The A’s held off the Orioles 9-8 Thursday night in a Miami Pee Wee League baseball game. In another game from Thursday, the Blue Jays rolled to a 12-5 win over the White Sox.

The Orioles had tied the game at 7-7 with a run in the top of the fourth. But the A’s scored twice in the bottom of the fourth to go up 9-7. The Orioles cut the score to the final margin with a run in the fifth.

Collecting hits for the A’s were Jordan Hessee, a double and two singles; Dakota Marshall, three singles; Blake Witten, two singles, and Luke Treece, Jacob Mustain, Mikel Wood, Tyler Kneeland and Derek Wright, a single each.

The Blue Jays jumped out to a 5-1 lead in their game against the White Sox. They padded it to 7-2 in the second, then after the Sox came back with three runs in the top of the third, the Jays got a final five runs in their half of the inning.

In games played Tuesday night, the Blue Jays topped the Red Sox 12-5 and the A’s drilled the White Sox 10-1.

The Jays broke out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning. It was 6-1 after the top of the third. The Red Sox got four runs in the bottom of the third. The A’s broke out 2-0 in the first against the White Sox, then scored five times in the second. They got a final three tallies in the fourth. The Sox averted a shutout with a run in the fourth.

In games played last Monday, the Orioles topped the Cards 11-4 and the Giants beat the Indians 9-5. The Orioles broke out to a 5-0 lead and were never headed against the Redbirds. It was 8-1 after three innings and each team scored three times in the fourth.

Jacob Willard had two home runs and two doubles for the Orioles. James Forrester and Kyle Ryan added a triple and two singles.

Caydon Cole and Charlie McQuigg had a double and single each while Jessup Victor and Jimmy Wilkins had two singles each. The Indians had gone up 3-2 in the bottom of the first against the Giants. However, the Giants took the lead for good with three runs in the second and four more in the third.

Dale Yerigan is in for a very busy weekend. But he’s used to it.

The 11-time steer wrestling world champion, just back from a swing through Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan, will compete in the Ottawa County Rodeo during Friday’s opening go-round.

He will ride at Carthage, Mo., on Thursday, compete here Friday then enter a rodeo at Chickasha Saturday morning.
His busy weekend will be capped Saturday night at Pauls Valley.

“Miami is one of the closer ones,” he said. “It’s nice to be able to drive an hour or so and come back home and sleep in your own bed.”

Last week, he went from Mountain Home, Ark., to Milwaukee to Lowell, Ind., and then to Esconaba, Mich.

Cowboys, like those who spend lots of time on the road, have taken a big hit in the wallet due to the high gas prices.

“The further north and east we went, the worse the prices got,” Yerigan said. “We paid $1.64 a gallon for diesel and gas was $2.10 a gallon.”

Yerigan said he will usually enter 100 rodeos a year and will travel over 100,000 miles. And that’s without a sponsorship that is so prevalent in other sports now.

“I’m pretty much doing it all myself,” he said. “I have a trailer sponsorship this year (Sundowner Trailers has given him a four-horse trailer). Other than that, I foot all the bills myself.

“That is the unique thing about rodeo. But there are more sponsors involved and making deals.”

Unlike other sports which guarantee the contestants a payoff, rodeo doesn’t. You must place to earn a check.

“But it makes you wonder about the other sports,” Yerigan said. “You wonder if they put out every night when they know they are going to get a paycheck. In rodeo, everyone does because if you don’t, you won’t get anything.”

Yerigan has won nine straight world titles — the longest in IPRA history. His first title came in 1985.

“I still like to compete... it’s still a thrill,” he said. “A lot of them get tired of being away from their families so much, but my wife and son travel with me.”

He met his wife, Kathy, at IFR18 in Tulsa. She finished seventh in the world standings in barrel racing last year.

Dale Yerigan is currently eighth overall in steer wrestling with $4,927.76 in earnings. Clark McGuire is the leader at $9,044.40.

“I am a little disappointed because it’s been a slow start,” he said. “But I have been doing it long enough to know there are a lot of ups and downs. Hopefully I will pick it up because really we are just halfway there as far as what time of year it is.”

He said July and August are the busiest months for rodeos.

“I’ve been really fortunate. Sometimes you have years like this,” Yerigan said. “It’s not like I have had a terrible year, but people expect me to be further up (in the standings) and I expect myself to be further up. But my eye is on the big picture and what is at the end of the year.”

Three defending world champions — including all-around champ Jet McCoy — will be in the field for the Ottawa County Rodeo which kicks off a two-night run Friday at the Miami Fairgrounds.

The clinic, co-sponsored by the University of Minnesota Extension Service and Windom Community Education, was taught by MinnAqua summer intern Jason Baumgartner and assisted by Andrea Ruesch and Diana Olsem. The clinic taught third - through sixth - graders fish identification, rigging a spin - cast combo and safety at the water's edge. Students, like 11 - year-old Alyssa Lyons of Windom, also learned how to rig a simple reel using a pop can, fishing line, a bobber and a hook. Lyons and 14 other students also learned how to bait a hook, which she carefully did before heading to the lake.

Anyone who believes a high priced rod and reel is the only equipment that will catch a fish probably needed to attend Friday's Junior Fishing Clinic at Cottonwood Lake.

The Luverne High School gymnastics team hosted a “Day of Fun” for 50 participants Dec. 29 in the school’s small gyms. The youngsters were divided into eight groups where they learned maneuvers from the team’s gymnasts in the sport’s four events — floor exercise, uneven bars, vault and beam — along with dance lessons. The first-time fundraiser event was overseen by team coaches Phoebe Flom, Kari Lais and Chris Nowatzki. The team returns to competition Thursday, Jan. 6, at home against Redwood Valley.