By Sara StrongThe Luverne City Council covered a number of budget items Tuesday that City Administrator Greg LaFond will pursue in further research.LaFond, who started the first week in September, is looking at the city with a fresh perspective, and he pointed out a number of initial observations for the council to consider.He said, "Our objective is to get you to focus on long-term financial planning, rather than this short-term crisis."The main topic of discussion Tuesday was the possibility of Luverne contracting for refuse and recycling collection, instead of the city doing it."It’s not my intent to suggest anything at this point to change to privatization," LaFond said. "… We’re not committed to privatization."The City Council directed LaFond to continue researching the cost of a private garbage and recycling hauler with the possibility of the city issuing a request for proposals, inviting private companies to bid for the service.Council member David Hauge said he hoped the request for proposals could include stipulations for service quality with financial penalties to keep citizens comfortable with any upcoming change.Councilman Pat Baustian said, "I think we owe it to our taxpayers to see what’s out there."Many cities are considering the same thing.Luverne’s financial problems from state cuts aren’t the only crunch in the budget. The revenue from refuse and recycling collection should pay for the program. However, it’s losing money each year. By 2009, the collection services will be operating at a projected $134,350 loss.To make sure that doesn’t happen, the city will either have to raise rates significantly, cut services or change the entire way things are done — which is what LaFond is researching.Currently, residential fees for collection and recycling are $12.50 per month. That could increase to $19 per month by 2009 if the city continues as it is now.LaFond said the council may get enough feedback from citizens that they want the department to stay the same and that increased fees are worth it. Then there will be no requests for proposals to take over the city service. (If the city does advertise for bids, none have to be accepted after they’re received.)In the meantime, the city has some preliminary research on refuse and recycling collection.
Cost per capita in Luverne for the garbage services is $68.56; in Pipestone is $42.11; in Benson is $37.67; in Chisholm is $82.91; in Dilworth is $76.46; in LaCrescent is $39.96. (All listed cities have comparable populations.)
Savings to the city if the service is private include supervision and support staff as well as the actual workers who would be eliminated from Public Works.
The 2004 refuse and recycling budget includes $40,000 for depreciation expenses on major equipment. In addition, the annual budget includes $10,000 per year for equipment replacement. Annual equipment maintenance for 2004 is $22,500.
If the service is privatized the city would require the private provider to purchase existing equipment from the city. That would net $85,000 to $100,000 per year.
The city of Luverne pays a tipping fee of $65 per ton to transport waste through the county. Private haulers have reported lower tipping fees of $28 per ton.Hauge said, "I don’t want to have too much change too fast," pointing out that employee morale, relations with the public and partnerships with the county are delicate.LaFond said the discussion at this point is just financial, not about policy or politics, with no decisions made."We won’t know if we don’t look," Councilman Tom Martius said.Other items on the table for future discussion were:
Combining dispatching services for law enforcement with other counties in the area for a cost savings.
A fire hydrant fee. Property taxes normally generate all funds for fire protection, but tax exempt properties (such as the school, non-profits and churches) still get fire protection. A small monthly fee on utility bills could generate up to $25,000 a year.
A street lighting utility fee. This has been previously discussed by the City Council and would involve $1.25 to $2.25 fee on utility bills to fund future street light projects, which are costly for the city to pay at once. The city anticipates no increase in electric rates for this or next year.
Reviewing assessing contract with the county. Currently, LaFond said the city of Luverne pays 77 percent of the county assessor position with its fees. The county charges an inconsistent amount for assessing: Magnolia pays $625 for 110 parcels and Hardwick pays $1,500 for 102 parcels.
Possibility of implementing a fine for false fire alarms to cover the cost of responding.
Utilize more volunteers at the library and increase circulation.
Review use of Pool and Fitness Center by day and time of day.
Suggest a reduction of juvenile arrests by 25 percent.

