BASEBALL UPDATE

Pierre Post 8 schedule:

• Thursday-Sunday: Rapid City Veterans Classic
  (Pierre games at Fitzgerald Stadium—10:30 a.m. MDT Thursday vs. Rapid City Post 320 Shooters; 1 p.m. Thursday vs. Sioux Falls West; 6 p.m. MDT Friday vs. Billings 406 Fliers; 8 p.m. Friday vs. Rapid City Post 22; 1 p.m. MDT Saturday vs. Gillette. Sunday game at 10:30 or 1 p.m. or 3:30 p.m. MDT at Fitzgerald Stadium or Pete Lien Memorial Field).
• (NOTE: This is a revised schedule since the Millard West team from Omaha backed out of the tournament earlier this week. The other pool in this tournament, playing games at Pete Lien Memorial Field, includes Mitchell, Sioux Falls East, Rapid City Post 320, Rapid City Post 22 Expos, Alliance and Miles City. The important games for Pierre Post 8 are those against South Dakota “A” teams (S.F. West and R.C. Post 22 and whomever they might play Sunday) because those games count in the seed-point standings.)
• Wednesday, July 22: at Mandan, 5:30 doubleheader.
• Friday, July 24: home vs. Spearfish, 5:00 doubleheader.

Post 8 vs. West Fargo: In the first game of the Renner tournament Cobey Carr threw a strong six innings, working out of a pair of jams and took a 1-0 shutout into the final inning, but he walked the first two batters and was relieved. West Fargo tied the game on a suicide squeeze when the ball was dropped at home plate. Then they got a 2-1 lead when a throw from third to first was late on a ground ball. Post 8 was retired on three strikeouts and a walk in the bottom of the seventh and lost by that 2-1 score. Pierre had three hits, West Fargo four. West Fargo, after this escape, went on to win the tournament.

Post 8 vs. Hartford-Humboldt: The second game of the Renner tournament in the Humboldt pool saw Post 8 playing another non-South Dakota Class “A” team, and it was a good thing. Coach Brian White posted a lineup that saved many of his veteran players for the important game to follow. Giving up ten walks and two hit-batters and making misplays on the bases and defensively cost Post 8 in a 5-4 loss to Hartford-Humboldt. The home team had only two hits in the game but won anyway. Pierre went ahead in the first, 1-0. H-H immediately tied the game and had the bases loaded with no outs, but Lincoln Kienholz came in in relief and retired three batters to end that threat and pitch two more perfect innings. Meanwhile a two-run double by Cade Hinkle in the fourth gave Pierre a 3-1 lead. With Kienholz out of the game, H-H in the bottom of the fourth tied the game on a two-run homer. Then a misplay on a tag at third base and on the subsequent throw to home plate gave H-H a 4-3 lead. Pierre was fortunate to tie the game in the top of the seventh when Hinkle’s long fly was played into a three-base error, and he scored on a long sacrifice fly to tie the game. But in the bottom of the seventh a leadoff walk, another walk, a hit batter and yet another walk gave H-H the gift win. The loss eliminated Pierre from a chance to play on championship day of the tournament.

Post 8 vs. Sioux Falls East: The one game in the Renner tournament that mattered most is the one vs. East because it counted in the Class “A” Legion post-season seed-point standings. Having beaten East twice earlier in the season, Post 8 scored a run in the first on a wild pitch following Matt Lusk’s double. But in the bottom of the first the weekend pattern continued as East scored four times. Nate Sprenkle’s infield hit tied the game, then a three-run double followed. East padded its lead with a run in the second when a fly ball went over an outfielder’s head, then clinched the game with a four spot in the fourth. When Pierre went down in order in the top of the fifth, trailing 9-1, the game ended via the 8-run rule. It is Pierre’s first three-game losing streak of the season as the offense struggled, scoring only six runs in the three tournament games. Pierre had two hits in the game while East had 10 hits. Pierre’s record became 19-8, facing two important games at Harrisburg on Tuesday.

Post 8 vs. Harrisburg: The Post 8 offense snapped out of its Humboldt funk with a 10-hit attack in an 8-2 win at Harrisburg Tuesday in the opener of a twinbill. Andrew Coverdale drove in a run in the top of the first, and the first of seven Harrisburg errors let in a second run. Leading 2-1, Pierre gained a run in the second on a Garrett Stout hit. In the third Cade Hinkle drove in a run, and four Harrisburg errors helped make it a three-run frame and a 6-1 lead. Jack Van Camp’s two-run hit in the fifth provided a pair of insurance runs. Stout was superb on the mound, going 4 2/3 innings, giving up only three hits and two runs while striking out eight. Jake Mayer pitched the final 2 1/3 innings, striking out three and keeping Harrisburg off the board. Van Camp, River Iverson and Stout had two hits each. Eleven of the 21 Harrisburg outs came on strikeouts. The second game of the doubleheader was a forgettable one, even though Post 8 jumped ahead 3-0 in the first. After that Harrisburg scored four runs in the first, seven in the second, two in the third and three in the fourth and ended the game at 16-3 in the fifth inning by the 10-run rule. Starter Van Camp was kayoed after 1 1/3 innings as 11 men batted in the second for Harrisburg. The doubleheader split caused Pierre to drop from third to fourth in the seed-point standings. (Finishing fourth or higher assures a team of being at home for both the first and second rounds of the playoffs.)

