Stories from Thursday, May 16, 2019

LINCOLN, Neb. — Senior Kassidy Michaelis swept three No. 1 singles foes 6-0, 6-0 while McCook's No. 1 doubles team of Riley Hansen and Kori Uerling will join her in the Class B state semifinals following Thursday state victories. However, the Bison did drop a pair of quarterfinal matches with powerful Omaha Duchesne. McCook scored 32 team points but trail both Duchesne (36) and Grand Island Central Catholic (34) going into Friday's final rounds...

LINCOLN, Neb. — Their scheduled 5:45 a.m. start to today’s state tennis clearly didn’t bother the McCook Bison girls for long this morning. Senior Kassidy Michaelis stepped right into the No. 1 singles fray and showed why she’s 39-0 this season. The Class B No. 3-seed swept through Ogallala’s Madeline Ketchum 6-0, in a match that started shortly after 8 a.m. at Lincoln’s Woods Tennis Center...

Kudos to the folks at the McCook Congregational Church, who gave the McCook Public Schools a check for $470.20 to pay off negative lunch accounts for 26 students. It’s not unusual for faith groups to feed the hungry — Memorial United Methodist Church’s weekly community meals and the McCook Pantry, housed at St. Alban’s Episcopal’s Canturbury House are two notable local examples and they deserve kudos as well...

This past week, I had the opportunity to speak at the Nebraska Water Resources Association’s water roundtable. Weekly roundtable meetings allow those interested in water policy to share information and get updates on a variety of water topics. I gave a recap of the work the Natural Resources Committee has done so far this session, and shared our plans for the interim. ...

LORRI SUGHROUe Associate Editor McCOOK, Neb. — LB 289, the proposed bill that would have reduced property taxes by increasing the state sales tax, removed sales tax exemptions from some services and directed the additional revenue to public schools, is not going anywhere anytime soon...

OBERLIN, Kan. — The Rawlins County Buffaloes steamed to a top three girls’ team place and four Northwest Kansas League event titles last week. Brea Lankas finished first in three events including her long jump title with a leap of 16’1”. Lankas joined Ashlyn Livas, Angie Singhateh and Abby Mosley on two Rawlins County winning relays...

McCook Junior High’s boys broke a school record and earned several top 10 places at the Nebraska Championship Meet on Saturday. The 400-meter school record fell when Gary Shafer, Kaden Jernigan, Alex Messinger and Jacob Gomez-Wilson finished their lap in 47.17 seconds...

OMAHA, Neb. — The rundown of Gazette-area girls competing in this weekend’s Nebraska State Track-Field Meet at Burke Stadium FRIDAY CLASS C 9 a.m. — Long jump (Korynn Clason, Cambridge) 9 a.m. — Discus (Addie Sides, Cambridge; Allison Owings, Chase County)...

VIERO, Fla. – Adverse weather limited the opening round of the National Junior College Athletic Association golf tournament Tuesday to just three holes. On Wednesday, the McCook Community College golf team played 33 holes and now at the mid-way point, the Indians find themselves 20th out of 24 teams...

OMAHA, Neb. — Besides a Class B-best 18 state qualifiers, there are several reasons to belive the McCook High boys can bring home titles from Burke Stadium this weekend. Senior DJ Gross has thrown the shot put 56’9” which ranks No. 1 in athletic.net’s Class B state leaders...

McCOOK, Neb. — No regular agenda items are slated for the May 20 McCook City Council meeting, although a closed executive session is expected to follow the meeting. The closed session, that can be held upon the majority vote of the council, will be for a strategy session with respect to collective bargaining with the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 57, the union used by City of McCook police officers to negotiate salaries and benefits...

McCOOK, Neb. — A retiring math teacher at McCook Junior High is the 2019 "McCook Area Educator of the Year" selected by the McCook Area Chamber of Commerce. Colleen Olson of rural McCook accepted the educator's award, funded by Allen D. Strunk, former owner and publisher of the McCook Gazette, during the junior high's end-of-the-school-year awards banquet Friday, May 10...

Stone Church supporters plan their annual clean-up day for the 119-year-old church Saturday, May 18, starting at 10 a.m. The annual church meeting will be Sunday, May 26, at 6 p.m. Hitchcock County pioneers organized a Methodist Protestant congregation in a sod church in 1892, and built the stone church — by hand using stone quarried five miles southwest of the church — in 1900. ...

McCook High School graduate Tyler Lytle receives a $1,000 scholarship check from Coppermill Restaurant owner Adam Siegfried earlier this month. Lytle is the first recipient of the $1000 Ken Johnson Memorial Scholarship. Siegfried said Ken thought a lot of Tyler and he was positive Ken is smiling down on us knowing it's going to help Tyler further his education. "Ken was a very special person and we look forward to handing out more scholarships in his honor every year," he added...