Local teams compete at state championships

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The Sauk Prairie peewee ‘A’ Flyers were one of the few teams able to celebrate the end of the season with a win as they wrapped up three seemingly easy wins to claim the Wisconsin Amateur Hockey Association (WAHA) State 3A Championship a few weeks ago.

Following is a division by division look at how things went down for all Sauk County teams that participated in Regionals and State Championship Tournaments

Squirt ‘A’

At Regionals held Feb. 4-5, the Squirt ‘A’ Division included just one game as the RWD Cheavers collected a 3-1 win against the Flyers at Sauk Prairie Area Recreation Center (SPARC).

The win advanced the Reedsburg/Wisconsin Dells/Mauston crew to the State 3A Championship as the Region 4 Representative in Rhinelander, WI.

Seeded seventh at the event, the Cheavers opened play at Rhinelander Ice Arena, playing the tournament opener against the second seeded Somerset Spartans early on March 4

A 5-1 loss in that contest sent the Cheavers to the Consolation side of the draw for an afternoon contest against the sixth seeded Oshkosh Warbirds later the same day.

A 4-3 edge in that one advanced RWD to the Consolation Championship contest but the fourth seeded Waupun Warriors spoiled Cheavers’ bid for a plaque and banner with a 5-1 win.

After defeating the Cheavers in its opener, the Spartans defeated third seeded Marshfield with an 5-4 decision in overtime and claimed the state title with a 3-1 win against number five Black River Falls Tigers.

Congratulations to the RWD Squirt ‘A’ Cheavers for a Region 4 Championship and a sixth place showing at State where they met up with both the eventual State and State Consolation Champions.

RWD’s squirt roster includes in numerical order: Jase Uminski; Talon Burton; Joel Dotts; Cole Renneberg; Thomas Bowen Jr.; Elliott Wilcox; Briar Messer; Caleb Backeberg; Bentley Meyer; Jesse Curley and Owen Meyer.

Justin Messer was the team’s Head Coach this season with help from Dustin Curley and Nate Wilcox and Angela Meyer was the team’s manager.

The RWD squirts wrapped up the season with an 18-23-1 record.

Congrats also to the Squirt ‘A’ Flyers who wrapped up a solid 18-10-2 (possibly a few games missing).

The Squirt ‘A’ Flyers includes in numerical order: Henry Zuelke; Bryce Argall; Isabelle Jolicoeur; Kelton Royster; Brayton Bahe; Luke Hager; Teresa Weiss; Mason Ramirez; Milio Donaldson; Oswald Tippery; Joshua Freeman; Cashton Suchla; Jonathon Bromley and Jayden Teague.

Michael Freeman is listed as the team’s Head Coach along with assistants Brett Suchla; John Tippery and Zake Bahe. Team Manager this season was Rachel Tippery.

Squirt ‘B’

The Squirt ‘B’ Regional Playdowns included both the Flyers and Cheavers along with the Ice Wolves out of Dodgeville and the Stoughton Vikings.

On Feb. 4 the Flyers Squirts collected a 12-0 win against the RWD Cheavers at SPARC and advanced to the Regional Championship against the Ice Wolves who edged the Vikings 6-5 in its semifinal.

Second round games were not required, top seeded Flyers gaining entry to the State Tournament in Somerset, WI while the Ice Wolves were granted the ‘host’ spot.

The Flyers drew eventual State finalist Somerset Spartans who were hosting the event on March 4, dropping a 5-3 decision and moving to the Consolation side of the draw.

Later the same day, the Flyers earned a 5-4 edge against Marshfield, moving to the Consolation Championship game, but the Waupun Warriors spoiled the run March 5 with a 3-1 edge to claim the Consolation title.

The Ice Wolves went to a shootout to capture a 5-4 edge against Marshfield in its opening game but ran into the Spartans in the second round dropping a 9-3 decision. In the third place contest, Barron/Chetek Grizzlies captured a 7-3 win against the Ice Wolves.

Congratulations to the Flyers on a sixth place showing at the State Tournaement. Team members include: Bryce Jacobs; Owen Olson; Carson Lohr; Logan Meyer; William Prohaska; Levi Sadek; Basil Welch; Wyatt Kieffer; Jameson Gray; Everett Meyer; Harper Caldwell; Catharine Marshall and Reid Hart.

Brandon Lohr is listed as the team’s coach along with assistants Tony Hart; Zach Wagner; Michael Kieffer and Paul Jacobs. Danielle Lohr and Natalie Hart shared the team manager duties.

The RWD Cheavers Squirt B roster included: Kaden Whitrock Pyne; Reeve Krus; Knox Ganem; Nash Walker; Tenley Van der Wilt; Brayden Lee; Darby Seep; Amaya Clark; Cooper Simonson; Corbyn Sullivan; Landyn Luke; Christian Shirek; Zander Mathis; Westly Williams; Jaxsen Folgate and Dalton Whitaker. Co-Coaches included Bryton Clark; Barry Folgate; Brad Lee and Eric Neuhauser and Megan Folgate was the team’s manager.

10U Girl’s ‘A’

The Squirt ‘B’ Regional Playdowns included both the Flyers and Cheavers along with the Ice Wolves out of Dodgeville and the Stoughton Vikings.

Monkeys guaranteed a spot in the top four with a 7-0 shutout win against the Eau Claire Mustangs in the second game of the state tournament but dropped a 4-3 heartbreaker against the Lake County Warhawks later the same day, returning the following day and wrapping up third place with a 5-1 win against the Fox River Freeze.

