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Pirates 5, Cardinals 4, 11 innings

Sports

August 17th, 2011 by Jim Field

PITTSBURGH (AP) – Garrett Jones homered to lead off the bottom of the 11th inning and lift the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 5-4 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday night.  Jones connected on a 2-2 pitch from Arthur Rhodes (3-4) for his 14th home run. It was also Jones’ second career game-ending homer as he connected against San Francisco’s Bob Howry on July 17, 2009.  Center fielder Andrew McCutchen prevented St. Louis from going ahead in the top of the 11th when he made a running backhanded inning-ending catch to rob Albert Pujols of extra bases and keep Rafael Furcal from scoring from first base.  Chris Resop (4-4) pitched two scoreless innings for the win.

Posted in Sports |

Wild market ride cost Iowa public employee system

News

August 17th, 2011 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa’s public employee pension system lost 4.3 percent in value during the stock market’s recent wild ride. The system assets dropped to an estimated $22.1 billion on Aug. 5 from $23.16 billion on June 30. By comparison, California’s main employee pension fund dropped about 7.5 percent of its value from July 1 through early August. In Kentucky, the loss was 15 percent. The Florida fund lost 7 percent.

Iowa system spokeswoman Judy Akre says the system’s relatively modest losses are a result of its conservative investment strategy, “based on a decades-long horizon, not a five-week window.” The Iowa Public Employees Retirement System has about 324,000 members.

Posted in News |

Iowa State Improves To 3-0 On Italian Trip

Sports

August 17th, 2011 by Jim Field

ROME, Italy- Tyrus McGee led a group of seven Cyclones in double-figure scoring with 17 points, as the Iowa State men’s basketball team defeated the North Roma Elite, 106-47 Tuesday evening.

McGee, a junior from Stringtown, Okla., was 6-of-11 from the field, including a 5-of-8 effort from beyond the arc to help the Cyclones tally 15 3-pointers in the win. Iowa State is now 3-0 on its Italian trip.
“It was a great team effort,” Iowa State head coach Fred Hoiberg said. “Early on we struggled shooting, but our defense was there all night. I have stressed defense a lot with our guys, because there will be nights when you don’t shoot it well.  It has to be a constant for us to come out and play hard on the defensive end every night, and we did that today.”
A slow start by the Cyclones made it a close game early. Iowa State was just 1-of-10 from long-range out of the chute, as the Cyclones clung to an 11-8 lead. Iowa State then went on a 47-10 run to blow the game wide open. ISU finished the contest making 14-of-its-last-22 shots from downtown.
Chris Allen chipped in with 16 points, followed by 14 points from Melvin Ejim and Scott Christopherson, respectively. Royce White posted his second consecutive double-double with 10 points and a team-high 13 rebounds.
“Everybody who has competed for us has done what we have asked of them,” Hoiberg added. “The biggest thing offensively is how unselfishly we are playing. If you look at our numbers, we have been very consistent. It is a sign of a good team when you have balanced scoring.”
Iowa State’s next game is on Thursday in Rome.

Iowa State Statistics
McGee: 17 pts (6-11 fg, 5-8 3fg), 4 asst, 4 reb, 3 stl
Allen: 16 pts (5-10 fg, 3-6 3fg), 2 asst, 2 blk
Christopherson: 14 pts (5-12 fg, 4-10 3fg), 4 asst, 5 reb
Ejim: 14 pts (7-12 fg), 9 reb, 2 asst
Gibson: 11 pts (5-6 fg), 2 reb
Babb: 10 pts (4-8 fg, 2-6 3fg), 2 reb, 2 asst
White: 10 pts (5-8 fg), 13 reb, 4 asst
Palo: 5 pts (1-3 fg, 1-1 3fg), 6 reb.
Booker: 4 pts (2-3 fg), 4 reb, 3 stl, 2 blk
Sledge: 3 pts (1-2 fg), 3 asst
Railey: 2 pts (1-4 fg), 4 reb
Law: 0 pts, 2 asst, 2 reb.
McBeth: 0 pts

Posted in Sports |

Dove hunting update: legislative panel blocks ban on lead shot

Ag/Outdoor, News, Sports

August 17th, 2011 by Ric Hanson

A state legislative panel has voted to block a rule that would’ve banned the use of lead shot by dove hunters. Tuesday’s action will allow hunters to use lead shot when the inaugural dove hunting season opens September 1st. Representative Clel Baudler, a Republican from Greenfield, is not on the legislative committee but requested to testify before his colleagues. “This is nothing but an anti-hunting issue,” Baudler said. “I hope you’ll do the right thing and stop this rule from going into effect.” Baudler believes the Natural Resource Commission overstepped its authority when it approved the ban last month.

“We have a situation here in Iowa with the Department of Natural Resources…it appears, from the hunting community, to be very anti-hunting,” Baudler said. Other hunters testified that lead shot is toxic to wildlife and that using copper or steel ammunition is an easy alternative. Liz Garst of Coon Rapids is a former chair of the Natural Resource Commission.

“If we hunters persist in saying we’re exempt from the environmental problems of lead, we hunters are going to get a black mark in the public’s eye,” Garst said. She pointed to research that shows increasing lead poisoning in bald Eagles. But lawmakers say it’s up to Iowa Legislature to review the data and decide if the rule should stand. The legislature must now repeal the ban on lead shot during the next session, or it goes into effect for the 2012 dove hunting season.

