THOUGHT FOR TODAY

“Never forget that anticipation is an important part of life. Work’s important, family’s important, but without excitement you have nothing. You’re cheating yourself if you refuse to enjoy what’s coming.”
— Nicholas Sparks in “Three Weeks with My Brother”

ELECTION DEADLINES AND DETAILS

For the primary election to be held Tuesday, June 7, these deadlines are in effect:
— March 29: Petition filing deadline for primary election candidates.
— April 22: Absentee voting begins.
— April 26: Petition filing deadline for independent candidates.
— May 23: Voter registration deadline.

In the Republican primary election on June 7, only those registered as Republicans can vote that ballot. In the Democratic primary on June 7, those registered as Democrats or independents and those not affiliated with any party can vote that ballot.

Constitutional Amendment C (which, if approved, would increase from 50% to 60% the requirement for any initiated or legislature-proposed constitutional amendments and measures to pass) will be on each of the June 7 ballots—the Republican ballot, the Democratic ballot and a non-political ballot.

The full slate of candidates on the June 7 ballots will not be official until after the March 29 deadline for filing candidacy petitions.

To be elected in 2022 are the following: one of the U.S. senators (John Thune’s seat), the one U.S. representative (Dusty Johnson’s seat), governor, all legislators, 44 circuit court judges, county commissioners, county auditors, county sheriffs and county registers of deeds. The following will be nominated at each party’s state convention in June and appear on the November general election ballot: lieutenant governor, Public Utilities Commission member, attorney general, secretary of state, state auditor, state treasurer, state commissioner of school and public lands.

HERE COMES TOURNAMENT TIME!

INDIVIDUAL WRESTLING

Boys regionals: At this weekend’s regional tournaments the first four placers in each weight class will advance to the state tournament. The sites of the regionals are: 1B, Britton; 2B, Freeman; 3B, Miller; 4B, Fort Pierre; 1A, Sioux Falls (O’Gorman); 2A, Brandon; 3A, Milbank; 4A, Box Elder. The Pierre wrestlers will compete at Milbank, the Stanley County wrestlers at home, and the Sully Buttes wrestlers at Britton.

State tournaments: The state boys “A” and “B” individuals tournaments and the state girls individual tournament will be run Thursday and Friday, Feb. 24-25, at the Premier Center in Sioux Falls.

DUAL WRESTLING

The state team dual tournaments will be held at the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls on Saturday, Feb. 26, starting with the quarterfinals at 9 a.m. The current quarterfinal pairings in Class “A”:
— Upper bracket
#1 Brandon Valley vs. #8 West Central
#4 Harrisburg vs. #5 Pierre
— Lower bracket
#2 Rapid City Stevens vs. #7 Sturgis
#3 Watertown vs. #6 Tea Area

The currrent quarterfinal pairings in Class “B”: #1 Winner vs. #8 Redfield; #4 Canton vs. #5 Bon Homme/Avon/Scotland; #2 Kimball-White Lake/Platte-Geddes vs. #7 Parkston; #3 Kingsbury County vs. #6 Custer.

CLASS “AA” GIRLS BASKETBALL

Of the 19 Class “AA” teams in the state, the top 16 in seed-point standings will qualify for eight SoDak 16 games on Friday, March 4, with #16 playing at #1, #15 at #2, and so on. The winners of those eight games advance to the state tournament at the Monument Ice Arena in Rapid City March 10-12.

As of yesterday, the Pierre Governors were ranked #11 and would play their SoDak 16 game at #6 Sioux Falls Jefferson. Other matchups would be: #16 Spearfish at #1 Washington; #15 Aberdeen Central at #2 O’Gorman; #14 Yankton at #3 Stevens; #13 Brookings at #4 Brandon Valley; #12 Harrisburg at #5 Rapid City Central; #10 Mitchell at #7 Lincoln; #9 Watertown at #8 Huron.

CLASS “A” GIRLS BASKETBALL

Regional tournaments in the eight “A” regions will be held next week on Tuesday and Thursday, Feb. 22 and 24. The two remaining teams in each region advance to the eight SoDak 16 games on Thursday, March 3, with pairings determined by seed-point standings. The winners of those eight games advance to the state tournament at Frost Arena in Brookings on March 10-12.

The Stanley County Buffaloes are currently ranked #7 in Region 6A and would play their district quarterfinal at #2 Mobridge-Pollock. The other matchups would be #8 McLaughlin at #1 Crow Creek; #6 Cheyenne-Eagle Butte at #3 Winner; #5 Chamberlain at #4 Dupree.

CLASS “B” GIRLS BASKETBALL

Regional tournaments in the eight “B” regions will be played next week on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, Feb. 21, 22 and 24. The two remaining teams in each region advance to the eight SoDak 16 games on Thursday, Mach 3, with pairings determined by seed-point standings. The winners of those eight games advance to the state tournament at the Watertown Civic Arena on March 10-12.

The Sully Buttes Chargers are currently ranked #1 in Region 2B and would play their district quarterfinal at home against the winner of #8 Ipswich vs. #9 North Central. Other matchups would be: #10 Sunshine Bible at #7 Potter County; 7-10 winner at #2 Herreid-Selby Area; #5 Faulkton Area at #4 Highmore-Harrold; #6 Lower Brule at #3 Miller.

