St Mary 5th Grade Boys Win Tri-State Tournament

March 31, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

On Friday night, March 28th, and Saturday, March 29th, the St. Mary Cardinal 5th-grade basketball team finished their season at the 85^th Annual Tri-State Tournament put on by the Sioux Falls YMCA. The Cardinals won the “B” Division of the tournament in dramatic fashion over the Sioux Falls Wildcats.

The Cardinals came out with tenacious defense and opened up a 7-2 lead early in the game. The Wildcats came back though to tie the game up at 17-17 by halftime. To start the second half, the Wildcats came out and put the clamps down on St. Mary to open up a 28-19 lead. The turning point, to get the Cardinals back in the game, came at about the 13-minute mark of the second half when a Wildcat player kicked St. Mary’s center Max H. in the face when he was on the ground. A technical foul was called, and St. Mary’s received two points and the ball. St. Mary’s eventual came back and took the lead around the 3-minute mark. As St. Mary started to build a lead the Wildcats started to foul putting St. Mary’s at the free-throw line. With the Cardinals struggling with free throws, the Wildcats got back in the game to tie it up at 34-34.

With :31 seconds left, the Wildcats had the ball and set up the play they wanted. After a missed shot and two offensive rebounds, the Wildcats finally lost the ball out of bounds to the Cardinals. The Cardinals brought the ball across half court and called their final timeout with :13 seconds left in the game. In the time out, Coach Craig Libis set up an inbound play for the last shot. The Cardinals inbounded the ball to Connor L. With immense pressure he dribbled the ball to the top of the key. With five seconds left, he began to drive. The Wildcats shut down the lane, and Connor L. tried to back in closer, but with one second left, he turned and threw up the last shot that fell in for a 36-34 win.

Earlier in the tournament, the Cardinals came away with wins over DeSmet (40-27) and Sibley, IA (35-28). The Cardinals finished 40-7 in their season.

Front row L to R: Clay W., Connor L., Colin W., Jon B., Nick W., Hunter G., Connar K., & Sam P. Standing L to R: Coach Lee Palmer, Noah D., Coach Craig Libis, Max H., Coach Jason Griffin, Thomas E., Austin G., and Coach Matt Herber.

New Ownership for Dairy Queen

March 28, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

Charlie Pleskac with President and CEO of Children’s Miracle Network, John Lauck

The Dell Rapids Dairy Queen will be under new ownership on Tuesday, April 1st. Owner Charlie Pleskac has sold the Dairy Queen to Dan Hiserote. Hiserote owns multiple Dairy Queens in the northwest Iowa area. Steve Hill, Hiserote’s concept manager, has said that upgrades to the Dell Rapids Dairy Queen may take place. Pleskac said that the new owner has indicated a desire to try to keep DQ Days and the Miracle Treat Days alive that Pleskac has done over the past five years of ownership.

The decision to sell the Dairy Queen came down to family needs.

Currently the Dell Rapids Dairy Queen employs 15 staff, and all staff will keep their positions.

Charlie and Rita Pleskac share this letter with the community:

“My wife and I want to extend our many thanks and gratitude to the community of Dell Rapids and all of our DQ patrons over the last five years. Five years ago we purchased the Dells DQ and moved up here as newlyweds. We could not have asked for or dreamed of being welcomed and supported as Dell Rapids made us feel. The community welcomed us as one of their own and provided an incredible amount of support. For that, we are forever grateful.

When we moved here five years ago, we did not plan on moving or selling our business. Dells was our home. Wee bought a house here, had two kids here, enjoyed living here. As with life, the unexpected seems to always happen. Our unexpected was the absence of family around us and the effect it would have on us and our kids. We became a family who was traveling four hours to see family every other weekend; arriving late Friday night only to leave early Sunday afternoon. It became evident to use that we wanted our family closer to family. My wife and I are very close with our families and this is the reason we have decided to relocate back closer to home.

