The Iola Register, April 30, 2024

Torrential rains wallop region

By VICKIE MOSS The Iola Register

About 20 people were rescued from flooded homes and vehicles between Saturday evening and Sunday morning, as severe storms dumped an official 4 inches of rain overnight, though locals recorded easily double that amount.

Emergency response crews received the first call for help at about 9 p.m. Saturday from someone who was trapped in a vehicle on a flooded road.

Over the next several hours, the Iola Fire Department and EMS used boats to rescue residents from about four homes, Iola Fire Chief Corey Isbell said.

The water rose so quickly that in some cases, rescue crews pulled up in a boat early Sunday morning and knocked on the door of a home to find the residents were unaware of the danger, Isbell said.

The Humboldt Fire Department also made at least two water rescues, and Anderson County’s water rescue team from Colony arrived to conduct three rescues.

All of those displaced by floods were able to stay with friends or relatives and there was no need for an emergency shelter, Iola Police Chief

See FLOOD | Page A3

SEK experiences historic flooding

By SARAH HANEY The Iola Register

FORT SCOTT — Heavy rainfall over the weekend wreaked havoc across southeast Kansas and southwest Missouri, leading to widespread flooding that inundated communities. The excessive rainfall, which began early Friday morning, caused rivers to swell beyond their banks, submerging roads, bridges, and buildings in its wake.

Fort Scott bore the brunt of the weekend downpour, recording over 10 inches of rainfall since the onset of the storm.

In Fort Scott, the Marmaton River surged to historic levels, reaching 47 feet on Sunday, well above the flood stage of 38 feet. This marked one of the most severe floods in recent memory and the third worst in the region’s recorded history. The most recent flooding of this magnitude occurred in 1986 when the river crested at a staggering 52 feet. The overflow forced authorities to close off

sections of the city, includ ing its schools, on Monday as residents dealt with the after math of the flooding. Fort Scott bore the brunt of the weekend downpour, recording over 10 inches of rainfall since the onset of the storm.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Spring field, Mo., has issued a flood warning for the Marmaton River. The warning is set to remain in effect until ear ly Wednesday morning. On Sunday morning, floodwa ters breached the bridge deck along North National Avenue (US 54) in Fort Scott, render

See SEK | Page A6

Above, a drone photo from Paul J. Porter of Iola shows flooding along U.S. 54 on the east side of town, with vehicles and equipment at Sigg Motors and Machine Shed partially submerged in water. The U.S. 169/54 interchange was closed for several hours Sunday morning as torrential rains flooded the region. At left, a woman and child are escorted to safety via a boat from Anderson County’s water rescue team from Colony, which came to help the Iola Fire Department. More

Son rescues Folks

By SUSAN LYNN The Iola Register

Jesse Folk Jr., tried to keep his parents unaware of what was unfolding outside their bedroom in the wee hours of Sunday, but when the water reached the windowsill, “I knew it was time to wake them up.”

At 2 a.m., Jesse carried his mother, Susan, outside while his father, Jesse Sr., made his way into their pickup truck. But they

would only go as far as the edge of their property.

The Folks live in what is colloquially known as “Folkville,” a collection of modest homes and businesses on the southeast edge of town that abuts Rock Creek, which feeds into Elm Creek.

“They refused to leave,” Jesse said of his parents. Through the dark of the night, Jesse Sr. and Susan waited out the terrific

See FOLK | Page A6

Senate rejects medical cannabis

By TIM CARPENTER Kansas Reflector

TOPEKA — Republican members of the Kansas Senate crushed with a boot heel Friday an attempt to breathe life into legislation creating the state regulatory framework for cultivation, distribution and use of medical cannabis.

The Senate has been the stumbling block since the Kansas House approved a medical marijuana bill in 2021 that wasn’t allowed to come to a vote by Senate leadership.

In 2023, a bill was introduced in the Senate to make cannabis products available for medical use. Senate Bill 135 received two days of hearings in the 2023 session, but was idled by Senate Republicans.

Sen. Rob Olson, R-Olathe, offered a written motion calling for that bill to be withdrawn from the Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee and transferred to the full Senate for possible debate and votes.

“Someday this is going to be law in this state,” Olson said. “I would like to put it into

law with good boundaries, and this bill does that.”

The vote on pulling that bill forward was 12-25 failure. It was well short of 24 necessary to force a bill to the Senate floor. A separate vote would have been necessary to determine whether the Senate bypassed leadership’s opposition to formal debate on the medical marijuana bill left to collect dust for more than a year.

Sen. Cindy Holscher, D-Overland Park, said it was frustrating GOP lawmakers again stood in the way of legislation that would enable Kansas veterans and people with serious health conditions from attempting to benefit from legal consumption of marijuana products. The fate of Olson’s attempt to compel action on a medical marijuana bill confirmed political challenges confronting marijuana advocates, she said.

“Over the past three weeks, scores of Kansans have reached out to their senators voicing support for medical cannabis as they have done for nearly the past decade,”

Holscher said. “Sadly, supporters have faced many hurdles on this important measure.”

In March, separate legislation was introduced in the Kansas Legislature that would allow medical marijuana sales through a multiyear pilot program. There was a Senate committee hearing on that bill, which was opposed by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and other law enforcement agencies.

The Kansas Cannabis Chamber of Commerce also criticized the pilot program concept.

Senators on that committee decided to table the measure, which effectively killed it. With days left in the 2024 session, the failed motion by Olson put an explanation point on another year of consternation for cannabis advocates.

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly has endorsed the concept of making medicinal sales legal in Kansas. She’s also said the state wasn’t ready for recreational sales.

Kansas is bracketed by Colorado and Missouri — border states offering legal medicinal and recreational marijuana to consumers.

Influencers ordered to label content

By KYLIE CAMERON Kansas News Service

The City of Wichita has directed local influencers to label social media and digital content that the city has paid for.

The move comes after a video from a local influencer about the city’s work to patch potholes went viral on TikTok. The video was paid for by the city, but not labeled as such.

Adding content labels puts the city and influencers in compliance with recently issued Federal Trade Commission guidelines. The FTC requires all paid content be labeled, or both parties can be fined.

“We’re learning, we’re shifting, and we’re hoping to grow it,” city spokesperson Megan Lovely said. “But again, we’re mostly focused on just trying to find ways to reach as many people as possible.” According to documents obtained by KMUW, the city began paying influencers for content in 2021. The content mostly promoted Park and Recreation activities and programs.

The city then steadily increased its expenditures to local influencers through larger package deals. In 2023, it spent about $26,000 with several local influencers, including Wichita Life and Wich-

ita by E.B.

CAMERON/KMUW/KANSAS NEWS SERVICE

Wichita Life and Wichita by E.B. did not respond to several emails and social media messages for comment.

The city argued that it began using influencers because traditional media buys are more expensive, and that a recent survey done by the city showed people got their information about the city from social media.

“We all know the fractured state of media,” Lovely said. “If everyone was getting their news in one place, that would make our job a whole lot easier.”

Jenny Heinrich is an Influencer Marketing professor at DePaul University. She said when it comes to labeling paid content, it’s about being honest with the audience.

“There’s some exchange, there’s a relationship there,” she said. “If you’re not disclosing that there’s a relationship between

Colony church news

Pastor Chase Riebel’s message Sunday was from John 12: 1-11 titled “How Much is Jesus Worth to You?” Mary poured out one of the most expensive

products available on the feet of Jesus because He was more valuable to her than anything else.

