Drake senior Garrett Sturtz had no idea what to expect when he joined the Bulldog basketball team. The former Newton star was recruited as a walk on by former coach Niko Medved and stayed with his commitment after Darian DeVries was named the coach following the 2018 season.

Sturtz contributed right away. He played in 31 games as a freshman an averaged more than 18 minutes per game for a team that claimed a share of the Missouri Valley regular season title. DeVries says one of his top memories of that season was a late November game at Missouri-Kansas City.

Sturtz contributes in a number of areas but his biggest strength may be creating offense without the ball.

Sturtz says he wasn’t sure what to expect when workouts started the summer prior to his freshman season.

Sturtz found out right away there were ways to contribute without scoring.

Sturtz has been part of a run that has seen the Bulldogs average nearly 24 wins the last four seasons and win their first NCAA Tournament game in 50 years back in 2021.

The vote of the Iowa High School Athletic Association membership on the amendment to the Articles of Incorporation regarding classification in the sport of football closed Thursday, Dec. 22 at 3:00 p.m.  A recommendation from the IHSAA’s classification committee late last month would adopt a classification model similar to one currently used by the Minnesota State High School League – reducing 40 percent of a school’s free or reduced lunch count from their annual enrollment to determine their final classification number.

In order to pass, 50 percent of the total membership (365 schools) or 60 percent of those voting was required.

The results are as follows:

• Yes: 211 votes
  • 80% of those voting
  • 58% of membership
• No: 52 votes
  • 20% of those voting
  • 14% of membership

AHSTW senior Aidan Martin signed his letter of intent this week to continue his football and academic career at Morningside College in Sioux City.

Martin is coming off a senior season with the Vikes in which he tallied 114.5 tackles, 102 of those being marked as solo stops. He also notched 10 tackles for loss and recovered one fumble. His tackle number led the team, a season that ended in the quarterfinals for the Vikings with a mark of 10-1.

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Newton, Iowa — When it’s blisteringly cold in the Winter, race car fans try to hold warm, happy thoughts of fast engines and hot rubber on the pavement. That will certainly be the case in July, 2023, when the Hy-Vee IndyCar Race Weekend returns to the Iowa Speedway. The event will take place from July 21-23, and features the only NTT IndyCar Series doubleheader weekend of the year at the “Fastest Short Track on the Planet.”

This year’s concert lineup showcases two pre-race performances from Carrie Underwood and Zac Brown Band, and two post-race performances from Kenny Chesney and Ed Sheeran.
Both pre-race concerts feature 60-minute performances, and post-race concerts include a 90-minute performance. Carrie Underwood and Kenny Chesney will perform Saturday, July 22.
Zac Brown Band and Ed Sheeran will perform Sunday, July 23.

Free Family Friday welcomes everyone free of charge July 21, where attendees can watch practice sessions ahead of the race weekend. Both single-day and two-day tickets include access to the weekend’s concerts, with single-day tickets starting at $100. You can find tickets, parking and more information at hyveeindycarweekend.com.

Joe Labas is ready for the challenge of the Music City Bowl. With Spencer Petras injured and Alex Padilla in the portal Labas goes from third string to the starting quarterback for the New Year’s Eve game against Kentucky.

Labas admits it was a bit of surprise when he found out he would be the starter.

Labas says Petras is helping him prepare for the game.

Iowa State football coach Matt Campbell believes changes on his coaching staff will help return the program to its winning ways. Campbell fired offensive coordinator Tom Manning and strength coach Dave Andrews after a 4-8 season, their worst since 2016.

Campbell says it is about finding ways to win the close games.

Despite the frustrating season Campbell believes things are in place to get better.

Campbell promoted Nate Scheelhaase to offensive coordinator.

(Radio Iowa) – A federal agency called the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Authority is set to take over the over the regulation of drug testing for thoroughbred horses in January. Iowa Racing and Gaming Administrator, Brian Ohorilkoh  says that will impact Iowa’s only horse track at in Altoona.

“The intent is for uniformity across the country. It’s something that some states view it favorably — many states do not — but what we do know is that there will definitely be some changes in terms of how racing is regulated,” he says, “not only at Prairie Meadows, but at every racetrack throughout the country. ” The federal government has assessed Iowa a fee of more than one million dollars for these services. If the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission picks up and conduct the tasks outlined in the different federal regulations, the state will receive a credit of approximately 400-thousand dollars. That leaves around 650-thousand dollar that the race track and horse industry have to figure out a way to pay.

“And that, you know, at this point is really kind of the major factor in terms of how those fees will be paid, who will pay for them and how that those payments will trickle down and impact the rest of the industry in terms of number of people that are able to continue to participate number of starters per race,” Ohorilkoh says. He says Prairie Meadows already pays the state a fee — but it includes more than horse racing.

“The regulatory fees currently for Prairie Meadows are just north of a million dollars. And that includes the regulation of casino gambling, sports betting, thoroughbred racing and quarter horse racing,” Ohorilkoh says. Regulators and the groups involved in horse racing have has some discussion on the issue, and Ohorilkoh says that will continue.

“We’re working towards compliance and in trying to determine what will everyone will play and how it will be paid for,” he says. The I-R-G-C has hired a company that is conducting a study of the horse racing industry. Ohorilkoh says the potential impact of the federal regulation is one of the things included in the study. It will also look at things like the scheduling of races and the marketing of the track and how to maximize its benefits.

Eastern Illinois outscored Iowa 31-14 to start the second half and handed the Hawkeyes an embarrassing 92-83 loss in Iowa City, a game the Hawkeyes led by 14 in the opening half.

Iowa coach Fran McCaffery. Eastern Illinois made 21 of 29 shots in the second half as the Hawkeyes fall to 8-4.

Filip Rebraca led Iowa with 24 points and eight rebounds but says he needed to be better with Kris Murray and Connor McCaffery out with injury.

The Iowa women’s basketball team picked up a 92-54 win over Dartmouth on Wednesday afternoon at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Catlin Clark led the way with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists.

The Hawkeyes jumped out to a 34-19 lead by the end of the first quarter and balloned the lead to 54-24 by halftime. The Hawkeyes had 42 points in the paint and scored 24 on fast breaks.

Clark eclipsed the 2,000 career point plateau in her 75th career game, which ties her for the fastest NCAA Division I women’s player to do so with Elena Delle Donne.

Clark is the first Iowa men’s or women’s basketball player to eclipse more than 2,000 points, 550 assists, 520 rebounds, 110 steals, and 40 blocks in a career.

The Hawkeyes improved to 10-3 on the season and will next up host Purdue on December 29th at 8:00 p.m.