Ava Rinehart Bright Spot in Shootout Loss

Ava Rinehart was a bright spot in Thursday's 14-12 loss to Stewartsville/Osborn. She had a home run, a double, and a single in the game, scoring four runs and driving in five. She came one triple short of the cycle. Lani Briggs got two hits, including a triple. Kathryn Parkhurst had one of her best games as a Shamrock, getting two hits, driving in two, and scoring one. Hali Smith, Addison Milligan, Shayla Vandiver, and Becca Welling also got hits. 

North Harrison jumped out to a 9-1 lead, but OSHS scored two in the third, seven in the fourth, and three in the fifth to take a 13-10 lead. The Wildcards added one more before a late rally fell short. 

Gage Fortner Throws for 272, Hector Garcia Adds Field Goal in Princeton Win

Gage Fortner completed 23 of his 28 passes Friday against Albany, Wyatt Maize continued to rack up impressive receiving numbers, and Hector Garcia kicked a 28-yard field goal for Princeton in the Tigers’ 44-20 win over Albany. Princeton led 24-14 after one in a slugfest, then took a 31-20 lead at the half. They slowly pulled away in the second half, scoring seven in the third and six in the fourth to seal the win. Both teams were playing shorthanded, with Albany playing without two of their starting linemen, and Princeton playing without one of their key players, Mitchell Walker, who was not dressed out for Friday’s game.

The field goal from Garcia was a rare play from any eight-man team in the area, besides several over the years made by Stanberry during the Dan Collins era. Coach Collins always had a field goal kicker ready for key situations when his teams might need it. 

Fortner threw for 272 yards and four touchdowns for the night. Princeton had Ryker Fortner handle the running chores, and he had 11 carries for 38 yards. Gage Fortner had 7 carries for 17 yards. 

Wyatt Maize had 10 catches for 131 yards even with Albany knowing where the ball was going to be thrown. Judd Henke stepped up, getting 6 catches for 103 yards. Kash Holt had 4 catches for 18 yards. Kolton Schurke had 1 catch for 15 yards, and Ryker Fortner 1 catch for 5 yards.

Kash Holt had a big night defensively for the Tigers with Walker out. He had 15 tackles to lead the team. Bowe Ussery had 12, Gavin Tatum 11, Kolton Schurke 9, Randy Wilson 9, Max Walkup 6, Wyatt Maize 5, Judd Henke 4, Ryker Fortner 4, Andrew Fordyce 2, and Reed Mitchell, Brayden Girdner, Hector Garcia, and Gavin Stockman 1. 

Princeton won the game by winning the turnover battle and by special teams. Wyatt Maize had a 44-yard pick six. Bowe Ussery had another pick. Ryker Fortner forced a fumble that Max walkup recovered. Judd Henke had a 52-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Besides his field goal, Hector Garcia kicked five out of six extra points.

Elliot Mercer did all he could for the Warriors, getting 25 carries for 194 yards. Zayden Palmer ran for 32 yards and threw for another 114. Carter Dannar had 9 carries for 27 yards and added a sack. Grayson Miller had 14 tackles for Albany, followed by Dannar with 11.

On Friday, October 2nd, Princeton won a 20-0 game against Stanberry in a mud bowl, handing the Bulldogs their first loss of the year. The one thing that went right for them in the muddy conditions was the combination of Gage Fortner and Wyatt Maize. Gage threw for 165 yards, completing 11 of his 22 passes. Wyatt Maize had 8 catches for 142 yards. 

Defensively, Princeton shut down a potent backfield of Drew Parman and Pax Schieber, who found the muddy conditions just as difficult to navigate. Gavin Tatum had 13 tackles. Bowe Ussery had 8, Kash Holt 8, Wyatt Maize 6, Kolton Schurke 6, Max Walkup 6, Ryker Fortner 5, Mitchell Walker 4, Andrew Fordyce 4, Randy Wilson 4, Gavin Stockman 2, Devin Alton 1, and Hector Garcia 1.