By John RittenhouseThe Adrian football team dropped out of the unbeaten ranks after taking a 27-14 setback from Russell-Tyler-Ruthton in Tyler Tuesday.Dragon Coach Randy Strand was concerned about how the AHS defense would fare against strong-running R-T-R offense.His concern proved to be warranted as the Knights ran the ball for 319 yards and three touchdowns to set the stage for a 13-point win."We couldn’t stop their running game," said Strand. "They have a good offensive line that blocks well up front, and (running back) Minette ran for 230 yards on a wet field. R-T-R is for real. It will take a pretty good team to beat them."It looked like Adrian might be that team when the Dragons scored a touchdown early in the third quarter to open a 14-7 lead.R-T-R, however, controlled play the rest of the way while outscoring the Dragons 20-0.The Knights began their rally with their second possession of the second half.R-T-R advanced the ball 55 yards in eight plays before Minette scored at the end of an eight-yard run at the 6:24 mark of the third quarter. Dragon Casey Knips kept Adrian in front 14-13 when he blocked the ensuing extra point.The Knights forced Adrian to punt as the third quarter progressed and Minette made the Dragons pay for the change of possession when he returned the punt 80 yards to the AHS five-yard line.Knight Adam Lingen scored on a five-yard run at the 5:00 mark of the third period, and Minette carried in the two-point conversion to give the hosts a 21-14 advantage.Adrian made a bid to tie the game with a drive to the R-T-R 19 early in the fourth quarter, but the Dragons lost the ball on downs.The Dragons were forced to go for a first down during a fourth-down situation late in the fourth quarter, and the unsuccessful bid gave the Knights the ball on the AHS 14.Minette put the game away with a six-yard touchdown run moments later to end the scoring with 50 seconds left to play.The Knights drew first blood in the game by turning their first offensive possession of the contest into a six-play, 82-yard drive that ended with Minette scoring on a one-yard run at the 8:16 mark of the first quarter. A successful extra point made the difference 7-0.Adrian’s Brandon Wolf fielded the ensuing kick and returned it 82 yards for a touchdown 13 seconds later. Levi Bullerman hooked up with Tony Sauer for a successful conversion pass to give the Dragons an 8-7 edge.The score remained the same until early in the third quarter, when Sauer intercepted a pass and returned to the R-T-R 28. Bullerman scored on a two-yard run three plays later, but a failed extra-point attempt left Adrian sporting a 14-7 lead that was erased by period’s end.The 2-1 Dragons will try to rebound from the loss when they host 2-1 Fulda Friday for the 2003 version of Parents’ Night at AHS. Fulda posted an 8-0 home win over Ortonville Friday.Team statisticsAdrian: 127 rushing yards, 50 passing yards, 177 total yards, 10 first downs, two penalties for 30 yards, two turnovers.R-T-R: 319 rushing yards, 26 passing yards, 345 total yards, 15 first downs, four penalties for 35 yards, one turnover.Individual statisticsRushing: Billy Anderson 13-48, L.Bullerman 11-38, Wolf 8-21, Trent Bullerman 3-10, Sauer 1-10.Passing: L.Bullerman 5-17 for 50 yards.Receiving: Wolf 3-32, Sauer 1-3, Brett Block 1-15.Defense: Wolf 11 tackles, Sauer 14 tackles and one interception, L.Bullerman nine tackles, Tyler Schettler 13 tackles.

