Doris Matilda Yager, 102, Luverne, formerly of Ellsworth, died Monday, Oct 14, 2002, at Mary Jane Brown Good Samaritan Center in Luverne.

Services were Thursday, Oct. 17, at Zion Presbyterian Church in Ellsworth. The Rev. Robert Raedeke officiated. Burial was in Grand Prairie Cemetery, Ellsworth.

Doris Middlen was born to Daniel and Mary Amelia (Steele) Middlen on Aug. 25, 1900, in Highland, Wis. She graduated from Highland High School in 1919. After graduation, she attended Augustana to obtain her teacher’s certificate. She taught in Davis, S.D., for three years.

She married Walter William Yager on May 21, 1922. After their marriage, they lived on the family farm in Centerville, S.D., until 1938 when they moved to Adrian. They farmed in the Adrian area for three years and then moved to a farm near Ellsworth. They retired in 1959 and moved to Ellsworth. She moved to Blue Mound Tower in Luverne in 1992. She moved to Mary Jane Brown Good Samaritan Center in April 2001.

Mrs. Yager was a member of Zion Presbyterian Church in Ellsworth and was active in Ladies Aid and church choir. She was also a member of Senior Citizens and RSVP in Ellsworth.

Survivors include four children, Mary Alice Patten, Rosemount, Marjorie Jean Wendt, Worthington, Shirley Ann DeBates, Luverne, and Paul Eugene Yager, Eden Prairie; 14 grandchildren; 21 great-grandchildren; and 11 great-great-grandchildren.

Mrs. DeYager was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, Walter, in 1969; three grandchildren; three brothers and three sisters.

Dingmann Funeral Home, Luverne, was in charge of arrangements.

Oscar Olson, 86, Luverne, formerly of the Steen-Hills area, died Friday, Oct. 4, 2002, in Luverne Community Hospital.

Services were Monday, Oct. 7, in Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Hills. Burial was in Flower Field Cemetery, Hills.

Oscar Paul Olson was born March 3, 1916, to Oluf and Petra (Larsen) Olson in Luverne. He attended school in Luverne and graduated from high school in 1934. He continued his education at the University of Minnesota Agricultural School in St. Paul. He started farming near Steen in 1936. He married Hattie Behr on Sept. 4, 1948, at the State Line Presbyterian Church. The couple continued to farm until their retirement in 1986. They moved into Luverne and have lived there ever since.

Mr. Olson was a third-generation farmer of a Centennial Farm. He was very active in 4-H and was a reservist in the National Guard. In his spare time, he enjoyed going to farm sales and was an avid Minnesota sports fan. He was a member of Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Hills.

Survivors include his wife, Hattie Olson, Luverne; five sons, Duane (Jacqueline) Olson, Sioux Falls, S.D., Warren (Mary) Olson, Hills, Lyle (Rhonda) Olson, Steen, Dennis Olson, Valley Springs, S.D., and Roger Olson, Steen; two daughters, Mary (Al) Brinkman, Luverne, and Joan (Jeff) Stoll, Brooklyn Park; 14 grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; one brother, Odin (Arlene) Olson, Ocala, Fla., two sisters-in-law, Betty Olson, Luverne, and Dorothy Olson, Framington, Mass., several nieces, nephews, cousins, other relatives and friends.

Mr. Olson was preceded in death by his parents, one sister, Emma Palmer, two brothers, Milton Olson and Alvin Olson, and one daughter-in-law, Kristie Ann Olson.

Engebretson Funeral Home, Luverne, was in charge of arrangements.

Adrian junior Kylie Heronimus digs up a spike in front of teammate Kristi Lonneman during TuesdayÕs home volleyball match against Southwest Star Concept. The Dragons lost a five-game match to the Quasars to wrap up a 3-20-1 regular season.

By John Rittenhouse
The Adrian volleyball team posted a pair of wins while dropping four matches during the final week of the regular season.

AHS went 2-2 and placed second in its division during the Southwest State University Subway tournament in Marshall Friday and Saturday.