Lexy Langworthy led worship singing “Great Are You Lord,” “Amazing Grace;” “How Great Thou Art” and “Once Again.”

Bruce Symes communion meditation used Psalm 42. The

you, and whatever brand or product it is, then you’re not being honest with your community members.”

The city insists that it doesn’t have oversight of what is published, and instead suggests topics for the influencers to post about.

Lovely said the city worked with Wichita Life to post a video explainer about STAR bond districts, but the video “didn’t do well.”

“This is not something people are engaging with,” Lovely said. “So, in that instance, it was sort of a collaboration to say, ‘OK, well, we want to increase education about this topic. This is not the platform to do it. This is not successful in reaching the numbers that we’re looking for.’”

The Wichita Airport Authority, which oversees Eisenhower National Airport, also paid for local influencers to create content to promote the airport.

deer, being hunted, was in distress and very much in need of water just as a man’s soul is very much in need of God’s word and our hope is in God alone.

Small group will meet in Iola on Wednesday evening to see the movie “Unsung Hero.”

Sunday services are at 10:45 a.m.

Sen. Cindy Holscher, a Democrat, said she was disappointed the Kansas Senate declined to allow a medical marijuana bill to be pulled from committee to the full Senate for debate. SHERMAN SMITH/KANSAS REFLECTOR

Wichita City Hall at the corner of Central and Main. KYLIE

Flood: Numerous roads closed, damaged after weekend storms

Continued from A1

Jared Warner said. The worst of the flooding seemed to occur on the southeast side of Iola.

The U.S. 169/54 interchange on the east side of Iola was flooded and closed for several hours, forcing traffic to reroute. It was reopened around 11:30 a.m.

On Saturday evening, power was knocked out in the south part of Iola for about two hours.

Iola police set up a temporary stop sign at the intersection of Kentucky and U.S. 54/ East Street because the traffic lights were not working, Warner said.

NUMEROUS ROADS were closed throughout the county. Allen County Road and Bridge crews started erecting barricades Saturday evening, interim director Jeremy Hopkins said. They continued to work throughout the weekend to repair damaged roads. Water remained standing on roads west of Humboldt as of Sunday night, and many roads were washed out. Blacktop roads near Iola were hit especially hard, Hopkins said.

“Everywhere is a mess,” he said.

The Iola water plant is the official rain gauge for this area, and marked 4.0 inches of rain overnight into Sunday morning.

The Neosho River crested at 19.92 feet at 11 p.m. Sunday and is expected to fall back to 10.3 feet by Tuesday morning. Flood stage is 15 feet. For comparison, the 2019 flood was 21.38 feet, the 2007 flood was 26.90 feet and the 1951 flood was 33.26 feet.

RESIDENTS continued to assess damage Monday morning.

At Machine Shed, a Kubota dealership, general manager Dwayne

organized rescue efforts on the southwest side of town and the other took areas east of Cottonwood Street. They traveled methodically through neighborhoods to assess the situation and provide rescue or assistance as needed.

Some residents initially refused to relocate and later called for assistance. “There is a process and we try to get to people as fast as we can,” he said. He heard of several Good Samaritans who brought jon boats to

help with rescue efforts. “Whoever they were, thanks to them and to everyone in the community who helped block roads.”

Isbell was out of town over the weekend and kept apprised of the situation through frequent calls with the team leaders.

“This is what we train for,” Isbell said. “Huge shout-out to my crew for how they handled the situation. It was definitely a collaboration between the city and county, and we had a lot of help.”

Campbell was busy evaluating damage to the inventory of tractors, mowers and farm implements to see if the flooding “got deep enough to get into anything that matters.”

Campbell said someone called him early Sunday morning to report the flooding. Employees quickly arrived and tried to move equipment to higher ground, but at that point much of the property was underwater.

Other residents shared posts on social media about their experiences. The farm of Job and Katrina Springer was severely flooded. A family member said 22 baby chickens, one adult chicken, four baby goats and four adult goats drowned, with only one adult goat surviving. They rescued pigs, horses, cattle and a donkey.

Iola Transmission announced it was closed until further notice as drone photos showed vehicles underwater.

Drone photos also show several vehicles at least partially submerged at Sigg Auto, but Jerrick Sigg said

the situation wasn’t as serious as it looked. Water never reached the building and was shallow enough that it didn’t affect any cars except a few in the back that weren’t likely to be repaired anyway.

A ROUND of severe weather moved into the region Thursday, dumping 1.50 inches of rain heading into the weekend. At 8 a.m. Friday, the Neosho River at Iola had risen to 13.2 feet. The river dropped back to 8.47 feet at 5:45 p.m. Saturday before steadily rising again as storms continued into the evening.

A tornado warning was issued for southeast Allen County at 10:14 p.m. for communities of LaHarpe, Elsmore, Savonburg and Moran. There were no confirmed reports of a touchdown in the county but other area communities reported sightings of funnel clouds and rotation.

An outbreak of tornadoes cut a wide swath of damage across parts of Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Iowa. Four people were killed in Oklahoma, including

an infant. The storms injured more than 100 people, damaged a rural hospital, washed out roads and knocked out power to more than 40,000 customers at one point, state officials said.

One person died as a result of a tornado in Iowa.

In Nebraska, a tornado hit a populous suburb of Omaha. An industrial building near Lincoln was hit, causing it to collapse with 70 people inside. Several were trapped, but everyone was evacuated, and the three injuries were not life-threatening, authorities said.

FIRE CHIEF Isbell said the emergency response crew was divided into two teams, led by Michael Burnett and Jeremy Ellington. One

Daniel Shields lifts a tractor out of flooded water and moves it to higher ground at Machine Shed, a Kubota dealership on the east edge of Iola.

Cars are partially submerged at Iola Transmission Shop in southeast Iola.

Large trucks barrel through standing water on U.S. 54 at the underpass for the U.S. 169 interchange. The highway was closed for several hours until the water receded.

The Anderson County water rescue team from Colony arrives to help residents leave flooded homes.

Tre Wilson, left, and Jakolby Hill of Iola try their luck fishing as the Neosho River rises to past its bank near the Iola Water Plant. Matt Drago, not pictured, joined them.

Tips to attract hummingbirds

In the last week or so, I’ve seen several posts on social media that the hummingbirds have arrived. Feeding the hummingbirds is one of my favorite activities. If you are an avid feeder or are just thinking about getting started, here is some information to attract more to your home.

Although there are approximately 360 species of hummingbirds between North and South America, 99.99% of all hummingbirds found in our area will be the Ruby-throated. Their furious spring migration starts in April and continues until early May. Once the migration is complete, hummingbirds settle into nesting mode.

Nests are built in June, with the female determining the site location. The Ruby-throated hummingbird nests will be built near the tip of a down-sloping tree branch with a fairly open area below and the canopy above. Popular tree species for nest building include oak, yellow birch, pine and hackberry. Hummingbirds generally prefer deciduous tree species over conifers. The nesting site will be determined based upon availability of nectar sources and insects. The nests are small – no larger than the size of a quarter.

When it comes to food sources, hummingbirds are attracted to the color red. It is like a flashing neon on sign to them.

To prove this point, try putting on a red cap

or shirt and sit quietly near a feeder. The hummingbirds will definitely check you out. However, hummingbirds do feed on more than just red flowers.

