Safety Education in Shooting Sports

Six members of Lucas and Wayne County Safety Education in Shooting Sports attend 4-H Shooting Sports state match

Six members of the Lucas and Wayne County 4-H Safety Education in Shooting Sports (SESS) attended the 2013 Iowa 4-H Shooting Sports state match at Big Springs Range near Montezuma on September 28.

The disciplines entered were archery, shotgun and smallborne rifle.  Lucas and Wayne Counties were well represented by their youth.

Greg Beard took second place in compound archery senior division.  Travis Hobbs took second place in compound archery intermediate division and third place in shotgun intermediate division.

Chargers take on Winterset Friday, September 27th

Herald Patriot, September 26, 2013
Bill Howes, Associate Editor

The Chariton Charger football team will try to get another win this week when they travel to Winterset to take on the Huskies.

Chariton enters the game at 1-3 and 0-2 in the District while Winterset is 2-2 and 1-1 in the District.  Chariton is coming off a 35-21 homecoming loss to Oskaloosa and Winterset is coming off a 43-12 loss at Carlisle.

Chariton Head Coach Curt Smyser said that Winterset is a lot like Chariton in that they're not super big and they don't have great team speed.

Coach Smyser said that Winterset likes to run the ball and they line up in several different formations including the wildcat formation, double tight, and an I formation.

They like to run the ball right at you.  They're not super big on their offensive line.  They have a couple of good sized kids but they're nothing like Norwalk or Oskaloosa.

Winterset doesn't throw the ball a lot but when they do, their quarterback, Jacob Larson, is pretty accurate.

Chariton will line up in a five-man front and a four-man front defensivley.

Offensively, Chariton will try to run the ball and pick their spots where to throw it.  They will try to run it primarily with tailback Stephen McCurdy and quarterback Christian Bengtson.

Chariton goes into the game healthy with just one player who will be out.  Chasen Blue will be out with a hip injury.

The Chariton freshman team fell to Winterset during a District game on September 26.  The Freshman Chargers battled hard and played better in the second half but came up short, losing by a 49-7 score.
The Chargers gave up three early touchdowns on two punt returns and a fumble recovery.  Winterset lead 35-0 at halftime.  In the second half, Chariton scored their first touchdown since week two when Kobey Riechmann ran it  in from eight yards out to make the score 49-7.
Ethan Downen led the Chargers on defense for the second straight week with eight tackles.

Lady Chargers Volleyball Team Beats Clarke

Herald Patriot, September 26
Bill Howes, Associate Editor

Lady Charger Volleyball Team Plays Well in 3-0 Road Win at Clarke on September 24

The Lady Charger volleyball team got another win with a 3.0 win over Clarke at Osceola September 24th.  The scores of the match were 25-18, 25-16 and 25-16.

It was the second win  in two nights for Chariton, who improved to 9-6 overall and 1-1 in the conference.

In serving, Chariton went 66-72 with four aces.  Emma Fuhs went 28-28 with two aces and Taylor Tuley went 15-16 with two aces.  Kourtney Nichols went 11-12.  Alexis Curran went 5-6 and Emily Grismore went 4-5.  Allyson Showers went 3.5.

In hitting, Chariton went 92-109 with 35 kills.  Showers went 20-23 with eight kills.

Emily Seuferer went 16-18 with six kills.  Tuley went 14-15 with six kills.  Micaela Folkerts went 9-11 with one kill.

Chariton had 27 assists as a team.  Nichols had 20 and Grismore had five.  Folkerts and Tuley each had one.  Showers, Tuley, Curran and Nichols had eight digs apiece.  Fuhs had four and Folkerts had two.  Grismore had one.

In blocking, Tuley had two blocks solo and one block assist.  Seuferer had two blocks solo and Fuhs had two block assists.  Showers had one block solo and Folkerts had one block assist.

9th Volleyball team beats Clarke
The Chariton freshman volleyball team picked up a couple of wins against Twin Cedars and Clarke the past two nights, September 23rd and 24th.
On Monday night, they beat Twin Cedars, 2-0, with the scores of the match being 21-11 and 21-18.
Kendall Hardie was the leading server going 10-12.  Carlie Shaeffer went 7-8.
On Tuesday night, Chariton won at Clarke, 2-1.  The Chargers won the first game 21-19 while Clarke won the second game, 14-21.
Chariton won the deciding game 15-11.  Ashley Storm was the leading server going 13-13.  Schaeffer went 10-12.
The freshman girls are now 4-4 on the season. 

Varsity and JV Volleyball Teams Sweep Twin Cedars

Herald-Patriot, September 26, 2013
Bill Howes, Associate Editor

The Lady Charger volleyball team was back in action again at Twin Cedars on September 23rd and came away with a 3-0 win.  The scores of the game were 27-25, 25-16 and 25-23.

In serving, Chariton went 63-73 with eight aces.  Emma Fuhs went 20-20 with one ace.  Kourtney Nichols went 13-15 with one ace.  Allyson Showers went 10-11 with one ace.  Emily Grismore went 7-9 with two aces and Alexis Curran went 6-10 with three aces.

In hitting, Chariton went 85-117 with 31 kills.  Emily Seufere went 18-20 with 10 kills.  Taylor Tuley went 17-20 with four kills.  Showers went 15-18 with seven kills.  Micaela Folkerts went 7-8 with one kill and Cassie Carpenter went 3-3 with one kill.

As a team Chariton had 27 assists.  Nichols led the team with 17.  Grismore had five and Folkerts had three.  Tuley and Showers each had one.

Chariton had 37 digs as a team.   Curran led the team with 10 and Fuhs and Nichols had eight apiece.  Tuley had seven digs.  Showers and Folkerts each had two.  