CLASS “AA” BOYS BASKETBALL

Of the 19 Class “AA” teams in the state, the top 16 in seed-point standings will qualify for eight SoDak 16 games on Saturday, March 5, with #16 playing at #1, #15 at #2, and so on. The winners of those eight games advance to the state tournament at the Denny Sanford Premier Center in Sioux Falls March 17-19.

As of yesterday, the Pierre Governors were ranked #11 and would play their SoDak 16 game at #6 Mitchell. Other matchups would be: #16 Rapid City Central at #1 Roosevelt; #15 Huron at #2 O’Gorman; #13 Spearfish at #3 Harrisburg; #13 Watertown at #4 Jefferson; #12 Stevens at #5 Washington; #10 Brandon Valley at #7 Aberdeen Central; #9 Yankton at #8 Lincoln.

CLASS “A” BOYS BASKETBALL

The regional tournaments in the eight “A” regions will be played on Tuesday and Friday, March 1 and 4. The two remaining teams in each region advance to the eight SoDak 16 games on Tuesday, March 8, with pairings to be determined by seed-point standings. The winners of those eight games advance to the state tournament at the Summit Arena in Rapid City on March 17-19.

As of yesterday, the Stanley County Buffaloes are currently ranked #2 in Region 6A and would play their district quarterfinal at home vs. #7 Dupree. Other matchups would be: #8 McLaughlin at #1 Winner; #6 Crow Creek at #3 Chamberlain; #5 Cheyenne-Eagle Butte at #4 Mobridge-Pollock.

CLASS “B” BOYS BASKETBALL

The regional tournaments in the eight “B” regions will be played on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, Feb. 28, March 1 and March 4. The two remaining teams in each region advance to the eight SoDak 16 games on Tuesday, March 8, with pairings to be determined by seed-point standings. The winners of those eight games advance to the state tournament at the Barnett Center in Aberdeen on March 17-19.

As of yesterday, the Sully Buttes Chargers are currently ranked #7 in Region 2B and would play their district first-round game at home vs. #10 Sunshine Bible. Other matchups would be: #9 North Central at #8 Miller; 7-10 winner at #3 Potter County; #6 Herreid-Selby Area at #3 Faulkton Area; #5 Highmore-Harrold at #4 Ipswich.

VARSITY BOYS HOCKEY

Of the 11 boys varsity teams in the SDAHA, the top eight will qualify for the state tournament to be played in Sioux Falls March 11-13. At the state tourney #8 in the final seed-point standings will play #1, #7 will play #2, and so on.

As of yesterday, the Oahe Capitals are tied with Sioux Falls #1 for third place behind No. 1 unbeaten Rushmore and No. 2 Aberdeen. If the state tourney started today, the Caps would play either Sioux Center or Aberdeen, who are tied for fifth in the standings. Sioux Falls #2 is seventh, and Watertown and Mitchell are tied for eighth. One of them won’t make the state tourney, and neither would #10 Yankton and #11 Huron.

VARSITY GIRLS HOCKEY

Of the 10 girls varsity teams in the SDAHA, the top eight will qualify for the state tournament to be played in Aberdeen March 4-6. At the state tourney #8 will play #1, #7 will play #2, and so on.

The official quarterfinal pairings for Friday, March 4: Bottom bracket—10 a.m., #6 Oahe vs. #3 Aberdeen; 12:30 p.m., #2 Mitchell vs. #7 Sioux Center. Upper bracket—3 p.m., #4 Brookings vs. #5 Watertown; 5:309 p.m., #1 Sioux Falls vs. #8 Rushmore.

COUNTDOWN

4 days: Presidents Day (Feb. 21).
7 days: State wrestling tournaments, Sioux Falls Premier Center (Feb. 24-26).
8 days: State Bantam B hockey tournament, Expo Center (Feb. 25-27).
8 days: Pierre Players’ “Making God Laugh” (Feb. 25-27, March 3-5).
9 days: Minnesota Loons MLS season opener (Feb. 26).
9 days: NSIC men’s/women’s basketball tournaments, Sioux Falls Sanford Pentagon (Feb. 26-March 1).
12 days: Georgia Morse Middle School musical (March 1, 3).
12 days: State of the Union address (March 1).
12 days: Zesto opens in Pierre (March 1).
15 days: State girls varsity hockey tournament, Aberdeen (March 4-6).
16 days: Summit League men’s/women’s basketball tournaments, Sioux Falls Premier Center (March 5-8).
18 days: Riggs High talent show (March 7).
19 days: Riggs High National Honor Society induction ceremony (March 8).
21 days: State girls basketball tournaments, AA Rapid City Monument Ice Arena, A Brookings Frost Arena, B Watertown Civic Arena (March 10-12).
22 days: State boys varsity hockey tournament, Sioux Falls (March 11-13).
24 days: Daylight Saving Time begins (March 13).
26 days: Riggs High/Georgia Morse Middle School fine arts festival (March 15).
28 days: State boys basketball tournaments, AA Sioux Falls Premier Center, A Rapid City Monument Summit Arena, B Aberdeen Barnett Center (March 17-19).
28 days: NCAA Div. I wrestling championships, Detroit (March 17-19).
28 days: State high school visual arts gallery, Rapid City Monument (March 17-19).
32 days: Buchanan Elementary spring concert (March 21).
33 days: Kennedy Elementary spring concert (March 22).
35 days: Jefferson Elementary spring concert (March 24).
37 days: All-State Band concerts, Brookings (March 26).
38 days: The Oscars, ABC-TV (March 27).