By John RittenhouseThe Ellsworth volleyball team picked up a pair of wins after playing in three different venues in a five-day span.The Panthers lost a three-game Camden Conference match to Lincoln HI in Ivanhoe Thursday before going 2-2 at the Central Lyon Tournament in Rock Rapids, Iowa, Saturday. Ellsworth returned home Monday to lose a three-game match to Edgerton.Ellsworth, 6-5 overall, hosts Russell-Tyler-Ruthton tonight.Edgerton 3,Ellsworth 0Visiting Edgerton handed the Panthers their first home loss of the season when the teams squared off in Ellsworth Monday.The Flying Dutchmen rolled to an easy win in Game 1 and met late challenges offered by EHS in the final two games to sweep the three-game match.Edgerton raced to a 16-0 lead in the opener and never looked back while posting a 25-5 win.Ellsworth led 8-5 after Amy Tiesler served a point to give the Panthers their biggest lead of the match. Edgerton, however, countered with a 10-2 surge to gain a 15-10 advantage.The Panthers scored five of the next six points to trail 16-15 before Edgerton went on a 9-2 run to clinch a 25-17 victory.Game 3 proved to be the most intense battle of the match.Edgerton scored the first five points of the game and led 10-1 at one point before Ellsworth clawed its way back into contention.The Panthers trimmed the difference to three points three different times and trailed by one (24-23) when Laurel Drenth served a pair of points, but Edgerton scored the next point to win 25-23.Drenth led the Panthers with six kills and Marla Groen charted six set assists.CL tourneyThe Panthers split four matches during their annual appearance at the Central Lyon Tournament in Rock Rapids, Iowa, Saturday.Ellsworth posted wins over the host team and Sheldon at the event. West Sioux and George-Little Rock saddled the Panthers with setbacks.The Panthers opened the event by dropping a three-game decision to WS.EHS prevailed 22-20 in the opener before dropping 21-6 and 21-19 decisions.Amanda Deutsch recorded 15 digs in the opener, while Marla Groen and Lynette Drenth charted seven assists each. Deutsch (nine of nine) and Laurel Drenth (12 of 12) were perfect in the serving category. Tiesler and Laurel Drenth charted three assists each.CL nipped the Panthers 21-18 in Game 1 before Ellsworth battled back to win the match with 21-17 and 15-12 victories in the final two games.Deutsch picked up 10 digs and Groen registered six set assists during the win. Tiesler and Rosie Lewis charted three kills each. Groen was 12 of 12 serving with four aces. Lynette Drenth added four ace serves.The Panthers swept a two-game match from Sheldon with 21-14 and 21-19 wins in the third round.Lynette Drenth recorded seven set assists and Laurel Drenth set the pace with five kills in the Sheldon match. Deutsch completed all 12 serves she attempted.G-LR handed the Panthers 21-19 and 21-12 setbacks in the final round.Deutsch was seven of seven serving in the finale.LH 3, Ellsworth 0The Panthers received their first Camden Conference setback of the season when they were swept by Lincoln HI in Ivanhoe Thursday.The Rebels outscored EHS 75-51 during the evening while securing 25-15, 25-20 and 25-16 victories.Tiesler completed 12 of 12 serves and charted three aces during the match.Laurel Drenth led EHS with six digs and five kills, while Lynette Drenth recorded four set assists.

Luverne senior defender Tyler Elbers (42) chases down Windom quarterback Brock Zimmerman during Friday’s Southwest Conference football game in Windom. Elbers gave the Cardinals a 6-0 lead with a rushing touchdown in the first quarter, but the Eagles blanked LHS the rest of the way during a 33-6 victory.By John RittenhouseA promising start turned into a disappointing finish when Luverne traveled to Windom for a Southwest Conference football clash Friday.Luverne was looking to run its SWC record to 2-0 at the expense of the unbeaten Eagles, and there were signs that it might happen when the Cardinals dictated play for the first eight minutes while taking a 6-0 lead.Windom, however, unleashed a powerful running game on the Cardinals while going on a 33-0 scoring run to defeat LHS 33-6.It was a disappointing game," said Cardinal coach Todd Oye. "We started out strong and had a chance to get Windom with a good offense down. We had the opportunity to do that, but we didn’t cash in when we were down in the red zone."The Cardinals did start the game off