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No. 17 ISU Beats K-State for 10th Win of Season, Advances to Big 12 Title Game

Sports

December 1st, 2024 by Ric Hanson

AMES, Iowa (Via Cyclones.Com) – Give Cyclone football a 10 for the 2024 season. Rocco Becht accounted for three touchdowns and the defense came up with one key stop after another to lift Iowa State past Kansas State 29-21 on a chilly Saturday night at MidAmerica Energy Field at Jack Trice Stadium, securing the program’s first 10-victory season.

The 17th-ranked Cyclones (10-2, 7-2 Big 12) did all they could to secure a berth in the Dr Pepper Big 12 Championship Game against Arizona State next Saturday. A BYU victory over Houston a few hours after the Cyclone clocks hit zero sealed the second trip to the title game in program history for the Cyclones.

Becht threw touchdown passes of 15 yards to Jayden Higgins and 9 yards to Jaylin Noel and scored on a 5-yard run to propel Iowa State tto a 24-14 halftime lead.

Kansas State (8-4, 5-4) cut the lead to 24-21 on Avery Johnson’s 7-yard TD pass to Garrett Oakley late in the third quarter. But the Cyclones blanked the Wildcats the rest of the way and secured the record-breaking victory with a safety and Kyle Konrardy’s 20-yard field goal.

On the safety, linebacker Jacob Ellis forced Johnson into an intentional grounding call in the end zone, putting ISU up 26-21. It was the first safety by an Iowa State defense since the 2018 season.

After fielding the free kick, the Cyclones went on a 7-minute drive that included nine straight running plays. The drive stalled at the Kansas State 2-yard line with an incomplete pass and Konrardy, who had kicked a 41-yard field goal in the first half, delivered the final points with 6:16 left.

The defense then stopped the Wildcats on fourth down at the KSU 35 and the offense took it to the 19. Konrardy missed from 37 yards with 1:11 remaining, but the defense came through again and forced four straight incompletions, the last with 34 seconds left.

Another big play came early in the second half when the defense forced the Wildcats to try for a field goal after they drove to a first down at the ISU 5. But Darien Porter, playing his last home game, broke through to block the kick, the fifth kick block of his career. Some complementary football produced Iowa State’s first half lead.

Myles Purchase recovered Johnson’s errant pitchout on the first play of the game at the K-State 27 and Becht hit Higgins on a slant six plays later for a 7-0 lead. It was Higgins’ ninth TD reception this year, one short of Allen Lazard’s school record.

With the score tied a 7, Noel’s 26-yard punt return set the Cyclones up for Konrardy’s first field goal. Two plays later, Joey Petersen hopped on another K-State fumble, giving the Cyclones the ball at the KSU 30.

A little more than 2 minutes later, Becht scrambled right and found Noel in the back of the end zone for a 17-7 lead. Becht extended his school record to 16 straight games with a touchdown pass and now has 43 in his career, moving into fourth place on the school’s all-time chart. His 20 TD passes this year ties him with Todd Bandhauer for the No. 3 spot in a season.

With six catches for 37 yards, Noel joined Higgins with more than 1,000 receiving yards this season, the first pair to accomplish that in ISU history. Higgins finished with three catches for 53 yards.

A key for the Cyclones late was their ability to run the ball. They finished with 187 yards on the ground after rushing for only 62 in the first half. Sama ran 15 times for 81 yards, his best game since running for 101 at Houston on Sept. 28. Carson Hansen added 58 yards in 13 carries and Becht tacked on 35 yards in eight attempts. Becht also threw for 137 yards and was not intercepted.

The defense held Kansas State to 144 yards rushing – 66 below its season average. DJ Giddens, who came in averaging 115.6 yards a game, managed 72 in 14 carries.

The game featured a pair of teams ranked in the College Football Playoff Top 25, with the Cyclones at No. 18 and K-State at No. 24.

What’s next?

No. 17 Iowa State will face No. 14 Arizona State Saturday, Dec. 7 in the Dr. Pepper Big 12 Football Championship Game in Arlington, Texas. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. on ABC.

Posted in Sports |

Accident in Cass County results in a brief stand-off

News

December 1st, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Wiota, Iowa) – A call to the Cass County (IA) Communications Center Saturday afternoon about a person experiencing a possible mental health crisis, ended with an individual driving a vehicle being transported to Cass Health. According to sheriff’s officials, the incident began at around 3-p.m.

