Do you suppose the weatherman did make a New Year’s resolution to consider us when planning his weather? Predictions were for a winter storm watch over the weekend — but it didn’t happen here! The temperatures dropped below zero and, of course, the wind blew, but we only received a dusting of fluffy white snow. On Monday the sun was trying to shine and if it did the snow would rapidly disappear. So the weatherman’s reputation is off to a good start for us in 2004. School resumed on Monday and the rest of us went back to our familiar work schedule which I can really appreciate as with the holidays I have been having two Sundays every week and was utterly confused trying to figure out what day it really was. Let’s hope everything, including the weather, is back to normal — whatever that is!Deric Ehde, who attends college at Detroit Lakes, spent the Christmas holidays with his parents, Rick and Lori Scholten, in Steen. Mildred Keunen and Jo and Joyce Aykens attended the open house in honor of Willard and Jo Keunen who celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary at Alton, Iowa, on Saturday, Dec. 27. For those interested in practicing for their ball teams the H-BC school gym will be open from 1 to 3 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. The Dries Bosch family had their family Christmas at their home on Saturday, Dec. 27. Family members who attended were Steven Bosch, Anita and Gregg Bosch and family, Paul and Diane Bosch and family, Jeff and Toni Bosch and family and Tom and Amy Bosch and family. There will be an Elementary Roller Skating Party from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 23, at the Hills-Beaver Creek Elementary School gym. This will be for parents and students, grades K-6. The event is sponsored by the H-BC Student Council. The cost is $1 per person. Bring your own roller skates. Dries and Laura May Bosch were Sunday visitors in the home of Laura May’s sister, Margaret (Lynch) Schlimgen, in Luverne.New Year’s Eve dinner guests in the Melvin and JoAnn Paulsen home were Harvey and Etta DeJongh and Arvin and Cena Mae Tilstra. Friday Laura May Bosch’s namesake, Laura Rust Slade, and daughter Mckenzie from California and Edwina Rust, Jenny Stratton, both of Luverne, Becky Lee, Sioux Falls, S.D., Gail Rust and Kay Cox, both from Adrian, enjoyed dinner together at the Luverne Pizza Ranch.Melba Boeve left on Saturday for the home of her daughter, Julie and John Springman at Forest Lake where they enjoyed her family Christmas together. Others who came were Brian Boeve and family from Sioux Falls, Cheryl and Ron Hup and family, Hills, and Joel and Carla Overlander and family, Circle Pines. While there word was received that Joel Overlander’s niece had been killed in an auto accident on Dec. 28. She was McKenzie Overlander who was a student at Augustana College in Sioux Falls. She was the daughter of Terry and Becky Overlander from Dawson. Our deepest sympathy goes out to the families. Melba and families returned home on Monday. Did you make any New Year’s resolutions? If I do I don’t keep them long enough to receive any benefits from them. I read this article, written many years ago by W.R. Hunt, titled "A Morning Wish." It has replaced any resolutions I should have made. I would like to share it with you and hope it might be helpful for you when you are struggling with your New Year’s resolutions."The sun is rising on another day. What can I wish that this day may bring to me.Friends who understand me, and yet remain my friends. A work to do which has real value, without which the whole world would feel poorer. A return from that work small enough not to tax unduly anyone who pays. A mind unafraid to travel even though the trail be not blazed.An understanding heart. A sight of the eternal hills, and unresting sea, and of something beautiful the hand of man has made. A sense of humor and the power to laugh.A little leisure with nothing to do.A few moments of quiet, silent meditation — to semblance the presence of God. And the patience to wait for the coming of these things, with the wisdom to know them when they come."These words of wisdom were written many years ago and some of the wording is no longer in use. However, I think these words of wisdom will be helpful even in our lifestyles of today.Good luck and happy New Year!

