Luverne junior Callen Bosshart lunges at a ball during Monday's home volleyball match against Martin County West. The Cardinals dropped a four-game match to the Mavericks.

By John Rittenhouse
The Luverne volleyball team recorded its first Southwest Conference victory in two seasons when it swept a three-game match in Worthington Thursday.

The conference win was followed by 3-1 losses to Martin County West in Luverne Monday and to Brandon Valley in Brandon, S.D., Tuesday.

Luverne, 10-9-1 overall, hosts Pipestone Area tonight before playing at the Hull Western Christian Tournament Saturday and taking on Redwood Valley in Redwood Falls Tuesday.

BV 3, Luverne 1
The Cardinals received their first taste of playing volleyball by South Dakota rules when they traveled to Brandon Tuesday.

South Dakota rules feature rally scoring and 25-point games, and the Cards were unable to adjust in time to record a victory.

After falling 25-12 in the first game, LHS did bounce back to knot the match at one game each with a 25-22 win in Game 2.

The rest of the night belonged to the Lynx as the hosts posted 25-14 and 25-19 in Games 3 and 4.

"It was different," said Cardinal coach Mary Jo Graphenteen, when asked about what she thought about playing under South Dakota's guidelines.

"I thought we did some good things in the match, but I also think we got beat by the better team. BV is a senior-dominated team that is taller and more athletic than we are. We had our chances, but we didnÕt capitalize on some of our opportunities."

Rashel Boeve led the Cards with 13 kills. Stephanie Morgan, who was seven of seven receiving, and Tara Boomgaarden chipped in 12 and six kills respectively.

Taylor Nelson was seven of eight serving. Lyndsie Johnson registered nine set assists.

MCW 3, Luverne 1
The Cardinals were unable to record back-to-back wins when they hosted the Mavericks Monday.

A win for LHS in Game 2 tied the match at 1-1, but MCW prevailed in Games 3 and 4 to take the match.

Luverne fell behind 5-0 in Game 1 before pulling to within one point of the Mavericks twice at 6-5 and 8-7 with kills from Johnson and Morgan respectively.

The Mavericks answered the challenge by putting together a 6-0 run to open a 14-7 advantage before clinching a 15-10 win in the end.

Luverne controlled play early in the second game before MCW pulled within one point at 6-5.

The Cards responded with a 7-3 surge featuring three service points from Boomgaarden, a point and a kill from Cassie Pap, a point from Morgan and a block from Boeve to gain a 13-8 advantage that was washed away when MCW went on a 7-1 run to move in front 15-14.

Luverne, however, bounced back with a kill from Boeve, a block by Morgan and a point from Emily Oksness to win by two.

The Cards faced a 5-1 deficit in the third game before taking a 6-5 edge with three points from Boomgaarden, one from Pap and a kill by Boeve.

MCW then took control of the game with a 10-0 run that gave the Mavericks a 15-6 victory.

Game 4 was a tight one featuring ties at three, seven, eight, nine and 10.

The Cards whittled a 14-11 deficit to two points (14-13) with a tip by Boomgaarden and an ace serve from Johnson, but MCW scored the next point to clinch a 15-13 win.

Boomgaarden completed 20 of 21 serves and recorded 14 points for the Cards, who received 20 set assists from Johnson.

Morgan led LHS with 12 kills. Boeve recorded eight kills, while Pap and Oksness chipped in six kills each.

Luverne 3,
Worthington 0
The Cardinals posted their first conference win in two seasons when they swept a three-game match from the Trojans in Worthington Thursday.

The win didn't come easy as the Cards had to come from behind to win two games, the prize of snapping what was a 12-match SWC losing skid dating back to Sept. 28, 2000.

"It was a big conference win for us," said Cardinal coach Graphenteen. "It's been a while since we've come to school on Friday after winning a conference match on Thursday. Since it (the win) came during homecoming week, it was pretty cool."

A late rally in Game 1 sent the Cardinals on their way to victory. Trailing 14-12, Luverne put together a 4-0 run to steal a 16-14 win.

The Cardinals controlled play while posting a 15-2 win in the second game, but they fell behind 6-1 in Game 3 before going on a 14-3 run to secure a 15-9 victory.

Morgan led the Cardinals at the net with 13 kills. Boeve charted six kills, while Pap and Oksness added five each.

Johnson, who led the Cards with 17 set assists, was 22 of 23 serving with 18 points. Pap went 13 of 17 serving with 11 points and three aces.