in a positive way.Luverne received the opening kick and put together a nine-play, 73-yard scoring drive that ended with senior tailback Tyler Elbers scoring on a nine-yard run at the 7:54 mark of the opening period. A failed extra-point attempt kept the score at 6-0.While Luverne’s touchdown came at the end of a running play, it was a trio of successful passes that set up the score.Cardinal quarterback Andy Stegemann, who was five of seven passing in the game, completed all three of his attempts in the opening series. He hooked up with Ben Cornish for a 32-yard gain and tossed two completions to Jared Pick for a total of 20 yards.Luverne received an opportunity to increase its lead when Cardinal defender Brad Herman recovered a fumble on the LHS 36-yard line two plays into Windom’s first possession of the game.Elbers broke loose for a 39-yard run to the Windom 25 on the first play of scrimmage. The Cards faced a fourth-and-five situation 20 minutes later, which set up a 37-yard field goal try that kicker Adam Kurtz was unable to convert.Luverne’s lost scoring opportunity seemed to inspire the Windom offense, which started its second possession on the WHS 20 with 4:19 left in the first period and finished with quarterback Brock Zimmerman scoring on a nine-yard run.The seven-play, 80-yard drive was followed by an extra point from Trevor Baloun, giving the Eagles a 7-6 edge with 1:47 remaining in the opening period.Windom stole the game’s momentum for good when it scored 13 points in a span of 1:41 late in the first half.It looked like the Cardinals would get the ball when the Eagles lined up in punt formation during a fourth-and-seven situation in LHS territory. Windom, however, deceived the Cards with a nine-yard run for a first down.The play kept alive what turned into an 11-play, 70-yard drive that ended with Trenton Anderson scoring on a one-yard run with 1:47 left in the second quarter. The extra-point attempt failed, leaving the Eagles with a 13-6 cushion.Windom burned all three of its timeouts when three unsuccessful runs forced the Cardinals to punt.A long punt return gave the Eagles the ball on the LHS 37 with 32 seconds remaining. Three plays later, Zimmerman tossed a 16-yard touchdown pass to Mitch Masters with eight seconds left. Baloun added the extra point to make it a 20-6 game at the intermission."The score very easily could have been in our favor at halftime," Oye said. "Our special teams left us in a hole a couple of times, and we were not making the plays on defense. The kids had to go through a lot of reads, and they were getting into the right spots. They just were not making the tackles."Another letdown on special teams by Luverne set the tone for the second half.Windom’s Drew Zimmerman fielded the kick to start the third quarter and returned it 66 yards to the LHS 22.Drew Zimmerman scored on a seven-yard run seven plays later to make the score 26-6 at 7:56 mark of the third period. Elbers sacked Windom’s holder when he bobbled the snap during a failed extra-point attempt.Luverne fumbled the ball five plays into its first possession of the third quarter and Windom’s Nick Johnson recovered the loose ball on the Luverne 48.The Eagles covered the remaining 48 yards in nine plays with Anderson scoring on a two-yard plunge with 32 seconds left in the period. When Baloun added the extra point, the scoring was complete.Luverne, 1-2 overall and 1-1 in the league, will try to bounce back from the loss when it hosts Worthington Friday.The Trojans are 2-1 overall and 0-1 in the SWC. Worthington’s conference loss was to Windom."Worthington is the defending conference champion, but they graduated a lot of seniors last year. They are a team that runs play-action passes pretty well. The keys for us will be to stop their passing game and put more points on the scoreboard," Oye concluded.Team statisticsLuverne: 143 rushing yards, 73 passing yards, 216 total yards, nine first downs, three penalties, two turnovers.Windom: 269 rushing yards, 29 passing yards, 298 total yards, 15 first downs, three penalties, two turnovers.Individual statisticsRushing: Elbers 9-55, Mark Remme 12-36, Herman 4-41, Stegemann 1-minus six, Nate Siebenahler 3-13, Tim Rust 1-8.Passing: Stegemann 5-7 for 73 yards, Herman 0-1 for zero yards.Receiving: Pick 3-28, Cornish 1-32, Remme 1-13.Defense: Herman one fumble recovery, Elbers one sack, Tony Willers one sack and one fumble recovery.

