The American flag at Freeman Public Schools flies in the Monday morning sunshine the first day of March. A nice week is ahead.

The snow that fell late Saturday night into Sunday didn't amount to much — good news for those who are ready to say goodbye to the wintery elements. Instead of the 4-7 inches that were expected, the Freeman area received a little more than a dusting, making it a nuisance rather than an inconvenience. And don't expect it to last long, either; highs this coming week will be in the 50s, with 60 in the forecast next weekend.

A bird enjoys what has been mild weather across the region, with highs in the 40s for much of this past week. But winter weather is expected to return later today and into tonight as rain turns to snow, with up to several inches expected by Sunday morning. Beyond that, temperatures are expected to be even warmer than we've seen going into next week, with highs consistently in the 50s.

From left: Freeman’s Clayton Smith, Riley Tschetter and Ethan Ortman stand for a photo shortly after arriving at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center in Rapid City for the 2021 State Wrestling Tournament Thursday morning, Feb. 25. Action gets underway at 10 a.m. MST with Tschetter, a seventh grader, taking the mat first at 106 lbs. Ortman, a senior, will follow at 160 lbs. and Smith, also a senior, will wrestle last at 220 lbs. All three Marion-Freeman grapplers have tough matches but all three are winnable, said head coach Chris Sayler.

Morgan Edelman makes a pass on a fast break in the first half of Menno’s second-round Region 2B game against No. 7 Centerville Tuesday night, Feb. 23 in Menno. The Wolves won the game, but it was too close for comfort for the local fans. Menno led 43-36 and extended that lead to 10 points early in the fourth quarter, but Centerville raced back and had a three-point attempt in the closing seconds that would have tied the game.

The Freeman High School girls basketball teams stands united during the playing of the national anthem prior to Monday night's Region 5B game against Canistota. The Flyers and Hawks played to a 21-21 halftime tie and Canistota scored the first bucket of the third period, but Freeman ran away with the game late, outscoring the Hawks 19-8 in the fourth period en route to a 55-40 win. Kate Miller's 19 points and 15 rebounds led the Flyers while Erin Uecker had a nice game with 11 points, nine rebounds and four assists.

The basketball court at Freeman High School was quite Monday morning, Feb. 22, but will be loud tonight when the Flyers host Canistota in the first round of the Region 5B Girls Basketball Tournament. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. Also tonight, Freeman Academy/Marion travels to Alcester-Hudson, and tomorrow Menno hosts the winner of tonight's game between Centerville and Gayville-Volin.

Freeman High School senior Ethan Ortman wrestles his way to a win over McCook Central/Montrose's Logan Rapp in the quarterfinal round of the Region 2B Wrestling Tournament in Salem on Saturday. Ortman ended up fourth in the 160 lb. division and will be one of three wrestlers from Marion/Freeman competing at the state tournament in Rapid City next weekend. Senior Clayton Smith and seventh grader Riley Tschetter both finished third in the region.

Wrestlers from Marion/Freeman sit in the bleachers near the end of the opening round of the Region 2B Wrestling Tournament, just moments after Owen Eitenmiller, lower left, pinned Chester Area's Aidan Shaw to advance to the quarterfinals. The Rebels are in Salem all day today for the region tournament, which got underway at 9:30 a.m. and will continue into the afternoon. Action is taking place on two mats inside the McCook Central gymnasium, and is being live-streamed. 

Teams from Menno and Freeman Academy/Marion stand at attention for the national anthem prior to tipoff in Marion Thursday evening, Feb. 18. The Wolves beat the Bearcats 48-13 behind 29 points from Morgan Edelman, who surpassed 2,000 for her career. The Menno girls finish the season 13-6 and No. 2 in Region 5B while the Bearcats finish 2-18 and No. 11 in the region. The postseason begins this coming Monday with three games: No. 8 vs. No. 9, No. 7 vs. No. 10 and No. 6 vs. No. 11. Action continues Tuesday, Feb. 23 and Thursday, Feb. 25. Watch for the bracket when it is released.