In blocking, Tuley had two blocks solo and one block assist.  Fuhs had two block assists.  Seuferer and Carpenter each had one block solo and Folkerts had one block assist.

JV Volley Ball Team

JV girls net team beats Twin Cedars.  Good hitting and serving helped lift the Chariton JV Volleyball team to a 2-0 win at Twin Cedars on September 23rd.  The scores of the match were 21-10 and 21-10.

In serving, Chariton went 33-38 with seven aces.  Linday Black went 10-10 with two aces.  Kendall Hardie went 7-8 with three aces.  Meredith Davis went 6-7 with one ace.  Carley Arnold went 4-5 with one ace.  Madison Baker went 3-3 and Mackenzie Welch went 2-2.  Sarah Fuhs went 1-3.  

In hitting, Chariton went 16-19 with 12 kills.  Hardie went 6-6 with five kills.  Davis went 4-5 with three kills.  Arnold went 3-3 with two kills and Ryley Heffron went 2-4 with two kills.  Fuhs went 1-1.

Chariton had nine assists as a team.  Davis led the team with six.  Hardie had two and Arnold had one.  Arnold led the team in blocks with two and Hardie had one.

Albia Invitational X-C Meet

Herald-Patriot
Bill Howes, Associate Editor

Blong Places 16th, Summerfield 17th at Albia Invitational Cross Country Meet

The Chariton girls cross country team traveled to Albia for a cross country meet Sept 23rd.  Chariton had two girls, Maria Blong and Allison Summerfield place in the top 20 and as a team the Lady Chargers placed fourth out of six teams with 112 points.

In Varsity action, Blong placed 16th overall in 18:48 and Summerfield placed 17th in 18:59.  Madison Showers placed 22nd in 19:45 and Victoria Zinchenko placed 26th in 20:39.  Ashley Batty placed 31st in 21:48 and Kya Wheeler placed 33rd in 22:27.  Sydney McNeeley placed 36th in 23:11.

Varsity team standings, Pekin finished first with 21 points.  Albia was second with 63 and Centerville was third with 73.  Wayne was fifth with 122.  Twin Cedars and Mormon Trail each didn't register a team score.

In JV action, Karoline Dittmer placed 13th overall in 25:27.  Abby Ballard placed 14th in 26:18 and Mikaela Plank placed 16th in 27:17.  Shantie Chance placed 18th in 30:31.  Those who didn't run for Chariton were Leta Etter, Chesirae Burns, Mikayla Keith, Justine Hamilton Lynette Christ, Ayrin Alexander and Jenny Roach.

Homecoming loss to Oskaloosa

Chariton Leader, September 24
Bill Howes, Associate Editor

Turnovers hurt Chargers in homecoming loss to Oskaloosa

Three first half interceptions and a touchdown called back by penalty greatly hurt the Chariton Chargers in their bid for a homecoming win against Oskaloosa on September 20th.  The Indians converted two of the interceptions into scores and built a 21-7 halftime lead.  Oskaloosa scored twice more in the second half while Chariton scored two fourth quarter touchdowns in a 35-21 loss.

Senior quarterback Christian Bengtson, who was crowned homecoming king earlier in the day, had a tough first half throwing the three picks.  While trailing just 7-0, Bengtson threw what was an apparent 85 yard touchdown to right end TJ Hockenson that was called back by an illegal block in the back penalty.

Bengtson played better in the second half and rushed for a 17 yard touchdown and threw for a 15 yard touchdown to Hockenson in the fourth quarter.  Hockenson had an outstanding receiving game with seven catches for 189 yards and a touchdown.

JV Football Team Falls to Oskaloosa

Despite a valiant effort, the Chariton JV football team came up short in a 40-0 loss at Oskaloosa. 

The Indians scored twice in the first quarter and led 14-0 after one quarter and 20-0 at halftime.  Oskaloosa scored twice more in the third to increase their lead to 34-0.  The Indians scored once more in the fourth.

One bright spot for Chariton is that they didn't have many penalties.  Chariton was penalized just once for five yards.  Oskaloosa was penalized twice for 10 yards.  Chariton had five first downs and Oskaloosa had eight.  Chariton had 142 total yards on the night and Oskaloosa had 320.

The Chargers had 80 yards passing and the Indians had 63.  Chariton had 62 yards rushing on 25 carries.  Oskaloosa had 257 yards rushing on 34 carries.  The Chargers had three turnovers and Oskaloosa had none.

In rushing, Aaron Cain had 32 yards on eight carries.  Dillon Sanders had 18 yards on 14 carries.  Jacob Jones had 13 yards on three carries.

At quarterback, Cain went 3-10 for 80 yards with one interception.  Charlie Palmer had two catches for 16 yards and Sanders had one each for 54.

Defensively, Palmer had five solo tackles, one assist and one tackle for a loss.  Sanders had two solo tackles and four assists.  Nick McDaniel had four assists.  Daniel Ilyenko had three solo tackles and two assists.  Chris Wright had two solo tackles, two assists and one tackle for a loss.  Kaleb Thorne had three solo tackles and one assist.

Timofey Timofeyev had one solo tackle and two tackles for a loss.  Joe McCurdy had one solo tackle and two assists.  Cody Stevenson had one solo tackle, one assist and one tackle for a loss.  Vadim Garguzov had one solo tackle and one assist.  Eduard Rodygin had one solo tackle and Aaron Cain, Keith Trusty and Ethan Curnutte each had one assist.