Drug war-torn Colombia may become a very different place when its main export becomes lingerie, specifically push-up bras and thongs. According to Reuters news services, "Some 900 peasant women in Colombia are set to make racy lingerie and sell it to French supermarket Carrefour under a U.N.-backed program aimed at encouraging impoverished farmers and their families to stop growing drug crops." The innovative anti-drug action may be the most exciting thing to happen in agriculture since Johnny Appleseed crossed our country, planting all of those apple trees. It’s not a surprise that a French supermarket chain is involved in the deal. After all, $2.5 billion was spent on lingerie in France in 2002 and a recent survey showed that more than 80 percent of French people consider lingerie to be one of life’s necessities, not unlike water or food. Until the rest of the world shows its support and/or its need of support, the push-up bras and thongs will only be sold at Carrefour’s 12 stores in Colombia. The new lingerie factories will hopefully decrease crime normally associated with illegal drug trafficking, so fewer people should be busted. In spite of the decrease, there will definitely be more hold-ups among its customers, especially if underwired cups are involved. This could be the very first U.N.-backed lingerie program of its kind. Given the speed that it raced through the U.N., the lingerie-for-drugs program didn’t have to go through the scrutiny of the U.N. Security Council, where it’s almost impossible to get a go-ahead to muddle in other countries’ affairs. The money earned making undergarments in former coffee factories might not completely deter farmers from growing more lucrative drug crops, but it’s a start. However, once the Colombian peasant women take a few "factory seconds" home or take advantage of workers’ discounts in the factory outlet lingerie stores, making more money might become less of a priority for their husbands. As increasing numbers of lacy undergarments are sold in Colombian stores, residents other than the factory workers will also lose interest in the marketing of drugs. They might become more like the French and consider lingerie to be one of life’s necessities. There is always the remote possibility that some of the coffee farmers-turned-drug growers might miss the thrill and adventure of illegal drug trades. They might miss sleeping with one eye open and guns under their pillows. Perhaps they could be led to believe that lingerie is banned throughout the world and that they run the risk of being punished or even executed if they are associated in any way with the undergarment industry. What could be more undercover than undergarments? They might actually fall for the idea of forbidden Fruit of the Looms. On the downside, finding a worldwide market for the Colombian lingerie industry might turn out to be a big bust. Literally.

Happy New Year !The Village celebrated in grand style, with hors d’oeuvres and homemade ice cream. We met in the dining room and soon the clock struck midnight, it was really 8. No horns, no confetti. We just toasted with a bubbly drink, sang and welcomed the New Year. Arnold T. made each of us a little wooden stork carrying a baby. It’s hard to believe 2004 is here. We just became used to writing 2003.Villagers are saddened by the sudden death of Karoline Doorneweerd. She was nicknamed, "the quilt lady," for she made more than 300 quilts in her lifetime. She’d just get one quilted and she’d start another. Always a pleasant lady with a pat or a handshake. She had been a good friend to Bud’s parents and so she called me Gladys and Bud, Pete. A Village favorite that is already being missed. Our sympathy to her family.You’ll smell popcorn the next time you come to the Village for someone is always making the treat. We have a new popcorn machine. It looks like the old fashioned red ones you’d see on the street corners in summer only in miniature. Now popcorn is available daily, thanks to a generous donor.Signe was given a wonderful Christmas present. Her grandson took a snapshot of Signe and her husband when they were young standing by their black coupe with the rumble seat. He then pencil drew the picture exactly like the photo. Signe is having the picture framed for her wall. It’s about 12x36-inches.Legionaries Don Arends, Robert Walraven, Jim Moser, Robert Sandbulte and Gerald Haak came to the Village to present Bud with a Legion cap identifying him as a U.S. Veteran. Bud has been a legionnaire for more than 50 years.Erma’s home. Have you made New Year resolutions yet? Ed took down the outside lights one nice day. Miles had returned to his home near Denver and so we’ll miss the daily organ concerts. Signe had guests from Remsen, Myrna, Brandt and Amanda. Allison was from Utah. We’ll not be seeing Delores Melton visit the Village for she’s moved to Michigan. May she enjoy her new home.I’ll keep you posted.

