Congratulations to Nolan Thomley on qualifying for the WIAA State Wrestling Tournament next weekend in Madison. Thomley received the #6 seed and will wrestle senior Odair Porras of Whitewater this Thursday. Thomley’s march to Madison began at Saturday’s Tomahawk Section with a first match pin of Canden Yaegar of Stanley-Boyd in 51 seconds. Wisconsin Grappler’s #6 ranked 150-pounder followed with another pin against St. Croix Falls wrestler Alex Hoff, guaranteeing him a trip to the state tournament. In the finals, Thomley squared off with junior Hudzon Sebesta-Opelt of Neillsville/Granton/Loyal but fell by a score of 6-0. In his final match of the day Thomley lost to Nate Holdorf of Baldwin-Woodville by a score of 3-1. Thomley, who was named Prescott High School’s January Athlete of the Month, will enter the state tournament with an impressive overall record of 43-7. Thomley’s 43 wins in a season is the most by any Cardinal wrestler in Prescott history.  

There have been several Prescott wrestlers who have won WIAA Individual State Championships. In 1981 Mike Mueller (20-0) took home the title at 112 pounds. In 2001, two Cardinals, Willy Holst at 103 (37-0) and Justin Murphy (38-2) at 125 finished atop the podium. Holst (37-1) won his second consecutive title in 2002 at 119 pounds. And in 2015 Sam Stuhl (37-6) won a championship for the Cardinals at 120 pounds. Willy Holst is the most decorated wrestler in Prescott history finishing with a career record of 131-9. A 2002 Cardinal alumnus, Holst went on to wrestle at the University of Minnesota and then at Augsburg College where he was named All American his senior year with the Aggies. 

With the #3 seed in the tournament, the Prescott girls’ basketball team is slated to host the winner of the game between #6 seed Barron and #11 seed Spooner. Barron defeated the Spooner Rails twice during the regular season by the same score of 67-27. It is probably a safe bet to say Head Coach Owen Hamilton and his charges will be hosting Head Coach Brittni Hover’s Bears this Friday. The Bears finished second in the Heart of the North Conference to St. Croix Falls, whom they split with during the regular season. Barron lost to both Baldwin-Woodville and Somerset during the season.  

The Prescott boys’ basketball team received the #1 seed in next week’s WIAA Division III Regional tournament. The Cardinals will host the winner of the Tuesday, Feb. 27 game between #9 Barron and #8 Amery on Friday, March 1. Other top seeds in the regional include Bloomer who received the #2 seed, Somerset was awarded the #3 seed, and the #4 seed went to Osceola. 

Congratulations to the Prescott boys’ basketball team and Head Coach Nick Johnson on securing at least a tie for the conference championship last week. It is the ninth basketball conference title for Johnson in a coaching career that began in 2011. 

Prescott alumnus and Bemidji State outfielder Hunter Daymond and his teammates will travel to Kansas City, Mo. this weekend for a four-game series against Rockhurst College. The following weekend the Beavers will head to Liberty for a five-game series against William Jewell College. 

Senior Megan Gilles and the University of Minnesota-Duluth track team competed in the Snowshoe Open Friday inside the Recreation and Wellness Sports Field Complex on the campus of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. Gilles finished third in the 60-meter hurdles and grabbed a blue ribbon with three other teammates in the 4x400 meter relay. The relay time of 4:02:16 was the fifth fastest time in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Athletic Conference this year. 

Speaking of Prescott alumni, Kutztown University golfer and 2023 Cardinal alumna Rhianna Stutz and her Golden Bear teammates are preparing for their spring opener on March 27 in the Albright Spring Invitational Tournament at Galen Hall Golf Course in Wernersville, Penn. A freshman, Stutz turned in a strong fall season for the Golden Bears finishing in the top five in two invitational tournaments. Kutztown University is located between Allentown and Reading and competes athletically at the NCAA Division 2 Level. The Golden Bears are members of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.  

If you are planning to see the Big 10 Women’s basketball game between Wisconsin and Minnesota this week, expect to pay $10-$15 for a ticket. The game between Minnesota and Iowa on Feb. 28 is sold out. However, tickets can be purchased for as low as $136 and some seats are selling for $660.  I wonder why.

Headshaker of the week: Things have certainly changed when it comes to professional and college basketball head coach game apparel. Pullovers, hoodies, three quarter zip ups, Lululemon sweatpants, and joggers have replaced suits that used to be donned by all NBA head coaches and the majority of college basketball skippers. Yes, I know, the NBA changed its coaching dress code during the Covid-19 season and shows no signs of going back to requiring formal attire. Today, most pro and college coaches prefer the more casual and comfortable look. However, when it comes to the changes in courtside fashion, some can pull it off, others not. Shaka Smart of the Marquette Warriors and Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat, both sport a clean casual look that exudes professional even without a shirt and tie. However, there are other coaches where this fashion metamorphosis does them no good. NBA coaches Tom Thibodeau of the New York Knicks and Gregg Popovich of the San Antonio Spurs need to put their tracksuits away. The same goes for Tom Izzo of Michigan State, Bill Self of Kansas and Jim Larranga of the University of Miami. All these coaches need to chuck those joggers and bring back the suit and tie. Currently the courtside wardrobe of these men resembles the ensemble worn by winter walkers at the Mall of America or a person warming up to play pickleball in a retirement community. Yes, this may be a bit ageist, but come on fellas. How about honoring the legacy of the tie and tweed suit wearing inventor of basketball Canadian James Naismith by donning a courtside look of professionalism, not one where you are dressed like you are waiting to go outside for recess. The courtside apparel of some NBA and College Basketball…it’s a headshaker.