PAGE 4 ? FALL SPORTS 2015 PRESS & DAKOTAN ? PLAIN TALK Volleyball: High-Powered Gazelles Set For Season ROGELIO RODRIGUEZ sports@yankton.net EDITOR’S NOTE: This article originally ran in the Aug. 25 edition of the Press & Dakotan. It has been updated to reflect the ongoing season. Sophie Drotzmann (left) and Becky Frick (center) • Yankton The Yankton Gazelles have their eyes on an improved record. Head coach Tiffany Beste, whose team opens the season tonight (Tuesday) at Brandon Valley, finished 9-12 last season but returns a number of starters who want to turn the corner this year. Last season, the Gazelles lost out to Harrisburg in the 2AA District Championship match with a score of 3-1, and missed out on the state tournament after a loss to Watertown. With last season still fresh in her mind, Beste will be looking to show off the quality of her squad on Sept. 1. With a few weeks of practices already behind YANKTON them, the team is showing their quality and desire to win. Beste has many talented players who are willing to work hard on the court and off of it. There is no lack of commitment on this Gazelle team and there are plenty of experienced players to guide and mentor the younger ones. “I think we have a lot of experience and that is our biggest strength,” said Beste. To help her set an example, Beste will have eight seniors at her disposal, five of whom have seen previous varsity playing time. The five returning varsity seniors are Sophie Drotzmann, Ellie Fedders, Hannah Bockholt, Danielle Salvatori, and Becky Frick. Frick will be the player to watch for the Gazelles this season, and Beste it looking to her to set the example for the rest of the team. “We are really looking for Becky to 8/25 8/27 9/1 9/3 9/8 9/10 9/12 9/22 9/24 9/26 10/1 10/5 10/6 10/13 10/15 10/16 10/19 10/23 10/26 10/27 11/2 11/3 11/7 11/12 11/19-21 Volleyball at Brandon Valley at Watertown vs. S.F. Lincoln at Brookings vs. Harrisburg at Mitchell at Pierre vs. Huron at S.F. Roosevelt vs. Aberdeen Central vs. Mitchell vs. Brookings at Harrisburg vs. Brandon Valley vs. Watertown at Aberdeen Central at S.F. O’Gorman vs. Pierre vs. S.F. Washington at Huron District 2AA Play-In District 2AA Tourn. District 2AA Tourn. Region 1AA Game State Tourn. at Sioux Falls 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 5 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 5 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. ADMIT ONE YHS VB | PAGE 5 YHS Dance Team Aiming High BY DYLAN HUGGINS sports@yankton.net Yankton High School competitive dance coach Tiffany Mueller said her girls have high expectations coming in to the season, after an 11th place finish at the state meet last year. “The girls have been working hard and we hope to place in one of the categories” Mueller said. “Payton Pierce has been in it for four years and has helped the younger girls out a lot on the team.” The dance team has plenty of upperclassmen this year to lead the way. Although Payton Pierce is the only senior out, the juniors had a strong turn out for participants this year including Cheree Becvar, Belle Heine, Elle Hiltunen, Samantha Kanaly, and Abby Rehurek. The sophomores also have multiple participants for dance include Savannah Frick, Taylor Kotschegarow, Piper Mikkelsen, Emily Novak, Maddie Smith, and Leah Waid. Two freshmen are also on the team. Tia Vlasman and Olivia Liebig. Mueller also mentioned that sportsmanship is very important to her as a coach. “I tell the girls that it’s not only important to represent yourself and your school well,” Mueller said. “But to be a good example for the town Cheer Team 2014 Routine • Yankton ‘Crowd Appeal’ A Focus For YHS Cheer mentioned that senior leadership will also be important with her team. “There are three seniors Yankton High School comand two