A deputy located a vehicle driving erratically between Wiota and Anita. After he pulled-up behind the car and followed it, the suspect vehicle left the road and  ran into a power pole before coming to rest on a culvert at the edge of a driveway.

The female occupant of the vehicle refused the deputy’s commands to exit the car. Following a brief standoff, a negotiator arrived at the scene and successfully negotiated the woman’s exit. Reports indicated pepper balls were used some time during the incident, though. The woman was transported to CCMH for observation. The vehicle sustained extensive damage to the front end.

White Pole Road was closed for a time after being blocked in both directions during the incident.

Posted in News |

CDC warns of Salmonella outbreak tied to cucumbers

News

December 1st, 2024 by Ric Hanson

IOWA (KCRG) – The Centers for Disease Control has issued a food safety alert regarding a multistate outbreak of Salmonella infections linked to cucumbers. 68 people across 19 states have gotten sick, including at least 2 people in Iowa. 18 people have been hospitalized, but no one has died.

The CDC says the cucumbers were grown by Agrotato, S.A. de C.V. in Sonora, Mexico and include cucumbers recalled in 26 states by SunFed Produce, LLC.

The CDC says anyone who bought whole fresh American cucumbers produced by ‘SunFed Mexico” between October 12 and November 27, should not eat the cucumbers. They should be thrown away or returned to the store.

Posted in News |

UPDATED: Another cleaning company linked to Sioux City pork plant fined for child labor law violations

Ag/Outdoor, News

December 1st, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Sioux City, Iowa (KTIV) – Another cleaning company has been fined thousands of dollars by the U.S. Department of Labor for employing children to clean Sioux City’s Seaboard Triumph Foods pork processing plant. Qvest LLC of Oklahoma was the cleaning contractor for the plant between September of 2019 and September of 2023.

The Labor Department says the first company fined for hiring minors, Fayette Janitorial Services of Tennessee, took over the contract from Qvest, and hired some of the same children Qvest had employed to clean the plant.

Court documents filed in the Northern District of Iowa show that Qvest will pay $171,919 in child labor civil money penalties, hire a third party to review and implement company policies to prevent the employment of children, and set up a process to report possible child labor law violations.

The Labor Department’s investigation found 11 children had been cleaning equipment in the packing plant, including saws used to cut the pork. Federal law prohibits children under age 18 from working in dangerous jobs like meat processing facilities.

In a statement released to KJAN on Dec. 3rd, 2024, Seaboard Triumph Foods Communications Manager Riley Kohn said:

“The legal filings against Qvest Sanitation by the Department of Labor (DOL) do not include any claims against Seaboard Triumph Foods (STF). STF did not employ any of the alleged individuals and has no evidence that any underage individuals accessed the plant. In addition, this vendor, who had express contractual requirements to follow all labor laws, has not been
present at the STF facility for more than a year, as the company’s sanitation needs are currently supported through an ongoing partnership with the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW).

“This situation underscores the problems facing employers throughout the country: individuals, including minors, obtaining jobs through their use of fraudulent identification documents, which are sophisticated enough to fool even the federal government’s E-Verify system. Businesses are victimized by this fraud,” notes Paul DeCamp, the former head of the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division, and counsel for STF.

“Safety, ethical practices, and compliance with regulations and industry standards are of paramount importance to STF. We expect the same from our vendors and partners, and we will not tolerate any vendor’s use of underage labor within our facility, and will also take measures to prevent fraud against our company.”

Posted in Ag/Outdoor, News |

Fatality accident in eastern Iowa Saturday afternoon

News

December 1st, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Iowa City, Iowa – One person was killed and another injured during a crash in eastern Iowa’ Washington County, Saturday afternoon. According to the Iowa State Patrol, the accident happened southeast of Brighton shortly before 4-p.m.

Authorities say a 1999 Toyota Camry was traveling east on Highway 78, west of Toadflax Blvd, when the driver failed to negotiate a curve in the road. The car went out of control and ran off the left side of the road before rolling over several times.

The driver of the vehicle – who was not wearing a seatbelt – was ejected from the vehicle, and did not survive. A passenger  who was wearing a seatbelt, suffered non-life threatening injuries. They were transported to the U of I hospital by Washington EMS, for treatment.

