Mount Ayr Community’s Raiderettes raced to a huge first half lead and defeated East Union 70-46 in Afton Tuesday, Dec. 22.

The win keeps the Raiderettes in a first place tie with Martensdale-St. Marys in the Pride of Iowa with identical 5-0 records.  Mount Ayr Community heads into the Christmas break with an impressive 9-0 mark for the season.

Bailey Myer hit a “three” to get the Raiderettes off to a quick start.  The Raiderettes’ press caused several turnovers creating open lay-ups for Mount Ayr Community as they posted a 23-10 first quarter lead.   

Bailey Myer tallied 14 points in the first half and Tiffany Wimer and Jensen Stewart nine each as the Raiderettes continued to roll in the second quarter.  The Raiderettes increased the lead to 47-20 after 16 minutes.

Tiffany Wimer and Claire Andresen scored inside and Becca Pennington converted some steals into easy points as the lead grew 59-26 midway through the third quarter.  The Raiderettes led 63-32 at the completion of three periods.  Coach Streit played reserves most of the final quarter as the Eagles outscored Mount Ayr Community  14-7 in the final period making the final 70-46 in favor of the Raiderettes.  

“Our press really bothered them as we recorded 30 steals tonight,” said coach Thad Streit.  “We did a great job finding the open girl,  especially in the opening half.”

Bailey Myer was successful three times from beyond the arc on her way to a game high 16 points.  Becca Pennington and Tiffany Wimer each added 15 points for Mount Ayr Community.  

Mariah Kruse paced the Eagle attack with 13 points.  

The Raiderettes hit 45 percent of their field goals and 68 percent from the free throw line against East Union.  The Eagles hit 49 percent from the floor, but only 25 percent of their 12 free throws.  

Bailey Myer led the Raiderettes in steals with eight and Jensen Stewart dished out seven assists to compliment  her nine points.  Stewart and Becca Pennington both had two blocks against the Eagles.  Claire Andresen led the rebounding corps with 10 boards on Tuesday.  

Next action

The Raiderettes will be off until a home date with POI rival Corning on January 5 in Mount Ayr.

  Mount Ayr Community’s Raider basketball team picked up a much needed win by downing East Union  70-69 in overtime on the Eagle’s home floor on Tuesday, Dec. 22.  

“We really needed to get a victory in a close game to help our confidence,” said coach Bret Ruggles.  “We made some defensive mistakes, but the guys worked through them and got a great victory.”  The Raiders evened their season mark at 4-4 and raised their POI conference mark to 2-3.  

East Union opened the game by getting an early lead at 4-0.  Braydee Poore scored six points, but the home team maintained their four-point lead at the end of the period by a score of 17-13.  

Christian Overholtzer hit six points in the second quarter for the Raiders and Jacob Still added three as Mount Ayr Community scored 26 points in the opening half.  East Union got points from Tyler Mason, Josh Christiansen and Brandon Decker posting a 31-26 half-time lead. 

Zach Brown  scored four points inside and the Eagles built a 42-34 lead at the four minute mark in the third quarter.  Colton Bolles scored six points late in the period, cutting the lead to 47-43 heading into the fourth quarter.  

Matt Sobotka scored the first five points in the fourth period for the Raiders and baskets by David Showalter helped Mount Ayr Community take the lead at 52-50.  Colton Bolles scored twice and the Raiders had a 56-50 advantage with two minutes left in regulation.  

The Raiders turned the ball over and Zach Peterson hit eight points and the fourth period ended with the score tied at 58-58.  

Matt Sobotka scored to open the overtime and then stole the ball and scored again for Mount Ayr Community.  Jake Glendenning scored five points and it looked like the Raiders were ready to salt away the win as they led 67-60 with two minutes left in overtime.  

