Category Archives: Sports

Winner Junior Teeners punched their ticket to the state Class A tournament with a 14-4 victory over Belle Fourche on July 14 in regional baseball action.

Ryder Halligan had the hot hand with 4 hits.

Winner jumped  to an early lead scoring four runs in the first inning and adding three more in the second.

Belle Fourche scored three runs in the top of the fifth but Winner came right back with three runs of their own.

Landon Calhoon and Zac Olson each had a double.

Olson was 3-5 at the plate, Karson Keiser, 2-3, Landon Calhoon, 3-4; Derek Fenenga, 2-4.

Aiden Schroeder pitched four innings with Olson pitching one and two-thirds innings.

Two teams from this region  advanced to the state tournament in Vermillion. Even thought they won the game, Winner had to play one more game.

First regional game

Winner defeated Belle Fourche 16-1 in the first game of the regional tournament on July 12.

A ten run fourth inning led Winner to a victory. The offensive firepower was led by Derek Fenenga, Aiden Schroeder, Konnor Osborn, Karson Keiser, Zac Olson and Landon Calhoon. Each had an RBI in this inning.

Winner Junior Teeners started the game with two runs when Ryder Halligan singled.Winner scored three runs to start off the game.

Scoring doubles were  Derek Fenenga, Ryder Halligan, Zac Olson and Aiden Schroeder.

Winner really had some great performances at the plate. Olson was 3-3, Halligan, 3-4; Keiser, 2-3; Calhoon, 2-2; Fenenga, 3-4. Aiden Schroeder, Dylan Brandis, Kellen Brozik and Konner Osborn all had hits.

Dylan Brandis was the winning pitcher.

In the second game on Tuesday, July 13, Winner was nipped by Spearfish, 7-6. Winner stayed in it until the end but Spearfish pulled away for the victory.

Despite the loss, Winner collected 11 hits.

Winner took a 3-2 lead in the first inning.

At the plate, Calhoon was 3-4; Olson, 2-4; Fenenga, 2-4.

Landon Calhoon started on the mound for Winner and threw four innings with Aiden Schroeder pitching one inning.

Elk Point snagged a late lead to defeat Winner/Colome Junior Legion in the championship game of the regional tournament Sunday morning at Leahy Bowl. Elk Point won the game 7-6 as they broke a tie in the seventh inning.

Winner/Colome took the runner up honors and will be able to advance to the state tournament which will be in Redfield the first part of August.

The Royals collected 11 hits in the game. Pierce Nelson had double with Aiden Barfuss belting a triple.

Slade Cournoyer had a good day at the plate as he went 3-4. Pierce Nelson and Aiden Barfuss were 2-4 with Charley Pravecek, 2-3.

Joseph Laprath pitched all six innings.

The regional started Saturday afternoon with Winner defeating Lennox 5-2. Winner/Colome fired up the offense in the second inning scoring two runs but Lennox came right back in the bottom of the inning and tied the game at 2.

Winner/Colome punched two more runs across the plate in the third inning.

Barfuss was the leader at the plate as he was 2-3.  In addition, Jack Peters was 1-4, Pierce Nelson, 1-3; Charley Pravecek, 1-3 and Stratton Morehart, 1-3.

Ethan Bartels was the winning pitcher. He lasted five and two thirds innings allowing four hits and two runs while striking out five.

Barfuss threw one and two-thirds innings.

With the victory, the Royals played Lake Norden.

Winner/Colome won the game 9-6. The Royals got on the board in the first inning as Charley Pravecek drove in one run.

The fifth inning was key for the Royals as they scored five runs to secure the victory.

Two more insurance runs came in the final inning.

Barfuss scored a home run. Justin Hausmann had a triple and Pravecek a double.

Barfuss and Pravecek were both 3-4 at the plate. Stratton Morehart was 2-3.

Hausmann was the winning pitcher as he pitched six innings. Barfuss threw the final inning.

The local Junior Legion team will be practicing and getting ready to play in the state tournament Aug. 6-8 in Redfield.

Sam Kruger was named the wrestler of the year in the South Dakota high school sports awards.

Kruger is a Winner High School graduate and state wrestling champion.

Kruger finished the season undefeated and captured his third consecutive Class B championship.

Winner wrestling coach Spencer Novotny says Kruger is a leader in the wrestling room and an all around good kid.

Novotny said the wrestler of the year award is given to an athlete who has had a good career.

In addition to being a three time state champion, the WHS graduate is a two time runner up and one time placed third.

Kruger placed all six years he wrestled.

“He put in a lot of hard work and finished his last two season undefeated. All of that work shows his character,” said the WHS coach.

“It is an honor to get this award and I am privileged to have been able to coach him. He taught me more than I probably taught him,” said Novotny.

“He is a great kid and will be tough to replace,” said Novotny.

Kruger plans to wrestle at South Dakota State University.

Also honored in the state awards program is Kendyl Bachmann who placed third in dance.

The Sioux Falls Argus Leader sponsored the sports award program.

Tom Renner and Mark Gubbles were the winners of the first flight of the Winner Area Chamber of Commerce golf tournament July 16.