Schroeder Earns First Varsity Letter at Central

Chariton 9th Volleyball Team competes at Eddyville Round Robin

The freshman girls competed at the Eddyville Round Robin Tournament September 17th.  In their first match against Albia, Chariton lost 2-0 with the scores being 11-21 and 12-21.

In their second match against Clarke, Chariton lost 2-1.  The Chargers won the first game, 2-18.  They fell in a close second game, 16-21, but lost the deciding game, 5-6.

In their third match against Centerville, Chariton lost 2-0  The scores of the match were 16-21 and 11-21.

"The girls started off slow, but improved as the night went along.  They really came together as a team as injuries throughout the night made us adjust to several changes.  I was impressed with the whole team effort and how the team stepped up to the challenge," Chariton Freshman Head Coach Shannon Page said.

8th Grade Boys Football team Loses to Knoxville

Bill Howes, Associated Editor, Chariton Newspapers

A slow start hurt the Chariton eighth grade football team in a 32-0 loss to Knoxville at Chariton on September 17th.  The Panthers scored all of their points in the first half and the Chargers showed improvement defensively in the second half.  With the loss, Chariton is now 0-2 overall.  A slow start and turnovers hurt the Chargers.  

Hunter Neer led the team in rushing with 22 yards on seven carries.  Dustin Bach had 20 yards on three carries.  At quarterback, Tyler Anderson had seven completions for 52 yards.  Neer had one completion for eight yards.  Isaiah Tuigong had three catches for 29 yards.  Neer had three catches for 29 yards.  Tommy Sommers had one catch for four yards.

Defensively, Sommers had a great game with nine tackles and a forced fumble.  Bach had five tackles and a fumble recovery.  Jade Spencer, Kurt Showers and Neer had three tackles apiece.  Dylin Harberts and Tuigong each had two tackles.  Anderson, Isaiah Zoutte and Connor Lundy each had one tackle.

Chariton Cross Country Teams at Oskaloosa Invitational

Chariton Leader September 24

Bill Howes, Associate Editor

Showers, Blong lead Chariton Girls X-C team at Oskaloosa Invitational

The Chariton girls cross country team continued to show improvement at the Edmondson Park course at Oskaloosa September 17th.  Their was a slight drizzle during the varsity girls race and the Lady Chargers placed ninth overall out of 12 teams with 240 points.  

In varsity action, Madison Showers led Chariton placing 37th overall in 19:03.26.  Maria Blong placed 43rd overall in 19:34.90 and Allison Summerfield placed 50th in 20:24.67.  Victoria Zinchenko placed 54th in 21:08.02.  Jenny Roach placed 56th in 21:34.47 and Kya Wheeler placed 59th in 21:55.69.  Ashley Batty placed 60th in 22:31.51.

The Chariton JV team finished fifth overall with 148 points.  In JV action, Sydney McNeeley led Chariton placing 25th overall in 22:23.71.  Karoline Dittmer placed 29th overall in 26:12.24.  Abby Ballard placed 30th in 26:25.53 and Lynette Christ placed 31st in 27:12.75.  Mikaela Plank placed 33rd in 28:29 and Chesirae Burns placed 34th in 29:03.02.  Shantie Chance placed 35th in 31:54.01.  Leta Etter and Mikayla Keith didn't run for Chariton.

Williamsburg won the varsity team standings with 41 points.  Oskaloosa was second with 57 and Newton was third with 89.  Fairfield was fourth with 90 and Ottumwa was fifth with 104.  Albia was sixth with 155 and Centerville was seventh with 195.  Pella Christian was eighth with 232.  Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont, Knoxville and Twin Cedars each didn't register a team score.

Adams leads Charger Boys at Osky Meet

The Chariton boys cross country team competed at the Oskaloosa Invitation at Edmondson Park in Oskaloosa, Sept. 17th. Chariton placed 11th out of 12 teams with 285 points.

In varisty action, Sam Adams led Chariton placing 48th overall in 19:57. Max Covington placed 55th in 20:41 and Noah Thatchter placed 58th in 21:08. Trevor Steinhausen placed 59th in 21:09. Aaron McDonough placed 65th in 21:45 and Joe Gookin placed 67th in 21:52. Austin Cline placed 70th in 22:21.

In JV action, Jonah Thatcher finished in 21:44. Jacob Sommers finised in 23:47.

Williamsburg won the varsity boys team standings with 46 points. Oskaloosa finished second with 54 and Albia was third with 102. Newton was fourth with 109 and Knoxville was fifth with 115. Ottumwa was sixth with 130. Pella-Christian was seventh with 196. Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont was eighth with 235 and Fairfield was ninth with 251. Centerville was 10th with 264. Twin Cedars finished 12th and didn't register a team score.

CMS Teams Run at Osky
The Chariton Middle School cross country team began their season at the Oskaloosa Invitational at Edmundson Park, Sept. 17th.
The 1.6 mile course was marked out and featured a series of difficult hills.    Official times and scoring were not kept because of a scoring system malfunction.  The following times are recorded as hand times.
Alex Dobryden led the Chariton boys finishing in a time of 10:46.  Jamie Overton finished in 10:58.  Gideon Plank finished in 12:03 and Will Exline finished in 12:10.  Bradley owens finished in 12:12 and Will Anderson finished in 12:41.  Ben Lahart finished in 12:50 and Peyton Lane finished in 13:15.  Grant Goring finished in 14:45 and Riley Voss finished in 14:53.  Michah Thatcher finished in 15:32.  Aaron Sullenger finished in 17:36 and Harrison Hamilton finished in 23:12.
Chariton Girls at Osky
Abby Adams led the Chariton girls finishing in 14:07.  Maryna Dobryden finished in 14:09 and Ali Goldensoph finished in 14:42.  Taheton Decker finished in 15:18 and Sami Vancenbrock finished in 17:07.

