Oconto Beats Crivitz in Regional Opener

Blue Devils Beat
Wolverines in
Regional Opener

Oconto’s basketball season will keep rolling for at least this week after the Blue Devils rolled past Crivitz 76-38 in the opening round of the Division 4 playoffs on Tuesday.
Leading 15-10, Oconto went on a 15-1 run to end the first half up 30-11. Emilee Banker scored seven of the final 11 points in that run and finished the game with 13 points.
“We got in foul trouble, and then some of the girls that don’t usually get to step up, did, like Emilee Banker did an awesome job stepping in,” Oconto coach Nick Thomson said. “Our flow on offense actually improved with some of my subs in, which was nice to see. Everybody works hard in practice, and when they get that chance in practice, it’s nice to see them have success like that.”
Oconto scored the first six points of the second half to extend the lead to 36-11 on a Hannah Thomson bucket.
Shortly after, Oconto’s lead hit 30 for the first time when Rylie Shallow scored, and things would keep heading up.
Addisyn Viestenz scored 22 in the game, Anna Vandenlangenberg scored 13, and Shallow scored 10.
The Wolverines just couldn’t keep up with the Blue Devils for the whole game after hanging tight at the start.
“They played hard. We’re young and they handled the pressure a lot better than they did at the beginning of the year, so we’ll give them that. We just couldn’t put the ball in the hole and they’re a pretty stifling defense,” Crivitz coach Brett Meyers said.
The Blue Devils travel to No. 4 Mishicot on Friday for a 7 p.m. game.
“They’ve got two bigs. They’re both 5-10 and they average 29 points between the two of them,” Thomson said. “That’s going to be a task for us because obviously guards are kind of our faster players and set the tempo, so hopefully they can kind of hold pat there and not allow as many passes in and we can get the tempo up and hopefully stay away from their bigs. That’s the gameplan, but with the weather, I don’t know if we’re going to get any practices in between now and then.”
The winner of Friday’s game faces either No. 1 Crandon or No. 9 Algoma on Saturday.
Freshman Taryn Tracy led Crivitz in scoring on Tuesday with 10 points and sophomore Lucy Gruszynski scored eight.
Crivitz finishes the season 3-20. Most of the young Wolverine roster will return next year, with only Alexis Franzmeier and Senya Caine graduating.
Meyers said those two embraced the Wolverines’ underclassmen, helping create a good atmosphere within the team.
“Despite records and all that stuff, this has been one of my most enjoyable seasons coaching, and it’s because of the seniors who decided to just quietly be good people, and I’ll take seasons like that from now on until the end of my career,” Meyers said. “As long as they’re having fun and they enjoy being with each other and they play as hard as they can, records don’t mean much in my world anymore.”

Marines Lasso Mustangs
in Regular Season Finale

Marinette’s seniors ended the regular season with a bang on Thursday, getting a 70-45 win over Little Chute.
Addison Pristelski had her top scoring game of the season, finishing with 19 points on 7-12 shooting, including making three of six 3-pointers.
She also added five rebounds, two assists, and a steal.
“She was scoring at all three levels. She was attacking, she was getting some rebounds, she hit some mid-range, and she hit some threes,” Marinette coach Zac Barker said. “That’s the best game that Addison has played all-around. A complete game for her tonight.”
Riley Kieffer scored 13 on 5-13 shooting and Kylie Veriha had 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Bryanna Torkko and Rylee Hansen had seven points apiece. Hansen’s four assists were a team-high.
Veriha, Pristelski, Mackenzie Hebert, and Hansen are all seniors.
“All of them stepped up and played very well for us. Tonight was to highlight the seniors and the efforts they’ve done for the program the last four years,” Barker said. “You can’t ask for better attitudes, work ethic, everything is phenomenal from all four of them, so I’m really glad they’re in the program and they’re paving the way for future teams to come.”
The Mustangs’ leader was Addi Daelke with 18 points. Maya Ruesch scored 12.
Marinette wrapped up the season with a 16-8 overall record and earned a No. 4 seed in Division 2. The Marines will host No. 5 Menasha at 7 p.m. Friday.
Menasha finished the season 15-8 overall, including 7-5 in the Bay Conference.
Mara Rieder is Menasha’s best player. She’s the program’s all-time leading scorer and has committed to play at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, an NCAA Division 2 program.
“They’re a very talented team. Mara is a very talented post player for them. They run everything through their post,” Barker said. “They’ll probably 2-3 us the majority of the game, so it’s going to be a game where we have to rebound and we can’t get beat up on the inside, which we’ve struggled with at times this year.”

