ANAMOSA - There were a lot of questions heading into the 2019-20 Anamosa girls basketball campaign.
ANAMOSA - Falling into a 13-0 hole opening their 2019-20 basketball campaign Tuesday, Nov. 26, things certainly didn’t look too promising for the Anamosa JV girls.
CEDAR FALLS - It’s the highest honor a sports journalist or broadcaster can receive in the state of Iowa.
CEDAR RAPIDS - As a team filled with mainly freshmen and sophomores, there weren’t too many who gave the eighth-seeded and unranked Springville volleyball team much of a chance against top-seeded and No. 1 ranked Sidney in their class 1A state quarterfinal match at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids Wednesday, Nov. 13.
That didn’t matter to the Orioles one little bit.
ANAMOSA - How does the old saying go?
Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stay these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.
ANAMOSA - It was a little over a year ago that Anamosa’s Ellie Tallman gave her verbal commitment to the Minnesota State University softball program.
WAVERLY - Coming into his final home game as a Wartburg College football player Saturday, Nov. 16, against Loras, former Anamosa superstar wide receiver Kolin Schulte needed two touchdowns to break the Knights’ school record for most receiving scores in a single season.
IOWA CITY - They’ve got an old saying in Springville.
VICTOR - Back and forth they went on a chilly and muddy Friday, Nov. 1.
As one of the better class 8-player playoff contests in the first-round of games, 15th-seeded Midland and 11th-seeded HLV traded blows as both teams tried to make their way up and down a field that was almost completely mud covered in Victor.
FORT DODGE - They’ve been the two crown jewels of the Iowa High School cross country season all fall long.
Central City’s class 2A No. 2 ranked Emily Staal and Mid-Prairie’s No. 1 Marie Hostetler. The pair have been among the top runners in Iowa this season regardless of class, and they faced off one final time as high schoolers at the state meet in Fort Dodge Saturday, Nov. 2.
BELLE PLAINE - When Claude Howard took over the reins of the Springville volleyball program, he wanted to instill a culture of winning and a mind-set that anything is possible through hard work.
When I started as sports editor here at the Journal-Eureka way back in 1995, Jerry Carstens had been coaching girls basketball at Midland for exactly 30 years.
ANAMOSA - For a young team learning as they went through the 2019 campaign, Anamosa football coach Lucas Stanton sorely wanted to head into the off-season with a win in the Raiders’ season-finale hosting Oelwein Friday, Oct. 25.
ANAMOSA - The atmosphere was electric inside as the Anamosa High School gym Wednesday, Oct. 23, as the Raider volleyball team hosted rival Monticello in what would be one of the most thrilling, and eventually heartbreaking matches the Anamosa program has seen in years.
WYOMING - Nothing was going to stop the Midland football team from extending their school-record of making an amazing fifth-straight class 8-player playoff berth in the 2019 season-finale Friday, Oct. 25.
SPRINGVILLE - With still fleeting hopes of making the class 8-player playoffs, the Springville football team knew their chances were slim after their heartbreaking loss at Midland two weeks ago.
SPRINGVILLE - It’s just what the Springville volleyball program does, year after year after year.
Win.
SPRINGVILLE - As she ran around the Tri-Rivers Conference cross country route on her home course in Springville Thursday, Oct. 17, fans from every league school knew they were watching something extremely special in Central City senior Emily Staal.
ANKENY - Anyone who has followed the Anamosa middle school cross country programs this fall knew of the abilities the talented young Raider teams had.
IOWA CITY - The weather didn’t exactly make for ideal running conditions for athletes competing at the River Valley Conference championships in Iowa City Tuesday, Oct. 15, but for the Anamosa girls and boys, it was another opportunity to make a statement against some of the top runners in the state of Iowa, regardless of class.
WEST LIBERTY - Hoping to get a little momentum going heading into class 3A regional action this week, the Anamosa volleyball team got a taste of tournament pressure taking past at the River Valley Conference event in West Liberty Tuesday, Oct. 15.
CENTRAL CITY - Knowing that their playoff lives were on the line, the Midland football team put their fans and their coaches through the ringer at Central City Friday, Oct. 18.
DELHI - Through much of the last half decade, the Springville volleyball team has been one of the most powerful programs in the entire Tri-Rivers Conference.
MONTICELLO - Riding a 14-game losing streak coming into their Cowbell contest at Monticello, few thought the winless Anamosa football team was going to be able to pull off an upset against a Panther club that just two weeks ago was ranked among the best in class 2A.
MANCHESTER - It’s the time of year when runners start to take their game to that next level as the conference and state qualifier meets approach, and for the Anamosa cross country program times are beginning to come down as the meets begin to heat up.
