By Mark HaugenEllsworth bounced back from a season-opening loss to even its record at 1-1 last week.The Panthers lost 64-53 Thursday, Dec. 2, at Canby and came back with a 59-44 victory at Edgerton on Monday.Canby 64, Ellsworth 35The Panthers were pounded on the boards, getting outrebounded 21-39 and scored only 12 points in the middle two quarters."The first and last quarters were good but we stunk it up in the second and third," Coach Ken Kvaale said. "We had a lack of intensity, maybe some first-game jitters, but just really had some cold shooting."The Panthers hit only 2-12 shots in the second guard.Ben Herman and Cody Schilling led Ellsworth with a dozen points each. Herman had five rebounds and Schilling six assists.Ellsworth Box ScoreSchilling 5 2-3 12, Van Der Stoep 2 1 0-0 7, Herman 3 1 3-6 12, Kix 1 0-0 2.. Team Totals:Rebounds: E 21, C 39.Ellsworth 59,Edgerton 44The Panthers battled back from a 9-4 first-quarter deficit with the help of five 3-pointers in the second quarter and then cruised to the win.Schilling, a ninth-grader, scored 21 points and nabbed 20 rebounds for Ellsworth and also dished seven assists. Aaron Van Der Stoep was good for 18 points, including a trio of 3-pointers. Weston DeBurg grabbed eight rebounds."It seemed like we worked harder," Kvaale said. "We came out in a zone press and tried to put some pressure on them. We didn’t get into it right away but then they did pretty well in the second quarter."Ellsworth committed only 10 turnovers.Ellsworth Box ScoreDeutsch 0 1 0-2 3, Kramer 2 0-1 4, Schilling 6 2 3-6 21, DeBerg 1 0-0 2, Van Der Stoep 3 3 3-5 18, Herman 3 1-2 7, Jansma 0 4-4 4.

By Mark HaugenTen of 12 Panthers scored as the Ellsworth girls basketball team beat Canby 77-51 in Camden Conference play Friday night at Canby.Junior Amy Tiesler shot 7-10 from the field to lead Ellsworth with 16 points, six steals and five rebounds. "She really hustled and played a great game," Coach Dean Schnaible said.Laurel Drenth added 13 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, while junior Rosie Lewis had 11 points in her first career start."We played a complete game and were mentally prepared to play," Schnaible said.Ellsworth moves to 2-3 overall and 1-1 in conference play, as Canby, 3-1, lost its first game of the year. The Panthers committed only 16 turnovers and shot 53 percent from the field."Hopefully this is a turning point for us. The turnovers were a season-low, instead of in the 20s and 30s, so we’re starting to take better care of the ball. We played with more intensity and exerted more energy than we have. When you shoot well you look good and we shot well and played pretty good team defense."Ellsworth gets another shot at an undefeated team hosting Dawson-Boyd on Friday.Ellsworth Box ScoreAmy Tiesler 7 2-3 16, Brooke Kramer 0 0-0 0, Mann 0 1-2 1, Kvaale 1 3-4 5, Lynette Drenth 0 0-0 0, Laurel Drenth 6 1-2 13, Lewis 4 3-7 11, Groen 3 2 2-3 14, Carrie Tiesler 0 1-2 1, Brittney Kramer 3 0-1 6, Amy Timmer 4 1-2 9, Laura Timmer 0 1-2 1. Totals: 28 2 15-28 77.Team Totals:FG shooting: E 30-57 for 52.6 percent, C 17-48 for 35.4 percent. Rebounds: E 32, C 18. Steals: E 10. Turnovers: E 16, C 14.

