After a crucial victory on the road in Baldwin last week, the Prescott girls softball team finds themselves atop the Middle Border Conference standings along with Highway 10 rival Ellsworth. Pitcher Ella Stewart heads into the week with a record of 8-3 to lead the Cardinals and catcher Leah French is hitting .429 for the 10-4 Cardinals. A showdown with the Panthers is looming. 

Prescott’s win over #6 ranked Altoona last Thursday created a log jam in the top half of the Middle Border Conference baseball standings. Heading into this week four teams are within one game of each other with eight conference games remaining. Many believe Friday’s one run loss to River Falls, who is expected to challenge for the Big Rivers title, will not have a negative effect on tournament seeding next month. 

The free Prescott Baseball Youth Clinic for ages 6-13 will be held this Saturday at Firehall Field from 8:30-11:30 a.m. All participants will receive a free lunch and T-shirt following instruction. Please note the times and the format of the clinic have changed since the Prescott baseball team will be hosting the Hastings Raiders at 2 p.m. at Firehall Field. 

At the midway point of the season, five Prescott pitchers have earned run averages below 2.25. Additionally, Cardinal pitchers have struck out 86 hitters in 74 innings pitched. The greatest improvement of this year’s staff has been Prescott hurlers have walked 35 hitters in 11 games, a marked improvement over last year. At the plate the 2024 Cardinals have a team batting average above .300, nearly 50 points higher than last season. 

From the WIAA: The member schools of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association passed two amendments, defeated a much-deliberated Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) proposal, and conducted other membership business at the 128th Annual Meeting  The membership voted 219-170 to reject the proposed NIL language that would have allowed student-athletes to engage in promotion and revenue opportunities and activities not associated or identified with their school team, school, conference or the WIAA, which included a number of prohibited NIL activities. Executive Director Stephanie Hauser indicated the failed vote does not end the discussions on NIL.

“We will continue this conversation with our membership in response to the trend across the nation with other high school associations allowing some opportunities for Name, Image, Likeness,” she said. “The Annual Meeting vote is evidence of the ownership the membership has in the democratic process.” 

Since 2007, The Prescott CAB Company has awarded academic scholarships to senior baseball players planning to continue their education after high school. The baseball booster club has awarded over $11,000 over the past 14 years.  In 2007 Mike Feriancek was the first recipient of the scholarship and last year Dylan Sterud was the 2023 winner. 

Michigan Tech women's basketball guard Isabella Lenz earlier this spring was named to the Academic All District Team by the College Sports Communicators. Lenz, a 2021 Prescott alumnus, earned First Team All-GLIAC accolades this season, leading the Huskies in minutes (34.7), points (12.7), assists, (3.6) and steals (1.4). Lenz scored in double-figures 20 times in the 2023-24 campaign. In the classroom, Lenz holds a perfect 4.0 GPA, pursuing a bachelor's degree in Scientific and Technical Communication. 

From the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources: The DNR reminds anglers the 2024-2025 general inland fishing season will open on Saturday, May 4. No matter where anglers decide to fish, all Wisconsin residents and nonresidents over the age of 16 are required to purchase a fishing license. This year, new fishing regulations include a statewide daily bag limit of three walleye/sauger per day on all inland waters. Pierce and the nearby counties Polk, St. Croix and Dunn have new bag and length limit changes for some fish species. Wisconsin is home to more than 15,000 inland lakes, 42,000 miles of perennial streams and rivers, 1,000 miles of Great Lakes shoreline and 260 miles of the Mississippi River. 

Most likely this weekend trout anglers will be shoulder to shoulder on the Trimbelle, Kinnickinnic, Rush and other area trout streams. The banks of some rivers may be as crowded as downtown Prescott during the six or seven summer motorcycle flood runs. Please remember, don’t be a fishing slob and discard your empty Walt’s Crawlers containers along the banks of the stream. Good luck anglers. 

Headshaker of the week: Some more unsettling news in the realm of high school sports. There have been a number of stories in several states where parents of high school students are bringing civil action against high school coaches for cutting their child from the team. From soccer to football, basketball to baseball, suing coaches and athletic directors for reducing team rosters is now identified by some as grounds for legal action. Rookie coaches, veteran coaches, successful coaches, and hall of fame coaches are not immune from such actions. To many it comes as no surprise. Today there are some who believe the head coach is nowhere near the expert in the room. For Mom and Dad, that title belongs to the person who gives their child private pitching lessons, the Summer AAU/Club basketball or baseball coach, or the knowledgeable aunt or uncle. Sorry parents. We can’t all make varsity or all conference. We can’t all bat third or be the starting quarterback. I am quite sure there isn’t a high school coach out there that takes joy in cutting players from a team. It is a gut-wrenching, stomach-turning decision loathed by all head coaches. For the athlete that has been cut, it is a tough lesson. Choosing to go out for the team and being cut are bound to lead to feelings of anger and disappointment for all parties involved. Such emotions are completely understandable. However, over the years many people have argued these difficult moments prepare young people for challenging events later in life. Ask anyone who has interviewed for a job and not landed the position. That also is difficult and disappointing. But suing a high school coach over the cutting of athletes? That’s a headshaker.