ATTENTION, UPDATE READERS!

Spring is here! But that is not the reason I’m taking a brief break from The Midweek Update. At our house we are moving next week to a different house, and I have no idea when Internet service might be available to allow me to prepare the next Update.

So enjoy the NCAA basketball tournaments, the opening of the baseball season and April Fool’s Day. There will be no Midweek Update next week or the week after that, so watch for the next edition at www.everythingsouthdakota.com or on Facebook on Thursday, April 11, three weeks from today.

PIERRE GOVERNORS SPORTS ROUNDUP

Schedules for next three weeks:
Track—Saturday, at SDSU indoor meet; March 28, at ESD indoor meet, Brookings; April 2, home for Bob Judson meet; April 5, at Huron invitational; April 9, at Miller quadrangular.
Boys tennis—April 2, home triangular (with Mitchell and Rapid City Central); April 6, at Huron quadrangular; April 8, at Harrisburg quadrangular; April 11, home triangular (with Rapid City Stevens and Aberdeen Central).
Girls golf—April 11, at Harrisburg invitational.

Girls basketball: Pierre’s Emily Mikkelsen is one of the Class ‘AA’ seniors selected to play in this Saturday’s 3-Class Shootout at Salem. The ‘AA’ girls play the ‘A’ girls at 2 p.m. with that winner taking on the ‘B’ girls at 3:30. The ‘A’ and ‘B’ boys teams play each other at 5:15 with that winner playing the ‘AA’ boys at 7 p.m.

THOUGHT FOR TODAY

“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.”

— Henry Ford

STANLEY COUNTY BUFFALOES SPORTS ROUNDUP

Schedules for next three weeks:
Track—Saturday, at SDSU indoor meet; Tuesday, at Gregory invitational; April 2, at Pierre invitational; April 4, at Mobridge-Pollock invitational; April 6, at Winner invitational; April 9, at Kadoka invitational.
Golf—April 12, at Wall invitational.

SULLY BUTTES CHARGERS SPORTS ROUNDUP

Boys basketball: The Chargers finished their excellent season with an 18-5 record when they placed sixth at the state “B” tournament in Aberdeen. They never had a chance to get back into the game in the quarterfinals vs. Clark/Willow Lake when they fell behind 15-0 at the start and didn’t score until the 5:33 mark of the second quarter. At halftime it was 25-6, and after three periods the Cyclones led 43-17. The final score was 58-26. Grant Johnson and Nick Wittler with six points each were high scorers. Cam Ogle had five. In the consolation semifinals the Chargers rebounded with a 54-50 win over Timber Lake. Wittler scored 38 points, going 13-of-24, including 7 of 13 in threes, and 5-of-6 in free throws. He had eight rebounds, too. Ogle had 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Morris Hofer and Jett Lamb each had seven rebounds. Sully Buttes led 34-15 at halftime, but the lead dwindled to 41-35 after three periods. In the fifth-place game the Chargers lost to White River, 74-68, after leading at halftime, 35-34. Ogle had 20 points and 15 rebounds, Lamb 18 points and nine rebounds, Wittler 11 points, Johnson eight points and 10 rebounds, Hofer six points and eight rebounds and Sebastian Frost five points. Brian White’s Chargers lose Ogle, Hofer and Frost to graduation this year.

ZESTO SHERBET SCHEDULE

Thursday: almond.
Friday-Sunday: blackberry.
Monday-Tuesday: blue mood.
Wednesday-Thursday: root beer.
March 29-31: cherry.

WORDS OF WISDOM

“Those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.”

— Friedrich Nietzsche

COUNTDOWN

Tonight: Jefferson Elementary concert.
2 days: All-State Band concert, Aberdeen (March 23).
4 days: Buchanan Elementary concert (March 25).
5 days: Kennedy Elementary concert (March 26).
7 days: Riggs High big-band dance (March 28).
7 days: Minnesota Twins regular-season opener (March 28).
15 days: Pierre high school baseball openers (April 5).
15 days: NCAA Division I women’s basketball Final Four, Tampa (April 5, 7).
16 days: NCAA Division I men’s basketball Final Four, Minneapolis (April 6, 8).
17 days: Academy of Country Music awards, CBS-TV (April 7).
25 days: Riggs High spring play (April 15-16, 18).
31 days: Easter (April 21).

