by Julie Mueller, Garretson Middle School Science Teacher
Overall Grand Champion Middle School Science Fair Honors winner Dmitriy Sysa
Sixty-six students representing 32 projects participated in this year’s Garretson Middle School Science Fair. In the Animal Science division, with a project titled "Musical Horses", *Abrianna Doppenberg, *Lacey Lumpkin and *Cadence Magnuson were 1st and Blue ribbon winners and the Grand Champion Animal Science project. This trio of students checked to see what different genres of music did to the pulse rate of a test group of four horses. Second Place, blue ribbon, and Reserve Champion in Animal Science went to *Cade Uhlich. His project "Does Fat and Fiber Content Affect Egg Quality?” was a study in varying feed rations to the home flock.
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Coach Al Bowar started the wrestling program in Garretson High School in 1970, and it was the dawn of a new age in Garretson Athletics. Fifty years later the program is still going strong. All GHS alumni wrestlers were honored and recognized during the tournament on Friday. Pictured here are the first varsity, junior varsity and wrestling cheer teams.
Front row from left to right is JV wrestlers Dean Karli, Gerald Julson, and Bert Risty. Basketball Cheerleaders who cheered for the wrestlers for a few events are Mary Garry Frerk and Peg Vandersnick Quamen. Kristi Hanson Granstad is the only original wrestling cheerleading squad member still with us. Next is the man who started it all here in Garretson, Coach Al Bowar. Joe Vandersnick is also a JV wrestler. Back row are our first varsity wrestlers; heavyweight Steve Holzapfel, Oran Sorenson at 185 lbs, Royce Quamen at 175 lbs, Randy Schleuter at 165 lbs, David Quamen at 155 lbs, Kevin Karti at 145 lbs, Paul Evenson at 145 lbs, Dick Dubbelde at 137 lbs, Paul Nesheim at 130 lbs, Daryl Engelbrecht at 123 lbs, Jim Julson at 115 lbs, and Ron Nelson at 107 lbs. Not pictured is Eldon Semmen at 98 lbs. Check out the sports section for more details.
There are only a few businesses in Garretson that have been in operation for many years and have made Garretson the successful small town that it is.
One of the leading businesses in Garretson for many years has been the Garretson Farmers’ Co-op. During all those years, it has undergone many changes in the way in which it operates. I will not go back any further than the early 1950’s for most of this article because that is the time of my personal experience with the business. I will rely on current Location Manager Kelly Bunde for much of the information.
This August 2017 photo shows the old elevator prior to its demolition later that fall. Damaged irreparably in the straight-line winds two years prior, its removal meant a substantial change in the skyline of the city.
In the early history of the Co-op it operated a lumberyard in addition to the grain business. The lumberyard was located in open sheds at the south end of the current buildings. A.B. Doolittle was an early manager of the Lumberyard. He was followed by workers such as Martin Halverson and Keith Danielson. Don DeBates was the last employee to operate the Lumberyard.
For those who read this article and are not familiar with the Co-op method of operation, an explanation of a Co-op would be in order. A Co-op is owned by the patrons, the ones who do business with the Co-op. Each of those people or family has equal ownership in the Co-op and is issued one share. No one can own more than one share. The profit for each year is distributed to the shareholders based on the amount of business each shareholder did with the Co-op in that year. If the shareholder sold grain through the Co-op they receive a portion of the profit made by the Co-op when it sells that grain on the market. The profit from the shareholders’ purchase of supplies, (seed, feed, lumber, etc.) is also distributed the same way.
A Co-op was run by a Board of Directors who were chosen by the shareholders. The Board sets the overall policy for operation. A General Manager is hired to put those policies into effect and makes the day-to-day decisions for the operation of the Co-op. If he makes poor decisions that result in a loss for the Co-op, the Board of Directors is still responsible.
The structure of the operating Co-ops located in each town has changed considerably over time. As the farms became larger and the farmers became fewer, it was more efficient to consolidate the administrative operations in fewer locations. Garretson is part of Eastern Farmers Co-op, which is headquartered in Brandon, and further consolidation under CHS.
