High School Sports

Okoboji wrestlers went 1-1 in a pair of home duals Thursday. The Pioneers defeated Sibley-Ocheyedan, but fell narrowly to Sheldon/South O'Brien on senior night in Milford. "It was our last home event this season and the last time our seniors will wrestle on an Okoboji mat," Okoboji coach Nate Dau said. "The effort was great from all our kids. There were many matches that the fans could get into a lot of action."...

Harris-Lake Park went on a tear late Friday in a 23-point home victory over Clay Central-Everly. The Wolves topped the Mavericks 63-40 in Lake Park. Harris-Lake Park outscored CC-E 13-8 in the opening stanza and 13-7 in the second quarter to take a 26-15 lead into the halftime locker room...

Harris-Lake Park and Clay Central-Everly needed overtime to decide a winner Friday in Lake Park. In the end, the Mavericks outscored the Wolves 11-7 in extras to leave town with a 49-45 victory. Harris-Lake Park jumped out to an early lead, outscoring CC-E 16-11 in the opening stanza. The Mavericks responded with a 14-8 second quarter to take a 25-24 lead into the halftime locker room...

Spirit Lake surrendered a five-point fourth-quarter lead Friday in a one-point loss to Lakes Conference rival Cherokee. The Indians fell 63-62 to the Braves in Spirit Lake. "At the end of the day, Cherokee made the plays down the stretch necessary to win the ball game," Spirit Lake coach Paul Brown said. ...

Spirit Lake fought well but ultimately came out on the losing end of a Lakes Conference girls basketball battle Friday. The Indians fell 58-51 to fourth-ranked (2A) Cherokee in Spirit Lake. "I'm incredibly proud of this group of girls and the effort they played with tonight against a really good Cherokee team," Spirit Lake coach Naet Hoaglund said. ...

Okoboji bounced back from its second loss of the season Friday with a seven-point road victory over Sioux Center. The 12th-ranked (3A) Pioneers defeated the Warriors 51-44 in Siouxland Conference girls hoops action. "We guarded very well for three quarters and did a great job in the fourth quarter of getting stops," Okoboji coach John Adams said. "Morgan Jensen had a huge steal and some big free throws down the stretch and Alli Harms also battled extremely hard on the defensive end during the possession when we were up one and Morgan got the steal. ...

Okoboji lost a high-scoring contest Friday in Sioux Center. The Pioneers fell 76-65 to the Warriors in Siouxland Conference boys basketball action. "Despite the end result, we feel like the guys have played with some good intensity the past couple games," Okoboji coach Ryan Stumbo said. ...

Spirit Lake Park and Okoboji wrestling teams squared off with several northwest Iowa standout squads Saturday at the Nighthawk Invitational hosted by Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley. The Indians, with six champions and three third-place finishers, took top team honors at the tournament, while the Pioneers had one champion and five runners-up to place fourth as a team...

Spirit Lake Park seniors Kyler Dunn and Kyler Rieck continued to rack up the career milestones in what has proven to be a memorable season for the Indians wrestlers. Dunn — ranked seventh at 120 pounds in Class 2A — earned his 100th career win and Rieck — ranked fourth at 152 pounds in Class 2A — notched his 100th career pin at the Nighthawk Invitational Saturday in Rock Valley...

The Spirit Lake Park wrestling team saw it's unblemished dual meet record fall Tuesday in a 46-36 loss to Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire at Iowa Lakes Community College in Estherville. Indians wrestlers went 6-8 on the night. "I thought the guys battled really hard against a really good team," Spirit Lake Park coach Andrew Lundgren said. ...

Harris-Lake Park suffered a fourth straight loss Tuesday, Jan. 8, as the Wolves fell 60-42 to South O'Brien in Paullina. The Wolves struggled to score at the start of both halves, totaling just 11 points in the first and third quarters combined. "We just got off to a slow start against South O'Brien, getting down 13-1 in the first quarter, and it was just a dogfight after that," Harris-Lake Park coach Jeff Sohn said. ...