PIERRE GOVERNORS SPORTS ROUNDUP

This week’s schedules:
— THURSDAY
Boys basketball: at Brookings.
— FRIDAY
Girls basketball: at Watertown.
Boys basketball: home vs. Watertown.
— SATURDAY
Wrestling: at Region 3A tournament, Milbank.
— TUESDAY
Girls basketball: at Sioux Falls Jefferson.
Boys basketball: home vs. Sioux Falls Jefferson.

Boys basketball: The Governors lost at Bismarck, 75-60, as the Demons’ All-State star, Treyson Eaglestaff, scored 43 points. Pierre, which led at halftime by 36-35, was led by Lincoln Kienholz with 17 points and Jackson Edman with 15. Bismarck’s record improved to 15-3 while the Governors stand at 7-9.

Gymnastics: On individual competition day at the state meet in Mitchell, Nevaeh Karber placed 26th on bars, 36th on the beam and 34th in floor exercise. Kirsten Korber was 24th in the vault where Emerie Stephens was 33rd. Natalie Flottmeyer finished 34th on the beam and tied for 34th in the vault. Emelia Loe was 39th in the vault and 37th in floor exercise. Ryen Sheppick placed 36th on the bars. Sioux Falls O’Gorman won the “AA” team championship.

Girls wrestling: Pierre’s growing girls wrestling program continues a successful season. The Governors were the team champion at the Harrisburg invitational with Spencer, Iowa, and Canton in second and third places, respectively. Gianna Stangeland at 132 pounds and Ireland Templeton at 154 pounds won individual championships. Other Pierre placers: Sydney Uhrig second and Shaylee Speck fifth at 106; Kezrey Benning eighth at 126; Abbigail Lewis second at 142; Emalee Larson fourth at 170, Kyanne Traversie-Johnson seventh at 190, Marlee Shorter fourth at 190 and Ciara McFarling second at 285.

Girls basketball: The Governors lost to Bismarck, 48-44, then clobbered Brookings 66-48. In the latter game Ryann Barry was high scorer with 15 points, and Remi Price and Layni Stevens scored 11 each. Pierre’s record is 7-10.

STANLEY COUNTY BUFFALOES SPORTS ROUNDUP

This week’s schedules:
— THURSDAY
Girls basketball: home vs. Mobridge-Pollock.
— SATURDAY
Wrestling: home for Region 4B tournament.
— MONDAY
Boys basketball: home vs. Lyman.
— TUESDAY
Girls basketball: at Region 6A quarterfinal game.

Gymnastics: The season ended for the Buffaloes at the Class “A” individual competitions at the state meet in Mitchell. Elena Hebb tied for 36th in the vault, placed 40th on the beam and was 36th in floor exercise. Sumar Petersen tied for ninth on the bars. Rachel Nemec placed 29th on the beam and tied for 20th in floor exercise. Aleeyah Schilling tied for 25th in floor exercise. Madison was the Class “A” team champion.

Girls basketball: SCHS beat Wall, 63-36, and lost to Kadoka Area, 49-35.

Boys basketball: The Buffaloes lost to White River, 88-57; beat Wall, 62-50, and beat Kadoka Area, 46-36. In the latter game Cormac Duffy scored 17 points with six rebounds, and Lathan Prince had 15 points. SCHS stands at 13-5.

SULLY BUTTES CHARGERS SPORTS ROUNDUP

This week’s schedules:
— THURSDAY
Girls basketball: home vs. Faulkton Area.
Boys basketball: home vs. Faulkton Area.
— SATURDAY
Wrestling: at Region 1B tournament, Britton.
Boys basketball: vs. Waverly-South Shore at Warner Classic.
— TUESDAY
Girls basketball: home in Region 2B quarterfinal game.

Boys basketball: The Chargers defeated Mobridge-Pollock, 52-40, led by Dwight Kinney with 17, Landon Hepker with 12 and Thomas Farries with 10 points. In a 72-32 win over Sunshine Bible, Kinney scored 19, Hepker 16 and Farries 14. The SB record is 7-10.

Girls basketball: The Charger girls maintained their top spot in the regional standings with two wins over area opponents. In a 61-50 win over Mobridge-Pollock, Stevie Wittler scored 15 points, Ally Wittler 12, TaiLynn Bradford 12 and Lydia Hill 11. In a 69-21 win over Sunshine Bible, Hill had 23, Stevie Wittler 13 and Ally Wittler 10. In between those games the SBHS girls lost to Hamlin, 54-46.

WORDS OF WISDOM

“I love America more than any country in the world and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually.”
— James Baldwin

COLLEGE SPORTS ROUNDUP

South Dakota women’s basketball (Chloe Lamb): The Coyotes kept pace with SDSU atop the Summit League standings with a 13-1 league record. USD defeated Omaha, 61-35, as Chloe was 4-of-9 (1-of-5) and 2-of-2 for 11 points with two rebounds, five assists and two steals. Then the Coyotes defeated Denver, 81-53, and Chloe went 6-of-10 (1-of-3) and 1-of-1 for 14 points with a rebound, an assist and three steals. Now 20-5 overall, USD goes on the road to St. Thomas Thursday and to Western Illinois Saturday.

