meningitis gets into your system, you only have 24 hours..." two susuivors beat remarkle odds to not only live, but to wrestle. "he's gone physically but here in spirit " the pete goede als memorial was held today at the hard rock, former band members continue the quest to raise awareness for als. jess: good evening, happy valentine's day and thanks for joining us... i'm jess plue. takes us to orange city for inspirational story of two wrestlers who beat the odds.... jess abc 9's alex walker brings the story of a special connection between two members of the northwestern wrestling program. alex that's right jess....this is a wreslters who stared death in the face..... despite overwhelming odds...their journey continues on the mats..

pushing guys! get it going...get it going." kolton kersten is a first year- assistant wrestling coach at northwestern college..... nat hit a piece of advice here... nat.. tips on techinique there ....nat.... that's kolton's life now.....but what about his life....then? kolton kersten was an all- american for iowa central back in 2012....he then transfered to midland university in nebraska.....rankin g as high as secondnduring the 2012123 season....... "i felt like i was going to be e unstoppable really, and i was training that way too. and there was nothing that was going to stop me from being the national champ that year...and then things just came to a halt." on june 6th, 2013....kolton developed a deadly infection..... "once bacterial meningitis gets in your system it kills you within 24 hours." and just like that, he was off to the hospital....fighting for his life... "everybody was freaking out, they brought the priest in, and they gave me my last rites....they

said there is nothing we can do for him anymore. i was in so much pain...that there was a given point in time...where i didn think i wanted to live anymore." but a message from his coach at midland pushed him through.... "no matter how long the recovery is...we are expecting you to come back and make one last run to be a national champ." the message worked. kolton beat the odds and defied death....as for that comeback? he finished third at nationals in 2014....earning all-american honors for a second time... which brings us back to northwestern... pop it, pop it...pop that knee." that's kolton in action........... " coaching preston hoebelheinrich....o f rock valley. their bond between coach and wrestler runs deeper than most........ rik dahl, northwestern wrestling coach: "these guys are drawn together because of adversity they have overcome." just like his coach, preston nearly died from bacterial meningitis...... preston: "one october day, i got really, really sick." and within a few hours....the deadly infection

just six years old, but like kolton....... he perservered... "i just want to show people that no maer what...obstacles in your life, you can overcome them. kolton kersten:"i had a 10% chance to live and i am sure he had a slim chance too and the fact that we are on the same team and i am able to coachhim now is pretty crazy, almost surreal." destiny brought these two together.. "dahl: god moves in crazy ways." ....and like kolton's coach did for him back at midland...................k olton now pusheses preston to be the best....... preston: "man....i am just hoping all the hard work he is putting in pays off..." in competition.....it has been.... nat hit from momma ....at the sioux city open.....preston won a 4-0 decision in the opening round.....finishing fourth overall......( nat hit) as for the rest of the season...... the sky's the limit....with kolton and preston together....as a team... rik dahl: i think those two being here at the same time, pouring into each other's

alex a blessing indeed....next saturday, preston will compete in the g-pac tournament....if he places in the top three....he will get the chance to chase his all- american aspirations at nationals....just like his coach. jess? jess thanks alex....well, things were rockin' tonight at the hard rock. "music playing" the second annual pete goede (go- dee) memorial a-l-s benefit concert drew a packed house tonight as four bands hit the stage to entertain spectators and to help raise money and awareness for a-l-s. one member of the glad to be back to help. "we're hopefully going to raise alot last year which would be awesome and it's just great having the opportunity to get our music out to everybody, get people together for an awareness event and raise some money for a good cause." says heath babis, lead singer/rhythm guitar player of the no. 7 band. folks also had the opportunity to place bids on some fancy memorabilia...from autographed pictures of n-f-l pro peyton manning totoinger jimmy bubuett. all were up for