COLLEGE SPORTS ROUNDUP

Northern baseball (Spencer Sarringar): Last Wednesday’s doubleheader against Presentation was postponed by the blizzard. In their NSIC openers the Wolves and Winona State had to go all the way down to Bettendorf, Iowa, to find a suitable field. Winona State took two of the three games. In a 14-12 Northern win Spencer went 2-for-4, driving in three runs on a three-run homer in the second inning. As usual he was hit with a pitch again. He went 1-for-3 in a 2-0 loss and 0-for-2 in a 12-2 loss. Now 6-8 overall and 1-2 in the NSIC, Northern was to play USF in a twinbill yesterday, plays at Upper Iowa Saturday and Sunday, plays two at Augustana March 27, hosts three vs. Wayne State March 30-31 and is home for four vs. Concordia-St. Paul April 6-7.

Augustana baseball (Peyton Zabel): The Vikings swept Bemidji State, 5-4, 16-7 and 13-1, in their NSIC openers. Now 10-5 overall, Augie hosted Minnesota-Duluth twice yesterday, hosts Mary for three March 23-24, hosts Northern for two March 27, plays at St. Cloud State for three March 30-31, goes to Southwest Minnesota State for two April 3 and plays at Minot State for four games April 6-7.

South Dakota State baseball (Landon Badger, Quinn Reimers): The Jackrabbits’ Summit League openers at Western Illinois were moved because of field conditions to Springfield, Ill. In a 7-6 SDSU win Landon went 0-for-4 and walked once. In a 10-6 loss he was 0-for-4. In a 7-4 win he was 0-for-2 but walked twice. Now 9-9 overall and 2-1 in the Summit, the Jacks were to play at Creighton last night, go to Oral Roberts Friday through Sunday, play at Purdue-Fort Wayne March 29-31, host Dakota State April 3 and host Omaha April 5-7.

Minnesota baseball (Nolan Burchill): The Gophers won two of three at Long Beach State, winning 6-2, losing 6-4 and winning 19-6. Then they lost at Pepperdine, 13-12. In the latter game Nolan pitched one-third of an inning, giving up one hit and two runs and hitting one batter. Now 5-13, Minnesota plays three at Penn State this weekend, three at home vs. Nebraska March 29-30 and three at Michigan April 5-7.

South Dakota State wrestling: SDSU’s only qualifier for the NCAA national tournament in Pittsburgh this weekend, Henry Pohlmeyer at 149 pounds, will first face 11th-ranked Joshua Heil of Campbell.

North Dakota men’s hockey: For the first time since the formation of the NCHC, UND will not be part of the NCHC Frozen Faceoff tournament. UND lost the best-of-three quarterfinal series to Denver with 2-0 and 4-2 losses.

South Dakota women’s golf (Katie Bartlett): Idle last week, the Coyote women’s next meet will be the Fresno State Classic April 1-2, followed by the Kansas City Intercollegiate April 8-9.

Augustana women’s golf (Natalie Young): At Augustana’s own tournament at Palm Desert, Calif., the Vikings placed sixth with a 75-over-par 651 score. Natalie placed 47th with a 33-over 177. Augustana next plays March 25-26 at the Jennie’s Invitational at Warrensburg, Mo., followed by the West Texas A&M Invitational played in Tucson, Ariz., April 8-9.

Northern Michigan women’s golf (Karissa Guthrie): The Wildcat women placed sixth among 23 schools at Saginaw Valley’s invitational played in Lexington, Ky. Karissa tied for 35th place with a card of 80-82=162. NMU’s next action on the links will be April 1-2 at the NC4K Classic in Blacklick, Ohio.

Northern men’s basketball (Lincoln Jordre): Northern, which reached the national championship game last season, saw its tournament run end abruptly in a 115-103 overtime loss to Southeastern Oklahoma at Maryville, Mo., in the Central Region quarterfinals. NSU was outscored in overtime, 26-14. Southeastern had 60 points in the paint compared to Northern’s 30. Cole Dahl had 27 points, Justin Decker 18 and Ian Smith 16 for the Wolves, whose final record was 26-7.

South Dakota women’s basketball (Chloe Lamb, Ciara Duffy): The Coyotes became only the second team in Summit League history to earn an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. USD was given a No. 8 seed in the Portland Region and will play No. 9 seed Clemson in Starkville, Miss., at 6 p.m. Friday on ESPN2. The winner of that game will probably have to play No. 1 seed Mississippi State on its home court Sunday, assuming Mississippi State beats No. 16 Southern Oregon.