By Mark HaugenNo. 2-ranked Adrian rolled undefeated through three matches in the Fulda/MCC team dual wrestling tournament Saturday in Fulda.The Dragons defeated Harrisburg, S.D., 51-13; Westbrook-Walnut Grove/ Red Rock Central 80-0; and Fulda MCC 45-27.Seven Adrian wrestlers went 3-0 to win individual titles: Joey Bullerman at 119, Brandon Croat at 125, Brandon Bullerman at 145, Dusty Bullerman at 152, Tony Sauer at 160, Cody Reverts at 189 and Levi Bullerman at 215."I thought we wrestled pretty well for our first time out," Coach Gregg Nelson said. "We gave up a few too many points but that was expected with some young guys in the lineup. Overall I was real pleased with our effort."On Tuesday night, the Dragons won 10 individual matches (eight by pin) to batter Emmetsburg 52-15. Emmetsburg lost one team point for unsportsmanlike conduct.Adrian, 4-0, hosts Minneota tonight and is at the Jackson Tournament on Saturday.Adrian 51, Harrisburg 13103 – Stephen Loosbrock WBF 1:44112 – Mitchell DeBoer LBF 3:21119 – Joey Bullerman WBF 1:39125 – Brandon Croat WBF :48130 – Zach Reker WBF 3:04135 – Jordan Reker lost 3-13140 – Andy Heitkamp lost 0-6145 – Brandon Bullerman won 11-3152 – Dusty Bullerman WBF 1:24160 – Tony Sauer won 5-2171 – Nate Engelkes won 11-6189 – Cody Reverts won 5-0215 – Levi Bullerman won 16-5HWT – Cody Lutmer won 6-2Adrian 80, WWG/RRC 0103 – Stephen Loosbrock WBF :38112 – Mitchell DeBoer by forfeit119 – Joey Bullerman by Tech Fall 5:22125 – Brandon Croat by Tech Fall 4:14130 – Zach Reker by forfeit135 – Jordan Reker by forfeit140 – Andy Heitkamp by forfeit145 – Brandon Bullerman WBF :56152 – Dusty Bullerman won 15-6160 – Tony Sauer WBF :28171 – Nate Engelkes by forfeit189 – Cody Reverts WBF 3:08215 – Levi Bullerman by forfeitHWT – Cody Lutmer by forfeitAdrian 45, Fulda/MCC 27103 – Stephen Loosbrock lost 11-4112 – Mitchell DeBoer LBF 1:57119 – Joey Bullerman WBF 2:39125 – Brandon Croat WBF 1:25130 – Zach Reker lost 13-6135 – Jordan Reker won 7-2140 – Andy Heitkamp LBF 3:25145 – Brandon Bullerman WBF :28152 – Dusty Bullerman WBF :34160 – Tony Sauer WBF 5:08171 – Nate Engelkes LBF 5:56189 – Cody Reverts WBF 3:45215 – Levi Bullerman WBF 3:27HWT – Cody Lutmer lost 5-2Adrian 52, Emmetsburg 15103 – Loosbrock lost 1-10112 – Their WBF 3:42119 – Joey Bullerman WBF 2:11126 – Croat lost 1-7130 – Zach Reker WBF 2:29135 – Jordan Reker WBF 4:28140 – Brandon Bullerman won 15-5145 – Dusty Bullerman WBY 3:15152 – Vaske LBF :25160 – Sauer WBF 3:41171 – Engelkes lost 6-8189 – Levi Bullerman won 7-2215 – Will Lutmer won 11-9HWT – Cody Lutmer WBF :44

By Mark HaugenTom Rops wasn’t expecting it at the start of the season, but the coach and his Cardinal boys basketball team are enjoying a 5-0 start this season.It’s the best start to a season in the eight years Rops has coached Luverne. The Cardinals used wins last week over Pipestone, Southwest Christian and Worthington to boost their mark and move atop the Southwest Conference standings at 2-0."We have to be humble right now, because the regular season is important but doesn’t mean a whole lot as our goals are postseason goals more so than regular season goals," Rops said.Luverne will be on the road this week playing MCC on Saturday and Edgerton on Monday.Luverne 65,Pipestone 59 OTThe Cardinals handed Pipestone its first loss of the year as Dusty Antoine hit some key free throws in overtime and Jared Pick a timely 3-pointer.Luverne had five players score in double figures: Antoine 14, Pick 12 and Brandon Deragisch, Nick Heronimus and Jake Hendricks with 11 each. Deragisch led with seven rebounds, while Pick had five steals."Again our balance was the key," Coach Rops said. "We started the game slow but kept fighting."Luverne Box ScorePick 2 8-13 12, Deragisch 1 3 0-2 11, Tofteland 3 0-0 6, Heronimus 5 1-2 11, Hendricks 0 2 5-12 11, Antoine 0 3 5-6 14.Team Totals:Rebounds: L 21 (Deragisch 7), P 23. Turnovers: L 18, P 17.Luverne 44, SWC 37LHS built a 40-25 lead and held on for their fourth-straight victory.Another balanced offensive attack was paced by Pick with 10 points. Deragisch had nine points, six steals and five rebounds. The Cardinals forced 23 turnovers and led 20-15 at halftime in the low-scoring game."We were pretty tired after the night before and didn’t shoot well in the first half," Rops said. "We changed the offense a bit in the second half and got some better shots. We went from motion to the flex and seemed to get a little better look at the basket."We handled their up-tempo type of game OK and squeaked out a victory."Luverne Box ScorePick 4 2-8 10, Deragisch 3 3-3 9, Tofteland 0 1-2 1, Heronimus 1 3-5 5, Hendricks 1 1 3-5 8, Antoine 2 1 2-2 9.Team Totals:Rebounds: L 22, (Deragisch 5), SWC 19. Turnovers: L 16, SWC 23.Luverne 55,Worthington 47Luverne struggled in the first quarter (trailing 11-16) before outscoring the Trojans 17-5 in the second to take a 28-21 halftime lead it never relinquished. Starter Brad Herman didn’t play due to illness."So the other six guys who played really stepped up, boxed out and hung together when they easily could have used that as an excuse to take the night off," Rops said. Pick paced the Cardinals with 15 points, while Heronimus had 14."Jared probably had his best game of the year. He stepped up," Rops said. "Nick really had a good game too. Things got a little tighter in the third quarter and it seemed somebody made a play when we needed one."Luverne had only nine turnovers in the game, four in the first quarter.Luverne Box ScorePick 6 3-3 15, Deragisch 5 3-3 14, Tofteland 2 2-2 6, Heronimus 3 8-10 14, Hendricks 2 1 0-0 7, Antoine 0 0-0 0.Team Totals:Rebounds: L 16, W 16. Turnovers: L 9, W 19. FG shooting: L 19-46, W 17-38.