Congratulations to the 10U ‘A’ Monkeys on a third place showing at State and an overall record of 14-12-1 (Possibly missing some results) Team members include: Margaret Nelson; Hayley Chamberlin; Ruth Saltzberry; Callie Lohr; Brooke Schmidtke; Reagan Maier; Mya Goodman; Teresa Weiss; Giullette Melone; Grace O’Connell; Isabelle Jolicoeur; Lola Smith; Margaret Kossen and Ruby Rinabarger.

Jeromy Chamberlin was Head Coach of the Monkeys along with assistants Jed Smith; Derek Rinabarger and Shawn Nelson. Team manager was Julie Goodman.

10U Girl’s ‘B’

As the lone Region 4 representative at the Region 4 10U ‘B’ level, Monkeys earned an auto berth into the State Championship tournament played March 4-5 in Spooner.

As the eighth seed, the Monkeys knew it would take some big efforts to pick up a win on the weekend and Beaver Dam Wildfire, the top seeded team at the event collected a 12-0 win in the third game of the day in Spooner to send Monkeys to the Consolation side of the draw.

Later the same day, Fox River Freeze moved past the Monkeys with a 9-1 win and Green Bay also earned a 4-0 victory in the seventh-place game. All things considered, players may have been disappointed, but this weekend could be pointed to down the road as an experience that made the local 10U squad a better team.

10U ‘B’ Monkeys include Silvia Cassidy; Taylor Ruhland; Londyn Kleist; Maycee Bradley; Nellie Kaderaverk; Raegan Noltner; Eloise Nelson; Olive Nelson; Scarlett Breunig; Charlotte Gesicki; Gracelyn Kleist; Elizabeth Cook; Emily Ramirez and Ella Paul.

Seth Nelson was the team’s Head Coach and Aaron Kaderavek an assistant while Madeline Nelson took on managing duties.

Peewee ‘A’

Dave Jolicoeur’s peewee ‘A’ side claimed the state championship in Ashland which has already been reported on.

The team claimed its spot at the state tournament by winning the Region 4 Championship with a 6-2 edge against the RWD Cheavers Feb. 5 at SPARC. The Cheavers moved into the championship game with a 9-2 margin against the Beloit Junior Knights at McFarland the previous day.

The Flyers wrapped up a state championship season with five straight wins, including victories against Marshfield, Black River Falls and Tomahawk at the Ashland event.

Team members included: Haakon Hoeltke; Logan Harrington; Alexander Kirk; Braden Schlough; Brayton Bahe; Natalee Gesicki; Davis Lombard; Bryce Ballweg; Benjamin Freeman; Oswald Tippery, Michael Jolicoeur and Reid Knoll.

Dave Jolicoeur was the team’s Head Coach with assistants Michael Freeman; Jeffrey Harrington and Brian Schlough. Ryan Kirk was the team’s manager.

The RWD Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers also wrapped up a solid season with an overall record of 15-18-2.

Members of the Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers include: Landen Uminski; Kate Brandt; Rainier Scott; Kason Messer; Aaron Belk; Teaghan Geffert; Bryce Horkan; Evelyn Gurney; Jesse Arnold and Noah Backeberg.

Joe Uminski is the team’s Head Coach with Billy Oakes and Jeremy Backeberg also behind the bench. Team manager is Tara Uminski.

Peewee ‘B’

The Peewee ‘B’ Flyers were granted automatic inclusion in the State 3B tournament in Waupaca while the RWD Peewee ‘B’ Cheavers were granted a spot as the Region 5 Rep (There was not 3B level teams in Region 5) with a 7-2 win against Stoughton on Feb. 5 in McFarland.

The Cheavers took advantage of the opportunity and earned a 5-3 win against Oshkosh in the final game of the opening round March 11 to move to the Championship side of the draw. Earlier the Flyers suffered a 4-1 loss against Blackhawk and moved to the Consolation side of the tournament.

The Cheavers dropped a 4-1 decision to Somerset Spartans later the same day, denying them a spot in the championship game but instead returned Sunday to face Blackhawk in the third place match. Blackhawk collected th the plaque with a 4-2 doubling of the Cheavers.

The Flyers bounced back from its opening loss, taking out frustrations on the Tomahawk Hatchets 9-2 later the same day.

That pushed the Flyers into the Consolation Championship match but the Ashland peewees wrapped up that plaque with a 6-3 win.

Congratulations to the RWD Cheavers on a 4th place ranking in State. Team members include: Isaac Howe; Shirlie DeFosse; Nora Walker; Kapri Rabine; Elliot Wilcox; Aria Gada; Cole Renneberg; Jamison Haag; Harlan Folgate; Jase Uminski; Caleb Backeberg; Joseph Patton; Briar Messer and Braydan Potter.

Todd Patton and Jim Polanek are co-Coaches for the ‘B’ Cheavers and Katrina Knight is the team manager.

Congratulations to the Peewee ‘B’ Flyers who wrapped up fifth in state. Team members include: Henry Zuelke; Eli Dillon; Liam Hart; Calder Schakelman; Owen Olson; Reid Hart; William Prohaska; Mason Ramirez; Calvin Kunde; Calvin Russo; Cashton Suchla; JJ Hagen; Mason Cantwell and Jayden Teague.

Jason Teague is the team’s Head Coach with Juan Ramirez and Colin Hagen as Assistant Coaches. Manager duties this season were shared by Amanda Cantwell and Natalie Hart.

