The Prescott cross country teams opened the 2025 season and hosted eight teams at the Cardinal Invitational last Thursday. For the girls junior Kyra Dix was the top Cardinal runner finishing in second place. Also earning medals were senior Amber Van Loon who finished fourth and fellow senior Addy Allsop who crossed the line in ninth place. For the boys, two Cardinals boys earned medals, led by senior Nolan Leask who finished ninth and freshman Dawson Langer who broke the tape in 10th place. For the second consecutive year the St. Croix Central girls and the Totino-Grace boys finished first in the team results. Incidentally, Dawson Langer, making his varsity cross country debut, ran a 19:25, putting him ninth on the list of top 10 freshman performances in the history of the school and doing so on a course considered by many to be among the toughest in the area. 

Hats off to Head Cross Country Coach Tim Phillips, his wife Barb, along with Emily and Carl Calabrese for doing an incredible job hosting last week’s cross country invitational. Additionally, the work of Prescott Athletic Director Matt Smith and a large number of volunteers drew heaps of praise from officials and fans alike. It takes an exorbitant amount of work to host such an event and bravo and bravo to Coach Phillips and all the volunteers who made last Thursday’s invitational meet a rousing success. 

The Prescott Cardinal girls golf team won two Middle Border Conference meets last week. On Monday at Pheasant Hills Course in Hammond, Layla Salay finished third and Lily Vesperman fifth as the Cardinals won by six strokes over Ellsworth. Last Thursday, the Cardinals won by two strokes over Ellsworth at Krooked Kreek Golf Course in Osceola. Layla Salay, Lily Vesperman, and Macy Reiter finished third, fourth, and fifth as the Cardinals finished atop the leaderboard in Middle Border meet #2 for the week. 

Division 1 School Divine Holy Savior is the #1 ranked team in the first Golf Coaches Association of Wisconsin State Rankings. Prescott and Hudson are both listed as Honorable Mention. Middle Border Conference Schools Ellsworth and St. Croix Central are ranked fourth and fifth respectively in Division 2. 

The Prescott Cardinals travel east this Friday to take on conference rival Ellsworth. The Panthers were shut out in their opener at La Crosse Logan but rebounded with a 23-21 win over La Crosse Central. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. 

A contingent of Prescott Cardinal volleyball players and coaches traveled to Madison last Friday to watch the #8 ranked Badgers square off with Prescott grad Reese Ptacek and the #14 ranked Kansas Jayhawks. Head Coach Geoffrey Snyder organized the trip south to cheer on the former All State Prescott Cardinal. The Badgers won the match 3-2. 

Tickets for the Prescott Hall of Fame Banquet on Saturday, Oct. 4 are now available and can be purchased on the Prescott School District website. Ptacek’s IGA will cater the meal with entertainment provided by students of the Prescott High School Music Department. Held in the high school commons, doors will open at 6 p.m. Those wishing to attend are encouraged to purchase tickets ahead of time at https://gofan.co/app/school/WI19710?activity=Banquet

Speaking of the University of Kansas, another Prescott alumnus is making a name for themselves. Adeline Raebel, a 2023 graduate of Prescott High School, is a junior majoring in journalism and minoring in sports management. She is in her second year as an intern recruiting and scouting for the KU football team and wears many hats in the Jayhawk athletic department. Adeline is involved in the recruiting process, assists with game film on the sidelines during Jayhawk football games, and writes and delivers her own sports casts. Last year, she published an interview with fellow Prescottonian Reese Ptacek on going from small-town Prescott to Lawrence. Additionally, Adeline had an internship this past summer in London and worked with an all-female nonprofit called Alt Elle. While in England, Adeline wrote stories on female athletes, ran the social media pages, and helped with interviews.

Northwestern is ranked #1 in Division 5 in the most recent Wisconsin Football Coaches Association State Poll. The Durand Panthers remain at #10. The Grantsburg Pirates of the Heart of the North Conference are ranked #5 after defeating rival St. Croix Falls last Friday by a score of 46-30. In Division 4, Baldwin-Woodville is ranked #4 and will host St. Croix Central this Friday. 

From the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources: The DNR reminds hunters that the 2025 early goose season opens Sept. 1 and runs through Sept. 15 and is available to hunters throughout the state. The early goose season has an increased daily bag limit of five Canada geese and is uniformly regulated across Wisconsin. The 2025 population estimate for Wisconsin-breeding Canada geese is 131,567 birds. This estimate is slightly lower than in 2024, but still over 20% higher than the long-term average.

Headshaker of the Week: Yes, the days of Keith Jackson announcing NCAA football on Saturday afternoons are long gone. It wasn’t too long ago where Friday nights were reserved for high school football, college football was on the Saturday menu, and Sundays were devoted solely to the NFL. Today, college football with its own version of free agency and NIL contracts is played on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The only days of the week in which football is not on television are Tuesday and Wednesday. Not to worry football crazed fans. Through the miracle of cable and streaming television you will be able to survive those 48 hours by watching highlights of the greatest play in the history of high school, college, or professional football - Green Bay Packer Jerry Kramer’s block in the 1965 NFL Championship game against the Cowboys. Football five days a week? It’s a headshaker.