Stories from Friday, February 28, 2014

A fire broke out Friday afternoon at 967 St. Hwy. 61 in Portageville at a shed that belongs to Roger and Katie Walls. The Portageville Fire Department received the call at 3:00 PM. According to a firefighter Bob Carter, the shed was fully engulfed when they arrived. ...

sports@standard-democrat.com RISCO -- A span of 18 seconds was enough to close the book on Risco's district reign. A flurry of seven points in under 20 seconds was the blow Clarkton needed to halt Risco's streak of four consecutive district titles and led to an 82-73 victory Thursday during the Class 1, District 1 championship game in front of a raucous crowd at Risco High School...

sports@standard-democrat.com MALDEN -- It's not every year the Charleston Bluejays win a district title. It's just starting to feel that way...

PADUCAH, Ky. - A potentially significant winter storm is forecast over the weekend. According to the National Weather Service at Paducah, the passage of a cold front and a system lifting out of the southern plains will bring wintry weather to the region from Saturday night through at least midday Monday...

sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- South Pemiscot senior Carrie Shephard led the Lady Bulldogs to a 75-38 win over Hayti Friday night for the Class 2, District 1 championship at Bloomfield High School. Shephard, who signed a letter of intent to play basketball for the University of Missouri, scored a game-high 45 points. 44 of Shephard's points came in the first three quarters...

sports@standard-democrat.com BLOOMFIELD -- It's been seven years since South Pemiscot's three-year reign as district champions ended. In that time, Bernie and Hayti have taken over as powerhouses combining to win each of the last six Class 2, District 1 titles...

sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- The Sikeston senior class went out in style on Thursday in their final regular season game of the season. The Bulldogs routed DeSoto 89-38 on Senior Night at the Field House to improve to 21-3 on the season to head into the district tournament next week on a positive note...

sports@standard-democrat.com SIKESTON -- Establishing a solid base is essential for anything worth building. Some who want the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs basketball program to excel understand that need and are taking the extra steps to ensure a secure foundation...

SPRINGFIELD- Each semester, students at Missouri State University who attain academic excellence are named to the dean's list. For undergraduate students criteria include enrollment in at least 12 credit hours during the fall semester and at least a 3.5 grade point average on a 4.0 scale...

An agreement was reached last Friday between the U.S. Transportation Department and the Association of American Railroads to adopt wide-ranging, voluntary safety measures for railroads that haul crude oil shipments. These safety measures have come about after a string of explosive and deadly accidents...

JONESBORO, AR- Two Portageville students are among more than 2,200 students that have been named to the Chancellor's and Dean's lists for the 2013 fall semester at Arkansas State University. The two lists recognize students who achieved the highest grade point averages while enrolled in 12 or more credit hours of study...

CHAFFEE -- Advance boys basketball coach Bubba Wheetley told his players he wasn't sure if they could pull off the feat they did Thursday night or not. "I've always told these kids I'm not sure if they're winners or not," Wheetley said. "Well they proved to me tonight they are winners."...

DELTA -- The scoreboard read "Scott County Central 56, Delta 34," but both coaches came away from Thursday night's Class 1 District 2 girls basketball championship game with smiles on their faces. For Scott County Central coach Matt Limbaugh, it was knowing his Bravettes were headed on to next week's sectional play. For Delta coach Gary Poyner, it was seeing the future of his Bobcats' program...

CHAFFEE -- Two years ago the Oran girls basketball team didn't have enough healthy players on its roster to field a team for much of the season. Last year the Eagles were beaten soundly 64-46 by Bismarck in the opening round of their district tournament...

DEXTER -- The Dexter Bearcats varsity girls basketball team finished with a perfect 8-0 home record at the Bearcat Event Center Thursday night as it beat the Sikeston Bulldogs 68-38. "It was a pretty emotional night with it being Senior Night," Dexter coach Chad Allen said. ...

SEMO News Service DELTA -- Scott County Central senior guard Juwan Owens never had lost a district championship game in his high school career, and he didn't want that streak to end. After checking back into Thursday night's Class 1 District 2 championship game with 3 minutes, 54 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter and his Braves trailing Leopold 58-54, Owens implored his teammates with shouts of "Come on! Come on!" -- each time exclamating his exhortation with both fists chopping downward...

Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about today: 1. RUSSIA UPS ITS INVOLVEMENT IN UKRAINE TURMOIL Ukraine's parliament calls for the U.N. Security Council to meet on the nation's ongoing crisis as Russian military blocks an airport in Crimea...

SIKESTON -- Lots of people can tell stories about a little brother's adventures playing in a band. Of course, those stories are a whole lot more interesting when the band is The Beatles. "My Kid Brother's Band, aka The Beatles," an autobiography by Louise Harrison soon to be released by Acclaim Press in Sikeston, isn't the first time Louise Harrison, 82, has shared some of her experiences being the big sister to George Harrison...

Sikeston DPS responded to a house fire at 203 Lions St. on Friday morning.

I would like to thank the Standard Democrat for the change in the crossword puzzles. The print is larger and the answer to the previous puzzle is also larger, and so are the boxes that we put the letters in. For a lot of the older people, they are a lot of entertainment that we look forward to. And now that it's easier to see it's even better...

SIKESTON -- Carl Todt Jr., 55, died Feb. 27, 2014, at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis. For the complete Standard Democrat obituary log in to our electronic edition.

BENTON -- Richard Lynn Cannon, 67, died Feb. 26, 2014, at his home. For the complete Standard Democrat obituary log in to our electronic edition.

SIKESTON -- Pallbearers for funeral services held Thursday at the First Christian Church for Mary Linda Howard Berry, 67, who died on Feb. 22, 2014, were: Ryan Howard, Kyle Howard, Phil Barkett, Chris Berry, Keith Berry and Zach Chambers. For the complete Standard Democrat obituary log in to our electronic edition...

LILBOURN -- Margaret Elizabeth Madison, 73, died Feb. 23, 2014, at her home. For the complete Standard Democrat obituary log in to our electronic edition.

CHAFFEE -- Janice Kaye Hunter, 66, died Feb. 26, 2014, at Southeast Missouri Hospital in Cape Girardeau. For the complete Standard Democrat obituary log in to our electronic edition.

CHAFFEE -- Gary Clyde Warren, 69, died Feb. 27, 2014, at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau. For the complete Standard Democrat obituary log in to our electronic edition.

NEW MADRID -- A new program seeks to teach even longtime residents something more about their community. The New Madrid Chamber of Commerce is organizing Leadership New Madrid, a leadership development program. According to organizers, the program is designed to enhance personal and professional growth for participants and, in turn, benefit the local community and the region...