12U ‘A’ Girls

The 12U ‘A’ Monkeys earned its shot at state winning the lone Regional contest 9-0 against Sun Prairie. That advanced the Monkeys to play in the Milwaukee area in a tournament hosted by Arrowhead (Lake Country) March 11-12.

The Monkeys opened the event as the fifth seed but suffered a 4-2 loss against Superior Spartans March 11, sending them to the Consolation side of the pool.

The Monkeys bounced back with a 2-1 win later the same day against the eighth seeded Fox River Freeze, then captured the State 12U ‘A’ Consolation plaque and banner with a 3-1 win against the Black Cats ‘Black’ squad.

The Consolation crown wraps up a solid 20-6 record (some game results may be missing) and ranked fifth in state.

Team members include: Allison Herbrand; Khloe Walker; Lydia Falde; Carys Benedict; Ashlynn Ballweg; Louisa Hahn; Cassidy Annen; Claire Hansen; Huntleigh Grant; Hazel Kossen; Martha Weiss; Alyse Anthon; Ivy Hare; Kaydence Henke and Isabelle Laufenberg.

Robert Annen Sr. Is the team’s Head Coach with Jess Hansen; Graham Falde and Holly Walker as assistant coaches. Ellie Falde was the team’s manager.

12U ‘B’ Girls

The ‘B’ Monkeys also qualified for the state tournament with an automatic berth, making the trip to Appleton March 11-12.

Seeded sixth at the tournament, the Monkeys drew a tough opener, falling 7-0 to the number 3 Fox River Freeze in the second game of the event March 11. Later the same day, the Monkeys began play on the Consolation side, dropping a 3-2 heartbreaker in double overtime.

The locals dropped their final game at the state tournament as well, the seventh-place match on Sunday against Chippewa Falls.

Congratulations to the 12U ‘B’ Monkeys on wrapping up the season at the state tournament and ranked eighth overall in Wisconsin.

Team members include: Hayley Chamberlin; Carolena Weiss; Reagan Maier; Charlotte Drake; Vivienne Tomlin; Lucy Gibson; Mia Persinger; Sydnee Marks; Eliana Graham; Elle Osborn; Mackenzie Pflieger; Margaret Kossen; Bryn Hommowun; Ruby Rinabarger; Nora Thiering and Catherine Marshall.

Rebecca Hildebrandt was the team’s Head Coach with Jody Persinger; Brandon Hommowun and Matthew Drake also in place as assistant coaches. Team manager duties were shared by Jessica Mijal and Stephanie Osborn.

Bantam ‘A’

Sauk Prairie Flyers also earned a direct entry to the state championship as the lone Region 4 rep while RWD was also included as the tournament host.

Play started at Reedsburg Area Community Arena (RACA) on March 4 for the WAHA Bantam 3A title.

The host Cheavers dropped a 6-0 opening round decision to Somerset Spartans and the Flyers played the final game of the opening round, falling to the Waupun Warriors 6-3.

Both teams moved to the Consolation side of the tournament later Saturday, RWD advancing to the Consolation Championship game with a 7-0 decision against Black River Falls while the Flyers claimed the other spot with a 7-1 win against Waupaca.

A thrilling all-Sauk County Consolation Championship game went to the Cheavers with a narrow 4-3 margin. The state title went to the Tomahawk Hatchets who doubled Somerset 6-3.

Congratulations to the host and State Consolation champion RWD Cheavers with team members: Jordan Kowalski; Jenna Garbacz; Wyatt Arnold; Ethan Wilcox; Caydence Putz; Cassidy Putz; Matthew Stando; Ethan Pope; Andrew Stando; Molly Stokes; Marley Fischer; Tyler Krieski; Brian Skwara; Payton Kowalski; Olivia Renneberg; Nicholas Warneke; Aiden Knull; Dayne Wagner and Hailey Dietl.

Chris Arnold, Justin Pope and Nate Wilcox were team coaches and Nicole Stokes was the team’s manager.

Congratulations to the Bantam ‘A’ Flyers who wrapped up sixth spot in the state. Team members include: Ethan Goodman; Brody Bjorklund; Benjamin Hanko; Douglas Jolicoeur; Kash Caldwell; Cameron McInerney; Ryker Hovland; Austin Smith; Baryn MacLeish-Breunig; Caden Argall Tucker Cummings; Rylan Burch; Carl Weiss and Rowan Kauss.

Mark Schultz was the team’s Head Coach with Timothy McInerney and Kurt Caldwell as Assistant Coaches and Gregory Sarnow listed as ‘General Staff.’ Kristian Smith was the team’s manager.

14U ‘A’ Girls

The Lake City Whitecaps wrapped up its inaugural season with an auto berth to the State Championship tournament as the Region 4 Rep.

Traveling to the Milt Lunda Memorial Arena in Black River Falls, the Whitecaps opened play March 4 as the eighth seed and dropped its opener 9-2 against the top seeded and eventual state champion Fond du Lac Thunder.

A 9-1 loss against Hayward Hurricanes later the same day sent the area 14U squad to the seventh place game Sunday. A closer game saw the Whitecaps falling 2-1 to Winter Club and wrapping up its first season as the state’s number eight squad.

Roster for the 14U ‘A’ Whitecaps was unavailable on the Sauk Prairie Youth Hockey website.

14U ‘B’ Girls

The 14U ‘B’ squad also earned direct entry to the state championship tournament held March 4-5 in Beaver Dam.