Dell Rapids is a wonderful place to have been a resident, a business owner, and a member of the community. It is with a torn heart that we made our decision knowing the community and many great people we will be leaving behind. Family is one of the most important aspects in live and in our heart we know that we are doing what is best for our family.

Charlie Pleskac with President and CEO of International Dairy Queen, John Gainor

We want to again extend a huge ‘Thank You’ to Dell Rapids as a community, all of our patrons at DQ over the past five years, and all of our friends here in town.

Sincerely,
Charlie and Rita Pleskac”

Pleskac will continue to be owner of two other Dairy Queens, one in Lincoln, Nebraska and the other in Ogallala, Nebraska. Pleskac also resigned his position on the Dell Rapids Planning and Zoning Committee.

Dan Lennon Track Meet Results

March 26, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

On Monday, March 24th, the Dell Rapids Quarriers boys and girls track teams participated in the Dan Lennon Invite in Vermillion. Maddie Vietor placed fifth in the triple jump and eighth in the long jump for the girls team.s The boys 4×200 meter relay placed third, the 4×400 meter relay placed seventh, Mason Schmidt finished eighth in the high jump, Bret Nichols placed second in both the triple jump and the long jump, Ty Hoglund finished third in the long jump, and Tanner Ljunggren finished eighth in the triple jump.

The Quarriers will head back to Vermillion on Tuesday, April 1st, for a practice meet.

All the Quarrier results from the Dan Lennon Invite can be seen below:

Girls

60m dash

Kiah Schumacher – 0:09.04

400m Dash

Hannah Fiedler – 1:18.27

1600m Run

Lexi Snyder – 6:17.99

4x200m Relay

Sami Rieder, Megan Miles, Lindsay Morris, Kiah Schumacher – 2:03.63

800m Run

Cheyenne Spielmann – 2:46.45

4x400m Relay

Sami Rieder, Hannah Fiedler, Lindsay Morris, Megan Miles – 4:56.51

Long Jump

Maddie Vietor – 15’04.75″ – 8th place

Triple Jump

Maddie Vietor – 34’04.00″ – 5th place
Jessica Tisher – 28’03.50″

Shot Put

Mikaela Stofferahn – 34’02.25″
Brittney Siemonsma – 33’04.25″
Jill Nelson – 28’05.00″

Boys

60m Hurdles

Henry LaCoursiere – 0:09.99
Riley Jurgenson – 0:10.21

60m Dash

Ian Bergstrom – 0:07.43 (qualified for semifinals)
Jon DeNoon – 0:07.58
Matthew DeNoon – 0:07.66
Ian Bergstrom – 0:07.36

Medley Relay

Adam Reams, Ben Gillogly, Sam White, Tanner Heim – 3:57.76

4x200m Relay

Zach Schroeder, Kahler Bervin, Riley Schmidt, Ian Bergstrom – 1:37.03 – 3rd place

400m Dash

Tanner Heim – 0:56.82
Ben Gillogly – 1:00.21
Riley Jurgenson – 1:00.85

800m Run

Nick Holmes – 2:34.73

4x400m Relay

Zach Schroeder, Adam Karst, Riley Schmidt, Adam Reams – 3:44.56 – 7th place

High Jump

Mason Schmidt – 5’10.00″ – 8th place

Long Jump

Bret Nichols – 20’11.25″ – 2nd place
Ty Hoglund – 20’10.75″ – 3rd place
Tanner Ljunggren – 18’09.25″
Kahler Bervin – 18’07.25″

Triple Jump

Bret Nichols – 43’01.00″ – 2nd place
Tanner Ljunggren – 39’06.00″ – 8th place
Kahler Bervin – 38’05.00″

Shot Put

Ben Hammer – 43’04.00″

Julie (Fields) Bortnem

March 26, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

Julie (Fields) Bortnem, 59, Arvada, CO (formerly of Dell Rapids, SD), died Feb 10, 2014. Services: Celebration of Life 1:00-4:00 PM, Mar 29 at Dell Rapids Legion Hall. Cremation Society of Colorado.

Julie Bortnem died on February 10th, 2014 in her Arvada, Colorado home. She was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and friend.

