Girls Basketball Blogs
Four make college decisions
by
Jennie Adrian,
11/19/2008
Marieanna Dulas (Markesan) has reached a decision and accepted a scholarship to play basketball at DII Winona State University next season. Dulas, who reached the 1000 point mark last season, is averaging 4 rebounds, 2 steals and 3 assists over her career. Last season she was selected to the AP and WBCA All-State teams, as well as being named Beaver Dam Co-Player of the Year. Marieanna has also been a Trailways North first team all conference player the last two seasons.
Sam Hoyt (Durand) has also made her college decision. Sam will be playing next year at Michigan Tech. Hoyt, who averaged 18 points a game last season, will be a good addition to the roster at Michigan Tech, which recently also sealed the deal with senior Kate Glodowski of Amherst. Coach Todd Poeschel has described Sam as “level headed and intelligent” which are both qualities that will help her excel at the collegiate level. “Sam always wants what is best for her team. She is a true leader by example and works hard to make herself better,” Coach Poeschel said. Having that work ethic and determination will help Sam as she takes her game to the next level.
Heather Kessler of Antigo has decided to join Hoyt at Michigan Tech. Kessler is a 6-1 wing player that was honorable mention all-conference in the tough Wisconsin Valley conference last season.
Also making a recent commitment was Jennifer Herrick who signed with D2 Upper Iowa University. Herrick, a 5-8 point guard, was a second team all-conference selection last year in the Flyway.
Flambeau Surprise In Top Spot Of D4 Poll
by
Travis Wilson,
11/12/2008
Even Flambeau Coach Ted Alberson was a bit surprised when told his Falcons team had been chosen for the #1 spot in the pre-season Division 4 Coaches Poll. After all, his team graduated five starters from last year's state championship team. But then again, Flambeau has won three straight state titles and are looking to become the first girls basketball team in state history to win four in a row, so maybe it shouldn't be too much of a surprise. As the saying goes, you're still the champion until someone proves otherwise.
So what did Alberson say when told his team was picked first? "I'm stunned to be number one. This is one time I hope our kids read the papers and understand how much respect others have for our program and use that to motivate themselves. They have huge shoes to fill." Those shoes that need replacing include five starters, four 1st team all-conference performers, and two 1st team WBCA All-State players. The cupboard certainly is not bare however. Junior Courtney Wanish was named a 1st team all-conference player last year and sophomore Shelly Sterba showed excellent potential. Having a strong program allows younger players to step in and be successful even when talented players have been lost to graduation.
What will be the keys for Flambeau this year? "In order to repeat we have to get a lot better," Alberson said. "We showed at times this summer that we could be a really good team but youth or lack of depth would creep in and hurt us in the fourth quarter. Some of our best players will be young and in need of a lot of playing time at the varsity level. As far as replacing last year's team I think these kids need to really concentrate on being the best they can be and not think too much about who wore that uniform last year."
Catholic Central and then a quartet of Six Rivers teams are predicted to finish right behind Flambeau. Catholic Central returns Top 50 senior Carol Henney (pictured) and fellow 1st team all-conference selection Alexa Deacon.
Pecatonica looks to make some noise behind standout junior Kimee Chandler. Barneveld was the last team besides Flambeau to win a state championship in D4 and have a talented squad once again. Black Hawk fell one game shy of the state tournament last year and return two all-conference performers in Kim Wellnitz and Paige Butler. Potosi also came up one game shy of Madison and return two all-conference performers of their own, Thresia Elskamp and Morgan Lass.
In positions 7-15 are:
7) Newman - They lose Val Schuster but Coach TomWeinkauf returns a talented squad.
8) Rio - Seven seniors and four juniors return for the Vikings.
9) Independence - Steph Walek will lead a team that has had 20+ win in each of the last two seasons.
10) Randolph - Playing in ultra-tough Trailways-Central could hurt Rockets record but help come tournament time.
11) Saint Mary Central - Lost to Flambeau in last year's D4 championship and return two starters.