Also seeded eighth, the Whitecaps found the road tough as well, pitted against the top seeded and host Beaver Dam Wildfire who sent them to the Consolation side with a 9-1 decision. The Whitecaps returned later the same day and were sent to the Seventh place contest with a tough Consolation round loss against the Western Wisconsin Stars 5-4.

On Sunday the Whitecaps wrapped up a tough weekend with a 5-3 loss to the Ozaukee Ice Dogs to finish as the state’s eighth ranked team.

Members of the 14U ‘B’ Whitecaps include Lili Peekna; Kylie Unseth; Vyvienne Tomlin; Lucy Gibson; McKenzie Teague; Olivia Zuelke; Seneca Ruyle; Mary Marck; Elle Osborn; Lauren Mankowski; Lila Shadewald; Allison Anderson; Violett Fredrickson; Allison Herbrand; Haydee Meyer and Madison Breunig.

Nathan Breunig was the team’s Head Coach with Jason Teague and Rebecca Hildebrandt as assistants. Melinda Teague was the team’s manager.

Peewee Flyers wrap up dream season with state crown

Members of the Sauk Prairie Peewee ‘A’ Flyers were all smiles after capturing the WAHA Peewee 3A State Championship in Ashland on Sunday (March 12). Team members include in numerical order: Haakon Hoeltke; Logan Harrington; Alexander Kirk; Braden Schlough; Brayton Bahe; Natalee Gesicki; Davis Lombard; Bryce Ballweg; Benjamin Freeman; Oswald Tippery; Michael Jolicoeur and Reid Knoll. Photo Courtesy Dave Jolicoeur

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The Sauk Prairie Peewee ‘A’ Flyers were selected as the top seed for the Wisconsin Amateur Hockey Association (WAHA) 3A Peewee State Championship tournament in Ashland, WI this past weekend and went to work making that to be correct.

After moving to the winning side of the draw with a 10-0 shutout against Marshfield peewees Saturday morning, the team returned to the ice a few hours later and earned its spot in the championship game with a 9-5 edge against Black River Falls.

In the championship game Sunday afternoon, the Flyers doubled the Tomahawk Hatchets 6-3 to claim the championship plaque and banner.

The peewees set the table for its state championship with a 29-10-2 record including a 6-2 win against the RWD Peewee Cheavers in their Regional test Feb. 5 to officially qualify for the state event.

Following that, the locals dropped its next three before rebounding from an 8-2 loss against Onalaska with an 8-0 win against the same team on the same day. The Flyers rolled from there with a 6-2-1 run to wrap up the season. Clearly the team was firing on all cylinders heading to Ashland.

“We really felt good about how we were playing last weekend heading into the tournament,” said Coach Dave Jolicoeur in an email interview. “The kids were loose and having fun. We were in a really good spot.”

Flyers 10 Blades 0

The Flyers opened tournament play with a 10-0 win against the Marshfield peewee Blades, a team they had not faced this season.

The game was all but over by the time the first period buzzer sounded as the Flyers pounded the Blades’ goal with eighth unanswered tallies. Single goals in the second and third wrapped it up.

Leading the scoring parade was hat tricks for both Michael Joliceour and Natalee Gesicki. Brayton Bahe chipped in a goal and three assists, Braden Schlough and Davis Lombard both adding a goal and assist. The other goal came from Reid Knoll and Kirk Alexander had a pair of set ups.

The opening round of games eliminated half the field from a shot at the state title and moved the Flyers along with Black River Falls, Somerset and Tomahawk to the Championship semis.

While the team had not faced Marshfield before, Jolicoeur said he and his players were confident heading into the contest.

“We didn’t have any butterflies going into that game. For the core of the 2010’s on this team, it was their third trip to State so they knew what it was all about.

“We also got a look at Marshfield at the Altoona tournament (Jan. 28-29), so even though we hadn’t played the, we got to see them in action before the State Tournament. Coming out strong against them and scoring so early n the first period let us know our kids were ready to make a run at this thing.”

Flyers 9 Tigers 5

Saturday night against the Black River Falls Tigers, the Flyers were a facing a team it defeated 7-5 and 12-6 in exhibition games at Sauk Prairie Area Recreation Center (SPARC) on Dec. 3, then 9-5 and 5-3 in Black River Falls Jan. 15.

Once again the team found its offense early, grabbing a 3-0 first period lead. Both teams added a pair in the middle frame and the Flyers outlasted the Tigers in a wild third period with a 4-3 edge to make the 9-5 final.

Logan Harrington set the pace in this one scoring two and adding three helpers for the Flyers. Jolicoeur and Bahe both scored two more, Bahe adding an assist. Kirk, Lombard and Knoll had the other goals with assists for Haakon Hoeltke, Schlough and Gesicki.

Jolicoeur said despite the success againt BRF in earlier matches, the team wasn’t overconfident heading into the game it needed to win to reach the state championship match.

“We were feeling good, but two of our four previous games against Black River Falls were two-goal games with the last of those including an empty netter,” said Jolicoeur. “It’s tough to beat a good team like that five times in a season. They’ve got some talented skaters, especially Brooke Lakowske. She’s tough, if not impossible to contain.”

That win put the Flyers three periods away from a state championship game, going up against the Tomahawk Hatchets, also 2-0 with an 8-2 win against Beaver Dam and a 6-3 doubling of Somerset.

The Flyers previously played the Hatchets at a tournament in Waupaca Jan. 7-8 collecting 8-3 and 8-1 wins.

Flyers 6 Hatchets 3

Tomahawks flipped the script a bit on the Flyers scoring the first pair and carrying a 2-0 cushion to the middle period. Teams were even at 2-2 heading to the third and a 4-1 margin through the final period put it away for the Flyers.

