Monthly Archives: August 2018

Brown County Resident First WNV Death Of Season

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The Department of Health reported today a Brown County resident died of West Nile virus (WNV) associated causes, the state’s first WNV related death this season. The individual was in the 80 to 89 age group.

“Our sympathy is with the family. We only hope their tragic loss will encourage others to take the threat of West Nile virus seriously,” said Dr. Joshua Clayton, state epidemiologist for the department. “We can’t emphasize enough how important it is for people to protect themselves and their families by using repellent and avoiding the outdoors when mosquitoes are most active.”

To date this season, South Dakota has reported 10 cases of human WNV and three hospitalizations. Nationally, 39 cases and one West Nile-associated death have been reported. Clayton said weekly surveillance updates will show cases continuing to climb.

South Dakotans can reduce their risk with the following precautions:

Apply mosquito repellents (DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus, para-menthane-diol, 2-undecanone or IR3535) to clothes and exposed skin.
Reduce mosquito exposure by wearing pants and long sleeves when outdoors.
Limit time outdoors from dusk to dawn when Culex mosquitoes, the primary carrier of WNV in South Dakota, are most active.
Get rid of standing water that gives mosquitoes a place to breed.
Regularly change water in bird baths, ornamental fountains and pet dishes.
Drain water from flower pots and garden containers.
Discard old tires, buckets, cans or other containers that can hold water.
Clean rain gutters to allow water to flow freely.
Support local mosquito control efforts.

These precautions are especially important for people at high risk for WNV, including individuals over 50, pregnant women, organ transplant patients, individuals with cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure or kidney disease, and those with a history of alcohol abuse. People with severe or unusual headaches should see their clinician.

Visit the department’s website at westnile.sd.gov for more information.

$3.7 million Grant Saves 23 Lives in South Dakota

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Helmsley Charitable Trust Equips 186 organizations with life-saving equipment.

A $3.7 million grant from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust, administered over the past three years through the South Dakota Department of Health, has saved the lives of 23 people. The LUCAS® 2 Cardiac Care Project equipped 134 EMS agencies and 52 critical access hospitals in South Dakota with the necessary tools to improve survivability in sudden cardiac arrest victims.

The LUCAS® Chest Compression System (LUCUS® 2) delivers consistent, reliable and uninterrupted chest compressions which allows healthcare providers to concentrate on other equally important aspects of patient care; providing patients with the best opportunity of survival. The LUCUS® 2 device virtually frees up one healthcare worker to perform other essential tasks.

“The LUCUS® 2 devices can save lives,” said Walter Panzirer, a Trustee of the Helmsley Charitable Trust. “People living in rural areas deserve access to the same healthcare technology as those living in metro areas enjoy. Working with the State of South Dakota Department of Health we were able to equip first responders in the state with LUCUS® 2 devices, equipment they couldn’t otherwise afford, giving cardiac patients a better chance at survival.”

“We extend our gratitude to the Helmsley Charitable Trust,” said Kim Malsam-Rysdon, Secretary of Health. “This investment in rural healthcare will help ensure South Dakotans have access to life-saving care in emergency situations, regardless of transport distance. These devices will continue to support the Department of Health’s mission to promote, protect and improve the health of every South Dakotan for years to come.”

According to those charged with using the new device, the LUCUS® 2 is making a difference when emergency medical units respond to a scene.

“The patient arrested at their place of employment,” said one South Dakota paramedic. “According to bystanders, the patient collapsed and became unresponsive. When we arrived on-scene, no CPR was in progress and after one round of manual CPR, we placed the LUCAS®. The patient achieved ROSC (return of spontaneous circulation) on-scene and we did not lose them again. The patient was discharged alive without deficits.

“The LUCAS® is a huge help because it frees up a crew member to do other interventions,” he added. “It makes me feel more confident because I can think and focus on the next steps. It [LUCAS®] played a huge role in this patient surviving.”

The $3,777,926 grant was implemented in January 2014, placing a total of 202 devices in 186 South Dakota EMS agencies and hospitals.

Witten Legion Celebrates 71st Anniversary

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For 71 years the Witten American Legion Post has been an important part of the community.

The community celebrated the 71st birthday at a program on Sunday, July 30.

Among the guests present were Hugh Holmes, Mitchell, past state commander and Jeff Hrabanek, Tripp County Commander. Past Boys Staters from the Witten post attended.