Bulldogs Hold Off
Maroons in Tri City
Matchup

Peshtigo just wouldn’t let Menominee overtake them in a 48-43 win on Thursday.
Every time the Maroons got close, Peshtigo buckled down and kept the lead.
Leading 29-24 at halftime, Peshtigo extended the lead to 34-26, but Menominee made a little run, with Anna Axtel cutting it back to four before Peshtigo went on another run to make it 39-30 on five points from Akira Smalls.
A 9-2 run from the Maroons courtesy of three triples from Axtel made it 41-39, but again Peshtigo buckled down. A 5-0 run from 43-41 gave Peshtigo another seven-point advantage, and it finished at a five-point game.
“It was defense. We had our lulls. There was one time we didn’t score for four or five minutes,” Peshtigo coach Jeff Sunstrom said. “It’s been a problem all year but I have really, really good senior leadership and our bench played well, especially defensively.”
On the other side, the Maroons just weren’t able to fully capitalize. They got close, but weren’t able to completely close the gap.
“I thought we had good spurts, and we’ve just got to keep things together. It seemed like we would get a steal or a deflection, then we’d come down and we’d throw the ball away,” Menominee coach Lucas Chouinard said. “We’ve got to value possessions a little bit more when we do get on those runs, and when we do, we start to build a little more confidence and things start to roll in our favor.”
Peshtigo’s Akira Smalls scored 21 points, followed by eight each from Rylie Ellie and Brooklyn Phillips.
Sunstrom credited his bench for their play in Peshtigo’s defensive zone.
“Avery Kehoe played well and then I was able to bring in Kylie Villas. They all played really well,” he said. “Both those two girls scored and they played great defense.”
Axtel was the game’s leading scorer with 28 points and Hannah Drifka scored 10.
It was the Maroons’ first true home game of the 2022-23 season.
“It was a great atmosphere for the girls, and I’m very thankful that we’re able to be back in our school,” Chouinard said. “We’ve got one more regular season home game which is very exciting.”

Blue Devils Beaten by
Packerland Champs

Oconto’s regular season finale ended in defeat against Packerland Conference champions Sevastopol.
The Pioneers took a 37-7 lead into halftime and coasted to a 67-36 victory behind Kayla Ranly’s 34 points.
Addisyn Viestenz scored 13 for the Blue Devils. Natalie Schlueter scored eight and Rylie Shallow got six.

Cougars Beat Cavaliers
to Finish 16-0 in M&O

The Coleman Cougars officially wrapped up an undefeated 16-0 M&O Conference season with a 56-7 win over Saint Thomas Aquinas Academy on Thursday night.
STAA scored just one point in the first half and trailed by 39 at the break.
Aubrey Bintz poured in 26 points, mostly in the first half, to lead the Cougars. Madelyn Hinther and Corrin Liptak each scored six points. Vivian Kostreva and Bre Hanrahan scored five points apiece.
Jenna Maxwell scored six in the second half for the Cavaliers to lead the team in scoring.

NEC Champion Irish
Pull Away From
Panthers

Freedom put the finishing touches on an undefeated 18-0 North Eastern Conference slate with a 69-31 win over Oconto Falls on Thursday.
The Irish led 37-19 at half and limited the Panthers to 12 points in the second half.
Gracie Martzahl’s 17 points led Freedom’s offense. Kierstin Kriewaldt scored 12.
Ashlynn Allen scored 12 for Oconto Falls. Kyndra Staidl and Bailee Gorman each scored six.
The Panthers finished the regular season 6-18 overall and 5-13 in NEC competition.

Badgers Best Wildcats
in Battle for Runner-Up
Spot

Four Badgers scored in double figures as Niagara bested Lena 55-44 on Friday to wrap up second place in the M&O Conference.
Mallory Sanicki scored 14 points, Josie Rock got 13, Erin Lukowicz scored 11 points, and Samantha Oratch finished with 10.
Eva Brooks scored half of Lena’s points, as she put up 22 in the defeat, including 19 in the second half. Kali Fischer and Chaela Rabas scored six each.
Niagara finishes the regular season 19-5, including a 13-3 M&O record, three games back of undefeated Coleman and one spot ahead of Lena, which finished 12-4 in M&O contests.

