ALTA -- IKM-Manning faced the complete package in last Friday’s Class 2-A regional semifinal volleyball match at Alta. Second-ranked Unity Christian (35-4) featured three six-footers at the net - including a 6-1 setter - along with talented back row players and quality, aggressive servers. The Wolves entered the night on a nice roll, but the Knights were simply on another level overall, ending IKM-Manning’s season in three quick sets, 25-13,

 AVOCA -- Shut out for the second time in its last four games, AHSTW was ousted by Ridge View, 28-0, in a Class 1-A first-round playoff game last Wednesday night. The Vikings finished 6-4 overall, while Ridge View improved to 8-2. The Raptors lost to South Central Calhoun in the second round Monday night, 35-17.

 EXIRA -- The Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton football team never recovered from a poor start last Wednesday night, losing to East Mills, 54-15, in an 8-Player first-round playoff game. The Spartans finished the season with an 8-2 record while East Mills (8-2) advanced and beat Lenox 58-34 in Monday’s second round.

 FORT DODGE -- It didn’t take Evan Wilson long to get acclimated to the fast pace and unfamiliar terrain of the State Cross Country Meet. Making his state debut Saturday at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course, the Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton sophomore worked his way into the top 10 early and secured a sixth-place medal out of 152 Class 1-A participants. Wilson, who entered the state meet ranked 11th by the Iowa Association of Track Coaches, finished

 FORT DODGE -- In placing ninth at last year’s state meet as a freshman, IKM-Manning’s Payton Sporrer had just one regret: her twin sister, Shyanne, wasn’t competing alongside her. On Saturday, Payton’s second State Cross Country Meet was the complete package. Earning a state medal for the second straight year, Payton Sporrer placed 11th out of 145 Class 1-A girls on a cool afternoon at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course, clocking a five-kilometer

 FORT DODGE -- On a cool, damp afternoon at the State Cross Country Meet, Harlan Community posted some favorable times on the board but was unable to make much noise against the best teams Class 3-A has to offer. Finishing in near-identical fashion as last year, the Cyclone boys placed 13th out of 15 state qualifiers and the girls took 15th Saturday at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course north of Fort Dodge. Led by junior Reagan Hansen’s 34th-place

HARLAN -- When talking about her team’s success throughout much of the fall, Harlan Community volleyball coach Angie Spangenberg often mentioned the fact that her players are still young and inexperienced at the varsity level and continuing to learn the mental side of competition. Now just one win removed from the program’s fifth consecutive state tourney trip and about to play its 40th match of the season, Spangenberg has officially changed h

 HARLAN -- It will go down in the books as one of the most remarkable regular season to postseason turnarounds - good or bad - in the storied history of Harlan Community football. Just 19 days after posting a 59-21 road win over Creston/Orient-Macksburg - a game in which HCHS racked up 607 total yards - the 5th-ranked Cyclones were knocked out of the Class 3-A playoffs, 34-11, by that same Panther team on a blustery Wednesday night at Merrill

 TREYNOR -- Five area cross country runners earned a state meet berth by placing in the top 15 of the Class 1-A State Qualifying Meet at Treynor, held October 22. The list includes four girls qualifiers and one boy who will now compete at the 2015 State Cross Country Meet this Saturday at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course north of Fort Dodge. The 1-A girls race will start at 2:00 p.m.

 REGIONAL -- AHSTW, IKM-Manning and Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton all saw their season come to an end in the first round of the Iowa high school football playoffs Wednesday night.

GLENWOOD -- For the second year in a row, the State Cross Country Meet will be a true co-ed affair for Harlan Community High School. Both Cyclone teams punched their ticket to Fort Dodge with top-three finishes in Thursday’s Class 3-A State Qualifying Meet at Glenwood Lake Park. The HCHS girls placed second and the boys took third - a flip-flop of last year’s SQM results - to mark just the second time in school history that both squads qualifi

 HARLAN -- The Harlan Community football team is back at the top of the mountain in Class 3-A, District 8. One year after missing the playoffs for just the second time in 34 seasons, the sixth-ranked Cyclones are co-district champions and a number-one playoff seed after crushing Adel-DeSoto-Minburn 49-7 in Friday night’s regular-season finale at Merrill Field. HCHS also got a little help from Glenwood when the Rams topped Dallas Center-Grimes,

 HARLAN -- The Harlan Community Cyclones won’t have to look far for a scouting report in preparation for their first-round opponent in the Class 3-A football playoffs. The video from their Week 7 game at Creston/Orient-Macksburg is just two and a half weeks old. The 6th-ranked Cyclones (8-1) will host the Panthers (5-4) at 7:00 p.m.

 AREA -- The AHSTW and Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton football teams will host first-round playoff games Wednesday night while IKM-Manning will open its playoff journey on the road following the release of the Iowa high school playoff pairings late Friday night. AHSTW (6-3) finished the regular season with a dominating 85-0, Week 9 win over West Monona/Whiting on Friday, earning second place in Class 1-A, District 1 with a 4-2 record.

 DENISON -- With an assist or two from Glenwood, the Harlan Community volleyball team is just one win removed from a third consecutive outright championship in the Hawkeye Ten Conference. HCHS improved to 8-1 in league play (32-5 overall) with a 25-12, 25-19, 25-13 sweep at Denison-Schleswig Monday night, maintaining its share of first place with Kuemper Catholic.