The Purple SageDecember 23, 2009 Page 13

SportSCatie Anderson, Sports Editor

The girls’ hockey co-op, the Cap City Cougars, has had a strong season so far with a 7-2-1 record.

Their only losses came from the defending state champions, St. Croix Valley Fusion, on November 27 in Baldwin with a score of 0-2 and against Baraboo on December 19 with a score of 3-4.

The Cougars currently have four players from Waunakee High School on the team: sophomore Becca Horn, freshman Megan McCormick and sisters, junior Josie J o h n s o n a n d f re s h m a n Michaela Johnson.

Four other girls on the team come from Madison East, two more from DeForest and seven others from Sun Prairie.

Josie said, “We have some very good players and, unlike previous years, we all get along exceptionally well despite going to different schools.”

The Johnsons’ father is the head coach of the Cougars. Both sisters enjoy having their father as the coach. Josie said, “I actually like it a lot. It’s nice because I get to talk to him

behind the scenes.” Michaela agrees with her

sister and said, “I like having him for a coach because then I have more time to talk about hockey with him.”

Now with Michaela on the team, the sisters get to play together.

Josie said, “We work really well together and she’s fun to play with. My dad actually moved me up from defense to play on her forward line.”

Michaela feels a l i t t le competition playing with her older sister. She said, “I think it’s healthy competition that makes both of us better.”

Josie influences Michaela on the rink. Michaela said, “[Josie] is a better hockey player than me, so I think working with her makes me better because it’s a challenge and also, I can learn from her.”

The Waunakee girls think their season is going well.

“I think our team this year has a lot of potential to do some pretty great things together. We have a great attitude toward working hard and getting better, so we can meet our goal of hopefully making it to state,” Michaela

said. McCormick said, “We work well together off and on the ice.”

Girls’ hockey is seen as less aggressive than boys’ hockey by some, but the players disagree.

McCormick said, “It takes more skill than boys; girls can’t check, so we have to work harder to get the puck.”

Michaela said, “A lot of people think girls’ hockey isn’t as great a game as boys’ hockey because there is no checking, but for that reason, girls have to be that much quicker because they can’t just use brute strength to gain control of the puck.”

“Gir ls ’ hockey is st i l l interesting and does take a lot of skill too. You have to be quicker and stronger than your opponent,” Michaela said.

The team is about a quarter of the way through their season and play at the Sun Prairie Ice Arena.

Kelly MartinReporter

Warriors face first lossThe Waunakee varsity boys’ basketball team

was off to a great start this year after the team beat Wausau East (non-conference), Wausau West (non-conference), Portage, Sauk Prairie and Mt. Horeb, leaving them with an undefeated record of 5-0.

Their winning streak ended December 19 when Waunakee faced Baraboo at home, making their record 5-1 and conference record 3-1.

Throughout the game, the score was extremely close. Waunakee outscored Baraboo by one in the first quarter, leaving the score at 7-6. In the second quarter Waunakee again outscored Baraboo by one, making the score 18-16.

Waunakee outscored Baraboo in the third quarter as well, making the score 31-26 with Waunakee still in the lead. However, the game took a dramatic shift in the fourth quarter, with Baraboo outscoring Waunakee by 8. The final score was 46-43, Baraboo.

The Warriors faced Mt. Horeb on December 11. Waunakee had a 6-1 lead after the first quarter and continued this lead into the second quarter, ending with a lead of 18-7.

In the third and fourth quarter, Waunakee pulled even further ahead. The game ended with Waunakee outscoring the Vikings 21-17. The Warriors took the win with a final score of 53-31.

After Baraboo, the team began holiday break to rest for their game against Stevens Point.

Junior Jacob Soper is blocked by a Sauk Prairie player on Dec 5. Final score was 61-51. (Photo by Allie Taylor)

Left: Senior Crystal Ziegler at-temps a rebound on December 4 at Baraboo. Below: Junior Briana May guards a Baraboo player. After the win, the team played De Pere on Decem-ber 5 at home. The team lost 47-54. Their next game against Mount Horeb was cancelled because of weather. Waunakee then headed to Reedsburg on December 18. The Warriors pulled ahead of the Beavers with a 37-26 win. (Photos by Allie Taylor)

Next Home

5:30 p.m.January 21

vs Reedsburg

Event

Girls’ season underway

Next Home

7:30 p.m.January 8

vs Edgewood

Event

Four Warriors play with girls’ hockey Cap City Cougars

Above: Junior Josie Johnson plays against Baraboo on December 19 in Sun Prairie. Left: Freshman Michaela John-son and Josie wait to start the game. The Cougars lost 3-4. (Photo by Kelly Boruff)

Mandy RiceReporter

Next Home

7:30 p.m.January 5

vs Stevens Point

Event

The Purple Sage December 23, 2009Page 14

SportSBoys’ hockey stays strong in conference

The Waunakee boys’ hockey team took on Edgewood on December 18 at the Capital Ice Arena in Middleton.