The names of the driver and passenger are being withheld pending an investigation.

Posted in News |

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the KJAN listening area: Sunday, Dec. 1st, 2024

Weather

December 1st, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Today: A chance of flurries between 3pm and 4pm, then a chance of snow after 4pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 28. Wind chill values as low as 5. North northwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 30%. Total daytime snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible.
Tonight: Snow likely before 3am, then a chance of flurries between 3am and 4am. Cloudy, with a low around 14. Wind chill values as low as 5. Light north wind becoming north northwest 5 to 10 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New snow accumulation of less than one inch possible.
Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 24. Wind chill values as low as zero. North northwest wind 10-20 mph.
Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 8.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 35. S/SW winds 10-25 mph.
Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 24.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 44.

Saturday’s High in Atlantic was 26. Our Low this morning was 11. We had a dusting (Trace) of snow last night. Last year on this date, the High was 39 and the Low was 20. The All-time Record High for Dec. 1st in Atlantic, was 67 in 1998. The Record Low was -10 in 1892. Sunrise today: 7:26. Sunset: 4:51.

Posted in Weather |

MARY FRISBIE, 67, of Atlantic (Celebration of Life 12/6/24)

Obituaries

November 30th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

MARY FRISBIE, 67, of Atlantic, died Thursday, November 28, 2024, at Atlantic Specialty Care in Atlantic. A Celebration of Life for MARY FRISBIE will be held 11-a.m. Friday, Dec. 6, 2024, at Roland Funeral Home in Atlantic.

The service will be preceded by visitation with the family, from 9:30-until 11-a.m., Friday, at the funeral home.

The Celebration of Life will be followed by a luncheon at Rolands.

Burial will take place immediately following the luncheon at the Atlantic Cemetery in Atlantic.

Memorials may be made to the family for later designation.

MARY FRISBIE is survived by:

Her husband – Randy Frisbie, of Atlantic.

Her son – Andrew (Dominic) Frisbie.

Her daughter – Maggie (Eric) Wyborny.

and two grandchildren.

Condolences may be left at www.rolandfuneralservice.com.

Posted in Obituaries |

Minor damage but no injuries reported following an accident in Red Oak, Friday morning

News

November 30th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak say there was minor damage to two pickup trucks, but no injuries were reported, following a collision Friday morning at 4th Street and Senate Avenue. According to the report, a 2013 Chevy Silverado pickup driven by 84-year-old Fred Benedict, of Villisca, was traveling west on Senate Avenue. Benedict stopped at the intersection with 4th Street, but didn’t see an oncoming pickup driven by 51-year-old Gary Clear, Jr., of Red Oak.

When Benedict proceeded into the intersection, his pickup was struck on the passenger side by Clear’s 2016 Chevy Silverado pickup. The accident happened at around 10:25-a.m. Damage from the collision amounted to $4,000. Both vehicles were able to be driven away from the scene.

No citations were issued, but the Police report stated a contributing factor to the collision was Benedict’s failure to yield.

Posted in News |

Red Oak woman arrested on an Assault charge Friday evening

News

November 30th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak arrested a woman Friday evening, on an assault charge. 52-year-old Charity Ann Boulton, of Red Oak, was arrested at around 5:20-p.m. in the 2400 block of N. 8th Street, for Assault with a dangerous weapon. Boulton was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $2,000 bond.

Posted in News |

Skyscan Forecast for Atlantic & the KJAN listening area: Saturday, 11/30/24

Weather

November 30th, 2024 by Ric Hanson

Today: Mostly cloudy w/a slight chance of flurries or light snow. High near 28. North winds 5-10. Wind chill values as low as 5.
Tonight: A chance of flurries, otherwise mostly cloudy, with a low around 10. Wind chill values as low as 5.
Tomorrow: Mostly sunny, with a high near 27. NW winds 5-10. Wind chill values as low as zero.
Tom. Night: A chance of flurries before midnight, otherwise mostly cloudy, with a low around 11.
Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 26.
Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 36.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 44.

Friday’s High in Atlantic was 34. The Low was 10. Last year on this date, the High was 49and the Low was 25. The All-time Record High for Nov. 30th in Atlantic, was 66 in 1922. The Record Low was -10 in 1964. Sunrise today: 7:25. Sunset: 4:51.

Posted in Weather |