Congratulations to Talli Roth and Cadyn Hillebrand on being selected to play in the Wisconsin Fastpitch Coaches Association All Star Game in Wisconsin Dells earlier this month. The games provided a tremendous bookend for each of the two Middle Border All Conference players. 

The 2026 WIAA high school baseball and softball seasons officially came to an end last week. Four baseball teams and five softball teams left Appleton and Madison with state championship trophies. For me, one of the most revealing moments of every state tournament occurs after the final out, when WIAA officials present the championship trophy to the winning head coach. What happens in the seconds immediately afterward can tell us a great deal about ego, humility, modesty, and selflessness. Some coaches barely touch the trophy before turning and handing it to their players. Others seem reluctant to let it go. For what it's worth, here are my grades for this year's championship-winning head coaches based solely on those few moments. Baseball: Division 1 – Kaukauna: F, Division 2 – Pewaukee: F, Division 3 – Cedar Grove-Belgium: F Division 4 – Columbus Catholic: A- Softball: Division 1 – Milwaukee Hamilton: F Division 2 – Fox Valley Lutheran: B+ Division 3 – Lomira: B+ Division 4 – Mineral Point: A+ Division 5 – Almond-Bancroft: F- The clear winner was the Mineral Point softball coach, who was waving players over before the trophy was even placed in his hands. The message was obvious: this trophy belongs to them. The “From My Cold Dead Hands Award” goes to the Almond-Bancroft head coach. When he received the trophy, he clutched and kept it from the players like a father trying to keep a candy bar away from a determined 5-year-old. Players were practically jumping to get their hands on it. The optics were awful. Look, coaches matter. They work hard. They sacrifice time. They organize, teach, motivate, and lead. Yet the championship moment should belong first and foremost to the athletes. It is a symbol of what the players accomplished together. The best coaches understand that their finest moment may be stepping aside and allowing their athletes to stand at center stage in jubilant celebration. That's what leadership looks like, and it's why the postgame trophy presentation remains one of the most revealing moments of every championship season.

Middle Border Conference Player of the Year Mason Schmidt of Somerset was the only Middle Border Conference player named to the Wisconsin Baseball Coaches All State Team. The UW-Milwaukee recruit was named to the 2nd Team. Chase Matacynski of nearby Hudson was named 1st Team All State and the Division 1 Player of the Year will play at Auburn University next season. Dominic Santerelli, the Division 2 Player of the Year received a scholarship to play at perennial power LSU. Many believe both will be drafted in the fast-approaching Major League Baseball Draft. 

Prescott Hall of Fame Chair Yvonne Zarnstorff and Vice Chair Mandy Bernick encourage people to nominate individuals they believe are worthy of Hall of Fame consideration. The next Prescott Hall of Fame induction banquet will be held in October 2027. Nomination forms are available on the Prescott School District website. 

From the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources: The DNR is celebrating National Eagle Day (June 20, 2026) by reminding Wisconsinites that they can support the next species' comeback in Wisconsin with an Endangered Resources license plate. After being listed as an endangered species, a survey of bald eagle nests in Wisconsin in 1974 revealed a small number of nests isolated to the northern part of the state. The next decades saw the combination of a national ban on the pesticide DDT; added state and federal protections, like the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act; river cleanups under the Clean Water Act; and Wisconsin DNR nest monitoring and protection with support from the Endangered Resources Fund. By 2019, the final year the Wisconsin DNR conducted surveys, eagle nests were found in every county in Wisconsin.

The most revealing aspect of recent coaching-retention research is not what is driving coaches away, it's who is driving them away. According to a recent study in the Academic Sports Journal Quest, surveys from Coach & Athletic Director, and reports from the National Federation of High School Sports, the three leading causes of coach attrition are burnout, compensation, and parent behavior. While the first two issues are significant, today parent behavior increasingly has become the factor that has pushed many coaches to the breaking point. Too many adults have come to view youth sports as a customer-service relationship rather than an educational experience. Every decision is questioned. Every lineup is scrutinized. Every perceived slight becomes an email, a social media post, or a conversation in the parking lot. Coaches who devote countless hours to a program are often treated as though they owe explanations to every dissatisfied parent. The irony is that the athletes themselves rarely rank among the top reasons coaches leave. The adults do. Until we acknowledge this reality, the shortage of experienced, dedicated coaches is likely to continue and worsen over time. 

Headshaker of the Week: I often find myself feeling nostalgic for the old ballpark experience. You bought your ticket, found your seat, listened to the vendors yell "Peanuts!" and "Popcorn!" and enjoyed a hot dog while watching the game. It was pretty simple and it was good. Fast forward to today and it appears concession stands are locked in an arms race of absurdity. Every season brings a new champion in the category of "Food That Never Needed to Exist. "The hot dog has been transformed into a monstrous creation the size of a Louisville Slugger.  Nachos are served in containers seemingly as large as a milking pail. Milkshakes contain more baked goods than any holiday tray purchased from Ptaceks. And somewhere, some “baseball chef” decided to serve a cheeseburger between two glazed doughnuts and thought, "This is exactly what baseball fans have been waiting for." Of course it is. The beauty of traditional ballpark food was its simplicity. Peanuts, popcorn and hot dogs complemented the game. Today's concession items appear to be the main event with the game serving as the side dish. Soon we'll probably see a bratwurst wrapped in bacon, stuffed with macaroni and cheese, placed inside a waffle cone, and served in a commemorative batting helmet. And there will undoubtedly be a line. Now that’s a headshaker.