Ken VanKekerix, commander of the Witten Legion, served as the MC.
Some of the veterans spoke of their experience during the Korean War.

Members of the Witten Legion who were unable to attend are: Eugene Arthur, Steve Bridgman, Russell Dreyer, Shane Gardner, Gale Harrison, Kelly Helkenn, Mike McDonald, Mike Novak, James Shonehard, John Simpson, Alan Smith, James Underhill, Damon Whittaker and Shirley Whittaker.

Following the program, cake and ice cream were served.

Woman Charged with Embezzlement

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A Colome woman has been charged with embezzling an estimated $16,000 from her employer over a period of eight months.

Megan Fast, 28, was hired by Kucera Electric in Winner in November 2017 for accounting and administrative duties for which she was given access to the company’s multiple bank accounts.

On July 12. Well Fargo reportedly contacted the owners of Kucera Electric to let them know that fraudulent activity had been detected on the company’s accounts.

According to a report submitted by special agent Jeff Metzinger of the South Dakota Department of Criminal Investigation on July 18, a Wells Fargo branch manger showed the owners multiple unexplained checks written to Fast and excess payroll direct deposits to Fast. Additional payroll direct deposits totaling $2,800 made to Fast’s mother, who had never worked at Kucera Electric, were also allegedly found.

Fast is charged with grand theft by embezzlement, a Class 4 felony.

Barbeque Planned for Aug. 4

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The 6th annual Winner Area Chamber of Commerce BBQ pit row will be held on Aug. 4 on Main Street.

There are 11 teams entered in the competition.

Pork is a new category this year along with pork ribs and beef brisket.

The top five places in each category will be paid out. There will be a grand champion selected. The cumulative points for the three categories will determine the grand champion.

The public tasting will start at 7 p.m.

The Winner Chamber will supply six racks of pork ribs, two 6-8 pounds of pork butt or shoulder and one 8-10 pound beef brisket to each participating team.

Teams can pick up their meat between 5 to 6 p.m. on Friday or after 6 a.m. on Saturday.

The teams need to set up their cooking area between 6-10 a.m. Saturday. All meat must be cooked on Winner Main Street.

The first block of Main Street will be blocked off Saturday for the BBQ competition.

Judging for the ribs will be at 5:45 p.m. Judging for the pork will be at 6:15 p.m. and judging for the brisket will be at 6:45 p.m.

The Winner Chamber will also have a side dish competition. A side dish is any item that best accompanies the barbeque. The side dish will be judged by six neutral judges.

The winner will receive $100 in Winner Cash.

In addition to the BBQ, there will be a bean bag contest starting at 1 p.m. The entry fee will be $20 per team.

KWYR will be playing music from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Persons can purchase six tickets for $10 for the BBQ at the Chamber office.

The Chamber has ordered food to feed an estimated 400 people.

Persons are welcome to come to Main Street have a good time and enjoy some great food on Aug. 4.

Visitors in town for the Class B State Junior Legion baseball tournament are invited to join the fun on Aug. 4.

Chamber Golf Winners

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Tanner Best and Izac Nespor won the Winner Area Chamber of Commerce golf tournament on Friday. They shot a 32.

Second place in the championship flight went to Ryan Radant and Rick Godel, 33 and third to Cody Haiar and Jason Beehler, 35.

The first flight winner was Bob Benson and Tim Gant, 40. Second went to Lisa Halverson and Rusty Arthur, 41 and Jason and Jonah Sachtjen took third with a 42.

Chad Peterson and Peggy Heilman won the second flight with a 46. Second went to Aric and Katie Craven with a 47 and third to Madi Engel and Brandon Hauf, 48.

Richey Chosen for Elite 40

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Alexis Richey of Winner was chosen as one of the top 40 volleyball players in the state to compete in Sioux Falls on Sunday at the Pentagon.

She was selected as one of nine liberos in the state.

Richey will be a senior at Winner High School.

Career honors for Richey include two time Big Dakota Conference, two time Big Dakota all tournament, two time SESD all tournament, 2017 Class A all state, Winner record holder for career digs and season digs.

The Future 40 Elite Camp was hosted by Adrenaline Fundraising and is meant to showcase some of the top high school players in the state on the same court at the same time.

