In celebration of the new year, the Pierce County Journal sports section is counting down the top 10 moments, games, team seasons or careers of the 2022 sports year. This is a subjective list …
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In celebration of the new year, the Pierce County Journal sports section is counting down the top 10 moments, games, team seasons or careers of the 2022 sports year. This is a subjective list celebrating my favorite highlights covering Pierce County sports throughout the 2022 calendar year.
(From left): Senior Maddie Reiter, sophomore Gabby Matzek, senior Madasyn Rundquist, sophomore Jeannie Rohl, and seniors Rhi Stutz and Ava Salay of the Prescott girls golf team celebrate with the 2022 WIAA Division 2 State Championship trophy at University Ridge in Madison on Tuesday, Oct. 11.
Photo by Reagan HovermanOnly five teams in the history of Wisconsin high school golf – either boys or girls – have won three consecutive state championships, and the Prescott Cardinals are one of them. After winning state titles in 2020 and 2021, the Cardinals completed the three-peat with a playoff win over The Prairie School at the University Ridge Golf Course in Madison on Tuesday, Oct. 11. On the second day of the tournament, senior Maddie Reiter’s miracle hole-in-one sparked the comeback while seniors Rhi Stutz and Ava Salay both put together excellent rounds of 74 en route to the title. With the win and a third consecutive championship, Prescott cemented its legacy as one of the great dynasties in the history of Wisconsin high school golf and as the #1 sports team inPierce County for the 2022 season.
(From back, left to right): Jack Janke, Ashten Quade, Bo Hines and Max Grand celebrate with their state championship medals on the podium shortly after winning the 4×100-meter dash at the Division 2 State Track and Field Championships in La Crosse on Saturday, June 4. Photo by Reagan Hoverman
The Ellsworth track and field team made its presence felt statewide throughout the last two years as the boys’ 4×100-meter relay group of Max Grand, Ashten Quade, Jack Janke, Bo Hines and Shane Lange won back-to-back Division 2 State Championships. The Ellsworth boys outdueled some of the best private schools in the state, La Crosse Aquinas and Waukesha Catholic Memorial, in the 2022 state finals on Saturday, June 4, in La Crosse. The success of the boys’ 4×100-meter relay throughout the last two seasons has made the aforementioned group of athletes one of the most successful in program history. Ellsworth head coach Drew Pechacek told The Journal that the boys’ 4×100 group has completely changed the Panthers’ track and field program for the better and will leave a lasting legacy in Ellsworth for years to come.
Perhaps no athlete on this list has more charisma and commands a crowd better than River Falls’ Vito Massa. Despite weighing approximately 200 pounds during his 2021-22 senior campaign, Massa wrestled in the 285-pound bracket throughout the season and had nearly unprecedented success. Massa’s raw athleticism and speed helped him dismantle slower, larger competition, which led to his win in the 285-pound bracket at the Northern Badger Wrestling Classic. His momentum from that victory propelled him to Madison a couple of months later where he won the 285-pound Division 1 State Wrestling Championship. River Falls head coach Kevin Black told The Journal that Massa relished in the large crowd environment at the Kohl Center during his state title match. The crowd embraced him and chanted “Vito! Vito! Vito!” en route to his state championship.
River Falls senior wrestler Vito Massa raises his arms in celebration moments after winning the 285-pound Division 1 State Championship in Madison on Saturday, Feb. 26. Photo courtesy of River Falls High School Wrestling
River Falls Fighting Fish pitcher Kyle Fritz (#8) holds up the 2022 WBA State Championship trophy while the rest of the roster and coaching staff celebrate around him. The Fighting Fish won their second state title in the last three seasons with a 3-2 victory over Tilden on Sunday, Aug. 21, in Onalaska. Photo by Reagan Hoverman
When the final out was recorded on Sunday, Aug. 21, the River Falls Fighting Fish had secured a 3-2 victory over the Tilden Tigers in the 2022 Wisconsin Baseball Association (WBA) State Championship game. The 2022 title was River Falls’ second championship in the last three seasons, joining the 2019 squad. The Fighting Fish’s stacked roster led River Falls to a 36-7 overall record, which tied its highest win total in franchise history. Whether it was standout slugger Spencer Diedrich hitting home runs and breaking records, Kyle Fritz pitching a shutout or Ragan Pinnow making unbelievable putout throws from third base, the 2022 Fighting Fish had everything. A truly complete team in all aspects full of great players and even better people.
River Falls senior swimmer Ellery Ottem pens her letter of intent on National Signing Day at River Falls High School on Wednesday, Nov. 9. Ottem is joined by RFHS head swim coach Caitlin Brudzinski and Mako Aquatics head coach Robert Young. Ottem leaves River Falls as the most accomplished swimmer in program history. Photo by Reagan Hoverman
Outgoing River Falls senior Ellery Ottem is perhaps the most individually accomplished student-athlete on this entire list. In both her junior and senior seasons of 2021 and 2022, Ottem finished inside the top five in the 100 and 200-yard Freestyle events at the State Swimming and Diving Championships. Ottem leaves River Falls as easily the most accomplished swimmer in school history, as she essentially rewrote the entire school record book. Ottem’s success earned her national recognition, as major Division 1 schools from around the country recruited her for their swimming programs. Ottem ultimately chose the University of South Carolina where she will compete in the SEC, the best D1 swimming conference in the country.