Cougars Fall to Rebels
in Non-Conference
Action

The Wabeno/Laona Rebels handed Coleman just its fourth loss of the 2022-23 regular season on Friday, a 62-53 game in the Cougars’ regular season finale.
Aubrey Bintz had 23 points to lead the Cougars, followed by Kiersten Jensen with 10 and Madelyn Hinther with seven.
Laona/Wabeno had three players finish in double figures. Kaylyn LaRock scored 19, Allison Albrecht scored 14, and Rylee Yaeger finished with 13.
Coleman (20-4 overall) is a No. 2 seed in Division 5 and will face either No. 7 Menominee Indian or No. 10 Kewaunee at home on Friday.
The Rebels earned a No. 1 seed in Division 5 and play either No. 9 Wausaukee or No. 8 Gillett on Friday night.

Rangers Cage
Wolverines 59-49

Lucy Gruszynski and Kirsten Pusick combined for 34 points against Wausaukee on Friday, but it wasn’t enough to overcome Rachel Schlies and the Rangers.
Schlies hit 10 of her 15 free throws in the game and finished with 22 points. Jessica Luccarini scored 15, followed by nine each from Lydia Schaal and Sparrow Luccarini.
Gruszynski and Pusick scored 17 points apiece. Alexis Franzmeier added seven points.

Bulldogs Fall to
Packerland Champion
Pioneers in Season
Finale

Peshtigo just couldn’t put up the offensive numbers necessary to beat Packerland Conference leaders Sevastopol on Saturday, falling 49-21 in the Bulldogs’ regular season finale.
The Bulldogs made just nine field goals, shooting 16 percent from the floor in the game.
“We had no problem with their press, however good quality shots were hard to come by,” Peshtigo coach Jeff Sunstrom said. “We were patient on offense, however when we did get a good shot we just couldn’t hit them.”
Akira Smalls led Peshtigo with 11 points. She was 6-15 from the field. Only three Bulldogs scored in the game, with Rylie Ellie and Maysen Brissette scoring five points each.
“They started out in man and I thought offensively we were going to have success,” Sunstrom said. “Late in the first half, they went to a 2-3 zone and that changed everything. They have a great deal of speed and quickness. Their guards had the ability to help inside and then recover to defend our outside shooters. They were extremely impressive.”
Bailey Rikkola led the Pioneers with 15 points. The Pioneers finished the regular season 23-1 overall and 16-0 in conference play.
Peshtigo ended the season with a 15-9 record, taking third in the Packerland with an 11-5 conference tally.
“They picked us to finish sixth in our conference this year, we finished third,” Sunstrom said. “People said we would win between six or seven games, we won 15. I am very proud of our team.”
Peshtigo is a No. 3 seed in Division 3. The Bulldogs await the winner of either No. 11 Sturgeon Bay or No. 6 Clintonville on Friday at 7 p.m.
Peshtigo beat Sturgeon Bay twice this season by scores of 71-29 and 62-36. The Bulldogs have not played the Truckers, who were 7-17 overall and 6-12 in North Eastern Conference play.

Badgers Open Post
Season With Win Over
Vikings

The Niagara Lady Badgers passed their first test of the postseason on Tuesday, beating Gibraltar 48-32 at home.
The Badgers had a slender 18-16 lead at halftime before a 30-point second half to beat the 13th-seeded Vikings.
Josie Rock scored 17 points. She hit all seven of her free throw attempts in the second half and scored 13 after halftime.
Morgan Borchardt finished with 13 in the game.
The win was No. 4 Niagara’s 20th of the season. Next up is another home game against fifth seed Three Lakes at 7 p.m. Friday.
When the two teams played on Dec. 28, Niagara won 53-41 behind Rock’s 26 points.
The Blue Jays are 15-8 this season. They beat Goodman/Pembine 67-19 in the first round on Tuesday.
The winner between Three Lakes and Niagara faces either No. 1 Wabeno/Laona or No. 9 Wausaukee on Saturday.

Florence Whips Elcho
in Regional Opener

Florence cruised past Elcho 61-19 in the opening round of the Division 5 playoffs on Tuesday.
Eight players scored for the Bobcats, led by Isabella Millan’s 20-point outing. Millan was 7-15 shooting and added five rebounds, three assists, and four steals.
Bryn Sullivan was 5-13 from the field. She scored 12 points with six rebounds, two assists, and four steals.
Kamdan Johnson had seven points, five rebounds, and three assists, as well as a team-best two blocks.
Leah Young and Hannah Holdaway had six points apiece, with Holdaway providing three assists as well. Morgan Tomczak had four points and six rebounds. Abigail Novak had four points, a team-high 11 rebounds, two assists, and three steals.
Next up for the sixth-seeded Bobcats is a trip to No. 3 Lena, which advanced via forfeit against Saint Thomas Aquinas Academy in the first round.
Lena is 20-4 this season, including a 49-38 win over Florence on Jan. 31.
The game starts at 7 p.m. in Lena. The winner faces either No. 7 Suring or No. 2 Sevastopol on Saturday.