Kash Holt had 2.5 tackles for loss. Andrew Fordyce had 2. Gavin Tatum had 1.5, and Wyatt Maize, Ryker Fortner, and Bowe Ussery had 1. Andrew Fordyce, Kash Holt, and Gavin Tatum had 1 sack each. Ryker Fortner and Bowe Ussery had fumble recoveries. 

Tenley Griffith, Alli Burke Go Deep as Hawks Run the Table at HDC Tournament

The bats came alive for the Gilman City Hawks Saturday at the HDC Tournament as they won handily over Braymer and Mercer to win the tournament. Alli Burke and Tenley Griffith both went deep during the tournament, and everyone hit up and down the line. 

In Gilman City’s 16-0 win over Braymer, both Burke and Griffith went deep in the win. The Hawks had 17 hits, 11 of which went for extra bases. Alli Burke, Hailey McClure, and Kayleece Puls all had two doubles Avery Chadwick and Tenley Griffith had one. Kayleece Puls had a triple. Burke, Puls, and Griffith all came within one hit of completing the cycle. Kayleece Puls stole a base, and Emily Chalfant wore one for the team.

The scoring started for Gilman City in the first when Kayleece Puls doubled with one out. Alli Burke hit one over the fence to put Gilman City up 2-0.

Hailey McClure doubled in the second to open the floodgates. Tenley Griffith followed with a home run to make it 4-0. Kayleece Puls restarted the Hawks with a double. Alli Burke doubled to bring her home to make it 5-0. Nova Smith hit a pop fly to left field that dropped in. Braymer tried to nail Burke going to third, but she was safe and Smith took second on the play. Alli Burke scored on a passed ball to make it 6-0 as Nova Smith took third. Avery Chadwick singled in Malory Chalfant (running for Smith) to make it 7-0. 

Tenley Griffith used her legs this time to start the Hawk third, beating out an infield hit. Kayleece Puls singled to left and Griffith went first to third as Puls took second on the throw. Alli Burke singled to score Griffith to make it 8-0 as Puls took third. Nova Smith walked. Kayleece Puls scored on a passed ball to make it 9-0, and as Braymer was throwing it around, Alli Burke scored as well to make it 10-0. Malory Chalfant (running for Nova Smith) took third on the play. Emmery Smith walked. Avery Chadwick singled in Chalfant to make it 11-0 as Emmery Smith took second. 

Tenley Griffith doubled to center, and Kayleece Puls singled to put her on third to start the Hawk fourth. Kayleece Puls advanced to second on defensive indifference. Tenley Griffith scored on a passed ball to make it 12-0 as Puls took third. Alli Burke doubled to right to score Puls to make it 13-0. Nova Smith walked. Emmery Smith singled to left to score Alli Burke to make it 14-0 as Malory Chalfant (running for Smith) took third. Emmery Smith took second on defensive indifference. Avery Chadwick grounded to third, and Malory Chalfant was cut down trying to end it with a dash home as Emmery Smith took third. Chadwick took second on defensive indifference. Caitlynn Chalfant popped out, but with two strikes on her, Emily Chalfant took one for the team to load the bases and keep the inning going. Hailey McClure doubled to center to plate Emmery Smith and Avery Chadwick to end it.

In Gilman City’s 17-2 win over Mercer, the Cardinals hung with the Hawks for a while, but a big fourth inning ended it. Tenley Griffith went deep again and tossed a one-hitter in the win. Hailey McClure, Kayleece Puls, and Nova Smith had doubles. Avery Chadwick wore one for the team.

Back-to-back singles in the Hawk first put Alli Burke and Kayleece Puls on first and second. Nova Smith singled to left as Kayleece Puls scored and Alli Burke took third. Nova Smith advanced to second on defensive indifference. Emmery Smith singled to right as Alli Burke scored to make it 2-0 and Malory Chalfant (running for Nova Smith) took third. Avery Chadwick forced Emmery Smith at second, and Malory Chalfant scored on the play to make it 3-0.

With two outs in the second, Tenley Griffith singled to right and Kayleece Puls reached on an error as Griffith went first to third. Griffith scored on a passed ball to make it 4-0 as Puls took second. Alli Burke singled Kayleece Puls home to make it 5-0.

