THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 13:
Volleyball:  Brookings @ Huron
   Sioux Falls Roosevelt @ Sioux Falls O’Gorman
   Clark/Willow Lake @ Milbank
   Deuel @ Sisseton
   Florence/Henry @ Waverly-South Shore
   Redfield/Doland @ Hamlin
   Arlington @ Elkton-Lake Benton
   Flandreau @ Chester
   Madison @ Beresford
   Freeman Academy @ Baltic
   Tri-Valley @ Dell Rapids
   West Central @ Garretson
   Harrisburg @ Sioux Falls Christian
   DeSmet @ Estelline
   Castlewood @ Colman-Egan
   Great Plains Lutheran @ Summit
   Dells St. Mary’s @ Lake Preston
   Canistota @ Howard   

Tennis:   Brookings, Sioux Falls Washington @ Sioux Falls Lincoln, 2:00pm

Cross Country:  Clark/Willow Lake @ Aberdeen Roncalli
   Dell Rapids, Garretson, Madison, McCook Central/Montrose, Tri-Valley, West Central @ Sioux
    Falls Christian Invitational, 3:30pm

Softball:  Mitchell @ Brookings, 6:00pm

Hockey:  Brookings Blizzard vs. Springfield @ Blaine, MN, 8:00pm

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 14:
Football:  Brookings @ Pierre (Live on KCountry 102 @ 6:30)
   Aberdeen Central @ Yankton
   Mitchell @ Brandon Valley
   Harrisburg @ Huron
   Sioux Falls Roosevelt @ Watertown 
   Rapid City Central @ Sioux Falls Lincoln
   Sioux Falls Washington @ Sturgis
   Sioux Falls O’Gorman @ Rapid City Stevens
   Elkton-Lake Benton @ Deubrook (Live on B93.7 @ 6:30)
   Britton-Hecla @ Aberdeen Roncalli
   Lake Preston @ Arlington
   Irene-Wakonda @ Baltic
   Hanson @ Canistota
   Estelline @ Colman-Egan
   Castlewood @ DeSmet/Iroquois
   Madison @ Dell Rapids
   Oldham-Ramona/Rutland @ Dells St. Mary’s
   Tri-Valley @ Flandreau
   Clark/Willow Lake @ Florence/Henry
   Chester @ Freeman
   Groton @ Milbank
   Deuel @ Redfield/Doland
   West Central @ Sisseton
   Hamlin @ Waverly-South Shore
   Sioux Valley @ Webster
   Great Plains Lutheran @ Wilmot

Soccer:   Iowa State @ South Dakota State, 6:00pm

Cross Country:  SDSU Classic, Edgebrook, 6:15pm

Volleyball:  Nebraska-Omaha @ South Dakota State, 7:00pm

Tennis:   SDSU men @ Bradley Invitational

Golf:   Brookings @ Mitchell Invitational, 9:00am

Hockey:  Brookings Blizzard vs. Soo @ Blaine, MN, 8:00pm

BLIZZARD HOCKEY…The Brookings Blizzard opened their season with a 4-2 victory over the Johnstown Tomahawks at the NAHL Showcase in Blaine, MN.
   Brookings outshot Johnstown 13-11 in the first period and took a 1-0 lead with five minutes left. Craig Lindegard pounced on a loose puck in the crease and banged it home. Casey Purper and Grant Eichstadt got assists.
   The Tomahawks tied it at one three minutes into the second on a two on one with Jordan Watt capitalizing on the receiving end. The rest of the second period was dominated by Johnstown but the Blizzard changed the momentum in the final two minutes. After Grant Eichstadt took a double minor and a game misconduct, Brandon Parker and Thomas Williams broke off a pretty two on one with Parker sending a saucer pass to a wide open Williams who buried it from in front of the net.
   Up 2-1 to start the third Brookings top line struck twice in the first three minutes. Justin Moody and Nick Decenzo both scored on assists from Williams to make it 4-1. Johnstown scored late but it wasn’t enough as the Blizzard begins the season 1-0. Drew Weigman stopped 29 of 31 shots.

FREEMAN XC…Results of Wednesday’s Freeman Invitational cross country meet:
   BOYS:  Parker 7, Freeman Academy 13, McCrossan 27, Bon Homme 32, Dell Rapids St. Mary 36, Centerville 46, Mitchell Christian 53, Chester Area 66.  Champion: Duane Jongeling, Parker 17:26. 15, Mitch Roemen, Dell Rapids SM 19:36.
   GIRLS: Gayville-Volin 11, Bon Homme 20, Canistota 28, Mitchell Christian 39, Irene-Wakonda 51, Viborg-Hurley 52, Hanson 57, Scotland 59, Parker 76, Centerville 84.  Champion: Geneieve Clark, Gayville-Volin 15:02. 12, Anna Wolles, Dell Rapids SM 16:57.

DWU, FITTS GOLF… The Dakota Wesleyan University women’s golf team started its season with a first-place finish at the first Great Plains Athletic Conference qualifier at Orange City, Iowa.
   The Tigers shot a 352 to beat out host-school Northwestern College by two strokes. Morningside College was a distant third with a 382. Dakota Wesleyan has won the conference title in each of the past four seasons and has also won nine of the last 10 GPAC team titles.
   Individually, freshman Lauren Fitts of Brookings started her college golf career with a win to help lead DWU to the title. Fitts tied for first with Northwestern’s Emma Wynja. Both golfers shot a 41 on the front nine and a 42 on the back to finish with a total of 83.