WYOMING - With a win and you’re quite possibly in the playoffs and lose and you are out scenario, the Midland football team’s game hosting Springville Friday, Oct. 11, was the most pressure-filled of the year to date.
TROY MILLS - There’s no slowing the juggernaut that is Central City senior Emily Staal, no matter the competition.
ANAMOSA - There was a buzz in the air as the Anamosa volleyball program honored a whopping 11 seniors Tuesday, Oct. 1, as the team hosted winless Northeast in front of another big home crowd.
ANAMOSA - Playing probably their toughest opponent since week two at Iowa City Regina, Anamosa football coach Lucas Stanton knew his team was in for an extremely tough test hosting class 2A fifth-ranked Waterloo Columbus Friday, Oct. 4.
LISBON - When it comes to the overall success of her volleyball team this season, Midland coach Kerrigan Riley doesn’t just look at the final score.
SPRINGVILLE - Hosting struggling Central Elkader in front of a big crowd on Homecoming Friday, Oct. 4, Springville football coach had a few things he wanted the Orioles to accomplish against the winless Warriors.
ANAMOSA - With the weather forecast for Friday, Sept. 27, looking ominous at best, Anamosa Athletic Director Bret Jones decided it was the best interest of everyone involved for the Raiders’ football contest against visiting North Fayette Valley to be moved to up a night, especially with Homecoming festivities looming Saturday, Sept. 28.
ANAMOSA - Just a week after hosting the Cascade Invitational due to heavy rains on the Cougars’ cross country home at the Fillmore Golf Course, the Raiders were back at home again Saturday, Sept. 28.
WYOMING - No offense to winless Central Elkader, but Midland football coach Lenny Miller had just one goal for his club coming into their contest with the injury depleted Warriors Friday, Sept. 27.
CENTER POINT - The cream once again rose to the top at the Center Point-Urbana Invitational Tuesday, Sept. 24, but it was the performance from the rest of his girls’ team that had Springville-Central City cross country coach Steve Pershing particularly excited.
It was three years ago when Kolin Schulte graduated from Anamosa High School as one of the most decorated athletes in Raider history.
ANAMOSA - Welcome to Cascade ‘south.’
ANAMOSA - Coming off a frustrating loss at Camanche just five days earlier, Anamosa volleyball coach Caitlin McVay wanted to see her team to get right back into the mix for another River Valley Conference North division title with a big win hosting Cascade Tuesday, Sept. 17.
DYERSVILLE - Through more than three and a half quarters, it appeared the Anamosa football team had done enough to pick up their first win of the season at Beckman Friday, Sept. 20, and spoil the Blazers’ Homecoming party.
WYOMING - Playing post-season football is something the Midland program has become very accustomed to over much of the past half-decade.
WHEATLAND - The first three weeks of the 2019 campaign has mainly been a parade of tournaments for the Springville volleyball team.
ANAMOSA - It’s not uncommon in a close setback to look back and see plenty of missed opportunities.
TIPTON - Turning in their best team performance of the young season at Tipton Tuesday, Sept. 10, Anamosa cross country coach Ken Sunseri was pleased for his improving boys’ squad, but also wanted to make sure they remained focused on the big picture.
ANAMOSA - The atmosphere was raucous inside the Anamosa High School gym Tuesday, Sept. 10, and no, it’s not basketball or wrestling season.
MONTICELLO - It was the match-up the entire Iowa cross country community was waiting to see once again.
ANAMOSA - Pulling out of the annual Clinton Prince of Peace Invitational for the first time in many years, the Anamosa volleyball program decided to instead host their own tournament Saturday, Sept. 7.
Raider volleyball coach Caitlin McVay is sure glad they did.
IOWA CITY - Everything about the Anamosa football team’s performance through the first two quarters of play at Iowa City Regina Friday, Sept. 6, screamed for the Raiders to just give it up.
WYOMING - It’s been tough stringing together wins for the Midland volleyball program over the last several years, so when the Eagles opened their own home tournament against a good Monticello team Saturday, Sept. 7, fans may have been thinking it would be more of the same.
SPRINGVILLE - Coming into the 2019 campaign, Springville football coach Joe Martin knew he had a good team.
But exactly how good, even he wasn’t too sure about that?
If you missed KCRG-TV 9’s Athlete of the Week segment last week, take a peek at it on-line. It will absolutely bring tears of joy to your eyes.
ANAMOSA - Knowing how important the first few series on both sides of the football would be in the 2019 season-opener against visiting Maquoketa Friday, Aug. 30, Anamosa football coach Lucas Stanton was hoping his young team would be able to come out and execute right away against a Cardinal program that gave the Raiders their lone triumph of the 2018 campaign.