Three Hawk errors in the Mercer fourth nearly let the Cards back in the game as two runs crossed the plate to make it 5-2. But with two strikes on her, Hailey McClure doubled to center to start the Hawk fourth. Tenley Griffith singled to center to score McClure to make it 6-2. The ball got away, and Griffith made it to third. Kayleece Puls continued her red-hot hitting, knocking in Griffith with a double to make it 7-2. Alli Burke grounded out, but advanced Puls to third. Nova Smith doubled to left as Puls scored to make it 8-2. Emmery Smith walked. Malory Chalfant (running for Nova Smith) advanced to third on a passed ball and the ball got away, allowing her to score to make it 9-2. Emmery Smith took second on the play. Avery Chadwick reached on a dropped third strike that got away as Emmery Smith took third. Avery Chadwick advanced to second on a wild pitch. Emily Chalfant singled to center as Emmery Smith scored to make it 10-2, and Avery Chadwick took third. Emily Chalfant took second on defensive indifference. Caitlynn Chalfant walked. Hailey McClure had two strikes on her again, but her pop fly to center dropped in to score Chadwick to make it 11-2. Tenley Griffith hit a grand slam to clear the bases to make it 15-2. Alli Burke and Nova Smith singled to keep the inning going after Kayleece Puls flied out for the second out. Emmery Smith reached on a dropped pop fly and Avery Chadwick reached on another error as Malor Chalfant (running for Nova Smith) and Alli Burke came home to close out the game. 

Bluejay Softball Wins Two in Busy Week, Improves on Record

Northeast Nodaway's softball team gained its fourth and fifth wins last week, playing five games in four days, dropping a 13-3 game to Worth County, and dropping two hard-fought games at the end of the week.

On Tuesday, October 6th, Northeast Nodaway pulled off a 15-4 win over Bishop LeBlond. They fell behind 3-2 in the second but scored two in the third, four in the fourth, and seven in the fifth to secure the win. 

Brianna Meyer weathered six walks and four hit batters to get the win. Hayley Yost got two triples and six RBI's. Brianna Meyer also hit a triple. Maddy Faustlin had 3 hits and Paizlee Norman had 2. Rylee Scadden and Audrey Fetters had one hit. Brianna Meyer stole two bases and Maddy Faustlin one.

Hayley Yost grounded out to score Rylee Scadden in the first for the Bluejays' first run. Aubrey Fetters scored on a passed ball in the second. After Bluejay right fielder Ashlynn Kennard threw a runner out at the plate to end the second, it sparked the Bluejays and gave them new life.

Paizlee Norman reached on an error to start the Bluejay third. Hayley Yost grounded out. Brianna Meyer tripled to right to score Norman to tie the score at 3-3. Aubrey Fetters grounded out to put the Bluejays ahead for good.

Bristol Hicks reached first on an error to start the Bluejay fourth. Rylee Scadden laid down a sac bunt and moved her over to second. Maddy Faustlin beat out an infield hit as Hicks took third. Faustlin stole second. Paizlee Norman beat out an infield hit as Hicks scored to make it 5-3 and Faustlin took third. Hayley Yost emptied the bases with a triple to make it 7-3. Brianna Meyer reached on an error as Yost scored to make it 8-3. 

For the third inning in a row, Northeast Nodaway got a free base as Khloe Burns walked. Rylee Scadden reached on an error as Khloe Burns took second. Maddy Faustlin beat out an infield hit to load the bases. Paizlee Norman singled to center as Burns scored to make it 9-3. Hayley Yost got her second triple of the night to bring in all three runs to put the Bluejays up 12-3. Brianna Meyer reached on an error as Hayley Yost scored to make it 13-3. Brianna Meyer stole second and third and came home when Aubrey Fetters flied out to make it 14-3. Rylee Scadden reached on an error to score Kiley Yost to make it 15-3.

