Upper Big Blue NRD Board approved a payment totaling $738.40 to WILD Nebraska Program cooperators Mr. Greg Bergen and Mr. Lowell Siebert of York County for the month of January.

The Upper Big Blue NRD and Nebraska Game & Parks Commission cooperate on the WILD Nebraska Program to develop, manage and enhance wildlife habitat in response to declining wildlife populations. The NRD share is 25% of the total amount. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will reimburse the District 75% of the total amount. Participating landowners are offered financial assistance to establish new wildlife habitat areas and improve existing habitat locales.

CROP-TIP SOIL ANALYSIS PAYMENT:

The University of Nebraska Soil Laboratory has billed the District for 211 soil analyses for November 2007 samples taken at CROP-TIP and from fields near the District's eight dedicated monitoring well sites. The costs are CROP-TIP - $414.00, dedicated monitoring well sites - $673.88, for a total of $1,087.88. The NRD Board approved payment of $1,087.88 to the University of Nebraska.

DISTRICT-WIDE news:

Board approval was given for Aquifer Quality Well Abandonment Cost-Share Assistance Program (AQWACAP) payments totaling $1,430.10 for 3 well-abandonments. The Board also approved $12,154.74 of Land Treatment Program cost-share payments on 6 applications for Nebraska Soil & Water Conservation Program (NSWCP) funds to cost-share on conservation practices for the implementation of three terrace systems and three pivot nozzle systems. These cost-share payments provide incentives for cooperators to install and maintain conservation practices throughout the District for the purpose of conserving Nebraska's natural resources.

IRRIGATION SCHEDULING EQUIPMENT SALES:

Since the county Ground Water Conservation Districts were dissolved in the early 1990s, the District has sold moisture blocks and soil probes for irrigation scheduling. Over the past few years the NRD has offered various discounts on irrigation scheduling equipment with certain conditions and sold to other individuals at cost. The most recent discount programs were temporary and were used to establish a network of ET gages across the NRD. Some individuals have asked if the District would consider discounting irrigation scheduling equipment to promote its use. The staff prepared the following summary of irrigation scheduling equipment for sale with 2008 pricing. This pricing sheet is available at the Upper Big Blue NRD office.

The NRD Board adopted the following irrigation scheduling equipment pricing for 2008:

1) For sales to irrigators operating in the Upper Big Blue NRD, irrigation scheduling equipment will be sold at 50-percent of the NRD price.

2) For all other sales, irrigation scheduling equipment will be sold at the NRD price.

The FY07-08 Water Department Material for Resale expenditures shall not exceed$19,000.

WELL CONSTRUCTION PERMITS issued in December 2007:

Throughout the month of December 2007, twelve well construction permits were issued. This brings the total for calendar year 2007 to 149 well construction permits (41 permits of the total were for replacement wells).

This concludes the actions of the Upper Big Blue Natural Resources District Board of Directors meeting of January 24, 2008.

Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben seek Good Neighbor Award nominees

OMAHA - The Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben Foundation and the Omaha World-Herald have announced today that nomination forms for the 2008 Good Neighbor Awards program are now being accepted.

This recognition program honors individuals cited by neighbors for performing unselfish, neighborly deeds during 2007 without compensation or personal gain. Nominations are accepted from organizations and/or individuals throughout Nebraska and western Iowa. Nomination forms and instructions are available online at www.aksarben.org or by contacting the Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben at (402) 554-9600 x100.

All nominations must be received no later than March 15, 2008. Certificates are awarded annually to those selected by a statewide judging committee. Honorees will be announced in early June.

This program is just one of those supported by the Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben Foundation which was founded in 1895 "to build a more prosperous Heartland, where communities can flourish and every child can succeed."

Upcoming No-Till Seminars Will Benefit Farmers and Save Money

AURORA, SEWARD, MCCOOL JUNCTION - The Upper Big Blue NRD, University of Nebraska and University of Nebraska Extension Education are sponsoring a series of no-till seminars.