Brakkes donate Shaw building to BMATTom and Sue Brakke recently donated the former Shaw Drug Store building to the Blue Mound Area Theatre (BMAT).According to Ben Vander Kooi, president of BMAT, operator of the Palace Theatre, the Shaw building is part of the long-range renovation plan for the Palace.According to Vander Kooi, the Palace architects recommended acquiring the Shaw building to provide possible lobby space.In addition, the building could also be used to display historical items which are presently located in the second floor Palace museum.Until the building is renovated, BMAT hopes to rent the building for retail or office space.Brakke managed the Palace Theatre in 1975 when it was owned by Jim Herreid.He leased the building from BMAT for a year beginning in 1998 and purchased the Shaw building during that time.Tom Brakke indicated that he and Sue were pleased with the direction that the reconstituted BMAT board was taking the theatre, and agreed that the donated building was a critical piece of property for the long-term success of the Palace Theatre.Check out ‘Brother Bear’ at the PalaceThe animated feature "Brother Bear" will be shown this weekend at the Palace Theatre in Luverne.Here is a synopsis of the plot found on the Internet Movie Data Base: "Long ago, as the Earth was emerging from the Ice Age, there were three brothers. After a bear takes the life of the oldest brother, impulsive youngest brother Kenai kills the bear in revenge, only to be transformed into a bear himself. Denami, the middle brother, comes upon this bear and, thinking it killed Kenai, vows revenge. Now brother hunts brother and Kenai's only hope for survival is to befriend his own worst enemy, a grizzly cub named Koda. Koda’s main goal is to show Kenai the real meaning of brotherhood."IMDA rated this movie 6.7 out of 10. The movie will show at the Palace 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Jan. 2 and 3, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 4. Are you a distracted driver?What distracts you when you’re driving?According to the American Automobile Association, drivers are distracted by something both inside and outside their vehicles. AAA funded a study which showed that the biggest distraction (97 percent) is reaching for something.Other top distractions include tuning the radio (91 percent), talking to someone inside the vehicle (77 percent), eating or drinking (71 percent), Grooming (46 percent), passenger behavior (44 percent), reading or writing (40 percent), using a cell phone (30 percent), and smoking (7 percent).The most surprising percentage number to me was the distraction caused by the cell phone.With all the noise being made over the issue, I expected that number to be much higher.After all, some states have been passing laws to outlaw the use of the cell phone. I haven’t heard of any advocating banning eating, drinking or grooming.AAA also noted that road rage is also a bigger problem during the holiday season.Inconsiderate driving also causes many automobile crashes at this time of year when people are more stressed out and release their frustrations behind the wheel of their car.Publisher Roger Tollefson can be reached by e-mail at tolly@star-herald.com

By Lori EhdeTwenty-one Rock County businesses were secretly tested Friday for compliance with Minnesota’s underage drinking laws.Of those, seven businesses failed to comply and now face possible penalties for selling alcohol to someone younger than 21 years old.According to information from the Rock County Sheriff’s office, businesses who sold to minors include Casey’s on East Main Street, Citgo on North Highway 75, Luverne Lanes bowling alley, Magnolia Steak House, Sharkee’s, the Eagles Club, and the Hardwick Green Lantern.Two 20-year-old men from Yankton and Del Rapids, S.D., attempted purchases at all Rock County businesses with liquor licenses.The minors were volunteers from a regional anti-drug, alcohol and tobacco group."That’s what we do so there aren’t repercussions to a local kid," said Rock County Sheriff Mike Winkels.He said Rock and Nobles County sheriff departments assist each other with regular compliance checks, which are required by state law.The last check in Rock County was August 2002, at which time only two businesses, Ampride Pump ’N Pak and the Beaver Creek Golf Course, sold to minors.Employees who failed to check identification could face criminal charges of selling to a minor, a gross misdemeanor that carries a maximum penalty of a $3,000 fine, a year in jail or both.This year’s non-compliant businesses may also face civil penalties as a result of the sting. Under Luverne City Code, the stores are subject to licensing penalties that can include imposition of civil fines and suspension or revocation of liquor licenses.In a 1999 compliance check, employees at both Citgo and Casey’s (this time on South Highway 75), sold to minors.