On Wednesday, Northeast Nodaway beat DeKalb 5-0 as Paizlee Norman pitched a four-hit shutout. She walked three, struck out six, and threw 56 strikes in 95 pitches. Ashlynn Kennard ran wild on the basepaths, stealing four bases. Kiley Yost had 2 and Maddy Faustlin had one. Aubrey Fetters, Brianna Meyer, Khloe Burns, and Paizlee Norman had doubles. 

But the Bluejays had to turn around and play them again, and this time, DeKalb won 9-6. Northeast scored three in the first, but DeKalb scored one in the first, one in the third, and three in the fourth to take a 5-3 lead. Northeast rallied to regain the lead at 6-5, but DeKalb pushed across two in the fifth and two in the sixth.

Hayley Yost hit a home run, while Aubrey Fetters, Brianna Meyer, Bristol Hicks, and Paizlee Norman hat doubles. Rylee Scadden stole a base.

They closed out the week with a 5-1 loss to Platte Valley. Emma Vicker did all she could to carry the Bluejays on her shoulders, stealing three bases. Ashlynn Kennard stole one more. Paizlee Norman got a double. 

Megan Tracy Hits Key Triple to Fuel Tiger Rally

Worth County looked in over their heads Tuesday night, October 6th when they scheduled a double header with Pattonsburg and Platte Valley. They rallied to win the Pattonsburg game, but then had a big ask for Kristen Tracy, who had recently returned from an injury – pitch two games in one night after having already pitched a game the night before. She came through, getting stronger as the game progressed as the Tigers came back for a 4-3 win. Megan Tracy broke out of a slump with a key triple to turn the Tigers’ fortunes around.

For anyone who has followed Tiger softball for long enough, there were shades of 2013 looming. On September 30th, they lost a hard-fought game to South Nodaway. They then made a long road trip to Princeton and won another hard-fought game, winning 4-3 the very next night. On the night of October 2nd, they beat Northeast Nodaway in an extra-inning thriller to finish their third game in three nights. Then, they had to make up a conference game against Braymer. Neither team’s pitchers could find the strike zone, and it became a contest to see who could stand and walk the most times. The game lasted over four hours, finally ending at midnight with Worth County coming out on top 26-21. Braymer insisted on playing a JV game afterwards. 

It looked like a long night when Chloe Peery singled, beating out an infield hit to start the game. She stole second. Jocelyn Bottorff singled to center, and Peery scored to put Platte Valley up 1-0. Bottorff took second on the throw home. Finley Moutray singled Bottorff to third. Bottorff later scored on a passed ball to put Platte Valley up 2-0. Perry added on in the second when she launched a home run over the center field fence to make it 3-0. Worth County stopped the bleeding in the third when catcher Audrey Runde gunned down Tara Evans stealing.

Worth County finally got on the board in the third when Braelyn Fletchall walked to force in a run to make it 3-1.

Brooklyn Smith singled to start the Tiger fourth. The ball got away, and she took second. Keira Hardy singled to right to score Smith; the ball got away again to allow Hardy to take second. Megan Tracy, who had been fighting a slump, caught hold of one and tripled to right to score Hardy and tied it up 3-3. Kambree Briner grounded out, but Tracy scored on the play to put the Tigers up 4-3.

That was all the runs they would score, and Worth County would have to cling by their fingernails the rest of the way. In the fifth, Jocelyn Bottorff reached first on an error. With one out, Maggie Swinford walked. But Kristen Tracy struck Whitney Nielson out, and Peighton Evans grounded out to end the threat. In the sixth, Whitney Redden beat out an infield hit. Lexi Strum lined out to first baseman Megan Tracy, who doubled off Addy King (running for Redden) for a double play. The last player the Tigers wanted to see in Chloe Peery came up next, but she grounded out to end the inning. 

There was a heart-stopping moment in the seventh when Hannah Klamm crushed a double to center to start the frame. Platte Valley would have had three chances to get the tying run home. But center fielder Addison Gray picked her off second, and the next two batters grounded out to end the game. 