Turnovers and defensive lapses cost the Raiders as Zach Brown, Zach Peterson and Tyler Mason brought the Eagles back into contention.  Zach Peterson hit a two pointer with 38 seconds left giving the home team a 69-68 lead.  The Raiders worked for an open shot which was taken by Christian Overholtzer with six seconds left.  The ball came off the rim into the hands of Matt Sobotka, who sank the winning shot from  six feet  right of the basket with 2.6  seconds left.  

The Eagles’ desperation 60- foot shot was off the mark and the Raiders had a 70-69 win.

Three Raiders made double figures, led by Matt Sobotka and Colton Bolles had a double-double with his 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Bolles and Braydee Poore had three blocks each to lead the team, Matt Sobotka led the team in steals with five and Daniel Showalter’s seven assists topped the squad.

Next action 

The Raiders return to action on January 5 against  the Corning Red Raiders  in Mount Ayr.

 There may not be the numbers to win all their duals but there are the horses to win their first ever Pride of Iowa conference championship.

That’s what the Mount Ayr Community Raiders proved in their golden anniversary season action this past week.

The Raiders went 2-1 in a dual meet with East Union/Murray, Nodaway Valley and Van Meter Thursday, Dec. 17, then brought home the title of the Pride of Iowa conference meet in Greenfield Saturday by a two-point margin after medaling eight of nine wrestlers and bringing home three conference titles.

The Raiders are now 4-2 for the season in dual action after this week’s dual competition.

Along the way this week, two Raiders picked up their 100th career wins. Weston Pierschbacher and Dylan Lame both reached the century mark in wins for their careers.

Pride of Iowa conference champs

Lots of bonus points in the last round of competition gave the Mount Ayr Community Raiders the Pride of Iowa conference wrestling title by two points over Bedford/Lenox  in a close race for the loop crown in Greenfield Saturday.

Pins by Michael Camacho, Cade Lambson and Dylan Lame in the finals, a consolation final fall by Weston Pierschbacher and a major decision by 189-pounder Bradley Love for third place overcame a 7.5 point deficit the Raiders had going into the final round.

The conference title was the first ever since the Pride of Iowa conference has been in existence. The  last conference title for the Raiders before the conference reorganization came in 1984-85, so this really was a golden moment in the golden anniversary season of wrestling in Mount Ayr.

“I really wasn’t sure where we were in terms of the team points when the meet was done, but it was a thrill for us to capture the conference crown with the help of eight of our nine wrestlers earning a medal,” coach Eric Ehlen said.

Team totals for the conference included:

1. Mount Ayr Community, 149; 2. Bedford/Lenox, 147; 3. Martensdale-St. Mary’s, 142; 4. Corning, 131; 5. Nodaway Valley, 130; 6. Interstate 35, 128.5; 7. Pleasantville, 84; 8. Southeast Warren, 81; 9. Wayne, 65; 10. Central Decatur, 38.5; 11. East Union/Murray, 35.

Joining Raiders Michael Camacho, Cade Lambson and Dylan Lame as conference champions were:

103 -- Christian Nook, Bedford/Lenox; 112 -- Kole Stapes, Interstate 35; 119 -- Michael Camacho, Mount Ayr Community; 125 -- Jordan Johnson, Interstate 35; 130 - David Walker, Martensdale-St. Mary’s; 135 -- Kleby Baier, Nodaway Valley; 140 -- Tasker Phillips, Pleasantville; 145 -- Carl Davis, Southeast Warren; 152 --  Cody Schurman, Southeast Warren; 160 -- Evan Mitchell, Southeast Warren; 171 -- Dillion Coates, Martensdale-St. Mary’s; 189 -- Joey Shires, Corning; 215 -- Cade Lambson, Mount Ayr Community; 285 -- Dylan Lame, Mount Ayr Community.