Harris-Lake Park looked to be on track following a 64-37 road win over Sibley-Ocheyedan on Monday, Jan. 7, but instead suffered a setback the following night in Paullina. The Wolves fell 64-24 to South O'Brien in War Eagle Conference girls hoops action...

Okoboji stormed out to an early lead and pulled away late in a home contest with Sheldon on Tuesday in Milford. The Pioneers defeated the Orabs 63-41 in Siouxland Conference girls basketball action. The Pioneers led 14-6 after one quarter and took a 24-15 lead into the halftime break...

The Spirit Lake girls basketball team dropped a Lakes Conference road contest to Western Christian on Tuesday. The Indians fell 47-32 to the Wolfpack in Hull. Spirit Lake trailed just 10-9 after one quarter of play, but Western Christian opened up a big lead with a 20-6 second-quarter score...

The Spirit Lake boys basketball team was shorthanded and struggled Tuesday evening in a Lakes Conference road contest with eighth-ranked Western Christian. The injury-plagued Indians fell 57-32 to the Wolfpack in Hull. "I thought I saw a lot of good things out of our young guys tonight," Spirit Lake coach Paul Brown said. ...

Spirit Lake Park went undefeated Friday to keep its dual record unblemished with a first-place finish at the Jerry Hentges Dual Tournament in Spirit Lake. The eighth-ranked (2A) Indians defeated Sibley-Ocheyedan, MOC-Floyd Valley, Sioux City North and West Lyon on the day...

A second-half scoring surge led to a Spirit Lake road rout of Storm Lake Friday evening. The Indians topped the Tornadoes 55-22 in Lakes Conference girls hoops action to open the second half of the basketball season. “I’m proud of the effort our girls put forth tonight," Spirit Lake coach Naet Hoaglund said. ...

Harris-Lake Park jumped out to an early lead Friday, but could not maintain their offensive pace in a loss to Gehlen Catholic in Lake Park. The Wolves fell 58-46 to the Jays in War Eagle Conference boys basketball action. "I thought we had a great finish to the first half, outscoring Gehlen 11-3 the last 4 minutes of the second quarter," Harris-Lake Park coach Jeff Sohn said. ...

Gehlen Catholic outscored Harris-Lake Park 21-2 through one quarter of play Friday in a 23-point road win in Lake Park. The Jays topped the Wolves 69-46 in War Eagle Conference girls hoops action. "We had a slow start to the game," Harris-Lake Park coach Andy Irwin said. "If you take out the first quarter, we played a good game against a good opponent. After a 21-2 deficit after the first quarter, our girls didn't give up and played hard the rest of the game."...

Spirit Lake started the second half of the boys' hoops season with a 63-55 road loss to Storm Lake Friday despite playing three quarters of solid basketball, according to first-year coach Paul Brown. "I was really happy with how our guys played through three quarters of the game," Brown said. ...

Okoboji stuck around for three quarters Friday evening, but host Boyden-Hull pulled away in the fourth quarter to edge the Pioneers by nine in Siouxland Conference boys hoops action. The Comets topped the Pioneers 79-70 in Hull. "We were proud of our guys' decision this game to play with more energy on both sides of the ball, similar to how we did just prior to the holiday break," Okoboji coach Ryan Stumbo said. ...

For the second time this season, the Okoboji girls basketball team saw its win streak snapped by an unranked — though talented — Siouxland Conference team, as the 10th-ranked (3A) Pioneers fell to Boyden-Hull on Friday. The Comets topped the Pioneers 71-66 in Hull, snapping a six-game win streak...

Okoboji placed third as a team Saturday at a wrestling tournament hosted by Graettinger-Terril/Ruthven-Ayrshire. The Pioneers had one champion and five third-place finishers in Graettinger. "We battled back from a tough semifinal round," Okoboji coach Nate Dau said. ...

Coming off of a tough loss to Storm Lake the night before, the Spirit Lake boys basketball team struggled mightily in a 41-27 road loss to Waverly-Shell Rock at Wartburg College on Saturday. "We did not play well Saturday against Waverly, and I think a little of that came from a hard-fought battle against Storm Lake the night before," Spirit Lake coach Paul Brown said. ...

