Dutch Miller secured a silver medal last week, leading the Arcadia/ Loup City Rebels at the 2026 LouPlatte Conference Cross Country Invite.

On the course at Dane Creek at the Ord Golf Club, Miller placed second with a time of 16:04.5.

The junior harrier was only bested in the race by Kaser Johnson of Doniphan- Trumbull. The Cardinal won the competition in 15:07.10, almost a minute faster than Miller and nearly two minutes faster than the third-place finisher, Carter Hannon of Doniphan- Trumbull.

The Cardinals had four runners in the top five, with Miller’s effort spoiling Doniphan-Trumbull’s sweep.

Doniphan-Trumbull won the conference title with eight points, while Ord came in second with twenty-five. Central City placed third at the meet.

The Bison scored thirty- six points.

Arcadia/Loup City placed fourth with thirty-eight points. The Rebels were aided on the course both by a strong performance from Miller and standout efforts from Domanik Barnes and Carter Schmidt.

Barnes and Schmidt accounted for the team’s varsity score last week.

Barnes completed the course in 19:29.3 to place eighteenth, while Schmidt took twentieth with a time of 20:05.2.

Finishing right behind Schmidt was Ian Roasa of Arcadia/Loup City. The Rebel ended up sitting in twenty-first with a time of 20:17.6.

Others to run for the Rebels last week included Jackson Griess, Ozzy Cintron, Kade Hulinsky, Tanner McAdams, and Kale Dorsey.

On the girls’ side of the competition, Arcadia/ Loup City was headlined by a strong performance from Qualea Scott. The freshman earned a medal during her first conference competition, crossing the finish line in 23:42.40 for tenth.

Scott was joined on the course by her teammates, Ella Rice and Tierra Carter. Rice and Carter came in thirty-fourth and thirty-fifth, respectively.

The two finished the race with times of 34:44.7 and 35:04.3.

Central City’s Amelia Buhlke won the girls’ individual title. The Bison completed the course in Ord in 19:16.2 for the gold medal. Doniphan-Trumbull’s Sevyn Russell came in second. Russell ran the race in 20:29.40.

The three other runners to complete the race in the top five all came from Ord.

The Chanticleers won the team title at the conference meet. Ord scored twelve points to top the leaderboard, with the Chanticleers beating the girls from Central City. The Bison came in second, shooting a twenty- two.

Arcadia/Loup City, with three runners on the course did notch a team score. The Rebels scored a sixty-nine to place seventh of seven teams in the team race.

Neither Gibbon nor Centura had girls’ teams on the course last week.

This week, Arcadia/ Loup City will begin postseason competition at the District D-4 Meet at Antelope Country Club in Neligh. On the course in Antelope County, the Rebels will be joined in fighting for a spot at the state meet by some familiar competition. Teams from Ansley-Litchfield, Central Valley, Centura, and Ord will all be at the meet.

The NSAA Class D State Cross Country Championships are scheduled for October 23rd at the Kearney Country Club.

One of the LouPlatte Conference’s top teams traveled to Arcadia last Tuesday, with Central City sweeping Arcadia/ Loup City in three tightly contested sets.

Central City beat the Rebels 25-22, 26-24, 25-19.

Against a tall and scrappy Bison squad, the Rebels smashed out thirty-two kills in the match. Leading that effort was sophomore Hadley Rademacher who had eleven kills.

Tayler Obermiller earned nine kills in the match, while Grace Augustyn tallied six.

Helping the team keep pace with their guests was a strong performance from the service line. The Rebels finished the match with ten aces, including three that came from both Tenley Panowicz and Maci Veskerna. Rademacher had two aces in that match as well, while both Obermiler and Kylee Zulkowski each earned one.

Obermiller had the Rebels’ lone solo block, while Amie Rose dug up fifteen shots from the Bison.

After falling to Central City on Tuesday, the Rebels were swept by Ord on Thursday.

Then, on Saturday, at the Arcadia/Loup City Tournament, the Rebels beat South Loup 2-1, but fell to Sandhills/ Thedford and Ravenna. On Monday, the Rebels faced Ord in the opening round of the LouPlatte Conference Tournament.

The Chanticleers won that match 25-14, 25-15, 25-11.

That experience on the state course paid off for the junior on Monday, as Miller fought his way through a field of 354 Class D runners to place fourth in the competition at the University of Nebraska at Kearney’s (UNK) Class D Cross Country Invite.

Miller completed the course in 16:52.10 on Monday. The junior finished behind two familiar opponents, as the Rebel ran against both Kaser Johnson of Doniphan-Trumbull and Coltan Ham of North Platte St. Pat’s earlier this month at the Ravenna Invite. Johnson won the Class D meet on Monday in 15:55.2, while Ham took second in 16:33.9.

Third place was secured by Sammy Holsing of Tri County. The Trojan beat Miller by less than three seconds. Holsing finished the race in Kearney in 16:49.8 for the bronze.

In addition to the Rebel, Austin Benda of Hemingford rounded out the top five at the UNK meet. The Bobcat hit the finish line with a time of 17:03.7.

Monday’s race fearured three other LouPlatte Conference runners finishing with hardware.

Doniphan- Trumbull’s Carter Hannon took tenth with a time of 17:26.9, while Bladen Rainforth of Doniphan- Trumbull finished in eleventh after he completed the course in 17:34.5. Wood River’s Yanathan Perez placed twelfth in 17:40.10.

Other Rebel runners to compete at UNK last week included Ian Roasa, who took 103rd in 20:25.9 and Carter Schmidt who placed 115th with a time of 20:45.8. Those three completed Arcadia/ Loup City’s varsity slate. Domanik Barnes wasn’t far behind the top three. The senior placed 125th in 21:01.3.

Jackson Griess, Kevin Sherman, Kale Dorsey, Ozzy Cintron, Kade Hulinsky, and Tanner McAdams also competed for the Rebels at last week’s meet.

As a team, Miller’s medal helped the Rebels to sixteenth-place finish.

Arcadia/Loup City scored 206 points to beat Axtell by two points. The Rebels fell two points behind the boys from Wallace. Fifty-five teams qualified for the team race on Monday, with the boys from Doniphan- Trumbull winning the team title.

The Cardinals secured twenty-two team points, beating Tri County who scored thirty. Teams from Hemmingford, Homer, and Ponca rounded out the top five.

