The lifelong memories are coming in hot for Eau Claire North’s Sam Stange.
Old Abe Roach signs with Cards
At the beginning of this season, Regis/McDonell girls soccer coach Scott Hoffmann asked Teryn Karlstad if she’d be up for a change.
A concerned Jared Faherty steps out of the Chippewa Falls dugout to check on his pitcher. Julia Baxter has loaded the bases, and now her arm is giving her trouble.
Sam Stange’s decisive, go-ahead home run in the sixth inning of Thursday’s Division 1 state championship overshadowed a lot of things. And rightfully so. It was an iconic moment which served as the highlight of a thrilling title game.
GRAND CHUTE — The script couldn’t have been written any better.
A pair of local baseball seniors earned the highest honor in the state on Thursday, as Eau Claire North’s Sam Stange was named Wisconsin’s Division 1 player of the year and Fall Creek’s Marcus Cline the Division 3 player of the year.
GRAND CHUTE — All things considered, the Eau Claire North pitching staff is in pretty good shape.
GRAND CHUTE — The Boyceville baseball team had one rally in it.
GRAND CHUTE — After three years of falling just short, the Eau Claire North baseball team will finally make its return to the championship round of the state tournament.
GRAND CHUTE — With his team trailing following a blown 6-0 lead, Eau Claire North baseball coach Bob Johnson decided it was time for some tough love.
Eau Claire North baseball and head coach Bob Johnson have put together a dynasty worth envying.
MADISON — The formula finally started kicking in.
Eau Claire Memorial boys tennis’ season came to an end in the state team semifinals Saturday morning when the Old Abes fell to Brookfield East, 4-3.
MADISON — The Thorp Cardinals had their chances. A year after being one-hit in an 11-0 blowout loss to Horicon in the Division 4 WIAA State championship game, the Cardinals proved they could hang with the state’s best.
Eau Claire Memorial has made it to the final day of the Wisconsin boys tennis season.
MADISON — The Chippewa Falls Cardinals just wanted a chance as they entered the bottom of the seventh inning trailing 5-2.
MADISON — There’s a saying in baseball and softball that no player should leave the field with a clean uniform. A little dirt on the uniform shows effort and hustle in a player; it epitomizes ‘getting dirty’ for your team.
Rice Lake knocked out at sectionals
Eau Claire North made it official, gaining a fourth straight trip to the state tournament.
After falling short in two consecutive trips to Madison, the Blair-Taylor softball team is hoping to come through in visit No. 3.
MADISON — When Hailey Zurakowski steps into the batter’s box to lead off Thorp’s opening game of the WIAA state softball tournament, she’ll see a familiar face staring in.
Eau Claire North clung to the edge of the cliff that No. 1 seed Stevens Point had slipped from earlier.
CHIPPEWA FALLS — It was a day 19 years in the making.
Rice Lake golfer Simon Cuskey had a strong second round at the WIAA state golf tournament on Tuesday — strong enough to earn him the designation of state runner-up.
SHELL LAKE — When describing the team’s next opponent, Thorp baseball’s Ryan Stunkel went to a classic sports cliche Tuesday after his heroic two-run walk-off homer sent his team to the Division 4 sectional final.
CHIPPEWA FALLS – “I want redemption,” Chippewa Falls catcher Alisia Palms said.
LA CROSSE — Bloomer’s Grace Post put it best.
Early mornings for Chi-Hi, Thorp at state softball
LA CROSSE — A last second stumble nearly halted Mondovi’s 4x800 relay team’s dream of a state title.
LA CROSSE — When did Rice Lake’s 4x100 relay team know it had the Division 2 state final locked up?
LA CROSSE — The Division 3 110-meter hurdles final at the state track and field meet had the looks of a premier showcase of the Chippewa Valley’s top talents. Five of the event’s 10 runners came from the area — Regis’ Isaac Michels and Jack Nicolai, Osseo-Fairchild’s Bret Kostka, Spring Vall…
CHIPPEWA FALLS — “Watch 21, the tall girl,” one of the assistant coaches for Northland Pines yelled. “They’re playing to 21. Play on her tight.”
Eau Claire Memorial’s Max Loen and Danylo Ripeckyj pushed Marquette’s Jake Stockhausen and Teddy Brodzinski to the limit.
LA CROSSE — A year ago, Rice Lake’s Adam Strouf wasn’t even at the state track and field meet. Now the junior is a state champion.
Zach Bernhardt and Billy Peterson will close out their high school golf careers in a familiar place.
LA CROSSE — The heat worked against all the athletes on the first day of the state track and field championships on UW-La Crosse’s campus, with temperatures rising into the mid-80s in the afternoon.
Friday's results
LA CROSSE — Odds aren’t on your side for reaching the podium when you finish second in the slower of two heats.
Boys Tennis
With the third and decisive set tied at three games apiece, the Eau Claire Memorial doubles duo of Max Loen and Danylo Ripeckyj caught fire.
WESTON — Abby Staves stands at the plate ready for the pitch. As the pitcher begins her windup, she wiggles her fingers on the bat as if to do jazz hands. It’s a trick she learned from her father to loosen up her grip.
BLOOMER — The Bloomer softball team certainly had its chances. But a couple of breaks here, a couple of breaks there, and steady execution by Prescott meant those chances were not enough.
Baseball
Eau Claire North will bring hot bats into Tuesday’s sectional showdown.
There will be some familiar faces at the WIAA state softball tournament next week. Thorp and Blair-Taylor both punched their tickets to Madison with wins on Thursday.
AUGUSTA — Things snowballed on Augusta in a matter of minutes.
Rice Lake golfers Simon Cuskey and Blake Zadra shared the individual sectional title on Wednesday in Hayward, tying for the top spot with scores of 73 to beat the rest of the field.
Baseball
MENOMONIE — As the Menomonie Mustangs tennis team prepared for its April 26 matchup with Eau Claire North, junior Jackson Trunkel went to grab his tennis racket.