Legion baseball seed-point standings: To refresh your memory, in place of regional tournaments this year, there will be a first round of best-of-3 playoffs with #1 playing #16, #2 playing #15, etc. That round will leave eight teams for the second round of best-of-3 playoffs with the top remaining seed playing the lowest remaining seed, etc. Then four teams will be left for the state tournament to be hosted by the highest remaining seed. As of Wednesday morning of this week, Pierre Post 8 ranks fourth and would play #13 Yankton in the first round. Pierre’s remaining games (only games vs. South Dakota “A” opponents count in these standings) are against Post 22 and Sioux Falls West this weekend and a Spearfish doubleheader next week. The standings as of Tuesday: (1) Rapid City Post 22 (2) Brandon Valley (3) Watertown (4) Pierre (5) Harrisburg (6) Renner (7) Brookings (8) Sioux Falls East (9) Mitchell (10) Rapid City Post 320 (11) Sioux Falls West (12) Sturgis (13) Yankton (14) Aberdeen (15) Huron (16) Spearfish.

Pierre Trappers schedule:
— Thursday: home vs. Souris Valley.
— Friday-Saturday: home vs. Fremont.
— Sunday-Monday: at Fremont.
— Wednesday-Thursday: home vs. Western Nebraska.
— July 24-26: home vs. Badlands.

Pierre Trappers: The Trappers were 8-11 through Tuesday night when they swept a doubleheader at Western Nebraska. Last week they went 2-3 against Badlands.

Sioux Falls Canaries: The Birds find themselves in first place in this year’s six-team, one-division American Association. This past week they won five of six games, finishing a St. Paul series with two wins, taking two of three over Winnipeg and winning a series opener against Chicago at the Milwaukee hub. Sioux Falls finishes the Chicago series tonight (Thursday); spends Friday, Saturday and Sunday against Winnipeg at the Fargo hub, then comes home to face St. Paul in six straight games starting next Tuesday.

Minnesota Twins: With the 60-game 2020 season opener just eight days away for the Twins at the White Sox, the full-season 2021 schedule has been released. The Twins will open on April 1, 2021, at Milwaukee.

South Dakota Little League District 1: With the national regionals and the Little League World Series all canceled for this year, there is nowhere for state champions to go, but South Dakota will at least crown state champions July 24-26 at three tournaments, all in Rapid City. Pierre’s Capital City League League will have an all-star team in each of the three tournaments.
— The state Little League tournament played at the Harney complex: First-round games July 24—Rushmore vs. Harney, 12:30; Canyon Lake vs. Timberline, 3:00; Belle Fourche vs. Capital City, 5:30; Sturgis vs. Sioux Falls, 8:00.
— The state 11U tournament played at the Timberline complex: First-round games July 24—Sturgis vs. Harney, Canyon Lake vs. Sioux Falls, Capital City vs. Timberline, Rushmore bye.
— The state 10U tournament played at the Canyon Lake complex: First-round games July 24—Sturgis vs. Capital City, Canyon Lake vs. Rushmore, Sioux Falls vs. Harney, Timberline bye.

ZESTO SHERBET SCHEDULE

Thursday: coffee.
Friday-Sunday: strawberry butter.
Monday-Tuesday: pina colada.
Wednesday-Thursday: cinnamon.

WORDS OF WISDOM

“Truth is important.
Justice is important.
Humility is important.
Tolerance is important.
Patience is important.
Faith is important.
Love is important.

“It’s important to be trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly and courteous. It’s important to be kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.

“The trick is to keep all of these important things in the proper balance. That’s why Aristotle insisted that moderation was the most important virtue. It’s the governing virtue, the virtue that balances all the others, the virtue that stops us from turning virtues into vices. It’s the virtue that might even save us from our rapidly approaching nuclear civil war.”

