North Mahaska, Grinnell Highlight Area Girls’ Basketball Teams in First Rankings

Posted on November 20, 2017November 22, 2017 by Rick Watts

Basketball season is getting underway in the coming days for the girls and there are a handful of teams from the listening area that are in the initial rankings from the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union.

In Class 1A, three teams from the South Iowa Cedar League were named. North Mahaska is a big surprise at #4 after a stellar 16-7 season last year with mostly freshman leading the way. Head Coach L.E. Moore and the Warhawks have state tournament experience but after a few down years, this year’s team will have high expectations to try to make it back with still a young core learning together.

Also in the Class 1A rankings are Montezuma and Lynnville-Sully. Montezuma went 17-7 last season under Cory Nikkel and will start this season at #9 under new Head Coach Janel Burgess. Their rivals from Lynnville-Sully had a great year last year, finishing 21-3. The Hawks start the year ranked #12.

In Class 4A, a couple of Little Hawkeye Conference teams made the list. Grinnell will start the year ranked 4^th after a 19-5 season. The Tigers return several key players to that team for Head Coach Trent Edsen. Pella will also be a factor in the LHC, as they are ranked 10^th after finishing 20-5 last season. Head Coach Jerod Garland will have to replace a couple of senior leaders, but there’s still plenty of talent for the Lady Dutch.

There are no area teams ranked in Class 2A, 3A, or 4A.

The No Coast Network will be releasing a full Game of the Week schedule later this week for the basketball season. The Game of the Week will air on 104.9 FM KBOE and kboeradio.com on Fridays throughout the season. Oskaloosa Basketball will be on 99.5 FM/740 AM KMZN and radiokmzn.com with video on MCG Channel 7 for most games, beginning on November 28 as the Indians travel to play Fairfield with the broadcast starting at 6 PM.

Band Members From William Penn University Chosen For Honor Band

Posted on November 13, 2017 by Rick Watts

Four collegiate band members have been selected to participate in the 24th Annual Iowa Collegiate Honor Band. This year’s guest conductor for the Iowa Collegiate Honor Band is Dr. Jack Stamp.

Students selected from local William Penn University include:

Mallari Winegar of Rose Hill, IA – Clarinet; senior music education major.
Joseph Criscuolo of Pella, IA – Alto Saxophone; senior music education major.
Adam Genskow of Oskaloosa, IA – Tenor Saxophone; senior music education major.
Steve Residor of St. Louis, MO – Trombone; senior music education major.

The event is open to the public and free to attend. The honor band will rehearse Nov. 17– 18, with their performance at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 18. The rehearsals and performance will be held at Josephine Tope Community Auditorium attached to Nevada High School, located at 1001 15th St. Nevada, IA 50201.

About Dr. Jack Stamp

Dr. Jack Stamp is currently an adjunct professor of music at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, where he teaches conducting and composition. Prior to his current appointment, Dr. Stamp served as Director of Band Studies at Indiana University of Pennsylvania for 25 years and served as chairperson of the music department for six years. While at IUP, he was awarded Distinguished University Professor.

Dr. Stamp holds a DMA degree in Wind Conducting from Michigan State University where he studied with Eugene Corporon. An internationally recognized composer of wind band music, Dr. Stamp studied composition with Robert Washburn, Fisher Tull, Joan Tower, David Diamond, and Richard Danielpour.

He was the founder/conductor of the Keystone Wind Ensemble, a wind band dedicated to the recording of forgotten band literature. The ensemble boasts over 20 commercial compact disc releases. He is a contributing author to the “Teaching Music Through Performance in Band” series and resides in Hudson, WI with his wife, LeAnn.

PELLA ADVANCES TO VOLLEYBALL REGIONAL FINAL; OSKY, EBF ELIMINATED

Posted on October 26, 2017 by Rick Watts

Four area teams were in action in regional semifinal action Tuesday night.