Second place in this flight went to Lucas Jedlicki and Tanner Best. Taking third was Justin and Kara Zeigler.

The winner of the second flight was Rusty Arthur and Lisa Halverson. Second went to Grayson Andel and Keegan Littau. Third went to Stacy Halverson and Megan Shippy.

James and Kyle Mathis won the third flight. Casey and Levi Heenan took second and third went to Wayne and Shelly Kindt.

Five youth from Tripp County competed in the National 4H Shooting Sports Championship in Grand Island, Neb.,  June 20-25.

All five brought home either a nationals medal or rosette by placing on a national level and getting to walk the stage to receive their award. There were over 700 youth from 32 different states competing in 9 different disciplines. This was the first in person national 4-H  competition since the start of the pandemic as the competition was cancelled last year.

Day 1 results of competition were as follows. .22 rifle- Clay Sell in silhouettes placed 47th and the SD team placed 4th. .22 pistol -Katie Welker in Bullseye placed 22nd and the SD team placed 3rd. Compound Archery-FITA Parker Baker placed 2nd, George Clark 32nd, and Austin Wheaton 70th. SD team placed 4th.

Day 2 results: .22 rifle-CMP, Clay 42nd place, SD team 7th place. .22 pistol-silhouettes Katie 38th place and SD team 7th place. Compound Archery-FIELD, Parker 3rd place, George 11th and Austin 48th place. SD team 2nd place.

Day 3 results: .22 rifle-3P Clay 36th place, SD team 8th place. .22 pistol-Camp Perry, Katie 33rd place SD team 8th place. Compound Archery-3D, George 39th place, Parker 43rd and Austin 44th place. SD team 14th place.

Overall placings: .22 Rifle Clay 40th place and SD team 5th place. .22 pistol Katie 39th place and SD team 8th place. Compound Archery Parker 15th place, George 23rd and Austin 54th place, SD team 6th place.

Tripp County was also represented by Wade McClanahan as coach for the SD compound archery team.

The youth appreciate those that helped to sponsor them with the cost of the trip: Rosebud Arrow Rod & Gun Club, Tripp County Shooting Sports and the Tripp County 4-H Leaders Association. The youth also did a half and half raffle and had a food booth at Winner Summer nights to help raise money for the trip. They appreciate everyone that bought raffle tickets or came and ate at their food booth to help support them as well. They had a great experience getting to compete and make friends with youth from all across the country. The spirit of 4H truly shined at the event.

The National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association (NIAAA) is pleased to announce that Brett Gardner, athletic director at Winner School District, has been recognized by the NIAAA as a Certified Athletic Administrator.

To earn this distinction, Brett has demonstrated the highest level of knowledge and expertise in the field of interscholastic athletic administration. The voluntary certification process included a thorough evaluation of the candidate’s educational background, experience and professional contributions, as well as a rigorous, comprehensive written examination.

Brett is one of an elite group of interscholastic athletic administrators nationwide to attain this level of professionalism.

The NIAAA is a national professional organization consisting of all 50 state athletic administrator associations and more than 12,000 individual members.  It is dedicated to promoting the professional growth of interscholastic athletic administrators and preserving the educational nature of interscholastic athletics and the place of these programs in the secondary school curriculum.

Colome Chaos notched four runs in the fifth inning to defeat Chamberlain 6-1 on July 1 in Colome.

The rally was led by a walk by Carter Brickman and a home run by Jackson Kinzer. This was Kinzer’s second home run of the season.

The Chaos had 11 hits. Ben Connot, Kinzer and Brickman had multiple hits.

Jake Luse was the winning pitcher. He pitched eight innings with Layton Thieman coming in for one inning of relief.

Colome Chaos is 6-5 in the Pony Hills League.

The next action for Colome is July 8 taking on the Kimball/White Lake Nationals.

The Plankinton Bankers come to Colome on July 11 for a 7 p.m. game.

Winner Area girls golf team took third place in the State A meet in Spearfish June 7-8.

This is only the third time in school history that a girls golf team has placed at state.

Rylee Root placed 11^th with a 90-87—177; Gracie Root, 19^th, 97-94—191; Brennan Bachmann, 23^rd, 101-93—194; Kelbi Meiners, tied for 36^th, 105-97; Devan Dougherty, tied for 46^th with a 105-110-215.

Three of the girls placed in the top 25—Rylee Root,  Gracie Root and Brennan Bachmann.

“Our players gave their best effort,” said coach Jim Halverson.

Both days were warm with just enough wind to keep everyone somewhat comfortable.

Halverson said what makes him proud as a coach is the compliments from other coaches, parents and spectators. He said there were other golfers who wanted to have a Winner player in their group for a friendly face.

Halverson said the Lady Warriors knowledge of the rules made their decisions on the course better for everybody in their groups. “Their ability to play golf the way it is supposed to be played makes it even sweeter,” said the coach.

Halverson appreciates everyone in the community for their words of encouragement and support. “The Winner Area girls golf team will continue to get better with community support and their efforts,” explained Halverson.