CHS Volleyball teams Chariton Invitational

Chariton Leader, September 17, 2013

Bill Howes, Associate Editor

Varsity Net Team Goes 2-2 at Home Tourney

The Lady Chargers volleyball team hosted the Chariton Invitational this on September 14th.  Chariton went 2-2 on the day and beat Southeast Warren twice and played tough in matches against North Mahaska and Davis County.
Chariton lost their first match to North Mahaska, 2-1.  They won the first game, 21-17 and lost the second one, 16-21 and the deciding game, 7-15.  In their second match, Chariton beat Southeast Warren, 21-10 and 21-12.  In the third Match Chariton faced Davis County and lost two close games, 21-13 and 21-18.  In their final match, Chariton beat Southeast Warren, 25-12 and 25-23.
In serving, Chariton went 142-161 with 25 aces.  Kourtney Nichols went 35-36 with two aces.  Emma Fuhs went 32-24 with five aces.  Taylor Tuley went 20-24 with four aces.  Emily Grismore went 18-20 with six aces and Brittany White went 18-20 with three aces.  Alexis Curran went 12-17 with five aces.
In hitting, Chariton went 159-180 with 58 kills.  Fuhs went 44-46 with 21 kills.  Emil Seuferer went 31-34 with 13 kills.  Tuley went 24-40 with 12 kills.  Allyson Showers went 19-22 with two kills.  Curran went 14-19 with four kills.  Cassie Carpenter went 5-7 with one kill.
Chariton had 50 assists as a team.  Nichols led the team with 30.  Grismore had 13 and Fuhs and Micaela Folkerts had three apiece.  Carpenter and Curran each had one.
Chariton had 107 digs as a team.  Fuhs had 26 digs and Tuley had 25.  Curran had 20 and Nichols had 15.  White had eight and Grismore had seven.
In blocking, Fuhs had four blocks solo and three block assists.  Seuferer had three blocks solo and one block assist.  Tuley and Showers each had two blocks solo.  Folkerts had two block assists and Carpenter had one block solo.

Chariton Herald-Patriot, September 19, 2013

Bill Howes, Associate Editor

The Chariton JV volleyball team did very well, advancing to the championship match and finishing second at the Chariton Invitational September 14th.  Chariton went 3-0 in pool play in the JV Tournament to advance to the finals where they fell to North Mahaska JV, 2-1.

In their first pool play match, Chariton beat Davis County JV, 2-1.  The scores of the matches were 21-19, 21-23 and 15-7.  In the second pool play match, Chariton beat East Union JV, 2-0.  The scores of the matches were 21-4 and 21-11.  In the third pool play match, Chariton beat Wayne JV, 2-0, with the scores being 21-13 and 21-10.

The championship match against North Mahaska JV was very competitive.  North Mahaska won the first game, 22,20.  Chariton came back to win the second game, 21-12, to even the match at one apiece.  North Mahaska won the deciding game, 15-7, to take the championship.

In the JV Tournament, Davis County was third and Albia was fourth. Southeast Warren was fifth and East Union was sixth.  Wayne placed seventh.

Chargers Lose in District Play at Norwalk

From the Chariton Leader September 17, 2013
Bill Howes, Axxociate Editor

Chargers play great first half in District loss at Norwalk

After a marvelous first half where Chariton played toe to toe with a very good Norwalk football team, things didn't go quite as well in the second half in a 35-12 loss at Norwalk on September 13th.
The Chargers held the Warriors to just seven first half points and almost tied the game up at 7-7 when tight end T.J. Hockenson was tackled a half yard short of the goal line as time ran out in the first half.
The game was the District opener for both teams as Chariton fell to 0-1 in District play and 1-2 overall.  Chariton had a good game plan going in and was able to run the ball and control the clock in the first half.  Their defense shut down Norwalk too except for the opening drive and it was an even game for 24 minutes.
Early mistakes cost the Chargers in the second half.  Chariton received the opeining kickoff to start the second half.  An illegal block in the back penalty on the Chargers moved the ball back to their own eight-yard line.  On a third and six play form the 19, Bengtson dropped back to pass and his trow was picked off by the Warriors.  A holding penalty on Chariton was declined and the Warriors started from Chariton's 15 yard line.  The very first play of the drive, Cowie ran up the middle fro a touchdown.  Obley's extra point was good to give the Warriors a 14-0 lead.
The Charger's moved the ball down for another score in the final minute of the game.  Bengtson competed a pass to Hockenson to the Norwalk 46 and an 18 yard pass to Ben Kinonen to the 28 for another first down.  He completed a pass to Laing to the 15 for another first down.  Facing a third and 10 at the 15 with 10 seconds left,  Bengtson completed a pass to Hockenson for a touchdown.  The extra point was blocked to keep the score at 35-12 with six seconds left.

Chariton JV Football Team Loses to Norwalk.

Dillon Sanders rushes for 224 Yards in game against Norwalk.  Too many mistakes plagued the Chariton JV football team in this loss to Norwalk at Chariton September 16th.  The Chargers lost despite a banner night rushing by Dillon Sanders.  With the loss Chariton is now 1-1 on the season.

Norwalk scored twice in the first quarter to take a 14-0 lead.  The Warriors added one more touchdown in the second to take a 21-0 lead into halftime.  Norwalk scored once more in the third to lead 28-0 heading into the fourth.  Chariton got on the board in the fourth with a six-yard scoring pass from Aaron Cain to Bradley Krutsinger.