12) Assumption - Last year's Marawood-South champ faces challenge with additions of Edgar and Newman to conference.
13) Clayton - Went undefeated in regular season last year but fell in sectional semi-finals. Need to replace three all-conference performers.
14) Weston - Return four starters from last year's surprise Ridge & Valley Conference champs.
15) Niagara - Senior Jamie Vandenberg is one of best all-around athletes in the state and will be counted on heavily by the Badgers.
**Eleva-Strum finished third in the original rankings, but has moved up to Division 3 this year.**
All of this and much more will be included in the third annual Wisconsin Women’s Basketball Yearbook.
Click here for more information on the yearbook.
Please
click here for the complete rankings.
No Surprise Monroe On Top of Division 2 Pre-Season Rankings
by
Travis Wilson,
11/11/2008
Monroe was expected to have a good team last season, but a very young and unproven team. Many thought they were perhaps a year away from once again challenging for a state title. The Cheesemakers proved them wrong though and won their second state title in three years. They started three sophomores, one junior, and one senior while also relying on several underclassmen off the bench. This year Monroe will return four of five starters from last year's squad, including their top six scorers.
With such high expectations, some coaches may worry about how their team will handle it. Not Monroe Coach Kevin Keen. "Fortunately, this group of kids is one that doesn't seem to get too high or too low. I think they are smart enough to know that what we accomplished last year was not easy and it will be even tougher to get to that point this year. We need to take a business-like approach and remember that it's one game at a time," he said.
That doesn't mean they'll get anything less than their opponents' best games though. "Any time you win a state championship the previous year, teams are going to be out to get you the next year. We've tried to impress on our players that they are going to have to be ready to play every night as our opponents are always going to give it their best shot." A strong nucleus led by juniors Jamie Armstrong, Ashley Hermanson, and Gwen Sutter plus senior Emily Rufenacht will try to make sure complacency does not set in with the Cheesemakers.
The road to another state championship will not be easy for Monroe. A host of teams with great programs, talent, and tradition will be hot on their heels. Columbus, Freedom, Grafton, and Pewaukee round out the Top Five. Columbus returns three starters from last year's team that went undefeated in the regular season and should feature a nice combination of size and quickness, led by guard Kayla Waddell (pictured).
Freedom was a state semi-finalist a year ago and return 12 players with varsity experience. They should have a good battle with Ripon to see who takes the Eastern Valley championship. Grafton loses Rachel Hencke, last year's WBCA Miss Basketball in Wisconsin, but returns a solid core group led by UW-Green Bay recruit Sarah Eichler. Pewaukee has had very good teams the past several seasons, but not been able to translate that into a state tournament run. Top 100 senior Amy Slesar will look to lead the Pirates to Madison.
In positions 6-15 are:
6) Delavan-Darien - Conference POY Kelly Supernaw is gone but they return a strong core, including 6'2'' Alan Cesarz.
7) Ripon - The time is now for the Tigers with seven seniors, including UW recruit Taylor Wurtz.
8) Richland Center - Dani Templin and the Hornets are no strangers to pre-season top tens.
9) Altoona - Senior Brittany Gregorich will lead a very skilled bunch.
10) Amery - High scoring guard Taylor Luke leads a potent offense.
11) New Berlin Eisenhower - Lose Woodland POY Kelsey Sperka, will need talented but unproven youngsters to step up.
12) Reedsburg - Star guard Tracee Shrank will need to take on even more responsibility.
13)Wittenberg-Birnamwood - Return three all-conference performers from last year's squad.
14) Seymour - Feature extremely talented and deep junior class.
15) Slinger - Senior Lindsay Walter may be best player in Little Ten Conference.
Others receiving votes included: Luxemburg-Casco, Winneconne, New London, Union Grove, Southern Door, Rice Lake, Hayward, Greendale, Durand, Catholic Memorial, Two Rivers, Kettle Moraine Lutheran, Brodhead, Fox Valley Lutheran, Whitewater, Xavier, West Salem, New Berlin West
All of this and much more will be included in the third annual Wisconsin Women’s Basketball Yearbook.
