Stories from Wednesday, May 6, 2009

The ill weather of spring has taken a toll on local athletics and South Putnam is no exception. The Eagles battled Speedway in girls' tennis Monday, walking away with a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Sparkplugs. After the match, head coach Johnnie Briones commented on the effects the wet spring has had on his team...

The Greencastle junior varsity baseball team dropped a couple of contests last week to fall to 3-3 on the season. On Monday, the Tiger Cubs lost to Speedway 9-2 in a scheduled five inning contest. After racking up 17 hits against Tri-West, the young Greencastle squad could only muster two against the Sparkplugs. Ryan Battin went 1-for-2 with a single and a stolen base and Joe Lenihan smacked a double...

LIZTON -- The South Putnam boys' golf team placed third in a tri-meet with Cloverdale at Tri-West. The Clovers won the event, nipping Tri-West 164-166, while the Eagles were third with a score of 182. Cloverdale's Mike Wellington led all golfers with a low round of 38. Chris Arnold followed with a 40, Keith Hathorn a 42 and Gary Williams with a 44. Ryan Book carded a 52 and Sam Jordan added a 54...

With the three biggest track meets of the season less than a week away, now is the time coaches want their athletes peaking. That's exactly what the South Putnam coaches got Monday night as both Eagle track teams defeated Rockville. The boys won 77-52, while the girls won 71-56...

MONROVIA -- On Monday, the Greencastle High School baseball team lost to Monrovia 8-6. Jesse Vermillion pitched the first five innings, where he gave up five runs on five hits and struck out two bulldogs before Mike Mahoney came in for relief in the sixth. Mahoney gave up three runs on three hits and had two strikeouts as well...

The Greencastle boys' golf team mauled the Warriors of Danville 158-191 Monday night. Jimmy Wheeler led the Tiger Cubs with a low round of 37, followed by Brad Haussin and Wade Huber with a pair of 40s. Luke Crimmins contributed a 41 and Adam Jayne carded a 48...

Josh Flory tossed a no-hitter Tuesday night as the South Putnam baseball team defeated Turkey Run 8-1. Flory fanned 12 Warriors, while the Eagles collected 14 hits on the night. Noah Boswell led the hit brigade with a two-run homer, while Rob Gibson hit a solo home run. Cameron Chestnut had two hits and three stolen bases, while Grant Zimmerman went 3-for-4 and stole three bases as well...

Cloverdale softball lost to Speedway 5-4 in 11 innings Monday night. Paige Gutierrez had 18 strikeouts and two hits, while Martika Byrd had an RBI single.

The Greencastle softball team fell to Monrovia Monday 4-1. Taylor Pruitt was 2-for-3 at the plate with one stolen base. Cassie Alspaugh, Kayla Downing, Riley Seahorn and Jessie Bennett all had doubles, and Mallory Miller scored the Tiger Cubs' lone run...

The South Putnam Junior High boys' track team battled North Putnam and Northridge Monday night. Picking up wins for the Eagles were Ryan Chestnut in the shot put with a distance of 45-feet-11-inches and the discus with a toss of 115-feet. The 400 relay team of Lewis Knoy, Sawyer Arnold, Justin Bumgardner and Cain Dyson won in a time of 50.89, while Bumgardner, Knoy, Lucas Lorian and Dyson took top honors in the 1,600 relay with a time of 4:24.54...

What's better than having one standout player on a tennis team? Try three standouts. The Greencastle High School girls' tennis team proved Tuesday night that they have more than just Katie Collins on the team. They have Kate Babington and Katie Farris also...

South Putnam's winning ways continued Tuesday against Clay City. The Eagles blanked the Eels 4-0 and moved their record to 11-0 on the season. "That was a good win for us," SPHS head coach Chris Jones said. "Sarah did a great job on the mound. It's only the second day in a week that we've been outside on the field. Yesterday we went to Indian Creek and were able to get a win. I was proud of the way we came out."...