By John RittenhouseStrong individual performances by Luverne’s Lexi Heitkamp and Hills-Beaver Creek-Ellsworth-Edgerton’s Tyler Bush proved to be the highlights turned in by athletes representing the Star Herald coverage area at the Worthington Turkey Trot Saturday.Luverne, H-BC-E-E and Adrian were on hand for the 36th running of the event.No team statistics were available from the event, but area talent did well on an individual basis.Heitkamp won her fourth consecutive varsity race of the season after crossing the finish line with a time of 15:21.Amanda Saum placed sixth in 16:44, Kristy Heikes 15th in 17:29 and Victoria Arends 16th in 17:38 for the LHS girls.Adrian’s Morgan Lynn turned in a solid effort during the girls’ varsity race. She placed fourth in 15:38.Kelly Banck placed 22nd in 18:04, Megan Henning 30th in 19:08 and Sarah Kruger 37th in 20:23 for the Dragons.Bush ran a good race to place second in boys’ varsity race with a time of 17:24.Kale Wiertzema placed 16th in 18:38, Todd Alberty 34th in 19:32 and Derek Haak 43rd in 20:16 for the Patriots.Luverne, which placed second to Southwest Christian as a team, received Top-10 races from Tom Ward and Nick Otten. Ward placed fifth in 18:02. Otten finished ninth in 18:15.Jesson Vogt (15th in 18:36), Ruston Aaker (18th in 18:42) and Thomas Pinkel (29th in 19:14) made contributions to Luverne’s team performance.Travis Halfmann (30th in 19:20), Dusty Antoine (32nd in 19:27) and Brent DeGroot (40th in 20:41) ran without influencing the scoring for LHS.Adrian was led by Brandon Bullerman’s 11th-place performance. Bullerman ran an 18:27.Lee Stover (12th in 18:24), Paul Honermann (25th in 19:05), Chad Janssen (26th in 19:11 and Aaron Mormann (40th in 20:04) padded Adrian’s team tally.Ethan Wieneke and David Brake placed 46th and 47th with respective 20:37 and 20:55 times without impacting the scoring for AHS.Here is a look at the rest of the individual results turned in by area runners at Saturday’s meet.Junior varsity boysAdrian: Pete Jensen, first, 11:58; Kyle Knips, seventh, 12:37; Dustin Lonneman, 31st, 14:16; Eldon Vaselaar, 33rd, 14:22; Michal Berrie, 38th, 15:20; Trent Lutmer, 43rd, 16:11.Luverne: Grant Oldre, ninth, 12:50; Craig Oeding, 12th, 13:02; Michael Nelson, 14th, 13:04; Eric Kraetsch, 21st, 13:26; David Nelson, 23rd, 13:43; Jerome Willers, 26th, 13:55.H-BC-E-E: Adam Finke, 11th, 12:59; John Sandbulte, 15th, 13:04; Michael Bos, 29th, 14:05; Jared Drenth, 34th, 14:27; Stephen Harsma, 40th, 15:35.Junior varsity girlsH-BC-E-E: Amanda Tilstra, first, 13:46.Junior high boysH-BC-E-E: Dustin Verhey, fifth, 5:39; Grant Hoogendoorn, 15th, 6:07; Luke Tiesler, 28th, 6:26; Tyler Larson, 34th, 6:34; B.J. Kruse, 42nd, 6:51.Adrian: Jarod Boltjes, 10th, 5:51; Ross Wieneke, 12th, 5:54; Kyle Henning, 20th, 6:13; Collin Lynn, 23rd, 6:18; Jordan Pater, 39th, 6:43; Zach Runia, 49th, 7:09; Jared Altman, 51st, 7:17.Junior high girlsAdrian: Anna Sauer, 25th, 8:04.Luverne: Kayla Raddle, first, 6:08; Amanda Kannas, third, 6:18.H-BC-E-E: Jill Weitgenant.