On the girls’ side of the competition, Qualea Scott placed seventy- ninth to lead the Rebels. Scott ran the race in 24:16.60. Scott was the only member of the Rebels’ team to compete at last week’s meet.

Of the 233 female runners to battle in the Class D race at the Kearney Country Club, Stella Steele of Centennial paced the field. Steele won the race in 20:12.8, beating McKinley Mankin of Nebraska Christian. The Eagle finished the course in 20:21.

Second-ranked Sandy Creek upends Arcadia/Loup City on Friday night

One of the top teams in Class D-1 football made the trip to Loup City last Friday night, and the Rebels quickly learned how their guests had earned that reputation.

Last week, on a cool and rainy night, Arcadia/ Loup City struggled to find an answer to Sandy Creek’s multithreat offense. Despite the rainy weather, the Cougars were not content to simply pound the rock. Sandy Creek completed eleven passes against the Rebels, amassing 263 receiving yards and four scores in their 60-0 victory.

The Cougars scored touchdowns in all four quarters last week, but it was the first quarter where second-rated Sandy Creek came away with the most points.

The Cougars notched thirty-four points in the first quarter, earned fourteen more in the second, and then scored lone touchdowns in both the third and fourth frames of last week’s game.

Sandy Creek quarterback Kamerin Sealey completed ten passes on Friday for 223 yards. The junior also rushed the ball six times for forty-six yards. Brockett Reed led the Cougars’ ground game with five touches for sixty- four yards.

No stats were available for Arcadia/Loup City as of press time on Tuesday.

With Friday night’s loss, the Rebels fall to 0-5 on the season and 0-1 in district play. The win elevated Sandy Creek to 4-1, with the Cougars trailing the Ravenna Bluejays in the District D1-6 wildcard standings. Ravenna remains perfect on the season after the Bluejays blew past Centura on Friday.

This week, the Rebels will have a chance to deal the Centurions their second loss of the season on Thursday night.

Arcadia/Loup City is scheduled to play in rural Howard County on Thursday, with kickoff scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

Following that game, the Rebels will host Hastings St. Cecilia and then make the trip to Ravenna for the Bluejays’ homecoming on October 16th.

Arcadia/Loup City will celebrate its own homecoming on October 23rd when the Rebels host Gibbon for their regular season finale.

A busy week on the court for Ansley-Litchfield started with one of their biggest tests of the season thus far.

On Tuesday, at the Arcadia/Loup City Triangular, Ansley-Litchfield battled Central Valley for two sets in a top-ten matchup. Despite a strong effort from the front row opposite the Cougars, the Spartans couldn’t upend second-ranked Central Valley, leading to Ansley-Litchfield’s third loss of the season.

Central Valley won the match 25-16, 25-11.

Tasked with leading the Spartans opposite the Cougars were Kylee Ceballos, Jenna Holm, and Asia Lyon, all three of whom had a strong match from the front row. Ceballos tallied four kills to lead the Spartans, while Holm and Lyon each earned three. Abby Hickenbottom also had a pair of kills to add to the team’s thirteen total kills in last week’s match.

On sixty-three attempts at the net, the Spartans committed just a dozen errors, helping the team finish the match hitting .016.

Ceballos also led the Spartans at the stripe, dishing up a pair of aces. Ansley-Litchfield served ninety-three percent against the Cougars, with the team’s only other ace being earned by Taryn Cole.

Tasked with stopping Central Valley’s offense was Kiera Bailey, who had fourteen digs. Cole earned an additional eight digs in the match, an effort matched by Garittee Smith. Other producers for the Spartans on defense included Ceballos, Holm, and Hickenbottom.

Holm had three solo blocks against the Cougars, while Kaycee Nelson picked up one.

Following Tuesday’s loss to Central Valley, the Spartans quickly regrouped to sweep the Rebels.

Ansley-Litchfield beat Arcadia/Loup City 25-20, 25-23.

Against their in-county foes, the Spartans registered twenty-nine kills across the two sets. Key to that effort was the work of Lyon, who took thirty swings opposite the Rebels and netted eleven kills. Bailey also had a strong match from the pins. The senior netted seven kills, with Holm chipping in an additional five.

Alison Holm and Hickenbottom both helped keep the Spartans’ offense humming, with the duo earning thirteen and ten set assists, respectively.

Bailey and Smith combined for four of the team’s six ace serves against the Rebels, with Smith serving a teamhigh eight points. Cole also had a strong match at the service line, earning six points for her efforts, including a lone ace.

Smith had nineteen digs to contribute to the team’s defense, while Bailey finished with ten.

Hadley Rademacher and Savannah Griess led the Rebels with five kills each. Griess also had a trio of blocks in the match.

Tuesday’s triangular in Loup City jumpstarted a week that included a Thursday evening match against Grand Island Lutheran and the Ord Invitational on Saturday.

After beating the Lightning 25-14, 26-24, 25-20 on Thursday, the Spartans went 1-2 at the Chanticleers’ tournament. Ansley-Litchfield beat Grand Island Central Catholic 25-23, 17-25, 25-14, but were swept by Ord and fell 1-2 to West Holt. The Chanticleers won the match 25-17, 25-18, while the Huskies notched a 26-24, 18-25, 25-20 victory.

This week, Ansley-Litchfield got a taste of Fort Kearny Conference competition on Tuesday night when they traveled to Sumner-Eddyville- Miller. Following that match, on Thursday, the Spartans were scheduled to host Ravenna. Then, this weekend, Ansley-Litchfield will host their home tournament.

Among the teams set to compete at the Spartans’ tournament will be Chambers/Wheeler Central, Mullen, Arcadia/ Loup City, Burwell, Sumner-Eddyville-Miller, Wilcox-Hildreth, and North Central.

Fourteen teams ran away from the start of the Arcadia/Loup City Cross Country Invitational last Tuesday evening, but only the Rebels ran into the team title.

On the course at the Loup City Golf Course, the Rebels weren’t phased by the humidity nor the other thirteen teams in the meet. Arcadia/ Loup City scored twenty-three points on their home course to edge Pleasanton. The Bulldogs netted twenty- six for second, while Amherst finished the meet in third.

Leading the Rebels on Tuesday was Dutch Miller.

