DES MOINES (July 27) -- Harlan Community and Sioux City Bishop Heelan won’t need a formal introduction when the two teams get together for Friday’s 11 a.m.

 DES MOINES (July 25) -- With recent history as the guide, this one was vintage Harlan Community. A fast start with the bats, stingy pitching and game-changing defensive plays all added up to another victory Tuesday night as the top-ranked Cyclones defeated Oskaloosa 6-0 in a Class 3-A state baseball tournament quarterfinal at Principal Park. Improving to 6-1 in their last seven state tournament games, the defending state champions will take a

 DES MOINES (July 24) -- Perhaps sophomore Brett Sears said it best following Harlan Community’s 10-2 substate win over Denison-Schleswig last Wednesday. “We can kind of relax now, have a little fun and try to go do what we do at state,” said Sears, a third-year starter who has yet to end a varsity baseball season in anything but the 3-A state championship game. HCHS returns to the State Baseball Tournament in Des Moines this week for the seve

 PORTSMOUTH -- A 70th anniversary reunion of Iowa Western Baseball League Old-Timers will take place during the St. Mary’s Portsmouth Picnic on Sunday, July 30, in conjunction with the IWL Tournament championship game. The Old Timers include players who have participated in the league between 1947 and 2017. Old-Timer registration will start at 12:30 p.m.

 STATE -- Harlan Community junior Keaton Jones and AHSTW senior Preslyn Grobe both received honorable mention All-State recognition in June from the Iowa High School Soccer Coaches Association following outstanding 2017 seasons for the Cyclones and Vikings, respectively. Jones, a junior goalie, was named to the Class 2-A honorable mention list after helping the Cyclones finish 15-3 overall this past season (a school record for wins) and finish

 STATE -- Four members of the 2017 Harlan Community boys soccer team were named to the Iowa High School Soccer Coaches Association’s 2017 Academic All-State teams in June. The list includes two first-team selections and two second-team selections in Class 2-A. Junior midfielder Drew Voge and senior defender Alan Holloway were both named to the first team while senior defender Wren Koch and senior forward Jacob Henry earned second-team honors.

 HARLAN -- For the Harlan Community baseball team, the pressure of getting back to the state tournament reached a nerve-wracking crescendo at the halfway point of Wednesday’s Class 3-A, Substate 8 final against Denison-Schleswig. Facing a team they had soundly defeated by scores of 11-1 and 12-0 during the first half of the regular season, the top-ranked and defending state champion Cyclones suddenly found themselves in a 2-2 scuffle as they c

 HARLAN -- Steve Daeges is in his 24th year as Harlan Community’s head baseball coach, during which time the Cyclones have qualified for state 15 times and won three state titles. To his best recollection, Daeges had never witnessed a postseason no-hitter by one of his pitchers until Joshua Cheek pulled off that very feat here Monday night. Retiring nine straight Greene County batters on two separate occasions, Cheek pitched his first career n

 HARLAN -- The 12U Little Cyclones baseball team from Harlan finished 19-10 this season, capped by a 6-0 state championship performance at the 12U Division II State Tournament the weekend of June 30-July 2.

 HARLAN (July 14) -- The performance wasn’t overly impressive, nor an underachievement.

 COON RAPIDS -- The baseball field in Coon Rapids is a beautiful, fan-friendly venue and a yearly host site for Class 1-A district and substate games.

 AVOCA -- Four golfers from Harlan took first-place honors in the Championship Flight of the Avoca Ladies Invitational Golf Tournament on June 21 by shooting a 67. Taking second-place honors was a team from Avoca which also shot a 67.

 COUNCIL BLUFFS -- The Harlan Community baseball team wrapped up a highly-successful regular season Wednesday night with a 15-3, five-inning win at Council Bluffs Thomas Jefferson. Now the real season begins as the top-ranked Cyclones get set to defend their Class 3-A state championship. Winners of 10 straight and 31 of 33 overall, HCHS will open 3-A district play Friday night (July 14) when it hosts Carroll (1-25) at Jim Goeser Field.

 HARLAN -- Ryan Doran went 3-for-3 at the plate and Kyle Schmitz pitched five scoreless innings of relief for his eighth win Tuesday night as Harlan Community downed Des Moines Roosevelt 6-1 in non-conference baseball action. Putting together quality at-bats during the late innings, HCHS scored one run in the fifth and three in the sixth to pull away from the Class 4-A Roughriders (18-20). Connor Bruck opened the three-run sixth with a double

 AUDUBON -- With a potential gauntlet of tough games looming, Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton’s district baseball opener vs.