Julie Ann Fields was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on February, 11th, 1954 to Glen and Joann Fields. Julie and her five brothers grew up in Dell Rapids, South Dakota where she met David Bortnem. In December 1973, Julie and Dave were married. Julie graduated from South Dakota State University with a degree in Home Economics. After several years living in San Antonio with her husband and two sons, the family moved to Colorado. It was here that she would become one of the founding members of the Ralston Creek Sertoma Club. During her life, Julie amazed and delighted her friends with her culinary skills, often using ingredients from her own well-tended, organic garden and her abilities as a seamstress. Julie was selfless, generous, and nurturing and would lend her time, talents, energy, and compassion to both family and friends with no expectation of recognition. It was evident to all that met her that her true joy was found in taking care of her family, the definition of which was never limited to bloodline. Throughout their forty years of marriage, Dave was rarely far from Julie’s side. Together they enjoyed traveling, gardening, spending time with family and friends, and, most of all, spoiling their four grandchildren.

Survivors include her husband, David; two sons, Craig (Kelley) Bortnem of Minneapolis, MN, and Travis (Melissa) Bortnem of Arvada, Colorado; four grandchildren, Cara, Aidan, Connor and Collin; mother, Joann Fields; five brothers, Gary, Bob, Brad, Mark and Kevin; as well as many other family members and friends. She was preceded in death by her father, Glen Fields.

Private interment was held at Fort Logan in Colorado. A celebration of life is scheduled for Saturday, March 29 from 1-4pm at the American Legion in Dell Rapids, South Dakota.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations are made to The Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research (http://www.lustgarten.org/) or to Ralston Creek Sertoma at 11150 HURON St., No 100, Northglenn, CO 80234 where they will be directed to the club’s primary charities.

27th Annual 3-Class Shootout

March 25, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

Zach White of Dell Rapids Quarriers will be playing in the 27th Annual 3-Class Shootout on Saturday, March 29th, at McCook Central Auditorium in Salem, SD. The girls games will start at 2:00 p.m. with the “AA” all-stars taking on the “A” all-stars. The winner of that game will play against the “B” all-stars at 3:30 p.m. White and his class “A” teammates will take on the boys “AA” all-stars at 5:15 p.m. A dunk contest will follow the game, and then the final game will be at 7:00 p.m. between the “B” all-stars and the winner of the “AA” vs “A” game.

Rosters of all six teams can be found by clicking here.

Boys Basketball All-Conference Selections

March 23, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

Four area boys basketball players were honored with All-Conference selections recently.

Dell Rapids Quarrier sophomore Ty Hoglund was named to the Dakota XII Conference First Team. Senior Cody Nielsen was named to the Third Team, and Junior Zane Schumaker received an Honorable Mention for the 2013-2014 season.

Junior Mitch Brown from Dell Rapids St Mary was named to the Dakota Valley Conference Second Team.

Dakota XII Conference Selections

First Team:

Brendon Boomsma – Tri-Valley
Ty Hoglund – Dell Rapids
Jason Lupkes – Dakota Valley
Trae Vandeberg – Madison (MVP)
Brody Van Ginkel – Dakota Valley
Cody Willett – Canton

Second Team:

Jacob Giles – Madison
Tyrell Harper – Vermillion
Jacob Hinker – Lennox
Jay Lems – Canton
Preston Nordling – Madison
Tarin Smallfield – Tea Area

Third Team:

Oliver Doeden – Beresford
Gunnar Ensz – Tea Area
Andrew Flynn – Elk Point-Jefferson
Luke Hurley – Sioux Falls Christian
Nick Jensen – Vermillion
Cody Nielsen – Dell Rapids

Honorable Mention:

Chad Barkema – Sioux Falls Christian
Cody Bussell – West Central
Dereck Devries – Lennox
Kory Diefendorf – Beresford
Isaac Faldmo – Dakota Valley
Jace Huska – Vermillion
Brandon Koupal – Elk Point-Jefferson
Tyler Lems – Canton
Noah Matson – West Central
Rush Milne – Madison
Anders Peterson – Canton
Ryan Sabers – Tea Area
Zane Schumaker – Dell Rapids