The junior dominated the course, running the race in 16:24 to finish more than two minutes ahead of the individual runner-up. Jack Connick of Grand Island Central Catholic secured the silver, while Ethan Fries of Elm Creek came in third. The Buffalo nabbed the bronze medal in 18:43.

Among the top fifteen medalists at last week’s race were two other Rebels.

Carter Schmidt took ninth at the meet after he completed the course in 19:36. Ian Roasa finished the day in fourteenth, with the freshman clocking in at 20:04. Roasa beat Parker Anderson of Elm Creek. The Buffalo was the fifteenth runner and final medalist to cross the finish line.

Other Rebels to compete on the team’s home course were Tristin Erasmus, Kale Dorsey, Ozzy Cintron, Jeremy Santos, and Tanner McAdams. All five of those runners finished the race in under thirty minutes.

On the girls’ side of the race, Qualea Scott slipped into the medals for the Rebels.

The freshman battled the humidity to take fifteenth. Scott’s time of 24:47 put her ahead of Chambers/Wheeler Central’s (CWC) Brinly Schaff. The Renegade came in sixteenth, missing the medals with a time of 24:56.

Joining Scott on the course was LaAmor Santos. The senior ended up in the top half of the field on Tuesday, placing twenty-third. Ella Rice, Tierra Carter, and Leighla Washington all battled for the Rebels as well at the team’s home invite.

Broxlynn Fast of Amherst lived up to her name, as the Bronco sophomore won the girls’ race in 20:44. A pair of runners—Lena Spencer and Jalise Busch— from Burwell came in second and third, respectively, while Hadley Veskerna of Amherst placed fourth in 22:08.

With all three of their varsity runners medaling on Tuesday, Amherst won the team title on the girls’ side of the competition with sixteen points. The Broncos bested Pleasanton, who took second with twenty-three points. Kenesaw scored twenty-four to finish in fourth.

Arcadia/Loup City placed eighth at the meet, tying with Overton with seventy-four points.

Last Tuesday’s home invite was the first of two meets for the Rebels last week.

On Saturday, the Red and Black traveled to Broken Bow for the Indians’ annual invite. On the links at the Broken Bow Country Club, the runners encountered a fast course, and even faster competition.

On the boys’ side of the competition, the Rebels placed seventh with 127 points. Miller again led the team, placing fourth in the field of 115 runners with a time of 16:34.4.

The Rebel was bested by a competitor from North Platte St. Pat’s and a pair from Gothenburg. Coltan Ham of St. Pat’s won the race in 16:09.6, while Swedes Bryson Neels and Tyler Hetz took second and third. They clocked in at 16:23.2 and 16:34.4, respectively.

James Piskorski of Ord took fifth in the race. The sophomore hit the chalk at 17:52.2.

Schmidt and Scott also had strong showings in Broken Bow.

In the boys’ race, Schmidt took twenty- fifth at 19:24.9. In the girls’ competition, Scott placed thirtieth at 25:02.1. The girls’ race was won by Scout Bell of Gothenburg. The Swede clocked in at 19:21.1 for the gold.

Gothenburg swept the team titles in Custer County. The Swedes scored nineteen points to win the boys’ race and claimed the top prize in the girls’ competition with seventeen points.

The Rebel girls had just three runners at the Class C meet, meaning they were not able to post a team score.

In the first race of the Rebel’s junior season, Miller outpaced the lead car on the course to handedly secure the individual title at the St. Paul Invite.

Miller came into the cute leaded the field of ninety-four runners with a time of 17:13. The Rebel bested Archangels Catholic’s Jaiden Anderson, who placed second in 17:40. Runners from O’Neill, Ord, and St. Paul completed the top five at the Wildcats’ meet.

Joining Miller on the course at St. Paul were a large contingent of Rebel runners.

Domanik Barnes and Ian Roasa rounded out Arcadia/Loup City’s varsity slate. The duo placed twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth, respectively, with times of 20:41 and 20:42. Carter Schmidt also competed for the Rebels. He placed fifty-eighth with a time of 23:25.

Joining the Sherman County kids’ top four runners last week were Kevin Sherman, Ozzy Cintron, Tristan Erasmus, Jeremy Santos, Kale Dorrsey, Kade Kulinsky, and Tanner McAdams. Those seven all represented on the back half of the meet, with Sherman having a time of 24:32 to place sixty-seventh and to lead that contingent.

With Miller winning the race, Arcadia/ Loup City placed fourth in the field of twelve teams. The Rebels scored forty-eight points to best the runners from Nebraska Christian by two points. O’Neill won the team title after the Eagles scored seventeen points. In its first-ever appearance at St. Paul, O’Neill had four runners medal.

Ord came in second with twenty-three points, while Central City took third with forty-five.

On the girls’ side of the meet, the Rebels were left out of the team standings, as just two runners competed for Arcadia/Loup City.

Qualea Scott and Ella Rice both battled for the Rebels on the course at St. Paul. Scott took twenty-eighth in the field of fifty-nine runners, while Rice finished the race sitting in fifty-sixth.

Scott clocked in at 27:11. Rice finished the race in 37:42.

Central City’s Amelia Buhlke won the girls’ individual race. The Bison finished the race in 20:14 for the gold, beating McKinley Mankin of Nebraska Christian. Kiarra Kennedy of O’Neill placed third with a time of 21:17. Nebraska Christian had six runners medal during last week’s meet, helping the Eagles win the team title. Nebraska Christian scored eleven team points to beat Ord for the top spot. The Chanticleers finished the race with twenty-three.

Arcadia/Loup City will be back in action on Thursday at the Gibbon Invite.

Following the Buffaloes’ annual meet, the Rebels will prepare for their home invite at the Loup City Golf Club on Tuesday, September 8th.

Arcadia/Loup City sends three to state track meet

On Saturday of the NSAA Class C State Track and Field Championships, Arcadia/ Loup City’s Wyatt Stieb launched the discus in front of the largest crowd of his high school career.

In fact, at Burke Stadium in Omaha, Stieb likely had the chance to throw in front of the largest crowd to watch the Class C boys’ discus in state meet history.

Even with so many eyes looking on—one of the top throwers in the nation was a part of this year’s Class C field, Noah Rau of Chase County—Stieb didn’t miss a beat in the ring.