The Dragons lost a three-game match to Mountain Lake-Butterfield-Odin in Mountain Lake Thursday before dropping a five-game home tilt to Southwest Star Concept Tuesday.

Adrian, 3-20-1 overall, opens the South Section 3A Tournament by playing Fulda in the Luverne Elementary School Oct. 25.

SSC 3, Adrian 2
The Dragons lost an opportunity to bring some momentum into the postseason when they lost their home finale to the Quasars Tuesday.

A nice rally in the fourth game allowed the Dragons to tie the match at two, but SSC won the war by claiming the fifth game.

After falling behind early in Game 1, Adrian rallied to take a 5-4 lead before going on an 8-3 run to take a 14-7 lead. That run featured three ace serves by Andrea Lonneman, two service points and an ace serve by Jenna Honermann, one ace serve by Carmen Erlandson and an ace block by Kylie Heronimus.

SSC closed the gap to 14-9 before a tip by Heronimus gave Adrian a 15-9 win.

The Dragons led 4-2 in Game 2 when the Quasars went on a 9-1 run to take an 11-5 advantage. Two service points from Kristi Lonneman and a kill by Andrea Lonneman trimmed SSC's lead to three points (11-8), but SSC scored the next four points to prevail 15-8.

SCC scored the first three points of Game 3 only to have AHS receive kills by Erlandson and Andrea Lonneman to make it a 3-2 difference. The Quasars dominated play the rest of the match with a 12-1 run that ended in a 15-3 win.

It looked like SSC might end the match when it sported a 12-8 lead late in Game 4. Adrian, however, bounced back to score the next seven points (two ace serves and a point from Sarah Henning, two kills by Erlandson and two kills by Andrea Lonneman) to steak a 15-12 win and force a fifth game.

SSC led 10-3 in the finale before Adrian put together a 5-0 run consisting of two points and an ace serve by Erlandson, a block by Heronimus and a point from Andrea Lonneman to trail 10-8. The Quasars answered the challenge by ending the match with a 5-1 surge to record a 15-9 win.

Andrea Lonneman and Erlandson led AHS with 13 and 11 kills, while Heronimus chipped in nine kills and four blocks.

Honermann, who had three blocks, registered 42 set assists. Henning was nine of nine serving with seven points and two aces. Kristi Lonnerman charted 10 digs.

SSU tourney
The Dragons posted a pair of wins and placed second in their division during the Subway Tournament in Marshall Friday and Saturday.

Competing in the Brown Division, AHS went 2-2 overall and finished second in the Silver Bracket in its division.

Adrian opened the event Friday by losing a 2-0 decision to Yellow Medicine East. The Sting toppled the Dragons by 15-3 and 15-12 tallies.

Honermann had eight set assists, three ace tips and completed 10 of 10 serves with one ace and five points during the match. Heronimus added three kills and two blocks.

The Dragons met Lincoln HI in FridayÕs second round, posting 15-10 and 15-5 wins over the Rebels.

Honermann recorded nine set assists, nine service points and two blocks during the win. Heronimus had four blocks, four ace tips and three kills. Erlandson served nine points and five aces.

Adrian won back-to-back matches for the first time this season when it racked up 15-9 and 15-12 wins over Cedar Mountain during Saturday's first round.

Andrea Lonneman served nine points and three aces during the win. Heronimus and Brittany Bullerman chipped in four and three kills respectively.

Adrian ended the event by losing a 2-1 match to Edgerton. The Dragons prevailed 15-2 in Game 2, but the Flying Dutchmen notched 15-12 and 15-9 victories in Games 1 and 3.

Kristi Lonneman completed all 18 of her serves with 11 points and one ace in the finale. Honermann registered 14 set assists, four ace tips and four ace serves. Heronimus tallied 10 kills, five service points, four blocks and three ace tips. Andrea Lonneman added five kills.

ML-B-O 3, Adrian 0
The Dragons played well against one of the Red Rock ConferenceÕs best teams before falling by three games in Mountain Lake Thursday.

