Sports

A triple dose of good news for Spencer came from the Riverview Tennis Courts Monday. The accomplishments by the Tigers included: • Tigers boys tennis team edged Storm Lake, 23-21, and earned a IHSAA Team Substate spot with Storm Lake and Le Mars. • The Spencer doubles duo of Charlie Steele and Sam Feldmann qualified for the state tournament by finishing second...

ORANGE CITY — The talent of Spencer girls’ track and field team may have added to the feeling Korver Field at Northwestern College was a home away from Dale Norton Field. Spencer will be well-represented at Drake University, each hoping to make their own statement at the IHSAA-IGSHSAU Class 3A State Meet next Thursday through Saturday...

ESTHERVILLE — The Spencer girls’ golf squad continues to grow as an area contender. Spencer followed the home tournament championship with a victorious day at the Lakes Conference Meet, winning by 11 strokes over Spirit Lake at Estherville Golf Course Tuesday...

ORANGE CITY — Spencer junior Taron Green led the way for the boys efforts at the Class 3A State Qualifying Meet at Northwestern College’s Korver Field Thursday. Green was victorious in the 100- and 200-meter dashes to earn spots at the IHSAA-IGSHSAU state meet next Thursday through Saturday at Drake University in Des Moines...

STORM LAKE — Years from now, Spencer boys soccer players will recall a special Thursday night in Storm Lake. They will give details about their Spencer’s team’s 13th win in 17 matches, guided by veteran leadership but how “the kids” also came through...

Spencer and Spirit Lake boys golf teams have been battling all spring, in duals, at tournaments and at Tigers’ boys golf sectional Thursday at Spencer Golf & Country Club. Spirit Lake won the sectional clash by the narrowest of margins, 321-323. The two area powerhouses and MOC-FV will advance to district play at MOC-FV’s home course, Landsmeer Country Club in Orange City, May 20. Next week’s hosts advanced due to the Tigers’ second placement at their home course...

SIOUX RAPIDS — The Sioux Central girls track and field team reigned at the Rebels’ home meet, which served as a warmup for state qualifiers. The Sioux Central girls beat Pocahontas Area by 39 points to win the championship Monday. Sioux Central’s boys, meanwhile, finished fourth of eight teams...

MILFORD — The Sioux Central boys golf team’s season came to a close Thursday at the Class 2A Okoboji Sectional at Emerald Hills Golf Course. The Rebels finished fifth of eight teams. “The season did not quite end as we wanted it to,” Sioux Central coach Chris Wildeman said. “We could have golfed better in the sectional meet but that does not take away from the great year we had.”...

Girls race to the finish line during the 100-meter dash at the Spencer Middle School Little Tiger Relays Thursday at Dale Norton Field. “There were more than 300 fifth and sixth graders from Spencer Community Schools, Sacred Heart Catholic School and Iowa Great Lakes Lutheran School,” organizer Matt Stevenson said. ...

BOONE — The Iowa Lakes Community College softball team advanced to the Region XI championship game against host Des Moines Area Community College but the season came to an end with a 4-3, 10-inning loss to the Bears on Sunday. The Lakers had defeated Northeast 11-2 in six innings to earn a chance to face the Bears Sunday afternoon. ...

The Tigers boys soccer team made two road trips productive with three victories, increasing their record to 12-4. After winning two of three matches at the Waverly Tournament, Spencer’s boys soccer team earned a 2-0 win at MOC-FV Monday.

EMMETSBURG — Spencer’s girls track and field team concluded the regular season with a solid effort at an area meet in Emmetsburg. The Tigers finished first with 180 points, followed by Emmetsburg, Cherokee and Estherville Lincoln Central. “We had some really good performances in some races that we are planning to run at state qualifying,” Spencer coach Alan Pierce said...

The Iowa High School Athletic Association and Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union announced revised regulations for the state track meets next Thursday through Saturday. “We got direction from the IHSAA and IGHSAU that all qualifying athletes will receive two tickets for family,” Spencer Activities Director Taylor Chapman said. ...

“It’s the biggest meet of the year,” Spencer’s two head track and field coaches, Kurt Bauermeister and Alan Pierce, said. Spencer boys and girls track and field teams will battle six other Class 3A teams Thursday for qualifying spots at the May 20-22 IHSAA/IGHSAU State Meet. The State Qualifying Meet begins at 4 p.m. at Northwestern College in Orange City...

ESTHERVILLE — Estherville Lincoln Central held off an effort by Spencer and posted a close 5-4 Lakes Conference victory Monday. ELC won two of three doubles matches and four of six singles battles. “We started slow,” Spencer coach Bob Schlaeger said. “We need to work on court awareness and some basic skills.”...

It's as predictable as May flowers — from border to border, the Wildlife Baby Season has arrived in Iowa. From now until at least mid-June, Department of Natural Resources field offices across the state will be inundated with hundreds of phone calls and scores of deliveries regarding "orphaned wildlife."...

Anglers simply love crappie and big crappie. Fish over 14 inches are simply a special fish. In all our travels, we encounter a lot of different fish and truthfully … we love them all. Every fish has a fan, and we never met a fish we didn’t like, but if there is one fish that just seems to create an infatuated obsession across the Midwest, that fish might be a big slab crappie...

Through my 40-plus years of working in the fishing industry as a fishing writer, fishing guide, fishing instructor, tournament angler, seminar speaker, radio and television show host, I’ve had the good fortune to fish and hang out with some very memorable people. Some were well known, some not so much. Almost all were wonderful people. It’s my privilege to share some of those memories here on Reel-Times...

This year’s walleye opener on the Iowa Great Lakes was a record-breaker with 2,246 anglers registered from a total of 20 states. Although none of the tagged walleyes were caught, there was still a lot of action for a wide range of game fish. Listed below are the winners in each of the categories:

Iowa boat owners can help to protect the environment by following five simple tips all summer long: 1. Take time to prepare your boat’s shrink wrap for recycling by removing vents, strapping or zippers. Only the plastic film can be recycled. Many shrink wrap recycling programs today are offered at the local level, so if your marina does not recycle, ask your county government. Some boaters have found that by carefully removing the wrap it can be reused for a second season...

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources’ spring fish spawning season is over and Iowa’s cool water fish hatcheries at Fairport, Rathbun and Spirit Lake are filled to capacity. “Our goal was to collect 1,858 quarts of walleye eggs to produce 149.9 million walleye fry that we can stock in Iowa lakes or raise to a larger size in hatcheries before being released,” said Jay Rudacille, DNR warm and cool water fish culture supervisor...

Each year, especially during late winter, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources receives reports of sick or dead birds at feeder locations, particularly in the southern part of the state. Unsanitary conditions at bird feeders can lead to the spread of several diseases amongst birds that frequent these feeders...

Since the 1980s, I’ve done lots of fishing seminars at sport shows and for outdoor clubs and fishing tackle retailers. It’s been way over a year since I did my last fishing seminar. Gatherings like those got shut down in early 2020 and haven’t really started up again yet. I have fond memories of those seminars...