Northern Valley Schools USD 212

The Northern Valley High School took seven athletes to compete in the Oakley Powerlifting Meet on Saturday, January 27. The Huskies did well for their first meet with four athletes receiving medals. The NV Boys and Girls each placed 9th as a team. Senior Savannah Area placed 2nd in the bench, 3rd in squat and 3rd overall for her weight class. Senior Nolan Kinderkencht won 2nd place in the hang clean, while classmate Kyle Speer placed 3rd in the bench and 3rd overall for his weight class. Sophomore Gavin Thalheim won the 3rd place medal in the bench. 165 pound weight class Nolan Kinderknecht – 5th overall (650) Bench – 6th (180) Squat – 6th (240) Clean – 2nd (230) Owen Hammond – 9th overall (345) Bench – 7th (170) Squat (0) Clean – 6th (175) 173 pound weight class Gavin Thalheim – 4th overall (675) Bench – 3rd (210) Squat – 7th (260) Clean – 4th (205) Jason Cox – 6th overall (650) Bench – 4th (210) Squat – 6th (265) Clean – 6th (175) 198 pound weight class Clay Van Patten – 10th overall (395) HWT class Kyle Speer – 3rd overall (555) Bench – 3rd (165) Squat – 4th (260) Clean – 4th (130) 123 pound weight class (girls) Savannah Area – 3rd overall (385) Bench – 2nd (100) Squat – 3rd (175) Clean – 4th (110)

Northern Valley Middle School Girls Basketball Vs. Triplains/Brewster at Winona January 26, 2024 NV A-Team Girls (4 - 6) 1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr Final Score Northern Valley 4 6 13 15 Triplains/Brewster 6 6 10 12 Scoring Haedyn Cox – 3 Abby Samuelson – 2 Josie Nech – 2 Rene’ Horacek – 8 NV B-Team Girls (1 - 6) 1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr Final Score Northern Valley 2 4 4 4 Triplains/Brewster 1 1 9 18 Scoring Cambrie Sproul – 2 Kaylee Miller – 2 Coach Lowry’s Comments – The Northern Valley Junior High traveled to Winona to compete against the Triplains/Brewster Titans. The A-team girls got their fourth win of the season with Rene’ Horacek scoring 8 points and getting 6 rebounds. Three other Lady Huskies contributed to the score. This was a good win for us but definitely proved that we need to be stronger with the ball and play with more confidence. We have two regular games before we compete in the WKLL tournament. Assistant Coach McKinney’s Comments – The B-team girls played well the first half with purposeful ball movement and strong defense, however, the pressure the Titans applied in the second half was too much for our girls to overcome. Two girls scored and Annika McKinney led the team in rebounding with 9.

The Northern Valley Scholars Bowl team took home 4th out of 12 teams in the round robin style tournament held at Norton High School on January 25th. The Huskies went 7-4 through the end of the last round and ended in a three-team tie for third, beating Oberlin but losing to Norton. Overall, it was a very good showing as the smallest school in the tournament. All five members that attended, (Drew Schemper, Jason Cox, Kenton Thalheim, Gabe Rudd, Caden Lowry), scored points during the tournament. The team looks forward to Regionals for Class 1-A2 that is held at Beloit-St. Johns on Thursday February 1st.

Northern Valley Junior High Boys Basketball vs Tri-Plains/Brewster in Winona January 25, 2024 NVJH A-team Boys (10 – 0) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Northern Valley 23 7 17 4 51 Triplains/Brewster 11 2 2 8 23 Scoring Griffin McKinney – 22 Tait Thalheim – 20 Lucas Hansen – 5 Zane Brown – 4 NVJH B-team Boys (4 – 4) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Northern Valley 0 2 10 6 18 Triplains/Brewster 2 2 2 4 10 Scoring Aaron Horacek – 6 Malikiah Hitt – 4 Bryson Wilder – 4 Levi Black – 2 Keelan Dockendorf – 2 Coach Cole’s Comments – The Northern Valley Junior High A-team boys remained undefeated on the season with a 51-23 win over the Triplains/Brewster Titans. The Huskies got off to a hot start scoring 23 points in the first quarter. Classmates Griffin McKinney and Tait Thalheim led the team scoring 22 and 20 points respectively. The NV B-team evened their record to 4-4 on the season with an 18-10 win over the Titans. Aaron Horacek led the b-team with 6 points. The Huskies will take on the undefeated Cheylin Cougars next Thursday in Almena.

Norton County Soil Conservation holds a poster contest every year. This year's theme was "May The Forest Be With You Always". There are many students from many schools that participate in the contest. Northern Valley had 2 winners this year. First grader Emiliano Alvarez-Santos was the 2nd place winner in the younger division. Third grader Ivey Sproul was the 3rd place winner of the older division. Congratulations to these 2 NV students.

Here are the brackets for the girls and boys games for the league games on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday.

Random Acts of Kindness!! Every morning, third grader Cooper Stabenow gets off the bus at the daycare to help preschooler, Damon Abarca, get safely to the bus to head to school. This morning, third grader Ivey Sproul was at daycare to help out!! Definitely a feel good moment! Proud of these junior huskies!!