Despite the loss, Chariton had better stats than Norwalk.  The Chargers had 13 first downs to four for the Warriors.  Chariton also outgained Norwalk, 281-197, in total yards.  Chariotn had 36 yards passing and Norwalk had 104.  The Chargers rushed for a shopping 245 yards on 40 carries and Norwalk rushed for 93 yards on 22 carries.

Each team committed one turnover.  Chariton was penalized 11 times for 83 yards and Norwalk was penalized four times for 30 yards.

Individually, Krutsinger had 40 yards rushing on three carries.  Nic Ryan had 10 yards on five carries and cain had nine yars on four carries.

At quarterback, Cain went 4-17 for 36 yards with one touchdown and one interception.  Sanders had one catch for 21 yards and Charlie Palmer had one catch for 11.  Krutsinger had one catch for six yards and Ryan had one catch for minus two yards.

Defensively, Chris Wright had two solo tackles and four assists.  Daniel Ilyenko had two solo tackles and four assists.  Nick McDaniel had two solo tackles, three assists and one fumble recovery.  Ryan had one solo tackle, four assists and one tackle for a loss.  Kaleb Thorne had two solo tackle and one assist.  Palmer had one solo tackle and one assist.  Krutsinger had one solo tackle and one sack..  Cain had one solo tackle and one assist.

Long had one assist and Stevenson  had one solo.  Evan Havick had one solo.  Ethan Currnutte had one solo, and Hunter Miller had one solo.

9th Chargers Football Team Falls to Norwalk

The Chariton freshman football team lost to Norwalk, 53-0, in their District opener at Norwalk September 13th.

Chariton stayed close with Norwalk in the first quarter, trailing just 12-0 after one period.  The Warriors capitalized on a few turnovers and special team mistakes and extended their lead to 33-0 at halftime.

Blake Poush led the Chargers ofensively rushing for 53 yards on 23 carries.  Defensively, Chariton's main bright spot came on a second quarter interception by Ryan Hamilton.  Max Dale led the Chargers in tackles with five solo tackles.

Chargers lose to Creston, 50-20 -- JV Won, 24-12 and 8th lose, 35-14

by Bill Howes, Associate Editor
Chariton Herald-Patriot

Chariton 20  Creston  50

On a hot and sweaty late summer night, the Chariton Charger football team began their season with a 50-20 loss to Creston at Reynolds Field in Chariton August 30th.  The Chargers had an early 7-0 lead following a 65 yard punt return for a touchdown by Stephen McCurdy and Chariton trailed just 13-7 at halftime.  However Creston's superior depth especially along the defensive line wore Chariton down in the second half to help the Panthers get the convincing win.

Chariton suffered a big injury as starting senior quarterback Christian Bengtson was on the receiving end of a helmet to helmet hit and went down with 8:19 left in the third quarter.  Bengtson was knocked completely out for awhile after it happened.  There was no penalty called on the play and Bengtson suffered a concussion and will be out for this week's game at Ft. Madison.

The lack of a call on the helmet-to-helmet play involving Bengtson was one of a number of bad calls that went against Chariton on the night.  Another occurred late in the second quarter with Chariton holding a 7-6 lead.  Creston was driving and their quarterback, Brandon Phipps, threw what was an apparent touchdown pass to Alex Nielsen from the Charger 13 yard line.  However, Chariton Head Coach Curt Smyser said that after watching the play on film that the pass was actually dropped and wasn't a touchdown and shouldn't have counted.

Another questionable call came in the third quarter shortly after Storm replaced Bengtson.  On a third and 16 play from the Charger 20, Storm ran with the ball and after he was down, fumbled it and Creston's Maxx Walters picked it up and ran it in for a 26 yard touchdown.  The score shouldn't have counted but the referees didn't call it back and it stood, giving the Panthers a 26-7 lead at the time.

Backup Quinn Storm came in to replace Bengtson and did well in relief going 10-15 for 238 yards and two touchdowns and one interception.  Chariton was trailing 18-7 when Bengtson went out.  Before he went out, Bengtson was 1-2 for 10 yards on the night.  Storm will start this week's game at Ft. Madison.

Chariton JV  24   Creston 12

The Chartion JV boys won their opener in convincing fashion with a 24-12 win at Creston on September 3rd.  Dillon Sanders had a great night rushing for 147 yards on 20 carries and three touchdowns.  Nic Ryan had a 97 yard kickoff return that really sealed the win for Chariton.

"The kids played great for the first game of the year.  Most of the kids had to play both ways all night and they really gave it everything.  Defensively, we gave up lots of yards but made some big stops when it counted.  It was a good way to start the year.  Dillon had an outstanding night running the ball.  He has a great ability to find the hole and explode through it" Chariton JV Head Coach Josh Snook said.

After a scoreless first quarter, Chariton scored once in the second period and led 6-0 at halftime.  Each team scored once in the third and the Chargers led 12-6 heading into the final quarter.  The Chargers outscored the Panthers, 12-6, in the fourth to get the win.

Chariton 8th Grade Lose to Creston
The Chariton eighth grade football team lost their season opener at Creston, 35-14, September 12th.  The Charters committed six turnovers in the first half, which put them in a big hole that they couldn't get out of.  Quarterback Tyler Anderson completed six passes for 113 yards and two touchdowns.  Tommy Sommers had two catches for 59 yards and a touchdown.  Hunter Neer had two catches for 27 yards and a touchdown.  Isaiah Tuigong had two catches for 37 yards.  In rushing, Neer had 15 yards on 10 carries.  Dustin Bach had 10 yards on four carries.  Sommers had five yards on eight carries.  Dylin Harberts had two yards on three carries.  Defensively, Harberts had three tackles and a fumble recover.  Neer, Anderson, Bach and Sommers had three tackles apiece.  Skylar Trusty and Tuigong had two tackles apiece.