sint auction. even though peter goede passed away right after last year's event-- members say that he would have wanted the event to continue. "he's gone physically but here in spirit, so everybody really jumped onboard this year. we've had excellent donations and we're thrilled to be here." says co- organizer and drummer for the establishment eric boetger. butt to he fact that everybody still wanted to make it bigger and better means so much to us because it means everybody involved is not just supporting one person living with als, they're susuorting everybododthat's ghting this disease e and i think that's awesome." sayssarah letttt, development manager of the als association of iowa chapter. all money raised...just over $14,000...willtay here in northwest iowa to help those battling a- l-s with their medical expenses. jess it's a unique experience to celebrate valentine's day and your wedding anniversary on the same day. one siouxland couple has been forunate enough to do just that for about half of a century abc 9's bria bell has s e story. bria: jim and rita heimsoth have been married for 51 years and today which is valentine's day,

wedding anniversary "you know yove got to give and take and it's not always going to be a smooth road," says heimsoth. m and rita heimsoth have been married for 51 years. jim popped the question on rita's birthday back in 1964 and the two decided to tie the knot on the following valentine's day. "it was easy dates to remember, you know?" says heimsoso. rita's best t iend in college e s the first to notice that the couple would be inseperable. "and she said, you're going to marry that guy one day. and that is no joke," says rita heimsoth. and as you can imagine a valentine's themed wedding included a specific color scheme... "oh yes, red velvet dresses for the bridesmaides and flower girl and i carried a white bible with a red rose on it. we kept it red and white, which is really pretty and very goooofor winter colors," says heimsoth. in iowa,lizzards a common durinthe month of february and not even an intense snowfall

becoming the heimsoths. "and the day that we were going to get married, we had weather just about like we had yesterday, but with a lot more snow and i stayed over night with the groomsman. we had to wait for the county plow to come by or we wouldn't have been able to get in, it was that much snow," says heimsoth. both jim and rita can agree that marriage is not always an easy road and they say they've both put in the extra effort to ensure that the other remains happy. "things will wor out. you gotta say you're sorry, so does she and it just works out that way," says jim heimsoth. bria: the heimsoths celebrated their anniversary and valentine's day last night at mirnirva's, which they say is tradition. in studidi bria bell

jess in national news... pope francis arrived in ecatepec (ica-tip- ic), mexico earlier today. large crowds chred as the popemobile drove through...what is known as.. the poorest and most dangerous parts of the country. pope francis is onthe third day of s trip to mexico. ththpope celeleated mass in t suburb...just north of mexico city. he then spoke to the huge crowd and referred to mexico as a...'land of dreams.' (pope francis) "i want to invite you today again to be on the frontline, to be the first in all the initiatives which help make this blessed land of mexico a land of opportunities where they'll be no need to emigrate in order to dream. no need to be exploited in order to work." he arrived in mexico friday for a five-day visit. the pope is urging

combat corruption and drug violence. jess a bitter battle is brewing over when to replace the leading conservative on america's most powerful court. the u-s president says he intends to nominate a successor... for supreme court justice antonin scalia, who died earlier this weekend. choosing a justice is a rare opportunity for pny president... a seat on the court is a lifetime appointment. but this one in particular... will shift the balance on the court. and as cnn's ryan nobles explains...republic ans are already putting up roadblocks. "a moment of silence for justice scalia." it did not take long for the death of supreme court justice antinon scalia to get political in the republican presidentiti primary debatete (donald trump, u.s republican pridential candide) "i think it is up to mitch mcconnell and everybody else to stop it. it's called delay, delay delay." one by one the g-o-p candidates-- payed homage to the conservative lion-- and predicted that any obama nominee to replace him would be unsuccessful. (jeb bush, u.s.

candidate) "there is no doubt in my mind that barack obama will not have a consensus pick when he submits that person to the senate." but president obama is pushing forward.... promising g nominate someone quicy and warning senate republicansns to not play politics with the court. (president obama) "there will be plenty of time for mine for me to do so and plenty of time for the senate to fulfill its responsibility to give that person a fair hearing and timely vote. these are responsibilities that i take seriously as should everyone." senate majority leader mit mcconnell called on the president to wait... and leave the decision in the "hands of the voters" and the winner of the race for the white house. rank and file republicans like linsdey graham said any obama nominee will have a rough time being confirmed. (lindsey graham, u.s. senate republican) "the practical consequence is that no one will be appointed that is not a consensus choice," and as the president and senate leaders squabble it will be against the backdrop of an increasingly divisive presidential election. (hillary clinton, u.s. democratic presidential candidate) "elections have consequences." hillary clinton rushed to support obama's right to pick the nominee... and