Cole Ruby Has Breakout Game to Lift Tigers Past Stanberry

For several minutes, the game Friday between Worth County and Stanberry looked like it would live up to its billing as a super-clash between two 5-1 teams. But then Cole Ruby, who had been nursing an ankle injury since the first game of the year, had a breakout game, breaking loose on some long runs to spark the Tigers as they pulled away. What looked like a shootout like Pattonsburg’s games of recent years turned into a halftime rout as Worth County got an 80-19 win. They only needed 16 offensive plays to get 80 points, meaning they averaged five points every time they touched the ball. The fewest plays Worth County needed to engineer a halftime rout was in 2018, when they only needed nine plays to put Albany away by halftime. Brock Healy had a new career high, as Cole Ruby’s carries opened the passing game; Healy completed all five of his passing attempts for 252 yards. Hayden Sanders, Bo Collins, and Bentin Roberts led on the defensive end with nine tackles each.

Stanberry was 5-1 for a reason; like St. Joseph Christian’s Brayden Hoffman, they have a breakaway threat in Pax Schieber, who is only a sophomore. But Bentin Roberts stopped him on first down and Bo Collins stopped him the second time. A spread option was stopped four yards short at the 29, and Stanberry was forced to punt. Jude Archer returned it 65 yards to the house as he got a couple of blocks and raced down the right side, putting Worth County on the board at 6-0 with 10:03 left in the first quarter. But Stanberry answered right back as Pax Schieber answered back, running right through the Worth County defenders down the right side of the field for a tying score. Ryder Smyser blocked the extra point kick to preserve the tie.

Two plays later, Stanberry recovered a fumble and were on the move again. On fourth and two at Worth County’s 18, Pax Schieber showed off his skill, taking a quick pitch to the house with 7:42 left to put Stanberry up 12-6.

That was when Cole Ruby started taking over. After Hayden Sanders picked up eight yards to the 23 on first down, Cole took it to the house with 7:13 left to tie it at 12. Things started to snowball from there, as Stanberry had a bad snap on the first play from scrimmage, and Ryder Smyser beat everyone to the ball and got a scoop and score to put Worth County back in the lead. Jude Archer caught the extra point pass to make it 20-12.

Stanberry went back to their option game which got them daylight on their first possession, but Cole Ruby was there to blow it up. Ethan Lininger dropped Pax Schieber for a loss, and then Jordan Dannar, Bentin Roberts, and a host of Tigers ganged up on Schieber to force a three and out. Worth County got the ball back on its 33, and Cole Ruby took it 47 yards to the house with 4:40 left in the first quarter to make it 26-12.

Pax Scheiber ran into a brick wall as Hudson Cameron and Ethan Lininger were there to bring him down. The teams traded five-yard penalties, and then an incomplete pass set up third and nine at the 33. Hayden Sanders was there to blow up a screen pass, and Stanberry was forced to punt. Once again, Cole Ruby found a big hole, and Ryder Smyser’s block set him free to take it to the house from 47 yards out. Stanberry was ready for Hayden Sanders and his quick bursts through the middle, but he still got a trademark run, turning into a human bowling ball and knocking over three defenders to add the extra points to make it 34-12 with 3:08 left in the first quarter.

Schieber finally started finding daylight, aided by an offsides penalty, and Stanberry started moving into Worth County territory at the 35. But on fourth and three, Bo Collins stopped him cold, and Worth County took over on downs. Jude Archer was dropped for a loss, but then Brock Healy aired one out to Wyatt Scadden for 46 yards to the house with 11:51 left in the second quarter. Jude Archer got a block from Wyatt Scadden to provide the extra points to make it 42-12.

Jordan Dannar and Dylan Smith dropped the Stanberry return man at the 18 on the ensuing kickoff. Pax Schieber met Bentin Roberts after two yards. They tried a counter with Max Hilton with Worth County focusing on Schieber, but they snuffed it out for a loss. Jordan Dannar blitzed and forced a hurried throw, and Stanberry was forced to punt. Stanberry stopped Cole Ruby cold, and Hayden Sanders picked up eight to set up third and two at the 29. An offsides penalty gave the Tigers a first down at the 34. Pax Schieber came out of nowhere on a blitz to sack Brock Healy to set up second and twenty at the 24. But that only made things more interesting, as Healy stayed in and hit Jude Archer for 54 yards. A horsecollar penalty put it on the one, and Hayden Sanders took it the rest of the way with 8:13 left in the half. Jude Archer caught the conversion pass to make it 50-12.