Chariton 7th Grade fall to Creston
The Chariton football team began their season with a 43-6 loss to Creston at Chariton September 12th.  Chariton's only touchdown came on a two-yard run by Adrian Hill.  Hill led the team in rushing with 62 yards on 10 carries.
Nathan Blong rushed for 36 yards on 11 carries.  At quarterback, Jackson Fisher went 0-3 for zero yards.
Defensively, Blong led the team in tackles with seven.  Reid Walters and Hill had three apiece.  Hunter Clark, Hunter Cobb, Jimmy Graham, Noah Weaver and Fisher each had two tackles.  Brodey Johnson and Sawyer Cline each had one.
Chariton 7th Grade "B" Game
Creston also won the "B" game, 13-6.  Brodey Johnson scored the lone touchdown for Chariton in this game on a four-yard run.  Tanner Nance had a fumble recover.

Fairfield Cross Country Invitational

Chariton Leader, September 17, 2013
Bill Howes, Associate Editor

Charger runners place fifth at Fairfield Invitational

The Charger boys cross country team continued its improvement at the Fairfield Invitational, Sep. 12th.  Chariton had three runners place in the top 30 and the Chargers placed fifth overall with 150 points.

Sam Adams led Chariton placing 25th overall in 19:31.  Max Covington placed 26th in 19:35 and Joe Gookin placed 29th in 20:19.  Trevor Steinhausen placed 34th in 20:41.  Aaron McDonough placed 36th in 20:47.  Noah Thatcher placed 17th in 20:56.  Austin Cline placed 40th in 21:04.

In JV action, Jonah Thatcher placed 26th in 21:56.  Jacob Sommers placed 40th in 23:02.

Ft. Madison won the varsity boys' team standings with 28 points.  Mt. Pleasant was second with 50 and Ottumwa was third with 61.  Fairfield was fourth with 140.  Washington was sixth with 165.  Burlington-Notre Dame and Central Lee each didn't register a team score.

Showers Places 22nd, Charger Girls Place Sixth at Fairfield X-C Invitational

The Chariton girls cross country team continued to improve with a good showing at the Fairfield Invitational Sept. 12th.
Chariton placed sixth out of nine teams in a very tough field with 167 points.  Chariton's top finisher in varsity competition was Madison Showers, who placed 22nd overall in 18:28.
Maria Blong placed 34th in 20:05 and Allison Summerfield placed 26th in 21:05.  Victoria Zinchenko placed 37th in 21:06 and Jenny Roach placed 38th in 21:30.  Sydney McNeeley placed 42nd in 22:27 and Kya Wheeler placed 43rd in 23:22.
Mt Pleasant won the varsity girls' team standings with 36 points.  Ft. Madison was second with 56 and Fairfield was third with 62.  Ottumwa was fourth with 77 and Washington was fifth with 165.  Central Lee was seventh with 186.  Burlington Notre Dame and Burlington each didn't register a team score.

In JV competition, Abby Ballard led Chariton placing 50th overall in 26:23.  Karoline Dittmer was 52nd in 27:09.  Mikaela Plank was 53rd in 27:23 and Mikayla Keith was 54th in 28:56.  Chesirae Burns was 55th in 29:17.  Shantie Chance was 57th in 31:30.

The runners who didn't run at the Fairfield meet for Chariton were Ashley Batty, Leta Etter, Justine Hamilton, Lynette Christ and Ayrin Alexander.

Charger Volleyball Teams Fall to Davis County

Chariton Herald Patriot, September 12, 2013
by Bill Howes, Associate Editor

The Lady Charger volleyball team traveled to Bloomfield September 10, for a conference match with Davis County.  Chariton lost the match, 3-0, with the scores being 16-25, 8-25, and 7-25 with the loss, Chariton moved to 5-4 overall.

In serving Chariton went 25-30 as a team with three aces.  Allyson Showers went 9-10 with one ace.  Kourtney Nichols went 6-7 and Emma Fuhs went 5-5 with one ace.  Alexis Curran went 4-4 with one ace.  Emily Grismore went 1-2.

In hitting, Chariton went 50-62 with 12 kills.  Fuhs went 18-20 with four kills.  Showers went 12-15 with three kills.  Emily Seuferer went 10-12 with three kills and Taylor Tuley went 8-10 with two kills.

As a team, Chariton had 23 digs.  Fuhs led the team with seven and Showers had five.  Tuley had three and Micaela Folkerts had two.  Nichols and Grismore each had five assists.

JV Net Team Falls At Davis County
The Chariton JV Volleyball team played a tough match but came up short against Davis County at Bloomfield Tuesday night, September 10th.  Chariton won the first game, 25-22, and lost the second game, 17-25 and the deciding game, 13-15.
"Despite the loss, we played really hard.  Our serving was good and our blocking was much improved.  We just didn't finish." Chariton JV Head Coach Deb Seuferer said.
In serving, Chariton went 51-55 with seven aces.  Carley Arnold went 11-12 with two aces.  Lindsay Black went 11-11 with two aces.  Sarah Fuhs went 10-10 with two aces.  Carley Arnold went 11-12 with two aces.  Meredith Davis went 7-9 with two aces.  Kendall Hardie and Mackenzie Welch each went 6-7.
In attacks, Chariton went 37-49 with 17 kills.  Davis went 18-20 with nine kills.  Hardie went   9 -12 with six kills.  Arnold went 5-6 with one kill and Fuhs went 4-6.  Welch went 1-1 with one kill.  Ryley Heffron and Lindsay Black each went 0-1.  Victoria Giesken went 0-2.
Chariton had 15 assists as a team.  Hardie had eight and Davis had six.  Fuhs had one.  Chariton had eight digs as a team.  Hardie and Arnold had three apiece.  Fuhs had two digs.
Chariton had 10 blocks as a team.  Heffron led the team with three and Davis, Arnold and Giesken each had two.  Hardie had one.