Jolicoeur said the Tomahawk team has bolstered with the addition of defenseman Jake Albert, a member of the 2010 Team Wisconsin team who is double rostered and played with the bantam squad through most of the season.

“He played with the Tomahawk bantam team that won state (the previous weekend,” said the coach. “We knew he’d be a challenge and he factored in an all three of their goals.

“We came out nervous and tight for the championship game and found ourselves down 2-0 after a period. We just told the kids to loosen up and get back to playing hockey. They were scoring nine goals a game (average) coming into the championship game and we knew the goals were going to come.

“By the end of the second period we tied it and never trailed again.”

Bahe scored the goal that would stand up as the state championship winner 8:19 into the period, his second of the contest and Jolicoeur scored his first of a pair seconds later to put his team in cruise control.

“Going up 4-3 and then scoring our fifth 16 seconds later probably took a bit of wind out of their sails,” said Jolicoeur. “Then, about two minues later, we got the sixth which pretty much put a comeback out of reach.”

Kirk and Harrington scored the other goals, Schlough setting up a pair and other assists for Kirk, Jolicoeur, Gesicki and Knoll.

In goal, Benjamin Freeman put in the work, kicking out 26 of 29 shots and picking up the win in all three games.

Coach Jolicoeur is of course pleased with the efforts of his team throughout the season and said as early as the beginning of the season the team was destined for greatness.

“We knew going in that it could be a special year,” said the Coach. Two years ago, the core of this team went into the 2021 State Tournament looking pretty good. We then lost a heartbreaker first game to Somerset 5-4. That was a game we had in hand until we had some emotional and mental breakdowns that began a parade to the penalty box.

“Give credit to the kids though. They learned from that experience and even being down 2-0 after the first to Tomahawk, they stayed positive and didn’t have those types of breakdowns. They were able to channelize that energy, stay mentally tough and go out and battle their way back into the game.

“That growth and maturity for this team was really a neat thing to experience and a great life lesson for these kids.”

After celebrating at the rink, the Flyers players and families paid a price, with what Coach Jolicoeur called “A white-knuckle driving experience,” returning home through a snowstorm. Plans for a team celebration are currently in the works.

“Winning a State Championship is a special and rare occasion, so we want to make sure we acknowledge it.”

Congrats from Saukhockey.info to all team players, Coach Dave Jolicoeur, Assistant Coaches Michael Freeman, Jeffrey Harrington and Brian Schlough and Team Manager Ryan Kirk.

Both Flyers bantam squads wrap up at State tourneys

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

Both Sauk Prairie Flyers Bantam teams made the trip to their respective State Championship tournaments this past weekend both the Bantam ‘A’ and Bantam ‘B’ Flyers returning home with Consolation Final hardware.

Both also faced a tough opening round opponent, going to the Consolation side of the draw with tough losses to eventual State Championship finalists.

The procedure was the same at every state tournament played last weekend, each team playing twice on Saturday and returning for one final match on Sunday.

In Shawano at the WAHA State 3A Championship tournament, the Bantam ‘A’ Flyers dropped a 5-2 decision to Ashland before bouncing back with a 7-3 decision against Marshfield Youth Hockey Blades. In the Consolation Championship game, the Flyers handled Waupun by a 7-2 score.

The Ashland bantams moved to the State Championship game before falling 3-2 against Tomahawk.

The weekend results wrapped up the WAHA season for the Bantam ‘A’ Flyers who posted a record of 25-13-1.

The Bantam ‘B’ Flyers were moved up from the WAHA State 3B to 3A Championship event facing some tougher caliber teams, due to a lack of teams at the 3B level.

After dropping a 4-2 decision to the River Falls Wildcats in its opening game the Flyers rebounded with a 6-2 win against the New Richmond Tigers.

That advanced the Flyers to the State Consolation Final where they handled the Mosinee Pride by a 6-4 score.

Flyers 2 Wildcats 4

The Flyers played the Cats even through a period, both teams scoring once. The Wildcats notched the lone goal of the second then outscored the Flyers through the final 15 minutes by a 2-1 margin.

The first period Flyers’s goal came from Tucker Acker on a feed from Jacob Wilhelm and the other Flyers’ goal was scored by Caleb Chetwood with an assist for Lucas Rehlinger.

Ethan Goodman handled the work in goal for the Flyers, stopping 29 of 33 shots.

The loss moved the Flyers to the Consolation side of the draw.

Flyers 6 Tigers 2

In the second-round game, played later on Saturday, the Flyers jumped in to a 3-1 first period lead and never looked back, adding one more unanswered marker in the second and outscoring the Tigers 2-1 down the stretch.

Slater Denu opened the scoring for the Flyers and set up the other two first period goals, scored by Ryan Flynn and Ryan Jorgenson before wrapping up his own hat trick with both third period goals.

The second period goal came from Chetwood with help from Greyson Dunn. Flynn and Dunn both collected assists as well.

Goodman stopped a dozen of the 14 shots he faced to help move the Flyers into the Consolation Final.

Flyers 6 Pride 4

On Sunday, the Pride and Flyers were even at 2-2 after a period and still knotted at 3-3 heading to the final period.

The Flyers finally grabbed control with two goals in the opening 2:36 of the final period, then matched then another in the middle of the period before Mosinee added one more in the final six minutes.

This time it was Chetwood with the hat trick to wrap up a five-goal weekend with goals in all three contests. Denu fired a pair and Tyler Jorgenson fired the Flyers’ first goal of the contest. Gavin Krueger chipped in three assists with others for Jacob Wiegmann and Flynn.