ML-B-O, a team that currently occupies second place in the league, found itself in a battle against the Dragons. Adrian didnÕt win a game in the match, but the Dragons were in position to prevail in the first and third tilts before coming up short.

"ML-B-O is a pretty good team, and the girls played very well against them," said Dragon coach Solomon.

The teams traded points throughout the first game before ML-B-O erased a 13-12 deficit with a three-point run that clinched a 15-13 win.

The Wolverines took the second game 15-7, but found themselves in a deadlock at 12 in Game 3 before using another three-point run to win 15-12.

Heronimus had six kills, five blocks and two ace serves for the Dragons. Andrea Lonneman was 12 of 12 serving with two aces. Honermann charted 16 set assists.

Hills-Beaver Creek-Ellsworth defender Tyson Metzger (32) braces for contact from Westbrook-Walnut Grove runner Jeff Cooley during Friday’s football game in Ellsworth. H-BC-E defeated W-WG 26-12 to give Ellsworth fans a homecoming win.

By John Rittenhouse
Hills-Beaver Creek-Ellsworth moved within one win of clinching its second consecutive Southwest Ridge Conference championship Friday in Ellsworth.

Playing Westbrook-Walnut Grove in what was a tilt between the conference’s lone unbeaten teams, H-BC-E won the showdown by a 26-12 margin over the Chargers.

The win upped H-BC’s league record to 6-0 heading into a game against Lakeview played in Cottonwood last night.

A win in Cottonwood would lock up the league title for the Patriots, and it probably will give the Patriots a first-round bye in the Section 2 Nine-Man Playoffs.

Fans who arrived late to what was Ellsworth’s 2002 homecoming game missed a lot of the action.

The teams scored a combined 38 points in the first 14:53 of the game before battling to a scoreless draw in the final 33:07.

Fortunately for H-BC-E, they did most of the scoring.

Senior Chris Reid returned a pair of kickoffs for touchdowns in the first quarter to steal the momentum from W-WG, which had found the end zone prior to both tallies by Reid.

Patriot quarterback Curt Schilling, an Ellsworth High School student, electrified the crowd by throwing touchdown passes in the first and second quarters as H-BC-E opened a 26-12 cushion.

The game turned into a tight defensive battle the rest of the night, which worked in H-BC-E’s favor as it blanked W-WG over the final three quarters to preserve the victory.

The Patriots produced shining moments both offensively and defensively, but it was Reid’s long kick returns that lifted H-BC-E to victory while crushing W-WG’s will.

"We’ve always told our kids that special teams play very important roles in every game," said Patriot coach Dan Ellingson.

"That proved to be especially true in this game. In the last couple of weeks Chris has had a hard time picking up rushing yardage because the other teams are keying on him. W-WG did a good job of slowing our running game down, but Chris returned two kickoffs back for touchdowns to get us going."

W-WG proved it could be a tough team to beat when the Chargers put together a 10-play, 67-yard scoring drive with their first offensive possession.

Quarterback Tom LeBoutiller capped the drive with a nine-yard touchdown scamper at the 6:55 mark of the first quarter. A run for a two-point conversion failed.

LeBoutiller’s touchdown gave the Patriots their first deficit of the 2002 season, but it didn’t last long. Reid returned the ensuing kickoff 82 yards for a touchdown, and Zach Wysong booted the extra point to give H-BC-E a 7-6 lead it would never relinquish.

After the H-BC-E defense forced the Chargers to punt four plays into their second possession of the game, Schilling and another EHS player produced a big play.

The Patriot signal-caller hooked up with end Brant Deutsch for a 58-yard touchdown pass to cap a four-play, 75-yard drive. A pass for a two-point conversion after the touchdown failed, leaving the Patriots with a 13-7 advantage with 3:40 remaining in the first quarter.

W-WG fought its way back into the game with a four-play, 65-yard drive during its third offensive possession. LeBoutiller ended the drive with a 27-yard touchdown run at the 2:02 mark of the first quarter, but a failed conversion pass left the Chargers on the short end of a 13-12 score.