In taking his title at 119 pounds, Michael Camacho remained undefeated by going 3-0 for the day. Camacho pinned Zach Hutton of Interstate 35 in 2:30, won a 13-4 major decision over Taylor Brammer of Central Decatur, then pinned Taylor Hagen of Martensdale-St. Mary’s in 5:38 in the final. The final was quite a match with Camacho falling behind 6-3 in the first period, then coming back to take a 10-8 lead at the end of two periods. Camcacho was up 15-10 before sticking the fall.

Cade Lambson pinned his way to the title at 215 pounds.  He had a first round bye, then pinned Riley Shea of Central Decatur in 1:10. That put him in the final against Eric Hensley of Bedford/Lenox. Lambson was able to get the fall in 2:48.

Dylan Lame took the same route to the 285-pound title, but did the pinning a little faster. He won by fall in :26 over James Phillips of Martensdale-St. Mary’s in the first round, then pinned Clint Marshall of Bedford/Lenox in :27 in the second round. That put him in the finals against Phil Lumley of Pleasantville. Lame pinned Lumley in 1:22 to take the title.

The Raiders also had Jordan Clymer make the finals at 112 pounds. Clymer had a first round bye, then pinned Alex Mitchell of Nodaway Valley in 5:12 to make the finals. He faced Kole Stapes from Interstate 35 in the finals, falling by pin in 1:59 to take second place.

There were four Raiders who made the consolation finals in the loop meet.

At 130 pounds, Weston PIerschbacher won a close back and fourth match over Jake Winkler of Corning 14-12 in the first round. He then faced Austin Christensen of Bedford/Lenox in the second round, and was pinned in 1:58. He then pinned Brian Spurling of Interstate 35 in 3:58 in his first consolation match. That put him back against Jake Winkler of Corning in the battle for third place, and Pierschbacher pinned Winkler in 1:28 this time around.

At 189 pounds, Bradley Love opened with a 10-4 decision over Kevin Hebl of Wayne. That put him against Ethan Calvert of Interstate 35, where he lost a 9-1 decision. In the first consolation match, he pinned Pat Brown of Southeast Warren in :43. In the match for third place he was up against Kevin Hebl of Wayne again and this time Love took a 13-2 major decision win.

At 125 pounds, Shane Swank lost to David DeLong of Martensdale-St. Mary’s by fall in 4:34 in the first round. Swank was trailing 12-11 at the time of the pin. He then went up against Michael Romanco of Pleasantville and won a 4-1 decision. That put him matched up against David Delong again in the consolation finals. DeLong was able to pin Swank in 4:48 in the finals after Swank had battled to trail just 10-8 heading into the final period. This gave Swank a fourth place finish.

Drake Schafer won his opening match at 160 pounds with a 9-4 decision over Ethan Jones of Interstate 35. He then lost a close 4-0 decision to eventual champion Evan Mitchell. In his first consolation match, he pinned T. J. Foster of Martensdale-St. Mary’s in 3:06. He then went up against Cody Morris of Bedford/Lenox, losing a close 4-1 decision to take fourth place.

The ninth wrestler for the Raiders was Zane Sickels at 140 pounds. Sickels was pinned by Sean Bennett of Bedford/Lenox in 3:18 in the opening round and then pinned  by Cory Hestness of Wayne in :46 in the first consolation round. In the match for fifth place, Sickels was pinned in 2:21 by Tyler Henniger to take sixth. 

Next action

The wrestlers get back into action after the Christmas holidays with a dual against Atlantic, Bedford-Lenox and Central Decatur in Leon Thursday, Jan. 7.

 All nine wrestlers placing fifth or better.

Two-thirds of the wrestlers in the finals.

One-third of finalists becoming champions. 

And a second place team finish in an 11-team field.

The statistics look pretty good for the Mount Ayr Community Raiders in their efforts at the Central Decatur Invitational wrestling tournament held Friday, Dec. 11.

“I was pleased with the way we wrestled to do so well with our nine wrestlers,” coach Eric Ehlen noted. “Creston just had more wrestlers and got 11 of them to the finals.”

