The Duster - Digital Journalism

10/01/2025

Holdrege Stumbles Against Rival Minden in a 28-Point Defeat

By Lainey Wohlgemuth

The Holdrege football team faced off against the Minden on Friday, September 26, at Keifer Field in Holdrege. In a game packed with action and big-time plays, the Whippets came out on top with a 42-14 victory over the Dusters.

From the opening kickoff both teams battled for control, but it was Minden who grabbed momentum first. In the beginning of the first quarter Junior Parker Hatch kicked off the scoring with the first touchdown of the game with a quarterback sneak from the goal line. The Whippets would tack on another first quarter touchdown making the score 14-0. The Dusters answered quickly with a score of their own as sophomore Lucas Johnson dashed 51 yards bringing the score to 14-7. The Whippets added another score prior to halftime before a blocked punt gave Holdrege great field position. It took only one play for sophomore Landon Vanboening to take an option pitch and find the endzone. The Dusters would hold until halftime with the score 20-14

After halftime the Dusters were fired up and ready to play. Senior Derek Marquardt says “This week being a rivalry week our mindset is more focused and fired up. We have more fire because of how much we want to beat Miden and the energy is up because of that.”

In the second half, it was all Minden as they scored 22 straight points with Holdrege unable to find much traction on offense.A few Duster boys still showed out despite their loss. Lucas Johnson finished with 59 rushing yards and a touchdown, while Harley Wells led the defense with 6 tackles. The Dusters kept pushing until the end, and showed signs of progress from earlier weeks.

Head coach Jacob McLain was proud of his team's effort saying, ““I thought that was a real good improvement from the two weeks prior, it was encouraging to be in a position where any play could have been a turning point for our boys.”

The tough loss drops Holdrege's record to 0-5, while Minden improves to 2-3. The Dusters will regroup and prepare to take on Broken Bow this Friday.

10/01/2025

Dusters Volleyball Takes Home Tournament

By: Claire Swanson

It was a great weekend for the Duster volleyball team, who brought home the gold for their home tournament. They captured the program’s first home tournament win in several years after defeating the Minden Whippets 25-23, 25-20.

The Dusters started the day against McCook and battled through a rough start before finding their groove and getting the 2-1 set victory. The win sent them to the championship match, where they faced Minden, a team that has been ranked in the top 10 most of the season.

“Playing Minden, we knew we had to be at our best, and I feel like we did just that,” said Coach Heath. “We played good defense, hit the ball well, and really came together when it mattered most.”
Unexpectedly junior Ada Skiles-Nitchie went down with an ankle injury, but junior Kambryn Vaughn stepped in seamlessly helping keep up the team’s energy and focus. It was a balanced attack from the Dusters as seniors Carson Sundquist and Emily Stutzman accounted for seven kills each. Sophomore Gracie Johnson added another six to the total and senior Averi Bilka added four more.

Sundquist talked about the team's positives but acknowledged there’s still room to grow. “We did well overall and won the whole tournament. I thought we stayed together in the tougher moments, but we really need to work on playing our game the entire time and not sinking to our opponents’ level. We also need to come out strong every match, because we are the team to beat.”
Currently sitting at 12-1, the Dusters are preparing to play a tough two-day tournament this weekend in Scottsbluff, where they will play six games against competition from both Nebraska and South Dakota. The team is ready to see top-level competition and continue to build on their current momentum.

Holdrege Public Schools Duster Volleyball

09/30/2025

The Varsity girls golf team heads to Broken Bow for the South West Conference tournament. Wish the girls good luck and Go Dusters!

09/30/2025

Other results of note from today: Boys Cross Country traveled to UNK today and brought home a second place finish without two of their top runners!

09/30/2025

Trailblazers, powered with the HR ball, take tonight's matchup 14-6!

The girls worked their butts off to make sure Abby's last game on her home field was memorable.

Fairbury scored 6 on us in the first inning. They did not score again after that point. The girls held their heads high and ended the game in 5 innings.

These girls have truly learned how to play for each other and never give up.

To Abby: There is no one else we would rather have be our only senior for these girls. She is a true leader. With as young as our group is, she has stepped in and helped us with keeping attitudes up and smiles on their faces. To know Abby...is to love Abby 🧡💙 We know you will do big things, just please promise to come back and visit🧡💙

Go Trailblazers!!

Holdrege High School
Minden Public Schools

09/30/2025

Duster Volleyball Dominates Eagles in 3-0 Sweep.

By: Kendal Ivey

The Holdrege volleyball team defeated Wood River in straight sets on Thursday night at the Duster Dome. The Dusters were able to coast to an opening set win 25-11. The second set was another lopsided affair for the Dusters with a 25-13 score and the final set was a double-digit win with a score of 25-11. Gracie Johnson had a game-high 14 kills. Emily Stutzman and Carson Sundquist both added 6 kills on the evening. This Duster squad is proving their spot in the top ten in C-1. The Dusters were also in action over the weekend at the Holdrege Tournament where they came away champions.

Thursday marked senior night for seven members of the Duster squad. The seniors on the team are Averi Bilka, Addy Stutzman, Ellie Pelster, Emily Stutzman, Jaclyn Nelson, Kendellen Kellen, and Carson Sundquist. Their impact on and off the court has been a massive reason for the team’s success halfway through the season.n

09/26/2025

We've got a Highway 6 showdown tonight at Keifer Stadium! Kickoff at six. Seniors from girls golf, cross country, and boys tennis will be honored tonight at halftime after the band plays.

09/26/2025

Busy day for the Dusters. Volleyball swept Wood River. The golf team shot 405 and got fourth. Tennis went 4-5 versus Cornerstone Christian and the Trailblazers defeated Alma/SV 7-3.

09/25/2025

Meet day! Holdrege competes at the Elk Country Club in Hastings, NE. Races start at 10 AM.

09/25/2025

The Boys Varsity Tennis team will compete against Cornerstone Christian today at 4:00 PM at North Park. Come out and support our athletes!

09/24/2025

Well, what started as an eventful day for the Dusters ended up being a one event affair. Golf got 15 holes in and got pulled off the course. Softball and tennis will look to later dates for their matchup. HOWEVER, that Duster Volleyball got two big wins tonight in the Duster Dome! Good job ladies! Holdrege Public Schools

09/23/2025

Some Duster action at home and on the road today. We will try to update you on weather updates as we hear of them! Golf heads to Ogallala and tennis heads to North Platte behind them. Softball has a makeup game at 6:30 at home and volleyball hosts Ogallala and Cozad tonight!