Goodman backstopped the win with 26 saves, including 14 of 15 in a wild third period.

The Bantam ‘B’ Flyers’ weekend record finished their season at 22-11-1. It was the final youth event for Chetwood, Flynn, Wilhelm, Acker and Denu who will all move under the Eagles’ umbrella next season.

WAHA State Preview — Sauk Prairie Bantam ‘A’ Flyers

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

Sauk Prairie Flyers Bantam ‘A’ Flyers 23-12-1

Many, if not all members of the Sauk Prairie Bantam ‘A’ Flyers will be wrapping up the youth hockey portion of their respective hockey careers at the WAHA Bantam 3A State Championship in Marshfield this weekend.

The team wrapped up the lone Region 4 spot at the state tournament on Feb. 6 with a 4-2 edge against the RWD Cheavers in Sun Prairie. The day prior, the Cheavers earned its spot in the regional championship game with a 2-1 win (shootout) against the Monroe Avalanche.

The local bantam squad is tournament tested heading to Marshfield, putting up a record of 5-3 since the regional tournament and claiming the Bantam Championship at the Ultimate Tournaments Dairyland Classic on Feb. 20.

The Flyers move on to Marshfield as one of eight teams, beginning its state championship run against Ashland (25-9-3) at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday.

Each team will play twice on Saturday, the Flyers hitting the ice again at either 6:30 p.m. or 8:15 p.m. against either the Tomah/Sparta (15-7-1 – incomplete) bantams or the host Marshfield Blades (no statistics available), depending on first round results.

Other teams included in the state tournament include the Tomahawk bantam Hatchets (no statistics available), Shawano Lightning (8-9-3 – incomplete), Somerset Spartans (21-10-5) and Waupun Youth Hockey (11-20-2).

Teams will return Sunday for four final games, beginning with the 7^th Place match at 9 a.m. and wrapping at 1:30 with the puck drop on the WAHA Bantam 3A State Championship game.

Representing the Sauk Prairie Flyers will be Quinn Payne; Brock Hill; Blayze Caldwell; Taitym Banta; Douglas Jolicoeur; Gavin Goetsch; Landon Froese; Greyden Schomber; Austin Klemm; Joshua Mast; Rylan Burch; Carl Weiss; Benjamin Hanko and Cameron McInerney.

Marshfield Area Ice Arena does have LiveBarn available so all 12 games should be available online.

Saukhockey.info would like to wish the Sauk Prairie Bantam ‘A’ Flyers luck this weekend in Marshfield.

The Sauk Prairie Bantam Flyers prepared for the WAHA Bantam 3A State Championship tournament with a championship run at the Ultimate Tournament Dairyland Classic Classic played in local arena, including SPARC February 18-21.

WAHA State Preview — Sauk Prairie Squirt ‘A’ Flyers

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

This is the first of six previews of WAHA State Championship tournaments involving local youth teams this weekend.

Sauk Prairie Squirt ‘A’ Flyers 18-10-2 (some game results missing) – Shawano

The Squirt ‘A’ Flyers will be representing Region 4 at the State Squirt 3A tournament to be held in Shawano.

The local squad was the top seed heading into the Region 4 playdowns, drawing a bye through the semi-final and straight to the finals.

The other finalist spot went to the RWD Cheavers who downed the Monroe Avalanche 8-2. The Flyers played host to the Cheavers in the Regional Championship match, collecting a 5-4 win.

All eight teams at the state championship tournament will play twice on Saturday. The Flyers will be in the third game of the day, against the Ashland Youth Hockey Squirts (18-18-1) at 11:30 a.m. at the Crawford Center in Shawano.

The teams faced each other for the first and only time this season this past weekend at a tournament in Ashland. A 9-3 win for the Flyers allows them to carry momentum into its opening game.

The second game of the day for the Flyers will be at either 4:30 or 5:45 p.m. and against either the Somerset Spartans (24-18-3) or the Lakeland Hawks (no statistics available) all depending on the teams’ performances in their opening game.

The other four teams taking part in Shawano include the Marshfield Youth Hockey Association Squirts (No statistics available); Shawano Lightning (No statistics available); Beaver Dam Golden Beavers (14-12-1) and the Waupaca Area Youth Hockey Association Squirts (33-11-4).

The tournament will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday with the final game of the day facing off at 5:45 p.m.

Sunday will start with the seventh-place contest at 9 a.m. and wrap up with the state championship match at 1:30 p.m.

All 12 games at the Crawford Center will be available on LiveBarn.

Sauk Prairie Squirt ‘A’ Flyers include: Henry Zuelke; Bryce Argall; Isabelle Jolicoeur; Kelton Royster; Brayton Bahe; Luke Hager; Teresa Weiss; Mason Ramirez; Milo Donaldson; Oswald Tippery; Joshua Freeman; Cashton Suchla; Jonathon Bromley and Jaydon Teague.

Saukhockey.info wants to wish the Sauk Prairie ‘A’ Flyers good luck at their State Tournament in Shawano this weekend.

Froese fires 10 to lead Flyers to UT Dairyland Classic title

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

After qualifying for the WAHA Bantam 3A State Championship a few weeks earlier, the Sauk Prairie Bantam ‘A’ Flyers gave a preview, collecting a championship banner at the final Ultimate Tournaments event of the season, the Dairyland Classic.

