2019 Sports in Review

2019 was another busy year for sports in the Panhandle, and we've gone back to select the highlights over the past 12 months.

January:

Sidney Lady Raiders Win Cabela's Holiday Shootout-January 2nd

Sidney's Lady Raider basketball team defeats Burns, Wyo., and Beatrice to take the 2019 Holiday Shootout Title. Junior Mattie Johnson led the scoring in both games with 12 points against Burns and 13 points against Beatrice.

Sidney Grapplers Dominate - January 9th

Sidney's Red Raider wrestling team built their record up to 13-and-1 for the year over the past weekend. With five undefeated wrestlers, Sidney swept the competition with a 5-and-0 record to take the Ogallala Duals Championship out of a field of eight teams.

Red Raiders Stun Yuma 53-46 - January 23rd

A struggling Red Raider basketball team had a big victory as they traveled to Colorado and beat the number 1 ranked Class 2A undefeated Yuma Indians, 53-to-46.

Febraury:

Lady Raider Win Streak Hits 12 - February 6th

The Lady Raiders pushed their winning streak to 12 as they defeated the Gering Lady Bulldogs and the Scottsbluff Lady Bearcats at home over the past weekend. The victories pushed their season record to 18-and-2 and featured dominating defensive performances in both games.

Lady Coyotes Get First Win of Season Over Peetz, 30-27 - February 8th

It was a long struggle to finally get their first win, but the Potter-Dix Lady Coyotes were able to secure their first victory Tuesday night against the visiting Peetz Lady Bulldogs in Potter, 30-to-27.

Sidney Grapplers Bring Home Four Medals - February 20th

Sidney's Red Raider Wrestling team qualified seven wrestlers for the State Tournament, and brought back four medals at the end of the competition.

Austin Munier: Freshman: 106 weight class: 28-11 record: 6th place state finish.

Trey Arellano: Senior: 138 weight class: 45-3 record: second place state finish.

Brody Raines: Junior: 145 weight class: 44-11 record: 5th place state finish.

KC Higer: Senior: 152 weight class: 44-8 record: 5th place state finish.

Sidney Wins Comeback Thriller - February 20th

After a slow start, the Lady Raiders came back to defeat the Platteview Lady Trojans 42-to-37 in the District Final on Saturday at Sidney High School to advance to the State Tournament.

Storm Takes D2-11 Subdistrict Title - February 27th

Creek Valley's Storm boy's basketball team won the D2-11 Subdistrict title Thursday night with an impressive 53-to-36 victory over the South Platte Blue Knights at Sidney High School. Senior Sam Grabowski led the scoring for Creek Valley with 16 points. The Storm then faced the 24-and-1 Osmond Tigers in the D2-2 finals and lost 82-to-32.

March:

Sidney Girls Compete at State Cheer & Dance Championships - March 1st

The Sidney Cheer and Danz squads competed at the Nebraska State Cheer & Dance Championships February 15 and 16 in Grand Island. Sidney took sixth place in the Class B Cheer Championship, and in the Dance Championship took sixth place in the High Kick competition, and fifth place in the Hip-Hop competition.

Bulldogs Fall in Regionals to Haxtun - March 6th

Peetz's Bulldog boy's basketball season ended with a 62-to-50 loss to the Haxtun Bulldogs in the Class 1A Region 2 Tournament at NJC in Sterling on Saturday. The loss ends Peetz's season with a 17-and-6 mark.

Lady Raiders Fall to Elkhorn South in States - March 6th

Sidney's Lady Raider basketball team was defeated 51-to-37 by the Elkhorn South Lady Storm on Thursday in the first round of the NSAA State Tournament at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln. The Lady Raiders ended their season with a 22-and-4 mark, a District Championship, and their third straight trip to the state tournament.

Distance Runners Lead Red Raiders at Sidney Invite - March 29th

Sidney's Red Raider Track & Field team hosted the annual Sidney Invitational on Tuesday, rescheduled due to weather from Saturday. At the end of the day, the Red Raider boy's varsity placed fourth and the girl's varsity placed sixth against some of the best teams in the region.

April:

Leyton's Craig Picked to Lead West All-Stars - April 5th

Leyton Lady Warrior's coach Jodi Craig was selected to head up the West All-Star team in the 35th annual West Nebraska All-Star Volleyball Game. The game will be played in Scottsbluff at the Western Nebraska Community College's Cougar Palace on Saturday, June 8.

Area Students Earn NSAA Academic All-State Awards - April 5th

Several area studentsarned the Nebraska School Activities Association's Winter 2018-19 Nebraska Chiropractic Physicians Association Academic All-State Awards.

Creek Valley High School students Patrick Hansen and Justin Ningen were recognized in Boy's Basketball, Catie Koenen and Chloe Stupka were recognized for Girl's Basketball, and KK Fletcher was recognized for Speech.

