By John RittenhouseThe Adrian Dragons secured at least a share of the Little Sioux Conference football championship by routing Murray County Central 50-28 in Slayton Thursday.The Dragons upped their season record to 7-0 with the win, which included an impressive offensive eruption.Adrian scored a season-high 50 points and compiled 439 yards against an MCC defense that stopped the Dragons twice in the game."I said (to the coaching staff) that we needed to score 30 points to win this game," said Dragon coach Randy Strand. "We had the ball nine times in the game, and we scored seven times. Our offense was very effective. I give our offensive line a lot of credit."The win left Adrian with a 6-0 LSC record, and a victory over Dawson-Boyd in the regular-season finale (played Wednesday in Adrian) would lock up the league title outright. The victory also locked up the No. 1 seed for the upcoming Section 3A playoffs.The Dragons opened a 30-8 halftime lead over the Rebels by scoring four of their first five offensive possessions of the game.Adrian received the opening kick and marched 52 yards in seven plays with quarterback Levi Bullerman scoring on a 14-yard touchdown run 2:01 into the game. Billy Anderson carried in the two-point conversion to make it 8-0.MCC showed some spunk by tying the score at eight with its first offensive possession of the contest, but the Rebels were unable to find the end zone the rest of the first half.Josh Roggenbuck capped a 14-play, 65-yard drive with a six-yard touchdown run at the 4:38 mark of the opening quarter. Josh Rehnelt carried in the two-point conversion to tie the game.The Dragons regained the lead before the first quarter was complete.Anderson, who toted the ball 26 times for 148 yards in the contest, ended an eight-play, 67-yard march with a three-yard run at the 2:36 mark of the opening period to make it a 14-8 game. The run for a two-point conversion failed.Anderson scored his second touchdown of the game at the end of Adrian’s third offensive possession. The senior tailback scored from four yards away to end a 10-play, 43-yard drive with 9:07 remaining in the second quarter. Bullerman tossed a successful conversion pass to Brett Block after Anderson’s tally, making it a 22-8 game.Adrian’s fourth possession ended with a fumble, but the Dragons produced another touchdown the fifth time they controlled the ball.An eight-play, 72-yard drive ended with Bullerman throwing a 33-yard touchdown pass to Block with 1:01 remaining in the second quarter. A Bullerman-to-Brent Tjepkes conversion pass gave the Dragons a 22-point (30-8) halftime cushion.MCC opened the second half with a seven-play, 66-yard drive that was capped by an 18-yard scamper by Rehnelt 3:04 into the third quarter. The run for a conversion failed.Adrian got the six points back when it moved the ball 60 yards in eight plays during the team’s initial possession of the second half.Bullerman, who ran the ball for three touchdowns and 119 yards in the game, ended the march with a one-yard plunge at the 5:21 mark of the third quarter to make a 36-14 game.Both teams scored 14 points in the fourth quarter.Adrian increased its lead to 43-14 when Tony Sauer scored four seconds into the final period from three yards away. Bullerman added the extra point.MCC answered with a 68-yard drive that ended with Tony Salk scoring from four yards out with 10:04 left to play.Adrian’s next possession turned into a seven play, 51-yard drive that was capped by a nine-yard touchdown run by Bullerman, who added the extra point to make it a 50-20 game at the 6:38 mark of the fourth quarter.MCC’s Rehnelt scored on a one-yard run and ended the scoring with a two-point conversion with 1:45 remaining.Team statisticsAdrian: 350 rushing yards, 89 passing yards, 439 total yards, 18 first downs, two penalties for 15 yards, two turnovers.MCC: 325 rushing yards, 17 passing yards, 342 total yards, 17 first downs, four penalties for 30 yards, one turnover.Individual statisticsRushing: Anderson 26-148, Bullerman 15-119, Sauer 10-71, Jory Haken 3-11, David Hoffer 1-1.Passing: Bullerman 8-14 for 89 yards.Receiving: Block 4-69, Sauer 1-3, Anderson 2-7, Tjepkes 1-10.Defense: Sauer 12 tackles, Casey Knips 10 tackles, Block nine tackles and one interception.