— Art Marmorstein, Aberdeen American-News columnist and professor of history at Northern State University

COUNTDOWN

3 days: National High School Finals rodeo, Guthrie, Okla. (July 19-23).
7 days: Major league baseball season begins (July 23).
8 days: Minnesota Twins season opener (July 24).
10 days: Minnesota Lynx season opener (July 26).
11 days: Legion baseball playoffs begin (July 27).
14 days: NBA season resumes (July 30).
15 days: Sioux Empire Fair, Sioux Falls (July 31-Aug. 8).
16 days: NHL season resumes (Aug. 1).
20 days: State amateur baseball tournament, Mitchell (Aug. 5-16).
22 days: Sully County Fair, Onida (Aug. 7-9).
22 days: Sturgis motorcycle rally (Aug. 7-16).
22 days: Pierre Players’ “Native Gardens” (Aug. 7-9, 13-15).
22 days: State Legion baseball tournament (Aug. 7-9).
28 days: MLB “FIeld of Dreams” game, Dyersville, Iowa (Aug. 13).
29 days: State 4-H Finals rodeo, Fort Pierre (Aug. 14-16).
32 days: Democratic National Convention, Milwaukee (Aug. 17-20).
32 days: NBA playoffs begin (Aug. 17).
36 days: Central States Fair, Rapid City (Aug. 21-30).
38 days: Indianapolis 500 (Aug. 23).
39 days: Republican National Convention, Jacksonville (Aug. 24-27).
43 days: National March on Washington (Aug. 28).
49 days: State Fair, Huron (Sept. 3-7).
50 days: PGA Tour championship, Atlanta (Sept. 4-7).
51 days: Kentucky Derby (Sept. 5).
53 days: Sanford International golf tournament, Sioux Falls (Sept. 7-13).
56 days: NFL season opener (Sept. 10).

CROSSWORD PUZZLE

Directions: Draw a square box of 16 squares, four rows of four boxes each. Number the boxes on your top row 1, 2, 3 and 4 from left to right. Number the boxes in your left-hand row 1, 5, 6 and 7 from top to bottom.

Clues:
ACROSS—
(1) Miss —-, long-time cheerleader adviser.
(5) —- Nielsen, Riggs High alumnus.
(6) Alliance of Western nations.
(7) Host of “Jeopardy.”
DOWN—
(1) Carlos —-, baseball TV analyst.
(2) —- Goodman, baseball player in ’30s and ’40s.
(3) —- Blanchett, actress.
(4) Fort —-, Kentucky.

Puzzle answer is at the bottom of this Midweek Update.

SOCCER UPDATE

Minnesota United FC: The Loons began the MLS season in March with two impressive wins, but they weren’t the same team for three-quarters of the matchSunday, four months later. A dramatic moment came midway through the second half when the Kansas City goalkeeper was red-carded. The Loons staged a remarkable rally, scoring in the 92nd and 97th minutes, to stun Sporting Kansas City, 2-1. Minnesota’s record in the standings is now 3-0, and in the “MLS is Back” tournament the Loons are 1-0 with two matches remaining in Group D pool play—Friday vs. Real Salt Lake at 9:30 p.m. (ESPN) and next Wednesday vs. Colorado at 9:30 p.m. (ESPN). The other two teams in Group D are Real Salt Lake, now 1-0, and Colorado, now 0-1.

HOCKEY UPDATE

Minnesota Wild: The National Hockey League will resume its season on Aug. 1. First will come qualifying playoff rounds which will determine the 16 teams to compete in the Stanley Cup playoffs. All games will be played only at two “bubble” sites—Edmonton and Toronto. The Wild’s best-of-5 qualifying series against Vancouver will start Aug. 2 in Edmonton.

Rapid City Rush: The Rush’s home opener is scheduled for Oct. 23, but the ECHL said this week the start of the season may be delayed.

PARKER’S PERSONAL NOTES

• — Favorite T-shirt of the week:
  LIKE A GOOD
  NEIGHBOR,
  STAY OVER
  THERE
• John Culberson down in mile-high Custer saw this quote from Alexandra Petri of The Washington Post and posted it. As I do with almost everything else, I copied it: “One of the difficulties of being alive today is that everything is absurd, but fewer and fewer things are funny.”
• WANTED: PANTYHOSE! The Riggs High marching band is in need of pantyhose for this coming school year, enough of them to cover the band instrument openings to form a barrier from the virus escaping but one which allows the musical sound to escape nevertheless. I’m not kidding. They need pantyhose! If you can provide some, contact by e-mail Mackenzie.McKeithan@k12.sd.us to arrange a drop-off time and place.
• I don’t know if the Menard’s store in Rapid City enforced its mandatory mask policy Monday morning when it was to have gone into effect, but I can imagine some of the reactions if they actually handed masks to some of those rights-and-freedoms types who showed up without a mask and were told they had to wear one inside the store. And now the rednecks will really be blowing their gaskets when they hear the news that Best Buy stores nationwide are requiring masks, even in states and towns that don’t require them otherwise. And then next Monday the mandatory mask policy takes effect in 5,000 Walmart and Sam’s Club stores nationwide!
• The people who know about such things say we have about another month to catch a glimpse of the Neowise comet up in the heavens. After mid-August it won’t be visible to us for something like 6,800 years.
• Those of us who have so much time on our hands that we can imbibe in such guilty pleasures as watching soap operas have good news this week. The two shows I watch, “The Young and the Restless” and “The Bold and the Beautiful,” had shows in the can, so to speak, and were able to continue into April until their production crews shut down due to the pandemic. Since then it’s been nothing but reruns, some of them from decades ago. But now we hear that “The Bold and the Beautiful” is back in production, and new shows start next Monday. Will Flo survive? Will Steffy find a new love interest in the doctor who joins the show? Will Wyatt wise up and dump Sally once and for all, or will she play another mean trick on him? Will Hope whine and cry about every little thing that doesn’t go her way, or will she finally grow up? Will Liam ever decide with which of his baby mothers he really wants to spend the rest of his life?
• Thirty-five years ago this week in 1985 the USFL, a spring-time professional football league, played its final game before going out of existence. That statement in the “Today in Sports History” column in the paper reminded me of the one USFL game I was able to attend in person. While my wife was at a conference in Houston for work, I went along to see the sights. Another guy whose wife was at the conference joined me in riding a bus out to the Astrodome for a game between the Houston Gamblers and the New Jersey Generals. It was a fantastic experience! If you’re a long-time football fan, you recognize a couple of these names. The Gamblers’ young quarterback was one Jim Kelly, who went on to the NFL and took the Bills to four consecutive Super Bowls. The Generals’ star running back was a rookie by the name of Herschel Walker.