There are approximately twenty operating locations such as Garretson in CHS. Very few local Co-ops have chosen not to become a part of Eastern Farmers’ Co-op or CHS. Each operating location has a Manager such as Kelly Bunde, who has been here since 1991.
One of the early and long-time Presidents on the Board of Directors was Iver Henjum, a successful farmer who lived west of Garretson. Iver was immediately recognized as a leader and a person to be listened to. He served several terms as a Representative in the South Dakota Legislature and was one of the leaders involved in starting the Garretson Co-op Telephone Company, the forerunner of Alliance Communications. Iver and his wife Josie had no children and their substantial estate was distributed generously in the community of Garretson.
Farming practices in the early ‘50s were different in many ways from present days. Farms were generally smaller and many raised livestock. Crops grown were corn, oats, and hay. The agronomists had not yet done their wonderful work and crop yields were much smaller. A good yield of corn was 40 to 50 bushels per acre, picked by a tractor-driven corn picker and was picked on the ear. It was stored in corn cribs built with slatted sides that let the air in to dry the corn, and also often stored in cribs built of four-foot high rolls of corn cribbing, put in a circle about sixteen feet in diameter and three rings high.
Because the corn had been picked on the ear, when the farmer wanted to sell, it had to be shelled by a corn sheller. Most farmers did not have their own shellers so they called a custom sheller. It was mounted on a truck or pulled by a tractor. The corn was shoveled or raked into the sheller. The corn came out one auger spout into a wagon or truck, the cobs out a chain mechanism, and the shucks out a blower. Because there were a lot of chains and sprockets and moving parts on a corn sheller, trouble was frequent. Duane Davis owned a corn sheller which went to several farms. Duane had injured one hand in a corn picking accident several years before. To see Duane repairing a broken chain with a hammer and chain breaker in very cold weather with heavy gloves on could be interesting to say the least.
In the 1940’s and early 1950‘s combines had not yet been developed. The methods used to harvest grains such as oats or barley was very labor-intensive. When the grains were ready for harvest, they were cut by a machine called a binder. It had a seat for a person to ride on, was pulled by a tractor, and cut about a twelve-foot swath of grain. The grain was moved by a canvas apron to a mechanism which then tied the grain into small bundles with one string of twine. The bundles of grain then fell onto a carrier. When there were about six bundles on the carrier, the person riding on the binder released the basket and the bundles fell on the ground. After that, a crew of workers would pick up each of the bundles and stand them up with the grains up and together in what was called a shock. Shocking grain was a good job for high school boys in the summer. Seeing a whole field of grain shocked and standing in rows was really rather picturesque.
After the cutting and shocking of the grain was complete, it had to be threshed. Most farmers did not have a threshing machine by themselves, so they bought one together and had a threshing ring. A threshing machine was a large machine that separated the grain from the straw. (Sometimes they are seen in a corner of a field as a memento of times past). The threshing machine was powered by a tractor connected to the threshing machine by a long belt about eight inches wide and run by the pulley on the tractor.
Bundle wagons were pulled by a tractor or a team of horses. The bundles in the shocks were then pitched into the wagon by two men on the ground. There was a way on which the bundles pitched onto the wagon so they would be easy to be pitched off at the threshing machine. Bundle wagons would be driven to both sides of a long conveyer on the threshing machine, and a man in each wagon would pitch each bundle onto the conveyer. It would then go into the threshing machine. The grain would be augured into a wagon and the straw would be blown into a pile to be baled or used for livestock bedding on the farm.
From a childhood memory, I remember a bundle wagon being unloaded at the threshing machine and it caught fire from a spark off the steam engine running the threshing machine. The man in the wagon drove the team of horses away from the threshing machine very quickly and unhooked the horses in a hurry.
Another sometimes unwelcome task with hosting a threshing crew was the custom for the farmwife to cook a big dinner and an afternoon lunch for all the threshing crew.
Sometimes a threshing machine and other equipment was owned by a person who would thresh the grain for the farmers for a fee. One such person was Norm Engebretson, who lived on Fifth Street in Garretson. He had a shop and storage area where the new building owned by Richard Johnson now stands. Norm also did road construction and repair work. The bundle wagons he owned were larger than most and were a target almost every year on Halloween for High School boys to pull to the school and place in front of the School House doors.
