By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

The Southeast Missouri Cleats of Fire will be competing in the AAU Junior Olympics in New Orleans, La., from July 29 - Aug. 6, with MaKayla Waldner representing Dexter in the competition.

MaKayla, the 13 year old daughter of Bob and Kim Waldner, is no stranger to competition. Her two older sisters, Sammy and Brittany, are both on collegiate track teams. Her older brother, Trevor, is a wrestler at Dexter High School. Her younger brother, Travis, appears to be as athletic as any other member of the family.

“I’ve been with the team since I was seven,” Waldner said. “It’s a traveling team of kids around Dexter - Poplar Bluff, Sikeston, stuff like that - and we compete in summer track. Our coach is Kevin Ellis. We ranged from 11 to 14 years old. Every year we try to go to the Junior Olympics, which rotates locations every five years.”


“I’ve gone to [the Junior Olympics] every year since I’ve started with Cleats of Fire,” Waldner added. “I’ve usually placed in most of my events down there.”


Waldner competes in nine events during meets - five multi’s and four individuals. In multi’s, Waldner runs the 800 meter dash, high jumps, long jumps, throws shotput, and runs hurdles. In her individual events, she runs the 100 and 200 meter hurdles, pole vaults, and does the high jump.


“Hurdles and pole vault are my favorite,” Waldner said. “I really like both of them.”

Waldner also competes for the DHS Bearcats during the school year, and noted the heightened level of competition that she faces during the AAU Junior Olympics.

“This is so much harder than school track. I have to train ten times harder if I want to place,” Waldner added. “We train four times a week - one day we’ll do hurdles, one day we’ll run hills, basically whatever coach wants us to do.”

The team is currently accepting donations and selling smoked pork loins and Boston butts to help fund the trip. Pre-ordered meat is to be picked up on July 23. For more details regarding the meat sale, send an email to acato@showmetimes.com.

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Make sure to check back with the ShowMe Times for updates on MaKayla's journey to the AAU Junior Olympics!

Dexter's Young Cardinals Have Hot Bats, WIn Tournament

Dexter’s own Cardinals have been pretty hot this summer, winning the 2011 Diamond Demolition – Battle of the Bats. The Cardinals won the tournament, sponsored by the Dexter Parks and Recreation Department. The tournament was for boys age 11 and younger and the bracket included six teams.

Dexter’s bats were hot Thursday evening as the boys beat their biggest rival, Campbell, to claim the title.

Dexter and Campbell have played a total of eight times this spring and summer. The Cardinals tied the very first game 7-7 back in the early spring. Dexter then lost the next four battles with Campbell, three on Campbell’s home field, once in Dexter during the regular games, and one time in the Campbell tournament in May.

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Dexter has since won the last three battles with Campbell - once in the Piggott, Ark., tournament and the last two during the Diamond Demolition at home.

“We did not have a single strikeout this entire tournament,” said Coach Dave Ellinghouse. Ellinghouse noted fellow coaches Derek Driskill and John Daniels were all very proud of the boys. “We’ve won 10 in a row now and we’re starting to see our fan base grow a little and that’s exciting.”

This season the Cardinals have played and defeated Sikeston Red, Sikeston Black, Holcomb, Piggott, Ark., Walnut Ridge, Ark., Portageville, Kennett, Corning, Ark., and Campbell. Their current record on the season is 16-5-1.

“We started practicing back in March right after the Upwards basketball season ended,” Ellinghouse said. “We are starting to see the hard work pay off.”

The Cardinals will next see action in Bloomfield this Saturday, July 16 against Bloomfield, Bernie and Malden. The team also plans to play again July 19 – 21 in the DPR tournament against Bloomfield, Bernie, Benton, East Prairie and Portageville.

The Cardinals will probably finish the season in a “Ring” tournament in Campbell starting next Friday and finishing Saturday. The players and coaches on the top two teams will receive rings instead of the traditional trophies or medals.

Photo Above: They're Number One!! The Dexter Cardinals won the Diamond Demolition tournament for teams age 11 and younger. The young club has had a successful season in regional play. (Photo by Reader Amy Ellinghouse; Thanks Amy!)

The Dexter Cardinals are coached by Derek Driskill, John Daniels and Dave Ellinghouse.