News commentary By Lori EhdeToday is New Year’s Eve, a day for reflection on the previous year and how lessons learned will affect what transpires in the year to come.For Luverne and Rock County, some key events — whether in the form of public decisions or political developments — in 2003 will no doubt carry ramifications into 2004.Upheaval at City HallWith the resignations and retirements of several public officials, and with a new council and administrator at the helm, Luverne city politics easily makes the Star Herald’s Top 10 list of stories in 2003.Problems from 2002 — particularly in the Public Utilities Department — spilled over into this year.For example, lineman Mike Gangestad was fired in the wake of city electrical accidents and subsequent OSHA fines and civil lawsuits. But in February this year, after filing a union grievance, he was reinstated after a finding of wrongful termination.The following month, in March, Administrator Matt Hylen resigned and Public Utilities Director Red Arndt retired.July saw the retirement of Public Works Director Darrell Huiskes.New guy, new rulesLuverne’s new City Administrator Greg Lafond started in September.His approach to leadership soon became clear: leave no stones unturned in an effort to fine-tune city operations.In a tight budget year, this is prudent leadership for all public officials, but in the quest to improve city processes, some long-standing city-county agreements are not only under scrutiny but are coming undone.Change can be good, and the optimists are hoping the final outcome of recent city decisions will indeed benefit taxpaying residents as a whole.Meanwhile, 2004 is off to a rocky start in the area of city-county diplomatic relations.However, the city blames the driving factor behind city directives on a tight budget … another major story of 2003.Trickle-down money problemsGov. Tim Pawlenty paid a high-profile visit to Luverne in January, partly to endorse JOBZ legislation.While Luverne ended up with JOBZ designation, per the announcement this month, the governor’s visit in January was less newsworthy than the bigger message he came to deliver: that the state was broke and that budget shortfalls in St. Paul would indeed be felt at the local level.He wasn’t kidding.In Rock County, that meant elected officials in school, city and county governments were left scrambling to come up with money that would otherwise have come from state coffers.The Star Herald pages are peppered throughout 2003 with almost weekly stories of job cuts, lost programs and services, and painful belt-tightening across the board.New hospital campus offers economic hopeAmong one budget crisis story after another, the Star Herald in 2003 was also able to report some economic good news.The new Sioux Valley Hospital and Clinic broke ground on Sept. 2 in a former soybean field north of the Veterans Addition along North Highway 75.With each development of the $17.8 million complex, it was hard to miss the point that this major project stands as a promising sign for Luverne’s future economic success.The 93,000 square-foot campus is targeted for completion in early summer 2005.Another recent positive development in the Sioux Valley Hospital story is that the current hospital-clinic campus already has a new occupant lined up.Dingmann Funeral Home announced last week it will occupy the current Luverne Medical Center and likely demolish the current hospital building for parking space.Speaking of occupying large spaces …One less grocery store, another hardware storeA major news story in 2003 was the announcement by Jubilee Foods that it was leaving town. Jubilee owners sold their large, newly-built grocery store downtown to Glen Gust of Glen’s Food Center.For the first time in nearly a century, Luverne became a one-grocery store town.Gust moved into his new quarters in the former Jubilee store in March, but his old building on East Lincoln didn’t stay vacant for long.In October, Ace Hardware moved in, finding the Glen’s building a perfect fit and location.Incidentally, a hardware store also occupies the old Jubilee Foods building near the library downtown. Luverne True Value-Country Store moved in last year.Wind energyAnother economic bright spot — renewable fuels — made major strides in 2003 as wind turbines continued sprouting up in Rock County. With four turbines already churning smoothly southeast of Beaver Creek in 2002, Minwind groups announced this year that seven more turbines will be constructed 2 1/2 miles north of Beaver Creek on more than two sections of land.A 20-year agreement with Xcel to transmit power generated from the turbines guarantees a place for wind energy as a viable local economic development tool in Rock County.Daddy’s still goneDozens of local families have grown accustomed to living without sons, brothers, husbands and fathers deployed with National Guard this summer.On Aug. 13, the local 125th Field Artillery departed for a six-month deployment in England.There are 93 affected