THOUGHT FOR TODAY

If the U.S. were solely concerned with containing the virus, “reopening shouldn’t even be in the conversation yet.”

— Andrew Noymer, public health professor, UC-Irvine

BIRTHDAYS/ANNIVERSARIES

Thursday, July 16:
Brenda Stephens, Bob Duncan Jrl, Gwen Jockheck, Ki Weingart, Nikki Hoyme, Ariana Hunt, Hayden Miller, Stephanie Odden, Dorothy Lamb.
— 3rd anniversary, Kyle/Wren (Bishop) Hollingsworth.
— 4th anniversary, Kevin/Kristin (Meagher) Bowen.
— 15th anniversary, Matthew/Melissa (Wernke) Davis.
— 50th anniversary, Mike/Kim (Hazelrigg) Kirley.
— 13th anniversary, Chris/Karen (Van Camp) DeJabet.

Friday, July 17:
Chad Snodgrass, Nance Orsbon, Tony Darger, Matt Heard, Jeremy Unruh, Logan Laarsen, Crew Lund, Marilyn Spaid, Stella Hangebrauck, Rachel Wulf, Karen DeAntoni, Hudson Parsons, Simon Gilmore, Austin Gildemaster, Steve Robinson, Justin Scott, Pat Prince, Cliff Curry, Dean Sorenson, Chuck Finley, Finnian Murphy.
— 38th anniversary, Rich/Lori (Smith) Shangreaux.
— 10th anniversary, Austin/Kari Lucas.
— 16th anniversary, Jarrod/Amber (Anderson) Edelen.

Saturday, July 18:
Jean Donahue, Julie Welch, Jill Burger, Amanda Crompton, Jean Riedy, Ken Jaeger, Khloe Spaid, Dan Baltzell, Graham Schuetzle, Matti Shaw, Wyatt Fox, Kayleen Stoeser, Jason Kotilnek, Paisley Boyer, Amy Leidholt, Joseph Schrempp, Elizabeth Leidholt, Stine Gundersen.
— 11th anniversary, Jeffery/April (Chicoine) Smith.
— 5th anniversary, Dustin/Laura (Hofer) Gaspar.

Sunday, July 19:
Karli (Larsen) Williams, Robert Hardwick, Mike Swenson, Josee Linn, Andre Sengos, Fern Barnett, Peter Hodges, Brittney Munyon, David Mackey, J.J. Iverson, Jaime (Snyder) Hamm.
— 17th anniversary, Tanner/Elana (Hyde) Norman.
— Anniversary, Leonard/Jackie Haggin.

Monday, July 20:
Karsin Garrigan, James Marie Nold, Damon Thielen, Marcy Fifield, Jacque Hahn, Michelle (Leidholt) Fonck, Kellie (Englehart) Beck, Molly (Huber) Hausmann, Phil Sheffield, Siri Segrud, Carol Crain, Brandi Hahn, Harper Yackley, Mike Tveit, Audrey Moodie, Michael Kelley, Chase Bolte, Amy LaFave, Miranda Tracy, Brandon Swenson, Steven Cronin, Patrick Wellner, Colton Hanson, Pamela Bonrud.
— 13th anniversary, Joe/Lisa Martin.
— 8th anniversary, Tyler/Chelsey Coverdale.
— 46th anniversary, Dennis/Lois Ries.
— 18th anniversary, Travis/Amber (Osnes) Antholz.
— 13th anniversary, Lance/Megan (Ulmen) Fravel.

Tuesday, July 21:
Bill Stahl, Michelle (Bartel) Chenoweth, Starla Curtis, Adriane Wegman, Maclin Hayes Schmidt, Mandi Wharton, Ciara Tipton, Rhett LeBeau, Tyrel Larson.
— 2nd anniversary, Mike/Charlotte Snyder.
— 2nd anniversary, Sam/Ashley Leidholt.
— 14th anniversary, Brent/Katie (Lakner) Dill.
— 20th anniversary, Dusty/Jacquelyn (Dyce) Johnson.