The Arcadia/Loup City senior, in his final throws as a Rebel, hit 135-04 on his best throw to finish the event sitting in twentieth place.

In the first flight of the event, Stieb logged early marks of 134-08 and 133-11 out of the ring. However, the Rebel switched gears on his last attempt, hitting the mark that cemented his spot on the leaderboard. With his last throw, Stieb avenged a district meet placing to Jax Campbell of Centura. The Rebel beat the Centurion by five inches at the state meet. Campbell finished the day sitting in twenty-first with a throw of 134-11.

Rau won the individual title in the boys’ discus. The Chase County senior set a new Class C meet record with a launch of 196-04. Thayer Central’s Cole Vorderstrasse came in second with a toss of 166-02.

Throwers from Lincoln Lutheran, Ravenna, and Johnson-Brock rounded out the top five.

Stieb’s performance in the discus came after the senior finished the shot put sitting in twelfth place the day before.

On Friday, the Rebel hit 51-00.50 in the Class C boys’ shot put. That heave was Stieb’s second of the event. The senior also landed marks of 48-09 and 47-03.50 on Friday. Stieb finished ahead of Trevor Lindauer of Hastings St. Cecilia, but behind Dayne Clark of Superior.

Ravenna’s Mannox Martin won the Class C shot put. The Bluejay sophomore finished the day with a mark at 61-10.75. Falls City’s Caleb Offner ended up in second with a heave of 60- 06.00.

Stieb was one of three Rebels to compete at last weekend’s state track and field championships in Omaha.

Rylee Kursave also competed in the discus at the state meet, while Dutch Miller battled in the boys’ 3200-meter run.

In the field of twenty- four throwers, Kursave finished Friday’s Class C discus sitting in sixteenth place. The Rebel landed a mark of 109-09 to earn her spot at state. That distance came after the senior’s first throw of the competition. Kursave fouled on her next two attempts. The Rebel beat Annika Glynn of Southern, who hit 109-08, but ended up one spot behind Ord’s Ellie Boettcher. The Chanticleer had a toss of 110-11.

Chelsea Kottich of Elm Creek started her sweep of the throws last weekend by hitting 14403 to win the individual title in the discus. The Buffalo beat Elsie Keller of Ponca, who hit 134-00 for the silver medal.

Miller found himself competing in one of the most talked about races of the entire state meet on Friday.

After dodging raindrops, the sophomore placed thirteenth in the boys’ 3200-meter run on Friday. Miller’s time of 10:15.51 put the Rebel in the middle of the pack, which featured twenty- four runners.

The sophomore completed the first mile at 4:56.59 and ran his last lap around the track at Omaha Burke Stadium in 1:18.07.

Friday’s two-mile run finished in thrilling fashion. Kaser Johnson of Doniphan- Trumbull beat Coltan Ham of North Platte St. Pat’s by .04 seconds. Johnson won the gold in 9:27.21, while Ham ended the race at 9:27.25 for the silver medal. Jacob Swanson of Nebraska Christian placed third in 9:37.32.

With no medalists, the Rebels didn’t hit the leaderboard at last week’s state meet on either the girls’ side of the competition or the boys’ side.

Kearney Catholic secured the girls’ team title after the Stars amassed seventy-nine team points. Bishop Neumann came in second with fifty-seven. Teams from West Holt, Cedar Catholic, and Lincoln Lutheran rounded out the top five.

Chase County won the Class C state title at the boys’ meet with 55.33 points, beating Battle Creek who was the runner-up with 37.33. Doniphan Trumbull came in third after the Cardinals corralled thirty-six points.

WYATT STIEB landed a heave of 51-00.50 in the boys’ shot put on Friday morning at the NSAA Class C State Track and Field Championships.

Last week, the Spartans were represented on the oval at Omaha Burke High School by a pair of runners.

Caydence Feldman had qualified for state in the 3200-meter run, while Kaycee Nelson had punched her ticket to Omaha via the wildcard, securing a spot at state in the girls’ 400-meter dash.

Nelson was the first Spartan to compete on Friday.

The freshman got her inaugural taste of the state competition by making one lap around the track in 1:04.01 to place twenty-third in the 400. Nelson beat Brynne McCully of Mullen in that race. The Bronco came in twenty-fourth in 1:04.22 to round out the field of competitors.

Clara Spargo of Dundy County/Stratton won the gold medal in the quarter-mile event last week. The Tiger completed her solo lap on the track at Burke Stadium
in 57.59. That time helped her beat Reagan Gillian of Wausa.

The Viking finished as the runner-up after she hit the finish line in 57.71.

Feldman was next on the track on Friday, with the senior capping her career as a Spartan in a race that featured some raindrops and a lot of strong competition.

In the field of twenty- four runners, Feldman managed to finish the two-mile race sitting in seventeenth.

The Spartan’s fastest 400-meter split of the race was at 1:25.52, her first lap. The senior finished the event with a split of 1:35.66 on her last lap.

The Spartan toured the track in 13:11.09, besting Micaela Loarca of Dorchester. The Longhorn ran the race in 13:14.11. Claire Wegener of Archangels Catholic bested Feldman. The Defender completed the eight laps in 13:09.58.

Kayleigh Betka of McCool Junction won the race in 11:37.26. The Mustang beat Lydia Mc-Gowen of Cambridge, who placed second in 11:44.24.

Dundy County/Stratton finished last week’s state meet as the team champions. The Tigers scored seventy points to run away with the crown. Wausa was the runner-up with forty- nine points. The Vikings secured a trophy by two points, besting McCool Junction who scored forty-seven.

When the Arcadia/Loup City Rebels loaded the busses on Thursday evening in Albion, they didn’t know if their track season had come to an end or not.

By the time they arrived back in Sherman County, they were greeted with the realization that some members of their team would have another week of competition.

Last Thursday, at the District C-6 Meet at Boone Central High School, Arcadia/ Loup City fell short of automatically qualifying for this week’s NSAA Class C State Track and Field Championships in Omaha. The Rebels, amid a field of talented competition, had secured numerous medals, yet the team had not punched a single ticket to Burke.

Thankfully, while in Albion, the Rebels logged strong enough performances to earn wildcards in three events, with Wyatt Stieb qualifying for the state meet in both the shot put and the discus, Dutch Miller earning his spot at Burke in the twomile run, and Rylee Kursave qualifying in the discus.