members in the local unit that includes Luverne and Pipestone. Of those, 55 serve duty at the National Guard Training and Community Center in Luverne.Twenty-three of those live in Rock County and 21 live in Nobles County.The local troops are serving as security officers in England.High-profile tragedyWhile the guardsmen are expected to return home this spring, the Randy Scott family in Hardwick experienced a permanent tragic loss this summer.Scott, 55, was killed Aug. 16 when his Harley-Davidson motorcycle collided with a Cadillac driven by Congressman Bill Janklow, who sped through a stop sign at a rural intersection in Moody County, S.D.Janklow’s subsequent manslaughter trial and conviction attracted regional and national attention to the case, making it difficult for Scott’s family and friends to grieve in private.A memorial ride Oct. 4 attracted more than 700 motorcylists who rumbled through Rock County and South Dakota communities in Scott’s memory.Beaver Creek Golf Course opensDespite poor spring weather — more specifically, a lack of sunshine and moisture — the new Beaver Creek Golf Course got off to a rocky start this year.After an expected summer 2002 opening, the course finally opened June 6 this year.The course was developed with Driver’s Restaurant and 32 adjacent housing lots, several of which are already spoken for.Overgaard lawsuitA public family feud over a disputed feedlot came to a close this summer when the Overgaard lawsuit was settled.Glenn, Mabel, Loren and Mark Overgaard had sued Chad and Scott over their hog confinement operation just after it was built. The plaintiffs also protested throughout the process.Besides Chad and Scott, the suit involved Overgaard Pork, former Rock County Feedlot Officer John Burgers, Rock County Board of Commissioners and Schwartz Farms, which owns the animals Overgaard Pork raises.The federal portion of the lawsuit was dismissed in August against Chad and Scott Overgaard.Claims against County Commissioner Bob Jarchow had been filed, but were dismissed in March. The charges against the county were dismissed in federal court in July.

By Lori EhdeAfter Jan. 1, Engebretson Funeral Home, Luverne, will be in the hands of new owners.Randy Hartquist, Pipestone, is purchasing the business from Vertin Company, Breckenridge, which has owned the local operation since the late Norm Engebretson semi-retired in 1980.David Anderson has been directing funeral operations at Engebretson for nearly two years, and Hartquist said no immediate changes are planned in Luverne as the result of the transaction."David’s doing a good job down there," Hartquist said. "There aren’t any big changes that way."Hartquist has owned the funeral home in Pipestone and managed the one in Jasper for nearly 20 years, and he said he’s familiar with Luverne and Rock County families.Further, he said he has a long-standing relationship with both Vertin Company and Engebretson Funeral Home."I know the Engebretson family feels good about the business getting back into local ownership," Hartquist said Monday."I valued my long-term relationship with Norm and Valoris (Engebretson), and considered them my personal friends. I served as a pallbearer for both Norm’s and Valoris’s funerals."Gary Carlson, director of Vertin Company operations in Breckinridge, said the transaction was a natural conclusion to a long-standing personal and business relationship with Hartquist."Randy used to work with us, and we’ve had a long-term relationship with him. He’s covered for us, and we’ve covered him," Carlson said."It was kind of a natural arrangement for that area."Both parties said the need for funeral homes to establish working relationships with other funeral homes is a major factor driving the purchase agreement."With the tight market for funeral home directors, you’re starting to see some volume of ownership and clusters of funeral homes," Carlson said.Hartquist said night and weekend hours can take their toll on funeral directors and their families, so clusters of funeral homes under the same ownership can provide a leadership pool to spread the work."Funeral service has changed so much over the years. … It’s been hard for funeral homes to keep good men in these small towns. They’re always on call. Weekends can come and go without them seeing their families," Hartquist said."The concept is to consolidate and have a good staff to draw on at all times."Following that concept, the transaction in Luverne coincides with Hartquist’s purchase of Vertin-owned funeral homes in Jasper, Lake Benton and Tyler.Another factor influencing the purchases is Hartquist’s son, Jeff Hartquist, who plans to join the family company in the coming year. Jeff Hartquist currently works at a funeral home in the Twin Cities area.Carlson said he’s confident the purchase agreement will be good for both the Hartquists and the community.… They’ll really like Randy over there. He’s a good funeral director — very good. I look for him to continue a strong tradition over there."