As can be seen, the harvesting of both corn and grains was very labor intensive and time consuming. There was help on the way!
The advent of the combine could be considered as the single event that brought on more changes than any farm event to that point. As the farm operations became less labor intensive, the farms became larger in size. As farmers retired, they would rent their farms to other farmers and in many cases sell their farms. Fewer farmers could farm more land because of better machinery and the need for less labor.
The first combines were developed in Australia in 1938. They made their way to the U.S., and were then improved in size and efficiency. The first ones were small and pulled by a tractor. As a direct cut combine, they only cut a narrow windrow about eight feet wide. If the grain had to be dried before combining, the grain was cut into windrows and allowed to dry before being picked up by the combine. The grain was combined while moving, separated, and augured into a wagon pulled alongside while the straw fell to the ground. The straw was raked and stacked for later use. The self-tying baler was not yet developed.
Lee Lowe, grandfather of Rod and Brad, had a wire tie baler mounted on a truck. A man or boy sat on each side of the chamber of the baler. As the hay or straw moved through the chamber, the person on one side of the baler would drop in a wood block the had two holes through it. He would push the baling wire through the block and the person on the other side would tie the ends together. If the two workers felt mischievous, they could wait to put the second block in and tie a really big bale.
The earliest combine I can recall was a Case pull-type owned by Rudy and Ralph Engebretson. Case had a store where City Hall is now. Some of the original building is still in use. The Case dealership was owned by Fred Rademacher.
As combines developed and improved, they took the place of the binder, the threshing machine, the bundle racks and the job of shocking the grain.
The combines got large. In 1954 the first corn heads were put on combines by John Deere and International. That led to the demise of the corn picker, the corn sheller, and the storage of corn in outside cribs.
To meet the new needs, new equipment was developed. Grain bins for storage, corn driers, and grain augers to replace the grain elevators were built. As the combines got larger, the wagons to haul the corn got larger or were replaced by trucks. Tractors got larger to pull the wagons in the field.
Another machine which was popular and had much use was the feed grinder such as the one operated by Frank Koens from 1957 to 1964. Frank would go from farm to farm and grind the feed ingredients for the farmer. As the farms got bigger, many farmers bought their own tractor-powered feed grinder. Then, as the livestock farms got bigger, they relied on the local elevator to grind their feeds and deliver it to the farm. For the very large livestock farms they either have grinders in place, or more likely have the feed delivered from an off-site establishment.
The big changes in the farm operations led to a number of social changes, such as fewer people in rural areas, the demise of some small towns, and the movement of many people to larger towns and new jobs.
There have been many changes to farm operations in the past several decades, but the local operating location in Garretson provides many important services. In the spring before planting and after harvest they apply a large amount of fertilizer. In the spring before planting and during the growing season, and then again after harvest, they apply a large amount chemical weed and insect control. They also sell a large quantity of seed corn (DeKalb) and alfalfa seed (Allegiance) which they can seed using a piece of equipment designed for seeding. For farmers who want to spread their own fertilizer, the Co-op also has spreaders to rent. The Co-op sells a large quantity of chemicals for weed control to farmers who apply it themselves. The Co-op also has a small amount of feed for horses and pets.
There is a long history of the buildings used by the Co-op and many changes to them. The building presently used for business offices and for some chemical storage was originally the lumber yard. When lumber sales were discontinued, the building was fully enclosed for its present use.
North of the present warehouse was where the original elevator (South house) was. It housed the business offices in addition to its elevator function. It was also enlarged to hold the feed grinder to grind feed for delivery to farmers. North of the South house were two medium sized grain bins and beyond that, the North house and then three large grain bins, all connected by horizontal augers.
In addition to all those buildings, a large fertilizer storage building and a large bin and leg for storage of soy beans was built. An assortment of tanks used for chemical storage is at the south end of the complex.