Any momentum W-WG gained with its second touchdown quickly vanished as Reid fielded the ensuing kickoff and dashed 71 yards for a touchdown. Wysong’s second extra point followed the return, giving the Patriots a 20-12 cushion with 1:46 left in the first period.

The teams exchanged punts after Reid’s second touchdown, but the Patriot defense came up with a huge play when lineman Robert Metzger recovered a W-WG fumble on the Chargers’ 18-yard line with 9:13 remaining in the first half.

Schilling hit Tyson Metzger with an 18-yard touchdown pass on the first play after the fumble, but a botched snap kept the Patriots from adding an extra point.

H-BC-E led 26-12 at that point (9:07 remaining in the second quarter), and the score remained that way.

The Patriots did have a 12-play drive later in the second quarter, but a pass fell incomplete during a fourth-and-seven situation on the W-WG 17 with 1:26 remaining.

Reid picked off a pass three plays later on the W-WH 42 with 26 seconds left in the first half. H-BC-E, however, had to punt the ball after running three unsuccessful plays after Reid’s pick.

Neither team could generate any offense in the third quarter. H-BC-E had the ball three times in the period and produced one first down.

W-WG didn’t pick up a first down during its first three possessions, but the Chargers did move the ball into H-BC-E territory with their fourth possession of the second half. The six-play series ended on downs on the Patriot 35 with 11:05 left in the fourth quarter.

The Chargers had an outstanding scoring opportunity when they advanced the ball inside the H-BC-E one-yard line, but a botched exchange between the quarterback and center on fourth down led to a two-yard loss with 5:50 left to play.

"That goal-line stand in the fourth quarter was huge," Ellingson said. "If they score, they’re only one touchdown down with plenty of time left. Who knows what would have happened if they would have scored in that situation?"

W-WG did get the ball back twice as the fourth quarter progressed, but interceptions by Schilling and Deutsch ended the possessions.

"This was a good win for us," Ellingson said. "Our defense made some big plays, our passing game was working and our special team’s play was great. Teams have been stopping our running game, but we’re proving that we are more than a one-dimensional team. Games like this will let other teams know that they have to prepare for more than stopping our running game when they play us."

Team statistics
H-BC-E: 135 rushing yards, 162 passing yards, 297 total yards, eight first downs, two turnovers, six penalties for 45 yards.
W-WG: 161 rushing yards, 69 passing yards, 230 total yards, seven first downs, four turnovers, three penalties for 20 yards.

Individual statistics.
Rushing: Reid 18-58, Jesse Leuthold 18-45, Schilling 8-32.
Passing: Schillng 9-16 for 162 yards.
Receiving: T.Metzger 3-55, Deutsch 2-71, Wysong 2-15, Reid 1-14, Kyle Sammons 1-7.
Defense: Schilling 17 tackles and one interception, Reid eight tackles and one interception, Cody Scholten six tackles, Deutsch one interception, R.Metzger one fumble recovery.

Genevieve "Mutt" Carlson, 79, Hardwick, died Monday, Oct. 14, at Luverne Community Hospital. Visitation will be Thursday, Oct. 17, from 4 to 8:30 p.m. at Hartquist Funeral Chapel, Pipestone with a prayer service at 8 p.m. Services will be Friday, Oct. 18, at 10 a.m. at St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Jasper. Burial will be in Maplewood Cemetery.

Fannie Van Wyhe, 95, Hills, died Wednesday, May 22, 2002, at Luverne Community Hospital in Luverne.
Services were Saturday, May 25, at Steen Reformed Church in Steen. Burial was in Eastside Cemetery, Steen.

Fannie Zwart was born to Ralph and Fannie (Bosch) Zwart on Feb. 22, 1907, in rural Carmel, Iowa. She grew up and attended school in Carmel.