By Sara StrongThe city of Luverne gave notice to Rock County last week that it was going to terminate its dispatching contract, which had been in existence for 34 years. The Rock County Board of Commissioners reacted Monday by terminating its 27-year partnership with the Pool and Fitness Center.Both contracts would come to an end in 2005.The county and city share many contracts and service arrangements, and each are watching out for their own budgets, while under state levy limits and getting less state aid.County Administrator Kyle Oldre said, "It doesn’t do anybody any good to do cost shifting between the local governments."However, the Board of Commissioners said it had to react as it did, because it expected more negotiations from the city before receiving notice of the dispatch contract termination. Commissioners said that the possibility of losing $155,847 next year in dispatch contract fees left them scraping for other places to cut — and the Pool and Fitness is an area that the county isn’t obligated to fund.Rock County was scheduled to pay $62,000 next year in the Pool and Fitness Center partnership.Oldre said it is difficult for the county to raise extra money with levy limits, reduced state funding and many expenses that are uncontrollable, such as out of home placements in Family Services or prisoner costs.The County is required to provide some degree of dispatch services. Now, it refers water, sewer and electrical calls to the city, and keeps records in the Sheriff’s Office. So dispatchers do more than answer 911 calls 24 hours a day.Commissioner Richard Bakken said, "Based on our joint meeting, Dec. 1, I thought the contracts were going to be reviewed and discussed. It doesn’t show much good faith on the part of the city, since I anticipated a time of negotiation."The Luverne City Council said it must terminate the contract in order to negotiate. Otherwise, the council said, it would be tied to the agreement until 2005, even if it wasn’t satisfied with the negotiation results.Rock County Board Chairman Ron Boyenga said he thought the dispatch contract termination was being used as a negotiation tool. In the past, the city and county have amended joint contracts after negotiations, without terminating agreements. Commissioner Bob Jarchow said, "All we can do is hope that it’s a negotiation ploy. If it goes past that, every citizen in Luverne and Rock County will lose."County Attorney Don Klosterbuer said, "It’s a horrible situation to try to guess what their intent is."Commissioner Ken Hoime said, "Granted, we want to get along with the city, but they’ve made their intent known and now we made ours known."Second thoughtsCommissioner Jane Wildung said she was uncomfortable with the level of distrust brewing between the government bodies. In the spirit of continued cooperation, she considered voting against terminating the Pool and Fitness Center agreement."This is really bothering me. It’s not the way I like to operate," Wildung said.She said she doesn’t want to terminate long-standing contracts for the purposes of negotiation, when they could be amended without bad feelings. "When the County Board says something, it means it," she said. "If this continues, are we going to come to some understanding between the groups?""I hope so," Klosterbuer said.He said he assumed that after the Dec. 1 joint board meeting, the city would negotiate with the county without terminating a contract before talks even began. Bakken said that although the county has to look out for it’s own budget, he didn’t want to get into a game of terminating joint contracts or agreements back and forth."We could go on until we turn this thing into a one-legged stool," Bakken said. "We don’t want to get to that point."Wildung said she looks forward to talking to councilmen in person rather than communicating through resolutions and meeting minutes.The city and county have scheduled a meeting for mid-January when they can discuss dispatching and other law enforcement issues.The city is also a partner in the Rock County Sheriff’s Department (separate from the dispatch contract), paying a contract fee of $446,852.Excerpts from the resolution the County Board unanimously passed, terminating the 1993 pool agreement:"The county believes that the various agreements and contracts between the city and county are best examined as a collective package so as to better understand and appreciate the net effect on the budgets of the city and the county and that approaching the negotiations on a piecemeal basis increases the likelihood of producing less desirable results and threatens the delivery of services."… Prior to commencing any negotiations, the city of Luverne has notified the county that it has terminated the joint powers agreement for dispatching services and rental agreement effective Dec. 31 2004."… The county believes that dispatch services are a vital and essential service and must continue to be provided even without funding contribution from the city of Luverne."… The county does not have other revenue sources to replace such lost revenue other than to increase the tax levy, if permitted by the state. "… The county must take reasonable and prudent steps to preserve its options to reduce spending for 2005 in the event the city makes an insufficient payment toward the cost of dispatching services. "… The county believes that the services provided to its citizens by the Rock County Community Swimming Pool and Fitness Center are valuable and significantly contribute to the health and well being of its citizens and improve the overall quality of life within Rock County, including the city of Luverne."… County dispatch services are essential as they directly relate to providing assistance in emergency situations affecting life and property and such services must be maintained and provided, even if it means reducing or eliminating other valuable services, including the pool."… The county has no choice but to take precautionary and protective action to try and preserve sufficient funds from its finite revenues for 2005 to provide all essential services. The unilateral decision by the city to terminate the joint powers agreement for dispatch services and rental agreement prior to even commencing negotiations with the county effectively eliminates a revenue source for the county."