The Harris-Lake Park girls basketball ended a three-game losing streak with a dominant 64-37 non-conference road win over Sibley-Ocheyedan on Monday. The Wolves outscored the Generals 15-9 in the first quarter and 26-10 in the second to take a commanding 41-19 lead at the half...

The Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association (IWCOA) is pleased to announce its first interscholastic Iowa High School Girls Wrestling Championships Saturday, Jan. 19, at Waverly-Shell Rock High School.
The 2019 championship event conducted by the IWCOA marks the end of the second season in which Iowa High School Athletic Association member schools offered females the opportunity to compete in girls’ divisions. ...

Spirit Lake Park senior wrestler Kyler Rieck set yet another career milestone Thursday in his team's 42-33 dual meet win over Storm Lake. The top-ranked wrestler at 152 pounds in Class 2A and returning state runner-up secured the 150th win over his prep career by pinning Storm Lake's Tegan Mattson in 54 seconds...

The Okoboji wrestling team picked up a trio of convincing victories Thursday at a quadrangular hosted by East Sac County. The Pioneers defeated Pocahontas Area, Manson-Northwest Webster and East Sac County in Lake View. "We ended our first half of the season before Christmas with some outstanding performances at our home invite," Okoboji coach Nate Dau said. "Tonight, we saw the same intensity and a lot of our kids picked up right where they left off. Great effort all around."...

Okoboji extended its winning streak to six games Thursday, as the 10th-ranked (3A) Pioneers topped Emmetsburg 52-40 on the road in non-conference girls hoops action. "We were really pleased with how the girls got after it on the defensive end of the floor tonight and, like we always talk about as a team, defense is what will win games for us," Okoboji coach John Adams said. ...

Okoboji battled but ultimately fell in a non-conference boys basketball road trip to Emmetsburg on Thursday. The E-Hawks edged the Pioneers, 59-55. "I think credit needs to be given to Emmetsburg for hitting some outside shots throughout the course of the game and taking advantage of some good looks around the hoop tonight," Okoboji coach Ryan Stumbo said. ...

Harris-Lake Park struggled early in its first action of 2019, as the Wolves fell behind in a 20-point home loss to George-Little Rock Thursday. The Mustangs trampled the Wolves 63-43 in non-conference girls hoops action in Lake Park. "George-Little Rock played very tough defense against us with good press," Harris-Lake Park coach Andy Irwin said. ...

The young Harris-Lake Park boys hoops squad took a moral victory away from a Thursday matchup with third-ranked (1A) George-Little Rock, but the Mustangs came away with the win, topping the Wolves 64-37 in Lake Park. Harris-Lake Park trailed by just one point after one quarter, but George-Little Rock was just too much to handle in the final three periods...

After starting the second half of the hoops season with back-to-back road losses to Storm Lake and Waverly-Shell Rock, Spirit Lake bounced back in a big way with a 14-point home win over Rock Valley on Tuesday. The Indians topped the Rockets 68-54 in non-conference boys basketball action...

The Spirit Lake girls basketball team played well but did not do enough down the stretch to come away with a win Tuesday evening, as the Indians fell 44-41 to Rock Valley. Neither team led by more than six points in the back-and-forth contest. "Rock Valley is a good, physical basketball team who hit some big shots when they needed to," Spirit Lake coach Naet Hoaglund said. ...

The Okoboji wrestling team went 1-2 at a quadrangular hosted by Algona on Tuesday. The Pioneers defeated Estherville Lincoln Central, but fell to Blue Earth Area (Minnesota) and Algona. Okoboji earned six individual wins to top the Midgets 51-18. At 152 pounds, Jacob Bockman pinned ELC's Chase Budach in 4 minutes, 34 seconds. At 160 pounds, Izaac Ramirez-Woodley pinned Eli Hanson in 3:25. At 113 pounds, Jesse Bockman earned a 6-2 decision over Quintin Marquez...

Spirit Lake Park maintained a two-point lead over Algona heading into the final match of their dual Tuesday night. The eighth-ranked Indians needed a win to maintain their unbeaten dual meet record. They got much more than that when they sent senior heavyweight Patrick Bauer to the mat...

