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Brewers clinch playoff spot, sweep Cards 2-1; Cubs also in

Sports

September 27th, 2018 by admin

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Fortunately for the Milwaukee Brewers, they didn’t slip up.

The Brewers clinched their first playoff spot since 2011 by ensuring at least a spot in the NL wild-card game, helped Wednesday night when a rookie St. Louis pinch-runner suddenly fell on his way to the plate in a 2-1 win over the contending Cardinals.

“I saw him go down and luckily we were able to put a tag on him and get him out,” Brewers reliever Josh Hader said. “I’ve never seen that before but it was definitely good on our side.”

The Brewers (92-67) remained a half-game behind the NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs. Milwaukee’s win also sealed a postseason berth for the Cubs.

Milwaukee began the day 3 ½ games ahead of Colorado for the top wild-card slot. St. Louis (87-71) entered a half-game behind the Rockies for the final wild-card berth.

The Cardinals missed a big chance to tie it in the eighth inning. Matt Carpenter drew a two-out walk and was lifted for pinch-runner Adolis Garcia. Jose Martinez then hit a slow roller to third baseman Mike Moustakas, who threw wildly to first.

Garcia was waved home, but slipped rounding third base and fell halfway to the plate. He got to his feet and had no chance, easily tagged out after second baseman Hernan Perez made a strong throw.

“The kid’s giving you everything he’s got, it’s just unfortunate he fell,” Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said. “It’s one of those things that happened. Clearly, it would’ve tied the game but it wasn’t for lack of effort. Things happen and he was giving everything he had.”

Milwaukee turned that break into a three-game sweep at Busch Stadium. And while the Brewers enjoyed an enthusiastic celebration in their clubhouse, the prospect of catching the Cubs still hung in the air.

“We like our chances, but obviously winning the division would be huge,” outfielder Ryan Braun said. “The wild-card game, no matter how good you are, it is always somewhat of a coin flip. So we have to take care of business. We have to continue to win games and continue to play the way we’ve played to this point and hopefully find a way to win the division.”

Milwaukee advanced to the NL Championship Series in 2011 before being eliminated in six games by the eventual World Series champion Cardinals.

Jhoulys Chacin pitched five strong innings and Travis Shaw hit a pair of RBI singles for Milwaukee.

“When you’ve got games left still and you’ve got something to play for there’s stuff ahead of us, but you do this to enjoy what you’ve accomplished,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “We know that we’ve made the playoffs, we have a chance to play in the playoffs and we have three big games left.”

Chacin (15-8), who had lost his last three decisions, gave up one run on just one hit over five innings. He needed a season-low 60 pitches and faced three batters over the minimum.

“We definitely caught a break there, it was a strange play,” Counsell said of the Garcia fall. “We pitched really well tonight. Chacin was brilliant. It was just a really well played game.”

Xavier Cedeno, Corbin Burnes, Hader and Jeremy Jeffress combined for four shutout innings as the Brewers held the Cardinals to a season-low two hits. Jeffress earned his 13th save in 18 chances.

Milwaukee now returns to Miller Park to take on the lowly Detroit Tigers in the three-game series starting Friday to end the regular season. The Cardinals travel to face the Cubs for the three-game set.

Shaw’s single scored Christian Yelich, who walked all five times he came to the plate, and gave the Brewers a 1-0 lead in the third.

Shaw broke a 1-all time with an RBI single off Dakota Hudson in the fifth, again scoring Yelich, to make it 2-1.

“It’s cool,” Shaw said. “I mean anytime you do that it’s cool but especially on a clinching night, it feels pretty good.”

Yelich, who reached on a walk by Chasen Shreve (3-4), became the ninth inherited runner out of 18 that Hudson has allowed to score.

“Hopefully this is the first of many celebrations and rightfully so to celebrate this moment,” Yelich said. “But we’ve got a big weekend ahead so we’re going to enjoy it tonight and get back to work.”

Cardinals starter John Gant stranded runners in each of his first four innings before being lifted with one out in the fifth. It is the fourth time in his last five starts that Gant failed to go more than 4 1/3 innings.