South Dakota State women’s basketball (Sydney Palmer): The Jackrabbits were given a No. 6 seed in the Portland Region of the NCAA Tournament and will play No. 11 Quinnipiac (Conn.) at 10 a.m. Saturday in Syracuse, N.Y. The winner of that game will probably have to play No. 3 Syracuse on its home court Monday, assuming that Syracuse wins over No. 14 Fordham.

Tennessee women’s basketball (Caleb Currier): Caleb’s senior season as student manager with the Lady Vols continues for at least one more game. The Lady Vols earned a No. 11 seed in the Greensboro region of the NCAA Tournament and will play No. 6 UCLA at College Park, Md., at noon CDT Saturday on ESPN2. (Because ESPN televises the women’s tournament games on a regional basis, this game may not be available on ESPN2 in this part of the country.) The winner of the Tennessee-UCLA game will probably have to play No. 3 Maryland on its home court Monday, provided Maryland wins over No. 14 Radford. Tennessee is the only school to appear in all 38 women’s tournaments since its inception in 1982.

South Dakota State men’s basketball: The Jackrabbits’ venture into the NIT tournament, where they were an automatic qualifier for winning the Summit League’s regular-season title, was short-lived. At Texas Tuesday they fell behind 19-0 to start the game but rallied to within 31-28 and then trailed at halftime 43-35. SDSU took the lead twice in the second half and kept it a one-possession game most of the way, but in the end Texas won, 79-73. SDSU’s season ended with a 24-9 record. The Mike Daum era ended as he scored 25 points and had 11 rebounds, finishing his career with 3,067 points. Skyler Flatten had 14 points and five assists in his last game. David Jenkins scored 17.

Black Hills State track (Kelsey Van Den Hemel, Allan McDonnell): The outdoor season opens at home in the BHSU Spring Open today through Saturday. The Yellowjackets will be at the Tom Benich Invitational at Boulder, Colo., March 30 and at the West Texas A&M Invitational at Canyon, Texas, April 5-6.

South Dakota Mines track (Theron Singleton, Erick Colman): The Hardrockers open their outdoor season at the BHSU meet Saturday, go to the MSU-Billings invitational March 30 and go to the CU invitational in Boulder April 5-6.

South Dakota track (Madason Tessier, Maddy McClure): At Cal-Irvine’s meet Madason placed 15th in the 100-meter hurdles in :15.23 and 16th in the 400-meter hurdles in 1:09.15. USD competes at the Wayne State classic this weekend, at four meets in Texas March 27-29 and at home in the South Dakota Challenge April 6.

PONDER THIS

“We all are born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid.”

— Benjamin Franklin

BIRTHDAYS/ANNIVERSARIES

Thursday, March 21:
Ben Gilmore, Loni McQuistion, Mark Hardwick, Jacob Tschetter, Diana Vogel, Gerald Johnson, River Fischer, Grant Wosick, Bentley Frost, Matthew Heintz, Wanda Meyer, Kara (Knadle) Schumacher, Linda Knox.
— 21st anniversary, Dan/Lora (Den Ouden) Moore.

Friday, March 22:
Betty Eddy, Sharla McCaskell, Eric Gednalske, Olivia Smith, Travis Fitzke, Wendy Birhanzel, Nicole Ogan, Serena Norman, Dane Dodson, Oaklie Cruse, Josephine Karim, Nellie Holsten, George Ford, Leo Schmidt.

Saturday, March 23:
Kelsey McKay, McKayla Marso, Brittani Snow, Brian Hylle, Toby Bryant, Darcy Weber, Keaton Durkin, Livia Neuberger, Jason Person, Amy Wire, Sienna Karim, Soraya Karim, Ashlynn Lizotte, Hadley Shoup.

Sunday, March 24:
Tyler Sarringar, Adam Korkow, Smith Schneider, Bretta (Schumacher) Olson, Jeff Post, Jeff Sampson, Brandon Sieck, Theresa Hanson, Jon Horning, Allison Knox, Casey Trandem, Tyrel Hall, Dan Zebroski, Ashley (Dunwoody) Dugstad.
— 7th anniversary, Neil/Molly Eichstadt.

Monday, March 25:
Allison Mckelson, Kinley Rumpca, Evelyn Bowers, Adriana Uecker, Janelle Toman, Angie Gross, Jamie Dvorak.