Senior Owen Coburn eclipsed 20 points and 20 rebounds for the first time in his career and sophomore Creighton Morisch knocked down a school-record eight three-pointers to lead Spirit Lake to a win over Pocahontas Area Friday night. The home team won 74-58...

Okoboji had six finalists and four champions Thursday at a home tournament originally slated for Dec. 1. Okoboji coach Nate Dau credited Okoboji Activities Director Justin Bouse for rescheduling the meet. "We were extremely fortunate to find a date to reschedule this event and a lot of credit goes to our AD Justin Bouse for getting it lined up," Dau said. ...

Okoboji picked up a convincing win over West Lyon Friday to head into the holiday break on a five-game win streak. The 10th-ranked (3A) Pioneers topped West Lyon 53-38 in Milford. "Our defense has really carried us the first half, and I’m really proud of how hard the girls are guarding," Okoboji coach John Adams said. "We struggled offensively in the first half, but a lot of that was due to West Lyon, as they are a very well-coached team with a ton of length."...

The Okoboji wrestling team went 1-2 at a quadrangular hosted by Alta-Aurelia on Tuesday, Dec. 18. The Pioneers defeated the host Warriors 42-41, but fell 60-18 to Woodbury Central and 52-30 to South Central Calhoun in Alta. "We had a lot of exciting matches last night but have some things to improve on," Okoboji coach Nate Dau said...

Harris-Lake Park snapped a two-game skid Tuesday, Dec. 18, with a six-point road win over Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn. The Wolves topped the Hawks 51-45 in Hartley. "We had a nice come-from-behind victory," Harris-Lake Park coach Jeff Sohn said. "We were down by seven early in the contest and then got things rolling in the second and third quarters. ...

Harris-Lake Park improved its record to 4-4 following a dominant win over Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn/Remsen-Union on Friday evening. The Wolves topped the Royals 63-37 in Lake Park. It was their second straight victory after topping Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn 51-45 the previous Tuesday...

Harris-Lake Park has bounced back in a big way. After starting the season 0-5, the Wolves pushed their win streak to three games Tuesday, Dec. 18, with a 55-39 road win over Hartley-Melvin-Sanborn. The Wolves jumped out to a commanding 22-11 lead after one quarter and maintained a double-digit advantage, leading 34-24 at the break...

The Harris-Lake Park girls basketball team suffered a 30-point loss Friday, snapping a three-game win streak. The Wolves fell 67-37 to Marcus-Meriden-Cleghorn/Remsen-Union in Lake Park. MMCRU led 17-9 after one quarter and took a 32-18 lead into the break. The Royals continued to pull away in the second half, outscoring the Wolves 24-11 in the third and 11-8 in the fourth...

Spirit Lake volleyball athletes Emma Loveall and Jordyn Hamm recently attended the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Phenom College Preparatory Program held in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They are the first athletes from Spirit Lake High School to be invited to the event, and are two of 13 Iowa athletes named on the AVCA Phenom List...

Spirit Lake Park wrestling coach Andrew Lundgren took a skeleton crew to a tournament hosted by Sergeant Bluff-Luton on Friday. The eighth-ranked Indians placed sixth overall with four finalists and one champion on the day. "We had an opportunity to bring some guys down to Sergeant Bluff to compete against some other teams that lost their first tournament of the season due to the winter storm we had," Lundgren said. "Even though the number of total participants was down, we knew we'd have an opportunity to compete against some quality opponents from some teams that we don't see a whole lot during the year. We ended up getting four of the seven guys in the finals.. ...

After trailing 11-9 through one quarter of play Friday, Spirit Lake buckled down defensively, holding Pocahontas Area to just 12 points over the following three quarters in a dominant home win. Spirit Lake defeated Pocahontas Area 45-23 in non-conference girls hoops action to head into the holiday break with a win...

With an eight-point win over West Lyon on Friday, Okoboji heads into the holiday break on a two-game win streak — it's first since topping George-Little Rock and Emmetsburg in back-to-back games in February 2016. The Pioneers were dominant in the middle quarters and held off a late Wildcats run to win 69-61 in Milford...