By John RittenhouseSixteen runners from the Star Herald coverage area helped form a 604-athlete field for the 24th annual Turkey Day 10K race in Worthington Saturday.Rochester’s Joey Keillor and St. Paul’s Debbie Leyden won the men’s and women’s individual championships with respective 31:19 and 36:11 times respectively.Five area runners turned in outstanding performances in their own right, led by Adrian’s Darren Pater.Pater, who led all local entries by placing 25th overall with a time of 35:54, placed second in the male 35-39 division.Luverne’s Peggy Nelson and Adrian’s Virginia Simonich, who placed 337th and 351st overall with respective 54:31 and 55:20 times, also placed second in their female age divisions. Nelson was second in the 50-54 division, and Simonich second in the 55-59 division.Luverne’s Al Stoakes and Jessica Christensen placed in the Top 5 positions in their divisions.Stoakes, who was 136th overall in 45:29, finished third in the male 55-59 division. Christensen, who finished 132nd overall in 45:23, placed fourth in the female 20-24 division.Here is a look at how the rest of the runners representing the Star Herald coverage area fared during Saturday’s race.Robert Kunkel, Adrian, 86th overall and 12th in the male 25-29 division, 43:07.Dave Duffy, Luverne, 130th overall and 15th in the male 36-39 division, 45:16.Stephanie Hoven, Magnolia, 234th overall and 10th in the female 20-24 division, 50:10.Terry Vajert, Luverne, 249th overall and 41st in male 40-44 division, 50:33.Al Simonich, Adrian, 291st overall and 19th in the male 55-59 division, 52:11.Phoebe Flom, Luverne, 320th overall and 12th in the female 30-34 division, 53:27.Larry Lyon, Luverne, 329th overall and 22nd in the male 55-59 division, 54:06.Monica Dingman, Adrian, 374th overall and ninth in the female 35-39 division, 55:49.Art Ehde, Luverne, 402nd overall and 26th in the male 55-59 division, 57:28.Lori Ehde, Luverne, 403rd overall and 18th in the female 30-34 division, 57:29.Terry Nelson, Luverne, 404th overall and 34th in the male 50-54 division, 57:35.

Luverne’s Samantha Gacke swats the ball during Monday’s Southwest Conference tennis match against Worthington in Luverne. The Cardinals beat the Trojans 4-3 to even their league mark at 1-1 for the season.By John RittenhouseThe Luverne tennis team split a pair of matches early this week.The Cardinals edged Worthington by one point in a Southwest Conference match played in Luverne Monday. LHS traveled to Sherburn Tuesday and came up on the short end of a five-point decision against Martin County West.Luverne, 3-5 overall, plays in Pipestone today before hosting Marshall and Sleepy Eye Monday and Tuesday respectively.MCW 6, Luverne 1The home-standing Mavericks caught the Cardinals at the right time in Sherburn Tuesday.Luverne was coming off an emotional victory over Worthington the day prior, and the Cards didn’t seem to have anything left for MCW Tuesday."Having a match and a trip the next day after a big win over Worthington didn’t work out well for us," said Cardinal coach Greg Antoine. "We were flat."Luverne’s lone win came from Jessica Klein and Kaitlyn Deragisch, who took a three-set decision at No. 2 doubles against Kelsey Krueger and Melanie Schweiss at No. 2 doubles. The Luverne squad lost the first set 7-6 (7-5 in the tie-breaker) before bouncing back to nail down a pair of 6-3 wins in sets two and three.MCW’s Liza Bettin and Lindsay Brandt topped Jenny Braa and Nikki Van Dyk by 6-1 and 6-3 tallies at No. 1 doubles. Jessica Dressen and Toni Pribyl notched 6-2 and 6-4 wins over Andraya Gacke and Katie Kraetsch at No. 3.The Mavericks won all four singles matches in straight sets.Megan Biehn secured 6-0 and 7-5 wins over Samantha Gacke at No. 1, Brittany Weseman topped Brittany Boeve 6-3 and 7-6 (7-1 in the tie-breaker) at No. 2, Cailey Grupe upended Alyssa Klein by 6-3 and 6-1 tallies at No. 3, and Amy Goldencrown bested Christina Lovett by 6-1 and 6-2 counts at No. 2.Luverne 4,Worthington 3The Cardinals snapped a two-match losing skid when they posted a Southwest Conference win over Worthington in Luverne Monday.Things looked bleak for the Cards when Worthington won three of the first four matches played, but LHS took the final three contests to nip the Trojans by one point."We played pretty well," said Cardinal coach Antoine. "It probably was one of our best matches of the year."Luverne went 2-2 in singles and took two of three doubles battles.After losing a 6-2 set to Worthington’s Megan Ahlquist and Shelly Morrow at No. 1 doubles, Braa and Boeve rallied to notch 6-2 and 6-3 wins to win a three-set match.Cardinals Andraya Gacke and Lindsey Severtson secured 7-5 and 6-2 wins over Kristy Jackson and Maria Ramert at No. 3 doubles.Alyssa Klein and Deragisch secured wins in straight sets at No. 3 and No. 4 singles for LHS. Klein downed Kassi Buysman 7-6 (7-5 in the tie-breaker) and 6-1 to secure the match-winning point for Luverne. Deragisch beat senior Lindsay Meier by a pair of 6-1 scores.Worthington’s Joann Loosbrock and Samantha Tate won a 6-4, 1-6, 2-6 match from Jessica Klein and Heidi Sandbulte at No. 2 doubles.Worthington’s Lisa Jackson topped Samantha Gacke by 6-3 and 7-6 (7-5 in the tie-breaker) at No. 1 singles, while Lindsey Radloff saddled Van Dyk with a pair of 6-2 setbacks at No. 2.