Tuesday, March 26:
Craig Rilling, Conne Colwill, Nadia Rasmussen, Roger Easland, Elissa Rislov, Tyler Nold, Mollie Holden, Audra (Meyer) Cardwell, Bonnie Korkow, Chad Eschmeyer, Corey Ramsey, Terah Bollinger, Jason Monroe, Chas Olson, Pat Adams, Dalton Decker.

Wednesday, March 27:
Casey Ortbahn, Wyatt Gran, Penny Unruh, Quinn Eschmeyer.

Thursday, March 28:
Allen Uecker, Larry Lundeen, Carol McKee, Christopher Roberts, David Forney, Eileen Herrin, Sarah (Winter) Sonnenschein, Susan Flottmeyer, Angela (Di Benedetto) Smith, Kathy (Adam) Bykowski, Janelle (Kvislen) Carda.

Friday, March 29:
Nancee Johnson, Jace Jerome, Derek Gustafson, Peggy (Marshall) Engstrom, Michael Bumann, Aaron Bumann, Connor Barnes, Graden Barnes, Sydney Hackett, Joseph Kean.
— 5th anniversary, Clay/Katelynn (Lamb) Pottorff.

Saturday, March 30:
Grey Zabel, Jack Magee, Nathan Mikkelsen, Emily (Goeden) Decker, Nicole (Mikkelsen) Schwinler, Eric Harris, Patrick Snyder, Mary Hove, Lindsey (Brown) Osterkamp, Liz Stewart, Doug Smith, Abel Haas, Patty Williams.
— Anniversary, Craig/Charlene Keller.

Sunday, March 31:
Chad Gusso, Jenny (Ness) Hofer, Gable Uhrig, Annie (Fuller) BonneCarrere, Jennifer Merkwan, Brandon Heckenlaible, Brittany Mehklhaff, Brady Goff, Mia Ellefson, Linda Brooks.
— 2nd anniversary, Scott/Katrina (Reimnitz) Hesla.

Monday, April 1:
Shelley (Marone) Locken, Justin Gilmore, Bronson Blow, John Knox, Steve Maciejewski, Mildred Adams, Meghann (O’Day) Kjolsrud, Lindsey (Suedkamp) Griffith, Justine Berven, Andrew Murphy, Reagan Haefner, Steve Wegman, Leon Blumhardt, Caden Blair, Paul Williams, Theodora Boolin.
We fondly remember Tate Senftner on his birthday.

Tuesday, April 2:
Joyce Koistinen, Sasha (Kean) Bishop, Joni Lingle, Krista (Schmidt) Sarvis, Laurie Kelley, Mary Hiller, Sandra Peterson, Susanne Harmon, Reece Mohlman, Emerson Mohlman, Aaron Rumpca, Dalila Deal, Aria Bollinger, Dustin James, Olivia Deffenbaugh, Stephanie Wells, Greta Deffenbaugh, Brandon Kucker.

Wednesday, April 3:
Dawn (Garrett) Kaiser, Charlotte Gustafson, Tom P. Maher, Erin Maher, Ava Williams, Whitney (Palmer) Flottmeyer, Jesse Scharnweber, Scott Decker, Frank Pautz, Roseanne Ogan, Lori (Stulken) Blom, Seth Parsons, Charles Edelen, Bryan Palmer, David Jensen.

Thursday, April 4:
Blaine Harrowa, Thad Bauer, Tyler Mattheis, Noah Wulf, Marinda Archer, Avery Williams, Blaine Nicholas, Sandra O’Day, Hattie Ann Stofferahn, Madyson Mitchell.
— 5th anniversary, Eric/Missie Schmidt.

Friday, April 5:
Levi Hanson, Ian Rounds, Ken Stofferahn (#85), Angie (Huxford) Pfleger, Landon Badger, Jo Mikkelsen, Jon Herman, Troy Docken, Chase Cooper, April Chicoine, Mikaela Hoy.
— 44th anniversary, Frank/Kathy (Hoover) Pautz.
— 44th anniversary, Doug/Pam Peterson.

Saturday, April 6:
Lacy Nielsen, Ashley (Pries) Brewer, Laura Mehlhaff, Heather (Nystrom) Klinger.

Sunday, April 7:
Brian Mills, BryAnn (Becker) Knecht, Vivian Asmussen, Anthony Johnson, Adam Chick, Crystal (Boehmer) Lindekugel, Eric Unkenholz, Brian Hosman, Jayden Madden, Sandee Smith, Judith Smith.
— 40th anniversary, Bob/Kris Schneider.
— 35th anniversary, Kevin/JoAnne Hipple.