In the throws, Stieb placed third in both events, falling one spot shy of automatically qualifying for state.

In the shot put, the recent Loup City High School graduate landed a heave of 50-09 for the bronze. Stieb finished behind Mannox Martin of Ravenna who won the shot put with a mark at 61-11.50 and Jace Campbell of Centura who hit 51-09.50 for the silver. In the finals on Thursday, Stieb was joined by his teammates, Kolton Friesen and Chayden Sekutera. Those two Rebels placed fifth and seventh, respectively, with Friesen’s best heave being 42-10.50 and Sekutera’s top mark being at 40-11.50.

Later in the day, in the shot put, Stieb was once again bested by Martin and a Centura thrower.

Out of the ring, amid varying winds, Stieb hit 146-05 for third place. Martin won the gold with a toss of 163- 01, while Jax Campbell capped his freshman season with a state bid after he launched the disc 148- 06.

Sekutera placed eighth in the discus, with the freshman hitting 125- 01.

On the girls’ side of the meet, Kursave placed third in a tight finish in discus.

The Arcadia/Loup City thrower hit 115-04 to earn the bronze in Albion, but throwers from St. Paul and Ord both logged further tosses than the senior. Annie Stepanek of St. Paul won the event after the sophomore hit 119-02, while Ellie Boettcher unspooled for a toss of 116-05 to place second.

On the track, Miller found himself battling with a stable of talented and familiar opponenents.

In the two-mile race, the sophomore placed third after he battled against Jacob Swanson of Nebraska Christian and Rylan Rasmussen of St. Paul. Swanson won the race in 10:02.56, while Rasmussen took second with a time of 10:13.26. Miller’s third-place finish wasn’t enough to automatically qualify the Rebel for state; however, his time of 10:21.45 would allow him to earn a wildcard.

Later in the day, in the mile run, Miller again met up with the same competition. This time, however, he was also beat to the finish line by Everett Hunnicutt, who placed third in 4:48.26 to earn a wildcat spot. Miller’s time of 4:52.19 was not quick enough to make the cut for the state meet.

Swanson won the mile race in 4:32.75, while Rasmussen finished the event in 4:40.16.

Together, Stieb and Miller combined for twenty-two of the Rebels’ thirty total team points at the district meet. Arcadia/Loup City finished last week’s competition in Albion sitting in eighth on the boys’ side of the competition. The Rebels bested the boys from Cross County and Twin River at the meet, but fell five points behind Ord.

Boone Central won the district title after the Cardinals scored ninety-one points. Grand Island Central Catholic came in second with ninety.

On the girls’ side of the meet, Kursave ended up being one of three Rebels to earn silver medals. Both Charlize Meyer and Tenley Panowicz also came home with bronzes. Meyer took third in the 800, while Panowicz placed third in the mile. The freshmen’s times of 2:36.01 and 5:47.07 were not fast enough, however, to earn either Rebel a spot at state.

Arcadia/Loup City finished the meet sitting in eighth place.

Ansley-Litchfield caught a break, and this week, two Spartans will be running at Omaha Burke.

Last Wednesday, the Spartans joined ten other teams at the District D-5 Track Meet at Burwell Senior High School. While on the track in Garfield County, Ansley-Litchfield was able to earn a handful of medals, with one member of the Spartans’ team— Caydence Feldman— automatically securing her spot at state.

Then, later in the day, a second Spartan punched her ticket, as Kaycee Nelson qualified via the wildcard system.

Feldman earned her spot in the two-mile run, while Nelson qualified in the 400-meter dash.

On the oval at the district meet, Feldman completed eight laps in 13:39.86 for the runner-up finish in the two-mile event. Lena Spencer of Burwell won that race in 12:55.88, while Bayler Clay came close to a top two finish after the Spartan finished in fourth with a time of 14:24.80.

In the previous event, Nelson had completed a solo lap in 1:02.63 to place fourth in the 400. The freshman ended up being one of two wildcard recipients from that district—Laurel Mann of Central Valley placed third and received the other. Notably, both Nelson and Mann also finished the 800 in fourth and third, with Mann again receiving a wildcard in that event, while Nelson’s time of 2:37.32 did not make the cut.

Mieke van der Walt of Burwell won the 400 in 1:01.73, while Abigail Uden of Grand Island Lutheran came in second in 1:02.04. In the 800, Burwell’s Addison Critel won the race in 2:20.42, with Kyla Elfgren of Overton placing second in 2:27.26.

Despite only qualifying two runners for state, Ansley-Litchfield managed to rack up points at the district meet.

The Spartans finished the meet sitting in fifth place on the leaderboard. Ansley- Litchfield tied with Shelton with forty-six points each for that spot in the eleven-team field. The Spartans and the Bulldogs both bested Sumner-Eddyville- Miller by ten points and Palmer by eleven.

Central Valley scored 96.5 points to win the district title, while Burwell came in second with ninety points.

On the boys’ side of the competition, the Spartans placed ninth after they netted fifteen points. Ansley-Litchfield had four medalists at Burwell, with Karson Moore having the strongest finish.

Moore placed third in the shot put after he landed a heave of 4006.50.

Michael Corliss, Owen Brott, and Kolten Clay also medaled for Ansley-Litchfield.

This week, both Feldman and Nelson will compete at the NSAA Class D State Track and Field Championships at Omaha Burke. The two will compete back-to-back on Friday afternoon, with Nelson running the 400 beginning at 4:05 p.m. and Feldman competing in the two mile run at 4:45 p.m.

Nobody had a bigger impact on that score than senior distance runner Caydence Feldman.

Feldman topped the field of 3200-meter runners to claim the Black and Gold’s lone gold medal on the day, winning with a time of 13:41.02.

In the 4x800-meter relay, the senior was joined by teammates Bayler Clay, Garittee Smith, and Kaycee Nelson for a silver medal time of 11:26.78.

Other top finishers for the Lady Spartans were Ava Paitz placing third in the 100-meter hurdles (18.33) and fifth in the 300-meter hurdles (52.67), Nelson finishing fourth in the 400-meter dash with a time of 1:03.43, and the 4x400-meter relay team of Kiera Bailey, Jenna Drahota, Nelson, and Paitz taking third place in 4:31.77.

On the track in Cairo, the boys also shined in the relays.

