Sports

As the Sandy Creek volleyball team heads into the second half of the 2022 season, they were able to double their win totals. The Cougars started the week with a 2-11 record and wrapped up play in a home-round robin test with a 4-15 record.

The Cougars opened last week with a pair of tough losses in Central City, falling to the host Bison 25-19, 13-25, 12-25, before the Ord Chanticleers upended Sandy Creek 25-9, 25-10 in triangular action Tuesday, Sept. 20.

Returning to the court this past Saturday, Sept. 24, Sandy Creek opened-round robin action with a pair of two-set sweeps of both Friend and Wilber-Clatonia, beating Friend 25-23, 25-18, followed by a 25-22, 25-16 win over the Wolverines.

The 13-2 Palmyra Panthers closed out Saturday’s action with a sweep of the Cougars, 25-14, 25-14.

Sandy Creek will next be in action this Saturday at home in quadrangular action with Palmyra, Friend, and Wilber- Clatonia before hosting Milford on Tuesday, Sept. 27.

Sutton’s Sept. 22 home rematch with the Hastings St. Cecilia Hawkette’s was like Dorothy’s spinning nightmare in the Wizard of Oz, as she woke up yelling for Toto.

The Fillies, in their own right, woke up from a bad dream as walking into the Sutton Dome last Thursday night, it didn’t take long to get the feeling that the match-up in the dome with St. Cecilia was a focused affair on the hardwood, as fans on both sides were stirring up the mood of the match.

Sutton looked to rebound from a three-set loss to the Hawkettes five days ago in the finals of the Fillmore Central Invitational, Sept. 17.

After two straight wins to start the 2022 cross country season, sophomore Rowan Jarosik and senior South Central Red Raider teammate Sean Heaton battled in some heavy-duty competition this past week at the Fillmore Central Invitational Thursday, Sept. 15, on the Hidden Hills Country Club in Geneva.

Facing some of the state’s best long-distance runners, Jarosik battled to a fourth place overall finish in the boys 5K run, finishing the race in 17 minutes, 36.02 seconds.

Lincoln Christian’s Carter Hohlen claimed the individual title with a time of 16:46.3.

Gothenburg outlasted Lincoln Christian for the team title, 24-36.

Heaton wrapped up the race, placing 65th in the field of 75 runners with a time of 22:25.67.

On the girls side of the meet, Cassidy Huston competed for the Red Raiders, placing 51st overall with a time of 36:49.61.

As the Sandy Creek-Sutton rivalry renewed for the ninth straight year, since a 2012 and 2013 break in the Clay County battle, Friday night’s game on the home turf of the Cougars brought forth many “firsts” in the recent history of the rivalry.

Sandy Creek, when the dust settled and the final seconds ticked off of the game clock, earned it’s first win over the Sutton Mustangs since 2011, as the Cougars’ 46-33 win sent Sandy Creek to 2-2 on the year, while Sutton fell to 0-4.

The last win for the Cougars in 2011 was a 35-28 Cougar victory in Sutton. Ironically, that 2011 win was also on Sept. 16, as was this past Friday night win.

Sandy Creek’s last home win over Sutton came during the 2006 season, as the Cougars gained a 27-20 victory.

For Sutton, the loss proves to be the Mustangs first 0-4 start since the 2007 season, when Sutton started that season 0-6, until gaining a 29-13 win over Sandy Creek.

MISCUES PROVE COSTLY

The Sutton Fillies continued their winning ways Tuesday, Sept. 6, as Sutton claimed a three-set sweep of the Heartland Huskies in the Sutton Dome, downing Heartland 25-19, 25-18, 25-13 to improve to 6-0.

Senior Alivia Huxoll had the strong hand in the match, gaining four of the Fillies’ nine ace serves, and gaining a team high 13 kills.

Lily McCroden added nine kills in the match, as junior Kennedy Perrien put up 18 assists and senior Kailie Griess, four, to guide the Sutton offensive attack.

Huxoll hit at an incredible .500 rate in the win, while McCroden was just under .300 in the match.

Sutton was 66-73 in the service lane (90.4%), and hit at a .172 clip, while converting on 78 of 93 total hitting attempts (83.9%).

Perrien was a perfect 59-59 setting the ball in the win.

Defensive leaders proved to be Regain Robinson with 14 digs, while McCroden and Kyla Griess both picked up eight digs.