Any flowering plant that has a trumpet-style flower and is in the red/orange sector of the color spectrum will be quite attractive to hummingbirds. In his presentation, Chuck highlighted several plants to include in your landscape to bring in the most birds. The list included: traditional red Salvia, Agastache, Scarlet runner bean, Cardinal flower, Beebalm, Trumpet Creeper (only if you have lots of space), Butterfly Bush, Hollyhock, Rose of Sharon, Cardinal Climber and Canna. In southeastern Kansas, our feeders need to be up and open for business by the second week of April. Here are several tips for feeder management:

• You can’t have too many feeders

• Don’t fill feeders completely full – clean at each filling

• If hummingbirds are not emptying feeder – change nectar and clean every 2-3 days

• Do not dye the water red – just a small amount of red on the feeder is all you need

• Artificial nectar – 4 parts water, 1 part sugar

One eight ounce feeder will fulfill the daily energy needs of 40 to 60 hummingbirds. By having more feeders available, this will allow the hummingbirds to feed more easily with less stress. Also, it will decrease the likelihood of territorial fighting. If you’ve fed hummingbirds in the past, then I’m sure you know all about the one that seems to be the gatekeeper at the feeder.

In casual conversations, you might hear someone say that they have no hummingbirds over the summer, while others seem to be overrun with hummers. This could be due to “neighborhood feeder saturation.” Basically, this is when the number of feeders within a geographic area exceeds the biological needs of the hummingbirds present which spreads the birds out. Populations of birds can be cyclical –you can have hummers for several summers and then those birds go elsewhere or don’t survive the winter. However, in a year or two, the population will probably cycle back around.

If you have no hummingbird activity by late May or early June, you may just want to take the feeders down until early August. The southbound migration usually starts in late July or early August. Many bird watchers indicate that August and September are actually their best months.

Sea corals first animals to ‘glow’

WASHINGTON (AP) —

Many animals can glow in the dark. Fireflies famously blink on summer evenings. But most animals that light up are found in the depths of the ocean.

In a new study, scientists report that deepsea corals that lived 540 million years ago may have been the first animals to glow, far earlier than previously thought.

“Light signaling is one of the earliest forms of communication that we know of — it’s very important in deep waters,” said Andrea Quattrini, a co-author of the study published Tuesday in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

Many deep-sea soft

coral species light up briefly when bumped — or when stroked with a paintbrush. That’s what scientists used, attached to a remote-controlled underwater rover, to identify and study luminous species, said Steven Haddock, a study co-author and marine biologist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute. But how long have some coral species had the ability to glow?

To answer this question, the researchers used genetic data from 185 species of luminous coral to construct a detailed evolutionary tree. They found that the common ancestor of all soft corals today lived 540 million years ago and very likely could

Mortality rate higher for rural adults

By ANNA POPE Kansas News Service

The new report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture finds rural working age adults are dying of natural causes at a faster rate than their urban counterparts — and that gap has widened dramatically over the past two decades.

Rural adults from ages 25-54 died of natural causes at a 6% higher rate than urban residents in 1999. Twenty years later, that number grew to 43%, according to the report.

Those mortality rates, based on data from the Centers for Disease Control, decreased over the two decade span for urban adults in the age group.

“The more rural the area, the greater the increase in prime working-age natural cause mortality rates (or smaller the decrease) over time,” according to the report.

The study did not conclude what’s behind the rising mortality rate for rural adults, but its authors said hospital and physician shortages are likely a factor. Differences in state roll-out of Medicaid expansion also could influence how often people seek care, according to the study.

Alan Morgan, CEO of the National Rural Health Association, said the report is jarring but not surprising. He said in many rural areas there’s a lack of access to care, making it difficult to catch medical conditions early – especially cancer.

“It’s just a matter of not having access to local care and also, taking time off of work to be able to have to drive an hour or two to seek care,” Morgan said. “It doesn’t seem like at face value would be a significant barrier, but

it is.”

Morgan said rural hospital closures are impacting life expectancies.

Since the beginning of 2005, about 190 rural hospitals have closed or have been converted to no longer offer in-patient services, according to the University of North Carolina’s Cecil G. Sheps Center

Rural adults from ages 25-54 died of natural causes at a 6% higher rate than urban residents in 1999. Twenty years later, that number grew to 43%.

for Health Services Research.

That number is likely to grow, according to Harold Miller, president and CEO for the Center of Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform.

“We’ve estimated that over 600 hospitals around the country are at risk of closing over the next several years because of the financial problems that they’re facing,” Miller said.

He said a few billion dollars would get rural hospitals out of deficit.

“We spend $100 trillion on health care nationally, so it would be less than one-tenth of 1% increase in health care spending in order to be able to keep these essential services open,” he said. “So that’s, I think, a very

important thing for people to recognize.”

ALTHOUGH the rate among working age rural residents grew overall, different populations saw varied levels of increases. For instance, Indigenous men and women experienced the largest rate increase, with Indigenous women seeing the largest rate spike over the 20-year period, at 55%.

Across the board the rate grew faster for women overall, according to the report.

Mary Gowin, a University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center professor and director of the school’s Primary Care Health Policy Division, said the rising rate among women is concerning.

While cancer and heart disease were the leading causes of natural deaths among men and women, pregnancy-related deaths grew by 313% for rural women.

Gowin points to the rise of maternity care deserts across Oklahoma and other Great Plains states, which means women need to travel farther to seek obstetric care.

“So, I think that’s a big deal to me in my work and also just a big deal across a lot of the states that have these high rates of pregnancy-related deaths,” Gowin said.

She said struggling rural hospitals, social determinants of health and policy impacts all play a role in the disparity.

glow — or bioluminescence.

That date is around 270 million years before the previously earliest known example: a glowing prehistoric shrimp.

It also places the origin of light production to around the time of the Cambrian explosion, when life on Earth evolved and diversified rapidly — giving rise to many major animal groups that exist today.

“If an animal had a novel trait that made it really special and helped it survive, its descendants were more likely to endure and pass it down,” said Stuart Sandin, a marine biologist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, who was not involved in the study.

Hummingbirds have arrived in southeast Kansas with the warmer weather.

PIXABAY

Krista Harding Extension Agent for Agriculture

Opinion A5

The Iola Register

Tuesday, April 30, 2024 ~ Journalism that makes a difference

Rain is the bane of Iola’s Riverside Park

It was an infinite loop.

As the water was pumped from the basement of the Community Rec Center in Riverside Park, it flowed right back into the rear entrance, where — you guessed it — it made its way back to the basement.

“It’s a cockamamie design,” remarked a city worker who was doing his best to divert the water over the earthen dike that separates the park from the Neosho River.

Inside the massive building, the mesh network of thousands of floor tiles floated above the floor, released by the inundation.

City employees splashed about as they hauled furniture and equipment from the building. Meanwhile, members of a wedding party from the night before — hopefully not the bride and groom — had returned to retrieve left behind items.

From the fairgrounds to the playgrounds to the ball fields, Riverside Park was under water due to torrential rains that deposited an estimated 9 inches on Iola in as many hours.

It’s nothing new. The last flood of any significance was in 2017, and before that in 2007. In 2011, Riverside Park was included in the federal government’s flood plain, meaning it’s susceptible to “100-year” flooding, as if a taunt to

Mother Nature. The designation means more expensive insurance premiums for structures city officials choose to include, which are the park’s two community buildings and the pool bathhouse. Neither the pool itself, nor

the ball diamonds are covered.

