Prescott Head Wrestling Coach Ian Ruble and Cardinal coaching staff will be hosting a wrestling camp June 20-24 at Prescott High School. Joining Coach Ruble and his staff will be guest clinician Luke Clark, a St. Croix Falls alumnus, who wrestled at both St. Cloud State and La Crosse during his impressive career. With St. Cloud State, Clark was a member of the Huskies 2019 and 2020 national championship teams and two conference titles with La Crosse. In 2022 Clark finished fifth in the NCAA Division III National Dual Championships. Ruble will begin his first year as head wrestling coach for the Cardinals this November. 

The individual accolades for members of the Cardinal softball team continue to pour in. Seniors Taylor Graf and Izzy Matzek were both named Honorable Mention All State by the Wisconsin Fastpitch Softball Association. Previously, Graf and Matzek were named 1st Team All District with Addie Raebel and Leah French both earning Honorable Mention All District Honors. 

Prescott High School golfers Tyler Reiter and Sam Vesperman were both named Academic All State by the Golf Coaches Association of Wisconsin. Congratulations. 

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Head Baseball Coach Charles Bolden resigned last week after three years. Longtime Eau Claire American Legion Coach Mark Faanes will serve as interim head coach until a permanent replacement is found.  rom 2021-2023 Bolden’s teams finished with a conference record of 16-65 and an overall record of 31-87. Both Eau Claire and the University of Wisconsin-River Falls will be hiring new coaches to lead their programs in 2025. 

From the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources: Last week the DNR announced preliminary totals for the 2023 spring turkey season. Wisconsin turkey hunters registered 42,439 birds this season, a 7% increase from the five-year average. The 2023 spring season started on April 15 with the two-day youth hunt for hunters under 16 years old. A total of 2,972 birds were registered, a 28% increase from the five-year average.  

St. Croix Falls pitcher Brayden Olson was named the Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association Division 3 Player of the Year for the second consecutive season. The Purdue University recruit led the Saints to their first WIAA State Baseball Championship last weekend in Appleton. In the Saints’ semi-final victory over Kiel, Olson allowed four hits, struck out 12, and homered as St. Croix Falls won by a score of 10-0 in six innings. The Saints went on to win their first state title with a 3-1 victory over La Crosse Aquinas last Thursday. 

Local umpires Dan Hoffman of River Falls and John McGinley of New Richmond worked the WIAA State Tournament in Appleton. Both have umped dozens of games at Firehall Field over the last decade and are identified as among the best umpires in western Wisconsin. 

The 23-player strong Prescott Legion team is off to a 4-1 start this season under the tutelage of head coaches Thad Magee and Jason Bayer. After playing Menomonie, Osceola, and St. Croix Central on the road this past week, the Rivermen will be hosting Somerset this coming Monday and Baldwin-Woodville next Wednesday in a doubleheader. The Prescott Junior Legion enters the week with a record of 4-2. Head Coach Mike Matzek and his charges will host Durand this Thursday and travel to Hudson on Friday. 

Headshaker of the week. One would think a team with a player that is the son of a Major League manager and former professional player would know how to act on field. Boy was I wrong. In the Division 1 semi-final game between Whitefish Bay and Stevens Point, baseball decorum and dignity were thrown into the trash can. From the baiting behavior of the coaching staff to the despicable post-game celebration of the players near second base, Whitefish Bay drew great derision and only scant praise from all those in the stands. Much to the chagrin of many, the Dukes went on to win the state championship with a victory over Hortonville the following day. Sportsmanship certainly takes a back seat in the Whitefish Bay dugout. As I have said several times, perhaps this infantile, 6-year-old playground behavior of high school coaches and players is becoming the new normal. Maybe high school athletic directors are starting to endorse or encourage such sophomoric behaviors? Doubtful. Watching players and coaches engage in such buffoon-like antics was embarrassing. It was a headshaker.