The team of Chance Evans, Michael Corliss, Adrian Nienaber, and Kolten Clay secured a silver medal in the 4x400-meter relay with their four-lap time of 3:56.16.

Evans also led the way individually for the Spartan boys, finishing fourth in the 400-meter dash with a time of 56.09 seconds. That time was 0.47 seconds better than Colt Hadenfeldt of Centura and fell just shy of topping the bronze medalist from Ravenna, Brendan Lockhorn.

Additionally, Clay landed eighth in the 3200-meter run (12:27.93, personal record), Owen Brott finished eighth in the 110-meter hurdles (19.22, personal record), and Corliss placed eighth in the high jump with a best mark of 5-04.

Up next for the Spartans is the District D-5 meet in Burwell. They will compete alongside Burwell, Central Valley, Elba, Grand Island Lutheran, Overton, Palmer, Pleasanton, Shelton, Sumner-Eddyville-Miller, and Twin Loup.

On the track at Centura High School, the Rebels broke a pair of program records.

On the boys’ side of the meet, the Rebels’ 3200-meter relay team of Brogan Setlik, Dutch Miller, Carter Schmidt, and Eli Jaixen broke their own record when they tackled the four legs of the race in 8:35.91. That effort broke a twoweek old record that the four had set at the Palmer Invite in Fullerton.

The Rebels’ 3200-meter relay team placed third at the conference meet, with Doniphan- Trumbull winning the race in 8:23.78 and St. Paul placing second with a time of 8:31.77.

Tyce Calleroz also reshuffled the Rebels’ record books when he placed second in the 400-meter dash. The senior hit the line in 51.34 for silver medal. That effort broke a program record that was set in 2014 by Jordan Hovie. The previous record had been 51.73.

Jaxon Hammond of Doniphan-Trumbull beat the senior in the race. The Cardinal clocked in at 50.29.

Calleroz was one of the Rebels’ top performers at the conference meet.

In addition to his record-setting time in the 400, Calleroz placed sixth in the 100 at 11.23 and joined Ryan Kaslon, Jaixen, and Setlik in a fourth-place finish in the 1600-meter relay. The Rebels completed the relay race in 3:35.16, with Central City winning that race with a time of 3:29.55.

Individually, Setlik and Schmidt added some additional medals to the team’s cache after they placed fifth and sixth, respectively, in the 800-meter run. Setlik clocked in at 2:11.87 to place fifth in that race, while Schmidt hit the line in 2:13.30.

Miller also earned an individual medal. The sophomore placed fifth in the two-mile run with a time of 10:22.24.

Wyatt Stieb had Arcadia/Loup City’s only medals in the field. Stieb placed fifth in the shot put and sixth in the discus. The senior had throws of 42-08 and 13202, respectively at the conference meet for the hardware.

On the girls’ side of the meet, multiple Rebels picked up hardware in the field events.

Rylee Kursave came out of the shot-put ring with a fifth-place medal after she hit 34-00. The senior then placed fourth in the discus, landing a best toss of 108-07. In the discus, Morgan Rademacher finished in the shadow of the medals, with the junior hitting the grass at 97-06 for eighth.

Savannah Griess and Hadley Rademacher each had sixth-place finishes in the jumps.

Greiss cleared the bar at 4-09 for sixth in the high jump. Rademacher also snuck into the medals with a mark at 15-10.50 in the long jump. That was the freshman’s best jump of her career, thus far.

Later in the meet, Rademacher placed third in the 100-meter hurdles. The freshman completed that race in 17.43 for the bronze. Hurdlers from St. Paul won both the gold and the silver in those races with times of 15.45 and 15.94.

Arcadia/Loup City’s top finish of the conference meet on the girls’ side of the competition was in the 3200-meter relay.

In that race, LaMor Santos, Charlize Meyer, Tenley Panowicz, and Tayler Obermiller placed second at 10:25.30. The Rebels were only bested by the girls from Central City. The Bison won the race in 10:21.35, with Ord finishing in third. Santos, Panowicz, Meyer, and Obermiller also competed in the 1600-meter relay. Those four ran that race in 4:22.90 for fourth.

Panowicz, earlier in the meet, secured a silver medal in the mile run. The freshman hit the finish line in 5:53.26 to secure the hardware in that race. Meyer would place sixth in the 800 with a time of 2:36.57, while Obermiller just missed the medals, running the one-lap 400 in 1:03.70.

Both Arcadia/Loup City’s boys’ team and the girls’ squad ended Friday’s conference meet sitting in sixth place in the team standings.

In the girls’ competition, the Rebels scored 34.5 points to handedly eclipse the teams from Gibbon, Wood River, and Ravenna. Central City won the girls’ team title after the Bison beat St. Paul 153-131.

The Rebel girls tallied twenty-seven points to finish the meet tied with Centura. The Rebels beat the boys from Ord and Gibbon, while Doniphan- Trumbull secured the conference crown after the Cardinals notched 126 points at the meet.

The Arcadia/Loup City boys’ track team won four gold medals at the Palmer Invitational last week.

However, the feather in the Rebels’ cap after the Tigers’ meet came after one group of runners secured the silver.

On Thursday, on the track at Fullerton High School, the Rebels’ two-mile relay team of Eli Jaixen, Dutch Miller, Carter Schmidt, and Brogan Setlik set a new school record in the 3200-meter event. The four Rebels exchanged the baton three times in 8:42.88, breaking an elevenyear- old record.

The previous record, set in 2015, was with a time of 8:53.84.

Nebraska Christian won the relay in 8:35.55, while Fullerton finished in third with a time of 8:49.15.

After the Rebels had celebrated their relay race record, Arcadia/Loup City fans soon had something else to cheer about.

Senior Tyce Calleroz swept the sprints at Thursday’s meet. The Rebel won the 100-meter dash in 11.49 and secured the title in the 200-meter event with a time of 23.46. Kaslon had strong showings in both of those races as well, placing tenth and twelfth, respectively.

Miller continued to battle two familiar opponents in the mile run.

The sophomore fought Nebraska Christian’s Jacob Swanson and Newman Grove/St. Edward’s Micah Cuevas throughout the two-mile run at the Tiger’s meet. While Miller narrowly missed besting the Panther— Cuevas placed second in 4:51.55 and Miller came in third in 4:51.91—Swanson handedly won the race. The Eagle secured the individual title in 4:48.62.

