Bond Proposal

Last night was the first of a series of meetings concerning a possible bond proposal being presented to the patrons of the Louisville school district.

The focus of attention last evening was on the north side of the present structure with most of the discussion centered on athletic issues however I'm just as excited about the upcoming gatherings when the emphasis will be on the modifications to the existing building and other educational concerns.

Now is the time for everyone to get involved, receive answers to any questions, get your viewpoints known and to eliminate any rumors that might arise.  Your attendance at the future meetings doesn't mean that you are in favor of a possible bond proposal, it's far too early for that, but being informed will assist in making a sound decision in the future.  

Future meetings are scheduled for 7:00 p.m. on December 3 and December 17 in the LHS library. 

Congratulations!

Congratulations to the LHS volleyball team for their tremendous victory at the subdistrict finals!  Also, a huge pat on the back to the large number of Louisville backers in attendance, a crowd which outnumbered the Concordia faithful by a considerable amount.

Let's build on this showing and fill the Conestoga gym on Friday with the support that this volleyball team deserves.  

   

Get Behind LHS Volleyball

Fans following the Louisville High School volleyball team know they are seeing something special.  They've witnessed the enthusiasm created by the girls as the Lions have broken out to a 7-3 start to the year. This team can pass, hit and block like few other squads in Louisville history.

With a third of the season already complete, Louisville enters a two-week span that will be exciting for the volleyball program as the Lions host Ashland-Greenwood this Thursday before traveling to Mead next Tuesday. Both are set to be three out of five matches,  a rarity in this age of tournaments and triangulars.  Each will test the endurance and the focus of the team and give the Lions a positive experience when subdistrict play begins.  Add the September 30 match against highly-touted Johnson County Central to the agenda and you've got a great opportunity for LHS to increase momentum going into the last month of the season. 

Let's pack the home court this Thursday, creating an atmosphere that the girls can feed off of. Don't jump on the bandwagon come subdistricts, now is the time to show your support for Louisville volleyball.

Great Weekend for LHS Girls Athletics

Wow! Two championships in the same weekend spoke volumes for the Louisville girls sports programs.

With the LHS girls cross country team winning at the Johnson County Central on Friday followed by the volleyball squad sweeping through Saturday's Boys Town Tournament without dropping a set for Louisville's third straight BT title, has there been a greater weekend for girls sports?

Congratulations to all the athletes and coaches and continued good luck throughout the remainder of the season!

We'll be Okay!

I got out of bed at 6:15 to see that the sun came up this morning..... last night around 9:45, I wasn't so certain that it would.

It was a tough loss. But a few hours later, the fans of Louisville football should be inspired by their team's play.  Let's be honest, losing a talented group of athletes from last year's squad cast a huge shadow over the 2008 Lions. People didn't know what to expect from the 17 largely unknown athletes that suited up last night.

But what was neat was that so many stepped up and put the Lions in position to win the game. Gone are the Ficklers, Ronnfeldts and Johnsons of the past four years.... but ready to replace them are a new group who have waited in the wings, eager to show what they could do. 

I'm excited about the opportunity to cheer for a new group of Lions... Pat McAndrew, Ryan Burnison, Avery Hopkins have worked hard to put themselves on the field, representing Louisville High School. And they can be every bit as successful.

It's a new day.

Successful Debut for the Crush

It was a great night for girls' athletics at Ash Grove Field this evening.

Cass County Central Crush opened with a win but I was just as pleased to see the girls having fun playing a sport that they love.... lots of smiles, many pats on the backs, very positive coaching. 

A tremendous crowd estimated at 150 with an over-flowing parking lot were treated to a great experience.

Now for my confession.... I was so excited after the game, I took pictures of the jayvee scorebook rather then the varsity book!  No stats means the game story in The Lions Den will be completed Friday morning.  My error, I dropped the ball...... fortunately, the girls did not.

Something Very Good is Happening Here

I had a busy day and just now had the opportunity to read the World-Herald, one of my favorite things to do any day but especially the Sunday edition... lots to read, lots of info.  If you get a chance, read the Metro guide magazine in today's paper, a special section of the newspaper espousing all the good things about the city of Omaha from its recreation advancements to its new structures both for the arts and for entertainment.