Kaczmarek Leads
Tigers Past Eagles

Friday was a special night for the Gillett Tigers, especially Carleigh Kaczmarek and her dad, Gillett coach Mike Kaczmarek.
In her final regular season game, Kaczmarek nailed nine 3-pointers and finished the game with 35 points as her team won 54-43.
Suring led the game early. Down 5-0, Kaczmarek hit her first triple of the game. Trailing 9-5, she hit another.
She gave the Tigers their first lead of the game with a 3-pointer to make it 14-12. After Suring tied it up, again she splashed yet another shot from downtown.
“She can shoot the ball, so if you give her a step, she’s going to shoot it,” coach Kaczmarek said. “The kids did a great job of just recognizing when she was open and got her the ball.”
Leading 24-20 at halftime, the first points of the second half came from a Kaczmarek three. She extended the lead to nine, 31-22,  with a two-pointer, and after a Suring bucket, she made another three to put the lead into double figures for the first time.
The Tigers would push the lead to as much as 18 before it settled at 11 late in the contest.
Cilena Guns added 11 points and four other Tigers scored in the game.
“The girls executed everything we asked tonight,” coach Kaczmarek said. “It came down to execution and freeing up your shooters, and that’s what they did tonight. She made the threes, but the whole team freed her up to make those threes.”
Kaczmarek scored 21 points in the second half alone. Her 35 was her highest scoring output of the season.
“I can’t put it into words right now,” coach Kaczmarek said. “I can’t tell you the amount of hours we have put in together, so to have a night like this on senior night was rewarding.”
Christine Sleeter had Suring’s leading point total, 22. MacKenzie Bailey scored six and Bunny Cramer finished with eight.
As a team, the Eagles were 8-15 from the free throw line.
“Overall I thought we actually played well. Our shooting percentage was decent, we had some good looks,” Suring coach Pete Cramer said. “We could’ve shot a little better from the free throw line and I think we’d have been a little more competitive.”
Suring and Gillett were very competitive this season. They split the season series and both teams won nine games in M&O play.
“It’s a tough loss any time you lose to a main rival like that,” coach Cramer said. “We ended up splitting with them one and one this year, both hard-fought games by both teams. Give them credit for coming out, having a good game plan, and executing. They were able to make their shots at a record pace as far as the threes go, and it paid off for them.”

Area Teams
Regional RoundUp

Tuesday brought the start of girls’ basketball playoff action for area teams.
In Division 5, No. 9 Wausaukee got the better of No. 8 Gillett, 46-43.
The first two times the teams met in conference play, Gillett won, but Wausaukee got the ‘W’ on Tuesday.
The defeat ended the high school careers of eight Tiger seniors: Laney DeBauch, Kasy Hansen, Halle Fisher, Bella Matczak, Carleigh Kaczmarek, Megan Wagner, Cheyenne Krueger, and Jaimee Rehn.
The Rangers will face No. 1 Wabeno/Laona on the road Friday night.
The Rebels went 17-7 this season. They were 9-1 in Northern Lakes Conference action.
The winner faces either No. 4 Niagara or No. 5 Three Lakes on Saturday.
Three Lakes advanced by beating No. 12 Goodman/Pembine on Tuesday, ending the Patriots’ season.
Suring, a seven seed in D5, beat No. 10 Bowler by a 54-34 tally and earned a date with No. 2 Sevastopol, which went undefeated in Packerland Conference play this season and lost just once in 24 games.
That one begins at 7 p.m. Friday. The winner faces No. 6 Florence or No. 3 Lena.
Lena won via forfeit against Saint Thomas Aquinas Academy on Tuesday.
No. 7 Oconto Falls held No. 11 Little Chute to 27 points and won by 20 in Division 3 action.
Next up for the Panthers is a North Eastern Conference opponent, the Wrightstown Tigers.
The Tigers are a No. 2 seed in D3 and beat the Panthers 50-32 and 38-27 this year.
An upset win would see Oconto Falls go on to play either No. 3 Peshtigo or No. 6 Clintonville on Saturday night.

 

Category:

Subscriber Login