Wednesday, July 22:
William Brakke, Benjamin Roberts, Mia Schrank, Jon Sailer, Mark Burger, Gayle (Kozel) Evans, Dawn (Kilian) Bradley, Don Stars Sr., Ashlee (Roemen) Keyes, Tenley Heiss, Tom Johnson, Tamie Brandt, Jason Schumacher.
— 3rd anniversary, Connor/Michaela (O’Daniel) Landberg.
— 3rd anniversary, Travis/Megan Newling.
— 14th anniversary, Tyler/Megan Bryant.
— 9th anniversary, Brent/Grace Chittum.
— 31st anniversary, Leo/Terry Disburg.
— 43rd anniversary, Rod/Tawana (Zebroski) Grueb.

Thursday, July 23:
Becca (Fossen) Mehlhaff, Eve Heard, Nick Kruse, Janet Penticoff, Zack Word, Kyle Weiger, Carson Carlisle, Caleb Currier, Adam Spellman, Kristi (Schultz) Brakke, Kylie Nystrom, Mike Mehlhaff, Ashley Richter, Jason Sass, Ryan Geraets, Jalen Lamb.
— 26th anniversary, Steven/Maggie Stofferahn.
— 4th anniversary, Michael/Kimmie Bumann.
— 9th anniversary, Justin/Karli (Larsen) Williams.
— 4th anniversary, Travis/Elizabeth (Lamb) Salmonson.
— 15th anniversary, Jason/Erin Bisbee.

FACT OF LIFE THESE DAYS

“I’m getting far too comfortable eating ‘party-sized’ bags of chips, knowing full well that there will never be a party anywhere near those chips.”

— Ben Schwartz
(from Katie Couric’s “Wake-Up Call”)

NEWS OF PEOPLE AND EVENTS

Many people take pride saying they don’t know anybody who has had the coronavirus. Well now, if you know Jeremy Ripperger, you know one. Jeremy works for a national insurance company in Milwaukee and became sick July 4. Since then he has been totally isolated in the basement of his house, and he and his family upstairs have taken great precautions that only he becomes sick. In a Facebook post this week Jeremy said he has no idea where he contracted the virus. His wife Penny was everywhere he was, and she tested negative. Jeremy said he has never had all of the typical symptoms at the same time. His lungs have been fine, so he is lucky to have not had any breathing issues that so many coronavirus patients have had. He said his loss of taste was “freaky”—he could taste no flavor at all in anything but pepperoni has tasted salty and coffee has tasted bitter. He said Tuesday he will soon be able to crawl out of his basement and rejoin his family. “I will celebrate that I have lived through it and that it wasn’t as bad as others have had it, but it definitely gives me a greater perspective,” he said.

Former Pierre resident Rev. Karl Kroger, who recently moved from Piedmont to Bismarck to be lead pastor at McCabe United Methodist Church, posted this week that he took advantage of one of Bismarck’s free coronavirus mass testing events. His test proved negative. He said he was eager to make use of the free service to the community, especially after moving in so recently. He described the throat swab as “only slightly more uncomfortable” than a strep test.

Riggs High alumnus Scott Heibel continues to live in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He has been with the company formerly known as Rockwell Collins since 2004. The company is now a division of Raytheon Technologies.

Firefighter/medic Eric Hansen, who is the husband of Pierre native Karin (Unkenholz) Hansen, has been promoted to operations lieutenant within the Rapid City Fire Department. He will take over duties at Station 6 on A Shift. Eric, who has been with the RCFD since 2002, had been a long-time member of the Technical Rescue Team based at Station 3.

The third of Janelle (Kvislen) Carda’s segments on “Keloland Living” will be broadcast next Monday, July 20, at 2 p.m. on KELO-TV.

Matt Blaseg has begun his third year of optometry school at Southern College of Optometry in Memphis. He recently passed all of his requirements of his pre-clinical checkouts, the culmination of the clinical techniques he has learned in his first two years of study. Passing these tests was required for him to be able to continue with his education. This week Matt has been able to see his first patient at the on-campus clinic. He and his wife, the former Taryn Wulf, are looking ahead for possible locations for his fourth-year externship rotations. Besides his own studies, Matt is president of Optometric Private Practice Club, and he will also be studying for Part I of the NBEO boards to be taken next spring.

Max Burchill, who graduated from Lincoln High School in Sioux Falls, is headed to USD to play basketball with the Coyotes. He is the youngest of the sons of Tom and Paula (Adam) Burchill.

Jim McLain, who spent this past year teaching at Georgia Morse Middle School in Pierre, has received word that his passport renewal has been approved. Jim has also completed the documents necessary to obtain his work visa, which he will receive when he arrives in Quito, Ecuador, where he expects to teach this coming school year. He has started teaching summer-school high school English online for his school in Ecuador. It will be a four-week job, spending 45 minutes daily except Friday.

