HARLAN -- Harlan Community football coach Curt Bladt was honored prior to Friday night’s home game vs. Denison and presented a plaque in recognition of his 400th career win on September 15 at Glenwood. The Cyclones defeated the Monarchs 56-14 at Merrill Field, improving Bladt’s record to 404-59 during the last 40 seasons at HCHS.

 HARLAN (October 13) -- The Harlan Community quarterback trio of Preston Mulligan, Brett Sears and Johnathan Monson have held down the fort through seven weeks of the high school football season, passing for a combined 566 yards and seven touchdowns as the 6th-ranked (3A) Cyclones have gone 6-1 overall and 5-0 in District 7. With the team now just one win removed from clinching a district title, it appears that senior Deren Schmitz is ready to

 HARLAN (October 10) -- Sometime during the third set Tuesday night, Harlan Community’s student section erupted in cheers and held up a sign congratulating senior libero Sidney Craig on career dig number 1,000. While appreciative of the gesture, as well as her peers’ constant enthusiasm in the stands, Craig was fairly certain she had already passed the four-digit milestone in set two with her fifth dig of the match. “They don’t know what a dig

 MANNING (October 10) -- The IKM-Manning volleyball team won a hard-fought five-set match with Logan-Magnolia in the quarterfinal round of the Western Iowa Conference Tournament Monday night before falling to top-seeded Tri-Center in a three-set semifinal match here Tuesday. The fourth-seeded Wolves (22-11 overall) faced third-seeded Missouri Valley in Thursday’s consolation final (at Manning) and will close out the regular season at the Lewis

 MISSOURI VALLEY (October 9) -- AHSTW struggled at the net in Monday’s Western Iowa Conference Volleyball Tournament quarterfinal game at Missouri Valley, compiling a negative kill efficiency (-.069) in a 14-25, 16-25, 14-25 loss to the Lady Reds. AHSTW, seeded sixth in the tourney, finished the match with 13 kills against 18 attack errors and dropped to 12-12 overall.

 WINTERSET -- It wasn’t all that pretty, but the Harlan Community football team will take it. Held scoreless for the final three quarters on a slick, rain-soaked field, the 8th-ranked (3A) Cyclones overcame a third-quarter downpour and tenacious opponent to escape Winterset with a 7-6 victory Friday night. A sixth straight win improved HCHS to 6-1 overall and 5-0 in District 7, good enough for sole possession of first place.

 IDA GROVE -- Different routine, same result for the AHSTW Vikings. Playing Saturday instead of Friday night due to a rare football rainout, the 7th-ranked (1A) Vikes scored on eight of their first 11 drives and finished the game with 29 unanswered points to dominate OA-BCIG 54-14 on a breezy but sunny afternoon. Senior quarterback R.J.

 MANNING -- Stephen Grimm and Carter Irlmeier scored two rushing touchdowns apiece last Friday night and Jared Johnson threw a 41-yard TD pass to Marshall Hansen as the IKM-Manning football team raced to a 37-0 halftime lead and blew out ACGC 44-0. Grimm broke loose for a 50-yard touchdown on the third play of the game and later scored from a yard out en route to 128 rushing yards on 16 carries.

 EXIRA -- Fremont-Mills scored the final 22 points of the game Friday night to beat Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton 43-12 in an 8-Player, District 7 matchup. The two teams entered the game in a tie for second place in the district standings. F-M is now 5-2 overall and 4-1 in district play while the Spartans fell to 4-3 and 3-2, respectively.

 ATLANTIC (Oct.

 CLARINDA (Oct. 5) -- The Harlan Community volleyball team started and finished the night by winning close decisions Thursday and picked up a four-set road win at Clarinda by scores of 26-24, 25-18, 17-25, 25-23. Newly ranked at No.

 WINTERSET (Oct. 6) -- For the first time this season, Class 3A, District 7 will have an outright leader following Friday night’s football clash between Harlan Community and Winterset. Weather permitting, that is. With thunderstorms and heavy rain in the forecast both Thursday and Friday, the Cyclones (newly ranked at No. 8 by the Associated Press) are scheduled to take on the Huskies at 7:30 p.m. in Winterset.

 HARLAN (Oct. 3) -- The evolution and growth of the 2017 Harlan Community volleyball team might be best exemplified by Tuesday’s second set against Council Bluffs St. Albert. Already trailing one set to zero, the Cyclones led 9-4 when St. Albert rattled off 10 of the next 11 points. HCHS battled back to build a 23-20 advantage, then committed several errors as St.

 WOODBINE (Oct.

 AVOCA (Oct. 3) -- AHSTW was competitive at times but unable to take a set from the Missouri Valley Lady Reds in Western Iowa Conference volleyball play Tuesday night, falling 12-25, 23-25, 19-25. The loss dropped AHSTW to 12-10 overall and 4-4 in the WIC going into Thursday’s final league match at Tri-Center. Missouri Valley, which improved to 19-5 overall and 6-2 in the WIC, was led by 10 kills and 17 digs from Reahgan Stueve vs.