By John RittenhouseLuverne’s bid to win the Southwest Conference football championship outright came to an end with a 27-7 loss in Redwood Falls Friday.In a clash between the SWC’s top two teams (both squads brought 3-1 conference records into the game) on a wet, cold and windy night, Redwood Valley locked up at least a share of the league crown by defeating the Cardinals by 20 points.Luverne still could gain a share of the league crown, but two things would need to happen. The Cards would need to beat Windom in a game played in Luverne last night (Oct. 20), and Pipestone needed to beat RWV in a game played in Pipestone Oct. 20.A rough first half sealed Luverne’s fate in Redwood Falls.The LHS offense was limited to three first downs during six first-half possessions that failed to yield a point.The LHS defense, which played a key role in helping the Cardinals compile a 5-1 record entering Friday’s game, also struggled in the first half. RWV racked up seven first downs and scored three touchdowns on the way to a 21-0 lead at the intermission."We didn’t do very much of anything in the first half," said Luverne coach Todd Oye. "We were unable to force them to punt, and we went three-and-out two or three times. Give credit to RWV, because they were successful in the first half."The teams exchanged punts before RVW opened the scoring with its second possession of the game.RWV took over on Luverne’s 37-yard line, where it used five successful running plays and gained a 7-0 lead when Craig Kodat scored on a four-yard run at the 5:49 mark of the first quarter.The score remained 7-0 until the final three minutes of the second quarter, when RWV scored a pair of touchdowns in a span of 1:39 to increase its lead to 21 points.After the RWV defense forced the Cardinals to punt for the fourth consecutive time, the RWV offense put together a seven-play, 72-yard drive that ended with quarterback Luke Radel throwing a 49-yard touchdown pass to Bryan Busack with 2:41 remaining in the first half.RWV got the ball back three plays later when Busack intercepted a pass on Luverne’s 11-yard line, and Kodat scored his second touchdown of the game three plays later with an eight-yard run at the 1:02 mark of the second quarter.Luverne played better football in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to get the Cardinals back into the game.The Cardinals received the kick to start the third quarter and put together a 14-play drive that ended on downs inside RWV’s 20-yard line.RWV countered with an 11-play drive that ended when Luverne defender Brad Herman caused and recovered a fumble early in the fourth quarter.Luverne’s ensuing offensive possession ended in three plays when RWV defender Josh Beadell picked off a pass.The turnover set up a five-play drive that was capped by Dustin Burgemeister’s 30-yard touchdown run on a reverse play. RWV was unable to convert the extra point, leaving it with a 27-0 lead with 7:44 remaining.Luverne countered RWV’s fourth-quarter touchdown with its most impressive drive of the game.The Cardinals marched 63 yards in 10 plays when Ben Nath, who led LHS with 62 rushing yards, rammed his way into the end zone for a one-yard touchdown with 4:27 left to play. A successful extra point capped the scoring.The drive featured a 10-yard run by Nick Heronimus and a 17-yard pass reception by Derek Elbers."We did play better in the second half, but we still had trouble stopping them," Oye concluded.Team statisticsLuverne: 107 rushing yards, 72 passing yards, 179 total yards, 11 first downs, four penalties, two turnovers.RWV: 133 total yards, 148 passing yards, 281 total yards, 11 first downs, five penalties, one turnover.Individual statisticsRushing: Jake Hendricks 9-9, Scott Goebel 1-minus 2, Nath 15-62, Heronimus 9-22, Nate Siebenahler 1-8, Elbers 4-8.Passing: Heronimus 6-14 for 72 yards.Receiving: Brandon Deragisch 2-27, Hendricks 1-20, Derek Johnson 1-1, Elbers 1-17, Herman 1-7.Defense: Herman one sack, Nath one sack, Herman one fumble recovery.