The remains of Hughes County Chief Deputy Sheriff Lee Weber, who had been lost in the Missouri River just below Oahe Dam on July 3, were recovered from the west side of the river just north of the railroad bridge about 4 p.m. last Thursday. A caravan of law enforcement and emergency vehicles escorted Weber’s body to a funeral home. The funeral for Weber will be at 10 a.m. this (Thursday) morning at the Steamboat Park amphitheater. The public is welcome but bring your own chairs. The service will be livestreamed at the isburgfuneralchapels.com website. Weber grew up in Black Hawk and Pierre and graduated from Riggs High School. He joined the U.S. Army in December 2001. During his military service he served two overseas tours of duty—in Iraq in 2003-2005 and in Afghanistan in 2009-2010. He married Wendy Jo Hollman in 2006, and they built a family of six children. Lee is survived by his wife and their six children; his mother and stepfather, Linda and Todd Binstock of Pierre; his father, Russell Weber of Dimock; his brothers, Cory Weber of Harrisburg and Nathan Binstock of Pierre and their families; his sisters, Lindsey Binstock of Pierre and Kersi Binstock of Rapid City, and their families; and his grandparents, Jim Adema and Deanna Weber.

The schedule which Josh Breske’s first team as head coach at Black Hills State will play this fall changed dramatically last week. The NAIA ruled that all of its schools had to cancel all of their non-conference games, so that removed an away game at Dickinson State and a home game vs. William Jewell from the BHSU schedule. And then NCAA Division II, of which BHSU is a member, limited its teams to 10-game schedules. So in place of the two games lost on the schedule, BHSU will now open the season with a tougher task—playing Drake in Des Moines on Thursday, Sept. 3. This will be Josh’s first head coaching job. He played at BHSU from 2005 to 2009.

Alberta (Flansburg) Olson was able to return to work July 8 after a harrowing couple of weeks. She had been airlifted to the Avera Heart Hospital in Sioux Falls after suffering severe blood clotting in her lungs, apparently the result of knee surgery. Doctors were waiting upon her arrival there, and she underwent four surgeries and a weekend of rest. Alberta’s pending shoulder surgery, necessary because of injuries she sustained when hit by a pickup in Tennessee last December, has to be put off until at least January, and she will be on blood thinners until that time.

Openings/reopenings:

• Sioux Falls’ school board is finalizing plans to open schools with no masks for students or teachers although with an option to “attend” school virtually.
• Los Angeles and San Diego public schools will be online only this fall.
• The Mitchell school board voted 5-0 Monday night that masks will be required when school starts Aug. 19. Their decision is subject to further review as the school year approaches and advances. However, there are already petitions being circulated, demanding that the mandate be rescinded, citing the loss of civil rights. The Mitchell newspaper in an editorial lauded the school board, calling their decision the boldest move the school board there has made in a long time.
• The state of New Hampshire will not require any schools to open this fall, but the state will offer guidance to those districts which choose to try.
• The PGA Tour has decided there will be no spectators for the tournaments remaining this year, and they have canceled the pro-am events that precede most of those golf tournaments. However, in South Dakota the Sanford International tournament on the PGA Champions Tour says they are taking enough precautions so that spectators will still be allowed there in Sioux Falls in September.
• Deadwood, which has gone ahead with its Days of ’76 for next week, will also still have its biggest event, Kool Deadwood Nites, as scheduled Aug. 26-30.
• Aberdeen’s public schools will open Aug. 18 with in-person instruction. There is an option available to use virtual instruction instead, but it will be with strict oversight, expectations and a written contract with parents. The Aberdeen district has three options to use, depending on the severity level of the virus pandemic—(1) traditional school; (2) blended (half of the students attend Monday and Tuesday, the other half attend Thursday and Friday, and all stay home Wednesdays for remote learning; (3) totally remote instruction when a school building is closed.
• In North Dakota Governor Burgum says schools can open this fall if districts approve their own opening and consult with local health officials. A district must also prepare online learning plans in addition to classroom instruction and a hybrid of the two, just to be ready in case they are needed.

Closings:

• Pioneer Days at White, S.D., has been canceled for this summer.
• After President Trump said the CDC’s guidelines for school reopenings were too restrictive and expensive, Vice President Pence said two hours later the CDC would revise its guidelines. Then the CDC said it would not revise those guidelines after all.
• The Hansen-Anderson basketball camps, held in South Dakota every summer since 1979, have been canceled for this year.
• Madison High School, as soon as one student tested positive for the coronavirus, immediately shut down all summer activities, training and practices.
• Starting Friday, visitors to Chicago from Iowa will be required to quarantine.

Jacob Shoup will sing and play his Christian music at a “Family and Faith Evening” from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. this Friday at Outlaw Square at 703 Main Street in Deadwood.

