The 2023 Wisconsin Lakes and Rivers Conference was held last weekend in Stevens Point, featuring dozens of presentations and scores of exhibits all connected to water use and quality in the state of Wisconsin. From morning yoga sessions to panel discussions related to invasive species, the conference brings hundreds of outdoor enthusiasts and environmentalists together to discuss issues facing Wisconsin bodies of water. According to local attendees, many impromptu discussions emerged during the convention regarding panfish numbers around the state. Many attendees believe due to overfishing and advanced fish finding technologies, serious consideration needs to be given to reducing bag limits for crappies, bluegills, and other panfish. 

The Wisconsin Fastpitch Coaches Association released their first set of state rankings last week. The Ellsworth Panthers (8-1) are ranked #2 in Division 2 and Baldwin-Woodville (6-1) is ranked #5 in Division 3. Last week, the two ranked teams played in Ellsworth with the Panthers coming out on top by a score of 5-4.  Look for the rankings to change this week. 

The Prescott baseball team will be hosting a free youth baseball clinic this Saturday at Firehall Field. Registration for youth ages 6-9 will begin at 8:30 a.m. with clinic instruction beginning at 9 a.m. Registration for youth ages 10-14 (eighth grade) will begin at 11 a.m. with instruction beginning at 11:30 a.m. All participants will receive a free T-shirt and lunch courtesy of the Prescott High School baseball team. 

Peter Brookshaw and the North Dakota State baseball team took two of three from first-place Oral Roberts over the weekend. The Bison are now 8-4 in the Summit League and are tied with South Dakota State for second place in the conference standings. Additionally, Brookshaw has been placed on the NCAA Division I Brooks Wallace Award Infielder watch list. Incredibly, Brookshaw has not made an error this season. The award honors the nation's top shortstop and will be presented by the College Baseball Foundation later this year. It is named for former Texas Tech shortstop Brooks Wallace, who played for the Red Raiders from 1977 to 1980. Wallace died of leukemia at the age of 27.

Recently, The National Congress of American Indians, National Indian Education Association, the Wisconsin Indian Education Association, the Wisconsin Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council, and the 11 Tribal Nations of Wisconsin sent a letter to 26 Wisconsin schools requesting they discontinue the use of “Indian” logos and imagery connected to their sports teams. Since 1993, 37 Wisconsin schools have retired the use of such imagery. 

Prescott’s basketball’s all-time leading scorer will attend the University of Nevada next season where he hopes to gain a scholarship for the NCAA Division I Wolfpack. Incidentally, Prescott Athletic Director Andrew Caudill was an assistant athletic director at Nevada before coming to Prescott. 

There is no shortage of left-handed hitters for the St. Croix Central baseball team. Coached by Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Famer Brad Suave, seven of the nine starters last week hit left-handed. Nary a Cardinal baseball coach or long-time Prescott rooter can remember such a sinistral dominated lineup at the high school. 

Don’t forget to nominate a deserving person for induction into the Prescott Hall of Fame. Nomination forms are available on the Prescott School District website and are due by June 1, 2023. 

Weather permitting, the Prescott Cardinal baseball team will be hosting another top-ranked opponent this Friday at Firehall Field. Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau has canceled this Friday’s game with Prescott. However, former NCAA Division 1 Coach Mike Dee and now head coach of the undefeated LacCrosse Aquinas Blugolds will come to Firehall Field at the end of the school week. Dee, a former pitching coach at the University of Minnesota and head coach at the University of Illinois-Chicago took over this spring after longtime Blugold coach Mike Bagnefski retired last season. Dee coached at the private La Crosse school in the 1980’s and won three private school championships. The Chicago native pitched in the minors for several years, before entering the college coaching ranks where he became one of the sought after baseball clinic speakers in the country. 

Headshaker of the Week. Playing one sport year-round continues to be the primary cause of youth injuries. Experts continually argue the number-one risk factor of arm injuries for our youth continues to be year-round baseball or softball. In the case of year-round baseball or softball, it is recommended that young players have at least two months off each year where they are not playing any type of sports. Preferably, it is recommended three to four months off each year. Even professional baseball players get that period of time off, and certainly our kids are more vulnerable to injury than mature professional players. In this hyper competitive “my kid will not get a scholarship unless they play 13 months a year” athletic world, the belief a kid should specialize and play year-round is a headshaker.