SHOTS from the Hip

The Prescott cross country teams continued to impress last week as the boys placed first and the girls second on the Somerset Invitational. _Tyler Loucks led the charge for the boys finishing in second place, with Ryan Zerneke finishing fourth, and Eric Korfhage ninth for the Cardinal harriers. The girls’ top finisher was senior Amanda Aulceims in fourth place; sophomore Alee Warp was right behind with a fifth-place finish._ Exuberant. Electrified. Energized. Those three words would best describe the mood of the Prescott Cardinal football team and their coaches after their convincing 25-0 victory over the St. Croix Central Panthers. _ Head Coach Jordan Hansen and his charges were in command all four quarters as the Cardinals opened their Middle Border Conference season by taming the Panthers in all facets of the game. Reportedly Prescott coaches and players became aware of various reports of St. Croix Central overconfidence heading into Friday’s game, providing plenty of pre-game chalk board motivation for the Cardinals.__ Senior Running Back Aiden Russell eclipsed the century mark again and now has rushed for 516 yards and eight touchdowns._The mild-mannered Russell is averaging over six yards a carry. Quarterback Grant Stanton threw three touchdown passes on Friday and now has six on the year. The senior signal caller has completed over 60 percent of his passes this season._ Let’s not forget the impressive interior line play of Mason Bartsch, Jake Olson, and Dryden Seeley who bottled up the St. Croix Central offense all night. Panthers were held to under 150 yards total offense and a paltry 3.1 yards per carry._ The Prescott girls’ volleyball team begins Middle Border Conference play as they travel to St. Croix Central on Thursday._The Panthers are listed as Honorable Mention in Division 2 in the most recent Wisconsin Volleyball Coaches Association State Rankings. The Cardinals will have their first home match of the season on Sept. 23 when they square off with the Ellsworth Panthers._ The Prescott girls’ golf team won the Prescott Invitational at Clifton Highlands last week by 16 strokes over St. Croix Central. Five of the top six finishers were members of the defending Division 2 State Champion Cardinals. Ava Salay took home top honors, followed by Jessica Heinsch, Elizabeth Rohl, Rhianna Stutz, and Maddie Reiter. Head Coach Chad Salay’s charges will hit the links this Thursday in the Ellsworth Invitational. _ In other Middle Border Conference action last week, Osceola pummeled Amery 47-0 and Ellsworth clobbered Somerset 53-0. In non-conference action Altoona bested Baldwin-Woodville by a score of 3021._ The final baseball games were played at Firehall Field this weekend. Bravo to Dallas Eggers and Dennis Gagnier for doing the bulk of the work last weekend. If you are looking for volunteer opportunities, the Prescott CAB Company is planning on doing some major field work on Saturday, Sept. 25. Projects include repairing home plate, repairing infield edges, and readying equipment for winter storage._ Also, congratulations to Eric Temmers on winning the CAB Company Helicopter drop grand prize on Saturday.__ And speaking of volunteers, hats off to local sisters Angela Magee and Liz Riley and other volunteers on all their work connected to Prescott Daze this past weekend. The amount of planning and organizing connected to the annual local community celebration is impossible to quantify. _A standing ovation to both of you and your close circle of volunteers._ Those at the coffee shop Saturday morning were hard pressed to remember the last time a Prescott quarterback threw three touchdown passes in one game. Football boosters were trying to remember if former Cardinal QBs Pat Simones, Jason Bayer, Dave Harding, Eric Halverson, or Matt Magnan had ever thrown a trio of tosses to pay dirt._ The Ellsworth Panthers remain the #2 ranked team in Division 4, according to the most recent Wisconsin Sports Network Football State Rankings. Osceola, who is also 4-0 on the year, has climbed to #10.__ The WIAA Baseball Coaches Advisory Committee held its annual meeting virtually last week._ Items discussed included player and coach ejections, tournament seeding procedures, and adding a possible fifth division for the postseason. ___ Headshaker of the week:_This week’s rendition is connected to the world of professional baseball._ Yes, Brewer fans, they won the game._ And yes, Brewer fans, they have a doubledigit lead in the standings._But removing a pitcher after eight no-hit innings and a 3-0 lead? It’s a headshaker._