A truck with a tank full of trout will start making the rounds to 17 ponds across the state Friday, including 1-p.m. at Big Lake, in Council Bluffs. Iowa Department of Natural Resources regional fisheries supervisor, Mike Steuck, says it’s the start of the annual program where they stock urban ponds with the trout. “At a minimum it’ll be 15-hundred fish, and it’ll be a combination of rainbow trout and brook trout. And they will all be about 10 to 12 inches or so,” Steuck says.

He says the trout are sort of a bait to get people to seek out more fishing. Steuck works out of northeast Iowa. He says you may’ve seen people fly fishing for trout in waders, but he says that’s not necessary and you can use regular fishing gear.

He says you can catch them with a hook and bobber just like you would bluegills. Steuck says anything flashy you can put on your line will attract the trout. Steuck says the lakes and ponds appear to be ready for the stocking. You need to have a valid fishing license and pay the trout fee to fish for or possess trout.

Children age 15 or younger can fish for trout with an adult who has a license. They are limited to one trout daily. The child can purchase a trout fee which will allow them to catch their own limit.

(Radio Iowa)

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

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The Iowa basketball team will be a mix of veterans and newcomers this season. Aaron White is gone from last year’s team that finished third in the Big Ten and made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament but several familiar faces are back on a roster that includes six seniors. Iowa coach Fran McCaffery,said “We’ve got the experience with four starters back. I almost consider Clemmons a starter because he started half the time, so maybe we have five. But after that, there’s very little experience, and that would be a concern to anybody, but I do like the group, I do like the chemistry, I think the guys, having gotten here in June, have locked in to trying to learn what we’re doing.”

McCaffery considers this a different team and a new challenge. “And can we get to the point where we have a team that’s capable of playing in the NCAA Tournament…it’s great that we got there, it’s great that we won a game, but you just want to consistently try to get better and improve from there…as we all know, that’s very difficult.”

McCaffery says while happy with the progress of the program they are not satisfied with back to back trips to the NCAA Tournament. “You have to remain humble and hungry, especially in this league. Because whoever finished behind you last year, does not expect to finish behind you this year. They’re going to put time and money into improving their lot and try

The Hawkeyes open at home on November 13th against Gardner-Webb.

(Learfield Sports)

ST. LOUIS (AP) — John Lackey gets the start in Game 1 of the NL Division Series for the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday. At the beginning of a two-hour workout for the NL Central champions on Tuesday, manager Mike Matheny said he was not ready to announce the rest of his playoff rotation or his roster. Matheny said he will likely reveal the roster after a workout Thursday.

The 36-year-old Lackey went 9-4 with a 1.93 ERA in 17 starts at home. Overall, he was 13-10 with a 2.77 ERA — the first sub 3.00 ERA of his big career. Matheny has Jaime Garcia (10-6, 2.43), Lance Lynn (12-11, 3.03) and Michael Wacha (17-7, 3.38) for Games 2, 3 and 4, in some order. Wacha could be pushed back after going 2-3 with a 7.88 ERA in five September start

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Jake Arrieta allowed four hits in nine dominant innings and the Chicago Cubs rolled to a 4-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates in the NL wild-card game on Wednesday night. Arrieta struck out 11 without a walk. He also dusted off getting plunked by Pittsburgh reliever Tony Watson to send the Cubs to the NL Division Series in St. Louis starting on Friday.

Dexter Fowler homered and scored three times for the Cubs. Kyle Schwarber added a towering two-run shot off Pittsburgh starter Gerrit Cole as Chicago raced to an early lead and let Arrieta do the rest.

The largest crowd ever at PNC Park failed to rattle Arrieta or one of baseball’s youngest teams. Manager Joe Maddon’s club played with swagger and confidence and looked right at home while snapping a nine-game playoff losing streak that dated to the 2003 NL Championship Series.

The Atlantic Boys and Girls Cross Country teams are preparing for their home meet on Thursday, October 8th at the Atlantic Golf and Country Club.  Racing will begin at 4:00pm with the Middle School Girls race.  The final of 6 races is set to begin at 6:00pm.  Spectators should enter on 22nd Street  and park in the driving range.  The start and finish area will be near the parking area at the Hole 10 tee box area.  Approximately 900 runners are expected to take par in the meet with 28 Varsity teams on hand.