It was youth night, the game was featured on cable channel 2 (TV-W) and there was a large crowd of Waunakee and Edgewood fans.

The Warriors were not able to pull ahead and lost 1-4, making their record 5-2.

Waunakee looked promising at the beginning of the game with sophomore Jason Ford setting up an assist to senior Jack Carr to bring the Warriors to a 1-0 lead.

As the game progressed, Waunakee struggled on offense and defense, allowing four goals left unanswered.

The Warriors are still 2-0 in conference after their 5-2

win over Wisconsin Dells-Reedsburg on December 10.

The game displayed a lot of talent in a variety of players. Senior Calvin Richardson said, “We can learn quickly and can communicate with our lines.”

At the Dells-Reedsburg game, early goals from junior Eric Behrend and Ford gave Waunakee a positive start.

Then in the third period senior Andrew Severson and Carr scored.

With a secure lead, Waunakee put in less-experienced players and Wisconsin Dells-Reedsburg scored two goals within the last five minutes. Senior Tyler Liddicoat answered with a goal in the last minute of the game making the final score 5-2.

Waunakee continues their season, led by new varsity coach Eric Olson.

The season is looking promising for the Warriors.

Richardson said, “We should be pretty good . . . better than last year. We’ve been competing against better teams.” Ford said, “It has been a good season.”

Last year, Waunakee was disqualified from WIAA post-season tournament play for too many penalties during the season.

Richardson admits they have greatly reduced the amount of penalties they have had this year.

The team hopes it will not be a problem this year and Waunakee can continue doing well in conference.

Waunakee and DeForest team up is a win-win

The Waunakee-DeForest gymnastics co-op continued its winning season with a first place finish over opponent Mount Horeb on December 17.

The co-op started its season with the Boo Invite in Baraboo on December 12. Eight teams competed, but Waunakee-DeForest took first place with a score of 129.975.

The new co-op is exciting for both Waunakee and DeForest gymnasts. Junior Katie Broadway said, “We really enjoy [the DeForest girls] because they bring a bright vibe.”

L a s t y e a r, Wa u n a k e e practiced with DeForest in preparation for this year. This helped improve their team chemistry.

DeForest sophomore Jess Maiers said, “I like it a lot; it’s

nice to have the [Waunakee] girls around.”

The team competes well together and gets along despite the Norskie-Warrior rivalry. Both schools are appreciative of their new co-op. Maiers said about her teammates, “Thanks for being there even though I’m not from your school.” Maiers showed an impressive performance on the floor which earned second place at the Boo Invite.

Also new to the team are the freshmen. Junior Alexi Arneson said, “The freshmen bring a lot of new talent and jolly spirit and lots of combined energy.”

Freshman Tanner Regali joined the varsity team this year. At the Boo Invite, she placed second in the all-around competition.

Returning to the gymnastics team are senior captains Jamie Brost and Kirsten Polley.

Catie AndersonSports Editor

Catie AndersonSports Editor

5 Reasons Body checking – Defi-nition: Using the body to knock an opponent against the boards or to the ice. The only catch is that the opponent must have the puck, or else it is a penalty. More sports should allow this.

Fast pace – Unlike foot-ball, which takes 20 minutes for five minutes of playing time, hockey games are fast and exciting. You just have to wait after each period for the Zamboni to come out and clean the ice.

Penalties – When a player does push someone from behind, it is time to go to the penalty box. Exciting when it is the opponent, but frustrating when it is your team.

Front-row seats – Defi-nitely the best part about going to a hockey game is seeing a player get shoved up against the glass right in front of your face.

Power plays – These al-low a likely chance of your team to score. It is when you have more players on the ice than the other team because they have one or more players in the penalty box. When this happens, get ready to celebrate!

to go to a hockey game:

Senior goaltender Dan Gutknecht blocks a shot against Wisconsin Dells-Reedsburg on December 10 at Capital Ice in Middleton. The Warriors won 5-2. This was the team’s second conference game and now stands 2-0 in conference and 5-2 overall. (Photo by Chloe Anderson)

Above: Sophomore Caroline Patz practices on the uneven bars. Right: Junior Elizabeth Purdy prac-tices beam. The co-op had its first competition December 12 at the Boo Invite and competed December 17 in Mount Horeb. Waunakee placed first in both meets. (Photos by Jessica Moore)

(Photo by Pat Vincent)

By Catie Anderson

Next Home

6:30 p.m.January 26

vs Sun Prairie

Event

Next Home

8 p.m.January 19vs Baraboo

Event

Calvin Richardson

The Purple SageDecember 23, 2009 Page 15

SportSWrestling hurts

On December 15 , the Warriors hosted the Sun Prairie Cardinals. Waunakee lost 21-46, but many players had a strong performance.

