You can tell Bill Port is settling in quite well as News 18′s weekend sports anchor…his mental telepathy is completely tuned in.  Here’s what I mean:  while I was toiling away on some landscaping projects during some of my days off (exciting stuff…no question) I thought it would be great to get all of us in the department (myself, Bill, Stephen Kelley, Lee DeJarlais) to blog about some of our favorite memories from the 2007-08 school year.   While I was thinking about it, Bill was actually blogging–so congrats to him!

Here are some of my favorite memories (I’ll limit this to WIAA and NCAA Division III Sports, and to games, athletes, and coaches I actually saw in person):

BEST GAMES:
Eleva-Strum vs. Suring, Boys Basketball, WIAA Division 4 State Championship

I had the pleasure of being courtside for this one as the play-by-play announcer on the state-wide network…and there were several times I thought I’d lose my voice.   The intensity of any state tournament game is always high, but this game was off the charts.   Seeing Cardinals’ senior foward Nick Zander hurdle a courtside photographer and crash into the Eleva-Strum band’s bass drum is an image I’ll never forget.   The Cards came out on top, but they got pushed to the limit by a very talented Eagles team.   

Eau Claire Memorial vs. Superior, Boys Hockey, WIAA State Semifinal

Unlike the basketball tournaments, I haven’t been to every state hockey tournament since I arrived in Eau Claire in 1996–but this is by far the best state game I’ve witnessed.  Most fans thought these were the two best high school teams in Wisconsin, and the Old Abes and Spartans did not disappoint anyone with the effort they put out in their semifinal matchup.   Memorial managed to come out on top, much like the Abes did during the regular season, but the Spartans took ECM to the wire both times.   The Abes’ advantage in those games: better depth, better defensive play, and better goaltending.

UW-Eau Claire vs. St. Norbert, College Football, NCAA Division III First Round Playoff

Dr. John Minahan Stadium in De Pere is a decrepit facility by high school standards–let alone the college level–but on a cold, gray, misty November 17, it was a near-perfect setting for an game that displayed Division III football at its best.   The game was physical (UWEC quarterback Mitch Schaeuble finished the game despite sustaining a consussion), dramatic (Schaueble tossed the game-winning TD pass to Chris Hull with 0:46 on the clock), and meaningful (the Blugolds justified their at-large selection to the D-III bracket).   

STUDENT/ATHLETES OF THE YEAR:

Lance Rongstad, Eleva-Strum, & Jefferson Dahl, Eau Claire Memorial

I tried to justify picking one over the other but that’s an impossible task.  Rongstad won three state titles, but Dahl put up better stats.  Both guys were absolutely essential to their state championship teams…beyond their impressive stat lines, Rongstad and Dahl were true leaders.   Both were excellent high school students, both were year-round athletes who excelled in multiple sports, and both handled their time in the spotlight with total class. 

COACHES OF THE YEAR:

Rich Roginski, Eleva-Strum Boys Basketball, & Mike Schwengler, Eau Claire Memorial Boys Hockey

Both coaches had to deal with incredibly high expectations but never let their teams feel the weight of that pressure.   Watching the Cardinals cruise through the basketball season while the Old Abes were going unbeaten on the ice, reminded me of an old Barry Alvarez cliche: competing against the game.   In other words, you don’t focus on your opponent, you simply try to get better in every single aspect.  Beyond guiding their teams to unblemished records and state championships, Roginski and Schwengler imparted a lot of life lessons to their guys: the Cards and Abes won with class and handled themselves with humility.

(Honorable mention: Ted Alberson, Flambeau girls basketball)

MOMENT OF THE YEAR:

Jill Janke’s HR Wins NCAA Title

While I’m at it, I’ll nominate this for "Moment of the Decade."  How can you top a game-winning home run in your final collegiate at-bat, that gives your team its first-ever NCAA Division III softball title?  There may be a "no-cheering rule" in every working pressbox–but we admit to doing a lot of cheering in our work area at News 18 watching the web broadcast when Janke’s solo blast cleared the fence.

I’ll ask Stephen and Lee to post their favorite memories–but in the meantime, let’s hear from the fans.  What will you remember most from the past year in local high school and college sports?

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports

The 2007-2008 local sports season has been over for a few weeks now and I can’t help but think back on a great Fall-Winter-Spring for the area.  So I am going to talk a bit about my memories from the season.

I will probably never forget when the UWEC softball team beating Whitewater in the NCAA Division III National Championship.  Now that I think about it, I recall us wanting to use sound of the announcers saying the Blugolds won for our 5 o’clock newscast, but we couldn’t because all you could hear was me cheering in the background.  I also found myself following the team closely because they have had a regional in Eau Claire the past two seasons, and the bulk of the games are on the weekend which is when I work.  It’s easy to understand something and become a fan if you are there a lot.  Plus the team is always really nice, laid-back, and fun to talk to after the games…it may be because they kept winning those games though.

The next fond memory is Eau Claire Memorial winning the WIAA State Hockey Title.  This is a team that was just unstoppable.  I didn’t see any other hockey teams from any other states, but I would be willing to bet that they were the best HS hockey team in the nation this past season.  Brady Sand is a solid goalie, a position I loved to play when I played roller-hockey.  Jefferson Dahl has come to our station a few times for interviews and he is the type of person that if you talk to him for a few minutes, you feel like you have known him your whole life.  It’s good to see such a good hockey player, on such a great team that doesn’t have an ego at all.

Speaking of high school athletes without egos, how could you not mention the Eleva-Strum basketball/football/golf team.  Lance Rongstad is a guy that you would like to find a reason to dislike because he is so good at everything.  But if you actually talk to him, you realize he doesn’t have an ego at all.  Nick Rogness, Nick Zander, Jordan Peterson, etc. are the same way from what I know.  If you could build a high school team with a group of kids that are hard-working, humble, and just plain good, the Eleva-Strum squad is the way to go.  And Athletic Director/Coach Rich Roginski is a great guy as well.