The youthful Sutton girls golf team took to the Galaway Creek Golf Course in Henderson Thursday, Sept. 8, and came away with it’s first-ever medal this season, as Inga Andersen placed 11th overall in the Heartland Invitational.

Andersen led the group of four Sutton golfers, coached by Sam Newmyer, with an 18-hole 114, as the Sutton junior shot an opening-round 55, followed by a 59 on the back nine to cash if for a top 15 finish.

Two Sutton freshmen, Aubrey Kingswood and Mia Ochsner, followed Andersen, with Kingswood shooting a 128 and Ochsner shooting a 136. Sophomore Shae Eggers rounded out the scoring for the Fillies with a 156.

Kingswood opened play with a 66, and shaved four strokes off of her front nine score, shooting a 62 on the back nine.

Ochsner opened with a 60 on the front nine, while wrapping up the back nine with a 76.

Eggers had scores of 88 on the front but quickly bounced back on the back nine to shoot a 68 to round out her day.

The Sandy Creek football team finds themselves in a tough situation as they head into rivalry week with the Sutton Mustangs.

The Cougars, who whipped up on Blue Hill in the season opener, has droped back-to-back games to Riverside and this past Friday to Exeter-Milligan/ Friend, 38-16, to sit at 1-2 and in need of a win to get back on track.

Sutton, however, needs the very same after three straight losses to start the season, so Friday night’s battle between the two Clay County rivals is setting up to be a big battle in the trenches for both teams.

Last week’s trip to Milligan to battle the Bobcats opened with both teams scoring once in the first quarter.

EMF struck first at the 6:04 mark of the quarter, scoring on a 65-yard run. With the added two-point conversion, the Bobcats held an 8-0 lead.

The Sandy Creek volleyball team gained their second win of the year during action in the Cougars’ home tournament Saturday, Sept.

10. In the tournament, Ravenna downed SC 25-13, 25-13 in the first round, before the Cougars swept Arcadia/Loup City 25-23, 25-13 to advance to the third-place game. Superior tripped up the SC girls 25-13, 25-18 in the battle for third. Earlier in the week, Centennial gained a 25-22, 25-19, 25-14 win on the Cougars home floor. The left picture above shows the Cougars excitement after the two-game sweep of Arcadia/Loup City, while at the right, Lexi Shuck receives this serve successfully as Emma Fisher and Ella Martin

(8) look on during the play. Sandy Creek was to host Thayer Central this past Tuesday night, Sept. 13, before heading to Fairbury this Saturday, Sept. 17, to take part in the Fairbury Invite, beginning at 9 a.m. Sandy Creek will then head to Central City Tuesday, Sept.

Harvard’s Volleyball team headed to the High Plains tournament Saturday, Sept. 10, competing against McCool Junction, St. Edward, and Heartland Lutheran.

In game one against McCool Junction, the Mustangs earned a two-set win over the Cardinals, 25-7 and 25-19.

Taylor Braun and Zahna Reutzel led in kills with three and two, respectively. In assists and digs, Aimee Whetstine-Jones led with seven and six.

Harvard vs. McCool Junction

Harvard.......................................................... 7 19 McCool Junction............................................ 25 25

Game two’s bout between Harvard and St. Edward saw the Cardinals gain a first-set win, 25-19, before St. Edward came back for wins in the final two sets, 25-15 and 25-20.

Braun again led in kills with seven, while Hannah Harms and Reutzel earned two each.

Whetstine-Jones had four digs, while Braun added two blocks against St. Edward.

Sutton’s Ryan Jones stood atop the standings in the second week of the Clay County News’ Pigskin Picks, as Jones was the lone contestant to miss four games, in a week that was full of some major upsets in the high school and college ranks.

Each of the 17 contestants this week missed the Nebraska- Georgia Southern game, as the Eagles pulled the 45-42 major upset win over the Huskers.

Following Jones was Gabe Skalka, missing five picks while Erin Huber claimed third place over Sutton educator Randy Ahrens by way of the tie-breaker. Both Huber and Ahrens missed six picks, but Huber picked the tie-breaker total of 54 points right on the money, as Exeter-Milligan/Friend defeated Sandy Creek 36-18 for a total of 54 points. Ahrens predicted that 78 points would be scored, missing by 24 points.