AVOCA (July 2) -- AHSTW beat IKM-Manning 12-1 in five innings Thursday in WIC softball action. The Lady Vikes improved to 7-7 overall and finished 4-4 in league play. The Wolves dropped to 2-9 and 2-6, respectively. AHSTW racked up 13 hits, led by Ally Meyers, who was 3-for-4 with a triple, four RBI and three runs scored.

 HARLAN (June 30) -- Connor Bruck’s ground-ball single through a drawn-in infield plated Alex Monson with the winning run in the bottom of the seventh as the Harlan Community baseball team outlasted a gritty Clarinda squad 8-7 Tuesday night at Jim Goeser Field. The Cyclones’ third straight win did not come easy as the Cardinals tied the game twice with one run in the top of the sixth and three in the seventh.

 HARLAN (June 30) -- Emily Brouse and Tianna Kasperbauer pitched a combined no-hitter here Tuesday night as the Harlan Community softball team bounced back from a tough loss to Atlantic 24 hours earlier by putting away Clarinda 11-0 in five. HCHS scored five runs in the first inning and took full control by adding two in the second and four in the third.

 HARLAN (June 29) -- Sparked by a seven-run second inning, the Harlan Community baseball team got a complete game from senior ace Connor Bruck to defeat Atlantic 10-2 at Jim Goeser Field Monday night. HCHS (5-2, 5-2 H-10) totaled only five hits off three Trojan pitchers but took full advantage of 11 walks and five errors made by Atlantic (2-6, 2-5). Thirteen Cyclones batted in the bottom of the second - a seven-run outburst that included two b

 HARLAN (June 29) -- Tianna Kasperbauer and Emily Brouse turned in their usual strong performance during Monday’s Hawkeye Ten showdown vs. Atlantic, combining to pitch eight strong innings - two at a time - for the Harlan Community softball team. On this night, however, Trojan ace Olivia Engler and her supporting cast were simply better. Engler allowed a second-inning home run to Brouse and nothing else at H.

 AVOCA (June 30) -- The AHSTW baseball team lost a pair of low-scoring Western Iowa Conference battles earlier this week and took a 3-4 record into the holiday weekend. The Vikings suffered a tough 5-3 home loss to Audubon on Monday night as the Wheelers rallied for three runs in the top of the seventh inning.

 AVOCA (June 30) -- Senior Madison Thornton pitched a complete game eight-hitter and Ally Meyers led the offense with three hits as the AHSTW softball team posted an impressive 9-3 win over 14th-ranked (2A) Underwood here Tuesday night. The Lady Vikes took a 3-0 lead in the second inning and added six runs in the fourth. Ally Meyers went 3-for-5 with a double on offense while Kailey Jones and Natalie Hagadon both added a pair of singles.

 SHENANDOAH (June 25) -- The Harlan Community softball team wrapped up a perfect 4-0 week on Thursday night with a commanding 11-1, five-inning conference win at Shenandoah. Now ranked 11th in Class 4A by the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union, the Cyclones improved to 9-1 overall (6-0 Hawkeye Ten) going into Monday night’s battle for first place vs.

 SHENANDOAH (June 25) -- Isaiah Ahrenholtz’s second sacrifice fly of the game drove home the winning run in the top of the eighth Thursday night as Harlan Community escaped Shenandoah with a 5-4, extra-inning baseball win. The 10th-ranked (Class 3A) Cyclones led 4-1 after two but the Mustangs were able to tie the score by chipping away with single runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh frames. HCHS sophomore Joey Moser got on base to start the e

 HARLAN (June 27) -- The remainder of the Harlan Community freshmen baseball season has been cancelled after a team member recently tested positive for COVID-19. HCHS Activities Director Davis Pattee released a statement on Saturday in regards to the cancellation. “These are very difficult times, and as we continue to navigate the complexities of COVID-19 our first priority will always be the safety of our student-athletes and coaches,” Pattee

 KIMBALLTON (June 26) -- Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton built an 8-0 third-inning lead and held on to beat the Audubon softball team 9-4 here Friday night, improving its perfect record to 9-0 overall. The 13th-ranked (Class 1A) Spartans hit the ball hard off Wheeler starter Kali Irlmeier, who allowed eight hits and six earned runs in an inning and a third.

 ELK HORN (June 26) -- The Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton baseball team lost a non-conference game to Audubon Friday by a final of 14-5. The Spartans fell to 1-6 on the season.
   Tyler Petersen singled for Exira-EHK's only hit and scored a run. Tyler Kingery and Jameson Kilworth both drew a pair of walks as Audubon pitchers issued 10 base-on-balls.

 AUDUBON (June 25) -- It wasn’t pretty, but the IKM-Manning softball team was able to leave Audubon Thursday night with a remarkable 18-15 Western Iowa Conference victory. The Wolves led 9-0 after an inning and a half and 18-11 going to the bottom of the seventh in a game featuring 29 total hits and a plethora of errors by both sides. The Wheelers, who got back into the contest by scoring seven runs in the bottom of the second, plated four sev

 AUDUBON (June 25) -- Nolan Ramsey had a four-hit night and Conner Richards turned in a quality start on the mound as the IKM-Manning baseball team broke open a close game with six runs in the seventh to beat Audubon 10-3 on Thursday. Unfortunately, it was the last game the Wolves will play until July 7. IKM-M head coach Cory McCarville confirmed in a tweet on Sunday that a varsity player tested positive for COVID-19 last week.

 COUNCIL BLUFFS (June 24) -- The Harlan Community softball team picked up a 7-0 non-conference win at Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln Wednesday night as Tianna Kasperbauer and Emily Brouse combined on a one-hit shutout and five Cyclones drove in at least one run. Kasperbauer (5-0) pitched one-hit ball for the first four innings, walked none and struck out five.