The introduction on page 7 ("Something Very Good is Happening Here") was written by one of my favorites, former sports editor and current columnist, Michael Kelly.  I could tell it was done with an enormous sense of pride in Omaha.

While reading the article, I found myself noting similarities between Omaha and Louisville.  Please don't laugh, but in its own way, Louisville has many items of interest and things to boast about, just like our larger neighbor to the north.

Louisville is so fortunate to have an active business district.  The city has over two blocks of businesses on both sides of main street busy with shoppers and, it you look at the license plates of the parked cars, not just from our community.

Louisville has done well in attracting visitors to our town. This past weekend's town BBQ was another example of Louisville pitching in, along with this spring's "Air Your Art in Louisville" and the always popular "Ringing in the Season" in December.... there's community pride on display.  The recent "Last Hot Sunday in July" car show was a great example of the town putting its best foot forward with many out-of-towners having a chance to see why we have chosen to reside in Louisville.

You want recreation? The Louisville area can boast of the Louisville SRA, Schram State Park, Platte River State Park and Mahoney State Park.  Name another small town that has this many nearby outdoor activities to experience.

Just as Kelly noted Omaha being in the middle of the country as a strong point, Louisville's location between the two largest cities in the state is a distinct asset. Both Omaha and Lincoln offer those in the area a chance to take advantage of entertainment possibilities that only cities can attract.  I enjoy attending Omaha Royals baseball games but look forward to cheering on local baseball and softball teams just as much.  I've attended shows at the Omaha Playhouse but have to rate productions at The Lofte featuring local talent just as entertaining.  The Louisville High School Pops concert is the one musical event I will not miss yet I've passed on every concert at the Qwest.  Granted, Lincoln has the Huskers but attending the Lions' football games are just as much fun.

Just as Michael Kelly has lived his adult life in Omaha, I've lived my adult life in Louisville and can say that I'm proud to be from this town and look forward to its continued growth while maintaining a small town atmosphere.  There's definitely something very good happening here.

Championships for 10 Year Olds

Congratulations to all the ball teams in Louisville as they enter the final days of their seasons.
Special kudos to two teams that ended the year with championships, the U10 Softball team coached by Dean Mason and the Louisville #2 WeeWee baseball team made up of 10 year olds headed by Doyle Stohlmann.
Both squads, besides facing their local opponents on the diamond, had to square off against mother nature to complete tournament play. While the strong winds and heavy rainfall during the past two weeks made re-scheduling difficult, we certainly can’t complain with so much property damage and loss of life as witnessed by our neighbors to the north.
The WeeWee tournament, which was shortened to single elimination after three days of rain outs, featured the locals against the team from Elmwood-Murdock South in the final match-up. The championship contest featured good defensive play and solid pitching by both teams.
Besides the rainfall, the only negative to the week-long affair was the lack of a trophy presentation and the awarding of Cass County Tournament medals upon completion of the title game. Apparently, the hardware didn’t make it from league officials to Louisville for the final day of tournament play. It’s ironic that after a game highlighted by nearly error-free baseball by both teams, when it came to finishing the tournament in style, it was the adults who dropped the ball.

Oh well.... the memories from a 12-0 season will be with these boys for a long time, well after the medals and trophy begin to tarnish.

Thanks to the White Family

Just happened to drive by the school ball field around 9:30 last night and wasn't surprised to see Kevin White and one of his sons working to drain the pools that had accumulated due to the afternoon downpour.  This is not the first time early or late hours have been put in by the Whites.

There's a reason why Louisville's ball fields are in such great shape and coaches need not worry about field preparations.  Sure, this is a paid proposition, but I don't believe the extra hours are part of the deal.

The next time your son or daughter takes the field, make note of its condition and thank the White family.

Charlie Cover

Sorry to see Charlie Cover leaving the coaching ranks at Louisville High School. Charlie was a great promoter of the wrestling and track programs, supplying information and statistics that made writing stories for The Lions Den easy to do.

Coach Cover always had the best interest of the individual athlete as his number one concern which invariably aided the team.

Best of luck at Elmwood-Murdock!

Ash Grove Field Upgrade

Referring to the previous entry below, perhaps the Ball Parents Association could revive the thought of installing an agrilime playing surface at Ash Grove Field.  The need is especially obvious during the rainy season that we are currently going through but agrilime fields will also assist when the next phase comes along..... when the fields that are played on while damp and sticky become as hard as Louisville's Main Street once the sun returns. 