Playing in a three-team pool, the Eagles earned a bye to the championship game with a 6-1 win against the Rice Lake Youth Hockey Friday team and a 5-2 edge against the Sheboygan Lakers Saturday afternoon. The Lakers won a semi-final game to move into the other Championship spot and provided a tougher challenge Sunday afternoon before the Flyers captured the banner with a 5-4 edge.

Flyers 6 vs. Rice Lake 1

It was a rare event Friday night as the bantams opened at Sauk Prairie Area Recreation Center (SPARC) but occupied the visitor’s bench in the home barn.

Landon Froese kicked off a great weekend with two goals in his first game of the weekend, matched by Ben Hanko while Quinn Payne scored once and set up two others.

Josh Mast fired the other goal and adding an assist with other help coming from Brock Hill and Blayze Caldwell.

Taitym Banta notched the first of three weekend wins stopping all but one of 16 shots against.

Flyers 5 vs. Lakers 2

Froese fired all five goals in this one, including the lone goal of the opening period and two more in the second to carry a 3-1 lead into the final frame.

Hill and Payne chipped in an assist each and Banta added another win although shots on goal were not recorded in the contest.

Flyers 5 vs. Lakers 4

In the championship game Flyers and Lakers were even at 1-1 after the opening period and 3-3 heading to the third.

The Flyers fired the first two of the final period, the second standing up as the game winner.

Froese collected three more goals to wrap up a 10-goal, weekend Payne notching a pair and setting up another. Hill had three helpers and Banta picked up another win with eight saves.

WAHA Qualifier

Flyers 4 Cheavers 2

Earlier, the Flyers clinched its spot at the WAHA Bantam 3A State Championship with a 4-2 win against the RWD Bantam Cheavers in the Region 4 Championship game.

As the top seed, the Flyers earned a berth straight to the final while the Cheavers used a 2-1 shootout win against Monroe to claim the other spot.

All of the scoring took place in the first two periods. Teams were even at 2-2 heading to the second where the Flyers fired a pair of unanswered goals to clinch the win.

Froese fired two goals including the regional championship clincher in the second period and assisted on another.

Hill added a goal and assist with the other goal scored by Mast.

For the Cheavers, RJ Manley scored one and set up the other, by Nicholas McPherson.

Banta enjoyed a big game stopping 35 shots to help his team grab the win despite being outshot 35-23.

Jordan Kowalski stopped 19 shots in goal for the Cheavers.

With the win, the Flyers qualified to represent Region 4 at the WAHA State Championship tournament March 5-6. More information on that event will appear on this page in the next few days in one of several state championship weekend previews.

The Sauk Prairie Bantam ‘A’ Flyers claimed the title in their Bantam ‘A’ Division in the Ultimate Tournaments Dairyland Classic Tournament played out of Lake Delton Ice Arena, Reedsburg Area Community Arena, Pierce Park Pavilion and Sauk Prairie Area Recreation Center over the Presidents Day Weekend. Team members (in no specific order) pictured above include: Quinn Payne; Brock Hill; Blayze Caldwell; Taitym Banta; Douglas Jolicoeur; Gavin Goetsch; Landon Froese; Greyden Schomber; AJ Klemm; Josh Mast; Rylan Burch; Carl Weiss; Ben Hanko and Cam McInerney. Photo by Jim den Hollander

Arnold stops 31 to lead Cheavers past Eagles

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

After qualifying to reach the championship game with a 10-3 win the previous day against the Monroe Avalanche, the RWD Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers punched its ticket to the WAHA Peewee 3A State Championship tournament with a 3-1 win against the host Sauk Prairie ‘A’ Flyers at SPARC on Sunday (Feb. 6) afternoon.

Cheavers 10 Avalanche 3

The three-team regional pool had a semi-final Saturday at McFarland, the Cheavers advancing with the lopsided win.

The game was all but over after the opening 15-minute period as the Cheavers held a 7-1 edge. A 2-1 margin through the second had them up 9-2 and both teams added one in the final frame.

Ethan Wilcox led the way for the locals, firing four goals and adding an assist, Landen Uminski scoring a hat trick and an assist while Tyler Krieski notched two goals and set up another. The other Cheavers’ goal came from Evelyn Gurney with single assists for Teaghen Geffert and Noah Backeberg.

Jesse Arnold collected another win in goal with 13 saves and the Cheavers held a 39-16 edge on the shot clock.

Cheavers 3 @ Flyers 1

The win advanced the Cheavers to an all-Sauk County championship game at SPARC Sunday and Arnold came up huge in that one, kicking out all but one of the 32 shots he faced, including 14 down the stretch from a desperate Flyers’ team that threw everything it had at the Cheavers goal.

After a scoreless first period, all four goals came in the middle stanza, Michael Jolicoeur opening the scoring in the fifth minute for the Flyers with an unassisted goal.

Uminski evened the score, from Wilcox a short time later and it was Geffert burying the game and regional championship winner with 6:50 to play with assists for Uminski and Wilcox.

Kreski’s unassisted goal 100 seconds later added some insurance but this one had a long way to go to reach the finish line.

The peewee Cheavers will advance to the WAHA Peewee 3A State Championship tournament March 12-13 at Somerset. The entire field was filled on Sunday and the first game for the Cheavers at 11 a.m. March 12 will be against region 1 champions – Amery Warriors. More details on the tournament will appear in the days leading up to the opening game.