Of the nine Raider wrestlers going to the tournament, six made the finals and 119-pounder Michael Camacho, 125-pounder Wes Pierschbacher and 215 pounder Cade Lambson brought home titles from the meet, where the Raiders finished second to Creston.

Team scoring for the tournament included:

1. Creston, 219.5; 2. Mount Ayr Community, 164.5; 3. Prairie City-Monroe, 154.5; 4. Chariton, 128; 5. Pleasantville, 110; 6. Davis County, 88; 7. Red Oak, 83.5; 9. Central Decatur, 67.5; 9. Wayne, 64; 10. Albia, 61; 11. Van Meter, 54.

The Raiders ended tied with Creston for having the most champions of any school in the meet with three.

Also making the finals for the Raiders were Drake Schafer at 160 pounds, Bradley Love at 189 pounds and Dylan Lame in his first outing at heavyweight.

The road through the tournament for Michael Camacho began with a 10-1 victory over Bryce Wagnall of Prairie City-Monroe. Camacho scored six of the points in the second period and added takedowns in the first and last periods for the victory. In the second round he went up against Taylor Brammer of Central Decatur, and took a 6-0 victory, with two takedowns and a reversal. That put him in the championship against David Thompson of Creston. Camacho took a 5-0 victory in the finals, using a reversal and three near-fall points in the second period to earn the decision.

Weston Pierschbacher opened his championship run with a 2:26 fall over Brandon Hatfield of Central Decatur with a takedown to a quick pin in the second period. In his second round match, Pierschbacher faced Ryley Williams of Chariton. Pierschbacker was up 3-2 in the second period when he stuck Williams with the fall in 3:34. Keeping his fall streak alive, Pierschbacher ended his match with Matt Prill of Pleasantvile in 1:44 in the championship match after already leading 8-2.

Cade Lambson had another great outing in his first wrestling at 215 pounds so far this season. In his opening match he pinned Marcus Benton of Van Meter in 1:29 after taking him to the mat early. Lambson then faced Dustin Moore of Prairie City-Monroe in the second round and gained an 8-5 decision. The match was tied 5-5 in the third period when Lambson was able to score an escape and a takedown in the late going to take the win. That put him in the championship match against Collin Bevins of Creston. Lambson went ahead with a takedown and two near-fall points in the first period but Bevins scored a reversal and near fall in the second period to take the lead 5-4. Lambson’s reversal in the final period game him the match and the title.

Drake Schafer made it to the finals in the 160-pound class by winning a 3-0 decision over Jacob Donaldson of Pleasantville in his first match. He used an escape and takedown in the second period to earn all his points. He advanced through the second round with a win by fall in 3:19 over Dannon Landpheir of Prairie City-Monroe.Landphier was leading 4-2 before Schafer was able to stick the pin. In the finals he faced  Dylan Nelson of Davis County and lost by a fall in 1:12 to take second.

Bradley Love’s first step toward the finals was a quick two second fall over Jacob Briant of Van Meter. He then went up against Kevin Hebl of Wayne and won by technical fall 17-2 in 4:21. Love had take downs and back points in the first and second periods and added a pair of takedowns in the third period to move the score past the 15-point margin. That moved Love to the finals to face Jared Bevins of Creston. Bevins had a 4-2 lead before scoring a fall in 2:37 to give Love second place.

In his first action of the season, heavyweight Dylan Lame also made it to the finals. Lame won by fall over Dixon Nelson of Red Oak in 16 seconds in his first match. He faced Jake Tool of Prairie City-Monroe in his second match and added another quick fall in 21 seconds. That put him in the finals against Ryan Maitlen of Creston. Lame scored an escape in the second period to take a 1-0 lead but Maitlen tied up the score with an escape in the third period. Lame got a reverals but Maitlen had a takedown, reversal and penalty point to take the match on a 6-3 decision to give Lame a second place finish.