Monday, April 8:
Eric Bresee, Katie Larson, Linsey (Peterson) Robbins, Wilson Jordre, Ruth Kilber, Greg Axtman, Lexi Anderson.
— 2nd anniversary, Josh/Aimee Parsons.
— Anniversary, Donny/Kori (Verhelst) Rolfes.

Tuesday, April 9:
Kai Segrud, Matt Brakke, Kellie (Sutton) Yackley, Kellie Weinheimer, Rob Nill, Aaron Comer, Spencer Eich, Arthur Olson, Wesley Joy.
— Anniversary, Shaun/Sara (Sperry) Thomas.

Wednesday, April 10:
Brady Smith, Katherine Van Gerpen, Brandon Louder, Lucas Oehlerking, Ken Fanger, John Jordre, Kory McKay, Nolan Nielsen, Jason Livermont.
— 9th anniversary, Tyson/Jenny (Miller) Goehring.

Thursday, April 11:
Eric Hillestad, Austin Lucas, James Bobby, Lillian Campbell, Teresa (Sprinkel) Gillaspie, Mike Haas, Mason Fisher, Amy Burger, Terry Barber, Jessica Kost, Chase DeJong, Sheena Carlisle, Amber LeFaive.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“You cannot prevent the birds of sadness from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from nesting in your hair.”

— Chinese proverb

WEDDING DAYS

June 8: Frank Turner/Jasmin Fosheim.
June 8: Joseph Rezac/Brittanie Blaseg.
Aug. 31: Devin Maki/Karlie Warne.

HOCKEY UPDATE

State boys varsity tournament: Sioux Falls defeated Rushmore, 4-1, in the championship game at the Expo Center Sunday. Brookings shut out Huron, 5-0, in the third-place game. Sioux Center defeated Watertown, 6-1, for fifth place.

Oahe Capitals: The boys varsity lost to Brookings, 7-4, in the quarterfinals at the state tournament in Fort Pierre. Spencer Wedin scored off Talon Griese’s assist to bring the Caps to within 2-1. Griese scored from Wedin and Caden Davis to make it a 3-2 deficit, and Davis scored a goal to tie it up at 3-3. The Caps, however, were down 5-3 after two periods. After they fell behind 7-3, Elliot Leif scored off Raef Briggs’ assist to end the scoring. Tate Mueller made 26 saves. In the consolation semifinals the Capitals lost to Watertown, 6-5, in overtime to see their season come to an end. Leif scored on assists from Briggs and Andrew Gordon to tie the game at 1-1 after one period. Goals by Gordon from Leif and Briggs and by Davis from Griese and Cole Nelson tied the game at 3-3. In the third period Leif converted a Briggs assist, and Clay Ambach scored off assists by Davis and Griese to give the Capitals a 5-4 lead. Watertown tied the game to force O.T. and won the game at the 5:07 mark.

Sioux Falls Stampede: The Stampede lost to Omaha, 3-2, in overtime and lost to Fargo, 3-2, in a shootout. Sioux Falls is home vs. Sioux City Saturday, at Omaha Sunday, at Waterloo Tuesday, home vs. Fargo March 29 and at Cedar Rapids April 3.

Rapid City Rush: After sweeping Utah in Rapid City the previous weekend, the Rush took two of three games in Utah, winning 2-1 and 4-3 and losing 5-2. Rapid City is home vs. Idaho Friday and Saturday.

Minnesota Wild: If only the Wild could win at home! Minnesota this week lost to Dallas, 4-1; beat the New York Rangers, 5-2; lost to the Islanders in overtime, 3-2, and lost to Colorado, 3-1. Minnesota goes to Washington Friday, to Carolina Saturday, home vs. Nashville Monday, to Las Vegas March 29 and to Arizona March 31.

DID YOU KNOW?

There are so many kinds of apples that, if you ate a new one every day, it would take more than 20 years to try them all.

BASEBALL UPDATE

Minnesota Twins regular season:
March 28, 30-31: Cleveland.
April 2-3: at Kansas City.
April 5-6-7: at Philadelphia.
April 9-10: at New York Mets.

Chicago Cubs regular season:
March 28, 30-31: at Texas.
April 1, 3-4: at Atlanta.
April 5-6-7: at Milwaukee.
April 8, 10-11: Pittsburgh.