The dates and locations are as follows: Feb. 12 at the Stone Creek Inn at McCool Junction, Feb. 13 at the Hamilton County Fairgrounds in Aurora and Feb. 14th at the Seward County Fairgrounds in Seward. All meetings will start at 10 a.m. and end at 3 p.m. with a FREE meal to be provided. There is no charge for any part of the program.

Speakers include Paul Jasa, Dan Gillespie and Mark Watson sharing their experiences with no-till farming.

Jim Schneider, Hamilton County Extension Educator, will give a presentation on the use of cover crops and Graham Christianson with the Nebraska Farmers Union will bring everyone up to speed on the Carbon Credit Program.

We ask everyone planning to attend to RSVP to Linda Martindale at the Upper Big Blue NRD at (402) 362-6601 by February 8th. CCA credits will be available.

This story was originally posted on Feb. 6, 2008.

Harvard girls fall to Bruning-Davenport

HARVARD - The Harvard girls basketball team got off to a solid start Friday against the Bruning-Davenport.

But a 15-1 scoring run by the Storm (9-9) that transcended halftime made the difference in a 46-37 victory.

Harvard (4-12) jumped out to a 9-6 lead at the end of the first quarter and pushed the advantage to 15-11 midway through the second.

But Bruning-Davenport started to find some offensive rhythm and the Cardinals went cold.

B-D's Cecelia Catlett scored 11 second-quarter points to ignite an 11-1 run, closing the half and giving the Storm a 22-16 halftime edge.

Catlett, who scored a game-high 22 points, got seven of those second-quarter points at the foul line.

Catlett knocked down four more free throws in the first 45 seconds of the third period to take B-D to a 26-16 lead.

Kortney Hoover and Selena Longoria then brought Harvard back.

A pair of buckets by Longoria combined with a pair of treys from Hoover sparked a 10-2 run for the Cardinals that cut the lead to 28-26 with 4:06 left in the third.

After the teams exchanged baskets, Hoover knocked down another three that cut the lead to one, 32-31 with 1:18 left in the third.

A goal by Bruning-Davenport's Kelsey Otto pushed the lead to three at the end of the third quarter.

B-D then dealt the knockout blow with a 9-0 run to begin the final period, stretching the lead to 12, 43-31 - the largest of the game for the Storm. Harvard never got closer than eight from there on as B-D sealed a nine-point victory.

Coach Jami Williams said the loss stuck hard with her team.

"Coming off this game, the girls are disappointed," Williams said. "This is the time you either step up or fall apart as a team." Foul trouble may have made the difference for the Cardinals.

Hoover, who scored 11 points - all in the second half - played just three minutes in the first half with foul trouble.

The Storm also got to the line 37 times as compared to just seven charity tosses for the Cardinals.

"For it to be this close, that's something (to build off of)," Williams said.

Longoria led the Cardinals with 13 points to go along with Hoover's 11 as the only Harvard players in double figures.

"Selena started off well," Williams said of her leading scorer. "But we stopped feeding her the ball."

Saturday, the Cardinals dropped a rematch with Franklin, 58-54, in the play-in game of the Twin Valley Conference Tournament.

The Cardinals' next contest isn't until Tuesday, when they host Lawrence-Nelson (9-7).

Clay Center takes third at Crossroads Conference Tournament

YORK - For the past three seasons, the Crossroads Conference Tournament has brought nothing but the best out of the Clay Center boys basketball team.

Though the Wildcats streak of three-consecutive trips to the conference championship game came to an end this year, it's hard to argue that the results were any different as Clay Center took third place with a 56-53 victory over second-seeded Giltner in the consolation contest last Friday.

The victory over Giltner marked the second of the season for the Wildcats over the Hornets and was as nip-and-tuck as Clay Center's 75-73 overtime win at Giltner Jan. 4.

Giltner appeared in control, leading by five heading to the fourth quarter.

But Clay Center scored the first eight points of the final period on a bucket by Francois Doumont and back-to-back three-point plays by Andrew Malone and Alex Johnson.

After Nate Most broke the momentum momentarily with a score that brought Giltner within one, 43-42, Clay Center pushed to its largest lead of the game with a Doumont put back that extended the score to 49-44 with four minutes left.