The changes to the buildings began in fall of 2017. The original South house was taken down, being old and not functional. On June 22, 2015 a force of nature made very large changes in the buildings. A storm with 100 mph straight-line winds came through and caused severe damage. The three large grain storage tanks at the north end of the complex and the auger system connecting them were severely damaged and subsequently removed. West of the present office building the bean storage bin and leg were heavily damaged. The bin leg fell onto the roof of the office building, causing heavy damage. The whole roof of the office and chemical storage building was replaced. After removal of the large grain storage bins at the north end of the complex, it was not feasible to replace them, and the North house was taken down in the fall of 2017. The Eastern Farmers’ building complex is now as it was left after repairs from the storm in 2015.
The biggest task that Kelly Bunde and his staff have to do now is to recruit and hire enough drivers to drive all the sprayers, fertilizer applicators, tender trucks and other equipment. Every driver has to be DOT qualified because they will cross into Minnesota. It is estimated that five or six additional drivers will be required. Kelly anticipates that two interns from colleges will be working. The people who are hired will have to be knowledgeable in the operation of sprayers and fertilizer applicators. The equipment is rather complex, and mistakes in application of chemicals and fertilizers cannot be tolerated.
There are 20 CHS operating locations in three states (SD, MN, IA) with the headquarters in Brandon. There are eleven members on the Board of Directors from six districts. The Board members from this District are Jordan Quam and Jerry Ellefson. The locations are as much as165 miles apart and the service area is even larger than that. The locations vary a lot in the number of workers at each location. The fewest employees at a location is one person, and the largest has thirty-two employees. Not all elevator companies have joined CHS. One that has not is located at Valley Springs.
Over the many years of operation of the Farmers’ Co-op Elevator Company, now the CHS Elevator, there have been many people who have worked for the company. Following is a list of those people, not by the dates they worked, by what my memory can recall and by the names furnished by Location Manager Kelly Bunde.
A.B. Doolittle, Oscar Schmidt, Willard Moe, Earl (Fritz) DeBates, Martin Halvorson, LaVonne Willems, Keith Danielson, John Topp, Chuck Miller, Kelly Bunde, Bert Danielson, Don Debates, Paul Engebretson, Paul Warkenthein, Todd Kringen, Keith Eithreim, Barb Barger Edmundson, Lee Hanson, Bill Mckenna, Dale Schmiesing, Randy Kringen, and Bonnie Quissel. All those people have (and many still do) contributed to the Garretson community. Thanks to all.
The present workforce is: Brad Farrell, Tanner Bowman, Ryan Riley, Brendan Fiegan, Mike Swenson, and Bob Goodroad. Good luck to all of you.
by Julie Mueller, Garretson Middle School Science Teacher
Sixty-six students representing 32 projects participated in this year’s Garretson Middle School Science Fair. In the Animal Science division, with a project titled "Musical Horses", *Abrianna Doppenberg, *Lacey Lumpkin and *Cadence Magnuson were 1st and Blue ribbon winners and the Grand Champion Animal Science project. This trio of students checked to see what different genres of music did to the pulse rate of a test group of four horses. Second Place, blue ribbon, and Reserve Champion in Animal Science went to *Cade Uhlich. His project "Does Fat and Fiber Content Affect Egg Quality?” was a study in varying feed rations to the home flock.
Overall Grand Champion Middle School Science Fair Honors winner Dmitriy Sysa
Overall Reserve Grand Champion Jade Bertotti
There were three projects in the Behavioral Science category. First place, blue ribbon, and category Grand Champions were Adisynn Fink, Makayla Heesch. and Bryn Swatek with "Are Childproof Containers Realty Childproof?”. They partnered up with the Garretson Academy to conduct their project. Second place, red ribbon, and Reserve Category Champion was Brooklyn Roberts. Her project was titled “Scaredy Cat?" and honed in on people’s fears. Third place and White ribbon went to “What Do People Find Most Frustrating" by Caleb Roth.
