Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun

Mount Vernon public works director Eldon Downs helped artist David Rega (pictured) place Rega’s sculpture, Allesandra, along the Mount Vernon Sculpture Art Trial Friday, Aug. 28. This is Rega’s second work to be installed on the Sculpture Art Trail, with his previous work being a stone work that designates the beginning of the trail along First Street

The Mount Vernon Marching Mustangs first show of “After Hours” took the field at the halftime of the Mount Vernon football game Friday, Aug. 28. The Marching Mustangs first marching band competition of the season is their first ever Marching Mustang Invitational at Mount Vernon Saturday, Sept. 19.

The Pleasant Grove Heritage Park has been the recipient of two grants to help with preserving barns in the Meyers Farmstead Historic District at the park. A $26,043 grant was awarded through the Historic Resource Development Program from the State Historical Society of Iowa. Grant funds will support Phase 2 of the preservation of the banked barn and include roof repair, a new roof, and exterior paint.

Mount Vernon girls tennis improved to 7-0 with three wins last week. The Mustangs won 8-1 at Maquoketa on Monday, Aug. 24, won 8-1 against Union Community on Tuesday, Aug. 25, and closed the week with a 7-2 win Thursday, Aug. 27, at Independence. The No. 1 and 2 singles players — Stella Dvorak and Emily Schnoor — each went 3-0. “I’m really happy with them, they were dominating last week,” Mount Vernon coach Brenden VanWey said.

The Linn County Secondary Road Department will move into its new office location beginning Monday, Aug. 31. The Secondary Road Department’s new office will be located at 1944 County Home Road in Marion, on the southwest corner of County Home Road and Highway 13. Residents and visitors are encouraged to update their records with the department’s new address.

Whatever else the 2026 season brings for Mount Vernon football, it certainly had an interesting beginning. Monticello returned the opening kickoff 85 yards the other way Friday, Aug. 28 at Martha Parsons Athletic Complex for a touchdown to go ahead 7-0 just 20 seconds into the season. But the Mustangs ultimately responded with six straight touchdowns and ended up winning 49-21. “It rattled us,” senior Jakob Yock said. “Like it should. I think it really made us lock in. “Yeah, this is the week.

Lisbon football didn’t get the fresh start it was after. Instead, the Lions were thumped by East Buchanan 48-7 on Friday, Aug. 28, in Winthrop. The loss extended the program’s losing streak to 10 games. “A tough game,” Lisbon coach Alex Dean said. “I don’t think we performed to our collective expectation. There’s natural frustration.” The Lions trailed 22-7 at halftime, but the game got away from them in the second half. Three turnovers hurt, even as Lisbon forced three turnovers of their own.

Mount Vernon volleyball dived right into the deep end with a pair of tournaments the first week of the season. The Mustangs, ranked seventh in Class 3A, went 2-1 at the Bondurant-Farrar quadrangular on Thursday, Aug. 27, then went 2-1 on Saturday, Aug. 29, at the Early Bird Tournament at Central DeWitt. Both tournaments were filled with tight matches, with four of the six going to a tiebreaking third set.

Tradition never graduates. A rebuilt Lisbon volleyball team opened the season going 4-0 on Tuesday, Aug. 25, hosting the Lisbon Classic. “We played 14 kids and all 14 played meaningful time,” Lisbon coach Lance Kamaus said. “And we had only five who had played any varsity minutes at all. They did a good job of getting their feet wet.” Lisbon beat Clayton Ridge 25-8, 25-13; Calamus-Wheatland 25-10, 25-12; Central Elkader 25-17, 25-18; and Midland 25-16, 25-9.

Forget The Boss. Chasen Caskey was Born to Run. The Mount Vernon-Lisbon senior finished fourth in the first race of his senior season. And the Mustangs thumped the competition at the MVL Invitational on Tuesday, Aug. 25, at the Elliott Athletic Complex in Mount Vernon. MVL scored 18 points and second-place North Scott had 46. Considering a perfect score is 15, not too shabby.