By Mark HaugenThe Luverne offense exploded for its highest output of the season to rout Fairmont 10-2 Thursday in girls hockey and run its win streak to four. Luverne, 4-2, raced to a 5-0 lead before Fairmont netted its two and then the Cardinals finished them off with five more.Sadie Dietrich hammered in four goals for Luverne, while Natalie Domagala netted three goals and had four assists. "Defensively we’re finally starting to play a little better and working on our positions," Coach Dave Siebenahler said."We had kind of a letdown in the second period, but the girls really put it together for the third period and played a pretty good game."Seventh-grader Paige Olson, ninth-grader Natalie Morgan and seventh-grader Katie Dahl each scored goals as well."We got some scoring out of some of the younger girls, which is really good to build their confidence," he said. "Sadie and Natalie are playing pretty good together, passing the puck well. They see each other so well and really know how to find the net. They really work well together."Sarah Schneekloth stopped 28 shots in goal. "Sarah is doing great in net," Siebenahler said. "You can hardly beat that at all."Luverne has a rematch with Sioux Falls Blue on Thursday in the Blue Mound Ice Arena, where they lost 5-3 to Blue in the second game of the season."The girls want to get back and get that win against them," Siebenahler said."Hopefully if we get a lead against Sioux Falls we can keep it. We’ve improved since we played them last. Hopefully that will motivate the girls."The Cardinals then go back on the road Saturday at Benson/Morris and return home Tuesday to face Windom."We’ve still got a ways to go and a lot of things to work on, but the girls are working hard and trying to improve every game."ScoringLuverne 4 1 5 – 10Fairmont 0 2 0 – 2

Luverne’s Terry Hoffman was taken into custody Wednesday morning in connection with a number of thefts in and around the area.The Rock County and Minnehaha sheriff’s departments, Brandon and Sioux Falls police departments and Minnesota State Patrol are investigating the thefts.Three search warrants were executed, including one at his office/shop on Edgehill Street west of the South Highway 75 Casey’s.According to the Rock County Sheriff’s Department, some items were seized, including a four-wheeler, gooseneck trailer and backhoe, all of which were confirmed to have been stolen.Other properties in Hoffman’s possession are also being investigated, according to Sheriff Mike Winkels.Charges are pending, and Hoffman remained in custody as of press time Wednesday.

By Lori EhdeBryan Bose, Lake Wilson, is the newest member of the Rock County Sheriff’s Department.Deputy Bose graduated from Alexandria Technical College in May and started his new job in Luverne Monday.He and his wife, Mary Jo, and children, Bryanne, 5, and Dayne, 2, will move to Luverne after the holidays.Bose said he’s glad to have found work in Luverne, which brings him closer to his hometown, Lake Wilson.Meanwhile, he’ll make the daily commute to Luverne, as he starts work on the nightshift this week."I like it here," he said Monday. "I like the people."Bose lists hunting and fishing among his hobbies, which he enjoys between spending time with his family.Bose replaces Nick Schaffer, who left the department this summer.

