Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Sorted by date Results 101 - 125 of 1879
Two rising country stars will headline the Clearwater Rodeo concert, set for June 27. Tyler Braden will headline the 2026 show. Hailing from Slapout, Alabama, Braden is currently based in Nashville, where he performs and writes music. His debut song, "Little Red Wine," brought success. He followed with two EPs, and his hit "Try Losing One," landed at No. 1 on Sirius XM The Highway's Hot 30 Weekend Countdown. In 2024, he launched, "Devil You Know," which has been streamed more than 335 million...
Two familiar faces will assume new responsibilities following a Jan. 8 statutory session of the Holt County Supervisors. 2025 chairman, Bill Tielke, told supervisors he wasn't interested in running for the position since he will not seek re-election. Darrin Paxton will serve as chairman of the supervisors for 2026. "I'm not sure if my feet are different sized than Bill's, but I have some big shoes to fill," Paxton said following the vote by supervisors. Dustin Breiner was appointed to chair the...
A cow owned by Todd Duhacek, of Ewing, was killed on Jan. 2, west of Ewing on US Highway 275. According to the Holt County Sheriff's Department, at approximately 1:40 a.m., a 1997 Dodge pickup, driven by Mason Shaal of Schuyler, was westbound on Hwy 275 when he encountered cattle on the highway and ditch. Dense for was in the area at the time of the accident. Shaal struck a black cow in his lane of travel. No injuries were reported. Several other cows were moved off the highway by neighbors in...
Caydence Schumacher finished with a double-double in a 43-42 Summerland win over Plainview, Jan. 6, at home. Schumacher scored 11 points and nabbed 10 rebounds. Belle Anson and Kanyon Allemang each finished with a dozen points, and senior Jenna Funk led on the boards, pulling down 14 rebounds. The Bobcats trailed by one at the half, but a tough defensive stance, which only allowed four Pirate points in the third quarter, helped seal the win. Statistics v Plainview Isabella Kester: 1s, 2to...
Summerland ended in third place at its Jan. 10 boys wrestling invitational, scoring 109.5 points. Ravenna claimed the team title, with 155 points, while Pender finished second in the 16-team field with 130.5. Ethan Kester took the top spot in the 150 division. He opened by pinning Evan Coufal, Howells-Dodge, in 1:19 and pinned Tyce Coufal, Ravenna, in 1:06. Kester battled Asher Uttecht, of Winside in the championship and finished with a 4-1 win. Jason Shaver finished second in the 215 division....
Doubles come naturally to Ryan Rifer, even his initials repeat. The Summerland senior made the symmetry official Dec. 30 at the Summerland Holiday Tournament, pouring in 36 points while hauling down 14 rebounds to set a school record in the single-game scoring category and tying the rebound record, a performance that doubled up the stat sheet and rewrote the program’s history in a single night. The multi-sport standout said he knew he was closing in on the scoring mark after a “hot first half,...
In addition to the monthly board of education meeting, members will attend a workshop, beginning at 3 p.m., Jan. 14,at the school. A data review and strategic planning will take place during discussion. Committees will also share updates. No votes will take place during the workshop. The regular monthly meeting will start at 7 p.m. Election of officers will take place. Committee assignments will be decided, and official designations, including legal newspapers and banking outlets, will be...
Parents of Bobcat boys' and girls' wrestling teams, as well as senior members of the squads, will be honored Friday, Jan. 9. Summerland will host a meet with Wauneta-Palisade at 7 p.m. On Saturday, Jan. 10, Summerland will host its annual Bobcat boys' wrestling invitational. Competition begins at 10 a.m. The Summerland Girls' Wrestling Invite will take place Monday, Jan. 12, starting at 1 p.m. The youth wrestling invite is slated for Sunday, Jan. 13, at 10 a.m....
We asked readers to complete a survey listing the top articles in SAM during 2025. These are the top five, based on readers' votes. 1. Hometown Hero: Summerland freshman uses SkillsUSA training to save infant's life As an eighth-grade student, Taelyn Nilson learned CPR and won a state title in Job Skills Demonstration at the Nebraska SkillsUSA Middle School Conference. In December 2024, Nilson used those skills to save the life of an infant who was staying in her family's home. January 15, 2025...
Summerland's girls basketball team controlled their destiny, Dec. 30, in the championship tournament. After jumping to a 15-2 lead over Winside, the girls cruised to a 49-38 victory. Winside's defense held Summerland to seven points in the second quarter, narrowing the margin to 22-20 at the half. But the Bobcats roared back in the third quarter, adding 19 points to the cause and finished with eight in the final stanza. Kanyon Allemang led the team with 22 points. Jenna Funk powered her way to...
No first-place medals came with Bobcat wrestlers, Tuesday, at the Newman Grove/St. Edward Holiday Invite. But two second-place awards, one third-place honor, and two fourth-place finishes were recorded by team members. Austin Mendoza claimed the silver medal in the 138 division. He worked his way through the championship bracket, picking up wins over Weston Patefield, Laurel-Concord-Coleridge, by fall, in 1:10; a 16-1 tech fell, in 1:37, over Kody Bartling, Hartington Cedar Catholic, and an...
It took a bonus round for the Bobcats to keep the holiday tournament hardware at home. During four quarters of back-and-forth action, Summerland found itself knotted with Wakefield at 58 at the end of regulation, and relied on tough defense in the overtime period to earn a 71-66 win. Senior Ryan Rifer set two school records in the contest after finishing with a double-double. He ended with 36 points and 14 rebounds. Rifer hit six of 10 three-point shots, connected on two of three free throws and...