9th Volley Ball Team Falls to Davis County
The Chariton freshman volleyball team lost to Davis County, 2-0, at Bloomfield September 10th.  The scores of the match were 6-25 and 8-25.
"We couldn't pass the ball and when you can't pass, you aren't going to be successful," Chariton Head Coach Shannon Page said.

Pekin Invitational Cross Country Competition

Adams Places 13th at Pekin Invite

Chariton Leader, September 17th

Bill Howes, Associate Editor

Charger Boys Place Fourth at Meet

The Chariton boys cross country team ran at the Pekin Invitational September 10th.  Chariton had two top 20 finishers including Sam Adams and Max Covington.  Adams led the Chargers placing 13th overall in 18:32 and Covington was 18th in 19:02.  

Joe Gookin placed 23rd for Chariton in 19:31.  Noah Thatcher was 27th in 20:02.  Trevor Steinhausen was 28th in 20:04 and Jonah Thatcher was 32nd in 20:14.  Aaron McDonough placed 33rd in 20:18 and Austin Cline was 37th in 20:39.  Jacob Sommers was 56th in 22:41.

Albia won the boys' team standings with 21 points.  Pekin was second with 35  and Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont was third with 80.  Southeast Warren was fifth with 175.  Colfax-Mingo was sixth with 217.  Pleasantville was seventh with 238 and Twin Cedars was eighth with 30.

Showers Places 16th, Blong 18th at Pekin Meet

The Chariton girls cross country team traveled to Lake Keomish for the Pekin Invitational on September 10th.  Chariton placed fourth out of eight teams with 138. points.  Chariton's top two finishers placed in the top 20 with Madison Showers placing 16th in 18:26 and Maria Blong placing 18th in 18:43.
The meet was a combined meet where JV wasn't separated from varsity.  Victoria Zinchenko placed 32nd overall in 20:35 and Allison Summerfield placed 34th in 20:41.  Ashley Batty placed 38th in 21:26.  Jenny Roach placed 42nd in 21:59 and Kya Wheeler placed 45th in 22:51.  Sydney McNeeley placed 46th in 22:55.
Abby Ballard placed 57th in 25:34.  Lynette Christ placed 58th in 25:41.  Karoline Dittmer placed 61st in 26:04 and Mikaela Plank placed 62nd in 26:28.  Chesirae Burns placed 65th in 27:52 and Shantie Chance placed 67th in 31:17.  Leta Etter, Mikayla Keith, Justine Hamilton and Ayrin Alexander didn't run in the meet.
Host Pekin won the meet with a score of 28.  Colfax Mingo was second with 71.  Albia was third with 114 and Pleasantville was fifth with 211.  Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont, Southeast Warren and Twin Cedars didn't register a team score.

Chargers win over Ft. Madison

Fabulous second half lifts Chargers to win over Ft. Madison.

A magnificent all around effort propelled the Chariton varsity football team to a thrilling 21-14 win at Ft. Madison September 6th.  Trailing 7-0 at halftime, the Chargers played outstanding defense and received a great performance from starting quarterback Christian Bengtson to outscore the Bloodhounds 21-7 in the second half and got the win.  A late interception by linebacker T.J. Hockenson in the second half helped seal the win.

Chariton received outstanding defensive performances from a host of players including defensive ends, Pavel Garguzov and Connor Grgurich, linebackers Tyler Nance and Zach McElroy and cornerback Daric Laing.
"The second half was great and was the best half of football we've played in a long time.  There were no penalties and everything was just really good.  It was probably the best game Pavel's ever played.  He and Connor played really well and Tyler Connor played really well and Tyler and Zach were our leading tacklers.  Daric covered their 6'4" receiver.  Wesley Bernhardt, very well.  He didn't give up any deep balls and provided great coverage on him all night,"  said Chariton Head Coach Curt Smyser.
"Christian got cleared to play on Friday and we didn't think we'd play him.  It was a whole momentum changer putting him in the game.  He was a great leader and had a great second half.  Quin did all right as the starter and gave a good effort.  We blocked better up front in the game and didn't give up a sack.  We also had better offensive balance in this game with 135 yards rushing and 115 yards passing, " Coach Smyser said.
With 55 seconds left, Ft. Madison faced a fourth and 24 at their own 31.  They went for it and Fedler completed a pass to Logan Huffman down the right sideline to the Charger 37.  With 47 seconds left the Bloodhounds spiked it to stop the clock.  Fedler went to the air again and the Chargers made a huge play as Hockenson came up with the interception to stop the drive and ice the game with 21 seconds left and give the Chargers the win.

Charger Freshman Fall at Ft. Madison

The Chariton Charger freshman football team made the long trip to Ft. Madison to face the Bloodhounds Sept. 6th.
The Bloodhounds built a bit early lead en route to a 32-6 victory.  Blake Poush led Chariton offensively rushing for 85 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown.
Ft. Madison jumped out to an earl 18-0 lead until Poush broke a 35-yard touchdown run to pull the Chargers within two scores.
The Bloodhounds scored twice more in the game and held on for the win.
Chariton's defense played tough throughout the majority of the game.  Defensively, the Chargers were led by outside linebacker, Quentyn Pennington, who finished the game with 13 tackles and a fumble recovery.