Huge shout out to Solutions North Bank, loan officers Doug Ray and Ryan McCullick presented a check for Give back of CD's Special that they ran in the fall of 2023!

Northern Valley Junior High Boys Basketball vs Paradise in Natoma January 18, 2024 NVJH A-team Boys (9 – 0) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Northern Valley 14 14 22 0 50 Paradise 4 1 4 4 13 Scoring Tait Thalheim – 19 Griffin McKinney – 14 Zane Brown – 8 Lucas Hansen – 7 Malikiah Hitt – 2 NVJH B-team Boys (3 – 4) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Northern Valley 8 6 x x 14 Paradise 2 6 x x 8 Scoring Malikiah Hitt – 4 Colt Rogers – 4 Bryson Wilder – 2 Levi Black – 2 Aaron Horacek – 2 Coach Cole’s Comments – The Northern Valley Junior High A-team boys remained undefeated on the season with a 50-13 win over Paradise in Natoma on January 18. All five starters scored points, led by Tait Thaleim with 19 and Griffin McKinney with 14. The Huskies ran their offensive plays really well leading to good shots. The NV B-team won their third game of the season beating the Wildcats 14-8 in two quarters of play. Colt Rogers and Malikiah Hitt each scored 4 points to lead the Husky b-team.

Northern Valley Middle School Girls Basketball Vs. Paradise at Natoma January 18, 2024 NV A-Team Girls (3 - 6) 1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr Final Score Northern Valley 8 18 32 40 Paradise 3 3 5 10 Scoring Haedyn Cox – 21 Andrea Meraz – 3 Annika McKinney – 2 Josie Nech – 6 Rene’ Horacek – 6 Kaylee Miller – 2 NV B-Team Girls (1 - 5) 1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr Final Score Northern Valley - - 6 8 Paradise - - 0 2 Scoring Annika McKinney – 2 Kaylee Miller – 6 Coach Lowry’s Comments – The Northern Valley Junior High A-team traveled through wind and snow to compete against the Paradise Wildcats at Natoma. It was a clean sweep for both boys and girls. The A-team girls came out aggressive, willing to move the ball, and ready to shoot. Their teamwork on offensive and anticipation on defense led to their highest scoring game and third win of the season. Haedyn Cox led the team with her best game of 21 points and 7 rebounds. Assistant Coach McKinney’s Comments – The B-team girls played two quarters and were able to catch their first win of the season. They sharpened up their ball movement which increased opportunities for smart shots. I am proud of their victory. Kaylee Miller had her best game with 6 points.

The Northern Valley Huskies Scholars Bowl team traveled to Palco on January 17th to compete in the Western Kansas Liberty League tournament. The traditional categories of social science, language arts, mathematics, science, fine arts, year in review were asked as well as one question each round from the category of miscellaneous. The team finished with a 7-2 record on the day that put them into a three-way tie with Western Plains and Golden Plains. The tie-breaker system was put to the test to decide the overall champion. The three 7-2 teams all beat one another to prevent head-to-head competition from deciding the championship. The tiebreaker then went to margin of victory in the 9 rounds and again did not provide a clear winner. The third tiebreaker that decided the tournament was the overall points scored through all 9 rounds. This gave the Huskies 1st place, Golden Plains took home 2nd place, and Western Plains took 3rd. The Huskies are now back-to-back champions of the WKLL following a runner-up finish two years ago. The Huskies will have an invitational meet at Norton on January 25th, followed by Regional competition on February 1st in Ransom for the opportunity to wrap up the season with State competition held on February 10th. Pictured- (L-R) Gabe Rudd, Kenton Thalheim, Captain Drew Schemper, Jason Cox, Caden Lowry

Check out what some of our students have been up to out in the wood shop the past four months. They sure have been busy!

The Northern Valley Huskies Scholars Bowl Team is now back-to-back WKLL League Champions! The team ended in a three way tie that took the third tiebreaker to decide the winner. Pictured: Gabe Rudd, Kenton Thalheim, Drew Schemper, Jason Cox, Caden Lowry.

Come Join us to celebrate 100 Years of the Almena Grade School!

Northern Valley Junior High Boys Basketball vs Logan/Palco in Logan January 4, 2024 NVJH A-team Boys (8 – 0) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Northern Valley 9 12 12 4 37 Logan/Palco 6 4 4 12 26 Scoring Griffin McKinney – 14 Lucas Hansen – 11 Tait Thalheim – 8 Zane Brown – 4 NVJH B-team Boys (2 – 4) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Northern Valley 2 2 4 2 10 Logan/Palco 11 16 2 11 40 Scoring Malikiah Hitt – 4 Colt Rogers – 2 Bryson Wilder – 2 Aaron Horacek – 2 Coach Cole’s Comments – The Northern Valley Junior High A-team boys improved their record to 8-0 on the season with a 37-26 win over the Logan/Palco Trojans on January 4 in Logan. NV played great defense, building a 21-10 halftime lead. Griffin McKinney led the Huskies in scoring with 14 points, followed by Lucas Hansen with 11. The NV B-team boys record dropped to 2-4 with a 10-40 loss to the Trojans. Malikiah Hitt led the b-boys with 4 points.