If any new structure were to be built in the park, FEMA guidelines require they be built above the flood zone or be flood-proof.

THE PARK’S levee, built in

1939 as a Works Progress Administration project, comes with misgivings. While it generally keeps the Neosho River from invading, it also traps heavy rains like last weekend’s.

In a Sunday morning conversation inside the Rec Building with Corey Schinstock, Iola assistant city administrator, he noted the park’s proximity to the Neosho River is an inherent problem.

“With the ground thoroughly saturated there’s nowhere for the water to go,” he said. “And on top of that, the park is just inches from the underlying water table. You’ll hit river gravel if you dig very deep. So, water is going to percolate through for quite some time, even if we don’t receive additional rains.”

The Neosho River crested Saturday night at just under 20 feet, five feet above flood stage.

It appears dry weather is the only solution to the park’s water management problems. Hardly a reliable solution.

— Susan Lynn

Europeans cheer US aid to Ukraine; but fear the future

BRUSSELS — On April 19, I watched an audience of European and American political officials and strategic experts pay rapt attention as U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy told them Congress would enact a Ukraine aid package that weekend. Minutes later, the attendees at the German Marshall Fund’s Brussels Forum broke into cheers at the news that the House legislation had cleared an initial hurdle on its way to approval the next day.

Their emotional response was testimony to the criticality of tight cooperation between the United States and its European allies if Vladimir Putin’s Russia is to be pushed back from Ukraine.

Yet, several days spent in Brussels, including at NATO headquarters, underscored two basic facts: First, Europe (and Ukraine) cannot withstand Russian aggression alone without U.S. leadership and continued aid to Kyiv. And — this can’t be repeated enough — Putin’s aggression against Ukraine is not just a security threat to Europe. It is also a threat to the United States.

Most NATO members, especially former satellite states of the Soviet Union in Eastern Europe and the Baltics, have watched with growing alarm as Putin repeats his intent to reconstitute the Russian (read: former Soviet) empire and crushes the Ukrainian language, culture, and religion in occupied areas of Ukraine.

That alarm has intensified as Russia has used disinformation campaigns to interfere in European elections and promote far-right leaders more sympathetic to Moscow. Russian missiles have already violated the air space of NATO members Poland and Romania as they target defenseless Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.

Europeans have stepped up dramatically since the Russian invasion to increase their defense budgets and help Ukraine. Donald Trump’s claim last week on Truth Social that “the United States is over $100 Billion

Trudy Rubin

The Philadelphia Inquirer/ TNS

Dollars into the Ukraine War more than Europe” is utterly false. So is his isolationist stance that “we have an ocean between us as separation.”

European nations had committed more than double the amount of aid the U.S. sent to Kyiv prior to the new $60 billion U.S. package, and they are still in the lead. NATO members are creating coalitions to produce or buy weapons that are urgently needed.

For example, former Latvian Defense Minister Imants Lieģis told the forum his nation was part of a 10-country drone coalition, led by the United Kingdom, to urgently provide first-person view drones that are now key to the battlefield. “But we are also looking at the long term, where we see lessons learned from the Ukraine war,” he said. One key lesson is that the new mode of war is technological, with drones and electronic warfare, so the coalition is encouraging young innovators and trying to ease procurement rules.

Other European groupings are working on finding ammo and air defenses for Ukraine. But individual European nations — even as they push to increase their defense spending and production and integrate their efforts — cannot match the economic heft of the United States, or many of the advanced weapon systems we produce.

“This is a joint endeavor,” I was told by the U.S. ambassador to NATO, Julianne Smith. “The Europeans can provide a lot, but the United States needs to lead.”

Moreover, the Europeans recognize what U.S. isolationists don’t: This era of technological warfare, in which a vengeful Putin is helped by

China, Iran, and North Korea, makes an ocean’s protection moot. Think nukes in space, and satellite and information warfare.

“The U.S. population has to understand history,” argued Howard Buffett, farmer, businessman, and son of businessman-philanthropist Warren Buffett. His Howard G. Buffett Foundation has partnered with the German Marshall Fund to conduct a series of whistle-stops across America’s agricultural heartland to drum up support for Ukraine.

“You have to understand what Putin has done in his lifetime,” Buffett said. “Invade Georgia in 2008, Ukraine in 2014, Syria [in partnership with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad] in 2015. He has already told the world what he is going to do.” Added German Marshall Fund president Heather Conley: “If you don’t challenge Putin, you will embolden him, because he thinks we are weak.”

WHICH BRINGS US to the frisson of unease that continued to rattle forum attendees and dominate many discussions: Although the passage of the Ukraine aid package undermined Putin’s belief that America had abandoned Kyiv, can the United States be trusted to continue aiding Ukraine after 2024?

The good news is that President Joe Biden says the U.S. will rush critical items such as artillery ammo to the front, where Russian artillery now has a 10-1 advantage in firepower.

The even better news is that Biden has finally greenlit the shipment of long-range missiles, known as ATACMS, with single powerful warheads — which Kyiv has been begging for for more than a year. These missiles can take out supply depots and headquarters behind Russian lines, overcoming the stalemate between ground forces. Ukrainian military strategists believe ATACMS can be used to cut off supply lines to Crimea and make the Russian presence there untenable. Hopefully, the overdue

You have to understand what Putin has done in his lifetime. Invade Georgia in 2008, Ukraine in 2014, Syria in 2015. He has already told the world what he is going to do. If you don’t challenge Putin, you will embolden him, because he thinks we are weak.

— Howard Buffet

U.S. decision will encourage Germany to finally send even longer-range Taurus missiles.

The bad news is that the time frame for desperately needed air defenses for Ukraine is still unclear. F-16s still haven’t arrived, and vital U.S.-made Patriot systems to protect against Russian missiles aren’t yet on offer. Ukraine has three such systems — two sent from Germany and one from the U.S. — but needs at least seven to protect its cities.

Western nations reportedly have 100 such systems, yet only Germany has volunteered to send one more.

Other European countries are dithering (Spain and Greece may yet come through), but the U.S. is silent. Yet, U.S. defense firms are in the process of exporting a Patriot system to neutral Switzerland. Given the urgent need to save Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure from Russia’s barbaric attacks, surely Switzerland can wait, and that system could be delivered to Kyiv.

The worse news is that the administration still talks about Ukraine’s “holding the line” and rebuilding for 2025. Rather than hold the line, this is the moment to send all aid possible, especially long-range missiles and air defenses to Ukraine, so Kyiv can make as much progress as possible and shield against a possible electoral victory by Trump and the isolationists in November.

Both at NATO and at the Brussels Forum, there was anxious talk about the need for a plan B.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has proposed the establishment of a

$100 billion NATO fund contributed to by members that would guarantee five years of funding for Ukraine no matter who is elected U.S. president. The goal, said U.S. Ambassador Smith, would be “to signal to Putin that he can’t wait us out.” It’s not clear whether the proposal will get the necessary backing from members.

At the Brussels Forum, ideas for a U.S. plan B were already being floated. Ukraine’s survival, said former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun, “depends on our assistance and political will on our side.”

To demonstrate that Western will to Putin, he argues that NATO should no longer permit Russia to treat international Black Sea waters like a Russian lake, despite the littoral presence of three NATO members plus Ukraine on that sea. He also argues for NATO to activate air defense assets in northeast Poland and Romania, both NATO members whose air space has been affected by the Ukraine war. Those air defenses would effectively protect the Ukrainian cities of Lviv and Odesa.