I also want to mention the Colfax Girls Basketball team.  If you went to a game this season, you probably saw Courtney Doucette launching up a three from near the half-court line and making it.  Head Coach Joe Doucette led the team to the WIAA State Semifinals and I would expect to see them make another push for that title next season.

Finally, lets not forget about the Menomonie football team.  What can you say about Joe LaBuda’s team.  They are always good.  I remember going to the first game of the season when the Indians hosted Mukwonago and it was closer than I expected.  I started to think Menomonie might have a down year…and by down year I mean only a few losses.  The team still went deep into the playoffs, as they do every year, and I expect the Indians to be quite solid again next year.

There are many great memories from the past season that I didn’t talk about (UWEC Womens basketball, Flambeau girls basketball, EC Memorial baseball) but I will still remember those teams for quite some time.  The 2008-2009 will surely be great as well.

-Bill Port, Weekend Sports Anchor

Posted under Hometown Sports

The calendar says early June, which is normally the time I start getting very excited about baseball.  But in the spring of 2008 (a.k.a., the spring that still hasn’t arrived), we’re still waiting for the sunny, warm weather that makes playing and watching baseball enjoyable.  Despite the rain and the chill, it’s a great time of the year…a time when the high school season is winding down, the Northwoods League season is starting up, and the major league races are coming into focus.

We’ll start at the high school level, and as fate would have it, the weather has intervened once again, postponing the WIAA Division 1 Stevens Point sectional to Wednesday, June 4.   Unbeaten Eau Claire Memorial will play Stevens Point on its home field (Bukolt Park) in one semifinal.   Even without the extra day, both teams figured to throw their #1 pitchers: Ben Kincaid for Memorial, with SPASH countering with  Cody Koback of SPASH.   Both guys were very effective in winning their respective regional finals, and both got plenty of run support, with each team slugging two home runs in those games.  I’m still amazed about seeing ECM’s Ben Sebesta hitting one out to straight-away center field at Carson Park–something I’ve never seen in my years of covering sports in town.   One thing I have seen over that time span is plenty of upsets in the high school baseball postseason–so I’m not going to claim that the winner of the ECM-SPASH game is going to breeze to the state tournament.  Menomonie plays Chippewa Falls in the other semi, and either the Indians or the Cardinals could surprise in the sectional final.   Still, on paper, there’s no team in this sectional that has the hitting lineup and the solid defense like the Old Abes…so they’re my pick to advance to Fox Cities Stadium.

In Division 2, head coach Steve Perala has put together a very tough program at Barron.   The Golden Bears have one of the area’s best and most versatile players in Brad Hallberg, and this year they have the advantage of hosting the sectional.    However, they’ll have to get past Heart O’North rival Hayward in the semi’s, and either Baldwin-Woodville or Nekoosa in the final.  All four teams are number one seeds, so don’t be surprised to see any of the four advance to state…but if I have to pick one, I’m going with Barron.

Three area teams have advanced to the Division 3 Marshfield sectional.   St. Croix Central has won a pair of 1-run games to get there, Osseo-Fairchild’s found its offense in a 12-2 win over Regis in a regional final, while McDonell has yet to give up a run.   The other team, Park Falls, has a very strong baseball tradition, but I like the Macks behind the pitching of Jon Schoch…and I also see McDonell making it to Fox Cities Stadium.

We could have an all-area Division 4 state semifinal…Immanuel Lutheran is one of four #1 seeds in the Abbotsford sectional,  while top-seeds Luck, Prairie Farm, and Bruce will compete in the Bruce sectional.   I’ll go out on a limb to say that the winner of the Immanuel Lutheran-Rib Lake and the Prairie Farm-Bruce games will win their respective sectionals…and on a hunch I’m going to say that’s Rib Lake and Prairie Farm.   Tune in to News 18 Sports for highlights and all the scores–feel free to heckle me if I’m wrong.

In the Northwoods League, it’s been a slow start to Express season.  The biggest problem for Eau Claire so far is offense–even though the Express got 8 hits last night in a home loss to Battle Creek, Eau Claire left 11 runners on base, stranding the potential game-winning runs at 3rd base in both the 9th and 11th innings.  Manager Dale Varsho claims his team hasn’t had a solid hit in three games, no doubt a factor in the team’s 1-3 record.     Beyond that, the team hasn’t gotten a break with the weather: the home opener was supended after four innings, and more chilly, rainy conditions were a major reason why 859 fans showed up at Carson Park Monday night for the Express’ 2nd home game–great attendance for some tenants, but small by NWL standards.   However, baseball trends can change…so at some point, I expect the Express hitters will come around, the weather will get warmer, and an average of 2,000 fans per night will make Carson Park a fun place to be all summer long.

Think I’m just being a homer?  Things change over the course of a baseball season.  Look at the Brewers…even the most die-hard fans were grousing about the team’s performance, but Milwaukee’s gone 10-4 since getting swept by Boston at Fenway Park.   Over in the AL, the Twins continue to defy their annual low preseason expectations, and find themselves just 1/2 game out of first place in the Central Division.

Former major leaguer Joaquin Andujar was fond of saying that there’s one word that describes baseball: "Youneverknow."     Personally, I think he was combining three words into one, but let’s not quibble over that.   When you follow this game, you expect the unexpected…which is why we keep watching.   

I have one word for News 18 Meteorologist Doug Michaels: "Letsgetsomebetterweather."

-BOB BRADOVICH

Posted under Hometown Sports