Junior Kyle Meinholz was able to pin his opponent at 140 lbs with 1:10 left in the first period and senior Rhen Corless continued his successful season with another win.

D e s p i t e t h e i r s t ro n g individual records thus far, senior Devon Maly and junior Randy Clemens both lost their matches.

On December 17 , the Warriors lost to Mount Horeb, making their conference record 0-3.

Last year Waunakee placed fourth in conference with a 4-4 record. This year, the team’s goal is to finish in the top three. To accomplish this goal, Waunakee still must face strong competitors in DeForest, Sauk Prairie and Reedsburg.

The team has had many underclassmen fill the spaces left by last year’s seniors. Senior Mike Harman said,

“We’ve got a lot of new freshmen and sophomores; {there is] a lot of diversity in our roster.” Senior Erik Vosen said, “[The freshmen] are giving very good effort. ... They’ve stepped up.”

The new freshmen came up from middle school with more experience, but the team as a whole is working on improving their individual and school record.

Overcoming this season’s challenges will be difficult. Harman said, “Our weakness is our depth, the amount of people out this year.”

There are only 30 boys out this year, compared to the 45-50 expected.

Hopefully things will turn around for the Warriors. Vosen said, “There is still a lot of things to work on.”

The team went to Tomahawk on December 19 for the Tomahawk Invitational.

Catie AndersonSports Editor

Many Warrior swimmers place well at the Elkhorn InviteFeatured

Player of the Month

Aidan SchlittlerPurple Sage: How long have you been swimming?Aidan Schlittler: Eight years. PS: What’s your favorite stroke?AS: Freestyle sprints. PS: What’s your favorite swim memory?AS: The first time I qualified for state. PS: Who are your favorite swimmers? AS: Zac Weiker and Glenn Will because they always give me hugs. PS: What’s the hardest aspect of being a swimmer?AS: Swimming from point A to point A and working like hell to get there. PS: How does it feel to be the third Schlittler on the swim team?AS: It’s amazing to take first place on a relay with brothers I love.

Junior Gunther Knutson dives of the block as senior Jonny Friske just finished. The Warriors hosted the Bad-ger Conference Relays on December 1, the team’s second home event. (Photo by Kelly Boruff)

Above: Junior Randy Clemens wrestles a Sun Prairie opponent at their home match on Decem-ber 15. (Photo by Brian Lenz) Left: Senior Erik Vosen wrestles his 160 lb opponent. (Photo by Kelsey Rudisill) Waunakee lost the meet 21-46 and is 0-3 in conference. They face conference opponent Sauk Prairie next.

How to get pointsin wrestling:

Escape 1 ptTake Down 2 ptsReversal 2 ptsNear Fall 2-3 ptsPin (ends match) 6 pts

Next Home

7:30 p.m.January 7

vs Sauk Prairie

Event

Sara VincentProduction Assistant

Next Home

10 a.m.January 2

Waunakee Invite

Event

The Waunakee boys’ swim team competed at the Elkhorn Invite on December 19. Nine other teams from Divisions 1 and 2 competed at the invite.

Waunakee tied for second place overall with Greenfield/Greendale. However, the meet was in a meter pool rather than a yard pool, so times were different. Waunakee had two teams, an A team and a B team, that partiipated in each relay event.

Waunakee had a good start to the day when both 200-meter medley relay teams placed in the top eight. Team A, consisting of seniors Taylor Schlittler, Keegan Schlittler, Patrick Vincent and sophomore Chris Pedersen, took fifth. Team B, made up of junior Gunther Knutson, sophomore Ryan Duffy and freshmen Gabe Sobczak and freshman Aiden Schlittler, received eighth.

Waunakee was also found to be successful in individual events. In the 200-meter freestyle, Taylor Schlittler earned second place and Duffy attained third.

Vincent and Knutson tied for sixth in the 100-meter butterfly while Keegan Schlittler took

first. In the 400-meter freestyle, Duf fy powered through the last 15 meters and got second place. In the 100-meter backstroke, Sobczak took second in his heat while Taylor Schlittler took second overall. Keegan Schlittler took seventh in the 200-meter individual medley while Aidan Schlittler took seventh in the 50-meter freestyle.

I n r e l a y s , Wa u n a k e e

performed well. The 200-meter free relay teams finished within the top eight. Team A, which consisted of seniors Zac Weiker and Vincent, junior Adam Stroud and Aidan Schlittler, took fourth. Team B, consisting of Sobczak, senior Johnny Friske, and juniors Kevin Fong and Knutson, took eighth.

Keegan Schlittler said, “I feel that the team [this year]

is deeper because we have more people who are getting better at what they’re doing, we had a lot of new people last year who are now getting really good.”