Summit League women’s basketball standings: USD 13-1, SDSU 13-1, Kansas City 9-4, UND 9-6, Oral Roberts 7-6, NDSU 6-9, Western Illinois 5-8, St. Thomas 3-10, Denver 3-12, Omaha 2-13. (NOTE: USD and SDSU have four games remaining. If they remain tied, the #1 seed in the tournament goes to which of them has the higher national ranking. Only the top eight teams qualify for the tournament.)

South Dakota men’s basketball (Max Burchill): The Coyote men won twice on the road, 91-69 at Omaha and 84-76 at Denver. Now 15-10 overall and 8-6 in the Summit, USD plays at home Thursday vs. St. Thomas and Saturday vs. Western Illinois.

Summit League men’s basketball standings: SDSU 14-0, Oral Roberts 11-3, NDSU 11-4, Kansas City 9-5, USD 8-6, Western Illinois 6-8, Denver 5-10, Omaha 3-12, St. Thomas 2-11, UND 2-12. (NOTE: USD and SDSU have four games remaining. Only the top eight qualify for the tournament.)

Wyoming wrestling (Tate Samuelson): As the Cowboys won a dual at Air Force, 21-17, Tate won his 174-pound match by 4-3. Wyoming’s last regular-season dual is at West Virginia Friday.

Texas State baseball (Peyton Zabel): The Bobcats’ season begins Friday through Sunday as Texas State at home plays Utah Valley in a weekend series.

Dakota Wesleyan men’s basketball (Nick Wittler): The Tigers won twice to even their GPAC record at 9-9 and their overall mark at 12-13. In a 92-86 upset win over Northwestern, Nick was 6-of-11 (1-of-2) and 2-of-2 for 15 points with eight rebounds, three assists and a steal. He did not score and had one steal in a 76-75 squeaker win over Midland. After hosting Morningside last night, DWU is home vs. Concordia in the last regular-season contest Saturday. The GPAC postseason tournament begins with quarterfinal games next Wednesday.

Dakota Wesleyan wrestling (Tyson Johnson): The Tigers were idle last week as they awaited the GPAC tournament at home in Mitchell Friday and Saturday.

Mary wrestling (Lincoln Turman): Mary, ranked #21, lost to #20 Northern in a Sunday dual in Aberdeen, 19-13. Lincoln lost his 149-pound match by 9-6. The Marauders are off for another week till the Super Regional 5 meet at Moorhead, Minn., Feb. 26.

Iowa Central baseball (Jack Van Camp): The Tritons opened their season winning two and losing one against Northern Oklahoma in Enid. ICCC won 6-4 and 7-0 and lost 4-3. This Friday and Saturday the team will be in Millington, Tenn., for four single games against Cleveland State, St. Charles Community College, Jackson State Community College and Lincoln Land Community College.

South Dakota State swimming (Morgan Nelson): Idle last week, the Jackrabbits are awaiting the Summit League tournament taking place now through Saturday at West Fargo.

Mount Marty men’s basketball (Lincoln Jordre): The Lancers lost to Dordt College in overtime, 76-67. Lincoln was 3-of-6 (1-f-3) and 2-of-2 for nine points with 10 rebounds and three blocks. MMC then lost to Northwestern, 78-70, as Lincoln went 4-of-6 (0-for-1) for eight points with five boards and a steal. The Lancers took a 7-21 overall record and a 3-16 GPAC mark into a game against Doane last night, ending the regular season. The GPAC postseason tourney begins with quarterfinals next Wednesday.

Augustana women’s basketball (AIslinn Duffy, Katie Bourk): The Vikings lost two more NSIC games. In a 65-64 loss to Concordia-St. Paul, Aislinn went 4-of-12 (2-of-4) for 10 points along with eight boards and five assists. In an 80-72 loss to Minnesota State-Mankato, Aislinn was 4-of-8 (1-of-2) and 5-of-8 for 14 points with 11 rebounds, an assist and a steal. Now 12-9 overall and 8-9 in the league, Augie ends the regular season up the street at USF Thursday and back home Saturday against Southwest Minnesota State.

South Dakota State men’s basketball: The Jackrabbits stayed unbeaten in Summit League play with a 14-0 record as they won at Denver, 84-61, and won at Omaha, 82-61. Now 23-4 overall, SDSU is home vs. Western Illinois Thursday and St. Thomas Saturday.

South Dakota State women’s basketball: The Jackrabbits remained tied with USD for first place in the Summit at 13-1 when they beat Denver, 79-52, and Omaha, 77-62. SDSU is on the road to Western Illinois Thursday and to St. Thomas Saturday.

South Dakota State track/field (Addison Eisenbeisz): At their home Indoor Classic, Addy tied for second place in the high jump at 5’5″ and placed fourth in the triple jump at 36’7 1/2″. The Jacks stay home Saturday for the SDSU Last-Chance Meet.

Black Hills State track/field (Frank Becker): The Yellowjackets stay home this weekend for their own Stinger Open.

Northern track/field (Rachel Guthmiller): At the SDSU Indoor Classic Rachel placed 13th in the weight throw at 46’10 3/4″. The Wolves return to Brookings for the SDSU Last-Chance Meet this Saturday.

Augustana track/field (Elizabeth Schaefer): The Vikings compete this Saturday at SDSU’s Last-Chance Meet.

Dakota State track/field (Houston Lunde): The Trojans head to Brookings this Sunday for the NSAA conference indoor championships meet.

Northern baseball (Spencer Sarringar): The Wolves were idle last weekend. They go to Topeka, Kan., for games against Washburn Friday through Sunday.

