SPENCER — Jeffrey Gross and the HCHS girls cross country team have qualified for the State Cross Country Championship. Gross placed seventh at the Class 3A Iowa High School Cross Country State Qualifying Meet in Spencer on Wednesday. The HCHS girls’ team finished second, qualifying as a team for the state meet.

ATLANTIC – The Harlan Community Cyclones fell to rival Atlantic Trojans on Friday night in a back-and-forth affair, 35-30, marking their first loss to the Trojans since 2002 and their first time missing the playoffs since 2016.The Cyclones’ defense opened strong, holding the Trojans’ potent rushing attack in check and forcing a punt on their first possession.However, Harlan’s offense was unable to gain momentum early and was forced to punt.

HARLAN – The Harlan Community Cyclones travel to Atlantic this week to take on the 5-2 Atlantic Trojans in a pivotal district matchup between the two longtime rivals.Since 2006, the Cyclones have dominated the series, owning an impressive 17-0 record against the Trojans.Harlan won last year’s meeting by a score of 41-16, but both teams feature new faces in key roles heading into this year’s clash.

HARLAN- The Harlan Community Cyclones are coming off a heartbreaking loss to Atlantic by a score of 35-30 that ultimately ended their playoff chances. But the Cyclones still have one game remaining against district foe 4-4 Greene County. This is the first matchup between the two schools since 2017 when the Cyclones won by a score of 41-7. Their quarterback junior Zack Stalder leads the Rams.

HARLAN – The Harlan Community Cyclones football team welcomed the winless Perry Bluejays for their annual homecoming contest and made sure to defend home turf with a dominant 63-0 victory. The Cyclones established the ground game early and jumped out to a commanding 28-0 lead after the first quarter.They continued their dominant showing in thesecond quarter, adding 21 more points to extend the lead to 49-0 at halftime.

HARLAN – The Harlan Community Cyclones welcome district foe Perry for a Week 7 matchup under the lights of Merrill Field on Friday night in their annual homecoming game.The Bluejays have struggled this season, entering the contest with an 0-6 record.In their first two district games against Greene County and Atlantic, they were outscored by a combined total of 98-7.The Cyclones have had plenty of success against the Bluejays in recent years, h

HARLAN – The Harlan Community Cyclones football team got back into the win column Friday night with a big 56-35 victory over district foe Creston at Merrill Field.The Panthers started with the ball and put together an impressive opening drive for a touchdown, aided by a big Cyclone off- sides penalty on 4th and 7.

EXIRA - The Exira-EHK Spar- tans scored early and often in their homecoming game last Friday, September 26 at home against Griswold.The result was a 70-32 rout of the Tigers as the Spartans won their first district game and improved to 2-3 overall.The Spartans will play at CAM Friday night.Griswold lost their fourth straight game after starting the season 1-1 to fall to 1-5.The Tigers are still looking for their first win in district play.The

CARROLL – The Harlan Community Cyclones dropped their district opener to the Carroll Tigers on Friday night, falling 33-28 in a back-and-forth contest.

NEOLA – The area teams of HCHS, IKM-Manning, AHSTW, and Exira-EHK all competed Tuesday afternoon at the Tri-Center Invitational held at Quail Run Golf Course in Neola.The boys’ race kicked off first, with HCHS junior Jeffrey Gross leading the area finishers in third place overall with a time of 16:43.03.IKM-Manning senior Camden Morris followed in 11th (17:40.45), just ahead of sophomore teammate Akeo Maynard, who placed 14th (17:53.85).

DENISON – The Harlan Community High School football team earned its first win of the season Friday night, shutting out rival Denison-Schleswig 28-0.The Cyclones won the opening toss and deferred to the second half, giving the Monarchs the ball to start.Harlan’s defense wasted no time, forcing a fumble by senior Cole Kastner near midfield.Senior linebacker Shane Cooper scooped it up, giving the Cyclones possession at the Monarchs’ 38-yard line.

STORM LAKE – The Harlan Community High School girls’ and boys’ cross-country teams competed Tuesday night in Storm Lake. This marked the first meet of the season that the girls’ team did not come away with a win.Head Coach Zach Klaassen shared his thoughts afterward:“I thought there were some individuals that performed well, but as a group I thought maybe we could’ve beaten MOC on the girls’ side.

HARLAN – The Harlan Community Cyclones football team dropped its third straight game to start the season 0-3 on Friday night, falling to rival Lewis Central at Merrill Field.The Titans came out fast, putting together an 89-yard drive capped by a 39-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Brody Chubb to senior Peyton Phippen, giving them an early 7-0 lead with 8:30 left in the first quarter.The Cyclones moved the ball well on their opening

HARLAN – The Harlan Community Cyclones face off against rival Lewis Central Titans this Friday night at Merrill Field, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.Both teams are searching for their first win of the season — an unusual situation for either program at this point in the year.The Cyclones are trying to avoid their worst start since 2016-17, when they opened the season 1-3.Both squads enter 0-2, each suffering some gut-wrenching losses.

HARLAN – The Harlan Community High School football team lost 17-12 to Glenwood on Friday night at Merrill Field in Harlan on Senior Night. The Cyclones had won five straight matchups against the Rams, but that streak came to an end.Glenwood deferred to the second half, giving Harlan’s offense the ball first.