CARROLL (June 12) -- Harlan Community broke open a 3-3 tie with five two-out runs in the top of the seventh inning Tuesday night and finished off Kuemper Catholic 8-4 to sweep the season series. HCHS junior Brett Sears (4-0) pitched his first complete game of the year and beat Kuemper for the second time, allowing eight hits and three earned runs.

 CARROLL (June 12) -- The Harlan Community softball team won its second slugfest of the year vs. Kuemper Catholic Tuesday night, tallying 16 hits to outlast the Knights 11-8 in Hawkeye Ten action. Morgan Schaben led the Cyclones at the plate, going 5-for-5 with four RBI, including her second home run of the season and team-leading eighth double. Madison Schumacher (2-for-3) also hit her second homer and added a sacrfice fly for two RBI.

 WOODBINE (June 13) -- The Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton softball team improved to 5-6 overall here Wednesday with a dominating 14-0 win over Woodbine.
   Offensive leaders for the Spartans included: Mollie Rasmussen (4-for-4, 2 RBI); Sophia Peppers (3-for-3, double, 3 runs, 3 RBI); Bailey Robertson (2-for-3, 3 runs); and Kealey Nelson (home run, 2 BB, 3 runs, 2 RBI).

 MISSOURI VALLEY (June 12) -- The IKM-Manning softball team needed just four innings to hand Missouri Valley a 12-0 defeat Tuesday night and sweep the regular season series. Senior Peyton Gross pitched an abbreviated one-hit shutout for her 98th career win, striking out seven and walking none.

 WOODBINE (June 13) -- Anthony Kingery doubled and Stephen Malloy singled for Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton’s only two hits Wednesday as the Spartan baseball team was shut out by Woodbine 10-0 in five innings. The Tigers scored in every inning, keyed by a four-run third and a three-run fifth against Spartan starting pitcher Hunter Andersen and reliever Cole Madsen. Woodbine’s Alex Bantam struck out 10 and walked two in his two-hit shutout, helping

 ESSEX (June 13) -- One night after being shut out by Treynor 7-0, the AHSTW baseball team ventured out of the Western Iowa Conference Wednesday and finished with a whopping 23 stolen bases in a 14-8 win over Essex/South Page. The Vikings scored five runs in the top of the first and also put up crooked numbers in the third (four runs), fourth (two) and fifth (three) to pull away and improve to 5-6 overall. AHSTW had 13 hits in the contest, inc

 COUNCIL BLUFFS (June 11) -- Monday’s Harlan Community at St. Albert baseball and softball games were postponed and have been rescheduled as varsity doubleheaders in Harlan on Tuesday, June 26, at 5:30 p.m. The softball game was postponed a few hours in advance due to wet grounds and a forecast for more rain. The baseball game was just ready to start at 5:30 when impending severe weather led officials to send the Cyclones home.

 HARLAN (June 7) -- Emily Brouse, Lexi Larsen and Molly Gubbels each hit their first home run of the season here Thursday night as Harlan Community swept Clarinda 13-0 and 12-0 in a Hawkeye Ten softball doubleheader. Both games ended by the mercy rule in the bottom of the fourth inning. HCHS outhit the Cardinals 25-3 in the two games, improving to 7-6 overall and 5-2 in conference play.

 HARLAN (June 7) -- Luke and Tyler Schaben didn’t enter the baseball season atop Harlan Community’s list of well-known returning letter winners from last year’s Class 3A state runner-up. But both juniors continued to make their impact felt on a 9-2 start Thursday night as the fifth-ranked Cyclones swept Clarinda in a varsity doubleheader, 7-3 and 9-4, at Jim Goeser Field. Luke Schaben, a versatile utility player, saw the field in all three sta