Sports Schedule for Tuesday 4/14/15

golf clubThe sports schedule features golf, soccer and track for Tuesday. Girls Siouxland Conference golf will be hosted by the Orabs at the Sheldon Golf and Country Club with a boys Siouxland Conference meet hosted by West Lyon.

 

Girls Golf

Siouxland conference meet hosted by Sheldon at the Sheldon Golf and Country Club

Cherokee and Spirit Lake at Western

 

Boys Golf

Siouxland Conference meet hosted by West Lyon

Western and Spirit Lake at Cherokee

 

Coed Golf

Unity at Akron Westfield

Harris Lake Park at West Siouxland

Remsen Union and Kingsley Pierson at Hinton

 

Boys Soccer

MOC Floyd Valley at Sergeant Bluff Luton

Spirit Lake at Sioux Center

 

Coed Track

Clay Central Everly, E-LC, North Union, Okoboji, South O’Brien and Spencer at Spirit Lake


Northwestern Ranked in NAIA Spring Coaches’ Poll

naia_logoKANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the first time in program history, defending national champion Southern Oregon is the top team in the 2015 NAIA Football Coaches’ Spring Top 25 Poll, the national office announced Monday. The Raiders, who took down Marian (Ind.), 55-31, to win their first-ever crown, received 10 of the possible 11 first-place votes and 236 total points.

The No. 1 ranking is Southern Oregon’s second all-time – and second-consecutive – dating back to the Postseason Poll on Dec. 22, 2014.

From the GPAC Morningside (Iowa) is third with 214 points. The Mustangs begin their quest of being ranked among the top five in every poll for the third year in-a-row. They were No. 1 a season ago from Sept. 22, 2014 – Nov. 10, 2014. Morningside reached the 2014 NAIA Football Championship Series (FCS) semifinals for the third-consecutive year, while finishing 12-2.

Morningside holds the longest active streak of top 10 rankings, having been ranked among the top 10 teams for 48-straight polls dating back to Sept. 19, 2011.

Northwestern College remained at the 12 spot with 133 points after finishing last season at 9-2, and Doane stayed put at #22 as well.

RANK LAST TIME^ SCHOOL (1ST PLACE VOTES) 2014 RECORD TOTAL POINTS
1 1 Southern Oregon (10) 13-2 236
2 2 Marian (Ind.) (1) 11-3 227
3 3 Morningside (Iowa) 12-2 214
4 4 Saint Xavier (Ill.) 10-3 209
5 5 Carroll (Mont.) 10-2 206
6 6 Grand View (Iowa) 11-2 191
7 7 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) 10-3 181
8 8 Missouri Valley 9-4 172
9 9 MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) 9-2 162
10 10 Faulkner (Ala.) 9-3 153
11 11 Georgetown (Ky.) 8-3 150
12 12 Northwestern (Iowa) 9-2 133
13 15 Eastern Oregon 8-3 119
14 13 Ottawa (Kan.) 9-3 116
15 14 Campbellsville (Ky.) 7-4 115
16 17 Baker (Kan.) 8-3 101
17 16 Valley City State (N.D.) 9-2 84
18 19 William Penn (Iowa) 7-4 78
19 18 Langston (Okla.) 7-5 75
20 20 Robert Morris (Ill.) 8-3 72
21 21 Friends (Kan.) 8-3 59
22 22 Doane (Neb.) 7-3 45
23 23 Webber International (Fla.) 8-3 31
24 24 Tabor (Kan.) 7-4 30
25 25 Benedictine (Kan.) 7-4 12

MOC Floyd Valley and Northwestern Grad on the bag for Spieth at Augusta

golf picNorthwest Iowa – Jordan Spieth bogeyed the final hole on Sunday, but the only thing it cost him was a Masters record.

Spieth closed with a 2-under 70 to win the Masters by four strokes. The win was his first major championship title.

The 21-year-old Texan was the first to reach 19-under par at the Masters with a birdie at the 15th, but his bogey at the 18th left him at 18-under-par 270, which tied him with Tiger Woods for low 72-hole score in tournament history.

On the bag for Spieth at the Masters was a caddie with very local ties. Michael Greller is an MOC Floyd Valley High School and Northwestern College graduate.

A Michigan native, Greller moved to Orange City in 1992 when his father, John Greller became vice president of development at Northwestern. Greller graduated from MOC-Floyd Valley in 1996 and Northwestern in 2000, earning a bachelor’s degree in business.

Greller was the No. 2 player for Northwestern College on teams coached by Dave Mulder and Mark Bloemendaal.

Through his ties in golf, Greller would eventually walk away from a 10-year teaching career to become a caddie and that’s how he found himself in the midst of a record performace at Augusta on Sunday afternoon.