Also wrestling for the Raiders Friday night were third place Shane Swank at 130 pounds, fourth place Jordan Clymer at 112 pounds and fifth place Jesse Penick at 140 pounds.

At 130 pounds, Shane Swank got a quick fall in 2:33 over Dylan Brandon of Albia in the first round. He then was pinned in 2:24 by eventual champion Dustin Harberts of Chariton in the semifinal round. He next faced Dakota Schutter of Davis County in the consolation semifinals, winning by injury default in 2:24. That put him in the consolation finals against Dylan Brandon of Albia, who he had faced in the first round in the battle for third place. Swank was again able to get a fall, this time in 2:21, 12 seconds faster, to finish third.

Clymer opened the tournament with a quick fall in 1:01 over Jacob Johnston of Creston. That put Clymer in the semifinals against T. J. Love of Chariton. Love led all the way to a 13-4 decision that put Clymer in the consolation bracket. There Clymer won a 12-6 decision over Geoff Sellars of Red Oak. That put Clymer back in the consolation finals against Jacob Johnston of Creston, who he had defeated in the opening round. Clymer went out to a 5-0 lead in the first period, but Johnston closed the gap to 5-4 in the second period, then had a reversal in the third period that led to a fall over Clymer in 5:25. This gave Clymer a fourth place finish.

Jesse Penick opened his action at 140 pounds by losing to Zach Waddell of Prairie City-Monroe by fall in 1:36. In the consolation quarterfinals, he pinned Scott Morrett of Chariton in 1:45. He then was pinned by Cory Hestness of Wayne in 1:56. In the battle for fifth place, he went back up against Zach Waddell of Prairie City-Monroe, who had pinned him in the first round. This time Penick took the upper hand with a 15-11 decision. After surviving a near fall in the second period, Penick took Waddell down four times in the final period to pull away to the win in the match for fifth place.

Next action

The Raiders are scheduled to travel to East Union tonight (Thursday) to take on East Union and Nodaway Valley in dual match action. They go to the Pride of Iowa conference tournament Saturday, Dec. 19, at Greenfield beginning at 10 a.m. 

 Raiderettes won again while Raiders lost when the Mount Ayr Comnmunity bowling teams took on Central Decatur in action at Lucky Lanes in Mount Ayr Monday, Dec. 7.

The girls are now 2-0 for the season while the boys are 0-2 after the first two matches of the season.

In the recent action, the Raiderettes rolled a 1,824 to Central Decatur’s 1,522 in girls varsity action. The Central Decatur boys squad defeated the Raiders 2,007-1,997.

The junior varsity boys lost their  two-game match 926-843 while the junior varsity girls played against each other.

Raiderettes add victory

The Raiderettes won by over 300 pins in their match with Central Decatur.

“The girls made a big improvement over their first meet,” coach Mike Zarr said. “We still need to work on our spare game and make sure we hit our marks. If we can improve and get by Nodaway Valley in our next meet, we will be in the driver’s seat for conference champions.”

Cyndi Brand led the team in pins in the first round, bowling games of 137 and 135 for a 272. Central Decatur was led by Mara Wengayn’s 295.

The Raiderettes led 1,203 to 1,003 after the first two games that make up the first round. In the Baker rotation round, they outbowled the Central Decatur girls 621-529.

Scoring for MAC included:

Cyndi Brand, 137-135, 272; Cacey Wilson, 117-124, 241; Shannon Fox, 90-148, 238; Luria Staats, 134-101, 235; Johnnie Veatch, 92-148, 238; Hannah Blanton, 79-75, 154.

In the Baker rotation, Central Decatur won the first two games 111-110 and 117-92 but the Raiderettes came back and won the third game 170-109, the fourth 150-99 and the fifth 109-83.

Raiders lose to CD

The Raiders lost by 10 pins to Central Decatur at the meet.