are returning, while petitive cheer coach Kerry Svatos said one of her team’s the other one had an injury goals this season is to do well but has competed in dance before,” Svatos said. with the crowd appeal. “The upper classmen “Crowd appeal makes up a look to set an example and large majority of the scorthe younger ones can watch ing, so we’ll need to do well them and learn.” there,” she said. The Gazelles will rely on “Having high energy, and being able to pick up and go. their senior trio of Dayjia When we make a mistake we Castillo, Laurel Friedenbach, and Alyssa Sealey, as well as need to pick ourselves up their strong junior class that and move on.” features Camille Friedenbach, Svatos, whose Gazelles finished 11th at the Class AA Kaitlin Guthmiller, Nikole Knox, Kennedy Kolbi, Merlye state competition last year, Mason, Rose Ruffinot, Karly Schaa, Emma Stewart, Carly Turner, and Kaitlyn Wiener. Also on the roster are sophomores Kristyn Albrecht, Makenxie Delozier, Taylor Kotschegarow, Abby Kuipers, Brooklyn Maldonado, and Kendall Megard, as well as eighth-graders Trinity Goeman, and Larkyn Mason. The Gazelles’ first competition is the Watertown Invite in Watertown on Sept. 1 at 5:30 p.m. Soccer Benjamin said. The Gazelles went 1-2 in their first three matches, all in ESD play. BY DYLAN HUGGINS sports@yankton.net Dance Team 2014 Jazz Routine • Yankton of Yankton as well.” At last year’s Class AA dance competition, the Gazelles finished 11th overall, highlighted by a seventh-place finish in the Kick division. Yankton’s first event of the season will be on Sept. 1 in Watertown for the Watertown Invite. The event starts at 5:30 p.m. ter. YANKTON Comp. Cheer & Dance 9/1 9/10 9/19 9/22 10/1 10/6 10/10 10/15 10/24 Follow @dhugg23 on Twit- Watertown Inv. 5:30 p.m. Yankton Inv. 5:30 p.m. Brookings Inv. 11 a.m. Huron Inv. 5:30 p.m. O’Gorman Inv. 5:30 p.m. Brandon Valley Inv. 5:30 p.m. Mitchell Inv. 10:30 a.m. ESD (Brandon) 5 p.m. State Final at Brandon 11 a.m. ADMIT ONE Tennis: Young Gazelles Ready For Season BY DYLAN HUGGINS sports@yankton.net EDITOR’S NOTE: This article originally ran in the Aug. 25 edition of the Press & Dakotan. It has been updated to reflect the ongoing season. One senior leads the way for the Yankton Gazelles tennis team, who still have high expectations for this season, according to senior Adrienne Kusek. “We have two returning varsity players. One saw a lot of varsity time and the other was an alternate,” she said. “We have high expectations for ourselves because we set goals and we know what we want to do.” First-year head coach Kim Velk inherits a team that finished 11th at the state tournament last year. Her roster will also include junior Sophie Kouri, as well as sophomores Anne Knoff, TENNIS | PAGE 5 “little things,” according to Luken. “We’ve done a lot of conditioning, more than last year,” FROM PAGE 3 she said. “We’ve done a lot of work on touches, looking for said. “Haleigh Diede got some the open passes on the field.” good playing experience last Schuring expects a dogyear. She’ll have to step up on fight between the top three defense. We got Holly Hicks or four teams in the Eastern to come back out for socSouth Dakota Conference for cer – she’s going to be a great league honors. defensive pickup for us.” “Aberdeen and Pierre are Other seniors on the roster solid, and Watertown brings include Amber Simek, Natalie back a good defensive team,” Ferris and goalkeeper Haley he said. “We bring back good Schild. Other juniors include numbers as well.” Becca Moser, Allyson Hento, Though the team is Madison Styles and Miranda determined to get into the Winterringer. post-season, the focus doesn’t With several new faces – go past tonight’s opener. and old faces who came back “We need to take it one out – for the Gazelles, a lot