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2009 Recap



Waunakee won the relatively youthful 2009 Badger North Conference title with an 11-1 league record, its only loss coming to second-place Sauk Prairie. The Warriors earned the two-seed in its own Division 1 sectional, but was ousted by Madison La Follette in the semifinals. Sauk Prairie, meanwhile, earned its first ever trip to the Division 2 State Tournament after a very impressive postseason run. The Eagles knocked off three top-15 teams in the state en route to a semifinal berth. Portage, who finished third last season at 9-3, lost in the regional finals to Madison Edgewood.



2009 Final Standings

2009 All-Conference Teams



2010 Preview



Predicted Order of Finish:

1) Waunakee

2) Sauk Prairie

3) Portage

4) DeForest

5) Mount Horeb

6) Reedsburg

7) Baraboo



Players to Watch:

Samantha Terry, Baraboo

Megan Marquart, DeForest

Sehar Resad, DeForest

Olivia Kuker, Mount Horeb

MacKenzie Ziegler, Portage

Ali Lohr, Reedsburg

Brittany Hahn, Sauk Prairie

Lacey Puls, Sauk Prairie

Kalie Endres, Waunakee

Hailie Ripley, Waunakee



2010 Season Outlook:



Waunakee is an athletic powerhouse in pretty much all high school sports. This year, the Warriors will be without All-Conference First Team member Lacey Adler and Crystal Ziegler on the outside, but should be experienced and solid once again up the middle."We will have tough serving and leadership in the setting role," head coach Anne Denkert, who will be entering her 10th year, said. "We will also have key returners in the Libero, Middle Hitting and Outside Hitting positions." Back for their senior seasons are middle hitter Hailie Ripley, setter Kalie Endres and Libero Sam Reilly-- all All-Conference team nominees-- in what could be another Badger North championship run. Waunakee, might need all the conference success it can get as it will once again be sent to the Division 1 WIAA southwest area sectional to contend with Big Eight heavyweights La Follette, Verona and Middleton come late October.



Sauk Prairie's dream run to its first ever WIAA Division 2 State semifinal can only help the Eagles this season, as it welcomes back several of its top players. Seniors Lacey Puls and Brittany Hahn, All-Conference First and Second Team nominees respectively, should anchor what head coach Eleanor Engelby considers "strong outside and middle hitters". The Eagles will need to replace setter Lauren Halweg and Libero Aimee Thrune, positions integral to offensive production. Look for setters Morgan Breuing and/or Tessa Ganser to step into that role and feed Puls in the Middle and Hahn and junior Ali Halweg on the outside. Badger North foes should beware if this Sauk team can find itself early and consistently fires on all cylinders. Portage returns All-Conference First Team and All-State Honorable Mention outside hitter MacKenzie Ziegler and Honorable Mention Libero Sydney Jacobs from last year's team that finished 9-3 in league play. Those two will need to not only lead the brigade in Portage's hopes for league laurels, but do so quickly as the Warriors open the season with an August 25 Badger North matchup against favorite Waunakee.



DeForest may have managed a .500 conference record last season, but the Norskies boast a pair of All-Conference Second Team returning seniors in middle hitter Megan Marquart and outside hitter Sehar Resad as offensive go-tos. Classmate Jenny Berry should provide experienced hands for the Norskies as well, who should be improved from its young roster last season. First-year Mount Horeb head coach Tom Shay has high hopes heading into this season, expecting a deeper and more experienced team. "Our senior leadership should be our biggest strength. We expect to return seven seniors, many with varsity experience since they were sophomores," assistant coach Nolan Krentz said. Yet despite the numbers, he also noted their defense will need to be improved for the Vikings to ascend the conference standings. "We have struggled in the past on [the defensive] side of the court and need to be more consistent each night in conference play."



Reedsburg lost Libero Sarah Crabaszcz to graduation, but incoming junior Ali Lohr is ready to amp up the Beaver offense in hopes of improving upon its 2-10, three-way tie for fifth place finish last season. Head Coach Amy Schultz is also expecting more depth this season, potentially from sophomore outside hitter Beth Maenpaa. Baraboo gets back a great athlete in 6-2 Honorable Mention outside hitter Sam Terry, but the Thunderbirds might need another year or two of coaching stability paired simply with more athletes buying into the system to show improvement.