Colorado Rockies regular season:
March 28-39-30-31: at Miami.
April 1-2-3: at Tampa Bay.
April 5-6-7: Los Angeles Dodgers.
April 8-9-10: Atlanta.

Pierre Governors: These are the opening dates for the high school baseball season—April 6, vs. Douglas, 5 p.m., and vs. Rapid City Central, 7 p.m., at Rapid City; April 7, at Sturgis, 1 and 3 p.m.; April 13, home vs. Huron, 5:30 and 7:30 p.m.

BASKETBALL UPDATE

State tournaments wrap-up:
— ‘AA’ girls
1st: Brandon Valley over S.F. Lincoln, 60-40
3rd: Harrisburg over Mitchell, 49-44
5th: R.C. Stevens over S.F. O’Gorman, 44-41
7th: S.F. Washington over Brookings, 45-43
— ‘AA’ boys
1st: Brandon Valley over S.F. O’Gorman, 54-47
3rd: Harrisburg over Yankton, 70-64 (O.T.)
5th: S.F. Roosevelt over S.F. Lincoln, 67-49
7th: Huron over R.C. Stevens, 61-56
— ‘A’ girls
1st: Winner over West Central, 60-53
3fd: Lennox over McCook Central-Montrose, 43-41
5th: Mount Vernon-Plankinton over Aberdeen Roncalli, 53-50
7th: Todd County over R.C. St. Thomas More, 63-51
— ‘A’ boys
1st: Tea Area over S.F. Christian, 68-57
3rd: Pine Ridge over Lennox, 61-47
5th: Madison over Hot Springs, 70-60
7th: R.C. St. Thomas More over Dell Rapids, 71-69
— ‘B’ boys
1st: Clark-Willow Lake over De Smet, 49-41
3rd: Bridgewater-Emery over Viborg-Hurley, 65-54
5th: White River over Sully Buttes, 74-68
7th: Jones County over Timber Lake, 60-49
— ‘B’ girls
1st: De Smet over Ethan, 49-39
3rd: Corsica-Stickney over Freeman, 55-45
5th: Warner over White River, 54-48
7th: Ipswich over Waverly-South Shore, 52-49

Sioux Falls Skyforce: It was a tough week for the Skyforce. They lost to Salt Lake City, 141-114; lost to Memphis, 116-101, and lost to Oklahoma City, 130-112. Sioux Falls is at Austin tonight and at Rio Grande Valley Saturday.

Minnesota Timberwolves: The Wolves also had an all-losing week, falling to Utah, 120-100; to Houston, 117-102, and to Golden State, 117-107. Minnesota tries again tonight at Charlotte, Saturday at Memphis and home Tuesday vs. the Los Angeles Clippers.

A THOUGHT FOR THESE TIMES

“The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another. The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month.”

— Henry Van Dyke

SOCCER UPDATE

Minnesota United FC: The Loons, who were unbeaten through the preseason and through two weeks of the regular season, lost to the Los Angeles Galaxy, 3-2. Their next games are at New England March 30 and at the New York Red Bulls April 6.

FOOTBALL UPDATE

Sioux Falls Storm: Still unbeaten, the Storm won easily at Bismarck, 52-18. The home opener is Friday vs. Quad City, then the Storm goes to Arizona March 31 and to Bismarck again April 6.

GOLF UPDATE

PGA Champions Tour (Tom Byrum): The tour was idle last weekend. The next stop will be the Rapiscan Systems Classic in Biloxi, Miss., March 29-31.

PARKER’S PERSONAL NOTES

— Great as that would be, the Coyotes and the Jackrabbits will not both make it to the women’s basketball Final Four. They are in the same region. They could, however, play each other in the regional final. Let’s be realistic, however. That is three wins away for each team.

NEWS OF PEOPLE AND EVENTS

Adam Kulesa of Hillsview Golf Course has been named assistant superintendent of the year for 18-hole facilities by the South Dakota Golf Course Superintendents Association. Adam is the husband of the former Cassidy Rogers.

A celebration of life Mass for the late Bob Parliman will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 30, at Ss. Peter & Paul Catholic Church. Bob for many years was a teacher at Georgia Morse Middle School in Pierre, and before that he taught in the Sully Buttes district. He passed away Feb. 17.

Brian Lowery’s wife Jennifer is the superintendent in the Tea Area School District. A story in the Sioux Falls Argus Leader last week said that district will soon open its third elementary school and is expanding another. Plans are in the works for a fourth. The district has grown by 100 students every fall, and it is expected the district will have from 900 to 1,000 additional students in the next five years.

