JEREMY WALTNER  - PUBLISHER It was the third set of Freeman Academy/Marion’s Region 5B match at Centerville on Monday night and the Bearcats were winning. Players were covering the court, connecting at the net and cheering each other on, smiling through a lead that stood at 9-4, then 12-7, then 15-11. And then? Then it was over.

No. 2 Freeman High School will host No. 3 Irene-Wakonda Thursday night, Nov. 4 in the third and final round of the Region 5B Tournament — with a return trip to the SoDak 16 on the line. The Flyers (18-9) advanced with a 3-1 win over No. 7 Viborg-Hurley (8-20) in the second round of the region tournament in Freeman on Tuesday. Freeman won in four sets, 25-15, 25-18, 15-25, 25-15.  Irene-Wakonda (14-12) earned its spot in Thursday's third round with a 3-1 win over No. 6 Menno (9-15). The Eagles downed the Wolves 25-12, 26-24, 20-25, 25-15.

Freeman Academy/Marion's volleyball team saw it's season come to an end in the opening round of the Region 5B Tournament Monday night, falling to Centerville in straight sets 25-11, 25-18, 25-21. But this season was about far more than a final 4-25 record or the outcome of a postseason match 45 minutes away; it was about optimism, perseverance and growth. And that's what had the coaches in tears following Monday's match in Centerville. Much more about that in this week's Courier, online Wednesday and in print on Thursday.

Canistota/Freeman head coach James Strang said earlier this week that, when his defense is firing on all cylinders, it can play with anybody. The Pride proved on Thursday night just how good that defense can be.

Note: The Courier is making this available to both subscribers and non-subscribers as a courtesy. If you appreciate this type of community journalism, please consider taking out a membership.  

Freeman Academy/Marion turned in another outstanding showing at the 2021 State Cross-Country Meet on Saturday, with the boys finishing third in the Class B team standings and junior Jada Koerner finishing fourth in the Class B girls race. It wasn't the win Koerner had been hoping for, but her time of 19:58.57 was the best she has clocked in any of her five state meets; she was 19 seconds behind winner Ella Boekelheide of Nortthwestern.  Six of the seven top finishers in the Class B division were eighth graders.

The Canistota/Freeman football team is moving on to the quarterfinal round of the Class 9AA South Dakota High School Playoffs next Thursday, Oct. 28 — barely. The 11-seed Pride survived No. 6 Florence/Henry in the first round of the postseason in Florence Thursday night, Oct. 21, hanging on to a 22-20 win in a game that was about as close as they come.

JEREMY WALTNER - PUBLISHER Freeman Public was represented at last week’s Region 3B Cross-Country Meet by a group of underclassmen girls with eyes on a big goal — a top three finish in the team standings that would qualify all five runners for the Oct. 23 state meet in Sioux Falls. The Flyers didn’t quite get it, but they set the stage for what could be a fun run for the program.

JEREMY WALTNER - PUBLISHER Another cross-country season, another Region 3B meet and another outstanding showing from the Freeman Academy/Marion boys, who last week finished second in the team standings. It was the ninth time in the last 10 years that a Freeman Academy boys team finished in the top two in the region and the 10th year in a row they’ve been in the top three.

Canistota/Freeman (4-4) is the No. 11 seed and will travel to No. 6 Florence/Henry (7-1) in the first round of the Class 9AA playoffs Thursday, Oct. 21 at 7 p.m. The winner will face the winner of No. 3 Ipswich (7-1) and No. 14 Lemmon/McIntosh (4-4) in the second round. Hanson (7-1) is the No. 1 seed in Class 9AA.