She married James "Jim" Van Wyhe on Jan. 29, 1929, in Rock Rapids, Iowa. After their marriage they farmed near Hills. Upon retirement they moved to Tuff Memorial Home Apartments in Hills. Mr. Van Wyhe died June 28, 2000.

Mrs. Van Wyhe was a member of Steen Reformed Church.

Survivors include three sons, Henry (Clazina) Van Wyhe, Sioux Falls, S.D., Ray (Carol) Van Wyhe, Luverne, and Clarence (Arlene) Van Wyhe, Rock Rapids; 10 grandchildren; 29 great-grandchildren; four stepgrandchildren; five stepgreat-grandchildren; and three sisters, Henrietta Fredriks, Jeanette Regenerus and Bertha Fiske.

Roste Funeral Home, Rock Rapids, was in charge of arrangements.

By John Rittenhouse
The Luverne girls’ cross country team made history by winning its first Southwest Conference team championship during the annual league meet staged in Marshall Tuesday.

According to Cardinal coach Bruce Gluf, no LHS girls’ squad had won a SWC title in the history of the program prior to Tuesday.

That changed when three Cardinals placed in the top-10 individually to lead Luverne to a 45-71 win over Marshall and the rest of the field.

"I can’t say enough about these kids," Gluf said. "The girls were really fired up, and they wanted to win this meet. Then, they went out and ran a lot of personal and career bests. The kids competed really well today.

Lexi Heitkamp and Sadie Dietrich turned in all-conference performances by placing third and seventh with respective 15:55 and 16:04 times.

The top-seven finishers in league competition make the All-SWC squad.

Amanda Saum, Victoria Arends and Kesley Dooyema made contributions to the winning team tally by finishing eighth, 11th and 16th with respective 16:08, 16:23 and 16:54 times.

Jessica Willers and Breanna Studer placed 51st and 61st in 19:38 and 20:51 without influencing the scoring.

The Luverne boys also competed well Tuesday, placing third out of six complete teams. All of the Cardinal runners produced personal best times.

Jake Studer and Jesse Kuhlman led the chase for LHS by placing 12th and 14th with respective 17:35 and 17:36 efforts.

Ruston Aaker, Dusty Antoine and Jesson Vogt padded the team score by placing 17th, 18th and 20th in 17:54, 17:55 and 18:06 respectively.

Travis Halfmann (28th in 18:39), Trevor Maine (33rd in 18:50), Devin Goembel (35th in 18:38), Brent DeGroot (72nd in 21:33), Michael Nelson (75th in 21:54) and David Nelson (79th in 22:14) ran without influencing the team tally.

The Cardinals will run at the Section 3A meet in Slayton Oct. 24.

Here is a look at the team standings and Luverne’s other individual results from the SWC meet.

Girls’ standings: Luverne 45, Marshall 61, Jackson County Central 71, Windom 77, Redwood Valley 124, Worthington 165.

Boys’ standings: Marshall 15, JCC 58, Luverne 81, RWV 127, Windom 132, Worthington 156.

Girls’ junior high: Justin Heintzman, third, 8:27; Amanda Kannas, fifth, 8:37.

Boys’ junior high: Eric Kraetsch, fifth, 7:20.

By Sara Strong
The Lewis and Clark Rural Water System is asking members to sign a new agreement that has made the Rock County Rural Water Board a little nervous.

It recommended that the Rock County Board of Commissioners not sign the new agreement because of some cost and operational issues that differed from the original agreement.

Rural Water also asked that the County Board find funding if it wants to continue with the project, which plans to bring additional water to the entire region.

County Attorney Don Klosterbuer recommended that the Rock County Board of Commissioners table voting on the issue, which it did.

Rock County Rural Water Manager Dan Cook said, "We can stay or get out Ñ but if we sign the agreement, it may cost us double."

The new agreement caused Rock County Rural Water to rethink its position on Lewis and Clark. Some of the specific concerns include:

The new agreement allows the Lewis and Clark board discretion on billing procedures. It doesn't clarify how the "per gallon consumption charge" is determined, how the board would determine "variable costs" or what amount the "meter charge" will be.