By John RittenhouseThe Hills-Beaver Creek volleyball team was unable to defend its 2002 championship during Saturday’s Central Lyon Tournament in Rock Rapids, Iowa.The Patriots went 3-1 and placed second in a nine-team field, but the fact that H-BC was unable to repeat as event champion didn’t sit well with the players or with H-BC coach Curt Doorneweerd."Second place is pretty good, but it kind of was a disappointment for us," Doorneweerd said. "We thought this was a tournament we could have and should have won. But, second place is second place. There were seven other teams that would have liked to finish where we did."H-BC opened the event by losing a 21-18 decision to Canton in the first game of the day before battling back to post 21-15 and 15-7 wins to take the match.Erin Boeve recorded 20 kills and 11 blocks in the opener, while Cassi Tilstra added 12 kills. Diedre Vanden Bussche was nine of nine serving with two aces.The Patriots swept George-Little Rock in two games by identical 21-10 scores in the second round to complete pool play with a 2-0 record.Serving success by Boeve (eight of nine with five aces), Brittney Rozeboom (eight of nine with two aces), Tilstra (seven of seven) and Melinda Sandstede (five of five) highlighted the win over G-LR.The Patriots ran into eventual tournament champion West Sioux in the championship round and dropped 23-21 and 21-19 games.Boeve had 11 kills and five blocks during H-BC’s lone loss of the tournament.After losing a 21-10 decision in Game 1 against West Lyon in the finale, the Patriots rallied to nail down 21-17 and 15-11 wins to wrap up second place.Boeve had 23 kills and 10 blocks against the host team, while Tilstra added four kills. Rozeboom (10 of 11 with one ace), Kelly Mulder (eight of eight with two aces) and Amber Olson (five of five with two aces) served well against the Lions.

By John RittenhouseThe Hills-Beaver Creek volleyball team ran its record to 2-0 in Red Rock Conference play with a 3-0 victory over Sioux Valley-Round Lake-Brewster in Round Lake Thursday.Along with winning their third straight match against the Raiders, the Patriots accomplished a goal H-BC coach Curt Doorneweerd set for the clash."We finally played three straight games at a high level of intensity," he said. "That’s something we wanted to do in this match. We usually slip up and lose our intensity somewhere. Our goal was to play three games at a high level of intensity, and we got that accomplished."H-BC played with a spirit that SV-RL-B couldn’t compete with.H-BC rolled to a 25-14 win in the opener before posting a 25-18 win in Game 2.The Patriots saved their best game for the finale as they coasted to a convincing 25-8 win.Brittney Rozeboom (26 of 27 with four aces) and Cassi Tilstra (15 of 16 with one ace) led the Patriots in serving. Tilstra also had three kills.Erin Boeve, who served four aces, recorded 16 kills and eight blocks at the net. Kelly Mulder charted two kills and one block for the winners, while Amanda Olson added three kills.Doorneweed said Melinda Sandstede turned in her best setting performance of the season during the win.