By Cyote Williams | Times Vedette
The ACGC girls and boys track and field teams will get their first taste of competition this season today, Friday, March 13, at Iowa State University in Ames. The girls will face 53 other teams, and the boys will face 56 other teams.
By Cyote Williams | Times Vedette
The ACGC girls basketball team had five girls earn awards for their performances this season. They were Meranda Gruber, Savannah Akers, Becca Littler, Stella Largent and Camdyn Richter. Several girls set records this season. The team also set several school records. Points per game at 56.1, field goal percentage at 39.1%, total rebounds with 781 and free throws made with 253.
Star of the squad, Camdyn Richter, racked up awards just as she racked up points this season. Richter led the team with 16.9 points per game and led in steals at 2.6. She also averaged 6.2 rebounds and one assist. Richter was named First Team All-Conference to the Southwest All-District Region 3 Team, and Third Team All-State. Richter now holds the school record for points at 1,016, rebounds with 521 and tied for blocks with Stella Largent at 44. She is also second all-time in steals at 202.
Stella Largent earned First Team All-Conference honors. Largent was a double-double machine during the season, averaging 11.4 points per game, a team-high 9.2 rebounds, two assists and 1.7 steals. She set the school record for rebounds in a season with 203. She is currently fifth all time in total points with 572, second in rebounds with 460, eighth in assists with 98, eighth in steals with 137 and is tied with Richter for most blocks with 44.
Meranda Gruber and Becca Littler were named Honorable Mention to the WCAC. Gruber averaged 7.8 points per game and a team-high 2.5 assists. She also averaged three rebounds and 2.3 steals. Littler averaged 4.9 points per game, 2.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.3 steals. Littler ranks second all-time in assists at 161 and third all-time in steals with 182.
Savannah Akers was named Academic All-State. In order to be named Academic All-State, athletes must be a senior and meet two of the following criteria: A cumulative GPA of 3.85, ACT score of 27 or higher (1200 or higher SAT), and rank in the top 5% in class 3A/4A/5A or top 10% in class 1A/2A.
By Cyote Williams | Times Vedette
If you are an Iowa State fan, you know that point guard Tamin Lipsey played his final home game for the Cyclones on Saturday, March 7. His final game inside the storied Hilton Coliseum looked like many other Tamin Lipsey performances: 16 points, six assists and six steals.
Tenacious and unwavering on both sides of the court, he embodied what it meant to be an ISU basketball player — made even more impressive by the current college basketball landscape.
My first experience watching Lipsey came when he was a Little Cyclone at Ames High School. A friend of mine, who played at my alma mater, Des Moines Lincoln, faced Lipsey in a second-round substate playoff game. I was living in Ames at the time, so a few friends and I decided to attend. Lincoln lost, 68-41, but Lipsey shined, scoring 27 points. Little did we — and my fellow Cyclone fans — know at the time that he would become one of the greatest ISU basketball players of all time.
Lipsey spent all four years at Iowa State. It was a shock that he even kept his commitment at the time. He committed to ISU when the team went a dismal 2-22 — including 0-18 in Big 12 play. T.J. Otzelberger immediately turned the program around, winning 22 games the next season. Lipsey joined the team the following year and never looked back.
How rare is that? At the end of this season, there were only 22 major scholarship players who spent their entire college careers at one school. Just 22. There are 68 schools in the Power Four conferences. If each team had a maxed-out roster, that would be more than 1,000 players. Only 22 stayed at one school for their entire careers, and Lipsey was one of them.
Winning certainly played a role in why he stayed. He and the Cyclones have done plenty of it. With the Big 12 Conference Tournament semifinals and championship game still ahead — along with the NCAA Tournament — Iowa State has gone 100-38 with Lipsey on the roster.
The list of accolades he accumulated during that time could fill a column of its own. Here are a few eye-popping Lipsey statistics and numbers.
Lipsey holds the ISU record for the most career starts in program history with 127. He ranks fifth all-time in total games played and total minutes played. He is the 14th three-time All-Conference selection in school history. He ranks sixth all time in assists, first all time in defensive win shares and first all time in steals with 302.
Those are just a few of the jaw-dropping numbers Lipsey put up over the years.
It was recently announced that the Cyclones — for the first time in a long time — will retire a jersey number: the No. 3 worn by Melvin Ejim, another all-time program legend. If you have watched ISU games recently, you might notice another player wearing No. 3: Tamin Lipsey.
I like to think they held off on Ejim’s jersey retirement because they knew that someday they will likely add Lipsey’s name to that banner in one way or another a few years from now.
Iowa State posted a heartfelt tribute video for Lipsey, and he can still make history for the Cyclones with the NCAA Tournament looming. Whether the season ends with cutting down the nets or not, I simply want to thank Lipsey for his service and for providing Cyclone fans with countless memories during his time in Ames.
Go make some noise this March — and go make your mark in the NBA.
Reach out with comments, suggestions, story ideas and more at cyote@dmcityview.com.
By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette
During the March 9 meeting of the Panorama school board, a public hearing was held regarding a proposed change to a four-day school week. Amanda Myers-Herring and Mary Calmer voiced their opposition to the change. The board had received several written comments in support of the proposal. The public hearing was closed after approximately 20 minutes.
During the regular meeting, the board voted 4-1 to approve the change, with Mark Cates casting the dissenting vote.
A public hearing was also held regarding the proposed roof replacement at the elementary school. No comments were voiced. During the regular meeting, the board voted unanimously to approve the roof replacement at a total expected cost of $590,523.
In the Good News portion of the meeting, the board heard about the success of the Large Group Speech students. Four groups advanced to state, and two — Readers’ Theater and Musical Theater — received a Division I rating at the state contest.
Contract recommendations included new contracts for Denise Olson, elementary paraeducator; David Brumley, substitute driver; and Melissa Brumley, substitute driver. Resignations included Jauclyn Curry, middle school girls wrestling; Bob Rogers, food service; Alexandra Meuer, middle school teacher; Charlie Lake, middle school/high school teacher; and Michele Recker, junior class sponsor. New contracts for the 2026-27 school year included Cooper Anderson, head boys wrestling, and Jon Shaffer, assistant boys wrestling.
The next regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, April 13. On that date, a public hearing will be held at 5:30 p.m. for the fiscal year 2027 proposed property tax notice. A public hearing will also be held at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 15, for the FY27 budget, with the board scheduled to vote on budget approval following the hearing.
By Rich Wicks | Times Vedette
We have started a new weekly feature each Friday in the Times Vedette, as we will add the birthdays and anniversaries for the following week of people with past or present ties to the area. To submit yours, or for corrections, email rich@gctimesnews.com.