LAKE PRESTON VB…First round pairings are set for Saturday’s Lake Preston Invitational volleyball tournament.
   Play starts at 9:00am with Lake Preston against Webster, and DeSmet against Flandreau.  At ten, Dell Rapids meets Arlington, with Sioux Valley against Estelline. 
   The double-elimination tourney wraps up Saturday afternoon.  All matches will be best two-out-of-three, with all games played to 25 points.

CASTLE HONOR…South Dakota State’s Will Castle was named the Missouri Valley Football Conference Lineman of the Week.
   Castle was the highest-graded Jackrabbit offensive lineman in a 31-14 victory over Southeastern Louisiana . Castle helped clear the way for a 305-yard team rushing performance — the highest in a game by the Jackrabbits since 2007. He played in 68 of the team's 74 offensive plays, earning a team championship grade of 1.84.

BOECK AWARD… Arlington High School volleyball coach Anita Boeck has been selected as the 2012 recipient of the Ralph Ginn Award for Coaching Excellence, presented annually by the South Dakota State University athletic department.
   A 1988 SDSU graduate, Boeck has led Arlington to more than 500 victories in her 20-plus years of coaching. The Cardinals won the Class B state tournament title in 2010, while earning runner-up finishes five times, including in 2011. In 2009, Boeck was honored as Co-National High School Coach of the Year by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
   Boeck will be honored October 13th, when the five newest inductees into the Jackrabbit Athletic Hall of Fame will be recognized.

SDSU SOFTBALL…South Dakota State head softball coach Kim Aggabao is starting the Jacks Hitting Academy, where softball players can work closely with the SDSU coaching staff to develop sound hitting mechanics and a solid mental approach at the plate.
   Players learn skills to help them hit for power and average, and get an introduction to the short game. Participants utilize the same drills and techniques as the Jackrabbit softball team.
   The academy is open to all prospects in grades five through eight – sessions will be held in the Intramural Building.  The first session will be held October 23rd.
   For more information, contact the SDSU softball coaching staff.

USD WBB SCHEDULE…New USD women’s basketball coach Amy Williams has completed her schedule for the upcoming season.
   Highlighting the schedule — that opens Nov. 9 at Cleveland State — are six post-season tournament teams, including NCAA qualifiers Creighton (Nov. 20) and Idaho State (Nov. 29) at home.
   The Coyotes will also play NCAA qualifier Kansas State (Dec. 9), WNIT entrants Drake (Nov. 11) and Utah State (Dec. 20), and WBI runner-up Northern Iowa (Nov. 15).
   USD will also play a Thanksgiving holiday weekend tournament at Pepperdine (Calif.) on Nov. 23-24, along with Seton Hall and Wyoming.

NDSU SENTENCE… The most valuable player in last year's Football Championship Subdivision title game has been fined $325 and sentenced to 40 hours of community service for an alcohol offense over the summer.
   North Dakota State linebacker Travis Beck pleaded guilty Tuesday to underage drinking in late July. Defense attorney Bruce Quick says prosecutors in return dropped a charge of resisting a police officer.
   Quick says the 20-year-old Beck also will attend an educational program offered to minors charged with consuming alcohol. He calls it "a standard sentence."
   The sophomore was named MVP in NDSU's 17-6 win over Sam Houston State in the FCS title game last January.

MONTANA AD… The University of Montana has promoted associate athletic director Kent Haslam to the position of athletic director.
   UM President Royce Engstrom says Haslam will begin his duties on Monday.
   Haslam takes over for Jim O'Day, who was relieved of his duties in late March as two football players faced allegations of sexual assault. One has since pleaded guilty.
   Haslam says he plans to operate a department that is "anchored in integrity and focused on academic success, athletic excellence and community service."
   Haslam has served as associate athletic director for development since January 2006, splitting his duties between athletics and the UM Foundation. Before that, he worked six years as associate athletic director for external operations at Northern Arizona.

SPECIAL GOOSE SEASON… South Dakota goose hunters have two additional opportunities to consider as part of their September Early Canada Goose hunting season.
   The Sportsmen Against Hunger program is able to offer an incentive through cooperating meat processors in South Dakota to process Canada geese harvested during the early season, which runs through Sept. 30. Geese may be taken to cooperators and processed at no fee for geese contributed to Sportsmen Against Hunger for distribution to the needy.
   About 4,000 Canada geese were donated through the program during the August Management Take season.
   In addition, the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Department invites hunters to introduce family members, friends or neighbors to goose hunting and have an opportunity to win prizes.  The "(re)Introduce The Sport" giveaway provides a great opportunity to take a new hunter or help a former waterfowl hunter re-connect with the sport.
   Hunters may enter once for every new hunter they take hunting during the Early Canada Goose season. A new hunter is defined as someone who did not possess a South Dakota migratory bird certification in 2011. Prizes include a Benelli Vinci 3-inch shotgun, a dozen full-body Dakota Field goose decoys, and a dozen Dakota Field shell goose decoys.