Rod's Thursday Ramblings

We are now in the fall sports season as the Pierre Governor golfers are golfing at the Spearfish Invitational today. Tommorrow they move to Rapid City for the Rapid City Invitational. Monday they go to Willow Run Golf Course in Sioux Falls for the Warrior Invitational and then on Tuesday they are back at Hillsview Golf Course for the only home meet of the season. That is 40 percent of the season golfed in the first 6 days of the season. The season is only 6 weeks long as the State AA golf tournament will be golfed at Huron October 4 and 5.

The Governor and Lady Governor soccer teams open their seasons this weekend as well as they play at Yankton tomorrow and Brookings on Sunday. Martyn Beeny is the boys first year coach. Sydney Zanin is beginning another season guiding the girls squad. The soccer season, like the golf season is only 6 weeks in length as well as the state soccer tournament is the first weekend in October as well.

Pierre volleyball has 45 girls practicing, freshman through senior for new head coach Kacy Kienholz although some of the girls played for her two years ago when she coached the first time around for Pierre. They are practicing this week from 7:30 am to noon. Alot of conditioning, skill drills and the like going on at Riggs High Gym. The girls open their season a week from tomorrow night at Yankton and then have their home opener the next afternoon against Douglas. Coach Kienholz knows that the climb to get to the state tournament won't be easy with Huron and Mitchell much improved and Aberdeen Central, the defending state champions, probably still the team to beat.

While I have not been to football practice this week because it is in the morning, fans will get a sneak peak of the Governors Saturday morning at 10 a.m. when the annual Gatorade Scrimmage is held at Phil Trautner Stadium at Hollister Field. Coach Kramer told me earlier this week that the team is way ahead of where they were last year on the offensive side of the ball. That's good news with Sioux Falls Lincoln coming to town a week from tomorrow night.

And the Lady Gov tennis team has today and tomorrow for their final pre season practices before opening the season in Sioux Falls on Saturday against the 3 Sioux Falls public schools. Coach Jeff Bloomberg told me earlier this week that Lincoln looks to be the best of the three this year and that is Pierre's final match of the day about 3 p.m. on Saturday.

And from the Minnesota Vikings training camp, ESPN is making it a priority today to say that Brett Favre and coach Brad Childress don't see eye to eye and that is the reason Favre took so long supposedly to report to camp. Favre is quoted as saying that Childress does not know a thing about offense! And Percy Harvin was taken by ambulance to a hospital from the practice field today. Childress says Harvin was able to speak, but was disoriented for a few minutes after he passed out at practice. Childress says Harvin may have had a migraine headache attack, and he was taken to an unspecified hospital. And the soap opera known as Vikings football continues.