This is the first of its kind school event and the mission is to give the top players a chance to compete with and against each one another regardless of class or geography.

The event is also a chance to help promote and grow the sport of volleyball in South Dakota.

The Future 40 was determined from coach nominations during the 2017 season. All nominees were debated and voted on by a board of South Dakota high school coaches from all three classes and all parts of the state.

Adrenaline Fundraising is the nation’s top sports fundraising company and South Dakota’s top fundraising option for high school volleyball programs.

In the past seven years, Adrenaline has grown to help over 50 high school programs in South Dakota.

Pheasants Win District 5B Title

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The Winner/Colome amateur baseball team defeated Alexandria 12-5 to win the District 5B title on Friday in Platte.

The Pheasants (20-2) exploded for nine runs in the fourth inning.

“We played well and it should give us momentum going into the state tournament,” said coach Kevin Graesser.

It was a battle of the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the state’s polls.

Alexandria took a 1-0 lead.

In the fourth inning, Alexandria pitcher hit Winner/Colome batters Derek Graesser and Reed Harter then walked Austin Richey to load the bases. Two batters later, Austin Calhoon put the Pheasants in front with a single that scored two and Dillon Lambley hit an RBI single.

Back to back RBI singles from Harter and Graesser pushed the Winner/Colome lead to 8-1 and Graesser would later score on an error.

Calhoon hit a two run homer in the 9th inning.

Connor Hopkines was the winning pitcher. He had 12 strikeouts in seven innings.

Tarrell Bauld pitched the final two innings.

This game was backed up by a rain delay and then in the 8th inning heavy fog delayed the game for over half an hour. The game finished at 12:30 a.m.

Winner/Colome will play in the state tournament in Sioux Falls at Ronken Field on the campus of Augustana University. The Pheasants will play Larchwood at 1 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 2.

Winner to Host State Junior Legion Tournament

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Winner will be the host of the state Class B Junior Legion baseball tournament Aug. 3-5.

Leahy Bowl will be the sight of the state tournament which will draw visitors from across the state to Winner. City crews have been working hard to prepare the field for the state tourney.

The first round pairings on Aug. 3 include:
10 a.m.—Mission vs. Lennox
12:30—Redfield vs. Wessington Springs
2:45—Warner/Ipswich/Northwestern (WIN) vs. Clark
5:30—Claremont/Britton vs. Groton
7:45—Winner vs the winner of the Mission and Lennox game
The opening ceremony will be at 5 p.m. on Friday.

Games will continue 10 a.m. both Saturday and Sunday. The championship game will be played at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 5.
A coaches meeting will be at 9 a.m. Friday at Leahy Bowl.
Last year Winner won the consolation championship.

This is the second year for a Junior Legion state tournament.

“We’ve had a pretty successful season up to this point,” said Winner coach Kory Foss.

“We started really fast out of the gates and rattled off a bunch of wins and I think maybe got complacent at times after that, which resulted in a bit of a skid as we hit mid-season. It’s true we played some tougher competition, but we kind of got away from some of the things we did really well early in the year – like throwing strikes and playing good defense – and that cost us some games we probably should have had,” said Foss

“Baseball is a game of streaks, and we learned that this summer. I think this last week or two the kids have started to find their step again and are feeling good heading towards state,” explained the coach.

Fred Whiting is the leading hitter- batting .500 on the year with 30 hits and and 33 RBI’s. Oscar Pravecek is hitting .403 with 27 hits and 19 RBI’s and has only struck out 5 times in 88 plate appearances. Kameron Meiners is batting .387 with 24 hits and 17 RBI’s. Joren Bruun is at .369 with 24 hits, Phil Jorgensen is hitting .361 with 26 hits and Cobly Kaiser is batting .338 with 25 hits and 2 home runs.

Kameron Meiners has thrown the most innings this season at 41.1. He’s 3-4 with an ERA of 2.03. Joren Bruun has thrown 38 innings and is 4-3 with an ERA of 2.76. He has struck out a team-high 38 batters. Jacob Beckers has pitched 21 innings and is 5-1 with an ERA of 2.67. Evan Farner is 3-0 with an ERA of 1.16 in 18 innings of work. Aaron Gilchrist is 2-1 in 8 appearances including 3 starts.