Northern Valley Middle School Girls Basketball Vs. Logan/Palco at Logan January 4, 2024 NV A-Team Girls (2 - 6) 1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr Final Score Northern Valley 2 8 8 9 Logan/Palco 4 12 17 22 Scoring Haedyn Cox – 3 Josie Nech – 2 Rene’ Horacek – 4 NV B-Team Girls (0 - 5) 1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr Final Score Northern Valley 2 3 5 5 Logan/Palco 2 6 12 20 Scoring Cambrie Sproul – 1 Annika McKinney – 2 Kaylee Miller – 2 Coach Lowry’s Comments – The Northern Valley Junior High A-team traveled to Logan for their first game after break. Defensively the Lady Huskies started off strong but struggled to get to the basket. As the game progressed, the girls were not able to adjust to changes made by Logan/Palco and offensively struggled with the pressure. Rene’ Horacek led the team with 4 points and 5 rebounds. We will continue to work on skill work and fundamentals as we get closer to the league tournament. Assistant Coach McKinney’s Comments – The B-team girls played an aggressive first half for their first game back after break, however in the second half the Trojans ran away from us. We saw the girls make improvements and work toward their individual goals. Annika McKinney had a good defensive game with 12 rebounds.

Join us in thanking our Board of Education January is School Board Recognition month and our school district would like to thank you each of our board of education members for their incredible service to our community and our public schools. School board members in Northern Valley Schools develop policies and make important decisions that help shape the future of our education system. They are entrusted by this community with the responsibility of an annual budget of $ 2.2 million, 145 students, 43 employees and 4 buildings. This January, please join us as we thank our school board members for volunteering their time, for fulfilling this very important civic responsibility, and for advocating on behalf of every child in our community. The men and women serving Northern Valley Schools and their years of service are: Christopher Rogers (16 years) newly reelected Hilary Van Patten (8 years) newly reelected Rich Wenzl (6 years) Shanna Hammond (6 years) Laquita Smith (5 years) newly reelected Steven Whitney (4 years) newly reelected Sincerely, Kenneth A. Tharman Superintendent / HS Principal

The day before Christmas break! Teachers rewarded the students with dodgeball, movies, and games. Have a wonderful break!!!!

Northern Valley Middle School Girls Basketball Vs. Golden Plains at Almena December 14, 2023 NV A-Team Girls (2 - 5) 1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr Final Score Northern Valley 8 10 12 18 Golden Plains 10 23 36 40 Scoring Haedyn Cox – 2 Josie Nech – 4 Rene’ Horacek – 10 Kaylee Miller – 2 NV B-Team Girls (0 - 4) 1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr Final Score Northern Valley 0 2 2 6 Golden Plains 12 22 24 24 Scoring Cambrie Sproul – 2 Kaylee Miller – 2 Josie Nech – 2 Coach Lowry’s Comments – The Northern Valley Junior High A-team girls hosted the Golden Plains Bulldogs for their last game before break. The A-team girls has a great start competing hard but the Bulldogs pulled ahead in the second quarter. We saw a lot more ball movement and better shot attempts but defensively we struggled to keep them out of the lane and rebound. Rene’ Horacek had a good game with 10 points and 11 rebounds. The B-team girls continue to improve with their understanding of the game. Numerous girls are finding opportunities to shoot and ball movement offensively has improved. Three girls each scored 2 points. Annika McKinney had a good night with 13 rebounds. We will continue to work on skill development and prepare for Logan/Palco at Logan on January 4.

Northern Valley Junior High Boys Basketball vs Golden Plains in Almena December 14, 2023 NVJH A-team Boys (7 – 0) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Northern Valley 17 20 12 2 51 Golden Plains 4 9 3 7 23 Scoring Tait Thalheim – 24 Lucas Hansen – 14 Griffin McKinney – 9 Zane Brown – 4 NVJH B-team Boys (2 – 3) 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Northern Valley 4 2 10 8 24 Golden Plains 1 7 0 6 14 Scoring Aaron Horacek – 8 Malikiah Hitt – 6 Levi Black – 4 Jaden Johns – 2 Colt Rogers – 2 Keelan Dockendorf – 2 Coach Cole’s Comments – The Northern Valley Junior High A-team boys remained undefeated on the season winning over Golden Plains 51-23. The Huskies enter the Christmas break with a 7-0 record. NV shot well from the outside against the Bulldogs tight zone defense. Tait Thalheim and Lucas Hansen each made 4-three pointers. Tait tallied 24 points and Lucas 14 points. The NV B-team won their second game of the season with a 24-14 win over the Bulldogs. The Huskies used their height to their advantage. Aaron Horacek scored 8 points, followed by Malikiah Hitt with 6 points and Levi Black with 4 points. It was a fun night as the boys celebrated both victories along with Coach Cole’s 60th Birthday!