Luverne senior post Danielle Loosbrock (45) battles for a rebound with Westbrook-Walnut Grove's Andrea Hannan (40) and Abby Knott (20) during the first round of the Luverne Girls' Basketball Holiday Classic Monday in Luverne.By John RittenhouseThe Luverne girls’ basketball lost an opportunity to successfully defend its 2002 title of the Luverne Holiday Classic during the opening round of the 2003 version of the event Monday night.The Cardinals took on Westbrook-Walnut Grove, the team they beat to win the tournament title last season, in the first round of the event in the Luverne High School gym.Luverne sported a seven-point lead early in the second half, but the Chargers rallied to outscore the hosts 29-18 the rest of the way to earn a 54-50 victory.The loss sent the 2-5 Cardinals into Tuesday’s third-place game against Granada-Huntley-East Chain. Luverne will play road games in Jackson Saturday and in Madison, S.D., Tuesday.Luverne and W-WG played a very competitive game in Monday’s semifinals. The Cards led by five points at halftime, but the Chargers bounced back to win by four in the second half.After falling behind 3-2 early in the first quarter, Luverne scored four straight points to lead 6-3 after Mindy Nieuwboer drained a field goal at the 5:50 mark of the period.W-WG countered with a 6-0 surge to gain a 9-6 advantage, but the Cards ended the half with a 6-3 spurt that ended with Marissa Stewart tying the game at 12 with a pair of free throws with 5.5 seconds remaining.The Chargers scored the first six points of the second quarter and led 20-15 as the period progressed before Luverne mounted a 10-0 run capped by a three-point shot from Maggie Kuhlman to gain a 25-20 cushion.Luverne led by eight (30-22) when Brittney Williams sank a three-point shot with 1:19 remaining in the first half, but the Chargers scored the final three points of the second period to trail 30-25 at the intermission.The Cards scored the first two points of the third quarter to sport a seven-point lead (32-25) that vanished when W-WG went on a 17-2 run to open a 42-34 advantage.Luverne countered with a 7-2 run that featured two free throws from Williams and a field goal by Tori Snyder in the final 27 seconds of the period to trail 44-41 heading into the final eight minutes of play.Kuhlman hit a three to trim the difference to two points (46-44) early in the fourth quarter and the Cards trailed by two (51-49) when Nieuwboer sank a three with 38 seconds remaining.W-WG, however, made three free throws in the final 36 seconds to win by four at game’s end.Kuhlman hit four three-point shots and led the Cards with 15 points. Nieuwboer finished with 11 points and eight rebounds. Danielle Loosbrock paced LHS with 12 rebounds.Box scoreWilliams 0 1 2-2 5, Heitkamp 1 0 1-3 3, Boomgaarden 0 0 0-0 0, Nieuwboer 4 1 0-0 11, Snyder 2 0 0-0 4, Kuhlman 1 4 1-2 15, Stewart 1 0 2-2 4, Gacke 1 0 0-0 2, Evans 0 0 0-0 0, Loosbrock 3 0 0-0 6, VanDeBerg 0 0 0-0 0.Team statisticsLuverne: 19 of 85 field goals (22 percent), six of nine free throws (67 percent), 33 rebounds, 11 turnovers.W-WG: 21 of 76 field goals (28 percent), eight of 17 free throws (47 percent), 30 rebounds, 16 turnovers.