At the Pierre school board meeting Monday Dan Cronin was sworn in for his second term and then was elected president of the board. Joan Adam was elected vice president. Dr. Kelly Glodt, superintendent, told the board a survey of district parents revealed 87% of them will allow their children to be in school buildings. He said that at this point the district is recommending that students and staff wear masks but is not requiring them.

Jack Middleton, 83, died July 10. His funeral service was held Wednesday at River Center Church.

Sully Buttes High School alumna Deidi Strickland passed away Tuesday in Texas. Deidi was the youngest of the three children of DeJuan and Judy Strickland. Michael graduated in 1982, Karen in 1984 and Deidi in 1986.

Long-time Pierre resident Barbara (Leiferman) Cleland, 88, died July 11 at Good Samaritan Society in Canistota. Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 1 p.m. Friday at Ss. Peter & Paul Catholic Church in Pierre. Barb grew up in Chamberlain and married Donald Cleland in 1952. They became the parents of six sons. While they lived in Sioux Falls for several years, Barb worked for Northwestern Bell as an operator, then became a deputy sheriff with the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Department. The family moved to Pierre in 1973. Barb worked for many years at the Hughes County Sheriff’s Department, then worked in the state auditor’s office. She is survived by her six sons, Michael Cleland and his wife Andrea of Wichita, Kan., Greg Cleland and his wife Kelli of Sioux Falls, Cary Cleland and his wife Kelly of Sioux Falls, Tim Cleland of Rapid City, Chris Cleland and his wife Lisa of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Jeff Cleland and his wife Holly of Dell Rapids; 12 grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. Among those who preceded her in death were her husband in 1986, her siblings and her parents.

DAY BY DAY

THURSDAY, JULY 9
Of all the ridiculous reasons given for not wearing a mask during a nationwide pandemic—constitutional rights, American freedoms, “there’s no proof that they work” and all that—the following quote has to rank as one of the most unusual I’ve heard recently. It comes out of the mouth of a state representative in Ohio, who uttered, “We are all created in the image and likeness of God. That image is seen the most by our face. I will not wear a mask.” I trust that God is keeping that Ohio legislator free of the coronavirus, but wouldn’t it be true karma if he caught it? Meanwhile, Michigan joined the list of 24 states (half of the states in the U.S.) that require masks to be worn in all indoor public spaces, and they can fine those who choose not to comply. A Utah group is organizing flash mobs at grocery stores to oppose the wearing of face masks. They call themselves “Defending Utah,” maintaining that their freedoms are being infringed upon. “In a world of masks, who is left to defend our rights?” they cry out. That group has other things to yell about because Governor Herbert of Utah has said he will require masks in schools when they reopen. Ohio requires masks now at church services in that state’s worst-hit COVID-19 counties. (Oh, my religious freedoms!) And there is more interesting virus news from everywhere. For example, Starbuck’s has ordered customers and employees to wear masks effective July 15 in its company-owned stores nationwide. The city of Englewood, the big suburb on the southern edge of Denver, now requires its residents to wear masks when outside their homes. Those in violation can face up to a year behind bars and a hefty fine. In Louisiana taking effect on July 13 was a statewide mask mandate, bars are closed for onsite consumption, and indoor social gatherings are limited to 50 people. Boy, that governor has the nerve! And right here in South Dakota, the Brookings city council extended business restrictions for 60 more days by a 5-2 vote. Talk about outrage! In the school districts south of San Francisco along the south bay, more than 40 school principals are in quarantine after being exposed to COVID-19 during an in-person meeting to plan for the reopening of schools. In one of the states of Australia, restrictions and punishments for violating them are being tightened, including potential jail time for up to six months for violators, because the number of virus cases has risen dramatically. Over in Minnesota the city councils in Minnetonka and Duluth have put into effect the requirement that masks be worn in all public indoor places. In Duluth the fine for a first offense is $100, for a second offense $250, for each subsequent offense $1,000. Similar measures are in place in Minneapolis and Winona. In Oklahoma Governor Stitt has tested positive for the virus, but that’s not reason enough for him to order mandatory mask-wearing. There are a lot of interesting decisions to be made in a great many places in the next month, all of them unpopular with somebody.

FRIDAY, JULY 10
Jackrabbit alumni and athletics fans may need to dig a bit deeper into their pockets. SDSU lost a $515,000 payout when the Jacks’ September football game at Nebraska was canceled. The Big 10 conference decreed that its schools will play only conference games if and when the season happens this fall. The next day the PAC-12 conference decided that its schools too will play only conference games, so that eliminates one of the season-opening contests to which we were really looking forward, and that is North Dakota State at Oregon. Games like USC-Notre Dame, one of the nation’s premier football rivalries, and Alabama-USC, Colorado-Colorado State and Ohio State-Oregon are thus also canceled. So is the attractive Wisconsin-Notre Dame game that was to have been played at the Packers’ Lambeau Field in Green Bay. Now the Patriot League has joined the Ivy League out east in cancelling fall sports, including football, completely. Does anybody really believe we’re going to have a college football season? One of these days one of the five major conferences is going to call off football entirely, and that will be the first Domino to fall. We might just as well start thinking about what we will do or watch on Saturdays this fall.