Rollin Barnes, 95, died March 14. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 23, at First United Methodist Church in Pierre. He was born on Christmas Day 1923 in rural Harrold. He grew up on a family farm. After serving for 2 1/2 years in the U.S. Navy during World War II, he married Virginia Wakefield in 1948. Rollin spent 40 years ranching and farming north of Harrold. Later he worked as a crop adjuster. After retirement he worked in Custer operating the movie theater at the Flintstones tourist attraction. Eventually he and Virginia retired to their permanent home in rural Pierre. He is survived by his wife of Pierre; four children, Nancy Pietz of Brandon, Nina Fromm of Pierre, Dorn Barnes of Harrold and Darda Schneider of Britton; 15 grandchildren, two step-grandchildren, 20 great-grandchildren, two step-great-grandchildren, three step-great-great-grandchildren; two sisters, Zelma Dean of Sioux Falls and Zada Brock of Grand Island, Neb., and two brothers, Raymond Barnes of Huron and Kenneth Barnes of Boyne City, Mich.

McLean Thompson Kerver, an attorney with the Lynn Jackson law firm in Rapid City, has been named a member of the South Dakota Community Foundation’s Key Club, which is made up of about 70 respected and trusted professional advisers across the state.

Chris Schafer of the Hayti area, who rescued Blunt area teen-ager Colt Brink from his burning semi in 2017, is one of 19 people around the country honored with the Carnegie Medal from the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission. Colt’s truck collided with a train crossing Highway 14 on the west edge of Blunt. He was partly buried in grain inside the cab, and the truck caught fire. Schafer, who happened to be returning home from Pierre, and another person got the truck door open and pulled Colt free, moments before the truck burst into flames. Colt was hospitalized but was not burned and made a full recovery.

Long-time Pierre resident and former state official Ken Stofferahn will observe his 85th birthday on April 5. Friends can send him greetings at 221 Windflower Circle, Lincoln NE 68521.

At the South Dakota Football Coaches Association meeting in Brookings Saturday, the state championship coaches from this past fall will be honored, including Pierre’s Steve Steele, whose Governors won the 11AA title. Also honored will be the National High School Athletic Coaches Association’s All-American football players, including honorable mention recipient Jack Maher.

Jim Ogan, 91, Blunt, died March 14 at Avera St. Mary’s Hospital. Born in Illinois, Jim moved with his family to the Blunt area in 1946 when he was 18. He and Norma Osterkamp were married in 1948, and they celebrated their 67th anniversary together in 2016. Jim farmed with his sons near Blunt. He is survived by four sons and their spouses, Mike and Patty Ogan, Steven and Catherine Ogan, Neil and Susan Ogan and Kenneth and Mary Ogan; seven grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; a brother and sister-in-law, Pete and Carol Ogan, and a sister-in-law, Lois Welch. Among those who preceded him in death were his wife, his parents, brothers Kip and George Ogan, and daughter-in-law Doris Ogan.

Long-time Pierre resident Shirley (Licht) Shaw celebrated her 90th birthday recently, and she was treated to a surprise party by her family. Friends can send her and her husband, Mike Shaw, greetings at 3208 E. Augustana Place, Brandon SD 57005-6668.

Josh and Ashley (Zimmerman) Wheeler of Milwaukee became first-time parents on March 15. Their daughter, Nora Avery Wheeler, weighed 7 pounds, 4 ounces, and measured 19 inches. Nora’s maternal grandparents are John and Sandy Zimmerman of Pierre.

The South Dakota All-State Band concert this Saturday night will be streamed live at www.sdpb.org. The concert will be taped and broadcast on South Dakota Public Broadcasting on April 20.

Onida native Ramona (Niehoff) Weischedel died at the age of 66 March 12. Services will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Family Worship Center in Mobridge with interment later at Black Hills National Cemetery. After growing up in Onida and graduating from high school there, she married Agar native Jerry Weischedel. Ramona operated a self-employed daycare center for more than 35 years. She is survived by her husband Jerry of Mobridge; her son, Jeremy in Sioux Falls, and her parents, Reuben and Agnes Niehoff of Onida.