Overall Honorable Mention, Eliza Potter
Biochemistry was the largest category this year. We had a tie for 1st place, blue ribbon, and Biochemistry Grand Champion project. *Jade Bertotti’s "Which Liquid WilI Keep Apples the Freshest?" and “How Greasy are Your Potato Chips?" by *Lane Ellefson and *Martin Welch claimed those honors. With "Vegan vs. Non-Vegan Cake”, the trio of *Nora Bonte‚ *Addison Hove, and *Aleah Wagner were 2nd place, blue ribbon, and Reserve Category Champions. Third place and red ribbon went to *Allison Gawarecki, *Alexis Gawarecki, and *Jordyn Williams with “Baking Powder vs. Baking Soda". Their project demonstrated that there is a difference when baking. Fourth and red ribbon was awarded to Kaelyn Braun, Mia Christensen, and Maci Rotert with "Is There a Difference in Cupcake Brands?" and fifth place and red went to Kassidy DeBates and Kaylin Leedy’s “Which Brand of Popcorn is Best?". Earning white ribbons and 6th place was Tori Gehrke and Audra Genzler’s “How Does Different Flour Affect Cookies?". Seventh place were Treyton Chester and Tyler Edmundson's “Do Bananas Give Birth to Maggots?" and Deborah Stowe and Maiya Strand's "Which Tastes Better, Homemade or Out of the Box?".
The Chemistry division was won by *Hannah Frewaldt and *Sydney Olson's “The Burning Truth: Color Candles vs. White Candles". They received a blue ribbon and Category Grand Champion. Earning a red ribbon and category Reserve was Madison Lumpkin with “How Much Salt Does It Take to Make an Egg Float?". Third and red ribbon went to “Lemon Power” by Ben DeLoera. He was looking at how many lemons are needed to light a lightbulb. Fourth and white ribbon went to Calvin Larson and Noah Schotzko with a project titled “What Will Happen if We Put Candies in Liquids?" This project demonstrated the properties of diffusion.
There were two projects in the Engineering category and First, blue ribbon, and Grand Champion Engineering project went to *Dmitriy Sysa's “How to Become Unpopular Very Fast with an EMP". *Sage Solheim and *Dylan Wolf's project “Tic Tac and the Toe” earned second place, blue ribbon, and Reserve Engineering project.
*Eliza Potter was first place, blue ribbon, and Grand Champion in the area of Medicine and Health with her project, “What do Different Beverages Do to Your Teeth?". Second place, blue ribbon, and Reserve in the category went to *Tayler Benson, *Ava Nordstrom, and *lsabella Sysa's "Is the Water You are Drinking Safe?". Third place and Blue ribbon was awarded to “How Does Smoking Affect Your Lungs?" by *Cash Pullman and *Blaine Trower. "Pepsi vs. Coke - Which is Worse for Your Teeth?" by Treyton Decker, Cody Facile, and Riley Lafferty-Mack took Fourth place and red ribbon. "Which Gum Lasts the Longest?" by Ashley Harris and Charli Jo Peterson earned 5th and white‚ and “Does Smell Affect Taste?" by Landon Bakker and Cole Jessen came in sixth and white ribbon. “Which Bread Molds Fastest?" by Kylie Christensen and Adair Hanisch were awarded a white in Microbiology.
First Place, blue ribbon, and Physics Grand Champion went to *Carsten Rozeboom and *Caleb Westerbur's “What is the Best Arm Length for a Catapult?" while Second, blue ribbon, and Reserve Champion went to *Kaitlyn Steinhoff’s “Do Some Liquids Expand More Than Others When Frozen?” Third place and red ribbon went to “What Type of Shotgun Shell Has the Greatest Spread?" by Jakob Gnadt and Colin Shellum. Earning 4th, 5th, and 6th place and whites in order were Scott Knebel Koster and Michael Olson with “How Far Can You Throw a Ball?”, Wyatt Fry, Jesus Gonzalez, and Aiden Scott with “KINK vs. Walmart BMX”; and “What Materials are Needed to Prevent an Egg from Cracking?" by Brock Bonte, Tyler Erickson, and Joshua Gilbert.
This year's Overall Honorable Mention was awarded to Eliza Potter, daughter of Bruce and Laura Potter. Overall Reserve Grand Champion went to Jade Bertotti, daughter of John and Reesa Bertotti, and the Overall Grand Champion Middle School Science Fair Honors went to Dmitriy Sysa, son of Ivan and Victoria Sysa.
Students with an asterisk (*) will advance to the Eastern South Dakota Science and Engineering Fair to be held on Tuesday, March 24 at SDSU. Judges for the event this year were Keara Beck, Evan Bly, Jill Ellefson, Brad Farrell, Geof Furness, Mikaela Gilbert, Ruth Saraar, and Kylie Uhl.