Dakota Valley Conference Selections

First Team:

Andrew King – Arlington (MVP)
Heath Schindler – Elkton/Lake Benton
Nathan Krog – Elkton/Lake Benton
Cole Casper – Lake Preston
Austin Janssen – DeSmet

Second Team:

Alex Heuer – Arlington
Trevan Farnham – Elkton/Lake Benton
Mike Bradfield – Lake Preston
Kyler Asleson – DeSmet
Nick Skyberg – Oldham-Ramona/Rutland
Mitch Brown – Dell Rapids St Mary
Trenton Hemmer – Colman/Egan

Dell Rapids Hosts NWBA Junior Division Northern Conference Tournament

March 23, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

Dell Rapids High School was the host for the National Wheelchair Basketball Association (NWBA) Junior Division Northern Conference Tournament on Saturday, March 22nd. Five teams from Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota and South Dakota participated in the tournament – Nebraska Red Dawgs A (Nebraska), Nebraska Red Dawgs B (Nebraska), KC Pioneers (Kansas), Courage Rolling Gophers (Minnesota), and the Jr. Sioux Wheelers (South Dakota). The tournament was a round-robin format with the first game starting at 9:30 a.m. and the final game played at 4:30 p.m.

The Nebraska Red Dawgs A finished first with a 3-0 record on the day. The Jr. Sioux Wheelers finished second in the tournament with a 3-1 record, and the KC Pioneers finished third with a 2-2 record.

Michael Mitchell and Hunter Gronli, both of Dell Rapids, from the Jr. Sioux Wheelers earned All-Tournament honors.

Game Scores:

Jr. Sioux Wheelers 44, Nebraska Red Dogs B 16
KC Pioneers 32, Courage Rolling Gophers 28
Nebraska Red Dogs A 62, Jr. Sioux Wheelers 22
KC Pioneers 39, Nebraska Red Dogs B 36
Nebraska Red Dawgs A 65, Courage Rolling Gophers 21
Jr. Sioux Wheelers 54, KC Pioneers 26
Courage Rolling Gophers 63, Nebraska Red Dawgs B 26
Jr. Sioux Wheelers 50, Courage Rolling Gophers 37
Nebraska Red Dawgs A 51, KC Pioneers 21

All-Tournament Team:

Justyn Newman – KC Pioneers
Michael Mitchell – Jr. Sioux Wheelers
Holden Kowalke – Courage Rolling Gophers
Micha Dotzler – Nebraska Red Dawgs A
Jeromie Meyer – Nebraska Red Dawgs A
Lauren Gibbs – KC Pioneers
Hunter Gronli – Jr. Sioux Wheelers
Mackenziee Voecks – Nebraska Red Dawgs A
Female MVP: Maya Campbell – Nebraska Red Dawgs B
Male MVP: Justyn Newman – KC Pioneers

Contracting Company Selected for Library Utility Relocation Project

March 22, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

The Dell Rapids City Council approved the bid from H&W Contracting from Sioux Falls, SD for the library utility project. Bids were publicly opened on Wednesday, March 5th, at the City Council Chambers. Two bids were received. Metro Construction of Sioux Falls, SD, submitted a bid of $122,716.50 and H&W Contracting submitted a bid of $107,296.00. Mike Kuno from SEH made the recommendation to accept the bid of H&W Contracting for the project. Library board Member Tom Early updated the city council about the bids of the utility project.

City Administrator Justin Weiland presented the council with an agreement from SEH for construction oversight for the utility project at a cost of $6,000.00.

City Council member Craig Lauritzen moved to accept the bid from H&W Contracting for the utility project. Council member Paul Miles seconded the motion. The motion passed. City Council member Mark Crisp made the motion to accept the agreement for SEH for the oversight of the project. Council member Gary Haak seconded the motion, and the motion passed.

