France Lake at Kenton’s Saulisberry Park was alive this morning with the honking of geese who seemed to be enjoying the exceptionally warm February weather. The mercury is expected to push up near 70 degrees by Friday before falling to more seasonable levels for the weekend. Times photo/Dan Robinson

LIMA — The first time Ada and Hardin Northern met this season, the Polar Bears were unable to recover after a poor second quarter in which they were outscored by 15 points and ended up with a 13-point loss. On Tuesday, the Polar Bears didn’t let the same thing happen twice. During sectional semifinal girls basketball play between the two country rivals, the Polar Bears - behind the scoring punch of Ashton Dye and Holly Wilson - pulled away for a 60-49 victory.

BELLEFONTAINE — Two years ago, Benjamin Logan was starting a swim team. On Thursday, when Macy Arn jumps into the pool in the 50 freestyle, the Raiders will be represented for the first time at the Ohio High School Division II Swimming Championships in Canton. Arn, who qualified for the state meet with a fifth place finish of 24.48 seconds at Miami University, will swim her prelim heat on Thursday afternoon.

More than 100 Kenton High School students have been introduced to welding in the past two years. Reopening of the school’s welding lab is part of the advanced manufacturing curriculum offered through Ohio Hi-Point Career Center at KHS and the former Northwood building.

Two Hardin County sheriff’s deputies use their flashlights to check out the scene of an accident east of Ada on Ohio 81 that occurred about 6:45 p.m. Monday.

NEW CARLISLE — With No. 8 Bellefontaine keying in on Nikki Current, the Benjamin Logan Raider girls had to look elsewhere for scoring in Monday’s Division II sectional tournament opener. Countering the double-team on Current, who was held to seven points, the No. 4 seed Raider girls (16-7 overall) found the open players and saw production from Darian Rockhold and Savannah Pavoni who led the team to a 58-25 win.

There were no life-threatening injuries as a result of an accident Saturday morning on Ohio 53, north of Grant at Township Road 74.

MOUNT BLANCHARD — After all of its late-game shenanigans this season, it was fitting that Riverdale withstood a serious fourth-quarter push to hold off Carey, 62-59, in a non-league game on the final day of the girls basketball season. It was more fitting that second all-time leading scorer Sydney Holderman lifted the Falcons to victory for the last time in her home gym.

Hardin County Deputy Dwight Underwood leads Ridgemont High School students through the crash scene and explains what happened in the accident which claimed the life of Keegan McKee. The Ridgemont senior’s car left the roadway Thursday night and McKee died Friday morning at St. Rita’s Medical Center in Lima. With deputies controlling traffic on Ohio 292 and consoling the teenagers …

Freshman Klava Katayama finished second in the 100 yard freestyle at the Division II district meet to become the first girl in Ada High School history to qualify for the high school state swimming championships. Katayama touched in a time of 53.66 seconds to finish behind Bryan’s Ashleigh Franks, who finished in 52.00 seconds.