National FFA Week is next week, and the Garretson FFA has several activities planned throughout the week, including a blood drive that the public is invited to participate in and a community breakfast. The GMS/GHS Science Fair was a big success, with several students qualifying for the next step in competition. The 50th year of wrestling was celebrated at the final home quad of the season last Friday, plus we've got several stories from the legislative session. This issue went the extra mile for you this week!
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Last Thursday we traveled to Montrose to take on the Lady Fighting Cougars. MCM just came off as the BEC tournament champions the weekend prior to our game, so we saw it as an opportunity to compete against one of the better Class A teams in the state.
We came out missing a lot of shots and getting beat inside the paint around the rim quite a bit. After making a few adjustments and being down 12-2, we started executing a little better on the offensive end. We came back and we were down 14-18 after the first quarter.
The 2nd quarter we started to heat up from the field. We outplayed our opponents but put them at the free throw line quite a bit which kept them in the lead.
Peyton Hove hit a big 3 in the waning seconds to put us down by two, 29-31 as the half ended. Early in the 3rd quarter we got into a lot of foul trouble. We battled really well even though they had a tremendous size advantage against us in the paint.
We were down by 7 points late in the 3rd quarter and they finished the quarter with a 4-0 run to lead by 11 after 3. In the 4th quarter, our shooting troubles continued, as we got plenty of great shots off, but they wouldn’t drop.
We did our best to make stops on defense and were still down 14 with 4 minutes to go. The wheels eventually fell off and we ended up losing the game 66-41. We worked extremely hard in this game and did a lot of great things. If we can shoot better than 23%, we give one of the top teams in Class A a good run.
Mattea Fiegen led us in scoring with 8 points, Lizzie Olson, Lauren Heesch, and Peyton Hove all tallied 7 points, and Lily Ranschau had 6. Peyton Hove and Jaelyn Benson each had 4 assists.
The Lady Dragons and the GHS boys basketball team faced Beresford in a double header this past Tuesday, Feb. 11. (Results not available by press time.) The teams have a second double header on Feb. 13 against Parker. Go Big Blue!
The Blue Dragons jumped on the bus for a short trip to Dell Rapids on February 3rd to take on the Cardinals from St. Mary’s.
The Cardinals came out of the locker room red hot as they torched the net for 37 1st quarter points, while only giving up 7 on the defensive side of the ball. St. Mary’s never looked back as they defeated the Blue Dragons 78-47.
“I have been playing and coaching basketball for a lot of years and I have never witnessed an offensive display like that,” stated Heitkamp. “We explained to the kids that once Connor (Libis) walks into the gym he is in his range, so we need to know where he is at. The bottom line is he wasn’t going to be denied this evening and made just about everything he threw up. On a more positive note, the kids didn’t quit battling the final three quarters, which showed a lot of heart and character when all was said and done.”
Dylan Kindt (4 rebounds/3 assists) and Triston Rekstad led the way for the Blue Dragons with 9 points each, as Trey Buckneberg added 7 points of his own. Cole Skadsen, Josef Zahn, and Sam Schleuter all collected 5 points apiece, while Cooper Long hit for 3 points. Lucas Fitzgerald (6 rebounds), Evan Bly, and Brady DeBates rounded out the scoring with 2, 1, and 1 points.
Blue Dragons Take Down The Bulldogs!
The Blue Dragons didn’t have any time to dwell on the past as they were right back on the road to Baltic the following night to take on the Bulldogs.
“We talked to the kids last night and explained that they need to get the St. Mary’s game out of their minds and prepare for Baltic, which is obviously a long-time rival,” said Heitkamp. “When the team got on the bus to leave they all had a different look in their eye, which is the greatest feeling as a coach...as we knew it was going to be a good night!”
The visiting Blue Dragons took the court with a sense of confidence that wasn’t going to be denied as they defeated the Bulldogs 65 to 53.
“The kids played a very sound game this evening on both sides of the ball,” said Heitkamp. “We rebounded very well, took advantage of transition opportunities, and played solid TEAM defense. We also shot 17 of 22 from the free throw line, which is something we work on just about every practice.”
