The Prescott boys basketball team secured the 2021-22 Middle Border Conference championship with a 74-50 win at home against Amery on Thursday, Feb. 24. The conference title is Prescott’s eighth in the last nine seasons.

Prescott’s Thursday night game against Amery was a chance for the Cardinals to secure the outright conference championship with a win, as opposed to a shared conference title with Baldwin-Woodville if Prescott were to lose.

The Cardinals, regularly ranked as one of the three best Division 3 teams in the state by Wissports, had little to worry about with Amery. The Warriors have had a rough couple of seasons, which includes the 2021-22 campaign. The Warriors went into the game with a 3-19 record overall and an 0-13 record in Middle Border action.

In addition to playing for the conference crown, Prescott also celebrated senior night before the home game against Amery. The Cardinals’ roster has seven seniors including Justin Syverson, Philip Seifert, Ben Rohl, Aiden Russell, Ryan Zerneke, Mason Bartsch and Vaughn Bergman. Prescott head coach Nick Johnson spoke to the packed gym about his senior boys before the game.

“Seniors, I want to express my heartfelt appreciation for each and every one of you,” Johnson said. “It’s been a pleasure and an honor to have you as members of the Cardinals basketball program for the last four seasons. I got the opportunity to teach you through your elementary years as a physical education teacher. I recall thinking, ‘I can’t wait to get a chance to coach this group.’ You were as fun then as you are now to be around. The relationships you created here will last a lifetime.”

In honor of the senior class, coach Johnson began the game with a starting five that he hasn’t used all season. The starters – which consisted of all seniors – included Justin Syverson, Philip Seifert and Ben Rohl, three players that get significant minutes. The other two starters were Mason Bartsch and Vaughn Bergman, two players that don’t see the floor much. It was Johnson’s way

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The 2021-22 Prescott boys basketball team celebrates winning the Middle Border Conference championship after a 74-50 win at home against Amery. (Front, from left): Barrett Temmers, Justin Syverson, Kyle Cogan, Jordan Malmlov, Mason Schommer, Ian Leask, and Brady Block; (middle) Philip Seifert, Aiden Russell, Dallas Wallin, Vaughn Bergman, Brandon Stuart, Mason Bartsch, Tobias Ripley and Ben Rohl; (back row of coaches): Assistants Myles Garvey, Joe Haas, Charlie Tayson, Dusty Schommer, Jake Block and head coach Nick Johnson. Coach Johnson holds the cutout of senior Ryan Zerneke, who couldn’t be at the game on Thursday night. Photo by Reagan Hoverman TOP SEED

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of showing respect to his veterans on the roster.

The unusual starting lineup began the game with an offensive dry spell. The Warriors scored nine of the first 11 points to take a 9-2 lead five minutes into the game. That’s when Johnson sent the regular starters into the game, including Russell, sophomore Dallas Wallin and junior Jordan Malmlov.

The starters got to work quickly and turned a seven-point deficit into a 29-23 lead at the half. Prescott began the second half with an 8-2 scoring run which forced a timeout by Amery head coach Jason Sargent. The run included a three-pointer by Wallin, two free throws by Malmlov and a deep three-pointer by Malmlov.

Prescott cruised to a 74-50 victory over Amery to secure the Middle Border Conference championship. After the game, coach Johnson spoke about winning the conference title.

“Our first goal is always to win the conference,” Johnson said. “It wasn’t easy this year. We had some tough opponents. Three teams that were all ranked in the top 10 in the state. For our kids to go through it and go 13-1, that’s a credit to them.”

Johnson isn’t the only member of the Prescott boys basketball program who believes this team is special. Senior guard Ben Rohl spoke about this team, this group of guys and the experience of senior night.

“Senior night was good, especially to get some of those guys on the bench to come in and get their time,” Rohl said after the game. “They put so much time into the program, it’s good to get them playing. We’ve played basketball together forever. To be able to play with them for our senior year, it’s great to get some time with them.”

The victory improved Prescott’s overall record to 22-2 for the season, including the aforementioned 13-1 record in the Middle Border this season. Because of the outstanding record, especially in one of the toughest conferences in the state, Prescott received the #1 seed in its region of the Division 3 playoff bracket. Johnson spoke about where his team is at as they go into the playoffs. “We’re in a great spot, I think we’re right where we wanted to be,” Johnson said. “I think it’s taken us a while to get here, we’ve got here, and now it’s time to get after it. We feel confident with where we’re at right now.”

Rohl spoke about what the locker room environment is like and what the expectations are among the players on the team.

“It’s going to be a tough road, but we’ve got to stay focused and play one game at a time,” Rohl said. “If we do that, I think it will unfold as we want it to. Yeah, we have confidence. Right now, we’re not scared of anyone. We look at every game as trying to get up early and crush every team that we play.”

After the victory at home against Amery, Prescott traveled to Stevens Point High School for a tough non-conference game. Stevens Point is a Division 1 high school with over 2,000 students enrolled, compared to Prescott’s 429 enrollment.

The Cardinals outscored Stevens Point 43-29 in the first half and rode that momentum to an 82-77 victory on the road. It’s the second time this season that Prescott has knocked off a Division 1 or Division 2 high school with an above .500 record. The first was a 59-58 victory on the road against River Falls on Monday, Feb. 21.

Prescott remains ranked as the #3 team in the state for Division 3 schools, trailing only West Salem and Lake Country Lutheran. The first game on the docket for the Cardinals in the playoffs is on Friday, March 4 at 7 p.m. The Cardinals will play the winner of Ellsworth and Osceola, the Tuesday night, March 1 game. This season, Prescott is a combined 4-0 against Ellsworth and Osceola.

The Prescott boys basketball team seniors were recognized on a large poster just outside the gymnasium doors at the Prescott High School on Thursday, Feb. 24, before the final home game of the season against the Amery Warriors. Photo by Reagan Hoverman