(hillary clinton, u.s. democratic presidential candidate) "it is outrageous that republicans in the senate and on the campaign trail have already pledged to block any replacement that president obama nominates." the republican candidates vowed to stand in the way and once elected nominate a conservative in the mold of scalia. (ted cruz, u.s. republican presidential candidate) "one of the most important judgements for the people of south carolina will have to make is who on this stage has the background, the principle, the character, the judgement and the strength of resolve to nominate and confirm principledconstitutionalists to the court. that will be what i will doif elected president.t. setting the stste for a rocky y w months in washington.... with the future of the supreme court --- and the white house---- in the balance . " and according to a source familiar with skuh-lia's case...there will be no autopsy on the late supre court justice. the decision was made by scalia's family and

jess: when we come back... many florists were busy today fulfilling holiday orders...but a group in washington was a ttle busy with a very different kind of valentine's day gift...we'll tell you about the unique idea after the break. elisa isolated mix possible tonight... icy roads monday night and 50s are in sight in the 7- day.. details next!

jesswhy send flowers....when you can send a potato? nothing says someone loves you like getting a potato in the mail out of nowhere. at least according to this business in washington state called "mystery potato." workers write your message on a tater, then send it to whomever you choose. at first -- the company only sent out a few spuds a day. but after r ing viral - bubuness is boing. the ownersf the company say they are happy to spread mystery and quirky love this valentine's day. jess/elisa not so bad today! elisa elisa raffa eraffa@kcautv.co m our snow from last night is far east.. left about 3" in rthern iowa... traces to o inch elsewehre. spotty cold rain showers

in nebraska. for the rest of your valentines day.. steady temps, an isolated mixpossible. temps inin the 20s, 30s and clouds tomorrow. stormcast hd has stubborn cloud cover tonight. shower or two possible with the best chance in our nebraska counties. more stubborn clouds for monday but temps make it back to near 30. tomorrow night we bring in a disturbance that will create some slick spots. freezing rain, sleet, and snow all possible monday

winds. we can see the icing overnight with warmer temperatures in the upper atmosphere, then cooling by morninwill have us all snow. stormcast hd is too fast here, although system is quick.. i think we could see a lingering flurry by the morning. breezy winds and cloudy skies for the afternoon on tuesday. wededsday our last coldededay before we crank up the heat. ice potential for monday night... light accumulations but still enough to be slippery. monday night we could see

flurries tuesday morning with icy roads and blowing snow possible. still in that same pattern keeping cold air east.. but see those warmers 40s south.. by wednesday we'll start to bring in a ridge, or strong southerly flow that will warm us to temps like that! for now... 20s and some 30s in siouxland. thats 10 to 20 wamrer than yesterday... love is in the air! wind speed is calm, wind chills aren't too bad. still gloomy skies on the sky cams. got to 30 today. tonight.. 23 with an isolated mix

winds. tomorrow, 38 with stubborn clouds and that t wintry mix movininin late.7-day breezy winds linger tuesday with some flurries possible... then breezy again thursday as we bring in warmer temperatures... 50s to end the week!! jess/elisa looking forward to warmer weather.. thanks elisa! jess: when we come back...the hawkeyes returned to iowa city to host minnesota....alex has the highlights from carver- hawkeye arena

very friendly to the iowa hoops team this season. the hawkeyes are 12-0 in iowa city...winning eleven of those games by ten plus points... iowa back in action tononht against minnesota....the gophers 0-12 i ithe big ten..... and heguys......if you live jarrod uthoff alone....he will burn you.....the long- range triple puts the hawks up by four... second half now...lead up to seven....peter jok from the wing.....cash money! he scored a game-high 27 points.... but minnesota was pesky....kevin dorsey to jordan murphy for the flush...gophers within four..... they just ran out of time..........uthoff with the jam.....he had 24 points...15 boards and six blocks...iowa holds on 75-71. ex andrew white transferred from kansas to nebraska...becaus e he wanted to be the go-to guy. on saturday, he was that and so much more....a