This Week’s Fishing Report

Iowa DNRSpirit Lake, Iowa — The Iowa Department of Natural Resources issues a weekly fishing report on Thursdays in an effort to provide the latest information heading into the weekend. The weekly fishing report is compiled from information gathered from local bait shops, angler creel surveys, and county and state parks staff. For more information contact the Spirit Lake fish Hatchery at 712-336-1840.

Storm Lake (including Little Storm Lake)

Walleye – Fair: Anglers have reported catching a few walleye near shore in the evenings. Those with the most luck have been fishing the north shore areas of the lake.

Big Spirit Lake

Northern Pike – Good: Anglers fishing at buffalo run, Hales slough, and at the north grade have reported quality catch rates for northern pike. Use hollow body 4-8 inch swimbaits. Drag and lift them along the bottom slowly. Anglers are also using black spinnerbaits with varied success. Black Crappie – Fair: Buffalo run is holding small crappie 30 feet straight out from the mouth of buffalo run. Slip bobbers tipped with crappie bites work best. Allow the rig to drift along the rocks. Bullhead – Good: A fair number of keeper bullhead are being caught in gillnets on big stoney. They will bite on anything, which makes for a great fishing experience for younger kids.

East Okoboji Lake

Channel Catfish – Fair: Channel catfish have been seen in good numbers at Lone Tree Point, Little Stoney, and near parks marina. These fish are being caught in gillnets and are getting larger as the water temperature increases. Yellow Bass – Slow: Some large yellow bass have been seen in gillnets at Lone Tree Point and parks marina. These fish are not being seen in great numbers. Northern Pike – Fair: Many northern pike are being caught in gillnets. On East they can be found just about everywhere.

West Okoboji Lake

We received no information regarding fishing on this water body this week. Channel Catfish – Fair: Large channel catfish are being caught in gillnets at night. Three caught Monday night were 10lbs. Northern Pike – Fair: Northern pike are becoming more abundant in the shallows. Few large females were caught in gillnets Monday night. Smallmouth Bass – Fair: Anglers are reporting an increase in smallmouth bass catch on sunny calm days. These fish are being caught over sand flats near rocks. Pulling a crankbait slow at this time will be your best bet.


Two Nighthawks Sign With Northwestern

nighthawk logoOrange City, Iowa — Marcus Van Kekerix (Rock Valley, Iowa) and Bryce Van Beek have signed letters of intent to continue their football careers at Northwestern College next year.

Van Kekerix is a 5’10”, 200-pound linebacker/center who played three years for Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley High School. Van Kekerix earned all-district honors as an offensive lineman after paving the way for an offense that totaled 3,085 yards and 38 touchdowns. He was also an all-district selection as a junior and was named most valuable linemen three times. On defense, Van Kekerix registered 26.5 tackles, one sack and three fumble recoveries. An academic all-district selection, Van Kekerix plans to major in accounting at Northwestern. He is the son of Berwyn and Kristi.

“Marcus is a hard-nosed, physical football player who will be part of our linebacker group,” commented head coach Kyle Achterhoff. “Playing on the offensive line in high school has helped Marcus develop the type of toughness that we like in our linebackers. We are glad to have Marcus join our football team.”

Van Beek is a 6’1”, 175-pound wide receiver and defensive back who played two years for Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley. Van Beek earned all-district honors on defense after posting a team-high five interceptions, returning one for a touchdown. He registered 35.5 tackles and two fumble recoveries. Offensively, Van Beek totaled 22 catches for 367 yards and a team-high seven touchdowns. A member of the honor roll and National Honor Society, Van Beek plans to major in business and accounting at Northwestern. He is the son of Al and Colleen.

“Bryce is a player we are really excited about,” commented head coach Kyle Achterhoff. “He has a ton of potential who will continue to develop physically. Bryce will play safety on our defense.”


Sports Schedule for Thursday 4/9/15

trackNorthwest Iowa — Barring weather getting in the way the sports schedule involves a number of area high school teams Thursday in track, golf and soccer competition.

Boys Track

Alta Aurelia, Central Lyon, E-LC, HMS, Kingsley Pierson, LeMars, MMC, MOC Floyd Valley, OA-BCIG, Ridge View, Sioux Central, South O’Brien, Spencer, Spirit Lake, Woodbury Central and Harris Lake Park at Cherokee

 

Coed Golf

Harris Lake Park at West Sioux

Akron Westfield at Unity

South O’Brien at MMC

HMS at Remsen St Mary’s

Trinity at Remsen Union

 

Boys Soccer

Unity at Spirit Lake

Storm Lake at West Sioux

 

Girls Soccer

Spirit Lake at Unity