Shots from the hip: WIAA Division 3 Somerset Sectional is wide open

By Cripe Olson
Posted 1/22/25

Heading into the final six weeks of the regular season it appears the WIAA Division 3 Somerset Sectional is wide open. In the northern half of the bracket no team heads into this week with fewer than …

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Shots from the hip: WIAA Division 3 Somerset Sectional is wide open

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Heading into the final six weeks of the regular season it appears the WIAA Division 3 Somerset Sectional is wide open. In the northern half of the bracket no team heads into this week with fewer than four losses on the season. From the Middle Border its Prescott (9-5), Ellsworth (8-4), Osceola (5-6) vying for the top spot in the conference and in the Heart of The North, the first place Barron Bears (7-4) are turning some heads while Northwestern (7-4) is nipping at their heels. In the southern part of the bracket Elk Mound (9-2) of the Dunn-St. Croix, Stanley Boyd (9-4) of the Eastern Cloverbelt and Bloomer (7-3) of the Western Cloverbelt sport solid records. 

It is a safe bet to stay there is no sure bet in the Boys Somerset Sectional.  

For the girls, the top half of the Eau Claire North Sectional has Middle Border Conference leader Baldwin-Woodville (13-3) as one of the favorites along with Northwestern (10-4) currently in first place as the Heart of North Conference leader. Amery (10-4), Barron (8-6), and St. Croix Central are the other teams with records above .500. In the bottom half of the bracket #10 ranked Elk Mound (13-1) leads the way. Wisconsin Dells (11-1) and Mauston (11-3), both of the South, are both having solid years as is Bloomer (10-5) of the Western Cloverbelt Conference. 

Last week Somerset senior Kane Donnelly scored 45 points for the Spartans in a 101-79 victory over Grantsburg. Donnelly followed with a 42-point performance in a Somerset loss to Altoona. Donnelly leads the conference in scoring averaging just under 28 points a game. 

Southwest Minnesota State Pitcher Cullen Huppert will wear #38 for the Mustangs this spring. The Middle Border Conference and Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association Division 2 District Player of the Year last year, Huppert will toe the mound for a team that finished 27-24 last season. The Mustangs will open the 2025 season in Kansas City, Mo. where they will take on UW-Kenosha-Parkside. A member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, Southwest State is located in Marshall, Minn. 

The Hansen Ratings, a provider of Division III college football ratings since 2014, released its 2024 Division III Football Analytical All-American and All-Region teams in January 2025, including eight Falcons representing UW-River Falls. The Hansen Ratings All-American and All-Region teams are determined by mathematical formula. Players are awarded for efficiency, volume, impactful plays, and quality competition. All Division III football players are eligible for selection. Offensive Lineman Austin Fox, a 2021 Prescott graduate, was named Second Team All Region. A four-year letterwinner, Fox wrapped up his college career with the Falcons this fall and was named Honorable Mention All Conference. 

The Michigan Tech women's basketball team earned its first GLIAC weekend sweep of the season following a 76-67 win over Wayne State last Saturday. Prescott alumnus Isabella Lenz scored 13 points in the victory as the Huskies evened their conference record to 4-4. 

Two weeks ago, I identified public schools no longer in existence. Here are some private schools along with their mascots whose memory exists only in old school yearbooks: Prairie Du Chien Campion Knights, Green Bay Premontre Cadets, Abbott Pennings Squires, St. Nazianz JFK Prep Royals/Moors, Superior Cathedral Panthers, Ashland DePauda Bruins, The Conserve School Eagles. 

From the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources: The Wisconsin Conservation Congress (WCC) invites all Wisconsinites to take part in its annual spring hearing process. The WCC is an independent organization of residents that advises the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on how to responsibly manage Wisconsin’s natural resources. Each year residents have an opportunity to submit ideas as resolutions to the WCC. Wisconsinites can submit proposed resolutions via the online process now through Feb. 24, 2025. Resolutions must meet the following criteria: The concern must be of statewide impact, the concern must be practical, achievable and reasonable. The concern must be within the mission and vision of the Wisconsin Conservation Congress. Those interested in submitting a resolution are encouraged to reach out to the resolution review committee or their WCC County Chair for guidance in drafting a resolution.

Early this month Prescott senior Owen Bayer harvested his first Wisconsin pheasant on a local farm. With the aid of two canines, courtesy of Brady Randolph and Chuck Babcock, Bayer was able to down the big bird using a 12-gauge Winchester shotgun. With bird in hand following the retrieve by Randolph’s German Shorthaired Pointer Jeff, hunting party members “ooed” and “awed” at the size of a large ring neck. Reportedly Randolph, upon seeing the feathered behemoth, said, “That bird is the equivalent of the deer farm buck I shot this past fall.” Bayer decided to bring the impressive bird downtown to local taxidermy legend Leroy Schommer. “They’ll be talking about that bird for years,” said Babcock. 

Headshaker of the Week: As expected social media was awash with commentary connected to this past weekend’s slate of NFL playoff games. From remarks demanding the NFL investigate bias in favor of Pat Mahomes and Kansas City to frustrations related to criticisms connected to the perceived partiality of play-by-play commentators. However, most hilarious social media musings were made by fans who were waxing poetic about the less than optimum playing conditions in the game between the Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles. Living room fans wearing foam baseball caps filled the internet community with relentless, eye rolling observations. As snow blanketed the field phrases like “This is real football” and “Football is supposed to be played in these conditions” flooded social media platforms, as the voice of the late NFL Film Narrator John Facenda probably bounced in their heads. Great football weather, sorry folks it isn’t. And to believe so is a headshaker. 

WIAA Division 3 Somerset Sectional, Shots from the hip, Cripe Olson, basketball, Prescott High School, Prescott athletics