Jedd Gyorko’s sacrifice fly with the bases loaded in the fourth made it 1-all.

Cardinals infielder Paul DeJong hung back to watch the Brewers’ on-field celebration.

“They earned it,” DeJong said. “It’s something that I want. It’s something that I’ve done in the minor leagues. I really wanted to be out there doing it with us but we’re going to have to keep pushing and try to pull something out.”

UP NEXT

Brewers: RHP Zach Davies (2-7, 4.65 ERA) begins the three-game series at home Friday night against Detroit and RHP Jordan Zimmermann (7-8, 4.31 ERA). Davies, who is making his first career start against the Tigers, gave up two runs in four innings in a loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates last Saturday.

Cardinals: RHP Adam Wainwright (2-3, 4.08 ERA) gets the start in the opener of a three-game series at Chicago and RHP Kyle Hendricks (13-11, 3.49 ERA) on Friday afternoon. Wainwright leads all active pitchers with 15 wins against the Cubs and his 11 career wins at Wrigley Field is third all-time in franchise history behind Bob Gibson (15) and Harry Brecheen (13).

Skyscan Forecast Thursday 09/27/2018

Podcasts, Weather

September 27th, 2018 by admin

Skyscan Forecast  Thursday, September 27, 2018  Dan Hicks

Today: Increasing clouds. SW @ 10-20. High 72.

Tonight: Mostly cloudy. Scattered light showers late. N @ 10-15. Low 50.

Friday: Mostly cloudy. Windy and cooler. Scattered light rain. N @ 15-25. High 57.

Saturday: Mostly cloudy. A few isolated showers. High 60.

Sunday: Mostly cloudy. Warmer. Scattered showers and thunderstorms. High 67.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 27th

Trading Post

September 27th, 2018 by Jim Field

GARAGE SALE:  Multi family garage sale on Friday 2:00 to 5:30 and Saturday 8:00 am to 1:00 pm.  It’s at 1303 E 19th st, Atlantic . Rustic household decorations, Precious Moments, saxophone, boys clothes and shoes, Middle School girls clothes, American , Justice, BKE, boys sports gear and shoes, small color TV with stand and wall mount, Poland China set, Lumber and decorative trim, front door with etched glass. Many misc. items.

FOR SALE: Upright deep freeze, works great $25. 250-1769

Nebraska man arrested after pursuit that began in Council Bluffs Wednesday

News

September 26th, 2018 by admin

A Nebraska man was arrested after a pursuit Wednesday morning that began in Pottawattamie County. A Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Deputy attempted to stop a vehicle that was reported stolen at 8:04am Wednesday near North 16th Street and Nash Boulevard in Council Bluffs. The vehicle failed to stop and lead law enforcement on a chase that went through the Harrah’s Casino property and eventually onto I-480 westbound into Nebraska.

Iowa Law Enforcement stopped pursuit when the vehicle entered Nebraska. They were then notified that the vehicle had driven through a fence and down an embankment onto Cass Street near 20th Street in Omaha. Two male subjects fled the vehicle onto the Creighton University Campus and campus security was notified. Omaha Police along with other law enforcement searched for the two men and apprehended the male driver.

The man was identified as 29-year-old James Horn of Fremont, NE. He was found to have three arrest warrants for weapons possession, assault, and violation of a protective order. He was taken to the Douglas County Jail. Pottawattamie County Deputies will be filing traffic charges on Mr. Horn and obtaining an additional arrest warrant. No information on the other male in the vehicle has been released.

The license plates on the car were entered stolen by the North Platte Police Department but the vehicle was not entered as stolen. The vehicle, a Nissan Altima, was impounded.

During the pursuit the vehicle struck another vehicle on I-480. Nobody was injured as a result of that collision and an accident report was completed.

Minnesota man arrested in Pottawattamie County on warrant

News

September 26th, 2018 by admin

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest of a Minnesota man on Monday after a traffic stop. A vehicle was pulled over at the intersection of 130th Street and River Road in Pottawattamie County at 8:15am on Monday. 6 occupants were in the vehicle from Kansas and Minnesota.