The Tate Senftner Memorial Scholarships were again presented at the state “B” boys basketball tournament in Aberdeen by Tate’s parents, Mark and Lynn, and his brother, Scott. This year’s recipients are Micah Burke of Clark/Willow Lake, Trey Bollinger of Timber Lake, and Sebastian Frost, Morris Hofer and Cameron Ogle, all of Sully Buttes.

Two Pierre athletes at SDSU have earned academic recognition. Rachel Propst, senior at South Dakota State University, was named to the Summit League’s track and field Academic All-Conference team. She has a cumulative grade-point average of 4.0 during her track career at SDSU. Another senior, Wyatt Rumrill, who also has a cumulative GPA of 4.0, was named to the Summit’s swimming and diving Academic All-Conference team.

A birthday card your Update editor received from Ted and Sheryl Hall in Pierre reminded me where their children are—Matt and family in Neenah, Wis.; Jenna in Mauritius, and Kevin and family in Omaha.

Pierre native Bryan Palmer is president-elect of his Rotary Club and will be in office from July 1 this year through June 30, 2020. He and other incoming club presidents recently attended a training conference with the Rotary District 5950 leadership team in Ames, Iowa. Bryan lives in Coon Rapids, Minn., with his wife, Rachel, and their two children.

The Rushmore Thunder hockey team, the defending champions who placed second this year in the state tournament, had a pair of Pierre connections. Mason Martin, son of Pierre native Stuart Martin, played for the Thunder. He had a goal in the quarterfinal win over Watertown and scored twice in the semifinal win over Brookings. The Rushmore goalkeeper is John Young, son of Pierre native Jason Young. John had 18 saves against Watertown, 20 saves and a shutout in the semis against Brookings and 39 saves in the championship loss to Sioux Falls.

Randy Curtis, 64, Belle Fourche, died unexpectedly March 14 at Spearfish Regional Hospital. Visitation will be from 6 to 7 p.m. Friday at Kline Funeral Chapel in Belle Fourche. The funeral service will be at 11 a.m. this Saturday at the Belle Fourche Livestock Market. The son of Robert and Marlys Curtis graduated from Sully Buttes High School in 1975. He worked for Pat Feeney at the Knox Ranch, but he also competed on the horse-racing track and was named South Dakota’s leading jockey twice. He went to work for his future father-in-law, Bill Barnes, who taught Randy about marketing livestock. He married Billie Barnes in 1979, and they raised three children. He married Mary Jo Scoggin in 2000. Randy was working as a field man for Belle Fourche Livestock at the time of his death. Among his survivors are his wife, Mary Jo Curtis, and his children, Brian Curtis, Kaycee Curtis and Karisa Curtis, all of Belle Fourche; his sisters, Cheryl Fletcher in Costa Rica, Diane Nuttall in Greybull, Wyo., Donna Green in Murdo and Teri Heninger of Fort Pierre, and three grandchildren.

“The Full Monty” opens at Black Hills Community Theater in Rapid City this weekend with Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday afternoon shows. The same schedule applies to the weekend of March 29-30-31. Jason Knox plays one of the leading roles among the desperate out-of-work men in this musical. Holly (Knox) Perli choreographed the show. Parker Knox is on keyboards as a member of the pit band.

Way back in the 1969-70 school year, the Pierre boys basketball cheerleaders were the very first recipients of the coveted Spirit of Six award, presented at each state tournament in memory of the six Rapid City cheerleaders who died in a plane crash upon returning home from the 1968 state tournament. A member of that Pierre squad, Judy (Sonnenschein) Larson, had the honor of helping to present the 50th anniversary Spirit of Six award at the two “AA” tournaments in Rapid City last Saturday night. The other members of that cheerleading squad were Pam Pugh, Patti Wilcox, Judy Wegner, Sherrie Abbott and Jeannie Suiter.

Shelli Jones, who worked as an office assistant at Ferding Electric and as a manager at Holiday Inn, died at the age of 55 Monday. A memorial service is planned for 10 a.m. Monday, March 25, at Lutheran Memorial Church. The former Shelli Peterson was born in Belle Fourche, grew up in Colome and attended high school in Winner. She married Melvin Jones in 1989, and they made their home in Pierre. When she completed her GED at The Right Turn in 2011, she was selected to speak at graduation. She is survived by her husband, Mel Jones of Pierre; their daughters, Rita Jacobs of Piedmont, Barbara Jones of Pierre, Jessica Jones of Eugene, Ore., and Paige Jones of Pierre, and five grandchildren.

A PARTING THOUGHT

“Live in such a way that you would not be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip.”