Colorado Mines women’s basketball (Liz Holter): The Orediggers won twice more, increasing their RMAC record to 16-2 and their overall record to 21-3. In an 84-56 trouncing of Fort Lewis, she was 1-of-4 (0-for-3) and 2-of-2 for four points with two rebounds, five assists and three steals. Mines then beat Western Colorado, 65-50, as Liz was 2-of-6 (1-of-3) and 2-of-23 for seven points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Mines goes west to Westminster Friday and Colorado-Mesa Saturday.

University of Sioux Falls track/field (Jessica Lutmer): At the SDSU Indoor Classic Jessica finished 39th in the 5,000-meter run in 19:29.82. USF competes Saturday at the SDSU Last-Chance Meet.

South Dakota Mines track/field (Erick Colman): At the SDSU meet Erick placed ninth in the shot put at 45’10 3/4″ and 13th in the weight throw at 49’2 1/2″. The Hardrockers go to Black Hills State’s meet this Saturday.

Dakota Wesleyan track/field (Abby Ferris, Cobey Carr, Morgan Oedekoven): At Mount Marty’s meet Cobey placed fourth in the triple jump at 39’11 1/4″, and ran on the second-place 4×400 relay team whose time was 3:32.54. Abby placed eighth in the 400 in 1:14.34 and ran on the fifth-place 4×400 relay team, whose time was 4:51.26. DWU goes Friday and Saturday to the GPAC conference meet at Crete, Neb.

PARKER’S PERSONAL NOTES

• During the next few weeks I will try my hardest to get you a Midweek Update each Thursday on time. There may be a time or two, however, when it doesn’t show up. If you can’t find a new edition on the www.everythingsouthdakota.com website, it’s because I wasn’t able for good reason to get one done, OK?
• Now that the Rams have unfortunately won Super Bowl LVI, the question becomes who their opponent will be on Opening Night of the NFL season on that Thursday next September. The Rams are scheduled for nine home games next season—five of them are Arizona (no), Seattle (no), Atlanta (definitely no), Carolina (no), Denver (no unless they get Aaron Rodgers). That leaves four options for the league to choose as the Rams’ opening-night opponent. One is San Francisco (possibly since they and the Rams are rivals). One is Buffalo (a definite matchup to get TV viewers). Another is Las Vegas (for some reason the TV networks love the Raiders). The most obvious opponent is Dallas (because, well, they attract viewers and, remember, they were Tampa Bay’s opening-night opponent this past fall and achieved high ratings).
• We keep mentioning Amendment “C” on the June primary ballot and the Medicaid expansion measure on the November general election ballot. In the state Senate this week the expansion of Medicaid health coverage eligibility was defeated by the Republican-majority by a 23-12 vote with a few Republicans joining Democrats with “yes” votes. However, voters have the chance to pass it in November. Whether the legislature and the governor would then allow the vote of the people to stand is another question. (If Amendment “C” passes at the June primaries, as the Republicans assume it will because they placed it on the ballots for the primaries where fewer people vote, then the majority needed in November to pass Medicaid expansion will be 60% instead of the present 50% plus one.
• This will be the first Sunday without NFL football on television since early September. When it comes to entertaining yourselves, it’s up to you!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I trained for four years to run nine seconds, and some people give up when they don’t see results in two months.”
— Olympic champion Usain Bolt

BASEBALL UPDATE

Last year’s Trappers head and assistant coaches will trade places for the 2022 season. Jamy Habeger will be head coach with Montero May assistant coach. The team has listed the first 10 players for its roster for this year’s Expedition League season as follows:
— Infielders
* Hunter Brown, Modesto Community College (Calif.).
* Kolby Rich, Oklahoma Wesleyan.
* Trevor Segraves, Ottawa University-Arizona.
* Jason Burclaga, San Diego Christian (Calif.).
— Outfielders
* Erik Lemberg, Westcliff University (Calif.).
* Jacob Griffin, Ottawa University-Arizona.
* Noah McCreary, Clarke University (Iowa).
— Catchers
* Garrett Arnold, Modesto Community College (Calif.).
* Carson Trumphold, Bismarck State (N.D.).
— Pitcher
* Kaleb Hay, Ottawa University-Arizona.

HOCKEY UPDATE

Sioux Falls Stampede: The Herd won over Des Moines, 4-2, then saw Saturday’s game against the same team postponed due to bad ice in their home rink. Sioux Falls plays at Waterloo Friday, then at home vs. Omaha Saturday and Sioux City Sunday.

Oahe Capitals girls varsity: The girls lost twice to tough teams in the last weekend of the regular season and finished in sixth place in the league standings with a record of 4-9-3-2 and 13 points. In a 5-1 loss to Sioux Falls, Brylee Kafka had the only Oahe goal. Sioux Falls led 5-0 after two periods. Abigail Stewart Fromm made 38 saves in goal. On Senior Night the girls lost to Aberdeen, 2-1, with Kafka scoring the lone goal. Aberdeen won the game with two second-period goals. Fromm made 23 saves. Now the Oahe girls await their state tournament in Aberdeen March 4-6 with pairings to be announced once every team’s regular season is completed.

Oahe Capitals boys varsity: In their only game last weekend the Caps destroyed Huron, 10-2, outshooting them by 55-15. Carter Sanderson and Keenan Howard each scored twice, and Jonathon Lyons, Jarron Beck, Ashton Griese, Barret Schweitzer, Ayden Anderson and Carter Gordon each scored once. Kieran Duffy made 13 saves in the nets. The regular season continues for two more weekends. Next on the schedule are a pair of home games against Sioux Center at 6 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday.