of game at a time, focus on what work has been put into the we have to do each game,” Velk that our involved in it really make the sport worth it,” Velk said. “They were the ones that brought me out.” Velk mentioned there are things she can take from coaching softball and implement them into tennis. and making sure that the girls understand when we need to work hard and when we can kind of relax a little bit more,” she said. “We need to fight for every ball that we have and make sure that we do the best we can with every serve and every volley.” ter Follow @dhugg23 on Twit- Open Monday-Friday 9am - 5pm Saturday by appointment 1509 E. Hwy 50 • Yankton, SD 605-665-3693 800-658-3388 Hours: Mon-Fri 7:30am-6pm Sat 8am-2pm sturdevants.com K A Kaul’s Ag & Auto, Inc. Your Complete Parts & Service Center 1414 Walnut • Springfield, SD 605-369-5411 Dr. James Torsney MR. Golf Car 822 8th St. Spring?eld, SD Over 300 New and Used E-Z-Go, Star & Yamaha Golf Cars Tabor, SD Lumber Co-op 463-2565 Petro Dept. 463-2251 Lesterville Dept. 364-7522 605-369-2625 Follow @JCimburek on Twitter. “My credit union... It’s Where You Belong!” er vices enter Federal Credit Union Yankton • Springfield Parkston www.scfcu.net Carson Family Dentistry C. Nolan Carson III, DDS, MA Kelsey Pudwill, RDH 707 Chestnut St. Springfield, SD 57062 605-369-2226 Hours: 8am - 5pm Mon - Fri www.mrgolfcar.net FORT RANDALL TELEPHONE CO. CROSBY-JAEGER FUNERAL HOME INC. Avon, SD 119 N. Poplar St. Wagner, SD 124 E. Hwy 50 384-3781 605-563-2863 Bon-Homme, SD Optometrist Springfield, SD 604 8th St. 369-2488 Jim & Julie Jaeger and Chad Peters R. Martin Koch Independent Agent Tyndall • 589-3572 Tabor • 463-2558 Springfield • 369-5520 Yankton • 665-3572 Cell: 660-1629 • marty.koch@kochinsurance.com BON HOMME CAVALIERS 1708 Main Street, Tyndall, SD • 605-589-3406 Bon Homme – Yankton Electrical Association, Inc.Football 8/28 at Miller-Highmore-Harrold (M)7 p.m. A Follow @dhugg23 on Twit- Sophie Kouri • Yankton TABOR Velk Embraces New Coaching Challenge LUMBER BY DYLAN HUGGINS est in tennis “Work ethic is definitely and the girls something we can carry over COOP sports@yankton.net Although she is new to coaching tennis, Kim Velk is not new to being a head coach. Velk, a summer softball coach who takes over the Yankton Gazelles tennis team this season, said those participating in the sport is what made her want to coach the team. “I’ve always had an inter- ter. 9/11 9/18 9/25 10/2 10/9 10/16 10/22 vs. Gregory at Kimball-White Lake (WL) at Menno-Marion (MA) vs. Colman-Egan (HC) at Wolsey-Wessington (WO) vs. Platte-Geddes vs. Canistota Cross Country 8/28 9/1 9/8 9/16 9/19 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. Beresford Inv. 10 a.m. McCook Central-Montrose Inv. 4:15 p.m. Scotland Inv. 4:15 p.m. Flyer Inv. (Freeman) 1 p.m. Wagner Inv. 9 a.m. 9/21 9/26 10/1 10/5 Bon Homme Inv. Platte-Geddes Inv. Cougar Inv. (Burke) SESD (Tyndall) Volleyball 8/25 8/27 9/1 9/8 9/10 9/15 9/17 9/19 9/22 9/24 2 p.m. 10 a.m. 4:15 p.m. 3 p.m. at Winner 6:30 p.m. vs. Avon 6:15 p.m. vs. Andes Central-Dakota Christian 6:15 p.m. at Vermillion 6:15 p.m. vs. Platte-Geddes 6:15 p.m. vs. Tripp-Delmont-Armour 6:15 p.m. at Irene-Wakonda 6:15 p.m. Cavalier Clash (Home) 8:30 a.m. at Wagner 6:15 p.m. at Burke-South Central (Bonesteel) 9/26 9/29 10/1 10/8 10/13 10/15 10/20 10/23 10/24 6:15 p.m. Pentagon Inv. (Sioux Falls) TBA vs. Dakota Valley 6:15 p.m. vs. Menno 6:15 p.m. vs. Freeman 6:15 p.m. at Scotland 6:15 p.m. vs. Corsica-Stickney 6:15 p.m. vs. Parkston 6:15 p.m. vs. Viborg-Hurley (H) 6:15 p.m. SESD (Platte) TBA Competitive Cheer 8/29 9/12 10/3 10/17 10/19 Gregory Inv. Winner Inv. Dakota Valley Inv. Platte-Geddes Inv. Bon Homme Inv. 11 a.m. 11:30 a.m. noon noon 6 p.m. 2015 SEASON PASS • ADMIT ONE • FOLLOW YOUR TEAM AT WWW.YANKTON.NET