Justin Conner, Schmidt, and Setlik all battled in the middle-distance events, finishing just shy of earning hardware in those races.

Capping off the Rebels’ day on the track, Setlik, Jaixen, Kaslon, and Calleroz placed second in the mile relay in 3:37.30. Nebraska Christian won that race with a time of 3:36.44.

Wyatt Stieb won two individual gold medals in the field.

The senior secured the title in the shot put with a heave of 46- 01, while in the discus Stieb unspooled for a toss of 136- 00.25. In both events, the Rebel finished feet ahead of the runner-up. Cal Seip of Nebraska Christian took second in the shot put at 43-05, while Adrian Kanter of Palmer placed second in the discus with a toss of 129- 05.50.

Also in the field, Isaac Fitzgerald placed fourth in the high jump at 5-07, while Hudson Obermiller cleared the bar at 5- 03.

The Rebels’ girls’ team also had a strong showing in the 3200-meter relay.

The team of LaMor Santos, Tenley Panowicz, Charlize Meyer, and Tayler Obermiller on that race in 10:29.30. Arcadia/Loup City’s team handedly beat the team from Nebraska Christian, which took second in 10:46.0.

Rylee Kurzave and Morgan Rademacher also had early success at the meet on Thursday.

The two each medaled in the discus, hitting 104-11 and 100-02 to place fourth and sixth, respectively. Nebraska Christian throwers Hananiah Peters and Piper Norris both led that event. The duo landed tosses of 117-07 and 106-11 to secure the gold and the silver.

In the shot put, Kursave placed third behind and Eagle duo with a mark at 35-01.50. The winning put by Nebraska Christian’s Alexis Perry hit 36- 09.

Savannah Griess and Hadley Rademacher both also medaled in the field.

Griess, a freshman, cleared the bar at 4- 09 to place fifth in the high jump. Marlea Donahey, the Class D defending champion in the high jump, won that event after she got over the bar at 5-01. Rademacher, also in her inaugural year of prep track, took second in the long jump landing at 15-03. Nyla Beller of Humphrey won that event with a jump of 15-09.25.

Rademacher had an impressive performance on the track, placing second in the 100-meter hurdles in 18.22.

Joining the freshman on the oval was her classmate, Tenley Panowicz who placed third in the mile at 6:00.77 and Obermiller and Meyer who took third and sixth, respectively, in the 800. Obermiller secured the bronze in that race in 2:33.69 while Meyer completed the two-lap event in 2:47.61.

Taelyn Kuszak and Griess both had top-ten finishes in the two-mile as well last week.

Santos also earned an individual medal on the track. The junior placed third in the 200 at 28.71.

Last Thursday’s meet served as the perfect primer for this week’s LouPlatte Conference competition.

The Rebels will join the rest of the conference field at Centura High School on Friday for the annual conference fray. Then, the following week, Arcadia/Loup City will complete its regular season at the Ord Invitational.

The Ansley-Litchfield Spartans didn’t have to look far to find some competition on the track last week.

On Thursday, the Spartans joined seven other teams at the Ravenna Invite. Ansley- Litchfield placed sixth on the girls’ side of the meet and finished the boys’ team race in seventh.

Headlining the Spartans’ time on the track in Buffalo County was Bayler Clay.

Clay won the girls’ twomile run at the Bluejays’ annual invite. The Spartan completed the eight-lap race in 14:52.37 for the gold. Clay beat Sadie Lorenze of Axtell, Aubree Hervert of Ravenna, and her teammate, Freyja Lawrence. Lawrence placed fourth in the event, hitting the line at 17:59.22.

Clay and Garittee Smith also competed in the mile race at Ravenna. Clay placed fourth in that event in 6:54.58, while Smith took seventh in 7:09.80.

Smith made the medals in the girls’ pole vault The junior cleared 8-05 to place fourth in that event. Lauren Suntych of Centura won the pole vault after she got past the bar at 10-05.

Adding to the Spartans’ medal count last week was Kiera Bailey.

The Spartan junior placed third in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 18.88. Jaycee Vogel also medaled in that race, with the Spartan taking sixth at 20.17. Later in the meet, Bailey would place fourth in the girls’ 300-meter race. The junior clocked in at 54.34 for the hardware in that event. Vogel again placed sixth last week in the 300, hitting the line in 57.36.

Kali Phillippi of Axtell won the shorter hurdle race in 17.61 and took the longer win in 51.21.

Kaycee Nelson made an impact on the Spartans’ efforts at Ravenna when the freshman placed second in the 400-meter dash. Nelson secured the silver in that race in 1:02.59. Nelson was bested on the oval by Sevyn Russell of Doniphan-Trumbull. The Cardinal won the race in 1:00.23. Nelson also medaled in the 800, placing fifth with a time of 2:43.87.

Ansley-Litchfield also earned points in both the 400-meter and 1600-meter relay races. The Spartans placed sixth in the shorter race in 1:07.83 and took fifth in the longer event at 4:49.90.

The Spartans finished the meet with forty-seven points to beat the girls from both Gibbon and Kearney Catholic at Ravenna. Centura won the team title at the Bluejays’ meet with 117.5 points.

Doniphan-Trumbull came in second after the Cardinals racked up ninety-three.

Headlining the boys’ side of the meet for the Spartans was Owen Brott.

The sophomore placed fourth in both the 110-meter hurdles and the 300-meter hurdles. In the shorter race, Brott hit the line in 19.83 while his time in the longer event was 47.94. In the 300-meter hurdles, Brott finished one place better than his teammate, sophomore Chance Evans. Evans placed fifth in 48.32 Ravenna’s Jack Kucera and Tyce Coufal took the top two spots in both the hurdle events. Kucera won the races in 16.01 and 41.51, respectively, while Coufal’s times were 17.24 and 41.51.

Evans’s effort in the hurdles earned the Spartan another medal during the meet. Earlier in the day, in the 400-meter dash, Evans placed fifth in 56.20.

In addition to the Spartans placing fourth in both the mile and two-mile relays— 3:57.62 and 11:42.40— Kolten Clay also placed in the mile run. Clay finished that race in 12:38.93.

Program records tumbled last Tuesday, as members of the Arcadia/Loup City track team put up new best marks.