Click here for more information on the yearbook.
Please
click here for the complete rankings. We will be releasing the Division 4 rankings in the coming days.
WGBY - Top 50 Seniors
by
Nicholas Kartos,
11/11/2008
The Wisconsin Girls Basketball Yearbook should be hitting the mailboxes and store shelves this week. One of the most anticipated parts of the book every year is the top ranked seniors. The book lists the Top 50 ranked, 51-101 in alpha order and other top seniors.
Below is an alphabetical list of the top 50 seniors. We will post the rankings on our site a week into the season, once everyone has received their copy of the book.
Click here to find out how to get a book.
Top 50 Seniors (Alpha) Laura Atkinson, Oregon
Sam Barber, DC Everest
Iesha Barkley, West Allis Central
Ashley Birts, Milwaukee Vincent
Brittany Buss, Kimberly
Courtney Buth, Appleton West
Paige Butler, Black Hawk
Kaycee Charette, Prescott
Anna Cole, Mondovi
Emily Decorah, Waunakee
Shavon Dillon, The Hope School
Courtney Doucette, Colfax
Marieanna Dulas, Markesan
Sarah Eichler, Grafton
Kate Glodowski, Amherst
Brittany Gregorich, Altoona
Carol Henney, Catholic Central
Erin Higgins, Kenosha St. Joes
Sam Hoyt, Durand
Katie Kitzke, South Milwaukee
Shyla Kuehl, Hustisford
Karisa Laskowski, Pulaski
Cherly Leyns, Martin Luther
Taylor Luke, Amery
Catie O'Leary, Janesville Parker
Ellie Pearson, Madison West
Laura Petersen, Osseo-Fairchild
Sam Price, Eau Claire North
Brianna Radowicz, Mukwonago
Adrian Ritchie, De Pere
Kristen Ruchti, Brodhead
Steph Running, Oak Creek
Leslie Schaefer, Verona
Leah Sevcik, Roncalli
Sarina Simmons, Milwaukee King
Kiah Simon, Algoma
Ashley Springer, DeForest
Claire Steffen, De Pere
Rachel Story, Milwaukee King
Dani Templin, Richland Center
Jamie Vandenberg, Niagara
Lindsey Walter, Slinger
LaKendra Washington, The Hope School
Tristan Weiner, Appleton East
Megan Wenig, Oshkosh West
Ali Wilkinson, Wisconsin Heights
Katie Wolff, Marshfield
Katey Wrobel, Osseo-Fairchild
Taylor Wurtz, Ripon
Sam Zastrow, Algoma
WBCA Membership - get signed up today!
by
Nicholas Kartos,
11/10/2008
Below is a listing of teams that have signed up to be members of the WBCA this season. If you are a head coach and haven't signed up yet,
what are you waiting for? Also, don't forget about the opportunity to sign up your entire staff for as little as $10 a member (up to 8 members per staff membership of $80).
Some benefits of membership include:
-Eligible for awards (over $60 thousand spent on awards this year)
-Newsletter four times a year.
-Invited to hospitality suites at the boys and girls state tournaments.
-Contribute input and be a part of an organization that is working hard to change basketball for the better in our fine state.
-Be a professional and be an active member in the WBCA.
-Be proud of the fact that you are a part of an organization that has given over $1.6 million to the Midwest Athletes Against Childhood Cancer (MACC) Fund.
-Wrongful termination legal advice.
-Mentorship program.
-Student scholarships (over $12 thousand spent this year).
-Eligible for selection to the Executive Board or appointed to a committee.
-Receive college credit at fall clinics.
-Nominate a student for Academic All-State
-Nominate a student for All-State honors.
-Eligible to become an All-Star coach.
-Eligible to receive a state championship ring.
-Eligible for selection as a speaker at the fall clinic or youth clinics
Click here to see what teams have currently signed up.