Pap and Boomgaarden were cited for doing a good job of receiving serves by Graphenteen.

Luverne's Jake Studer placed fourth to lead the boys' varsity team to victory at the Cardinal Autumn Invitational in Adrian Thursday.

By John Rittenhouse
The Luverne cross country teams played the role of greedy hosts when they entertained a number of area teams for the Cardinal Autumn Invitational at the Adrian Area Country Club Thursday.

The Luverne squads posted a sweep in varsity competition by winning both team titles.

LHS nipped Sioux Falls Lincoln 46-49 to take top honors in the boys' competition. Hills-Beaver Creek-Ellsworth-Edgerton (77), Brandon Valley (120), Worthington (145) and Adrian (166) round out the six-team field.

The Cardinal girls bested Lincoln 27-34 to win their championship. BV and Worthington placed third and fourth with 77 and 111 points respectively.

Jake Studer and Nick Otten set the pace for the Cardinal boys by finishing fourth and sixth individually with respective 17:41 and 17:54 times.

Jesse Kuhlman (10th in 18:16), Ruston Aaker (12th in 18:29) and Dusty Antoine (14th in 18:35) made contributions to the winning team tally.

Travis Halfmann (20th in 18:58), Jesson Vogt (25th in 19:14), Trevor Maine (28th in 19:22), Devin Goembel (33rd in 17:41), Eric Kraetsch (50th in 20:47), John May (56th in 21:07), David Nelson (62nd in 21:56), Brent DeGroot (65th in 22:22) and Mike Nelson (69th in 22:49) also ran in the varsity race for LHS.

Third-place finishing H-BC-E-E received outstanding races from Tyler Bush and Zach Hadler, who placed first and third in 17:21 and 17:38.

Todd Alberty, Greg Van Batavia and Derek Haak placed 11th, 17th and 45th with respective 18:24, 18:53 and 20:25 times to pad H-BC-E-E's team score.

Kerry Fink (46th in 20:31), John Sandbulte (53rd in 20:59), Michael Bos (61st in 21:55), Devin DeBoer (60th in 21:52), Jared Drenth (67th in 22:19) and Justin Hinks (79th in 25:29) also ran in the varsity race for the Patriots.

Brandon Bullerman and Paul Honermann led the Adrian boys by finishing 14th and 15th in 18:37 and 18:42.

Ethan Wieneke, Kelly Seeman and Aaron Mormann round out Adrian's point producers by finishing 34th in 19:51, 49th in 20:47 and 52nd in 20:55.

Dustin Lonneman and Eldon Vaselaar placed 75th and 80th in 24:04 and 25:44 without impacting the scoring.

Placing five runners in the top-10 set the stage for victory for the Cardinal girls.

Lexi Heitkamp (second in 16:05), Sadie Dietrich (third in 16:05), Victoria Arends (sixth in 16:27), Amanda Saum (seventh in 16:36) and Kelsey Dooyema (ninth in 16:56) helped the Cardinals come out on top.

Jessica Willers and Breanna Studer placed 36th and 40th in 19:20 and 20:11 without influencing the scoring.

H-BC-E-E and Adrian fielded incomplete teams for the girls' varsity race.

Krissi Thier (13th in 17:20), Kelly Banck (17th in 17:44) and McCall Heitkamp (18th in 17:47) represented Adrian.

Erica Fransen and Mya Mann placed 20th and 26th in 17:58 and 18:27 for H-BC-E-E.

Here is a look at the junior high results from Thursday's meet.

Junior high boys
H-BC-E-E: Grant Hoogendoorn, first, 6:18; Adam Finke, second, 6:15; Cody Rozenboom, third, 6:35.
Adrian: Tony Thier, fifth 6:38; Collin Lynn, sixth, 6:43; Kyle Henning, eighth, 6:4 Brett Springman, ninth, 6:52; Tim Zaske, 11th, 6:57.

Junior high girls
Luverne: Justine Heintzman, third, 6:41; Amanda Kannas, sixth, 7:03.
H-BC-E-E: Amanda Tilstra, second, 6:30.
Adrian: Morgan Lynn, first, 6:13; Megan Henning, fourth, 6:42; Kaitlin Leinen, fifth, 7:01.

By Lori Ehde
The long-awaited thermal oxidizer will be fired up at Luverne's Agri-Energy ethanol plant on Oct. 23.