By John RittenhouseThe Edgerton Flying Dutchmen scored 20 unanswered points in the final three quarters to defeat Hills-Beaver Creek-Ellsworth 26-7 in a Southwest Ridge Conference football game played in Hills Friday.H-BC-E, which is slowly recovering from a rash of injuries to some of its top players, took a 7-6 lead over Edgerton with a touchdown late in the first quarter.Edgerton, however, scored one touchdown in each of the final three quarters to up its record to 6-1 with a 19-point win.H-BC-E slipped to 3-4 with the loss heading into last night’s (Oct. 20) regular season finale against Westbrook-Walnut Grove in Westbrook. The winner of game will get the fifth seed for the Section 2 Nine-Man Football playoffs, which will begin Tuesday night at a site to be determined.Having seniors Zach Wysong and Travis Broesder back on the field against Edgerton seemed to fire up the Patriots early.Wysong missed the last four games with broken bones in his foot, and Broesder couldn’t play the last two games due to a shoulder injury.Wysong and Broesder combined efforts to produce 82 yards of offense against Edgerton, but the Flying Dutchmen came out on top by blanking the Patriots in the game’s last 36:11.Edgerton drew first blood in the game by taking the opening kick and driving 64 yards in 16 plays with Brett Elgersma scoring on a two-yard plunge. The drive, which chewed 8:34 off the clock, was followed by a failed passing attempt for the two-point conversion.The teams proceeded to exchange punts before H-BC-E gained a 7-6 edge with 11 seconds left in the first quarter.Tom LeBoutillier, who ran for 88 yards in the game for the Patriots, raced 60 yards for a touchdown on the first play of H-BC-E’s second offensive possession. Adam Finke kicked the extra point to put the Patriots in front by one.Edgerton went on to outscore H-BC-E 20-0 the rest of the game, but it was the first eight points of the run that Patriot coach Dan Ellingson said turned the game around.After H-BC-E’s third offensive possession ended on downs at the Edgerton 26-yard line with 6:45 remaining in the second quarter, the Flying Dutchmen moved in front to stay with an eight-play, 74-yard touchdown march featuring two key plays.It looked like the Flying Dutchmen might be forced to punt when some H-BC-E defenders pressured Edgerton quarterback Max Zwart on a third-down play, but Zwart eluded two tackles on the way to a 20-yard run that gave his team a new set of downs.Edgerton faced a fourth-and-five situation moments later, and Zwart came up big again when he fired a 31-yard touchdown pass to Elgersma with 1:50 left in the first half. Zwart and Elgersma hooked up for a successful conversion pass after the touchdown to give the Flying Dutchmen a 14-7 lead."Those were two big plays," Ellingson stated. "First we get stopped on downs inches short of a first down on their 26. Then, after it looked like we had Zwart sacked, he runs for 20 yards, which led to a touchdown they scored during a four-and-five situation. Instead of us being ahead by a touchdown, they were ahead by a touchdown. Things kind of flip-flopped on us during those two possessions, and I think that was the turning point of the game."Edgerton put the game away by scoring touchdowns with its first two possessions of the second half.After forcing the Patriots to punt seven plays into the third quarter, Edgerton marched 90 yards in nine plays with Zach Boyum capping the drive with a two-yard touchdown run at the 6:12 mark of the stanza. A failed conversion pass left the Flying Dutchmen sporting a 20-7 lead.H-BC-E’s ensuing drive ended on downs on the Edgerton 39-yard line with 2:05 left in the third quarter.Edgerton proceeded to advance the ball 61 yards in eight plays with Travis Hulstein scoring on a 25-yard run with 10:49 left in the fourth quarter. The pass for a potential conversion failed, giving the Flying Dutchmen a 26-7 lead they would never relinquish.Team statisticsH-BC-E: 167 rushing yards, 14 passing yards, 181 total yards, seven first downs, five penalties for 45 yards, one turnover.Edgerton: 226 rushing yards, 98 passing yards, 324 total yards, 15 first downs, seven penalties for 60 yards, zero turnovers.Individual statisticsRushing: LeBoutillier 7-88, Wysong 16-81, Cody Schilling 1-1, Broesder 2-minus 3.Passing: Schilling 3-7 for 14 yards.Receiving: Broesder 1-0, Wysong 1-4, Chris Nuffer 1-10.Defense: Cody Scholten 17 tackles, Cody Roozenboom nine tackles, LeBoutillier eight tackles, Brian Gacke eight tackles.