Members of the Peewee ‘A’ Cheavers celebrated its WAHA Region 4 Championship and berth in the WAHA State 3A Peewee Championship tournament. Pictured from right to left are: Evelyn Gurney, Dayne Wagner, Ethan Wilcox, Jesse Arnold, Noah Backeberg, Landen Uminski, Hailey Dietl, Teaghen Geffert, Tyler Krieski, Ethan Pope. *PHOTO CONTRIBUTED.*

Froese paces Bantam ‘A’ Flyers at Tomah tourney

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

After a lopsided opening win, the Sauk Prairie Bantam ‘A’ Flyers engaged in a pair of close battles on its way to a third place showing at a tournament in Tomah this past weekend.

The Eagles played twice Saturday, collecting a 7-0 shutout win in its opener against Black River Falls Tigers before dropping a heartbreaker in overtime 5-4 against the Sheboygan Lakers.

On Sunday, the Flyers engaged in another close battle, capturing third place honors with a 5-4 win against the La Crescent (MN) Lancers in a game that came down to a shootout.

Flyers 7 Tigers 0

The Flyers carried a 2-0 lead out of the first period against the Tigers, adding three more in the second and two more down the stretch.

Landon Froese led the way in this one, scoring three and adding an assist while Brock Hill notched two and added an assist.

Josh Mast and Gavin Goetsch sank the other Flyers’ goals. Quinn Payne collected a playmaker with three assists with other help coming from Blayze Caldwell and Ben Hanko.

Taitym Banta picked up the goose egg in goal stopping all seven shots from the Tigers.

Flyers 4 Lakers 5 (ot)

Froese enjoyed another big game later Saturday, his third goal of the game coming with 3:31 to play, pulling the Flyers even and sending the game to overtime. Unfortunately, it was the Lakers notching the game winner with 2:28 to go in the overtime frame.

Teams were even at 2-2 after a period and the Lakers led 3-2 heading to the final frame.

Caldwell fired the other Flyers’ goals with assists for Hill, Greydon Schomber and AJ Klemm. Banta made 20 saves in goal for the Flyers.

Flyers 5 Lancers 4 (so)

The script was similar Sunday morning, but this time it was the Flyers who saw a late goal against sending the game to overtime and finally, a shootout.

Teams were deadlocked at 1-1 after a period but the Flyers carried a 4-2 lead to the third. The Lancers didn’t surrender, finally pulling even with 3:28 to play and sending the game to overtime.

The extra session solved nothing, and teams went to a shootout where Mast and Weiss both fired goals to clinch the Flyers’ win.

Caldwell, Hill, Mast and Hanko notched the regulation goals, Hill adding an assist. Payne set up a pair of regulation goals with other assists for Goetsch, Carl Weiss, Klemm and Cam McInerney.

The weekend results boosted the Bantam ‘A’ Flyers season record to 17-9-1 and the team will be looking to punch its ticket to the State 3A Bantam Championship tournament, playing host to either RWD Cheavers or Monroe Avalanche at Sun Prairie Tubbs Rink Sunday at 11:15 (see story above).

Wilhelm sinks winner for Flyers against Wildcats

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The Sauk Prairie Flyers Bantam ‘B’ hockey team wrapped up a split Dec. 11-12, opening with a tough 4-3 loss at McFarland Ice Arena against the host McFarland ‘B’ Spartans Dec. 11 before bouncing back the following day on home ice with a 3-1 win against the Waunakee ‘C’ Wildcats.

The team wrapped up the weekend later Dec. 12 with a 7-2 win in Reedsburg against the RWD Cheavers (see story below).

Against McFarland teams were even at 2-2 after a period, Slater Denu and Jacob Wilhelm counting the Flyers’ goals. The Spartans scored a pair of unanswered goals in the middle period, but Tucker Acker got the visiting Flyers within one with just under five minutes to go.

Kaleb Chetwood had set ups on two of the Flyers’ goals and Denu had an assist as well.

Goaltender Ethan Goodman was the game’s busiest player, kicking out 37 shots to keep it close despite a 41-17 edge on the shots clock for the Spartans.

The following day against the Wildcats, Acker converted a feed from Acker for the lone goal of the opening period, but Waunakee responded with the lone goal of the middle frame and teams were even at 1-1 heading to the final 15 minutes.

A pair of unassisted third period goals about two minutes apart made the difference in this one, the game winner fired by Wilhelm and the insurance goal by Ryan Flynn.

Goodman turned in another 27 save effort in goal to lift his team to the win despite a 29-28 edge in shots for the Wildcats.

The Flyers are scheduled to be back in action this weekend, traveling to Rhinelander for a tournament. The Flyers will begin with games against the Appleton Avalanche (10 a.m.) and host Rhinelander Hodags (7 p.m.) on Saturday and wrapping up Sunday against an opponent determined by the performance in the first two games.

Chetwood hat trick leads Flyers past Cheavers

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The Sauk Prairie Bantam ‘B’ Flyers wrapped up a busy weekend with a trip to Reedsburg Area Community Arena where it picked up a 7-2-win Dec. 12 against the RWD Bantam Cheavers.

The Eagles grabbed control with three unanswered first period goals and three more in the middle period had the visitors up 6-1 heading to the final period where both teams added one more.

Kaleb Chetwood fired a hat trick and set up two others to pace the Flyers’ offense with other goals added by Jacob Wiegman, Tucker Acker, Slater Denu and Tyler Jorgenson.

Peewee Call up Landen Uminski and RJ Manley scored for the Cheavers with assists for Ethan Wilcox, also a peewee and Manley.

Jordan Kowalski stopped 28 shots in goal for the Cheavers and Ethan Goodman picked up the win with 19 stops for the Flyers.