Basketball

A two-win week over New Richmond, 77-34 at home and 75-42 on the road, flipped the Wildcat girls back to the right side of .500 in conference play at 6-5 and improved them to 12-8 overall. For the boys, it was a 2-0 week of their own, with an 82-53 win over Eau Claire Memorial and a close 80-76 win over New Richmond. The boys are 13-5 on the year, tied for the top spot in the Big Rivers Conference at 9-1 with Hudson. The River Falls-Hudson rivalry renews in River Falls on Friday, with the girls playing at 5:30 p.m., followed by the boys game. Last time around, the boys got the win and the girls fell short, so the girls will be eyeing redemption this time around. For the boys, the game will put one team on top of the conference standings with two weeks of regular season basketball to play.

The Ellsworth boys completed the season sweep over a tough Osceola team by beating them in their house 70-68, but could not do the same in Prescott, losing 63-50 to close out the week. The Panthers are remaining steady at 9-9 overall and 4-6 in Middle Border play. The girls had a tough week, losing 69-51 against Somerset and 53-38 against Baldwin-Woodville, dropping to 5-14 overall and 1-10 in conference.

Prescott’s win in Ellsworth was much needed, coming off the back of a triple overtime loss to Saint Croix Central 64-56. The Cardinals are now 12-7 on the year with a 6-4 Middle Border Conference record. The Cardinal girls split their week with a 49-46 gritty win over Altoona and a 71-62 loss against Somerset. Prescott is now 11-8 overall and third in the conference at 7-4.

The Spring Valley boys played a trio of wild games, losing 45-43 against Chetek-Weyerhaeuser, beating Boyceville 56-48 in overtime and beating Glenwood City 62-55. The wins were a big boost in morale for the Cardinals, moving to 5-12 overall and 3-7 in conference. For the girls, it was a split week with a 61-47 win over Clear Lake and a 71-49 loss to state-ranked Colfax. Spring Valley is 10-9 overall and 6-6 in conference.

Elmwood/Plum City had a tough week on both sides, with the girls losing 54-36 to Glenwood City and the boys losing 82-48 to Durand-Arkansaw and 102-76 to Colfax. The girls are 7-13 overall and 2-10 in conference with the boys at 4-13 overall and 2-9 in conference.

Wrestling

The final week of the regular season was nothing short of eventful. Ellsworth reclaimed the Kirby Symes Golden Shoe, beating River Falls 58-23 in their house after dismantling Eau Claire North. River Falls also beat Eau Claire North, claiming the Big Rivers Conference Championship for themselves.

SV/EPC competed at the Dunn-St. Croix Conference Championships in Mondovi, taking second overall as a team. Austin Krentz, Doost Kaker, Asher Turner and Delia Larson were the four individual winners for the Cardinals.

Many area girls competed in the Western Wisconsin Girls Championships, with some of the highlights being Olivia Luther’s third place finish in the gold bracket, Providence Kretzmann taking third in the gold bracket and Audrey Adelman winning the silver bracket. Delia Larson took second in the gold bracket for SV/EPC. For Prescott, Savannah Whiting took second in the gold bracket, Emma Schmitz took third in the gold bracket and Lily Kern took fourth in the gold bracket.

Prescott’s boys finished the year at the Leopold Haglund Invite in Minnesota, with Bryce Feran leading the way with a second-place finish and Gunnar Doyle finishing fifth.

Boys Individual Sectionals are Saturday, with SV/EPC competing in Independence, Prescott and Ellsworth in Osseo-Fairchild and River Falls in Menomonie. Girls Regionals are Feb. 13, with all four county teams competing in Hudson.

Hockey

The St. Croix Valley Fusion hit their stride at the right time, extending a winning streak to nine in a row with wins over Eau Claire Area 5-2 and Central Wisconsin 2-0. With two games remaining and just one of them being a conference matchup, the Fusion have secured the Big Rivers Conference title with a 6-1 league record and 18-4 overall record.

The River Falls boys saw a losing streak extend to four games after losing 5-2 against New Richmond and 8-2 against Hudson. Now, with two regular season games remaining, the Wildcats are still in solid standing at third in the conference with a 7-5 league record and 12-10 overall record.

Swim and Dive

River Falls took sixth place at the Big Rivers Conference meet with 165 points, with Hudson taking home the conference title. River Falls’ Sectional event on Feb. 14 in Rice Lake as student-athletes seek to book their tickets to State.

Gymnastics

River Falls took third in a nailbiter of a triangular in Hudson with a 137.100, trailing Chippewa Falls’ 137.225 and Hudson’s 137.350. Ruby Amundson dominated for another all-around win individually, scoring a 36.800. The conference meet is Feb. 21 at Eau Claire Memorial.