It's the $1.5-million solution to the plant's odor problem that has prompted community complaints since it began operating in 1998.

The equipment was ordered in January and arrived for installation in July. It's a major project that required two additions, one for the electrical panel and one to house the boiler.

The oxidizer was scheduled to start operating by late summer, but inspectors required additional equipment that delayed startup.

According to Plant Manager Rick Serie, the Agri-Energy plant will shut down Oct. 22 for usual fall maintenance, so the oxidizer will be installed at that time.

It's also well-timed with a recent settlement with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the EPA.

MPCA settles with 12 ethanol plants
Agri-Energy Ethanol Plant is one of 12 plants statewide to reach an agreement last week with state and federal regulators on plant emissions and permitting.

A consent decree filed in U.S. District Court, St. Paul, Wednesday, addresses all concerns of the MPCA and the EPA and will result in cleaner ethanol production.

"The Minnesota plants have led the way for the entire ethanol industry by proactively working with the agencies to develop new control solutions to improve the environment," said Bill Lee, co-spokesman for 11 of the 12 plants covered by the agreement.

"By investing in additional control measures, the ethanol industry will reduce emissions well below the requirements in the Clean Air Act. The agreement calls for the implementation of the best available control technologies for all significant plant emissions."

Luverne's thermal oxidizer and additional controls will meet requirements spelled out in the agreement, according to Serie.

"We make a fuel that's good for the environment, so I don't want to be known as a polluter," he said.

He clarified that the settlement doesn't assume blame. "They never stated we were out of compliance, they just assumed we were," he said. "It would have cost more to fight it than it would to settle."

On the positive side, Serie said the process moved quickly.

"Everyone is extremely pleased with the cooperative effort.

"This settlement was arrived at in record time. Most cases like this take years to resolve. We settled 12 plants in five months."

How does it work?
In the thermal oxidation process, odor is eliminated by venting plant emissions into the oxidizer and destroying them with heat.

Meanwhile, the plant will capture heat off that process in a recovery steam generator to create steam for the ethanol production process.

Another advantage to the oxidation process is that it will allow the plant to increase production while remaining in compliance with the MPCA's emissions standards.

In fact, Serie said, the plant decided to pay $268,000 more for a larger model that will allow the plant to double its production in the future.

While the oxidation process requires a hefty up-front investment, Serie said it may pay for itself in five years.

Gained efficiencies of the boiler, costs cut by not using the scrubber and the freedom to expand production all make the oxidizer a worthwhile investment, Serie said.

The 175-foot stack will remain, but the steam plume coming out of the stack will be all but eliminated.

"Cold air condensing hot air makes steam, so there may be a plume in the wintertime, but there won't be any emissions," Serie said.

The existing boiler will be moved into a support position to be used as backup if needed.

Agri-Energy started production in 1998. It now employs 29 people full-time with an annual payroll of more than $1 million.

It processes seven million bushels of corn per year and produces more than 20 million gallons of ethanol annually.

By Sara Strong
Dinner theater can bring connotations of a hoity-toity social event, but the upcoming dinner theater in Luverne isn't that at all.

Director John Beranek said, "It's a tacky, Italian wedding and dance. Guests come to the wedding, the dance and the reception. They'll experience the whole wedding, including a champagne toast."

Sharkee's will host the Saturday, Oct. 19, performance of Tony and TinaÕs Wedding at 7 p.m. Sharkee's is selling advance tickets.

Beranek directed the play to be set the 1970s, with all the appropriate classic music accompanying the wedding dance.

Tony and Tina's wedding is a nationally-known play that ran eight years in Minneapolis and is now starting another run.

"It started out in New York with a group of friends who just got together and wrote the play," Baranek said of the popular play.

Audience participation
Barenek is known to Rock County as the director of last year's Green Earth Players production of "Oliver!"

This play, however, isn't quite as family-friendly. Berenek said 16 to 17 year olds could watch the slightly adult content, but he doesn't suggest anyone younger than that attending.

An unusual aspect of the play is that the audience participates in the festivities, many times dancing along with the actors.

The script leaves room for the players to react to the audience, but Berenek said the plot is still defined so the actors get back on track.

With the audience getting pulled into the drama, Berenek said it's truly a unique experience.

"One of the best compliments I've gotten from an audience member was, 'I forgot I was at a show. I felt like I was actually at a wedding.' "

That's why Berenek said Sharkee's was a good location - many of the audience members have been to receptions and dances there already.