(Radio Iowa)

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News, Sports |

Today is the 1st Day of School for many districts

News

August 17th, 2011 by Ric Hanson

Today was supposed to have been the first day of classes for the Corning Community School District, but at least some of the students will have an extra day to get psyched-up for school. Classes at the Corning High School will be delayed until Thursday, due to construction and construction-related inspections, slated for this morning. The Corning Junior High and Elementary will hold classes as planned for today, and, the buses will run as normal, with dismissal slated for 1-p.m.

Other area schools are also getting underway today, including classes in the Atlantic, CAM, EHK-Exira, Harlan, IKM-Manning, Red Oak & Walnut Community School Districts. AHST, Riverside & the Shenandoah Schools start tomorrow. Nodaway Valley doesn‘t start its school year until Monday, while Clarinda won‘t hold classes until next Tuesday.

Posted in News |

Iowa trails only Minnesota in 2011 ACT scores

News

August 17th, 2011 by Ric Hanson

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa is ranked No. 2 among states where more than half of graduating high school students took the ACT college entrance exam. A report issued  Wednesday says 61 percent of Iowa’s 2011 high school graduates took the ACT, compared with 72 percent in Minnesota, the state with the highest ACT score. Iowa’s average composite score was 22.3 out of a possible 36. Minnesota’s average was 22.9. The national average was 21.1.  The ACT report says 31 percent of Iowa students who took the test reached benchmark scores that suggested they are ready for college. That’s up a percentage point from 2010. Nationally, 25 percent of this year’s graduates tested as college-ready.

Posted in News |

Red Oak man arrested on assault charge

News

August 17th, 2011 by Ric Hanson

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County say 41-year old William Delee Hardy, of Red Oak, was arrested Tuesday afternoon, on an assault charge. Hardy was taken into custody in the 23-hundred block of State Highway 48, on a charge of Simple Assault.

He was brought to the Montgomery County Jail and held on $300 cash bond.

Posted in News |

CLAIR SCHULER, JR., 84, of rural Atlantic (committal svcs 8-24-11)

Obituaries

August 17th, 2011 by Ric Hanson

CLAIR SCHULER, JR., 84, of Atlantic, died  Aug. 16th, at the Cass County Hospice Center in Atlantic. A committal service for CLAIR SCHULER, JR., will be held 10:30-a.m. Wed., Aug. 24th, at the Atlantic Cemetery. Roland Funeral Home in Atlantic has the arrangements.

CLAIR SCHULER. JR., is survived by:

His wife – Phyllis Schuler,

His sons – Greg (Deb) Schuler, & Jeff (Kris) Schuler, all of rural Atlantic.

His daughters – Diane Mays, of Omaha, & Vicki (Jim) Nordskog, of Oakland, CA.

His sister – Sharon (Lloyd) Roberts, of Atlantic.

4 grandchildren & 6 great-grandchildren.

Posted in Obituaries |

AUGUST “GUS” JOSEPH ECKERMANN, 78, of Harlan (svcs 8-19-11)

Obituaries

August 17th, 2011 by Ric Hanson

AUGUST “GUS” JOSEPH ECKERMANN, 78, of Harlan, died Tue., Aug. 16th, at his home. A Mass of Christian Burial service for GUS ECKERMANN will be held 11-a.m. Fri., Aug. 19th, at St. Michael’s Catholic Church in Harlan. Pauley-Jones Funeral Home in Harlan has the arrangements.

Visitation at the funeral home is from Noon-9pm Thu., Aug. 18th, at the funeral home, where the family will greet friends from 6-8pm, and a Wake service will be held at 7pm.

Burial will be in the Harlan Cemetery.

GUS ECKERMANN is survived by:

3 daughters: Debbie Martin, & Tookie Smith, both of Sebastian, FL, & Terri Greer, of Omaha, NE.

5 sons: John Rademacker, & Jeff (Loretta) Rademaker, all of Lincoln, NE; Randy (Becky) Rademaker, of Irwin; Tom Eckermann, of Omaha, NE; & Jason (Michele) Eckermann, of Harlan.

5 sisters: Estelle Quinn, of Defiance; Jean (Jim) Skinner, of Tacoma, WA; Mary (Vern) Miller, of Irwin; Rosalie (Jerry) Wood, of Madison, WI; & Linda Schnuettgen (& friend Harold), of Denison.

His brother: Louis (Mildred) Eckermann, of Omaha, NE.

23 grandchildren, & 31 great-grandchildren.

Posted in Obituaries |

Three members of the same family arrested in Villisca

News

August 17th, 2011 by Ric Hanson

Three members of the same Villisca family were arrested Tuesday evening on domestic assault charges. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office says 46-year old David Alan Adsit, 43-year old Julie Anne Adsit, and a 16-year old male were arrested after authorities received a 9-1-1 call a little after 5-p.m., with regard to a domestic assault occurring at a residence on 170th Street in Villisca.

David and Julie Adsit were held in the Montgomery County jail, pending a court appearance, while the juvenile was processed and released on juvenile referral.

Posted in News |