It was determined one of the men had a warrant out of Minnesota for being a Fugitive from Justice. 25-year-old Mitchell Edward Bane of Willmar, MN was taken into custody after Minnesota officials stated they would extradite him back to the area. Bane was taken to the Pottawattamie County Jail without incident and booked in pending extradition.

Gov. Reynolds orders flags at half-staff to honor fallen Marine

News

September 26th, 2018 by admin

(DES MOINES) – Gov. Kim Reynolds ordered all flags in Iowa to fly at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Thursday, September 27, 2018, to honor a fallen U.S. Marine.

Lance Corporal John D. Killen III, of Davenport, went missing in action when his helicopter crashed in Vietnam on June 30, 1967. The 18-year-old’s remains were identified in March 2017 and returned to the United States for burial, along with the remains of two other Marines also killed in the crash. All three will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on Thursday, September 27, 2018. They will receive full military honors.

Nearly 5,000 Iowans registered to vote on National Voter Registration Day

News

September 26th, 2018 by admin

DES MOINES – Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate applauds Iowans for stepping up and participating in National Voter Registration Day. A total of 4,738 Iowans registered to vote or updated their voter information using the state’s online voter registration system on Tuesday, September 25.

“I’d like to thank all the colleges, universities, school districts, civic groups, and media organizations in the state that helped promote National Voter Registration Day. It was a huge success in Iowa,” Secretary Pate said. “Iowans take voting very seriously and these numbers reflect that fact.”

Iowa’s online voter registration system was implemented by Secretary Pate in January of 2016, in partnership with the Iowa Department of Transportation. Since then, nearly 100,000 Iowans have utilized the system to register to vote or update their voter registration information. More than 8,000 Iowans used the online system between September 19-25.

Seed treatment course scheduled for October 10th

Ag/Outdoor, News

September 26th, 2018 by admin

Shelby County Extension & Outreach will host a Seed Treatment Continuing Instruction Course (CIC) for commercial pesticide applicators, Wednesday, October 10, 2018. The program will be shown through the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Pesticide Safety Education Program (PSEP).

The local attendance site is 906 6th St., Harlan. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m., and the course runs from 9 to 11 a.m. The registration fee is $35 on or before October 10. To register or to obtain additional information about the CIC, contact Shelby County Extension & Outreach by phoning 712-755-3104.

The course will provide continuing instruction credit for commercial pesticide applicators certified in categories 4 and 10. Topics to be covered include equipment calibration and safe application techniques; pests, pest management and pesticides; and issues concerning treated seed, including disposal of unused treated seed.

Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) Continuing Education Units (CEUs) will be offered. Interested participants should bring their CCA number to the program.

Additional information and registration forms for this and other courses offered by the PSEP team can be accessed at www.extension.iastate.edu/PSEP/.

IATC Week 6 Cross Country Rankings 09/25/2018

Sports

September 26th, 2018 by admin

The Iowa Association of Track Coaches released their Week 6 cross country rankings on Tuesday evening. Here is a look at area ranked teams and individuals.

Class 3A Boys

Teams

14. Glenwood

Individuals

30. Jalen Petersen, Atlantic

Class 3A Girls

Teams

2. Harlan
4. Glenwood
9. Atlantic

Individuals

3. Janette Schraft, Glenwood
6. Taylor McCreedy, Atlantic
23. Raegan Anderson, Denison-Schleswig
29. Brielle Baker, Creston
30. Aubrey McIntyre, Glenwood

Class 2A Boys

Individuals

2. Jerry Jorgenson, Treynor
8. Jordan Hustak, Missouri Valley

Class 2A Girls

Teams

3. Panorama

Individuals

6. Ella Waddle, Panorama
29. Tori Castle, Treynor

Class 1A Boys

Teams

2. Nodaway Valley
14. AC/GC

Individuals

5. Joshua Baudler, Nodaway Valley
7. Noah Nelsen, AC/GC
12. Justin Ambrose, Boyer Valley
15. Louden Foster, West Central Valley
17. Noah Jorgensen, Sidney
25. Leo Garrigan, St. Albert