“The boys made a great run in the last Baker game but came up one mark short,” coach Zarr said.
“They have made both of our meets close, but still have not got the win yet. We still need to work on our spare shots and be consistent on our releases to get that win.”

The Raiders were behind 1,301-1,280 after the first round games but made up some of those pins in the Baker rotation round, where the Raiders came out ahead 717-706.

Ian Abarr led the Raiders in the early rounds with games of 155 and 116 for a 271 total. Central Decatur’s highest score was a 298 on games of 134 and 162 from Matt Motherhead.

Scoring for MAC included:

Ian Abarr, 155-116, 271; Dustin Pritchett, 146-122, 267; Hunter Brown, 118-136, 254; Ethan Pollock, 122-126, 248; Levi Stark, 130-110, 240; Jon Zollman, 109-76, 185.

In the Baker rotation round Central Decatur won the first game 182-127, the Raiders won the second and third game 144-134 and 141-191, Central Decatur took the fourth 135-118 and the Raiders won the fifth 187-136.

Next action

The boys and girls squads were set to finish out the pre-holiday season with a match against Nodaway Valley at Greenfield Thursday, Dec. 17.

  Two more teams fell to the Mount Ayr Community Raiderette girls basketball squad this past week.

The girls handled Mormon Trail 62-29 on the road Tuesday, Dec. 1, then picked up a Pride of Iowa conference win over Corning 48-36 in Corning Friday night.

The girls are now 5-0 for the season and 1-0 in conference play.

Mount Ayr Community 62, Mormon Trail 29

Mount Ayr Community’s Raiderettes  ran their season mark to 4-0 by defeating the Mormon Trail Lady Saints 62-29 on December 1 in Humeston.  

“We are playing pretty well right now, but I am positive that we have tougher tests coming,” said coach Thad Streit.  “We did hit some ‘three’s’ tonight and we had balanced scoring again and we will need to keep this going into conference action.”

Tiffany Wimer and Claire Andresen hit baskets inside giving the Raiderettes an early lead.  Emily Secrest’s free throws were the only points scored by Mormon Trail in the first quarter as Mount Ayr held a 16-2 first quarter advantage.  Bailey Myer hit the Raiderettes’ first three-pointers of the season in the opening quarter and Becca Pennington hit from beyond the arc to open the second period for Mount Ayr Community. 

Tiffany Wimer also scored seven in period number two as Mount Ayr Community enjoyed a 34-9 half-time advantage.

Jensen Stewart and Bailey Myer scored four points each in the third period as the Raiderettes posted a 48-19 lead at the end of the quarter.  The Raiderettes were charged with 22 fouls on Tuesday which limited the minutes of some of the players.  

Claire Andresen scored eight points in the final eight minutes as Mount Ayr Community played reserves in most of the period.  The Raiderettes outscored the home team 14-8 securing their fourth straight win 62-29.

Mount Ayr Community had four players in double figures led by Tiffany Wimer’s 14 points.  Claire Andresen added 12 points, Becca Pennington 11 and Bailey Myer 10 for the Raiderettes.  Claire Andresen topped the rebounders with seven boards and blocked shots with two.  Bailey Myer had five steals and she and Becca Pennington both dished out four assists against Mormon Trail.  

Taylor McBroom led the Lady Saints in scoring with nine points.  Mormon Trail hit 40 percent from the field and just 38 percent of their 21 free throws.  

Mount Ayr Community hit 52 percent from the floor and connected on 71 percent of their 21 charity tosses.

Mount Ayr Community 48, Corning 36

The Raiderettes opened the Pride of Iowa conference season with a 48-36 win over the Corning Lady Red Raiders in Corning on Friday, Dec. 4.  

“We knew this would be a tough test as Corning has some talented players,” said coach Thad Streit.  “We kept the pressure on them and were fortunate to get Tessa Mullen in early foul trouble.”

