Sports

The Lady Badger coaches said, “Another second place plaque for the Lady Badgers. They brought in a team score of a 402 in Atkinson.” Valentine placed four players: fifth place, Joni Cox, 96; eighth place, Tierny Miller, 100; 12th place, Sam Sprenger, 103; and 13th place, Rylee Wackler with 103.

Cross Country Coach Alex Jensen said, “We’re off and running with 17 total competitors this year! Our high school boys are getting in some great benchmarks to start the season. We’re already seeing a lot of improvement and we’re being competitive!

The Lean Horse Ultra marathon was held in Custer, SD on August 16, 2025 on the George Mickelson Trail. Runners could choose the 20 mile, 30 mile, 50 mile or 100 mile. Alena Arendt, of Valentine, was one of 54 who signed up for the 30 mile. She ran it in 5 hours, 30 minutes and 26 seconds. She has been in a number of races, but this was her first ultra.

The Cherry County 4-H Shooting Sports Competition was held August 1-2 as the kick-off to the 2025 Cherry County Fair. Rifle coaches were Jason McNare and Zac Brashears.

Brooks Coleman is Head Boys Golf Coach. ValentineCommunitySchoolsis excited to announce Brooks Coleman as the Head Boys Golf Coach for 2025-2026.

Valentine opened their season in O’Neill on August 21, 2025. It was a scorcher out there, but the girls pushed through and shot a team score of 406 which landed them second place as a team.

Sandhills Area Foundation (SAF) is committed to supporting area youth who are exploring ways they can make an impact in their communities as active citizens. We are searching for inspiring leaders from Cherry County to support SAF in our mission to financially support area development and to accept and administer funds that meet the present and future needs of Cherry County residents. Applications are being accepted now through September 15 at Sandhillsareafoundation. com

Valentine Community Schools is excited to announce Ashley McSweeney as Co-Head Girls Golf Coach for 2025-2026. Coach McSweeney steps into the role after the retirement of long time coach, Devin Muirhead.

There are more than a million acres of publicly accessible lands throughout Nebraska. The recently published 2025-2026 Public Access Atlas identifies and consolidates these public access resources for the benefit of Nebraska’s hunters, and anglers.

The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission earned 10 awards at the Association for Conservation Information annual conference July 21-24 in Atlantic City, N.J. The awards recognized excellence in outreach, education and communications for the prior year.