Agrilime was considered two years ago but the idea fell through. I realize there are concerns about sprinklers since agrilime thrives on moisture but let's get a plan in place, a goal to strive toward. 

The City of Louisville needs to step to the plate to assist in this project.  The fact that the town mows the outfield and provides water for AG Field is appreciated.  But outside of that, the city does very little for youth activities.  Louisville is fortunate to have the SRA and Platte River State Park so very close so there isn't a pressing need for park provisions. The Ball Parents Association foots the bill for the summer ball program.... could the city help out with this project?

Rain Upsets Ball Schedules

As I write this, the rain continues to drip on the local ball fields causing concern for the coaches trying to reschedule games onto an already tight schedule.  We all appreciate the time the coaches spend on the fields with our young athletes but that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Just as much time and effort goes into the planning of practices, rescheduling games and the care of equipment and uniforms.  In my experience, it becomes a family task with all getting involved, whether fielding or making phone calls, hauling equipment from one location to another or offering moral support.

We should all be thanking these volunteers. Take a look at the busy schedule that is already in place at http://my.calendars.net/fieldsloune/ then try to picture re-scheduling games lost due to the weekend storms.... it's a tough task!

I appreciate the rain since we'll probably be dry in July but right now, I'd like to go to a ball game.

New Sports Facility a Possibility?

With the recent success of the Louisville High School track and field teams and the increasing numbers of athletes who have reported for duty, there have been some interest in building a hard-surfaced track on the LHS campus. 

This is not something new. The track and football facility topic comes up every 5-10 years but now might be some solid basis that could get this idea beyond the wish list phase.  Add to this the possibility of creating a first-class field for the new softball program and the idea gains even more momentum. 

With the current bond debt due to expire soon and with the philosophy of replacing one bond with another, the timing may be right. The last bond built a new library and new classrooms creating a high school wing to the K-12 structure.  Barring some internal problems that may not be visible, the elementary wing seems to be in great shape.... the entire building looks good! 

This opens the door for some of the "extras" that might have been placed on hold for so many years.

As long as this potential project allows for growth and not just for the current athletic programs in place the public will, more that likely, support it. Louisville has successfully passed bond issues on a regular basis but one cannot assume the same result on this issue.

One avenue might be for the school to partner with the city of Louisville to create a team that could create a facility that would be used by district patrons as well as the school's athletes. The city park is basically a seldom-used tennis court and a pavilion separated by a busy street. Now might be a good time to coordinate a project that would reflect well on the city of Louisville as well as the Louisville School District.

50th Anniversary of 1959 State Champs

This upcoming basketball season will mark the 50th anniversary of the 1959 Class C State Championship. One of the things we're thinking of doing at The Lions Den is to select the 25 top basketball players from the past 50 years.  A selection committee would be chosen to assist in the selection process.

Would do you think?

Louisville WeeWee Baseball

Those that don't believe that younger athletes respect and admire those that participate in varsity athletics should attend one of the Louisville WeeWee baseball games.

These 10-year-olds are fortunate to have Tyler Johnson as an assistant coach.  They look up to the 6' 3" LHS graduate in more ways than one.

Cass County Central Crush

The Lions Den is looking forward to covering the newest sport on the LHS athletic scene as the Cass County Central Crush softball team takes to the field in their inaugural season this fall.

With the CCCC joining the fall sports list, there will be plenty of excitement on the LHS campus.

Girls sports look bright for LHS with exciting newcomers joining experienced veterans on the Louisville volleyball and cross country teams... I can't wait!

State Track Meet Ends the LHS School Year

The completion of the Nebraska State Track and Field Meet on Saturday marks the end of the 2007-2008 Louisville Lions athletic season and a slow-down of the writing, photo taking and travel that is required to make The Lions Den (www.louisvillelions.com) a reality.

Louisville had a great year! A huge thanks to all of the seniors that we've covered the past four years.  Your contributions have helped to transition the athletic program to one in which the expectations are much higher than in previous years.Again, thanks and continued success in all your endeavors!

As for The Lions Den, we are preparing for the upcoming season with great anticipation.  If you would like to be part of the team, please contact me for additional information on writing and photography openings.