nior as the huskers pounded penn state. from the opening tip, it was clear that white was finished with 15 first-half points....adding 20 in the second.... from deep, white was red-hot... a career high 6 three's on ten attempts....and to give it some context, saturday's 35 point performance ranktenth in husker history.. earlier in the week....he was challenged by his coaching staf.....and boy did he deliver... "i had an efficient night from the floor, but that is kind of what i expect to do just from an efficiency standpoint. it was good to get going, but more importantly my coaches just challenged me to have a really big game just because we were in desperation to win, so that more important. i feel good about the 35 [points] but i feel even better that i could help put my team in a position to win this game " nebraska returns to action on wednesday at indiana. a sunday matinee down in lincoln....nebrask a with hopes of

fourth straight time... picking things up in the fourth...rachel theriot left alone....huskers take the 59-52 lead.... then its jessica sheppard......with the spin cycle in the paint.....the star freshman with two of her game-high 26 points... sparty wouou fight withinfive...jenna allen with the mid- range j.......she had 14 points.... but the husker were too strong..theriot to shepard.... nebraska picks up its first win over a top 25 opponent since 2013...73-66... the final. alex with jameel mckay back in the fold, iowa state is back on track...... the senior returned for last night's game against texas.....giving the cyclones a much- needed spark...and a much-needed win... the cyclones held off the longhorns on saturday behind a gutty effort from mckay....just 8 points...but his seven rebounds ananur blocks made a huge difference... and how about georges niang and monte morris....the duo combined for 48 points, 12 rebounds and six assists... just what the doctor ordered as isu remains two games back of kansas and west

"i just feel like the last couple of games, we didn't really have the will to win. we were giving up late leads and stuff like that, so usually it adds motivation i was probably a little too emotional out ther,e crying to the refs, but we are so passionate out there and we really wanted this win." "we played like we are capable of playing tonight.. i thought this for awhile, this is the first time collectively, that we e& were a real team tonight and now, we have to carry that forward." the big 12 gauntlet continues on tuesday...isu heads to waco to visit 21st-ranked baylor.... iowa state wrestling celebrating 100 years on the mats....th cyclones hosting west virginia on senior day. to the action at 133. eighth-ranked earl hall pounces and gets the takedown, en route to the 10-5 decision. up to 165 pounds, #11 tanner weatherman also wrestling in his final match at hilton. and what a way to finish it with the pin! earns the big six points.... helping the cyclones clinch the match. 28-11 the final. isu finishes up the regular season

the musketeers lookg to snap a five-game skid at waterloo....but sioux city blows 2-0 lead in a 3-2 loss.. the guys host fargo and lincoln next weekend. elisa

possible. mostly cloudy with calm winds. tomorrow, 38 4& with stubborn clouds and that wintry mix moving in late.7-day breezy winds linger tuesday with some flurries possible... then breezy again thursday as we bring in warmer temperaturur... 50s to end the week!!

>> the following is a production of learfield sports. >> hi, everybody, and welcome to the steve prohm show. iowa state splits a pair of games this week, losing on the road to texas tech in overtime then coming back and beating a very talented texas team at hiltotocoliseum, 85-75.

positives to come out of that victory over texas. a very good texas team that's playing very well. >> yeah, they're playing as well as anybody in the league and really defending well. they had a chance to win at oklahoma, they've already won road games at baylor and west virginia, and so we knew it was gonna be a very tough game, but was proud of our guys from just playing a complete game. jameel came back off a suspension, played terrifi great energy, and then monte and georges, you know, they were really, really good when they needed to be. >> yeah, you really executed, i think you shot close to 67 percent in the second half, and that's tough to do. texas leading the conference in field goal percentage defense and scoring defense. >> yeah and, and you know, we were able to score 85. when we're spacing the floor and running in transition and moving the basketball side to side or getting reversals then getting the ball screen action, we're a hard team to guard because we got a great point guard, you got a skilled forward that's a tough matchup, you got a five man can finish aroununthe rim, and you gogowings that can makeeplays so i thought i iwas