Cooper Long led a very balanced scoring attack for the Blue Dragons with 18 points, with Josef Zahn (10 rebounds) knocking down 10 points of his own. Dylan Kindt (2 steals), Jake Schroeder (2 steals/3 assists), and Trey Buckneberg all collected 9 points, while Hayden Olofson and Lucas Fitzgerald (3 assists) rounded out the scoring with 6 and 4 points each.
The team and coaching staff would like to take a moment to thank the parents, other family members, fans, and the student section for their constant support throughout the season, especially tonight in Baltic...it is so greatly appreciated. Go Blue Dragons!!
MCM Too Much For The Blue Dragons
On February 7th, 2020, the Blue Dragons played host to the McCook Central/Montrose Fighting Cougars. The visiting Fighting Cougars didn’t waste time to show who the better team was on this evening as they took down the Blue Dragons 66-35.
“We came out flat and lost a lot of confidence early when our first five possessions came up empty. We were getting some pretty good looks at the basket, but nothing was falling,” said Heitkamp. “Once we lost our confidence, then that lead to us not playing hard on the defensive side of the ball, which is never a good combination. We showed a couple of times that we could compete against MCM, but we were never able to get anything rolling consistently.”
Cooper Long had a solid night for the Blue Dragons as he netted 11 points, while Trey Buckneberg (10 rebounds/2 assists) collected 8 points. Josef Zahn did his part with 6 points, as Sam Schleuter added 3 points of his own. Dylan Kindt (2 assists) and Lucas Fitzgerald each had 2 points, with Hayden Olofson, Jake Schroeder (4 rebounds/2 assists), and Evan Bly ending the night with 1 point each.
Jayse Miller placed 1st, Jaden Richter placed 4th, Hayden Stotereau placed 4th, and Dominic Abraham placed 3rd on Saturday, Feb. 8 in Clark at the Big East/Lake Central Conf.
Tuesday February the 4th our wrestlers, coaches, statisticians, and cheerleaders loaded a bus for the far southern tip of our state for a date on the mat with Marion-Freeman, Elk Point-Jefferson, and Beresford-Alcester Hudson in a quadrangular.
“The outing may have been our best of the year,” said head coach Francis Ruml. “We had wrestled the much-improved team of Marion-Freeman two weeks ago in a match we coaches thought we could have won. That made it much easier to get in our boys’ ears and let them know we felt they could win this dual,” said volunteer coach Oran Sorenson.
This time we won in our first dual of the night by a score of 44-33. Three things made the difference. First, the four lower weights, Preston Bohl, Jayse Miller, Braxton Rozeboom and Hunter Abraham set the tempo. All got first or second period pins setting the stage for the rest of the team. Second, we had Hayden Stotereau with us, who picked up 6 team points earning a forfeit at 182, and most important we had two boys defeat opponents we had lost to last time.
“It is very gratifying to see an athlete step it up a notch and avenge a defeat from earlier in the season,” said assistant coach Jason Bohl whose team gave him a birthday present with the win over Marion-Freeman. Tayson Swatek at 138 lbs. and Parker Schlenker at 160 lbs. deserve special recognition for accomplishing that feat. Our final victor in the first dual of the night was Gabe Johnson at heavyweight.
The fired-up team continued their strong performances into the second dual of the night with perennial powerhouse Beresford- Alcester Hudson. Again, the lower weights got us rolling with three pins by Bohl, Miller, and Rozeboom. Our team would now enter the toughest part of our opponents’ lineup where wins could be quite scarce. We lost at 132 by decision in a well fought match by Hunter Abraham. At 138 we lost by fall.
“By far the biggest turn around of this dual was when Dominic Abraham at 145 lbs. rose to the task when his Class A ranked opponent tried to launch him with a throw, but Dom returned the favor pinning his opponent’s shoulders to the mat midway through the second period,” said Coach Ruml.