In fact, Berenek suggests people dress as if they were going to a wedding, like other crowds have done. Dressing in '70s attire and bringing tacky gifts is also welcome. (Berenek cautions the audience against dressing too casually as some actors/wedding party members might notice.)

Even if ticket buyers don't want to be a part of interactive theater, Berenek said the play will be a good time.

"I've yet to hear a man whose wife dragged him along who didn't love it. It's theater in a different way. It's not high-brow, but if you want to dance and have a great time, it's perfect."

By Sara Strong
A group of concerned residents attended the Luverne City Council meeting Tuesday night to ask for help and support in stopping the county's drug problem.

Members of Parents: The Anti Drug and Violence Task Force represented many community members by speaking at the meeting.

Lila Bauer, Luverne, said, "I think we've had our heads in the sand for too long."

Realizing that the City Council can't necessarily fund more officers or dictate how the Sheriff's Department is run, the group still wanted a show of support.

For the Task Force, that support can be shown through serving on committees, helping to network in the community or advising the group through a grant-writing process.

They hope to find grants for educational programs for parents to teach what to look for in young drug users. Also, ideally, the group hopes to get an officer or some type of staff person to work with drug issues at the school level.

The city is a joint partner in Rock County law enforcement, and the Task Force has already been at a Rock County Board of Commissioners meeting.

Not the first task force
Council member Keith Erickson said, "It'd be nice to get more people involved than just those who are affected."

As a former high school teacher and counselor, Erickson was a key member of a similar task force in the 1980s. He said, "ItÕs ecstasy and meth now, but it's always been booze and marijuana."

The former task force got a good response at first, Erickson said, but by the second round of community education, turnout was scant.

"About 30 of us met monthly through the '80s," Erickson said. "And the biggest number of parents came [to one particular meeting] because we fed them chicken."

Parents of addicts at the council meeting admitted they hadn't expected drug problems to visit their families, but said more education would have helped them.

"Maybe the parents we tried to educate then are now grandparents," Erickson said, indicating a new task force may reach parents of todayÕs younger people.

Stan Nelson, Hills, said, "It's important to start thinking about it, talking about it."

Even though the parent task force is speaking very vocally about drugs like methamphetamines, it acknowledges that cigarettes, alcohol and marijuana are as big a problem as other substances.

Parents: The Anti Drug and Violence Task Force scheduled a public meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 22, at the Luverne Pizza Ranch.

In other business,
the City Council:
Is proceeding with the application for the Small Cities Grant program that could bring $1.4 million for home and business improvements to Luverne. In order to apply, the target areas of town had to answer surveys at a 70 percent or better return rate.

Joined the Minnesota Community Capital Fund for $25,000. The Luverne Economic Development Authority recommended the city join because, as a member, it can borrow up to 10 times what it's invested to use for economic development projects. The city can also get the $25,000 back if it wants to withdraw from the organization.

Approved a new policy manual for the Luverne Fire Department. The constitution and by-laws were updated. Notable items in the new version are that firefighters are required to respond to at least 35 percent of the calls and must live within seven minutes of the fire hall to be members.

All current Luverne Fire Department members already comply with these updates, according to assistant fire chief Don Deutsch.

By Jolene Farley
Dan Heidt, surrounded by many autographed photos of celebrities he protected in his 30 years as a bodyguard, spoke to students at Hills-Beaver Creek High School on Tuesday.

Heidt has traveled around the country delivering workshops with strong messages on right choices, drug abuse and defusing potentially violent situations.

In Hills, Heidt told students the reason he achieved such success as a bodyguard wasnÕt because of his strength, it was because of his ability to calm people down.

"The last thing I want to do is hurt anyone," he said. "Ninety-nine percent of the time I can get people to work with me, I can calm them down."

He stressed to students that even though he has black belts in 10 styles of Karate and is one of the top bodyguards in the United States he has been hurt.

"I want you to know that life is not like Walker Texas Ranger," he said, enforcing the fact that violence doesnÕt always mirror what we see on television or in the movies.

As a professional bodyguard, he always uses just enough force to protect his clients.

Heidt has first-hand knowledge of the devastation that occurs as a result of violence. He worked with staff and students at some of the recent school shootings in our country.

All the tragedies share a common grain: a lack of respect.