Pella and Osky battled in Class 4A Region 4 and it was all Lady Dutch from start to finish. Oskaloosa held their own during the first set before slipping late to drop it 25-20. Pella would stroll through the next two sets as they found their footing. They would win the second set 25-14 and the third set 25-8.

Pella was led by Emily Holterhaus, who would get 19 kills to lead all players. Josie Bunnell had eight kills for Osky, who ends their season with a record of 13-21.

Pella moves into the Region 4 Final next Monday where they will face Bondurant-Farrar. Pella is 32-6 on the season and one of their losses came against Bondurant-Farrar in the B-F Tournament back on August 26th. That match will be in Pella on Monday, October 30th at 7 PM.

Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont hosted Davis County in a matchup between two South Central Conference teams in Class 3A Region 8. EBF had beaten DC in the regular season in both of their matchups without dropping a set, but Tuesday night was different. Davis County would pull off the road upset in four sets (25-21, 25-19, 23-25, 25-23). EBF’s season comes to an end with a record of 21-16.

Finally, Ottumwa went on the road and faced a tough Waukee squad and came up short in straight sets (25-10, 25-18, 25-10). Ottumwa finished their season with a 19-20 record.

More volleyball action will be on tap on the No Coast Network on Thursday as Montezuma plays in the Class 1A Region 4 Semifinals against North Tama. You can hear that on 104.9 FM KBOE, kboeradio.com, and the KBOE mobile app with the pregame show starting at 6:45 PM for the 7 PM first serve.

FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS INCLUDE NINE AREA TEAMS

Posted on October 23, 2017 by Rick Watts

The football season flew by and it was extremely interesting in our listening area. Nine teams qualified in five of the six classes.

In Class 3A, Oskaloosa grabbed one of the two wild card slots and will play on the road at Cedar Rapids Xavier. Xavier is ranked #1 in the Radio Iowa poll and have been one of the highest ranked teams around the state all season. Osky will be a big underdog, but Head Coach Jake Jenkins has a team that went 4-1 on the road this season.

You can hear that game live on 99.5 FM/740 AM KMZN, radiokmzn.com, and the KMZN mobile app. The pregame show will begin at 6:30 PM for the 7 PM kickoff.

Pella has won seven straight games after their long winning streak was snapped. The Dutch will start the defense of their three consecutive state championships at home against Webster City in a rematch of last year’s state title game.

PCM made the Class 2A playoffs after dominating in District 6. The Mustangs will host Williamsburg, who grabbed one of the 2A wild cards.

In Class 1A, Pella Christian ran the table in the regular season for the second straight year. The Eagles will also host Sigourney/Keota for the second straight year to start the playoffs. S/K fell in a win-and-in game against Wilton, but the Cobras landed a wild card spot. You can hear that game on 104.9 FM KBOE, kboeradio.com, and the KBOE mobile app. Pregame show will start at 6:30 PM for the 7 PM kickoff.

Also in Class 1A, Pleasantville backed into the #2 seed in District 5 with two district losses. The Trojans won the three-way tiebreaker including Woodward-Granger and Interstate 35. Pleasantville will be on the road to face West Branch in the first round.

Class A District 6 produced two playoff teams from the listening area. Lynnville-Sully is ranked #1 in the Radio Iowa poll after an unbeaten regular season. The Hawks will host district foe New London, who snagged a wild card. L-S beat New London in their meeting earlier this year in New London, 20-14.

Pekin finished in second in the district and they will be on the road at Hudson. Hudson had a great season, going undefeated and have been ranked in the top five for the last half of the year.

Finally, Moravia survived a potential circus in 8-Player District 5, finishing in second with their only loss to district champs HLV. The Mohawks will go on the road in the first round to face perennial powerhouse Don Bosco.

After the games go final, you can also check out a postseason edition of Scores and More Presented By Bubbl’r. Taylor Howard will be running through all of the playoff scores around the state and go through the matchups in the quarterfinal rounds.