By Sara QuamThe city of Luverne is still working with a Canadian company to locate in Luverne.Since the company has only a six-month rental agreement, however, the city is hesitant to go through the process to apply for Job Opportunity Building Zones benefits. The state allows JOBZ tax breaks to be used for rental properties, but it is up to the city of Luverne to apply for them. ESecure America is renting a downtown office space for a starting point but hasn’t committed to more than six months. The city would have to apply to swap land from the current designated JOB Zones to downtown.The county and school would also have to sign off on the application.Luverne Economic Development Director Mike Engesser said, "The county and school would look at this with scrutiny."The LEDA Tuesday voted to send eSecure a letter saying that it will apply for JOBZ benefits and land swapping after the company is in town for the first six months. Besides the two owners, eSecure will probably have one employee."The level of commitment is what concerns me," LEDA member Nate Golla said. He said he’d be in favor of using JOBZ if Esecure was renting under a longer lease agreement.City Administrator Greg LaFond said, "We’re reluctant to extend lots of benefits to someone who’s made a short-term commitment to Luverne."The company designs and manufactures vending machine interfaces and their accompanying software.The most common use for eSecure is vending machines and food services. People who work for a large factory or hospital with a cafeteria, for example, can use the cards to deduct meal charges from their paychecks.The card and systems can also track what people buy in order to keep adequate supply inventories. Some businesses use eSecure to prevent employee theft when using supplies. Other uses include controlling access to items, protecting items, dispensing items in convenient locations, generating reports and audits, alerting companies when minimum levels are reached to avoid low stocks and tracking purchases of users by demographics.Call centerJOBZ was an enticing possibility for a company that wanted to expand its call center with a new 500-employee facility. Luverne was a finalist, but the company ultimately decided that filling 500 positions in a town with Luverne’s population (including the surrounding area) wouldn’t be ideal.It is instead looking at larger cities, some out of the state of Minnesota.

By Sara QuamYou’d never know that the 32-year-old with clear skin, bright eyes and a pearly white smile has AIDS — but Nick Klein does."That’s why I’m willing to share my story," Klein said Tuesday. "AIDS is out there and it’s spreading and you don’t know who has it. I wouldn’t call myself an activist, but I don’t want people to have their heads buried in the sand."He participated in a panel on World AIDS Day last week at the University of Minnesota, Mankato."People think it’s in the big city or in California, but it’s here," Klein said.There are three HIV cases in Rock County and 11 in Nobles County according to the Rural AIDS Action Network. Those are the official statistics, which may be skewed if people move or report a different home address when being tested because of confidentiality concerns.Jennifer Weg, of Nobles- Rock Public Health said, "The numbers don’t show how big the situation is in southwest Minnesota. Part of that is because we don’t have local free testing available, so people do it in South Dakota or bigger cities in Minnesota."Also, it’s estimated that for every person who knows he or she has HIV, there is another person who doesn’t know.Klein is the grandson of Mary and the late Blackie Johnson, longtime residents of Hills. He went to elementary and middle school in the Hills-Beaver Creek district.Klein has been HIV positive for 11 years and has lived in Hills for seven years. Just last spring he got AIDS and started taking medication, which still makes him nauseous.Despite that, he said he feels good most of the time. He eats well, takes vitamins, and religiously takes his three prescription pills a day.He said the life expectancy of someone with AIDS isn’t what it used to be. "It’s a manageable disease if you don’t mess with your medications. … I plan on dying of old age," Klein said. "I’m way more optimistic about life now than I’ve been in the last 10 years."His viral load is almost undetectable and his immune system rating is increasing. He hopes to work full time again by the end of 2005."I’m still young and I want to grow in my life," Klein said. A walking billboardKlein thinks he contracted HIV when he was 19. He knows he got it from having unprotected sex.He found out he had HIV when he was 21. Then, dreams of becoming an English professor and marrying and having children faded. "I cried for four days," Klein said. "That first year, everything was flooded with thoughts of HIV."Instead of finishing college, he became a trucker, and he also made a living as a waiter and construction worker."I wish I could be a walking billboard for people to know what not to do," Klein said.He’s open about having HIV and AIDS, even when socializing or meeting new people."Sometimes people’s reaction is shock at my honesty," he said. Klein knows of some people with HIV who don’t tell others. "It’s just selfish and it makes me mad that some people don’t have a conscience. They sleep around because they figure they’ve already got it and don’t have anything to worry about."Klein said people with HIV still need to protect themselves even if for selfish reasons. There are different strains of the virus that they could contract, which are immune to some drugs. Different strains are harder on different people, too. Klein said his social life is pretty limited, but he enjoys going out. Observing people in the bar scene isn’t fun, though."You can’t tell me those people have been tested or that they’re being safe," Klein said. "People will lie, and you have to protect yourself. You can ask someone if they have HIV or have been tested and they will look you in the eyes and lie," Klein said."It’s all fine and dandy to think about it, but if you don’t do anything, what’s the point?"Klein compares his outlook on life to that of someone who survives cancer or a heart attack."It’s actually bettered my life because I cut all the crap out. It’s made me a better person and I can say I stop to smell the roses."