By John RittenhouseStrong races turned in by every individual led the Luverne cross country teams to second-place finishes at the annual Southwest Conference meet staged near Jackson Tuesday.Marshall, which fields the state’s No. 1-ranked Class AA boys’ team and the third-ranked girls’ squad, ran away with the team titles.Luverne placed second behind Marshall in the final standings at meet’s end, with every LHS runner turning in a personal or seasonal best time on the course."We ran fantastic," said Cardinal coach Bruce Gluf. "The Marshall kids are great. The competition was there, and that’s what pulled the good performances out of our runners. I think we made a statement today, and we’re ready for the section meet."The Luverne girls, who fell by 15 points to Marshall (26-41), received All-Conference performances from Lexi Heitkamp, Amanda Saum and Kayla Raddle.Heitkamp placed second in 14:45, Saum fourth in 15:08 and Raddle sixth in 15:11.Kelsey Dooyema and Amanda Kannas placed 11th and 19th with respective 15:58 and 16:25 times to round out the scoring for LHS.Christy Van Dyke and Ashley Kraetsch finished 53rd and 54th in 20:28 and 20:27 without contributing to the scoring.Thomas Pinkal missed making the All-SWC team for the Cardinal boys, who finished 43 points (15-58), by one place. Pinkal placed eighth in 17:08 to lead LHS.Tom Ward finished 10th in 17:20, Steve Schneiderman 11th in 18:28, Nick Otten 13th in 18:57 and Dusty Antoine 16th in 17:42 to pad Luverne’s point total.Travis Halfmann (28th in 18:28), David Nelson (36th in 18:57), Craig Oeding (38th in 19:07), Eric Kraetsch (43rd in 19:47) and Michael Nelson (46th in 20:08) ran in the varsity race without impacting the scoring.Luverne will run at the Section 3A Championships in Adrian Thursday, Oct. 28. The girls’ race begins at 4 p.m., with the boys’ race following at 4:45.Here is a look at the team standings and the rest of Luverne’s individual efforts during the SWC meet.Girls’ standings: Marshall 26, Luverne 41, Redwood Valley 93, Jackson County Central 104, Worthington 117, Windom 129.Boys’ standings: Marshall 15, Luverne 58, RWV 82, JCC 109, Windom 110, Worthington 142.Junior high girlsRachel Saum, 10th, 6:50; Whitney Oehlerts, 21st, 7:35.Junior high boysDavonte Maine, seventh, 5:57; Matthew Stensland-Bos, 15th, 6:17; Nick Den Herder, 32nd, 8:14.