It then took less than a minute for Giltner to reclaim the lead.

A Most three made it 49-47 and, after two missed free throws from Johnson, Brock Hinrichs tied the game with a lay up.

The Hornets then forced a steal and took the lead on a put back by Most with 3:03 to go.

Teams exchanged free throws until Malone tied the contest at 52 with a pair of free throw makes with 2:43 left.

Most gave the Hornets the lead back again with a made free throw with 2:26 to go before the defenses started to work.

Each team turned the ball over twice in the next two minutes as Giltner held a 53-52 edge.

The Hornets had a chance to turn the second Wildcat turnover into points when Most stole a pass and raced the length of the floor before missing the lay up.

Brock Hinrichs fouled Broddrick Dillon on the rebound and Dillon converted the front end of a 1-and-1 to tie the game before missing the second.

But the rebound deflected to Malone, who attacked the rim and was fouled.

He nearly air-balled the first free throw, just grazing the front of the rim, but the second attempt was good and Clay Center had the lead back, 54-53.

After a timeout, Malone stole a pass on Giltner's possession and was fouled on another layup attempt. He made the first, but missed the second. James Martin then rebounded the miss and passed the ball to Malone, who again was sent to the line.

For the third-consecutive trip, Malone made 1-of-2 to push the lead to three, 56-53.

Giltner missed a chance from three to tie and Johnson collected the rebound and was sent to the line with .3 seconds left.

Johnson missed both, but the Hornets had no time to get off a desperation heave.

Both teams struggled shooting the ball.

Giltner shot 33 percent from the field and was 11-for-19 from the free throw line. The Hornets did hit at 50 percent (6-for-12) from three. Clay Center, conversely, fired at a 40 percent clip from the field and was just 14-for-28 at the charity stripe.

Malone led the Wildcats with 16 points, including a 10-of-15 mark on free throws. Johnson added 14, Doumont had 13 and Martin finished with 10.

Most led the Hornets with 16 points and Brock Hinrichs added 12.

To coach Rick Rath, the victory was more about intangibles.

"To come back and find a way to win when your tank is empty says a lot about the character of these kids," Rath said.

The tank was empty mostly due to an emotional game the day before against Hampton.

The Hawks already owned two last-minute victories over the Wildcats and made it three with a 50-43, come-from-behind victory in the semifinals.

The Wildcats had a lot invested in the contest, Rath said, and losing was hard.

"It was tough to take the loss last night," Rath said after the Giltner victory. "We played really well and it hurt to lose - I'd say we played better last night than tonight."

Clay Center led 37-34 with just more than seven minutes left in the game, but a couple turnovers, combined with timely three-point shooting by the Hawks spelled defeat for the Wildcats.

"I made a mistake because they went to their press and I had all five time outs left and didn't take one," Rath said. "I wanted to see how we'd respond, but I should have taken the timeout."

Malone led the Wildcats with 18 points and eight rebounds against Hampton.

The Wildcats opened the tournament by avenging an earlier defeat to Exeter-Milligan.

The Timberwolves knocked off Clay Center 65-48 on Dec. 14. But the Wildcats shot 62 percent from the field in a 71-58 defeat of E-M in the CRC quarterfinals.

Malone started off the tournament with 28 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the field, while Doumont scored 15 and Dillon downed two threes to chip in 10. Malone, who averaged nearly 21 points per game in the tournament's three contests, was named to the boys All-Tournament Team, along with both Alex Dose and Dwayne Wall of tournament-champion Hampton and Marcus Bender and Nick Gustafson of tournament runner-up High Plains.

Rath said many players contributed throughout the tournament.

"Kyle Knight and Broddrick Dillon get their kudos for stepping up and starting in big spots for us," he said. "James (Martin) and (Francois Doumont) did great for us in the post and Andrew Malone put this team on his back and carried us."

The Wildcats continue action at Meridian Friday.

The Mustangs have struggled to a 2-10 mark with wins over Silver Lake and Parkview Christian.