Rapid City Rush: The Rush lost to Wichita, 3-2 and 4-3, then beat Wichita in overtime, 6-5. Rapid City after a game last night at Norfolk, Va., continues play there Friday and Saturday.

Badlands Sabres: The Sabres lost twice to Gillette, 7-1 and 3-2. Badlands plays at home in Rapid City Friday, Saturday and Sunday vs. Yellowstone.

Aberdeen Wings: The Wings swept North Iowa, 4-3 in overtime and 4-3 again. The Wings play Friday and Saturday at Minot.

Minnesota Wild: The Wild defeated Carolina, 3-2, and won at Detroit, 7-4. After a game at Winnipeg last night, the Wild is home vs. Florida Friday before going out to Edmonton Sunday and back east to Ottawa Tuesday.

BASKETBALL UPDATE

Sioux Falls Skyforce: The Skyforce lost to Oklahoma City, 108-97; beat Stockton, 113-101; beat Salt Lake City, 119-107, and beat Rio Grande Valley, 130-119. Sioux Falls is home vs. Rio Grande Valley Thursday and at Oklahoma City next Tuesday and Wednesday.

Minnesota Timberwolves: The Wolves lost to Sacramento, 132-119; lost to Chicago, 134-122; beat Indiana, 129-120, and beat Charlotte in overtime, 126-120. Minnesota, after a home game vs. Toronto last night, has the all-star break this weekend, then resumes play next Thursday at home vs. Memphis.

MIDCO SPORTS NETWORK SCHEDULE

— THURSDAY
7 p.m.: Men’s basketball, USD vs. St. Thomas.
7 p.m.: Men’s basketball, SDSU vs. Western Illinois (MS2).
— SATURDAY
2 p.m.: Men’s basketball, SDSU vs. St. Thomas.
4 p.m.: Men’s basketball, USD vs. Western Illinois (MS2).
6 p.m.: Men’s hockey, UND vs. Minnesota-Duluth.

CORONAVIRUS ROUNDUP

Wednesday’s Department of Health daily report posted 12 new deaths although the number of active cases continued to drop to 9,771. There were still 251 new cases reported yesterday along with 240 hospitalizations. On Tuesday for the first time in more than a month no additional deaths were reported in the daily DOH briefing. The South Dakota COVID death toll now stands at 2,758, only 242 away from a full 3,000 people.

Other COVID-related happenings in the past week:

• Broadway theaters in New York will keep in effect their mask and vaccination policies even though the state of New York lifted its mask requirements.
• Freeman’s biggest event of the year, the Schmeckfest, has been canceled for the third straight year. For updated information look for the Schmeckfest page on Facebook.
• Statistics last week showed that a person is more likely to die from COVID-19 in the United States than in any other high-income country.
• Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York let the state’s broad mask mandate expire except in schools.
• Los Angeles County will not consider lifting its indoor mask mandate till at least the first of March.
• Half of all travel destinations in Canada are deemed to be “high-risk” destinations due to ongoing protests against vaccinations. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Trudeau invoked emergency powers in an attempt to end the travel-clogging, business-clogging blockades by truckers.
• Health-care workers in 24 states (21 of them are ’20 Trump states) will be required to have received their first vaccine dose or an exemption. Speaking of exemptions, Governor Noem is doing all she can to allow people to avoid vaccinations. Her bill to allow employees to get all kinds of exemptions from their employers’ vaccination mandates sailed through the Republican state Senate by a 31-4 vote. If a similar approval level of more than two-thirds happens in the House, her bill can be enacted immediately.
• House Bill 1008 allows employees who work at a business requiring COVID vaccinations without exemptions who sustain long-term health problems due to the vaccine to sue their employers. If the previously mentioned Noem bill becomes law, this bill introduced by Rep. Fred Deutsch will be moot.
• In the Pierre school district, according to Dr. Kelly Glodt at Monday’s school board meeting the number of district-wide infections of COVID had gone down drastically in the past month. As of Monday noon, he said, there were five active cases among students and three among staff members.

SOCCER UPDATE

Minnesota United FC: In the first of three preseason games in Portland, the Loons lost to the Portland Timbers, 1-0. The regular-season MLS opener for Minnesota is at Philadelphia on Feb. 26.

GOLF UPDATE

PGA Champions Tour (Tom Byrum): The Champions Tour finally resumes play this weekend, Friday through Sunday, at the Chubb Classic in Naples, Fla.

BIRTHDAYS/ANNIVERSARIES

Thursday, Feb. 17:
Jordan Heckenlaible, Eileen Crandell, Rowan Hillestad, Kendell Olson, Kirsten (Smart) Bierema, Gilbert Brindza, Brian Bechard, Dan Genzler, Ryan Murphy, Brady Walz, Alec Anderson, Austin Hillestad, Alisha (Hunt) Erickson, Amy (McComsey) Nelson.

Friday, Feb. 18:
Jeff Eckhoff, Matthew Beckwith, Katie Kelly, Hatta Stoeser, Robyn Starks Holcomb, Gale Harkless, Michael Lusk, Caelie Williams, Rachel Engbrecht, Mary Lehecka Nelson, Dana (Garry) Reiprich, Debbie (Heckel) Blackledge, Katelynn (Lamb) Pottorff.
— 11th anniversary, Dustin/Therese (Blake) Schutz.
— 5th anniversary, Todd/Cora Pfister.
— We fondly remember Shane Cronin on his birthday.