I came back from Brussels convinced that the Europeans understand the urgency of the Putin threat far better than Americans do. It is critical for Biden to explain that urgency to the American people more directly and act on it this year, perhaps with new initiatives at the upcoming 75th anniversary NATO summit in Washington in July. It is far too risky for the White House to postpone concrete planning to ensure Ukraine’s future until after November.

The ballfields in Riverside Park were knee-deep in water Sunday morning. With the neighboring Neosho River just yards away, the underlying water table hampers the park’s ability to drain standing water. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

SEK: Fort Scott takes brunt of storm; highways closed

Continued from A1

ing it impassable. National Avenue was submerged clear to the entrance ramps for US 69 North.

The flooding also wreaked havoc on regional highways, disrupting travel throughout the affected areas. Major road closures included sections of US 400 near Fredonia to US 75 near Neodesha, westbound US 54 at the entrance ramp from US 69 North, and eastbound US 54 between US 69 in Fort Scott and the Missouri state line.

As the floodwaters begin to recede in the coming days, Fort Scott City Manager Brad Matkin noted that there is still work ahead. “It’s cleanup time,” he said. “It’s going to take several days. We’ve got a lot of alleys and drains that we have to clear up before the next batch of rain or storms come.”

Folks: Family

Continued from A1

storm, where the intermittent flashes of lightning illuminated the eerie scene unfolding.

Time was of essence.

Folk said he and his wife, Kim, who live in rural Iola, came into town around midnight to check on their properties as well as his parents.

“When we crossed the bridge and I saw the water was 10 feet from the back of their house, I knew we were in trouble,” Folk said. By then it was 1:15 a.m.

After taking Kim home, Folk called his sons, Brady and Baron, for help. With them came their friends Buddy Ware and Keanen Badders.

As fast as they could, the men unloaded as much of a metal machine shop as they could into a nearby trailer.

But they could not beat the fast-rising river.

“I’ve been through four floods, and it’s the fastest I’ve ever seen the river rise,” Folk, age 47, said. “It was more like a flash flood.”

In fact, the water came up higher on their property than the flood of 2007 that flooded much of Iola.

In the machine shop, the water line is about 5 feet high.

helps elderly parents evacuate as storm waters rise

In their home next door, the water line is 4 feet high in their bedroom and 3 feet high in the slightly higher levels of the home.

“It’s ruined everything,” Jesse Sr., said as he sat wearily on the front porch amid piled furniture and personal belongings.

Susan remained inside the home, having just returned from a medical procedure. Both senior Folks suffer from chronic medical conditions. Any mold, especially, will make it difficult for Susan who is on oxygen. When their son first

awakened them, the water had yet to enter the house.

“But by the time they got ready to leave it was coming in. I said ‘Dad, we’ve got to go now,’” Jesse recalled. “By the time we had them loaded in the truck, the current was swift.”

Jesse then called her parents’ neighbor, to see if she needed help.

“Thankfully, she was not at home,” he said. Only her garage suf fered flooding, he said.

The Folks’ home has been there since 1986.

“It was just a double wide trailer that Dad has pretty much rebuilt.

•

•

•

I was in 4th grade,” he said.

On Sunday morning, friends arrived to help clean out the house.

“I had gone home about 5 that morning and slept until 9,” Folk recalled. “When I got back here, ‘the cavalry’ started showing up. It’s

a lot easier with people helping you.”

Known as a “racing family,” the Folks have race cars on site as well as a machine shop and engine repair facility to facilitate their hobby. “This is our playground,” Jesse said.

Until his retirement several years ago, Jesse Sr., operated Folk Engine and Machine at the site. Today, the Folks operate Folk Septic and Jesse also has Folk Transmission in Gas.

Folk’s wife Kim owns Salon Nyne in downtown Iola.

In the rush Saturday night, Folk was also able to rescue two lawn mowers and other small equipment from his brother Justin’s

business, Iola Transmission, that sits across from his parents’ home.

“But his shop was locked, and I don’t have the keys,” he said. His brother lives in Kansas City.

Susan Folk recalled this was the fourth flood they’d endured. “1986, 1993, 2007 and now this.”

Jesse assures his parents, “we’ll rebuild, and it will be better than ever.”

Tuesday,

April 30, 2024

Iola squads split nailbiters

Bid for sweep falls short

EMPORIA — An optimist could say Iola High’s baseball team is capable of playing with Class 5A schools like Emporia, despite a litany of mistakes that forced the Mustangs to settle for a doubleheader split Friday.

“The other side of me as a coach says, ‘Hey, let’s not make so many mistakes,’” Mustang head coach Levi Ashmore said.

Coffeyville topples ACC

Fielding and pitching woes, coupled with an extended rain delay, did in Allen Community College’s baseball team Friday.

The Red Devils saw visiting Coffeyville score eight runs in the top of the first inning of their doubleheader opener, including a grand

See ALLEN | Page B3

Ashmore counted up eight Mustang miscues, either fielding errors, missed bunts or similar setbacks, in the second game of Iola’s doubleheader at Emporia.

“If any of those things had gone our way, it could have been a different result,” Ashmore said.

Instead, Emporia scored in

See MUSTANGS | Page B4

IHS rebounds after streak snapped

By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register

Iola High’s softball team put forth a ferocious comeback that came up just short Friday, and then saw visiting Emporia almost do the same in the second game of their doubleheader.

Alas, Iola was able to fend off the Spartans in the nightcap, winning 5-4. That came after Iola narrowly missed out on rallying from a 7-1 deficit in Game 1 — a game interrupted by a two-hour rain delay — before bowing out with the tying run on second base in a 7-6 setback.

The loss snapped an eight-game winning streak for the Mustangs (12-8) who will host Wellsville Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 at Allen Community College. The games, originally scheduled for Tuesday, were moved to the college because of flooding at Iola’s Riverside Park.

Despite seeing the winning streak snapped, Iola has much to be encouraged about, Mustang head coach Chris Weide said.

“We’ll take a split against a 5A school,” he said.

Even better, Iola saw the return of pitching ace Elza Clift to the mound.

Clift had not pitched for two weeks because of a sore forearm.

Clift started Game 1, and was virtually untouchable for the first three innings, allowing batters to make contact only twice. She didn’t allow a baserunner and struck out seven.

That’s when an approaching storm prompted umpires to suspend play, with Iola leading 1-0.

When play resumed more than two hours later, Weide took the cautious approach and moved Clift to first base,

Collins, Yardley pitch Red Devils past Cloud Co.

By RICHARD LUKEN The Iola Register

Allen Community College celebrated its sophomores in style Saturday, and picked up a pair of key conference wins in the process.

The Red Devils shut out visiting Cloud County, 6-0 and 2-0, to pick up the doubleheader sweep.

The victories are key for Allen, which improved to 9-9 in Jayhawk Conference action, good for sixth place overall.

With the postseason open to the top eight finishers, it’s incumbent upon the Red Devils to finish on a high note, head coach Nicole Peters said.

“This was a good start,” she said.

Pitchers Camrynn Yardley and Morgan Collins made sure of that. Each pitched three-hit shutouts. Yardley struck out 10 over seven innings. Collins struck out six, and walked only one. Their pitching was key, Peters noted, because the third leg of Allen’s pitching staff, Abby Marsh, remains sidelined due to injury.