10 years ago (1994)"A new city ordinance makes it a misdemeanor to swim or wade in public waters in the city of Luverne.According to this ordinance, approved at Monday night’s Luverne City Council meeting, persons are also prohibited from jumping, diving or entering any public waters from any bridge, roadway, railroad bridge trestle, dam or any other structure within or over the channel of any public waters or being physically present on the dam in the Rock River other than in areas specifically constructed for the purpose of observation."25 years ago (1979)"Luverne Senior Citizens will buy the former Lincoln Hotel and conduct a drive for funds.Funds collected will also be used to pay for the building and to serve as a basis for matching funds, which the organization will seek from the city and the county.The Lincoln Hotel is currently owned by Kathryn Heikes, Luverne. She has agreed to sell it to the senior citizens organization for $20,000 on a contract for deed. The senior citizens organization will make an initial $5,000 down payment from funds already on hand."50 years ago (1954)"Crash of a jet-trainer plane in Texas shortly after midnight Monday claimed the life of a former Rock County resident, First Lieutenant Ralph H. Iverson, 25, son of Mr. and Mrs. E. U. Iverson, Pipestone. Lt. Iverson, an instructor at Bryan Air Force base, Texas, was on a routine night training mission with a student pilot, when the tragedy occurred, according to the word received in Pipestone Tuesday."75 years ago (1929)"Clint and Bessie Robbins and their company will complete a week’s engagement at the Palace Theatre next Sunday evening, which means that there will be three more nights of legitimate stage plays for Rock County theatre-goers. This popular stock company opened their engagement here Monday evening and has been greeted each night by large audiences."100 years ago (1904)"An important and gratifying evidence of the development and increasing prosperity of the northeastern part of the county is found in the growth and improvements to the village of Kenneth, near the north line of Vienna township, on the Hardwick branch of the Rock Island. Although the country tributary to it is one of the richest sections of the county in point of fertility and is rapidly gaining in the matter of settlement and improvement on the earlier settled portions of the county, Kenneth has been hampered in its growth thus far by more than its share of unfortunate conditions. Two years ago the crops in that section suffered injury from various causes, and last year the entire crop in that section which finds its market in Kenneth was destroyed by hail. As a result the merchants of Kenneth suffered seriously and the outlook for a time was very discouraging. Nevertheless they met their misfortune bravely and triumphed over every obstacle. This year the crops in that section are generally good and Kenneth is forging to the front. Thrift, enterprise and improvements are noticeable on every hand."

By Jolene FarleyA one-vehicle accident took the life of a Hills man in the early morning hours Sunday.A 2001 Chevrolet Pickup driven by James Metzger Jr., 21, left Dogwood Ave., rural Lyon County, Iowa, less than a mile from the Minnesota border at approximately 2:20 a.m. Sunday morning, according to the Lyon County Sheriff Department.Metzger’s pickup struck a mailbox, then entered the east ditch and continued north into the guy wires of an electrical pole. The pole, owned by Alliant Energy, was snapped off by the impact. The vehicle flipped, coming to rest upright on its wheels in the east ditch. Metzger was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident.The accident cut off power to the city of Lester, Iowa, until 10:05 a.m. Sunday morning.

By Lori Ehde and Jolene FarleyGov. Tim Pawlenty is warning high school students to show up for class or risk being denied a driver’s license."Students who do not regularly attend school do not learn and do not succeed academically," Pawlenty announced Sept. 7. "Linking the privilege to drive with school attendance is a common-sense way to get kids to school."The Governor has asked Education Commissioner Alice Seagren and Public Safety Commissioner Michael Campion to proceed with a rulemaking process that will allow the state to deny licenses to students who are truant.This would be specifically defined as having unexcused absences for seven or more days of the school year.Law enforcement officials and educators support the law, but some don’t anticipate having to enforce it, according to Hills-Beaver Creek Superintendent Dave Deragisch. "We don’t have a problem with attendance here and I don’t see any of our students ever being affected by the law," Deragisch said. Deragisch does support the law for schools in the state that have attendance problems. It gives districts some leverage to coax students back to class."When you think about a driver’s license, the most important possession that a 16 or 17-year-old has is that license in his back pocket," Deragisch said.The governor’s initiative, which becomes effective in June, would deny driving privileges only to new applicants.The new rule would affect 15- and 16-year-olds who are applying for their permits for the first time. Those applicants will need to have evidence of this year’s school attendance to get their licenses.Under this proposal, the state would have no authority to revoke valid licenses for subsequent truancies, but the Governor has indicated plans to change that as well.Pawlenty said he’ll seek legislative approval of a bill in 2005 that would revoke driving privileges from 17- and 18-year-olds who are chronically truant.