“That victory was huge for us,” said volunteer coach Tyler Sorenson, who used to be the head coach for BAH just a few years ago when he coached that team to a state championship. Our opponents, still in the strength of their lineup, would pick up 12 points in the next two weight classes, but that would not be enough. The Blue Dragons would close strong, picking up points in four of the five final weight classes with Parker Schlenker winning by decision, Jaden Richter with a come from behind pin, and Stotereau and Johnson both by forfeit. Final score, Garretson 46, Beresford-Alcester Hudson 28.
The final opponent of the night for the Blue Dragons would be host and another fine team from Elk Point Jefferson.
“We did not match up well with them,” said Coach Ruml. The visitors won quick pins in the lower two classes with Bohl and Miller, but after that were able to win only one more match. That victory was a quick pin by 182 lber Hayden Stotereau in just 33 seconds.
“It was fun to see the big smile on Hayden’s face,” said coach Sorenson. “Despite only being out for the sport a couple of years, Stotereau works hard and deserved the victory. You hope each athlete is able to experience their ‘brief, shining moment’ in life. We never know in life when that may come, but it is sure gratifying to be there when it happens for these kids.”
The Huskies’ strength in their middle and upper weights would propel them to a final score of 57-18.
The 2019-20 season of wrestling is the 50th year anniversary of the successful high school program, and at the final home match of the season, all wrestling alumni are invited to come cheer on our wrestlers. Alumni in attendance will be recognized, as will the parents of this year's wrestlers for all they do to support the program and our youth. The city starts taking steps toward developing a new community center/City Hall, and the Legion heard from District 7 Oratorical Contest winner Jayden Clark, plus much more!
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The Jesse James 4-H club made 8 bat houses for the Garretson Parks. A healthy bat population helps reduce mosquitos and other pest populations without using pesticides.
On Sunday, February 9, the Garretson Parks Advisory Committee was presented with 8 bat houses by the Jesse James 4-H.
“Last spring, GPAC had been contacted by the 4-H group, wondering if there was a community service project they could do for the parks, and the idea of bat houses came through after some brainstorming,” said GPAC member Carrie Moritz.
Garretson Parks Advisory Committee member Bruce Rekstad shows a bat house up close
Bats help with pest control, which is perfect for a park that resides near the water, where mosquitos breed. They eat vast amounts of insects each night, and are a non-chemical way of reducing mosquito populations. According to Bat Conservation International, some pregnant or nursing mothers can eat up to their body weight in insects per night. A healthy bat population can also reduce the number of pests that damage crops. It is estimated that they are worth $3.7 billion per year in crop damage reduction.
A few myths continue to persist about these flying mammals, however, which has contributed, along with environmental degradation and irresponsible hunting, to many species becoming endangered. A belief that bats are flying rodents who cannot see and always carry rabies is one that sends many people scurrying for cover when they notice bats, thinking that they’ll get tangled in hair and make people sick. While bats can carry rabies, it is not at a rate any higher than any other mammal, and they will rarely attack humans. It was recently discovered that bats can see as well as any other mammal. Along with their ability to use echolocation (the use of sound to “see” objects), they can see quite well while they’re hunting. “Basically, the bat emits beep-like sounds into its path, then collects and analyzes the echoes that come bouncing back. Using sound alone, bats can see everything but color and detect obstacles as fine as a human hair,” writes Bat Conservation International on its website, batcon.org.
They also are not rodents. While some do have pointed noses, a bat is “more closely related to humans than to rats or mice,” Bat Conservation International points out.
Bat houses help provide shelter for bats, helping to protect them from not only predators, but from the weather. It gives them space to rest, and the style built by the Jesse James 4-H club will allow up to 30 bats to roost per house.
Evan Bly describes how the bat houses are made while his fellow 4-Hers look on.
“Before we put them together, we installed a screen inside,” said Jesse James 4-H member Evan Bly. This will give the bats purchase to hang. Each house also has ridges along the bottom, which will help the bats land and climb inside.
A medium-colored shade is also requested for bat houses in the South Dakota region, and to accommodate that, each house was stained a medium-dark shade of brown. John Bly was also generous enough to whittle the shape of a bat into the front of each house, so passersby will know what they are for.
The houses will be installed around Split Rock Park this spring, and the Parks Committee is grateful to the 4-H group for gathering supplies and taking the time to research and build the bat houses.