“It’s a pretty cool experience to be part of a state tournament on your own field and the kids are excited about it. The summer season can be a grind at times, but each game has been in preparation to get us ready for this tournament. Yes wins and losses count, but what really matters is what we take from each of them that will benefit us come state,” said Foss

“The competition at this year’s tournament is going to be top-notch, as it is with any state tournament. There may not be as many Jr. Legion teams in South Dakota as Teener teams, but I think Jr. Legion possess some of the strongest programs,” said the coach

“We drew the winner of the Lennox/Mission game. We have already faced Mission this summer, and know from club baseball that Lennox is one of the best teams in the state with some really good athletes.

Groton, Clark, and Redfield are all in the field and are traditionally strong programs. Other teams like W.I.N. (Warner, Ipswhich, Northwestern), Wessington Springs, and Claremont/Britton can come in and play just as well. It’s just a matter of which team is prepared and can execute.” said Foss.

He added: “Baseball is a funny sport, and if you don’t come in ready to hit the ground running you’re going to be heading home early. I believe if we play like we are capable of on offense and defense, and our pitchers come in and throw strikes, we will have a chance come Aug. 5 to do something special. This is a great group of kids, and this is a fitting way to finish what has been a fun season,” said Foss.

 

Junior Legion Rolls to 4 Wins

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Winner Junior Legion took two games from Mission in double header July 23 in Winner.

In the first game, Winner won 12-0 with Jacob Beckers throwing a no hitter in four innings. The game was shortened due to the 10 run rule.

On offense, Joren Bruun waIs 2 for 2 with 2 RBIs. Tyler Olson was 2-3 and drove in a run while Bosten Morehart added a hit and 2 RBIs.

In the second game, Winner defeated Mission 11-1 in five innings.

Fred Whiting led the way on offense going 3-3 with 2 RBIs. Oscar Pravecek and Kameron Meiners each added two hits. Landon Thieman drove in three runs.

Bruun started on the hill and went four innings giving up one run on three hits. Meiners worked a perfect inning in relief.

“We had a good night at the plate and on the mound and it showed in the final box score,” said coach Kory Foss. “In game 1, Jacob Beckers threw a great game completing our second no hitter in the last two weeks (Evan Farner had one against Brandon Valley). We worked quick and threw strikes and that’s what you have to do,” said the coach.

“Our bats came around in game 1 and it’s just one of those things where hitting is contagious and it continued all night. Hopefully, it gives the kids some confidence going into the stretch,” Foss said.

Winner Junior Legion baseball team traveled to Northville Friday to play W.I.N. (Warner-Ipswhich-Northwestern) and Wessington Springs.

Winner won the first game game 1 vs. W.I.N. 12-0. The game ended in the 6th inning due to the run rule.
Oscar Pravecek was 2 for 4 with 3 RBI’s. Kameron Meiners was 2 for 4 with an RBI as well. Five other players had at least 1 run driven in.
Kameron Meiners threw a complete game shut-out, allowing 4 hits while striking out 7.

Winner also won game 2 vs. Wessington Springs 13-3. The game ended after 6 innings due to the run rule.
Zach Bohnet was 2 for 3 with 3 RBI’s. Aaron Gilchrist was 2 for 2 with 2 RBI’s. Adam Cole and Kameron Meiners each added 2 RBI’s as well.
Joren Bruun started on the mound and went 4.2 innings, allowing 3 runs on 2 hits while striking out 4. Evan Farner threw the rest of the game, not allowing a hit and striking out 1.

“The kids played two really good games today to finish up our regular season. I think both W.I.N. and Wessington Springs are solid teams, we just played well today – at the plate, on the mound, and on defense. It’s nice to end the regular season with two games like this to gain some momentum heading towards the state tournament next weekend. Kameron threw a great game against a good W.I.N line-up, and our offense made the most of their pitchers mistakes. In the second game against Wessington Springs our hitters really clicked. The thing I was most encouraged about was how well the bottom our order did. Our 6-9 guys had a big game, which always a good sign. I think the kids are ready for next weekend. We’ve spent all summer preparing for it and I believe we’re playing our best ball when it’s most important. I’m excited to see what the state tourney brings for us,” said coach Kory Foss.

Winner finish the regular season 19-10. The first round game at state will be Friday night at 7:45 pm against the winner of the Mission/Lennox game. The state junior Legion tournament is being held in Winner at Leahy Bowl Friday, Saturday and Sunday.