Saturday, Feb. 19:
Tony Rislov, Madelyn Hove, Kathy Christenson, Erin Moehring, Josh Breske, T.J. Iaquinta, Hatta (Clark) Barnes, Sarah (Nystrom) Duncan, Coral Assam, Sandy Krom, Charlie Meyer, Penelope Sampson, Caleb Stoltenburg, Amanda Slama, Michael Pangburn, Chase Campbell, Pam Roberts.
— 17th anniversary, Daniel/Sara (Lakner) Almarez.

Sunday, Feb. 20:
Ellen Erlenbusch, Matt Dayton, Callie (Buechler) Morris, Jesse Gosselin, John Gosselin, Chaz Williams, Matt Anderson, Amanda Fanger, Marileen Tilberg, Lawson Fravel, Elyse Miller, Mazen Garrett, Lisa Hylle, Carol Howard, Kyle Nuzum, Rodd Bauck, Laura Schmidt, Dan Gilmore.
— 7th anniversary, Jayme/Bobby (Krell) Howard.

Monday, Feb. 21:
Cade Larson, Larry Cass, Day Breitag, Pat Brown, Lynn Senftner, Felicity Cronin, Mallori (Barnett) Johnson, Blaire Formanek, John Weeldreyer, Nancy McCahren, Anne Rasmussen, Teddy Jackson, Jolee Smith, Alissa (Harter) Schumacher, Megan Wellner.

Tuesday, Feb. 22:
Stu Larson, Karly Harris, Jackie Decker, Luke Schuetzle, Travis Scharnweber, Kathryn Hardwick, Bob Stalley, Memphis Murphy, Ben Jensen, Britt Palmer, Amy (Robinson) Ryan, Ted Massey, Steve Radabaugh, Kevin Kalil, A.J. Rounds.
— 8th anniversary, Brennan/Amber (Russell) Priest.

Wednesday, Feb. 23:
Cash Anderson, Anniston Lowery, Arlo Beck, Chloe Tibbs, Darren Larson, Renee Knapp, Nathan Bradley, Mary Carter, Mick Hofer, Sarah (Linn) Hyde, Kayla (Pochop) Riswold, Megan (Vockrodt) Bauck, Dave Bonde.
— 12th anniversary, Garrett/Adrienne James.

Thursday, Feb. 24:
Heidi Nelson, Loryn (Schuetzle) Lichty, Joe Wilson, Hope David, Michael Knudson, Chris Peterson, Jayne (Knox) Kraemer, Everett Miller, Dave Potter, Michael Authier, Zach Frisby, Phoenix Malone, Rob Stoeser, Karin (Porter) Bartell, Piper Dooley, Brian Pope, Jane Cass, Andrea Spaid.

NEWS OF PEOPLE AND EVENTS

The next Pierre Players production, “Making God Laugh,” will be staged at the Grand Opera House with curtain times of 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 25 and 26 and March 3, 4 and 5 and of 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 27. Ticket reservations can be made by calling 224-7826.

At the regional music contest in Chamberlain yesterday, the Riggs High instrumental music department students earned 14 superior ratings in individual solos and six superior ratings for instrumental ensembles.

Vaughn Goddard, 74, Yerington, Nev., a native of Sully County, died Jan. 26. A graveside service will be held at 11 a.m. March 4 at the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Fernley, Nev. Vaughn graduated from Onida High School in 1965. He was a veteran of the Vietnam War. He was married to the former Dora Adams of Blunt. Unfortunately he was exposed there to Agent Orange, which led to a life-long struggle with health issues. He worked in mines and various businesses of his own in Arizona and Nevada. He retired last June after 19 years in his own locksmith business. Among his survivors are two sons, Tomas and Jonathan; a daughter, Robin; and his siblings, Rhea Aldal, Joe Goddard, Fae Lambert, Don Goddard, Lee Goddard, Cecelia Marshall, Robert Goddard and Roberta Osborn.

Congratulations to Jordan Keeler and Steven Anderson, who were married last weekend at Hastings, Minn. Jordan is scribe manager for Emergency Care Consultants, and Steven is an accounting manager at the Radisson Blu Mall of America hotel.

The next Post 8 baseball-benefit pancake breakfast is set for this Saturday, Feb. 19, at the American Legion cabin from 7 to 11 a.m. It’s a free-will donation deal with all the proceeds going toward this coming summer’s various Post 8 baseball programs.

Lyle Wayne “Joe” Metzinger, the ninth of 10 children of the late Art and Helen Metzinger, died unexpectedly at Avera St. Mary’s Hospital Feb. 8. Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Feb. 11 at Ss. Peter & Paul Catholic Church. In 1966 the Metzingers moved to the valley five miles south of Blunt. Joe attended Blunt Elementary School and Sully Buttes High School. In 1974 before graduating and completing his GED, Joe enlisted in the U.S. Army. He was later honorably discharged. He worked as a groundskeeper at the Capitol, as a farm laborer and as a construction worker. In 2013 he married Tanya Pope. Survivors include his wife, Tanya of Pierre; his sisters, Loretta (Willie) Cowan of Pierre, Janet (Dale) Keller of Grants Pass, Ore., Judy (Dennis) Pullman of Madison, Deenie (Dean) Frederick of Agar, Patty (Gary) Wietgrefe of Rapid City, Sharon Metzinger of Pierre, and Mary (Lyle) Stewart of Pierre; his brother, Mike (Barb) Metzinger of Artesian, and his sister-in-law, Sharon Harkless Metzinger of Blunt.