Drew Parman tried a keeper, but Jude Archer stayed home and blew up the play. A sack by Jude Archer and Maverick Cox set up third and ten, but a pick play sprung Parker Ginther loose, and he caught a 33-yard pass to the Tiger 18. Worth County tried to make a stand as Bo Collins batted down a pass, and Jordan Dannar nearly had a spectacular pick at the goal line. But Drew Parman scrambled to the ten, and Schieber converted a fourth and two to the seven. Parman kept an option for one to the five, and Schieber took it to the house with 5:11 left. Stanberry kicked the extra point to make it 50-19. But Worth County only needed one play to respond after they got it at their 15. Brock Healy threw a bubble screen to Jude Archer, Cole Ruby knocked down his man, and that was all Jude needed to take it to the house with 5:01 left in the half. Jude Archer took a jet sweep in for the extra points to make it 58-19.

A false start put Stanberry back at the 20. They switched to a double wing look where Sam Simbro had the option to run or pass. But he was dropped after one yard on his first try and sacked by Ryder Smyser on the next. They put Parman back in at quarterback, but Ryder Smyser got back-to-back sacks, and Stanberry was forced to punt. Worth County got it back at their 21, and they only needed one play to score. Brock Healy threw a strike to Bo Collins over the middle, and he made two defenders miss as he took it to the house with 3:10 left as Worth County reached the 45-point mark.

Stanberry started at the 31, and Jordan Dannar blew up an option play to Schieber. This time, Stanberry elected to go for it on fourth and long from their own 29, and the home run try went astray, and Worth County had a short field to work with. Cole Ruby weaved his way down to Stanberry’s 7, but on a rare miscue, a botched hook-and-ladder was pounced on by Stanberry at the three. Pax Schieber finally found daylight, getting loose for 22 yards to the 25. A short pass to Parker Ginther reached the 30, but Jude Archer got a sack on the next play back to the 20. A short pass to Aiden Graham set up a fourth and eight at their own 27, but Stanberry put Simbro in at quarterback, only for Cole Ruby to bat it down.

With the short field, Worth County only needed one play to hit paydirt. Brock Healy couldn’t find anyone open, but he found a safety valve in Jude Archer, who took it to the house with 32 seconds left in the half. Hayden Sanders threw a strike to Bo Collins for two points to make it 72-19. Worth County got another score in the closing seconds when a mixup on the snap resulted in Bo Collins getting a strip and Cole Ruby taking it to the house with 5.4 seconds left in the half. Bo Collins caught the extra point pass to make it 80-19.

Cole Ruby had 7 carries for 179 yards for the Tigers. Brock Healy completed five of five passes for 272 yards. Jude Archer had 3 catches for 147 yards. Bo Collins had 1 catch for 59 yards, and Wyatt Scadden had 1 catch for 46 yards.

Bentin Roberts, Hayden Sanders, and Bo Collins had 9 tackles for the Tigers. Ryder Smyser had 6, Ethan Lininger had 4, Dylan Smith, Jordan Dannar, and Cole Ruby had 3, Jude Archer and Trenton Adwell 2, and Xander Bodle, Lance Runde, Maverick Cox, and Liam Cordell 1.

Ryder Smyser had 2 sacks. Jude Archer had 1.5, Hayden Sanders had 1, and Maverick Cox 0.5.

Three Shamrocks Receive Honors in Golf

Three Shamrocks received Academic All-State honors in Golf this year. They were Gracie Young, Lani Briggs, and Jaxcynn Hansel. Academic All-State honorees get either a 3.5 non-rounded, non-weighted cumulative GPA or a 25 ACT superscore, a sophomore, junior, or senior in good standing with their school, and considered a varsity golfer by the coach's or school's standards. 

On Friday, the high school golf team competed in Cameron for districts. Lani Briggs and Gracie Young both earned Class i District 4 All-District honors and qualified for state.