CEDAR RAPIDS — A spectator made the observation early and accurately:
“This doesn’t seem like Jeff/Linn-Mar.”
Class 4A third-ranked Cedar Rapids Jefferson struck for 22 hits and dominated rebuilding Linn-Mar, 4-0 and 11-1, in a Mississippi Valley Conference softball double-header Thursday night at the Jefferson Softball Complex.

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Bill Quinby remembers his shock and sadness when he heard about the death of Nile Kinnick.
“We didn’t have TV then. I remember (former Gazette sports editor) Tait Cummins wrote a very warm summary after his death,” said Quinby, 77, a former NFL official who returned to Cedar Rapids after his retirement.
“It was pretty sad then. And this is very, very sad now.”
Quinby was refering to Wednesday’s death of Ed Thomas, the Aplington-Parkersburg football coach that was shot to death at the school’s weight room.
Mark Becker of Parkersburg was …

High school sports are full of excitement and emotion.
An excess of either can lead to very bad things, said Jim Bellamy, retired football coach at Mount Vernon High School.
“Let’s just say that things like this can happen. People get excited and emotional. You hope it (subsides and) goes away.”

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High school sports are full of excitement and emotion.
An excess of either can lead to very bad things, said Jim Bellamy, retired football coach at Mount Vernon High School.
“Let’s just say that things like this can happen. People get excited and emotional. You hope it (subsides and) goes away.”

Bellamy was an associate of Aplington-Parkersburg Coach Ed Thomas, who was shot to death Wednesday morning at the school’s weight room.
Mark Becker, 24, has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the shooting, which happened around 7:45 Wednesday morning at …

Last May, Ed Thomas lost his home.
Wednesday, he lost his life.
But Thomas’ legacy won’t be that of a victim, according to Tom Stone.
“He had ‘WINNER’ written all over him,” said Stone, veteran football coach at Pekin High School. ”He touched so many lives. He brought out the best in so many people. He had a real knack in getting along with kids.”

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Residence react to the shooting of Aplington-Parkersburg football coach Ed Thomas on Wednesday. (Photo by Jim Slosiarek)

Last May, Ed Thomas lost his home.
Wednesday, he lost his life.
But Thomas’ legacy won’t be that of a victim, according to Tom Stone.
“He had ‘WINNER’ written all over him,” said Stone, veteran football coach at Pekin High School. ”He touched so many lives. He brought out the best in so many people. He had a real knack in getting along with kids.”

Thomas, the iconic Aplington-Parkersburg football coach and athletics director who led the community’s …

JIM BELLAMY, former Mount Vernon H.S. football coach
“It’s a sorry time for the state of Iowa as a whole, to lose a fine person like that.”
“He was a class act, from all of my observations. It’s hard to believe that something like this could happen. His program, his demeanor … what a class act.”
“He was involved with so many activities. He was a strong supporter of the community. It’s unbelievable.”
“You deal with the youth of today, and you have to deal with parents. You never know how far people are …

In a year the girls’ 800-meter run became a stacked event in Iowa, an all-time state best was set.
Shelby Houlihan of Sioux City East finished third at the Nike Outdoor National track meet last week with a time of 2:07.35.
That eclipses the old mark of 2:07.39, set in 2006 by Blaire Dinsdale of North Tama.

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In a year the girls’ 800-meter run became a stacked event in Iowa, an all-time state best was set.
Shelby Houlihan of Sioux City East finished third at the Nike Outdoor National track meet last week with a time of 2:07.35.
That eclipses the old mark of 2:07.39, set in 2006 by Blaire Dinsdale of North Tama.

Source: Jeff Linder – Blog

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Larry Niemeyer, here huddling with his Cedar Rapids Jefferson softball team during the 2008 state tournament, has been selected as the 2009 National High School Coaches Association national coach of the year. (AP photo)

CEDAR RAPIDS — For a day, Larry Niemeyer felt young again.
The nation’s all-time leader in softball victories, Niemeyer has been selected as the 2009 National High School Coaches Association national coach of the year.

“It’s got to be one of the bigger (awards I’ve won),” said Niemeyer, who has coached Adel and Cedar Rapids Jefferson to …