Elmwood/Plum City senior running back Trevor Asher put up such astounding rushing numbers throughout his 2022 senior season that he earned statewide attention. Asher finished the season with 2,442 rushing yards and 31 touchdowns, which ranked fourth and sixth in the state in those respective categories. Asher’s 2,442 yards broke Elmwood/ Plum City’s single-season rushing record which had stood since 1961. He was also named as one of six finalists for the Elroy “Crazylegs” Hirsch Award, which is annually given to the top senior running back in Wisconsin. Although Asher didn’t win the award, he still put together one of the most impressive individual seasons in Elmwood/Plum City history and broke records that had stood for more than half a century.
Elmwood/Plum City senior Trevor Asher (right) and Jim Baier (left) are two of the most accomplished running backs in school history. Asher tallied 2,442 rushing yards in his 2022 senior campaign, which broke the previous record Baier had held since 1961. Photo courtesy of Elmwood/Plum City Football
The Elmwood/Plum City volleyball team celebrates with the 2022 Division 4 Regional Championship trophy. The Wolves’ regional title was the first since becoming a co-op. Plum City hadn’t won one since 2012 and Elmwood hadn’t done it since 1985. Photo by Reagan Hoverman
The Elmwood/Plum City Wolves volleyball team put it all together for one magical season in the fall of 2022. The Wolves survived a five-set thriller at home against Alma Center Lincoln on Saturday, Oct. 22, to secure the Division 4 Regional Championship, the first in Elmwood/Plum City history since becoming a co-op. Before coming together as one team, Plum City hadn’t won a regional title since 2012 and Elmwood hadn’t done it since 1985. In that regional championship game, senior setter Lily Webb held back tears as she played through a knee injury and led her team to victory as the team’s primary offensive player. The 2022 season featured a conference championship, a regional title, and some of the best volleyball those two communities have seen in the last 40 years.
Spring Valley pitcher Treyson Witt gets ready to deliver a pitch during the game against River Falls on July 30. The Hawks defeated River Falls with a three-run walk-off bomb that sent Spring Valley to the playoffs. Photo by Reagan Hoverman
In terms of individual moments, this is one of the best things I saw all year – chills just thinking about it. To set the stage, the Spring Valley Hawks were hosting the River Falls Fighting Fish in a critical WBA game with a postseason berth on the line. The Fish had already secured their spot, but Spring Valley hovered around the cutline and a win would punch a ticket to the playoffs. The Fish had been nearly unbeatable throughout the 2022 season and Spring Valley was trailing 8-6 heading into the bottom of the ninth inning. Two leadoff singles brought Spring Valley’s Dennis Schutz to the plate. Schutz saw a pitch he liked and blasted it off the left field foul pole for a three-run walk-off home run to secure the 9-8 victory and a playoff berth. Spring Valley manager Erik Thompson told The Journal it’s a moment his guys will remember long after they’re all done playing amateur baseball.
The Spring Valley student section cheers on the Cardinals basketball team during the sectional semifinal game against Durand at Menomonie High School on Thursday, March 10. Photo by Reagan Hoverman
While thinking about the list, this was one of the first games that came to my mind. I’ve covered state championship football and massive sectional final volleyball games, but the attendance, noise and overall crowd environment at the Spring Valley vs. Durand boys basketball sectional semifinal at the neutral site of Menomonie on Thursday, March 10, was the best crowd I’ve seen in my two years covering sports. Both student sections had hundreds of kids and a gym that seats nearly 2,000 people was filled to the brim. The line to get into the game was so long that it went out the doors of the high school. Although Spring Valley ultimately lost the game, it was a perfect example of what high school sports are all about.
The University of Wisconsin-River Falls football team celebrates with the 2022 Culver’s Isthmus Bowl trophy shortly after defeating Washington University St. Louis 31-24 in the second annual Isthmus Bowl on Saturday, Nov. 19. Photo by Reagan Hoverman
Last but certainly not least, the UWRF Falcons football team won its second consecutive Culver’s Isthmus Bowl, an annual Division 3 college football bowl game featuring the top two teams in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) and the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) that didn’t make the national playoffs. The Isthmus Bowl, which played its inaugural game in 2021, featured UWRF and Washington University St. Louis, a game the Falcons won 48-27. The Falcons won the second annual Culver’s Isthmus Bowl on Saturday, Nov. 19, with a 31-24 win, also against Washington University St. Louis. UWRF sophomore quarterback Kaleb Blaha earned MVP honors after compiling 300 yards of offense and two touchdowns in the win.