The shooters were bullied or teased in some way, according to Heidt.

"It's seldom ever the bully that commits the shootings," he said.

When kids get to the point that everybody is beating them badly, they give up hope.

"You can choose to be violent, or you can choose to tease someone when it isnÕt funny anymore," he said. "You have choices."

He added that drugs contributed to many of the tragedies. Someone who is battling depression can become more depressed if they take drugs, according to Heidt.

Heidt discussed some of his celebrity clients who provide good role models for youth including basketball players David Robinson and Michael Jordan and actor Harrison Ford.

Heidt used comedian Chris Farley, who died of a drug overdose, as an example of someone who made bad choices. Heidt, FarleyÕs bodyguard on more than one occasion, liked him.

"He is a perfect example of somebody who made the wrong choices," he said. "He was making millions, but had a horrible drug problem and couldn't quit."

He said many celebrities have made wrong choices about drugs. "All the time I was protecting them, they were slowly killing themselves," he said.

Heidt, who grew up in Iowa, attributes his desire to share his message to his mother and sister, both teachers.

He also thinks of his own daughter. "The last thing I ever wanted was for her to get caught up in a violent situation," he said.

Heidt grew up in a home with domestic violence and wants kids to know that they choose their path in life.

"I really believe that young people want good information," he said.

"If I can win over a few of you I will be happy."

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans paid for the workshop at Hills.

By Lori Ehde
Rock County is advertising to hire new deputies.

Investigator Clyde Menning has announced he will retire at the end of this year after roughly 30 combined years with the Sheriff's Department and former Luverne Police Department.

Another part-time deputy has indicated he will retire, and the county anticipates additional retirements in the next few years.

"What we're doing is gathering a pool of interested candidates," said Rock County Administrator Kyle Oldre.

According to the advertisement, applicants must have a high school diploma and a two-year degree in law enforcement, plus an eight-week skill course.

"The position assists the Rock County Sheriff's Department in enforcing the law and the protection of life and property throughout the county," the printed ad reads.

Oldre, who serves as the county personnel director, said the application process will continue through October 2003.

Wyatt Fey, an employee of Oehlerts and Sons Construction, Luverne, works on a new sidewalk for First National Bank in Beaver Creek Tuesday.

Photo by Jolene Farley

Hills-Beaver Creek junior setter Melinda Sandstede slips the ball past a Sioux Valley-Round Lake-Brewster blocker during a Red Rock Conference volleyball match played in Hills Thursday.

By John Rittenhouse
The Hills Beaver Creek volleyball team battled Sioux Valley-Round Lake-Brewster for nearly two hours in Hills Thursday before falling in a five-game Red Rock Conference match.

H-BC seemed destined to win its second consecutive match when it took Games 2 and 3 of the tilt to open a 2-1 lead, but the Raiders regrouped to win Games 4 and 5 to secure a 3-2 victory.

Game 1 of the tilt served notice that this would be a hard-fought match between two evenly-matched teams.

The teams exchanged leads in the early stages of the game, with H-BC taking an 8-7 edge with a service point from Erin Boeve. SV-RL-B then reeled off eight straight points to post a 15-8 win.

H-BC never trailed while posting a 15-9 win in Game 2.

The Patriots led 8-5 when they went on a 6-0 run consisting of three service points from Melinda Sandstede, one point and one kill from Sarah Rozeboom and one kill from Angie Sjaarda to open a 14-5 cushion.

The Raiders scored the next four points before Sjaarda served an ace to put the game away.

Another late run carried the Patriots to a 15-6 win in Game 3.

The hosts led 8-6 when Rozeboom produced three kills, Sandstede served two points, Cassi Tilstra recorded a kill and Sjaarda served a point during a 7-0 run that clinched the win for H-BC.

SV-RL-B dominated H-BC in Game 4 by outscoring the Patriots 10-2 early in the tilt before winning 15-6 in the end.

Game 5 was a tight contest that had the Patriots knotting the score at 10 with a pair of ace tips by Boeve before the Raiders put together a 5-0 run that gave them a 15-10 win.

Boeve, who was 12 of 12 serving in the match, led the Patriots with 22 kills and 20 blocks. Rozeboom and Sjaarda charted nine and six kills respectively. Kelly Mulder and Amanda Olson had six blocks each.

Rozeboom was 13 of 15 serving with two aces. Melissa Fagerness went 17 of 19 with three aces at the line.