The Georgia Morse Middle School musical will be performed for the public on the evenings of Tuesday, March 1, and Thursday, March 3.

The schedule of events for the Stanley County/Fort Pierre all-school reunion June 24-25 is now available on the Facebook page entitled “Stanley County/Fort Pierre H.S. All School Reunion.”

Former Pierre radio legend Dean Sorenson points out to us that he stumbled across an obituary for a former Pierre radio newsman. John Therrien went by the radio name of John Dee. He worked at KGFX in the mid-’60s, then served in the Army, then came back to Pierre in a news capacity at KCCR. He worked for state government until taking an early retirement for medical reasons. In his late years he lived at a care facility in Philip.

Dr. Wendy Birhanzel, superintendent of Harrison School District Two in Colorado Springs, was honored as one of nine “women making a difference” in Colorado Springs by the local League of Women Voters there.

The Riggs High School Class of 1997 is planning its 25-year reunion on the weekend of June 17-18, which coincides with Oahe Days in Pierre. Information is available on the Facebook page entitled “T.F. Riggs High School Class of 1997″ or from Karen (Fossen) Cudmore, Nancy (Morris) Ronning or Jessica (Kost) Hanig.

Honored as Fine Arts Performers of the Week at Riggs High School last week were Lilli Doll and Ava Gors of the choir.

You may not have known Evelyn (Burkey) Harrison by name, but chances are good that at some point in her life she waited on you in a Pierre eating establishment. She passed away at the age of 87 on Feb. 13. Visitation will begin at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 18, at the Lakota Chapel with a prayer service following at 7 p.m. Evelyn graduated from high school at Broken Bow, Neb., and attended nursing school in La Junta, Colo. She married Dallas Harrison in 1957 at the courthouse in Pierre. They remained married for 28 years until he died unexpectedly. Evelyn worked as a nurse’s aide, then as motivational coordinator at Rivercrest Manor. Switching to the service industry, she managed cafes at the Woolworth’s and Newberry’s stores in Pierre. She and Dallas bought the Corral Drive-Inn and operated that business until it was destroyed in a fire. When they moved to Huron, Evelyn worked at the Chef Cafe, The Plains restaurant and the Westpark restaurant. Back in Pierre she was a waitress at Town & Country Cafe, Kozy Korner, Happy Chef and other places and was breakfast hostess at the Governor’s Inn. Survivors include her son, Russell Harrison of Pierre; her daughter, Wanda (Otis) Doren of Pierre; her sister, Phyllis Campbell of Hebron, Neb.; 10 grandchildren, 28 great-grandchildren and four great-great-grandchildren.

Josh Rogers became engaged last week. His fiancee is Develyn Vetos, originally from Canton. Josh and Develyn both attended the USD Sanford School of Medicine.

Several news outlets have this week compared Pierre’s snowfall total to cities in the South. Pierre has received only 1.4″ of snow this winter as of Tuesday night. That compares dismally with 3.2″ at Huntsville, Ala., 3″ at El Paso, 2.7″ at Little Rock, 2″ at Columbia, S.C., and 1.7” at Memphis.

Brian Tipton, who has been a city employee since 2017 and who currently is superintendent of the Hillsview Golf Course, has been named as the city of Pierre’s new parks and recreation director. He succeeds Tom Farnsworth, who announced his retirement several months ago.

Riggs High junior Kate Mullett auditioned for and was selected for the high school honors choir gathering today through Saturday in Chicago for the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) Midwestern Region convention. Students from South Dakota and 10 other states in the region will be part of the choir. Kate is the daughter of Meredith (Lee) and Jesse Roebuck and Shaun and Stephanie Klein-Mullett.

Pierre native Abby Javurek will be married to Jonathan Andres this Sunday in a private family ceremony. They live in Portland, Ore., where Abby is vice president for educational solutions at NWEA (Northwest Evaluation Association).

The University of South Dakota Chamber Singers, that school’s music department’s elite choir, will perform a concert at First Congregational United Church of Christ in Pierre at 7 p.m. Monday, March 14. A free-will collection will be taken; otherwise there is no admission charge.

Edna Foth, 98, Onida, died Feb. 13 at Avera St. Mary’s Hospital. Her funeral will be held at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 19, at the Onida United Methodist Church, preceded by visitation starting at 9:30. The former Edna Schmitgen grew up in eastern Sully County. She attended rural school through the eighth grade, then had to stay home to raise her siblings after they had lost their parents at a young age. Edna married Stanley Foth on New Year’s Eve in 1950. Edna is survived by three children, Steve (Judy) Foth of Onida, Sharon (Dellis) Burkey of Wichita, Kan., and Scott (Amber) Foth of Onida; eight grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren, and a sister Ethel Rittel of Highmore. Among those who preceded her in death were her parents, eight siblings and her husband in 1993.

Governor Noem has appointed a new secretary of corrections. She is Kellie Wasko, currently CEO of Correctional Health Partners in Denver. She takes over the position here on March 7.

PONDER THIS

“Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow. It empties today of its strength.”
— Corrie Ten Boom in “Clippings from My Notebook”