The new agreement is more binding in that it says each member is committed to pay their proportionate share of the construction cost unless the project is abandoned by the Lewis and Clark Board.

The new agreement allows the Lewis and Clark Board to require members to make advance payments of their projected share of the capital cost. At the earliest, new water could reach Rock County in 2011, so advance payments would probably pay for construction in South Dakota. If, then, the project would not get federal funding to reach completion, some members would have paid for the system with no benefit.

The original agreement said members were obligated to continue with the project contingent on receiving at least 90 percent funding with state and federal grants. That language has been removed and it's now estimated that federal money will take 80 percent of the cost, with state and user funds making up the difference.

State funding is uncertain right now, and federal funds have come in less than the Lewis and Clark board expected when determining its cost estimates.

Cook, said he's essentially concerned about the increasing cost to stay a member of Lewis and Clark. The advance payment portion of the agreement is the biggest concern to Klosterbuer.

The estimated cost to complete the project is increasing, largely due to inflation and less federal funding than was originally planned. Original total cost for the system was $235 million.

Also, if the state doesn't come through, Rural Water would be liable for the state's portion - as would all members of the system.

In 1993 Rock County Rural Water signed on to the project for a 300,000 gallon per day delivery at 71¢ per thousand gallons. Now, that cost is now $1.25 per thousand.

Rural Water dedicated $514,216.80 to the project originally. Now cost estimates could be as high as $755,741, using 2001 dollars and supplementing state funds that might not come through.

Cook said, "It started out to be a doggone good project. The board thought, 'What good is money in the bank if you donÕt have water in the pipe?' so we were for it."

The 300,000 gallons Rural Water is allocated is about half the average consumption, and would serve mostly as a safe, reliable water backup.

Cook is also concerned about lobbyist costs to get federal and state funding. Of course, lobbyists get paid whether the funds come through or not. Rural WaterÕs estimated lobbying cost from 2002 through 2012 are $200,000.

Cook said in a memo, "As you can see, LCRW is becoming very, very expensive if you consider RCRW's well #10 can produce more than 300,000 gallons per day for less than a $50,000 development cost. Well maintenance costs would need to be paid. However, the cost of production is considerably less than LCRW proposed $1.25/1000 gallons."

The city of Luverne is also a member of Lewis and Clark, and has an allotment of 750,000 gallons a day, or half of what it expects to use at high capacity.

By Sara Strong
The Rock County Family Service Agency is looking for public comment about a possible new way of doing business.

The Rock County Board of Commissioners Tuesday approved of Family Services amending its Community Social Service Act Plan to include what's called an Alternative Response to Child Protection Services.

Rock County Family Services Director Randy Ehlers will accept comments on the amendment through Nov. 30, when the Board will formally approve the amended form of Child Protective Service.

The change, according to Jessica Sandbulte of Family Services, is for the better.

"It implements what we've already been informally doing," she said.

The Alternative Response isn't a typical investigation because it is a community-oriented approach that addresses family issues in a way that isnÕt threatening to the family unit.

Nancy Lange called it a "non-confrontational" way of dealing with families and their problems with children.

The alternative approach has been used in other counties and is gaining popularity.

Ehlers said it enables families to take care of themselves by using services available in the community - rather than being forced through the courts to change when things are too far gone.

Of course, the court system will be used in cases of severe abuse or neglect.

Ehlers hopes that families see social workers as helping them rather than coming into their homes to point out problems.

Sandbulte said families that are best served by Alternative Response are those struggling with:
child supervision
educational neglect
domestic violence without imminent child harm
physical abuse (that isnÕt statutorily prohibited)
unmet basic needs
chemical addiction
emotional abuse
Traditional Response allows workers to recommend changes or go through the courts to order change.

Alternative response means that the county will work with families through changes until they are able to move out of the Family Services umbrella and function on their own.

If implemented, the county wouldn't have to spend more for programs or hire additional staff.