As we continue to hear stories about the spread and monitoring of the H1N1 flu, I wanted to take the opportunity to remind everyone that now is the time to prepare not panic. As with any emergency situation, we are reminded to prepare an emergency kit, have a plan, stay informed and think of how you can help yourself and others...

To the editor: There is not much good that comes from a house fire. There is loss of property, valued memories and sense of security. But last night I saw something inspiring. I work for Operation Life, and we responded for medical coverage at a house fire. After the fire was put out we were requested to come up near the house, where we were asked to help with a family cat that was found inside...

To the Editor: Every day, men and women across Indiana don a uniform and voluntarily enter a place where most citizens never want to go -- a correctional facility. Behind the wired fences and steep walls of such facilities live offenders who broke laws and threatened society, sometimes violently and with no remorse. Undoubtedly, the work environment of a prison system is unlike many other professions, with a unique set of challenges and few rewards...

To the Editor: On behalf of the Caregivers' Support Group, I would like to publicly say thank you to all of the businesses, agencies, organizations, and individuals who helped to make our "Care Fair" at the National Guard Armory on April 14 a success...

A Parke County man has entered a denial to a charge that he violated his Putnam County probation. Kyle Poynter, 20, was arrested April 29 and remains in the Putnam County Jail. He has been ordered held without bond, and an evidentiary hearing in the case has been set for May 18...

A DePauw student has pled guilty to one count of misdemeanor theft and one count of misdemeanor fraud in connection to an incident in which she stole a sorority sister's credit card and ran up more than $1,000 in charges. Brittany E. Schmall, 22, of Portage, Mich. ...

Putnam County Sheriff's Department Two accidents involving deer have been reported to the Putnam County Sheriff's Department recently. Manuel Machuca, Indianapolis, was traveling on Interstate 70 at 8:10 a.m. Sunday when a deer ran in front of his vehicle. There was an estimated $5,001 to $10,000 in damages...

National Nurses Week is celebrated annually from May 6, also known as National Nurses Day, through May 12, the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing. Health care is a top national priority and is likely to remain one for the foreseeable future. ...

Nearly 8,500 Ivy Tech Community College students throughout the state will receive an associate degree or certificate as the nation's largest singly accredited statewide community college conducts its annual commencement in 14 regional ceremonies around Indiana in the month of May...

REELSVILLE -- An investigation into reported stolen merchandise from a Clay County business led to a search warrant being served by members of the Clay County and Putnam County sheriff's departments at a Reelsville residence early Tuesday morning. Although still in the early stages of the investigation, officials at the Putnam County Sheriff's Department confirmed as a result of the search warrant served at his residence, John Deal, Reelsville, was taken into custody shortly before 3 a.m., Tuesday.. ...

At last month's Putnam County Commissioners meeting, residents from Heritage Lake appeared asking for help in getting nearly 30 miles of roads paved and repaired. The group presented an option for the county to take out a bond to pay for approximately $3 million, which is the cost estimate given to pave the roads in second largest populated area in Putnam County...

ROCKVILLE (AP) -- A gas main exploded and caught fire in a rural area east of Rockville Tuesday afternoon. A number of Putnam County agencies responded to the incident. The fire was contained and no injuries were reported. An Indiana State Police spokesman said a 1-mile radius around the site was evacuated as a precautionary measure...

Putnam County Bridge number 43 on C.R. 425 E had to be closed because it was too dangerous to leave open. It will cost the county approximately $61,000 to replace it. County commissioners Gene Beck, Jim Baird and Kristina Warren approved the engineering study for the bridge to be completed by Dave Myers Engineering to the tune of $7,000. Another $53,966 will be spent in the actual repair of the bridge...

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A proposed plea agreement may lead to the dismissal of three felony child molesting charges against a Fillmore man. William R. Honey, 31, has agreed to enter a guilty plea to a Class D felony charge of neglect of a dependent in exchange for the dismissal of a Class A felony charge of child molesting and two Class C felony charges of child molesting. ...