Bank Iowa Moving Into Pella With Another Location

Posted on October 14, 2017 by Rick Watts

A former Casey’s building at the corner of Washington and and Main Street sold in auction to Bank Iowa.

The address of 640 Washington was home to a Casey’s General Store for some time, until it was put up for auction. Bank Iowa purchased the lot and building for just over $200,000.

Bank Iowa is centered out of West Des Moines and recently moved into another building in Pella on Franklin Street.

Although this Casey’s location is closed, there are still two open within the city limits of Pella on the north side off of highway 63 and the other on the south side near Dairy Queen off Clark Street.

Large Schools Look for Momentum Heading Into Volleyball Playoffs

Posted on October 11, 2017 by Rick Watts

We are within a week of every school beginning their trek to the Volleyball State Tournament at the US Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids. The schools in Class 3A, Class 4A, and Class 5A will not have it easy to get there.

All first round games in these classes will be on Wednesday, October 18^th at 7 PM.

In Class 3A Region 6, PCM (9-16) will have to go on the road to face West Marshall (27-10). The bracket is fairly loaded, so if PCM finds a way to get past West Marshall in the quarterfinals, #12 Iowa Falls-Alden could be awaiting them.

Staying in Class 3A, Region 8 involves four South Central Conference teams in the bottom half of the bracket. Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont (19-13) get Albia (10-19), a team they just beat in four sets on Tuesday night. Winner of that matchup will see either Davis County or Centerville. EBF has not lost to any of those teams all season.

Class 4A Region 4 is loaded with four area teams of the six in the bracket. Oskaloosa (11-17) will have to go on the road to play Knoxville (14-19). The Indians have made a habit out of winning road games in the playoffs. The two teams have not seen each other this season. You can hear that game live on 99.5 FM/740 AM KMZN and radiokmzn.com.

Awaiting them is #4 Pella (28-5) for the semifinals on Tuesday, October 24^th. Pella hasn’t dropped a set in two matches with Knoxville this season and swept Oskaloosa in the only meeting between those two teams so far this year.

On the other side of the bracket, Newton (3-20) will be a big underdog on the road against Carlisle (12-13) in the first round. Bondurant-Farrar (17-10) awaits the winner in the second round. B-F is one of the few teams to beat Pella this year which could be a factor if those two teams hold serve and meet in the regional final.

Region 6 in Class 4A has Grinnell (8-19) on the road to face Clear Creek-Amana (19-16) as an underdog. Winner of that match will get #7 Center Point-Urbana (30-9) in the semifinals.

Finally, Ottumwa is our lone Class 5A school and they are in the Region 5 bracket. The Bulldogs (13-16) will host Des Moines North (0-19) in a fairly easy matchup. Should they take care of business there, they will go on the road to face #12 Waukee in the semifinals (23-18). #5 Linn-Mar and #15 Cedar Rapids Prairie are in the other semifinal in a loaded bracket.

The trek to state all begins with the first round, which will take place on Wednesday, October 18^th at 7 PM. We will have continuing coverage of the brackets on the No Coast Network.

Several Area Football Teams Still Have Playoff Pulse Heading Into Stretch Run

Posted on October 9, 2017October 9, 2017 by Rick Watts

The football season is winding down with just two weeks of the regular season remaining. Even though there’s just two games left for most teams, there’s dozens of playoff implications that can come into play for several teams still hanging around for a postseason berth.

In Class 4A District 4, the Newton Cardinals improbably started their season 6-0. But a loss to Southeast Polk last week has put them in a dire position, needing to win both of their remaining games to squeak into the playoffs. With powerhouse West Des Moines Valley on deck, it would be a monumental feat for the Cardinals to be playing postseason football.

The same cannot be said for the Oskaloosa Indians, who will be looking to cinch up a playoff spot out of Class 3A District 5 in Washington this week. Osky has a very easy road map: beat Washington and you’re in, lose to Washington and you need to hope to get a wild card. A Week 9 matchup with West Burlington/Notre Dame should not deter the Indians should they get past the Demons.