Leyton High School students Jeremy Carley and Josh Kruse were recognized for Boy's Basketball, Megan Ernest and Danielle Higgins were recognized for Girl's Basketball. Janessa Carley and Hannah Vath were recognized for Speech, and Brenton Abbott was recognized for wrestling.

Potter-Dix High School students Virginia Herboldsheimer and Ciera George were recognized for Girl's Basketball and Speech.

Sidney High School students Arik Doty and Zach Petitt were recognized for Boy's Basketball, Meaghan Ross and Katelyn Sylvester were recognized for Girl's Basketball, and Alaina Kuhns and Taylor Stokes were recognized for Speech.

Red Raiders Take First at Mitchell Invite - April 10th

Sidney's Red Raider boy's track team took first place at Thursday's Mitchell Invite, edging second-place Gering 106.33 to 105. While the boys took top honors in a field of 14 teams, the girl's squad finished seventh in a field of 17 teams. The Sidney boys again dominated the distance and relay events, with junior Ben Bashtovoi winning the 800 meters and senior Collin Brauer winning the 3200 meters. The Sidney 4x400 and 4x800 relay teams both won their events, while senior Christian Lecher won the Discus and sophomore Brady Robb won the Pole Vault.

Brauer Wins Three at Best in the West - April 26th

Sidney senior Collin Brauer led the Red Raider boy's track team to a second place finish with wins in three events at the Best in the West Classic at Bearcat Stadium in Scottsbluff on Tuesday. Sidney scored well in the running events, with Brauer taking first in the 1600 Meters and the 3200 Meters. He also anchored the first place 4x800 meter Relay Team. Senior Cade Lewis bolstered the sprinters with a win in the 200 Meters and a third place finish in the 100 Meters.

May:

Sidney Boys Win Conference Championships - May 1st

Sidney's Red Raider track and field team traveled to Alliance Saturday to compete in the Western Conference Track & Field Championships, and the Sidney boys took first by a wide margin, while the girls finished second against the best of the Western Conference.

Area Students Earn NCPA All-State Awards - May 8th

The NSAA and NCPA (Nebraska Chiropractic Physicians Association) announced the recipients of the 2019 Spring Academic All-State Awards, and several area students have been recoginzed for their outstanding achievements in academics, leadership, and significant contributions they have made to their NSAA acivity.

For Sidney High School, Alexah Fort and Allison Nesbitt were recognized for Music, Cade Lewis and Arik Doty were recognized for Boy's Track & Field, and Hannah Kennedy and Allison Nesbitt were recognized for Girl's Track & Field.

For Creek Valley High School, Rhett Dykstra was recognized for Boy's Golf, Ashleigh Jay was recognized for Music, Oakley Hodges and Justin Ningen were recognized for Boy's Track & Field, and Catie Koenen and Chloe Stupka were recognized for Girl's Track & Field.

For Leyton High School, Janessa Carley and Danielle Higgins were recognized for Music, Zackry Henke and Dominick Russ were recognized for Boy's Track & Field, and Destinee Henke and Madelyn Watchorn were recognized for Girl's Track & Field.

For Potter-Dix High School, Virginia Herboldsheimer and Michaela Rotert were recognized for Music, Michael Steele was recognized for Boy's Track & Field, and Ciera George and Michaela Rotert were recognized for Girl's Track & Field.

Jobman Qualifies For State Tournament - May 15th

Sidney's Red Raider Golf team traveled to the Lake Maloney golf course in North Platte on Friday to compete in the B-4 Boys District Golf championships. The North Platte team took first place with a solid win, scoring a 308 to second place Cozad's 338. Sidney finished eighth out of twelve teams with a team score of 381. Cayden Jobman led the Sidney team with a round of 81, placing him 9th individually and qualifying him for the State Tournament.

D-9 District Sends Qualifiers to State, Reichman Earns Two Medals - May 15th

Creek Valley's Storm Track and Field team had the most success of the local teams at the D-9 District Track meet on Friday, qualifying the most athletes for the state meet in Omaha next week. Creek Valley's Garrett Sawyer, Cooper Reichman, Patrick Hansen, Chloe Stupka, Caitlyn Mueller and Haylee Sitzman qualified, while Leyton's Madelyn Watchorn also qualified for the State Tournament. Creek Valley senior Cooper Reichman brought home two medals in the Class D competitions, leading the boy's team to a 31st place finish.

Lewis Leads Sidney at States - May 22

The Sidney boy's team tied for 16th place, while the girls squad, with far fewer competitors, placed 41st. Senior Cade Lewis led the medal tally with three, for his fifth place finish in the 200 Meters, his sixth place finish in the 100 Meters, and his seventh place finish as the anchor of the 4x400 Relay team.

Legion Seniors Win Home Opener 11-3

Sidney's American Legion Post 17 Senior baseball team opened its home schedule on Wednesday night at Legion Field by defeating the Bridgeport Post 29 Bombers 11-to-3. This marks Sidney's third win over the Bombers, a team that they will face many more times before the season ends.