“8It’s good for those two to step up and do well,” Peters said.

Yardley worked out of a bases-loaded situation to start the opener, walking three batters, but ending the threat with a pair of strikeouts.

She also aided her own cause, driving in Brooklyn Goehring with a first-inning

double for a 1-0 lead.

Goehring’s second double of the game, in the bottom of the second, was good for a pair of runs, making it 3-0.

Yardley wiggled off the hook again in the third, again walking the bases loaded, and again ending the potential rally with a strikeout to preserve the lead.

Calyn Michaelis got into the act with a two-run single in the bottom of the fifth to cap the scoring.

Goehering paced the offense with a single and two doubles. Yardley doubled and singled twice. Michaelis chipped in with a pair of singles. Bailee Campbell and Collins also singled.

GOEHRING continued her hot hitting in Game 2. Shesingled and moved to second on error before stealing third and coming in on Hayley Gerberding’s RBI

grounder.

Kyler Smith led off the third inning with a walk. She moved up to second on Goering’s single, to third on Herberding’s ground-out and back home on Paxton Meyer’s RBI grounder.

That was more than enough for Collins, who had only one true stressful inning, the top of the seventh, when Cloud put runners on

See DEVILS | Page B5 See REBOUND | Page B3

Iola High’s Landon Weide bats in a game earlier this season.

REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

Allen’s Garrett Rusch, top, leaps for a throw Friday. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

Allen Community College’s Rhenn Beckley, foreground, dons a broom to help her Red Devil teammates celebrate a sweep over Cloud County Saturday, giving ACC a boost in its bid for a playoff spot. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

Iola High’s Harper Desmarteau bats Friday against Emporia. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

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Rebound: Iola fends off Emporia in doubleheader split

bringing in freshman Zoie Hesse to pitch the rest of the way.

Things unraveled a bit to start the fourth.

Emporia’s first and only hit of the game came on an infield single to start the inning before three straight batters walked, and two more batters were hit, pushing the Spartans ahead 2-1. Another walk and hit batter pushed across the third and fourth runs before two more scored on a Mustang fielding error. An-

other two-out error allowed Emporia to make it 7-1.

Meanwhile, it took Iola’s batters a bit of time to square up Emporia pitcher Alivia Anno.

Kyndal Bycroft singled and scored on Kaysin Crusinbery’s double for a quick 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second.

But that was it until the fun started in the bottom of the sixth. Harper Desmarteau led things off with a single. Hesse reached on an error before Brooklyn

Holloway roped a double to left, making it 7-2.

Bycroft followed with a two-run single to pare the deficit even further.

Hesse worked around a walk and hit batter in the top of the seventh, setting the stage for Iola’s final challenge.

Clift and Desmarteau singled with one out. Both came around on Reese Curry’s twoout double, making it a one-run game. But the rally ended with Curry’s tying run still on second base.

Hesse wound up

Allen: Falls to Coffeyville

slam by the Ravens’

George Andrews, to set the tone in a 14-5 rain-shortened victory.

Then, after a roughly three-hour stoppage due to the weather, Coffeyville tacked on six first-inning runs in Game 2. Allen got an offensive spark later in the game on Bjarne Reinhardt’s fifth-inning grand slam, but it was not enough in a 16-5 setback.

The final pitch was delivered after 10 p.m., more than nine hours after the doubleheader started.

Allen also was able to play some long ball of its own, including home runs by Caleb Horsey, Parker Martin and Colton Ayres in the opener, and then Reinhardt and Talpa in Game 2.

But Allen also committed five errors in

both contests, opening the door to a combined nine unearned Coffeyville runs.

Horsey paced the offense with a double and home run, while Talpa had a single and double.

Logan Martin added a single.

Payton Pudenz surrendered eight hits over five innings and struck out three. Reinhard pitched the final 1.2 innings, striking out three and allowing two hits.

The game was put into a weather delay with Coffeyville batting with two outs in the top of the seventh and final inning.

When the weather cleared, the umpiring crew declared the game over, allowing both teams to start fresh for the nightcap, which didn’t get underway until after 7 p.m.

Coffeyville promptly

seized control with its six-run first inning.

Talpa blasted a solo home run in the bottom of the first as part of his 3-for-4 day. Reinhardt’s home run was good for four RBIs.

Horsey added a double. Meese Robberse and Jack Harris added singles.

Seth Broadwell, Cale Clark, Ethan Payne and Brandon McKarnin pitched the first five innings, allowing a combined seven hits with eight strikeouts. Brayden Thompson pitched the final four innings, allowing three hits with four strikeouts.

Allen wraps up the regular season with single games against Hutchinson. The first game is scheduled for Thursday at Hutch; the second on Saturday at home against the Blue Dragons.

striking out five over four innings, allowing just one hit.

“Zoie pitched a lot better once she got warmed up,” Weide said. “We’re going to start pushing her more in warmups.”

Iola racked up 12 hits, including Desmarteau’s two singles and a double. Crusinbery and Curry both had a single and double. Holloway added a double. Bycroft singled twice. Clift and Hesse added singles.

“Even if we had been swept, I told the girls this would have been a positive, the way Elza pitched. We’re going to keep easing her back into it, to get us ready for regionals.”

FRIDAY’S nightcap had the added tension of time.

Because the rainy weather forced the proceedings to the college, it meant playing on a diamond without lights. And with the extended delay, the setting sun became a factor.

Iola spotted Emporia a quick 1-0 lead, but answered quickly. Hesse drove in Clift with an RBI single before Holloway’s sacrifice bunt attempt wound up becoming a two-run throwing error on the Spartans. Bycroft added another RBI with a ground-out, sending Holloway home for a 4-1 lead.

Hesse was hit by a pitch to start the third. She scored on Crusinbery’s twoout single, making it 5-2.

By then, it became evident the sun was going to set before the teams could get in a full seven innings, and would likely end in the fifth, one way or the other.

Emporia started the fateful fifth with a double, walk and

Iola High’s Elza Clift delivers a pitch Friday against Emporia. Clift, who had been sidelined with a sore forearm, was dominant in her three innings of work, allowing no hits and striking out seven of the nine batters she faced.

single, closing the gap to 5-3. A one-out walk and hit batter pushed across another run, leaving the bases loaded.

Hesse buckled down from there. She got the second out on a force play at the plate, without a run scored. She then struck out the final batter of the game to seal the win.

Hesse gave up five hits over five innings with seven strikeouts.

Meanwhile, Clift went 3-for-3 with a double. Curry singled twice, while Hesse and Crusinbery had singles.

Weide praised Hesse’s work in a pair of pressure-filled situations.

“I like to single out pitchers, because I think that’s the hardest position to play in

REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

sports,” he said. “For us to put the ball in a 15-year-old’s hands says a lot about her. I’m proud of how she handled it.”

As an aside, Hesse also has etched her name in the IHS history books. Friday’s hits gave her 35 for the season, the most by an Iola softball player ever. The old record was 29.

“It shows how talented she is,” Weide said.

But, he added quickly, the Mustangs are much more than a onetrick pony.

“We’ve got a lot of girls hitting the ball well,” he said. “Reese is hitting the ball well, and Kyndal has gotten some huge hits for us. These girls are able to really keep things going.”

Allen Community College’s Anthony Talpa connects on a home run against Coffeyville Friday. REGISTER/RICHARD LUKEN

NFL Draft: Chiefs tackle needs at receiver, offensive line

By DAVE SKRETTA The Associated Press

KANSAS CITY, Mo.

(AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs had two distinct holes on their roster as they headed into the offseason.

The two-time defending Super Bowl champions filled them with their first two picks in the NFL draft.

While every general manager talks about taking “the best player available,” and some make a surprising pick that goes against the grain, Brett Veach did exactly what was expected. The Chiefs’ GM moved up modestly in the first round to take Texas burner Xavier Worthy, instantly upgrading what was one of the league’s worst wide receiving corps last year, then made another minor trade-up in Round 2 to take BYU’s Kingsley Suamataia, potentially filling a glaring hole at left tackle.

“We just let the board play out and saw the value there,” Veach said.

Indeed, the Chiefs’ draft board played out perfectly.

We just let the board play out and saw the value there.

— Brett Veach, Kansas City Chiefs GM

Thuney is coming off pectoral surgery.

LATE-ROUND CORNERS

The Chiefs chose Tennessee cornerback Kamal Hadden in the sixth round and hope he can follow a string of successful late-round picks at the position. Two years ago, they took regular contributors Josh Williams in the fourth round and Jaylen Watson in the seventh. Last year, fourth-rounder Chamarri Conner played a big role in their success.

The Chiefs hope Worthy can pair well with Marquise Brown, whom they signed in free agency, and Rashee Rice, whose future is up in the air while dealing with legal trouble stemming from a street racing crash in Texas.

“It doesn’t hurt to have down-the-field speed,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “We’ve functioned without the great speed down the field and done well, (but) if you have an opportunity to get somebody that you think is

Worthy set the NFL combine record by running the 40-yard dash in 4.21 seconds, giving Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes a legitimate deep threat for the first time since they traded Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins. Worthy is also an underrated route-runner with sure hands, something the Chiefs lacked while leading the league in dropped passes.

a good player — just not a speed guy but a good football player — I think you probably need to take advantage of that.”

The issue then becomes giving Mahomes time to get the ball to those guys, and that’s where Suamataia comes into the picture.

Many scouts gave him a first-round grade, yet the 6-foot5, 328-pound offensive tackle fell to Kansas City late in the second round, and he could start from Day 1. The Chiefs allowed Donovan Smith to reach free agency, so Suamataia will likely compete

with Wanya Morris and Lucas Niang for the opportunity to protect Mahomes’ blind side.

“If I do get the opportunity to be his blindside, shoot, that would mean the world to me,” Suamataia said. “I’m just ready to come in wherever I best fit on the team and just get it rolling from there.”

FOURTH-ROUND FINDS

The Chiefs did not have a third-round selection, so they used their two fourth-rounders on less pressing holes at tight end and safety. Jared Wiley of TCU can be groomed for the day when Travis Kelce decides to hang

up the cleats, while Jaden Hicks — ranked by some draft pundits as the No. 1 safety in the class — can provide immediate help in the secondary.

THE CENTER OF IT ALL

The Chiefs spent a fifth-rounder on Penn State’s Hunter Nourzad, who played right tackle at Cornell before starting at center the past two seasons at Penn State. Creed Humphrey, a two-time Pro Bowl pick at center for Kansas City, had some problems with his snaps last season. Nourzad could push him or perhaps slide to guard, where Joe

GETTING DEFENSIVE

Kansas City built one of the league’s best defenses through the draft, using several high picks in recent years. But it used its first three selections this year to prop up the offense, then hit the defense in the later rounds.

WORK TO DO

The Chiefs could still use some depth at defensive tackle, where they brought back Chris Jones, Tershawn Wharton and Derrick Nnadi this offseason, and running back, where they brought back Clyde Edwards-Helaire to play behind Isiah Pacheco.

Mustangs: Settle for split in road clash with Emporia

Continued from B1

walk-off fashion in the bottom of the eighth inning to win, 5-4, on Chase Harrington’s RBI double.

The loss came after Iola rallied to win Game 1, 9-8, and then rallied again to erase what had been a 4-0 Emporia lead in Game 2.

“It was kind of a roller-coaster,” Ashmore said.

Jase Herrmann’s RBI single started Iola’s comeback Game 2 in the top of the fifth inning against Emporia starter Owen Ruge.

The Mustangs found their offense in the sixth. Landon Weide started things with a double, followed by singles from Korbin Cloud, Tre Wilson and Grady Dougherty before Mac Leonard’s sacrifice fly evened the score at 4-4.

Meanwhile, Leonard han-

dled the pitching duties. Even after a tough start that saw Emporia score three times in the bottom of the third to lead 4-0, Leonard cruised through the middle innings.

But Ashmore pointed to a missed bunt for Iola with runners on first and second and nobody out in the top of the eighth as a critical turning point. Instead, a pop-out and double play ended the threat without scoring. In addition, Iola let a pop-up drop late during the Spartans’ winning rally, “and we had a couple of costly baserunning errors,” he said. “That’s baseball. You can’t get those plays back.”

A single and a hit batter set the table for Harrington’s game winner.

Wilson led the offense with a single, double and triple in four at-bats. Weide added a

double. Cloud, Dougherty, Leonard and Herrmann had singles.

Leonard pitched all the way for Iola, allowing seven hits over seven innings with three strikeouts.

THE FIRST game also was a back-and-forth affair.

Wilson doubled and scored on Dougherty’s single for a quick 1-0 lead before Emporia bounced back to lead 3-1 after one inning.

Ben Kerr and Ashton Hesse opened the second with singles. Kerr stole home for one run before Weide’s RBI single brought Hesse home to even the score.

Leonard’s RBI single in the top of the third gave Iola the lead for good. Kerr followed with a two-run single, making it 6-3.

The Spartans came back to

trail 6-5 before Iola loaded the bases with nobody out in the fourth. Wilson and Dougherty both drove in runs with ground-outs before Leonard capped the scoring with an RBI single.

Emporia bounced back with three in the fifth to get close but Weide shut the door from there, pitching 2.2 scoreless innings of relief with three strikeouts.

Dougherty got the start on the mound, giving up six hits over three innings with a pair of strikeouts. Gavin Jones pitched 1.1 innings, allowing four hits.

Kerr rapped out three singles and drove in two. Weide added a single and double, while Leonard singled twice. Wilson added a double.

While happy with the win, Ashmore said Iola didn’t play its best in that game, either.

“Our bats were pretty good against a good pitcher, but we didn’t pitch as well as we had been,” he said. “And then we had a letdown game after you beat somebody really good. These are games you hope to forget about and move on.”

THE ROAD doesn’t get any easier to wrap up the regular season.

Iola hosts Wellsville for a doubleheader Tuesday afternoon at the Allen Community College baseball diamond before wrapping up the regular season with undefeated Bishop Ward in Kansas City.

“We’ll take it one game at a time, and hopefully feel good about ourselves going into regionals,” he said.

Tuesday’s games were moved to the college because of flooding over the weekend at Iola’s Riverside Park.

Kingsley Suamataia speaks to the media during the 2024 NFL Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on March 2 in Indianapolis. GETTY IMAGES/JUSTIN CASTERLINE/TNS

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Devils: Sweep

Continued from B1

first and third with a walk and single.

But Collins ended the game one pitch later on a routine ground ball to second.

Ashley Tribble gave Allen’s offense a lift with a single and double. Goehring went 3-for-3, improving her batting average to .453 in the process.