Also in Class 3A, Pella is well on their way to another district title after holding off Norwalk last week. The Dutch are the only unbeaten team left in District 6 and have favorable matchups at North Polk and at home to Nevada to wrap up their season.

In Class 2A District 6, PCM is rolling through their schedule. After a tough non-district loss to undefeated Pella Christian in the season opener, the Mustangs have won six straight and are big favorites against Davis County and Clarke as they wind down a season where they’ll be named District 6 Champions.

Class 1A District 4 is pretty self-explanatory for Sigourney/Keota. There’s one open playoff spot after Iowa City Regina and the Cobras need to beat Wilton and Wapello the last two weeks of the season to clinch it. A win over Wapello this week would effectively eliminate them from the race and leave it between S/K and Wilton, and they will meet in Wilton to decide the automatic berth in Week 9.

District 5 in Class 1A is monopolized by a couple of area teams. Pella Christian is still undefeated after they knocked off Pleasantville on the road last week. PC should waltz to the district title. Pleasantville has to beat Woodward-Granger this week to clinch their spot in the playoffs.

Class A District 6 has been a fun one to follow all year and Lynnville-Sully is on their way to winning the district title. The Hawks started 8-0 last year before losing in Week 9 to Montezuma. Now, after gutsy wins over Pekin and New London, L-S gets a bye before seeing the Braves again looking for retribution on their way to the playoffs and a first round home game. Pekin faces off with New London this week to determine the #2 seed out of this district, while the loser hopes to get one of the wild cards.

Finally, 8-Player District 5 is chaotic. All we know is that HLV is sitting pretty at 5-0 in the district after a big win over Colo-Nesco. HLV faces Melcher-Dallas this week. If M-D were to drop this home game, they will likely fall out of the playoff race. Moravia is also hanging around. Their matchup this week with Colo-Nesco will factor heavily into that #2 seed. A Melcher-Dallas win this week would create even more chaos, however, as all four teams could end the week with hopes of the playoffs going into Week 9. There are no wild cards in 8-Player football so these matchups are huge for these schools.

We’ll be following the action closely the last two weeks of the season, so be sure to join us for Scores and More Presented By Bubbl’r after the games go final Friday night on 104.9 FM KBOE, 99.5 FM/740 AM KMZN, kboeradio.com and radiokmzn.com.

Recreational Trail In Pella Will Be Expanded

Posted on October 4, 2017 by Rick Watts

The US Army Corps of Engineers will be extending the Volksweg Trail 2.6 miles from the trailhead at Robert’s Creek west to Cordova Park. A new trailhead with parking lot is also planned at Cordova.

The Volksweg Trail was started in the early 1990’s as part of the Des Moines Recreational River and Greenbelt Project. Currently, it is a fourteen mile paved path that winds along the north side of Lake Red Rock, below the Red Rock Dam, and into the City of Pella. The Corps of Engineers is excited to extend this very popular trail to provide additional recreational opportunities for our visitors and local communities!

Work on the extension project is anticipated to begin in Spring 2018.

Construction Slated to Begin on Old Highway 102

Posted on September 28, 2017 by Rick Watts

Beginning at 7:30 AM next Monday October 2nd, Mahaska County will be doing pavement repair, widening and overlaying Old Hwy 102/G-5T.

The project will begin north of the South Skunk bridge, south of 155^th street and proceed north and easterly to a point approximately 1320 east if the intersection of County Roads T-33 and Old Hwy 102 or G-5T.

The second section of the project will begin at the intersection of T-22 and G-5T and proceed north to the south City Limits of Peoria.

The project is scheduled to be completed in 30 working days which is the 13^th of November weather permitting. The project is intended to keep one lane open for traffic through the use of flaggers and pilot cars. The possibility of complete closure time will be kept to a minimum.