Wayne X-C meet at Corydon, Boys and Girls, Sep. 5th

Charger Boys Place Third, Steinhausen Medals at Wayne X-C Meet

Chariton Leader September 10, 2013
Bill Howes Associate Editor

The Chariton boys cross-country team began the season in stellar fashion at the Wayne Invitational Sept 5th.  The Chargers placed third overall as a team with 125 points.  Chariton's final team score was 65 points less than last year and a year ago at Wayne, the Chargers finished at the bottom of the team standings.  Chariton also had a varsity medalist as Trevor Steinhausen placed 12th overall in 20:15. The top 15 varsity runners earned medals.

Albia won the varsity boys standings with 38 points.  Davis County was second with 44 and Clarke was fourth with 146.  Central Decatur was fifth with 169.  Centerville was sixth with 172. Pleasantville was seventh with 197 and Southeast Warren was eighth with 199.  Mt Ayr was ninth with 214 and Wayne was 10th with 258.  Bedford, East Union, Lenox, Mormon Trail, Cardinal and Moravia didn't register a team score.  

In the varsity team standings, Joe Gookin placed 21st in 20:47.  Max Covington placed 29th with 22:01.  Noah Thatcher placed 31st in 22:25 and Sam Adams placed 32nd in 22:27.  Austin Cline placed 43rd in 23:16 and Aaron McDonough placed 45th in 23:24.

Charger girls place seventh at Wayne X-C meet

The Chariton girls cross country team began their season at the Wayne Invitational at Corydon on September 3rd.  One highlight was Chariton having two girls, Jenny Roach and Kya Wheeler, medal in the JV race.  

In the varsity standings, Chariton placed seventh overall out of 16 teams with 210 points.  Davis County was first with 55 points and Mt Ayr was second with 101.  Albia was third with 106 and Bedford was fourth with 121.  Centerville was fifth with 147 and Wayne was sixth with 197.

Chariton's top varsity finisher was Maria Blong, who place 28th overall in 20:55.  Allison Summerfield placed 33rd in 21:08.  Victoria Zinchenko place 46th in 22:21 and Sydney McNeeley placed 47th in 22:22.  Ashley Batty placed 56th in 24:05.  Madison Showers did not finish.

Chariton Has Wins and Losses at Knoxville

Chariton Varsity  0   Knoxville  3

The Chariton varsity volleyball team fell to Knoxville, 3-0, at the Charger Dome September 3rd.  The scores were 17-25, 14-25-, and 17-25.

In serving Chariton went 36-44 with four aces.  Kourtney Nichols went 11-1.  Emma Fuhs went 6-6.  Alexis Curran went 6-6 with one ace.  Emily Grismore went 5-9 with three aces.

In hitting, Chariton went 63-79 with 17 kills.  Fuhs went 20-21 with one kill.  Allyson Showers went 15-20 with seven kills.  Taylor Tuley went 11-12 with three kills.  Emily Seuferer went 8-13 with three kills.  Grismore went 3-3 with two kills.

Fuhs and Curran led the team with six digs apiece.  Tuley and Nichols each had four.  In setting, Grismore had seve assists and Nichols had six.

In blocking, Seuferer had two block assists and one block solo, Fuhs had two blocks solo and Micaela Folkerts had two block assists.  Tuley and Cassie Carpenter each had one block assist.

JV Volleyball Team Serves Well in Win over Knoxville
The Chariton JV volleyball team had another impressive win with a 2-0 win over Knoxville at Chariton September 3rd.  The scores of the match were 21-14 and 21-15.  After Chariton won the first two games, the teams played for an additional half hour.
Meredith Davis and Kendall Hardie both had good nights with 13 of the 14 kills.  In serving, Chariton went 68-75 with 19 aces.  This includes the first two games and the extra half hour played.  Davis went 16-16 with five aces.  Lindsay Black went 13-15 with five aces.  Hardie went 17-20 with four aces.  Mackenzie Welch went 6-6 with two aces.  Madison Baker went 4-4 with two aces.  Carley Arnold went 4-5 with one ace.  Alyssa Terrell went 3-3.  Sarah Fuhs went 3-4 and Ryley Heffron went 2-2.  In attacks, Chariton went 25-35 with 14 kills.  Fuhs went 3-4 with one kill.  Black went 1-1, Arnold went 1-3 and Heffron went 1-4.  Welch went 0-1.
Chariton had 14 assists as a team.  Hardie led the team with 8 and Davis had 5.  Black had one.  Fuhs had three digs.  Black and Arnold each had one.  Fuhs had two blocks and Davis had one.

Chariton Freshmen  2    Knoxville  0

The Chariton freshmen volleyball team beat Knoxville September 3rd, 25-16, and 25-19.  Anna Ilyenko went 10-12 in serving and Carlie Schaeffer went 8-8. 

"Tonight the whole team was solid from the serving line, which made the difference in the match.  We still have several areas we need to work on, but I'm very proud of the team and where we're at for the second match of the season," said Head Coach Shannon Page.

Youth Take Part in Trap Shoot

Twenty-six high school and middle school youth participated in a free youth trap shoot sponsored by the Russell Sportsmen's Club and the local Pheasants Forever Chapter on Sept. 1st.

Students received safety instructions and shotgun shooting fundamentals in the new education building at the Club before going to the line to shoot clay targets.  For many, it was their first shooting experience.

Shooting the highest scoring round was Travis Hobbs of Milo.  Second place went to first-time shooter Aaron Sullenger of Chariton.

The next free youth trap shoot will be held Sunday, Oct. 6 at 2 p.m.  All youth middle school through high school are invited.  For more information call Dan at 641-203-5296.