Area volleyball teams join Dig for Life campaign

The fight against breast cancer has some new soldiers, as area high school volleyball teams will join the Dig For Life campaign set up by the Southeast Missouri State volleyball team and Saint Francis Medical Center.

Players from area schools Advance, Bell City, Chaffee, Jackson, Notre Dame, Oran and Woodland will all take part in the fundraiser. Pledges will be taken throughout the area with money being raised for every dig during October matches.

Founded by Southeast Missouri State associate athletic director Cindy Gannon in 2000, the program has raised more than $35,000 to promote breast cancer prevention, education and early detection opportunities.

For information on donating to Dig For Life, call the Saint Francis Foundation at (573) 331-5994.

Heading to Hancock

The Hancock Invitational cross country meet annually is one of the biggest meets in Missouri, and a few area teams will have the opportunity on Saturday to see where they stand against the state's best.

Central, Notre Dame, Perryville and Saxony Lutheran are expected to compete in the 43rd Hancock meet.

Last year, 1,900 runners from more than 80 schools competed in a day that featured nine races.

The meet holds extra meaning for Central and Notre Dame runners, with the Jefferson Barracks course being the site of the sectional meet for the Tigers and the district course for the Bulldogs.

"It's on our sectional course, so we have to go," Central coach Mark Hahn said. "That's an important race for us, we take that one seriously."

Central is coming off a sweep of its own Central Invitational, winning both the boys and girls divisions. John Kipper won the boys race, and has finished second in Central's two other meets this season.

Notre Dame finished second in the boys division. The Bulldogs had a freshman and a sophomore among its top five runners.

Central, ND in first poll

Central and Notre Dame both made the cut in the first polls released by the Missouri Soccer Coaches Association.

The Tigers (9-1), winners of nine straight, are ranked No. 7 in the top 15 for Class 3. CBC is the top-ranked Class 3 school.

Central will have a tough task this weekend with games against Springfield Glendale (No. 12 in the poll) and Springfield Parkview.

"This weekend will be a serious test for us," Central coach Tom Doyle said.

Notre Dame is ranked No. 7 in the top 10 Class 2 poll. The Bulldogs are off to an 8-2-1 start, with a loss to top-ranked Class 1 school Whitfield among their two losses. Duchesne is ranked No. 1 in the Class 2 poll.

College notes

• Central graduate Mitch Craft made his debut for the Southern Mississippi football team on Saturday in a win over McNeese State in the Golden Eagles' home opener. Craft, an all-state quarterback with the Tigers, is playing linebacker for Southern Mississippi.

* Leopold graduate Holly Jansen is currently second in kills for the Murray State volleyball team. The Racers are 2-5. Jansen, who had a season-high 17 kills Sept. 3 against South Alabama, recently recorded 12 kills in a loss to Western Illinois.

* Marcus Klund, a Central graduate, was second on the team with 9.5 tackles in Lindenwood's 34-30 win over 13th-ranked Benedictine on Saturday in NAIA play. Klund had five interceptions and three fumble recoveries to lead Lindenwood in take-aways last season.