The 143rd annual Commencement ceremony at Ada High School took place on a mild Sunday afternoon, May 24. In an event both solemn and joyous, 63 students celebrated their successful graduation and a shared experience of up to 13 years.
Students also remembered the passing of classmate Jayden Elwood in 2023 and retired teacher Tony Dyer in March 2026.
Ada already took out the Carey Blue Devils in the district semis, and now they face another Blue Devil squad in Danville at the round of 16.
Danville tied for the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference title at 13-1. They have won 11 of their last 12 games. The Blue Devils have made it to 14 straight district finals.
Senior Devil pitcher Addyson Bocock struck out 13 over five innings in their 19-0 district semifinal blowout vs. over-matched Mt. Gilead.
Seeded first in the Central 1 bracket, the Blue Devils and Bocock then shut out an 8-12 Cardington-Lincoln squad 3-0 on May 22 to win their district crown.
SHELBY__It took multiple days, but the determined Ada High School softball team staved off rain delays and a late rally to beat Colonel Crawford 11-10 in a wild Div. VI Northwest district final that finished on Monday, May 25.
The Bulldogs led 11-8 when the game was stopped by rain at a crucial point three days earlier, in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Eagles had the bases loaded with nobody out when play was halted.
The Ada Icon and Bluffton Icon will be in holiday mode for the long weekend of May 23-24-25. Except for breaking news, articles will be on pause. Say hello to our photographers and news gatherers at high school graduation and Memorial Day events.
Memorial Day services will be held at Woodlawn Cemetery, 5134 SR 235, on Monday, May 25 at 1:00 p.m. This event is cosponsored by Ream McElroy Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9381 and Foss-Agin-Meyer American Legion Post 185. Following this event, there will be a short service at Preston Cemetery, 3131 Co Rd 90, Alger.
ST. HENRY__The visiting Ada High School baseball team lost to top-seeded powerhouse St. Henry 21-0 in their Div. VI Northwest 1 sectional final game on Saturday evening, May 23.
Ranked second in the state, the hard-hitting Redskins built a 5-0 lead after two innings. They then put the game out of reach with an eight-run third.
SH plated eight more runs in the bottom of the fourth frame to invoke the mercy run rule after a scoreless top of the fifth.
The Redskins out-hit the Bulldogs 16-3 and took advantage of six Ada errors to score 12 unearned runs. SH smacked seven doubles and two home runs.
