EDITOR'S NOTE: The Swnews4u.com Athlete of the Week is a web-only feature that will publish each Thursday or Friday throughout the calendar year.
By Jason Nihles, The Platteville Journal, Fennimore Times, Boscobel Dial
Nora Jillson, Sr., Boscobel girls track and field
CUBA CITY — The Boscobel track and field teams were certainly busy the past week with four meets in a span of seven days. The Bulldogs opened last week at the SWAL Mid-Season Meet at Southwestern High School in Hazel Green. No meet scores were kept at the seven-team meet. Two days later, Boscobel traveled to Cuba City for the 15-team Christopher Becker Invitational. Senior Nora Jillson was named the Female Athlete of the Meet at Cuba City after winning the girls’ 800-meter run (2:16.42), 1,600 (5:30.44) and 3,200 (11:38.78). Jillson’s winning-time of 2:16.42 in the 800 meters broke her own school record by more than a second.
Jillson, a three-year state track qualifier and four-year state cross country qualifier, won the 400 (1:01.22) and finished second in the 200 (28.48) at last Tuesday's Southwestern SWAL Meet. The Boscobel standout then opened this week with a first-place finish in the girls 3,200 meter run at Monday's 16-team Fennimore Invitational with a time of 11:18.90. She also ran the lead off leg of the Lady Bulldog's third-place 4x800 relay (10:47.40).
Ethan Sheckler, C/P, Fennimore baseball
Fennimore senior Ethan Sheckler and the Golden Eagles are on fire over the past week. Sheckler, who is headed to Northeast Iowa Community College next year, led his team to six wins in an nine-day period, while batting a team-high .333 (6-for-18) with one double, two homers, nine RBI, seven walks and five runs scored. He also went 2–0 with one save, a 0.81 ERA and eight strikeouts in 8 2/3 innings during that same span.
Sheckler and the Golden Eagles (11–1, 6–0 SWAL) opened last week with a 5–1 win over River Valley on Monday, April 28. The senior slugger went 2-for-4 with a homer and four RBI in the win. A day later, Sheckler struck out three and pitched the final 2 2/3 innings without allowing a run to picked up the win in a key 7–6, eight-inning SWAL win over Mineral Point on Tuesday, April 29. He also went 1-for-4 and drove in a run in that game.
Sheckler hit a key two-run homer and struck out three in two hitless innings of relief to earn the save in a 5–2 SWAL win at Darlington last Friday. This past Monday, he asked for the ball and delivered four strong innings (1 ER, 2K) on the mound and went 1-for-2 with a pair of walks, and an RBI double in the win, to lead Fennimore to a 15–3 non-conference win at Prairie du Chien. It was the first win against the Blackhawks in 15 career games for Fennimore coach Brent Sheckler, Ethan's father.
One day later, the younger Sheckler drew three walks, scored a run and threw out the only would-be base stealer against him in a wild 5–4, 10-inning Fennimore walk-off win over Cuba City, which gave Fennimore a two-game lead on the Cubans in the SWAL standings.
HONORABLE MENTION (in alphabetical order):
Madden Crubel, Jr., throws, sprints, Fennimore track and field
Crubel teamed up with Reece Kelley, Jakob Kretschman and Brandon Seitz to break the Fennimore boys 4x100 relay school record at Monday’s 16-team Fennimore Invitational with a winning time of 44.46 seconds, breaking their own record of 44.52, set at last Thursday’s Cuba City Christopher Becker Invitational. Crubel also won the boys shot put with a new PR of 54’8” to help the Fennimore boys finish second Monday night with 110 points, behind only Prairie du Chien (148.5).
Denny, Espiritu, Sr., throws; Oliver Post, Sr., jumps; Hunter White, So., pole vault; Cassville/Potosi boys track and field
Espiritu set a new school record in the boys discus with a toss of 140'4" to finish second in the event at Monday's Fennimore Invitational. He also finished sixth in the boys shot put at Fennimore. Post won the boys’ 110-meter high hurdles with a blistering new school-record time of 15.65 seconds to win the event at last Friday's River Ridge Timberwolves Invitational. Post also finished third in the 200 (24.52) and the high jump (5’8”) Friday night. White cleared 12'6" to break his own school record Friday at River Ridge to win the boys pole vault.
Brielle Fishnick, So., sprints, Cassville/Potosi girls track and field
Fishnick placed second in both the girls’ 100-meter-dash at 12.99 seconds and the 400 at 1:03.98 to score 16 of her team's 20 points at last Thursday's 15-team Cuba City Christopher Becker Invitational. Fishnick was even better last Friday night at River Ridge, setting three meet records to win gold medals in the 100 (12.89), 200 (26.99) and the triple jump (34’0.5”).
Carsyn Ramaker, So., SS/P, Belmont softball
Ramaker struck out seven and allowed three runs on four hits in five innings to earn the pitching win in last Monday's 6–4 win over Argyle/Black Hawk. She then went 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBI, including the walk-off RBI double in last Tuesday's 4–3 win over River Ridge. Ramaker also and struck out eight in 3 2/3 scoreless innings in the win. Ramaker homered again, and pitched two scoreless innings to close out last Friday's 5–0 non-conference win over Wauzeka–Steuben. A day later, she went 3-for-4 with two RBI and pitched the final 1 2/3 innings to earn the save in at 7–5 SRC win over Highland this past Tuesday.
Blake Reynolds, P, River Ridge baseball
Reynolds struck out four and allowed three walks in a three-hit shutout to lead the Timberwolves to a key 1–0 victory over Belmont in a first-place showdown in the Six Rivers Conference last Tuesday night. Reynolds then went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles in a non-conference loss to Iowa–Grant last Thursday.
Elliott Thornton, Sr., throws, River Ridge track and field
Thornton established a new school record in the boys discus with a toss of 158'9" — breaking his own mark set earlier this year — to win the event at Monday's Fennimore Invitational. Thonton also finished second in the boys discus Monday at Fennimore.