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Dickinson returns to KU

LAWRENCE (AP) — Kansas star center Hunter Dickinson announced Friday he would return for a final season with the Jayhawks.

Coach Bill Self also said he has signed a fourth player from the transfer portal in Rylan Griffen, a starter on the Alabama team that reached the NCAA Final Four.

Dickinson was a firstteam All-Big 12 pick and conference newcomer of the year after averaging 17.9 points and 10.8 rebounds per game in his first season with the Jayhawks after transferring from Michigan.

“Yeah you’re right coach. I guess it’s time to tell everyone I’m coming back! Rock Chalk!” Dickinson wrote on social media.

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HAGAR THE HORRIBLE by

MARVIN

HI AND LOIS

Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

by Mort Walker

Chris Browne

by Tom Armstrong

Chance Browne

and Drake

Baffert will miss third straight Kentucky Derby Track officials

extend famed trainer’s suspension

By BETH HARRIS The Associated Press

The 150th Kentucky Derby is missing horse racing’s household name: Bob Baffert.

The Hall of Fame trainer with a record-tying six victories won’t be saddling a contender in Saturday’s Run for the Roses for the third consecutive year.

Last July, Baffert had another year tacked on to his two-year suspension by Churchill Downs Inc., which was set to expire in 2023. The additional punishment came despite no positive drug or medication tests involving the 71-year-old trainer’s horses during that time.

CDI imposed the original penalty after Baffert’s 2021 Derby winner, Medina Spirit, flunked a post-race drug test. The colt tested positive for a legal medication that isn’t allowed on race day in Kentucky. Medina Spirit was later disqualified.

That led to two years of lawsuits, but Baffert failed in his attempts to be reinstated by Churchill Downs or have Medina Spirit’s victory restored. In January, Baffert said he was dropping his legal challenges against CDI.

In

His move didn’t thaw the frosty relations between the two sides.

“A trainer who is unwilling to accept responsibility for multiple drug test failures in our highest-profile races cannot be trusted to avoid future misconduct,” CDI said in extending the suspension. “Mr. Baffert will remain suspended from entering horses at all racetracks owned

by CDI through 2024. After such time, we will re-evaluate his status.”

The suspension prevented any Baffert horse from accumulating Derby qualifying points, which decide the 20-horse field for the race.

Did Baffert have horses in the last two Derbies?

Technically, no.

The last two years, the owners of Baffert’s

top contenders transferred their horses to another trainer so they could run in the Derby. But this year, in evidence of their loyalty to Baffert, none of them did so.

Owner Amr Zedan made a last-ditch effort to try to get Arkansas Derby winner Muth into the 150th Derby. He sued in early April.

However, the Kentucky Court of Appeals

recently denied a motion for a temporary injunction that would have allowed Muth into the race despite the suspension of Baffert, who was not a party to the lawsuit.

Zedan owned Medina Spirit, who died after a workout in December 2021. No definitive cause of death was found.

Has the suspension affected Baffert’s ca-

reer?

Not really. Despite hits to his reputation, Baffert is still highly sought out by deep-pocketed owners eager to have him train their high-priced horses. However, being shut out of the Derby has to sting since he has always been effusive about the first Saturday in May and considers it the pinnacle of the sport.

He won the Preakness last year with National Treasure, his 17th victory in a Triple Crown race. Earlier that day, one of his horses was injured in a race on the undercard and had to be euthanized. He had purse earnings of over $12.6 million for the year.

He won the $12 million Dubai World Cup with Country Grammer in 2022.

What’s next?

Some wags are calling it Kentucky Derby 149 1/2 in a nod to the absence of Baffert’s talented colts. As a result, some believe the stronger race will be the Preakness on May 18.

Baffert can enter horses in the Preakness and the Belmont at Saratoga on June 8. He nominated 18 horses to the Triple Crown series, so any of them are eligible for the last two legs.

Among his top prospects are Muth and Imagination, the Santa Anita Derby runner-up. Both have been training at Santa Anita in California ahead of their next starts.

Brunson scores 47 as Knicks take 3-1 lead over Philly

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jalen Brunson had just finished the highest-scoring game of his playoff career, the highest ever by a New York Knicks player in the postseason, and he was impressed.

Not by his own performance. Brunson loathes talking about that.

He meant by the Knicks fanbase, which came into Philadelphia, took over the arena and made Joel Embiid as miserable as the guys wearing blue.

Brunson scored a career playoff-high 47 points, added 10 assists and the Knicks beat the 76ers 97-92 on Sunday to take a 3-1 lead in their firstround playoff series.

Brunson had a 41-point game for Dallas against Utah in 2022 and another for the Knicks last year against Miami, but that one came in the

Game 6 where the Knicks’ season ended. He wouldn’t let them lose Sunday and a crowd that seemed split between big Northeast cities had a decidedly Knicks sound down the stretch.

“The Philadelphia fanbase is, I said this before, they’re very relentless and very passionate. I mean, I’m an Eagles fan, I would know,” said Brunson, who won two national championships playing collegiately for Villanova. “But seeing the Knicks here and hearing the Knicks here, it was pretty cool and it’s awesome.”

Not for Embiid, who had to hear Brunson get louder chants of “MVP! MVP!” than the guy who actually won the award last season.

“I love our fans but it was unfortunate. I’m not calling them out, but it is dis-

appointing.” Embiid said, adding that he’s aware that Knicks fans often make the short train trip for the road games.

“But never seen it (like Sunday) and I’ve been here for 10 years. Yeah, kind of (ticks) me off, especially because Philly is considered a sports town, so ... I don’t think that should happen. It’s not OK.”

But Brunson’s performance was too marvelous not to cheer as he surpassed the 46 points scored by Bernard King in 1984.

OG Anunoby added 16 points and 14 rebounds, and took on some of the defensive assignment against Embiid in the fourth quarter as the Knicks moved within a victory of getting to the Eastern Conference semifinals for the second straight year.

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The No. 2-seeded Knicks can do that with a victory at home on Tuesday night.

Embiid played the entire second half after the 76ers faltered badly when he sat in the first. But the All-Star center, who has been dealing with lingering problems from his surgically repaired left knee that he appeared to reinjure after a dunk in Game 1, and was recently diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis, couldn’t muster a basket in the fourth quarter.

“Your competitive nature is always going to take over and I felt like they always come back in the game in this series,” Embiid said. “So I was like, I’ve got nothing to lose, just going to push myself and obviously it didn’t work out the way I wanted it to.”

Embiid finished with 27

points, 10 rebounds and six assists. Tyrese Maxey added 23 points for the 76ers, who will try to force another game at home, which would be Thursday.

Josh Hart missed all seven shots and Donte DiVincenzo missed his first seven. But Hart grabbed 17 rebounds and the Knicks kept going after missed shots, especially when it was clear Embiid didn’t have the energy to keep chasing them, and scored 21 second-chance points.

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said his team, which finished with a 52-42 rebound advantage, looks at offensive rebounds as valuable shots.

“So we understand how important that is,” he said, “and we’ve got some guys that are great at it. They’re relentless.”

year’s sponsors

this file photo from 2016, trainer Bob Baffert watches a workout at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky. Baffert will miss the race for the third consecutive year. He served a two-year suspension by Churchill Downs Inc. after his 2021 winner Medina Spirit was disqualified for a failed drug test. But the track’s corporate ownership meted out an additional year of punishment. AP PHOTO/CHARLIE RIEDEL