By Lori EhdeWith the Nov. 2 General Elections less than two weeks away, the Luverne School District is stepping up efforts to educate the public about the referendum question on the ballot.An informational meeting has been scheduled to explain the referendum to the public and to provide a forum for questions and answers.It will be at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 25, in the high school library.Meanwhile, School Board members, district administration and staff have been trying to put out the message that the district needs money."This operating referendum is very important," Superintendent Vince Schaefer said at the Thursday, Oct. 14, School Board meeting.If district residents don’t vote "yes" to the referendum question on the ballot, Schaefer said budget cuts will be painful.All day every day kindergarten may be cut, technology will fall behind, fees will increase, programs will be eliminated, course offerings will be reduced and there will be fewer teachers for larger classes."And that’s just the start of it," Schaefer said.Declining enrollment and increasing expenses, combined with three years of flat-lined state funding, are forcing many districts to ask their residents for money.Out of 343 districts in Minnesota, 299 are requesting operating referendums. "This really indicates, in general, schools are underfunded," Schaefer said.The Luverne School District is asking for a $455 per pupil operating referendum, which would bring an estimated $603,995 to the district in operating funds for up to 10 years.The state would match 48 percent of that amount, and 52 percent would be paid by residents in the district.District residents received a mailer last week outlining details about the proposed referendum.In addition to attending Monday’s informational meeting, voters can learn more on the district’s Web site, www.isd2184.net.The "Property Tax Information Site" button on the district home page allows residents to calculate to the penny how much their property taxes would increase with the referendum in place.In general, the referendum would increase property taxes $1.47 per $1,000 of a property’s total market value. A property valued at $100,000 would see an increase of $147 per year.Those who don’t own property wouldn’t be affected by the referendum. For farm property owners, the referendum affects only the house, garage and one acre, just as it would a city property owner. The rest of the farmland is exempt.

By Sara StrongThe Luverne City Council and staff are united in their theory that the city is paying too much for its law enforcement contract with Rock County.In fact, if the city had it’s own department, City Administrator Greg LaFond said Luverne would save about $285,000. He said the department would have five full-time officers. The county said that doesn’t make sense, considering there were seven full-time equivalents working for the city’s own department in 1997. Council members and LaFond say a separate department is a last resort.LaFond said, "People have asked if it’s our intent to create a separate department and I will say publicly, no. It’s not my intent and I don’t believe it’s the intent of the Council."The city pays $447,000 for its half of the law enforcement budget. City taxpayers also pay through their county taxes, which the city says should be considered.The county has said that city taxpayers will pay twice, whether the city has its own department or not. At a City Council meeting Tuesday, LaFond presented the Council with two months of research involving 183 municipalities who contract for law enforcement."We spoke personally to every sheriff in the state," LaFond said.The volumes of material addressed at the meeting are bound in an inch-thick book, and there are boxes of reference material in City Hall. But essentially, LaFond said Luverne is paying the second highest per capita tax for law enforcement, $96.90, of all cities that contract for law enforcement.Only two cities pay for law enforcement based on a percentage of the budget; Luverne pays half and Pipestone pays 43 percent. All others pay an hourly rate.Luverne has cancelled its dispatching joint powers agreement because 911 is a county obligation the city no longer wants to contribute to.Before that was terminated, though, the city would have paid $174,000 in 2005. The city would then have the highest per capita tax for dispatch services of the 52 cities that make payments for it.Another proposal for law enforcement The city will submit another proposal to Rock County in the hopes of reinstating the joint law contract. The proposal would have Luverne taxpayers contribute $586,620 to law enforcement, factoring in city and county taxes paid by Luverne residents. The new proposal includes the following:—City purchase 168 hours of patrol time per week (24 hours a day, seven days a week) for an annual payment of $340,617,—City would fund half of the investigator position, $46,308,—City would fund half the cost of crossing guards, $13,000,—City would contribute $5,000 to DARE program,—City’s cost would be offset by state aid, based on how many officers the contract requires,—City fines and forfeitures remitted to the county should be treated as an offset against city costs,—Jail per diems and medical expenses would not be funded through the city payments.The city has said the inmate costs shouldn’t be charged to contract law participants. LaFond said Luverne pays the highest per capita tax for jail expenses, $14.08.County Commissioner Jane Wildung commented after the meeting. "I can’t keep track if this is the fifteenth or sixteenth proposal. … I don’t see how the city thinks they can get the service for less than what it paid back in 1997."