Class 1A Girls

Teams

1. Logan Magnolia
14. AHSTW
15. AC/GC

Individuals

1. Emma Lucas, Bedford
2. Peyton Pogge, Tri-Center
3. Courtney Sporrer, Logan-Magnolia
4. Taylor Sporrer, Logan-Magnolia
5. Kate Crawford, AC/GC
16. Gracie Springman, St. Albert
23. Lauryn Embleton, AC/GC
28. Alexis Post, Riverside
30. Sophia Broers, Nodaway Valley

Full Team rankings here.

Full Individual rankings here.

USDA Partners with Seven Rural Iowa Communities to Support Opioid Prevention, Treatment and Recovery Opportunities

News

September 26th, 2018 by admin

DES MOINES, Iowa September 26, 2018 – Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett recently announced that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is partnering with rural communities in 22 states, including seven projects in rural Iowa, to support opportunities for opioid prevention, treatment and recovery.

“With its impact on workforce, quality of life and the economic vitality of rural communities from Maine to California, the opioid epidemic is more than just a matter of public health, it is an issue of rural prosperity,” Hazlett said. “Under the leadership of President Trump, USDA is committed to being a strong partner to rural communities in planning and building local responses to this monumental challenge.”

USDA is investing $10.7 million in 85 projects in 22 states through the Community Facilities program. The seven Iowa projects are receiving a total of $661,400.

“USDA Rural Development is helping address substance misuse disorders at the local level through program investment and strategic partnerships,” said Grant Menke, USDA Rural Development State Director in Iowa. “Looking for innovative ways to collaborate is an important step in addressing this problem that is impacting the heartbeat of our country.”

In Iowa:

  • Cass County is using a $17,500 grant to purchase a police vehicle with equipment for a K-9 officer. The K-9 vehicle will be used to deter the sale and misuse of illegal drugs including opioids, and as a response vehicle on the scene of mental health or misuse situations. The K-9 vehicle will serve a population of 14,000.
  • The city of Albia is using a $29,200 grant to purchase a police vehicle. The new vehicle will be used to combat the opioid epidemic, for both prevention and response to illegal drug-related actions in a community of 3,800.
  • Lucas County Health Center is using a $150,000 grant to purchase an ambulance and related equipment for a hospital. The ambulance will be equipped with advanced life support supplies and equipment to assist in combating opioid misuse and drug overdoses. It will serve almost 8,900 Lucas County residents.
  • Monroe County Hospital is using a $123,700 grant to purchase an ambulance for the local hospital. It will be equipped with advanced life support supplies and equipment to assist with all emergencies, including opioid misuse. The ambulance will serve 7,800 residents of Monroe County.
  • United Community Health Center Inc. is using a $150,000 grant to buy equipment for an expanded medical clinic in the community of Storm Lake. The facility will include expanded behavioral health services, including diagnosis and treatment of substance misuse, including opioids. This project will provide improved service to about 10,600 residents.
  • Wayne County Hospital is using a $150,000 grant to buy an ambulance equipped with paramedic-level service and security features, specifically for opioid treatment. An estimated 6,400 residents will benefit.
  • The city of Pisgah is using a $41,000 grant to purchase a used ambulance for the volunteer fire department and first responders. The ambulance is equipped with medical supplies, including reversal medication for opioid misuse incidents. About 250 residents will be served.

In April 2017, President Donald J. Trump established the Interagency Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity to identify legislative, regulatory and policy changes that could promote agriculture and prosperity in rural communities.

In January 2018, Secretary Perdue presented the Task Force’s findings to President Trump. These findings included 31 recommendations to align the federal government with state, local and tribal governments to take advantage of opportunities that exist in rural America. Increasing investments in rural infrastructure is a key recommendation of the task force.

USDA Rural Development provides loans and grants to help expand economic opportunities and create jobs in rural areas. This assistance supports infrastructure improvements; business development; housing; community services such as community buildings, public safety and health care; and high-speed internet access in rural areas.