Becca Pennington scored first for Mount Ayr Community before Rachel Peterson gave the home team the lead by hitting from long range.  The 3-2 lead would be the only time Corning would have the lead in the game.  Bailey Myer and Tiffany Wimer both scored five in the opening quarter giving the Raiderettes a 12-5 advantage.  

The Raiderettes missed several easy shots in the second quarter and Kelsey Roberts was able to keep Corning close during the second period.  Bailey Myer hit a basket in the closing seconds of the first half and the Raiderettes took a 19-11 lead to the locker room.

Mount Ayr Community warmed up in the third quarter, which was a good thing as Tessa Mullen started to score inside for the home team.  Bailey Myer and Claire Andresen scored six each in the third period that ended with Mount Ayr Community leading by 10, 32-22.  

Mullen fouled out midway through the final quarter and Becca Pennington scored eight of her game high 16 in the fourth and Mount Ayr Community earned their fifth victory in a row by a score of 48-36.

The Raiderettes hit  just 31 percent from the floor and 33 percent  from the line on Friday.  The Corning squad hit 50 percent from the floor and 43 percent of their charity tosses against Mount Ayr.  Bailey Myer recorded a double-double for the Raiderettes as she scored 13 points and pulled down a team high 12 rebounds.  Becca Pennington led the team in scoring with 16 points and Tiffany Wimer had six steals to lead the Raiderettes in that category.  Bailey Myer was also the assist  leader with five against Corning.  

Tessa Mullen led the Corning five with 14 points.  

Next action

The Raiderettes will try to keep their winning streak intact as they faced East Union on Tuesday, Dec. 8 and host the Bedford Lady Bulldogs on Friday, Dec. 11. Tuesday, Dec. 15 the girls go to Nodaway Valley.

  It’s the 50th year of wrestling at Mount Ayr Community high school and the anniversary will be celebrated as the school wrestling program’s “Golden Year.”

With some experienced wrestlers returning and some good young ones coming on, coach Eric Ehlen hopes this season is golden in more than just the anniversary.

The Raiders had a great 17-4 dual season last year for coach Eric Ehlen, who has compiled a 128-107-2 record in his 12 years at Mount Ayr Community.

“We have lots of experience coming back and two new freshman with good wrestling skills,” coach Ehlen said.

With 11 wrestlers on the squad, however, the big challenge will be filling all the weight classes, Ehlen noted.

The Raiders have two state qualifiers returning to lead the team this year, and they start the season with high state rankings.

Senior heavyweight Dylan Lame had a 39-9 record last year and ended up in eighth place in his second trip to state. He starts the season ranked third in the heavyweight Class 1A spot.

Junior Cade Lambson returns as a state qualifier at 215 pounds for the Raiders as well. Lambson had a 35-10 record last year. Lambson starts the season with a fourth place ranking on the Class 1A 215 pound list.

Three other wrestlers just missed a trip to state with third place finishes at the sectionals last year. They include senior 130-pounder Weston Pierschbacher, who went 32-15; junior 189-pounder Bradley Love, who had a 36-15 mark, and junior 135-pounder Jesse Penick, who was 18-22 last season.

The other senior on the tem is Michael Camacho, a 119-pounder who had a 29-16 record last year and has been working hard to improve.

The rest of the experienced wrestlers are juniors. Jordan Clymer is a 119 or 125 pounder who had a 23-20 record last year. Andy Freihage, who has already been injured, is a 119 or 125 pounder who had a 4-5 varsity mark last year.

Drake Schafer is a 152-pounder returning with an 18-22 record last time around.

The Raiders lost two wrestlers from last year to basketball. Senior Chad Starlin from Diagonal has opted for playing basketball for the Maroons this year and sophomore heavyweight Josh Case has also taken the basketball route this year.

Two incoming freshmen have some good skills, according to coach Ehlen. They are 125-pounder Shane Swank and 140-pounder Zane Sickels.

Coach Ehlen sees the Pride of Iowa conference race as being wide open this year.