In the Girls Varsity race 3A 7th ranked Dallas Center-Grimes and 3A 12th ranked Denison-Schleswig will be the team favorites.  Harlan, Glenwood, and Shenandoah-Essex (9th in 2A) are some of the expected top challenging teams.  Individually Lexi Smith of Dallas Center-Grimes will be one of the favorites to win the race with Tiffany Williams of Atlantic, Ellie Mendlik of Denison-Schleswig, and Kye Madsen of Lewis Central are expected to challenge for the lead.  The Girls race will feature 160 plus runners.

In the Boys Varsity Race 3A 4th Ranked Dallas Center-Grimes is a slight team favorite with 3A 6th Ranked Harlan, 3A 13th Ranked Winterset, and Thomas Jefferson some of the top contenders. Individually Cooper McDermott of Creston and Brenden O’Brien of Lewis Central are expected to battle for the win with John Dahlheimer of Thomas Jefferson and Curtis Harryman of Winterset expected to compete at the front.

The meet will also feature a Co-Ed Trophy and Dallas Center-Grimes will be a large favorite to win. Harlan, Shenandoah, Winterset, Lewis Central, and Atlantic are also expected to have good showings in both races.

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Hawkeye 10 Conference

(3-0) Denison-Schleswig 25-25-25, Atlantic 13-15-20
(3-1) Harlan 25-25-22-25, St. Albert, Council Bluffs 13-15-25-17
(3-0) Harlan 25-25-25, Glenwood 14-22-20
(3-0) Lewis Central 26-25-25, Kuemper Catholic, Carroll 24-18-23
(3-2) Red Oak 25-22-21-25-15, Clarinda 22-25-25-19-5
(3-0) St. Albert, Council Bluffs 25-25-25, Glenwood 23-19-23

Western Iowa Conference

(3-1) Logan-Magnolia over AHSTW
(3-0) Missouri Valley 25-25-25, Griswold 16-23-18
(3-0) Treynor over Riverside
(3-0) Tri-Center, Neola 25-25-25, Audubon 19-19-19
(3-0) Underwood 25-25-25, IKM-Manning 23-23-21

Rolling Valley Conference

(3-1) AR-WE-VA, Westside 25-25-20-25, CAM, Anita 20-22-25-17
(3-1) Exira-EHK 15-26-25-25, Coon Rapids-Bayard 25-24-18-23
(3-1) Glidden-Ralston 22-25-25-25, Adair-Casey 25-18-19-18
(3-1) Paton-Churdan 23-25-26-25, Boyer Valley 25-11-24-19

Pride of Iowa Conference

(3-1) Bedford 23-25-26-25, Southwest Valley 25-15-24-12
(3-1) Mount Ayr 26-22-29-25, East Union 24-25-27-14
(3-1) Nodaway Valley 25-25-14-25, Lenox 18-15-25-19

Corner Conference Tournament- Semifinals

(3-0) Fremont-Mills 25-25-25, Essex 15-11-23
(3-0) Sidney 25-25-25, Stanton 20-21-14

Other Scores
(3-1) Carroll 25-16-25-26, Bondurant-Farrar 22-25-21-24
(3-1) Charter Oak-Ute 25-20-25-25, West Harrison 14-25-21-20
(3-1) Earlham 25-17-25-25, Guthrie Center 18-25-14-13
(3-0) Lawton-Bronson 25-25-25, Westwood, Sloan 17-13-15
(3-1) River Valley 22-25-25-25, West Monona 25-18-11-21
(3-0) Woodward-Granger 25-25-25, Panorama 7-14-15

Iowa is off to a great start but coach Kirk Ferentz says to have a special season the Hawkeyes will need to be consistent. Iowa is 5-0 after a heart stopping 10-6 victory at Wisconsin and The Hawkeyes will host an Illinois team on Saturday that is also considered a surprise at 4-1. Ferentz says all conference games are hard fought and it takes the correct preparation and focus to succeed on a weekly basis.

The Illini are coming off a 14-13 victory over Nebraska in their Big Ten opener. Interim Illini coach Bill Cubit took over the program a week before the start of the season and he has experienced success at Kinnick Stadium. His 2007 Western Michigan squad beat the Haweyes 28-19.

This is the first time in five years the Hawkeyes are preparing for a game as a nationally ranked team. They were 22nd on the latest AP Poll. Saturday at Wisconsin was a day for the defense but Ferentz says all phases have contributed to wins. Illinois coach Bill Cubit says they need to find a way to solve the Iowa defense. Cubit says while C.J. Beathard has played well at quarterback he has been impressed with the play of Iowa’s offensive line.

(Learfield Sports)