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GAME OF THE WEEK: WIAA Softball sectional finals
IowaGrant, Belmont play for berth in state softball tourney
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Senior Katie Olson and her IowaGrant teammates will face top-ranked Juda/Albany in the WIAA Division 5 Darlington sectional final at 5 p.m. with a chance to earn the Panthers first ever trip to the WIAA state softball tournament.

GAME OF THE WEEK (June 1–7)

PREP SOFTBALL: WIAA sectional finals, Thursday, June 1

DIVISION 4: #1 Iowa–Grant (21–3) vs. Juda/Albany (24–2) at Darlington, 5 p.m.

     Fresh of winning its first regional title since 2003, the SWAL champion Iowa–Grant Panthers smashed second-seeded Wisconsin Heights 13–3 in Tuesday’s sectional semifinal. Seniors Maranda McCarthy and Hannah Stevens (grand slam), sophomore Lexi Busse and freshman Olivia Liddicoat each homered in the win for I–G. McCarthy settled down after allowing a three-run homer in the top of the first inning and struck out nine and didn’t allow a run over the final four innings to collect her 21st victory of the season. Iowa–Grant will now face Six Rivers East champion Juda/Albany, the top-ranked team in Division 4, for the chance to play in its first WIAA state softball tournament. The Panthers shutout Orfordville Parkview 2–0 in Tuesday sectional semifinal.

 

DIVISION 5: #1 Belmont (26–2) vs. #3 Black Hawk (13–11) at Belmont, 5 p.m.

     Coach Jeff Hodgson’s Braves defeated Barneveld 4–2 last Friday to win their 14th regional title in the past 20 years. Belmont followed that up with a 3–1 victory over second-seeded Southwestern in Tuesday’s D5 sectional semifinal to earn a berth in today’s sectional final. Sophomore Sadie Willborn (17–2) struck out 11 and allowed just one run on three hits and five walks in the complete win. Now all that stands in the way of Belmont’s sixth trip to the WIAA State tournament is a rematch with the Black Hawk Warriors. The Braves pounded the Warriors 12–0 in a Six Rivers Conference crossover game on April 6.

 

PREP BASEBALL: WIAA Division 3 Whitehall Sectional, Tuesday, June 6

#2 Lancaster (17–7) vs. #1 La Crosse Aquinas, noon

#1 Darlington (16–7) vs. #1 Wisconsin Heights, 3 p.m.

Sectional Final, 6 p.m.

 

     Coach Rick Place’s Flying Arrows scored four runs in the top of the sixth inning to rally for a 12–9 victory over seventh-ranked Fennimore in Wednesday’s regional final. Junior Evan Straka homered, tripled and drove in five runs in the win. Senior Quinten Kreul also homered and senior Tanner Reuter went the distance on the mound for the winners. Lancaster, which finished tied for third place in the the SWC at 5–5, will have its hands full with the Blugolds (17–9), who finished second in the Mississippi Valley conference behind Division 1 La Crosse Central. Aquinas blanked Neillesville 10–0 in the regional finals.

 

 

BOYS GOLF: WIAA state championships, Monday-Tuesday, June 5–6 at University Ridge (Madison). 

     Area state qualifiers: Lancaster senior Josh Hentrich in Division 3

     The 92nd Annual Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Boys Golf Championships will be held Monday and Tuesday, June 5-6, at the University Ridge Golf Course in Madison. Lancaster senior Josh Hentrich is the only area qualifier this year. Hentrich shot a 7-over-par 79 to win the individual title at Tuesday’s WIAA Division 3 Markesan Sectional. Division competition will begin at noon on Monday. In Divisions 2 and 3, the top two teams from each of the four sectionals qualify. The top three individuals, who are not members of a qualifying team in each sectional, also qualify for the meet. 

 

 

TRACK & FIELD: WIAA state meet, Friday-Saturday, June 2–3

     The 122nd Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Boys Track and Field Championships and the 47th Girls Track and Field Championships will be held Friday and Saturday, June 2–3, at the Veterans Memorial Stadium Complex on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

     The meet features two sessions Friday. The Divisions 2 and 3 session begins at 9:30 a.m. with the competition proceeding in the order of events. Division 1 session begins at 3 p.m. The competition resumes Saturday at 10:30 a.m. The order of the finals for each event Saturday begins with Division 3, followed by Divisions 2 and 1, respectively. 

      The meet schedule and order of events are available on the WIAA website at:  https://www.wiaawi.org/Portals/0/PDF/Sports/Track/2017statemeetschedule.pdf

 

 

WIAA GIRLS SOCCER: WIAA regional semifinals, Thursday, June 1

DIVISION 3 — Area games

     #10 Platteville/Lancaster at #7 McFarland, 5 p.m.

     #11 Dodgeville/Mineral Point  at #6 West Salem, 7 p.m.

 

DIVISION 4 — Area games

     #9 Lake Mills at #8 River Valley, 5 p.m.

     #12 Richland Center at #5 Columbus, 5 p.m.

     #14 Prairie du Chien at #3 Hustisford/Dodgeland, 7 p.m.