Martensdale-St. Mary’s and Interstate 35 will be tough as always but Nodaway Valley may be down a bit after graduating a host of seniors.

Action begins tonight (Thursday) for the Raiders when they travel to Corning to take on Clarke, Corning and East Mills at 5:30 p.m.

The rest of the schedule includes:

Saturday, Dec. 5 -- Coach Riley Invitational, Greenfield, 10 a.m.

Thursday, Dec. 10 -- Interstate 35 and Wayne, home, 6 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 11 -- Central Decatur invitational, Leon, 5 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 17 -- East Union and Nodaway Valley at Afton, 6 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 19 -- Pride of Iowa conference tournament, Greenfield, 10 a.m.

Thursday, Jan. 7 -- Atlantic, Central Decatur and Bedford-Lenox, at Leon, 5:30 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 9 -- Creston tournament, Creston, 11 a.m.

Monday, Jan. 11 -- Creston junior varsity tournament, Cresotn, 5 p.m.

Friday and Saturday, Jan. 15-16 -- Mount Ayr Dual tournament, home, 5:30 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. Saturday.

Tuesday, Jan. 19 -- Corning, Panorama and Van Meter at Panorama, 6 p.m.

Friday and Saturday, Jan. 22-23 -- John Harris tournament, Corning.

Saturday, Jan. 23 -- Perry junior varsity tournament, Perry, 10 a.m.

Monday, Jan.  25 -- Pride of Iowa junior varsity tournament, Greenfield, 4:30 p.m.

Tuesday, Jan. 26 -- Clarke and  West Central Valley at Stuart, 5:30 p.m.

Thursday, Jan. 28 -- Bedford-Lenox, Maryville, MO, and Pleasantville (Parent’s Night), home, 5:30 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 30 -- Quad State Invitational tournament, Maryville, MO, 10 a.m.

Saturday, Feb. 6 -- Districts, TBA, 12 noon.

Saturday, Feb. 13 -- Sectionals, TBA, 12 noon.

February 17-20, State tournament, Des Moines.

The Ringgold Outdoor Alliance fall banquet is planned for Friday, Dec. 4, at the American Legion in Mount Ayr.

Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with dinner at 5:45 p.m. and a raffle, games and auction to follow.

Vision for the group to promote a county where outdoor activities flourish and residents are proud to call home.

The organization has a long list of activities it was involved with in the past year, using funds from the banquet fund-raiser which is the main source of funding for the group.

Activities in the past couple of years have included:

-- sponsoring an art contest for the Mount Ayr Community and Diagonal school districts.

-- providing meals for the National Bird Dog Trials.

-- sponsoring a haunted house at the Iowa Roadhouse in Mount Ayr.

-- sponsoring a wild game feed in Mount Ayr.

-- installing new playground equipment at Judge Lewis Park in Mount Ayr.

-- sponsoring the junior high rodeo.

-- sponsoring the 4-H shooting sports program.

-- sponsoring students to attend the Diagonal National Archery Tournament held in Kentucky in May 2008.

-- donating an archery target for the 3D archery range at Fogle Lake Park.

-- sponsoring the Fogle Lake Archery Backyard Iowa show.

-- helping the Diagonal Lions Club in getting a new shelter house at Fogle Lake in Diagonal.

-- providing gun locks to area youth.

-- providing free safety belts for area youth.

-- participated in several area parades.

-- donated labor on Surrogator assembly.

-- Surrogator program released over 13,000 birds.

-- provided processed deer meat for needy families.

-- one of sponsors for MACHS golf tournament raising funds for athletic programs.

-- sponsored Little League team.

-- sponsored print for Ducks Unlimited banquet.

-- participated in Mount Ayr Chamber of Commerce.

-- sponsored movie at the Princess Theater in Mount Ayr.

-- donated to Pheasants Forever.

-- donated varmit traps at banquet.