One goal for 2026: Read more books. I finished three (gasp!) in 2025. That’s a far cry from the 50 to 60 books I read annually during my teaching years. My reading days began dwindling when I started working at the newspaper in 2013. The upside: I read a lot more newspapers and professional articles related to the media industry. I miss reading. I miss finding myself immersed in setting and characters and plot lines. I miss whodunits and true crime novels, my favorite genre, which began years a...
After trailing Ainsworth by six at the end of the first quarter, the Bobcat girls basketball squad chipped away at the deficit and secured a 53-47 win in the opening round of the Summerland Holiday Tournament on Monday. The difference came in the final quarter, when Summerland applied tough defense and held the visiting Bulldogs to six points. Kanyon Allemang scored a dozen points in Monday's 53-47 win over the Bulldogs in the Summerland Holiday Tournament. Senior Caydence Schumacher finished...
Holt County employees who utilize the county's health insurance plan will see an increase in contribution amounts for single and family coverage beginning Jan. 1. During the Dec. 16 Holt County Supervisors meeting, officials approved increasing single coverage from $25 to $100, while a family plan will now require a $200 contribution, a $150 increase from this year's plan. The last increase in employee contributions occurred in 2006. Supervisors learned in October that insurance premium costs...
To borrow a line from “Seasons of Love” from Rent, “How do measure, measure a year?” The next verse of the song seems pretty accurate for a journalist: “In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee (or tea in my case), in inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife. In 525,600 minutes, how do you measure a year in the life.” In the case of SAM, how do you measure which story or articles written throughout the year were simply the best? Should website page views be the determining...
Eleven Bobcats contributed points in Monday's 66-49 victory over Ainsworth in the first round of the Summerland Holiday Tournament. Ryan Rifer scored 18 points and pulled down seven rebounds to set the pace for the home team. Coach Brett Kaczor may have wondered how his team would respond after finding the game knotted at a dozen at the end of the first quarter. But Kaczor's crew came out shooting, taking control by halftime after adding 20 points. Tough Bobcat defense in the third quarter...
An accident on 508 Avenue, approximately two and one-half miles south of Ewing, on Friday, Jan. 2, has resulted in two fatalities. According to the Holt County Sheriff's Office, Boyd-Holt E911 Dispatch received a call at approximately 9:18 p.m., about an injury accident. Holt County Sheriff's Office personnel responded and determined that an individual driving a 2020 RAM pickup, northbound on 508 Avenue, lost control on the icy curve, left the roadway, and rolled onto its top into a pond. The...
I remember the night by the way the air tasted, sharp with frost, heavy with waiting. My hooves ached from pulling, my breath rose in pale ghosts, and the town called Bethlehem pressed tight with people and noise. Every doorway was full. Every stable already held something warmer than hope. I was tied near the edge of the road, waiting for my owner's return, when I saw them pause. The man walked with the careful steps of someone trying not to show fear. The woman leaned into him, one hand at...
Things are heating up at Old School Thrift Store in Orchard. Village trustees approved adding heat to the area leased by the thrift store during the board's Dec. 8 meeting at the Orchard Community Center. A furnace was installed in early December. Trustees also approved a new policy regarding utility payment return fees. Following discussion, Tyson Schutt made a motion to give customers a courtesy call and seven days to take care of the return. If not paid within seven days, a $35 fee will be...
Aiden McAllister scored 10 points and Ryan Rifer pitched in another 10 in Summerland's 62-49 loss to O'Neill. The teams met Dec. 18 on the Bobcat's home court. Summerland jumped out to a 15-8 lead at the end of the first quarter and extended the margin to 30-21 at the break. But the second half belonged to the Eagles. They pumped in 24 points in the third quarter, while holding the home team to eight points. Statistics v O'Neill Mason Schwager: 8p, 2r, 5a, 4to McAllister: 10p, 4r, 1a, 4s, 2to...
After writing news articles for the past dozen years, it felt good to flex my creative writing skills and create the story on the front page of this week’s edition. When I taught, I spent considerable time fine-tuning my creative writing craft alongside my students. My preferred genre: poetry, although I did begin a young adult novel during that time. Some may think writing is writing. While the process remains the same, creative writing taps a different part of the brain, pulls from d...
A new runner-up plaque will grace the SPS trophy case. Summerland's girls' wrestling team finished second, Friday, at the EPPJ Invite, scoring 133 points. Wayne claimed the top spot in the 23-team tournament. Seven Bobcats earned medals, including Abbey Chipps, 120; Ava Cleveland, 115; Claire Kester, 135; Kyah Bruhn, 190; Abby Arroyo, 140; and Lilly Kester, 130. Chipps struck gold by working her way through the championship bracket with a wins by fall, in :28, over Tae Settje, Laurel-Concord-Col...
Austin Mendoza and Ethan Kester led Bobcat wrestlers, Saturday, at the EPPJ Invite. Mendoza took top honors in the 138 class, while Kester dominated the 150 division. Other medalists included Stacy Snodgrass, 126; Trenton Mendoza, 113; and Isaac Mendoza, 144. Overall, the Bobcats scored 78.5 points and placed fourth in the field of 15 teams. Plainview won the meet, followed by Pender and Twin River. Mendoza won a quarterfinal match over Bobby Chism, Wauneta-Palisade, by tech fall in 1:26. In...
Heartbroken. Almost 24 hours have passed since Husker volleyball’s season ended a week earlier than hoped for. I still feel the sting today, especially for the players and coaches who dedicate their time and talents to our state’s cherished treasure. On any given day, an undefeated team may lose. The loss hurts -- it requires peeking into windows dotted with unanswered questions -- but it does not diminish the spark and grit we fans have witnessed throughout the season. I’ve listened to comme...