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Team members are: Andrew Ellinghouse - 2nd base, Peyton Driskill - SS, Austin Daniels – 3rd base, Ryder Boles - Pitcher, Riley Slusher – 1st base, Riley Moore – Right center field, Jackson Cade Allen – left field/right field, Dylan Sitze – left center field, Camden Riley – right field, Josab Brisher – catcher, Colsyn Mills – outfield/infield

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The fish are waiting for anglers to hit the waters this weekend! The following is the weekend fishing report from the Missouri Department of Conservation for the Southeast region:

LAKES

Clearwater Lake: 85 degrees, high, dingy; largemouth bass fair on topwater and plastic baits; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Council Bluff: 85 degrees, normal, clear; channel catfish fair on liver and worms after dark; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Cypress Lake: 88 degrees, high, dingy; channel catfish good in 2'-3' depths using crickets, worms, and stinkbait; crappie slow in 3' depths using minnows and jigs; bluegill and redear sunfish fair in 1'-3' depths using crickets, small jigs, and small pieces of worms; largemouth bass slow in 2'-3' depths on spinnerbaits and jigs; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Duck Creek: 86 degrees, high, clear; bluegill good on crickets; largemouth bass fair on topwater lures. (Report made on 7/14/2011)
Lake Girardeau: 83 degrees, normal, clear; channel catfish fair on worms; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Perry County Lake: 88 degrees, normal, clear; channel catfish good on liver; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Robert DeLaney Lake: 91 degrees, normal, channel catfish good on worms, liver, live bluegill, and stinkbaits on bottom or around standing timber; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Wappapello: normal, bluegill good on crickets and worms; crappie fair on minnows and jigs in the lake and good in the spillway; black bass good on plastic worms and crankbaits; channel catfish fair on trotlines and jug lines at night using live bait and nightcrawlers. Anglers should note the 9" minimum length regulation for crappie on Wappapello Lake. All areas around the lake are now open since the lake water level has dropped. Call the Wappapello Lake Recreation Hotline for updates at 573-222-8139. (Report made on 7/14/2011)

RIVERS

Black River (near Annapolis): 78 degrees, normal, clear; all species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Castor River (above Zalma): low, clear; black bass good on minnows; all other species fair. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Lower Black River (Clearwater Dam): high, dingy; black bass fair on topwater lures and soft plastics; channel catfish fair on live bait; crappie fair on minnows along the weed lines; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Mississippi (below Charleston): falling, muddy; channel catfish fair on worms; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
Mississippi River (Cape Girardeau): high, muddy; channel catfish fair on worms; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
St. Francis (above Wappapello): normal, clear; all species slow. (Report made on 7/13/2011)
St. Francis (below Wappapello): 79 degrees, normal, dingy; flathead catfish good on small goldfish and bluegill; channel catfish good on liver, worms and stinkbaits; bluegill fair on waxworms; black bass fair on artificial bait; all other species slow. (Report made on 7/14/2011)
Anglers are invited to send photos of their fishing trips to the ShowMe Times. Just email amiller@showmetimes.com. Be sure to include the name of the fisherman, the date of the catch, where it was caught, weight – and if you care to share what type of bait you were using!

After months of preparation and hard work, a group of students at Premier Martial Arts earned their Tae Kwan Do black belts in competition. The judging panel for the 3 1/2 hour competition were (front row, from left) Kim Watson, Master Ray Carrillo, Heather Holcomb, and Ashley Turman. Students participating were (back row, from left) Colton Gibson, recommended blackbelt; Emily Ladd, second degree black belt; Jon Tucker, recommended black belt; John Stephens, recommended black belt; Jonathan Foels, second degree black belt; Greyson Stephens, recommended black belt; and Hunter Lawrence, second degree black belt. (Reader submitted photo by Kay Stevenson)

From the Maryville University Sports Information Department

Caleb Miller and the Maryville Saints are making a huge step next season - moving into NCAA Division II Athletics!

ST. LOUIS - The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has granted Maryville University permission to become an active member in NCAA Division II competition, which concludes a three-year process of reclassifying its 17 intercollegiate teams from Division III to Division II.



NCAA Division II Membership Services confirmed to Maryville on July 8, 2011 that the Division II Management Council accepted the recommendation by the Membership Committee to admit Maryville to active Division II membership. 
Maryville began the reclassification process in 2008-09 and successfully completed the provisional year in 2010-11 and was subsequently invited to enter active membership.



"Athletics represents a strong element in providing a wonderful student experience at Maryville," said President Mark Lombardi, PhD. "We have worked hard in recent years to upgrade our athletics programs by reclassifying to Division II, joining the country's finest Division II conference and adding wrestling to our roster of varsity sports. When you combine all those factors with our recent hiring of Marcus Manning to serve as our director of athletics, there is no doubt a great future lies ahead for our university and its athletics programs."



Moving to Division II is an important step in Maryville's strategic plan called Tradition and Transformation: Maryville's Strategic Plan for 2014 that was unveiled by President Lombardi in January 2008. The strategic plan calls for expanding of prospective student recruitment throughout the Midwest while raising the university's profile and expanding the vibrancy and diversity of its campus life experience.



Maryville was admitted into the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC), one of the premier DII conferences in the nation, and began competing in this conference in the fall 2009. Four athletes have been named All-Conference in the two years the institution has been a GLVC member.



Maryville has been a member of NCAA Division III since 1978, and 2008-2009 was its final year of affiliation with the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Over its 30 year history, the Saints have made 15 appearances in NCAA post-season tournaments. Most recently, the women's basketball 2008-09 team set the NCAA Division III record for most consecutive conference wins with 92, a streak that ended with a victory.