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SOLON– Three months after her retirement from teaching first grade at Lakeview Elementary School, Rosann Sandersfeld leafed through a book of student letters.
Printed painstakingly in pencil, the children thanked Mrs. Sandersfeld for her teaching career and urged her to enjoy retirement in the simplest of ways. Some hoped she’d be able to sleep in more and watch TV. Some, in a throwback to their first grade nutrition unit, implored their teacher to eat nuts and drink milk. All agreed, she must spend as many days as possible in pajamas.

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TIFFIN– After closing out a season with the most hits, runs, highest team batting average, and the most wins in the history of the program, the Clear Creek Amana Clippers put seven men on the WaMaC West All-Conference Baseball rosters.
The conference released its 2015 list on Thursday, July 23.
Nile Rourke, Tanner Bandy and Travis Bowman were named to the First Team for the West Division.
Rourke, a senior infielder, had a .367 batting average with 36 hits, including three doubles and one triple and 14 RBI.

ILLINOIS– The Solon Spartan Trapshooting team took team and individual championships at the 2015 Scholastic Clay Target Program National Championships.
The event took place July 13 through July 18 at the World Shooting Complex in Sparta, Ill. Over 2,000 student athletes, representing 40 different states, competed at the Nationals with over 200 student athletes from Iowa that competed. States with highest attendance included: Florida, Wisconsin, Tennessee and Iowa.
Solon student athletes who competed included:
Intermediate/Entry Level (first year Middle School): Denver Haight.

NORTH LIBERTY– The barbecue pits and jamming musicians weren’t the only hot things at North Liberty’s annual Blues & BBQ festival this year.
Finally; the sun was warm, too.
It’s been awhile since the annual community celebration of summer– and all things barbecue, blues and family-friendly fun– has enjoyed a day without stormy weather. In 2011, 2013 and 2014, storms and heavy rains interfered enough with the grounds and equipment to cause the festival to be cancelled or called off early.

FORT DODGE– It took the Solon Lady Spartans only three innings to take care of business in the opening round of the 2015 Iowa State Softball Tournament.
No. 1-ranked Solon clobbered unranked Clarke 18-0 in a Class 3A quarterfinal Tuesday, July 21, at the Harlan & Hazel Rogers Sports Complex north of Fort Dodge.
The Lady Spartans will face Center Point-Urbana (CPU) in a 3A semifinal Thursday, July 23, at 11 a.m. on Buena Vista University Field, with the winner advancing to the title game Friday at 12:15 p.m. on the same field.