We ask those that commute on this road to allow for extra time to deal with the one-lane traffic or the detour route is down Hwy 63 from New Sharon to Hwy 92 in Oskaloosa then west to Hwy 163 and back to Pella.

The lane widths during this work will make it unsuitable for wide loads, so using the detour is advised. Mahaska County asks for your patience as we complete this project so as to try to get project completed earlier.

If you have any questions you can call me at my office at 641-672-2897.

Several Area Schools In Good Playoff Position at Midway Point of Football Season

Posted on September 25, 2017 by Rick Watts

Five weeks of high school football are in the books and we are starting to learn who the contenders are in every district in the state.

For our listening area, there are several teams who seem to be look to push towards the playoffs.

Oskaloosa (3-2) made the playoffs in 2016 after a great 7-2 regular season after a couple of down years. They are looking to repeat the dose here in 2017, and their road map is identical. Wins in their last four games will clinch the #2 spot in Class 3A District 5 and send Osky to the postseason. Their biggest challenge will be in Week 8 against Washington, who sits at 4-1 on the year.

Pella (4-1) also sits pretty as one of the top teams in Class 3A District 6 along with Norwalk (4-1). Those teams will battle for what will likely be the District 6 Championship in Week 7.

In Class 2A, PCM (4-1) should run away with the District 6 Title once again, following up a dominant run in 2016. District 6 is fairly weak after the Mustangs which has to door wide open for someone to grab that second spot. After EBF’s (3-3) tough loss to Albia last Friday, Central Lee seems to be in the best shape to snag that #2 slot and an automatic playoff berth. Do not rule out a wild card team either, as Centerville (2-3) snuck into the playoffs last year after having a high district point differential.

In Class 1A District 4, Sigourney/Keota (2-3) is looking to bounce back after a couple of tough weeks to start the year. Their playoff aspirations likely rest on their Week 9 matchup on the road at Wilton (5-0) as Iowa City Regina (3-2) will run away with the district. Don’t sleep on Louisa-Muscatine (2-3), as they still have a road to the playoffs they can follow as well.

Class 1A District 5 seems to be locked up for Pella Christian (5-0) and Pleasantville (5-0) to make it back to the playoffs. They will meet in Pleasantville in Week 7 to likely determine the district champion and who will get home field in the first round.

Chaos is the name of the game in Class A District 6, as Lynnville-Sully (5-0), Pekin (6-0), and New London (4-0) are all rolling so far this year. A huge matchup will be featured in our Game of the Week on 104.9 FM KBOE and kboeradio.com this Friday, as Lynnville-Sully hosts Pekin. Winner of that matchup sets themselves up nicely to get into the playoffs and potentially win the district while the loser will need to win out. New London gets their crack at the top when they host Lynnville-Sully in Week 7 and travel to face Pekin in Week 8.

In 8-Player District 5, Moravia (5-1) seemed to have the best chance to make the playoffs, but a slip up last week at HLV (4-2) has the Mohawks desperate. A Week 8 duel at Colo-Nesco (4-1) will in all likelihood decide who gets the only other playoff berth at stake barring any upsets to HLV. Melcher-Dallas (4-1) has played well this season and have a route to the playoffs, but will be a solid underdog in their matchups with HLV and Moravia in Weeks 8 and 9.

Newton (5-0) has looked great in Class 4A so far this year, but the Cardinals have benefitted from the weakest schedule in the state’s largest class. They have two top teams in Southeast Polk and West Des Moines Valley in as opponents in District 4 and will need to beat at least one of them to have a chance at the postseason. That doesn’t include tough matchups against Indianola and Fort Dodge that the Cardinals will be also find themselves as underdogs.

The playoffs begin October 27^th, but we will be able to track every single movement of our area teams between now and then. Check kboeradio.com or radiokmzn.com for weekly looks at the area playoff picture.

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