On the oval at Wood River Rural High School, two Rebel athletes—Tyce Calleroz and Dutch Miller—both broke program records on the track, with Calleroz’s efforts helping the senior to a gold medal at the Eagles’ meet.

Calleroz secured the top spot on the medals stand in the boys’ 100-meter dash last Tuesday. The senior hit the line in 11.07 for the gold, besting Amherst’s Isaac Chavez who finished the race in second at 11.08. The Rebels’ Ryan Kaslon ended up just outside the medals in that event, placing seventh at 11.70.

Later in the meet, Miller set new program bests in both the mile and two-mile races.

Miller’s time of 4:56.79 in the mile secured the sophomore the Rebel record in that event. However, Miller finished the race in second behind Jacob Swanson of Nebraska Christian. The Eagle won the mile event in 4:44.92.

In the two-mile, Miller clocked in at 10:24.56 for another record-setting performance. The Rebel, however, was again bested by Swanson. The Eagle racer completed eight laps around the oval in 10:14.63 for the gold, leaving the Rebel with the silver.

Elsewhere on the track last week, Eli Jaixen placed fifth in the 400 with a time of 55.97 and Brogan Setlik secured the silver in the 800 after he clocked in at 2:12.53. Setlik was bested in that race by Cole Haahr of Kenesaw. The Blue Devil earned the gold in 2:11.41.

Setlik, Miller, Isaac Fitzgerald, and Carter Schmidt teamed up to place fourth in the 3200-meter relay. Those four finished the event in 9:24.66.

Late in the day, Calleroz, Kaslon, Jaizen, and Setlik capped the meet with a runner-up finish in the 1600-meter relay. The four Rebels completed the event in 3:43.71, finishing only behind the boys from Nebraska Christian. The Eagles won the relay in 3:42.26.

In his second outing of the season, recent Chadron State commit Wyatt Stieb won the boys’ shot put.

Stieb hit 49- 06.25 for the gold medal, beating Gavin Whitefoot of Centura. The Centurion earned the silver with a mark of 46-06.50. Stieb later placed fourth in the discus. The senior’s best mark was 127-04.

Arcadia/Loup City’s Kolton Friesen also medaled in the shot put. Friesen hit 42-11 for fourth.

Arcadia/Loup City placed third in the team race at the Eagles’ meet.

The Rebels scored 74.5 points, finishing just behind Nebraska Christian who earned 77.5. Wood River won the team title at their home invite. The Eagles paced the nine-team field with ninety- two points.

A two-team race quickly emerged on the girls’ side of the competition at Wood River—Nebraska Christian and Elm Creek combined to score 289 points at the meet. However, that didn’t mean that the Rebels weren’t able to rack up some points of their own.

Leading the Rebels on Tuesday was Tayler Obermiller.

The junior won the 400-meter dash with a time of 1:03.53, besting Adelaine Mankin of Nebraska Christian. The Eagle finished the race in 1:03.70.

Later in the meet, both Tenley Panowicz and Charlize Meyer also secured medals on the oval. The duo clocked in at 2:44.79 and 2:44.82 to place fifth and sixth, respectively in the 800. Emma Rathjen of Nebraska Christian won that race in 2:31.43.

Hitting her stride in the hurdles was freshman Hadley Rademacher. The Rebel placed second in the 100-meter race in 17.46 and took sixth in the 300-meter competition with a time of 55.30. Sheridan Falk of Nebraska Christian won both those events, clocking in at 15.55 and 49.92.

The Rebels also medaled in the 1600- and 3200-meter relays.

In the shorter race, Obermiller, Panowicz, LaMor Santos, and Meyer placed third in 4:28.36. In the longer race, Obermiller, Panowicz, Meyer, and Savannah Griess exchanged the baton three times in 11:03.62 for third.

Rylee Kursave added to the Rebels’ point total with third place finishes in both the shot put and the discus. Kursave hit 33-10 for the bronze in the shot put, while the senior landed a toss of 113-11 for the bronze in the discus. Chelsea Kottich won the shot put with a heave of 40- 01.25, while the Buffalo took the gold in the discus with a mark of 143-04.

The Rebels’ girls team scored forty-six points to finish in fourth at Wood River. Nebraska Christian outscored Elm Creek 151-147 for the gold, while Centura put away seventy points to place third.

Mother Nature may not have fully cooperated last week, but the windy weather and cool temperatures weren’t enough to keep the Arcadia/Loup City Rebels off the links last week.

On Tuesday, the Rebels joined three other teams— Ravenna, Central Valley, and Riverside—for a quadrangular at the Ravenna Golf Course. From that field of four teams, the Rebels placed third, with Arcadia/Loup City combining to hit a 200 for the nine-hole event.

The Rebels finished the outing just thirty-three strokes off the leaders, Ravenna.

The Bluejays capitalized on home course advantage to shoot a 167 to win the quadrangular. Central Valley came in second with a 198, besting the Rebels by two strokes. Riverside, the fourth team in the field, fired a 205 to end up sitting in fourth.

Arcadia/Loup City’s links squad was led by Domanik Barnes. The Rebel fired a forty-six in Ravenna to place tenth. Barnes finished a stroke behind Ravenna’s Aaron Coulter.

At the Bluejays’ event, Ravenna had a strong showing in the top ten. Of the ten best scores last week, the Bluejays’ links squad accounted for eight of them.

Cooper Todd won the quadrangular with the low score of thirty-eight. Kash Lutz, in the first outing of his prep career, fired a forty-three. That score was matched by that of Central Valley’s July Gotschall. The Cougar placed third, one of just two non-Bluejays to finish in the top ten.

Others leading the pack included Weston Schirmer, Trent Wedemeyer, Bryce Rasmussen, Robbie Gentrup, and Hayden Bock.

Also competing for the Rebels last week, Kale Dorsey finished just outside the medals with a forty-eight, while Joseph Ducker fired a fiftyone. Other Rebel notables included Baylon Kohler with a fifty-five and Jackson Gries who shot a fifty-seven.

This week, the Rebels had the chance to golf their first complete round of the season on Wednesday. Arcadia/Loup City joined a large field of golfers at the Ord Invite. Following that meet, Arcadia/ Loup City is scheduled to host the Rebel Invite on Thursday before returning to Ravenna on Tuesday for a triangular with the Bluejays and Kearney Catholic.