SATURDAY, JULY 11
So much for the “fake news” that only we old people are susceptible to the coronavirus. My grandson plays baseball with the 14- and 15-year-olds at Post 320, and their doubleheader down at Newcastle the other day was suddenly canceled because one of the Newcastle players had tested positive for COVID-19. It’s a good thing the economy wasn’t involved, or the boys would likely have had to go ahead with the games.

SUNDAY, JULY 12
The dumbing-down of the United States continues unabated. While driving the other night, I was listening to Fox Sports Radio where the co-hosts of a show were debating the phrases “could care less” and “couldn’t care less.” The one guy had uttered that he “could care less” about whatever topic they were discussing. His partner tried in vain to convince him that what he meant was he “couldn’t care less.” So you care, but you could care less? Is that what you mean, old fella? No, you dumbbell. What you mean is that the issue was totally meaningless to you, and in other words, you “could NOT care less.” Obviously an IQ test is not a prerequisite for a radio sports talk host. And then the Merriam-Webster dictionary people spoiled one of my weekdays last week when they posted that they are now making “irregardless” a properly usable word. Good grief! That’s akin to putting a misspelled word in the dictionary and calling it proper because so many people spell it that way. The same ’tis true of “irregardless.” Why do I have to explain this to people! If I were to say “I get angry easily these days, regardless of the issue,” what then would I mean if I were to say “I get angry easily these days, irregardless of the issue.” Obviously those two sentences mean the same thing. It’s not like “responsible” and “irresponsible,” which obviously have opposite meanings. So “irregardless” is not a proper word, and it should not be in the dictionary and available for public use, REGARDLESS of what the Merriam-Webster experts say.

MONDAY, JULY 13
On Sunday night I tuned in to the Minnesota Loons’ opening match in the major league soccer reopening tournament. I suspect that telecast was typical of what we will view through the rest of the summer and the fall, if not longer, if we have pro sports at all. The play-by-play guy and his color analyst were in a studio somewhere away from the field. There were no fans in the stands, thus no crowd noise. On the video board at the field they showed fans around the country on Zoom. I doubt if the players and coaches were too interested in those Zoomers, but I guess they had to show something on that expensive video board. I am trying to decide if no crowd noise is preferable to the piped-in “fake news” crowd noise such as the laugh tracks they have on TV comedy shows. If Major League Baseball goes ahead with the start of its season next Thursday night when the Nats take on the Yanks and the Dodgers play the Giants, we’ll see how they handle sports telecasts.

TUESDAY, JULY 14
Interesting though they are these days, I seldom watch the meetings of the school board and city council here in Rapid City because the public comment portion riles me up. The school board last night delayed till late this month or early August a decision on whether and how to open the school year. One of the speakers—she was a legislative candidate who was fortunately defeated in the June primary—said, “The media is hyping up the coronavirus, and the pandemic is politicized.” The latter may be true, but more than 120,000 fatalities speak for themselves regarding whether the media is hyping that information. She went on, “There is no risk to children. If the teachers are in such poor health that their immune systems are so bad that they can’t take the risk to be there, then they should be put on some kind of disability and find another job.” You can’t argue with people like her; you can only ignore them and move on.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 15
It appears that, no matter how far Post 22 advances in Legion baseball’s playoffs, the Hardhats will be on the road for all of their games. Post 22 is advertising this coming Sunday’s placing games of the Veterans Classic as the farewell games for “old” Fitzgerald Stadium, and they say renovation of the ballpark begins on Monday, no matter what. The plan is for the renovated park to be ready for the beginning of the 2021 season next May. I guess I had better head to the Fitz this weekend because my baseball season ends Sunday. If you are coming out from Pierre for the Veterans Classic, you might choose to come with your pickup or a bigger truck and your checkbook. Almost everything inside Fitzgerald Stadium is up for grabs—literally! Provided you give a donation, you can take an actual seat or two, or one of the bases, or a bench, or a name plate from the backs of the box seats, or a display case or just about anything else because it’s all going to be removed when the guts of the ballpark are demolished.

CROSSWORD PUZZLE ANSWER

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A POSITIVE OUTLOOK ON THE WEEK AHEAD

“Have a good cry or a piece of cake. Go scream into your pillow or run around the block. Toss up a prayer or drop an f-bomb and then take a look around and survey your handiwork, the stuff you’ve made or the things you’ve fixed or the people you’ve cared for or the work you’ve done and appreciate the duress under which you’ve managed it all.

“One day you’re going to look back on these days and realize you weren’t a failure or a fraud or a lousy parent or a crappy partner. You’re going to see that you were a frickin’ superhero doing world-saving work in Kryptonite circumstances that should have leveled you but didn’t. You’re going to see that it was your finest hour.”

— John Pavlovitz