Audrey (Van Daalen) Leuning

March 20, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

Audrey D. Leuning, 80, of Jasper, MN, passed away on Wednesday, March 19, 2014 at Riverview Manor in Flandreau. Her funeral service will begin at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, March 24, 2014 at the Reformed Church, Dell Rapids. Interment will be in the Logan Reformed Cemetery. Visitation with the family present will be from 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. with a prayer service beginning at 4:00 p.m. at Kahler Funeral Home. To leave condolences please visit www.kahlerfh.com.

Audrey Darlene Van Daalen was born on August 12, 1933 at Egan, SD, the daughter of Wesley and Laura (Baldwin) Van Daalen. She grew up south of Egan on the family farm and attended Egan School. She graduated from Egan High School in 1951. After high school she worked at Farmers State Bank in Flandreau. She married LaWayne Leuning on September 8, 1962 in Egan, SD. The couple made their home on a farm east of Dell Rapids. Audrey always helped around the farm while the children were in school. In 1983, she became a dietary aide at Riverview Manor in Flandreau. She worked there twenty years until her retirement.

She was a member of the Reformed Church and active in the Reformed Church Women. She enjoyed bowling, gardening and socializing with her many friends and neighbors.

Audrey passed away on Wednesday, March 19, 2014 at Riverview Manor in Flandreau, SD. She was 80 and preceded in death by her husband, LaWayne in 2012, her parents and her two brothers, Charles and Wesley.

Those left to cherish her memory are her children, Marcia Leuning of Brookings, Denise (Noel) Matson of Huron and Dennis Leuning of Dell Rapids; her four grandchildren, Christa of Brookings, Ashley, Tanner and Shelby of Huron; and her many nieces and nephews.

School Board Votes to Start School End of August

March 17, 2014 by Matt Larson, Big Sioux Media

The Dell Rapids School Board voted to move the start date for the 2014-2015 school year, but the start date will still come before Labor Day. During a special school board meeting held on Monday, March 17th, the Dell Rapids School Board heard concerns from the public and after almost an hour of discussion, the board voted to move the start date of school to the fourth week of August.

The original proposed start of school was August 19th. The board was also considering a start date of September 2nd, which is the day after Labor Day before ultimately deciding to start school on August 27th.

A survey taken by parents, staff and students was taken between February 27th and March 9th. During a regularly scheduled school board meeting held on March 10th, the results of the survey were presented to the school board. The results of that survey along with proposed school calendars were presented to the Dell Rapids Superintendent’s cabinet on Thursday, March 13th. Tom Wolff, representing the Superintendent’s cabinet, recommended to the school board during the special meeting to adopt the fourth week of August start date.

“When we were done discussing, what we came up with, is a recommendation from our board, was the fourth week draft. We felt that was a compromise. Many of the high school staff still feel that even that fourth week in August is not necessarily the best choice because of some academic repercussions,” said Wolff.

Wolff also said, “We did feel that the fourth week draft was a compromise that we could live with.”

Denae Klinkenborg, a parent in attendance at the meeting, asked,”How do we weight the needs of the high school kids versus the needs of others in the district versus the needs of the parents versus the needs of the teachers? There’s definitely an advantage in one way of doing things so the high school kids have an advantage, but then does that disadvantage everybody else?”

School Board President Tom Morris said, “I guess as a compromise, and maybe a happy medium, I think the fourth week draft was well thought out and reviewed by the staff and including, like I said earlier, endorsed by the Superintendent’s cabinet as a working possibility. Unfortunately it doesn’t give us as much time early with those high school students, and doesn’t necessarily gives us the late start that parents overwhelmingly support. It’s a nice compromise in the middle.”

Morris made the motion to approve the fourth week draft proposal. School board member Steve Stofferahn seconded the motion. The motion passed with a 4-1 vote, with school board member Matthew Weiland voting against.

The proposed school calendar for the start date in the fourth week of August can be found by clicking here.

The entire discussion can be seen in the archived video of the meeting by clicking here.

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