Coming up big

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: Jan. 10, 2014

Coming up big

East makes key shots in 4th quarter

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN

Daily News Sports Editor

Big-time players make bigtime plays in big-time games.

West Bend East’s Ben Vande Zande fit that description Thursday night against rival West Bend West.

The senior made two key 3-pointers early in the fourth quarter to create some separation in a 55-38 victory for the Suns over the Spartans. “I trust the kids that they’re going to make key shots,” East coach Ryan Tomczyk said. “We’ve got a lot of great players that can fill up the hoop.”

Before those baskets, Vande Zande, who went into the game averaging 10.8 points per game, had just five points and was battling foul trouble. He picked up his third foul with 6:49 left in the third quarter.

“I didn’t take as many chances,” Vande Zande said about his play after his third foul. “With a zone defense, it’s easy to give way to another defender. So I just made sure I didn’t pick up any stupid fouls and played solid defense.”

Leading by 11 points with 7:22 left in the fourth quarter, Vande Zande made a 3-point basket to stretch the lead to 42-28. Then, with 5:46 left, Vande Zande hit a second 3-pointer to stretch the lead to 47-30, prompting a timeout by West (4-6, 3-3).

From there, the Suns were in control of a game that wasn’t swinging one way or the other until Vande Zande’s shots.

After not making any 3-pointers in the first half, East had seven in the second.

“Not surprised,” West coach Ryan Wietor said. “They’re a really good team.”

“We gave shooters too much space,” he added. “With a team that shoots the ball as well as they do and as consistently as they do, that’s what you get.”

West scored the game’s first points. After that, East (8-3, 5-1) went on a 10-0 run and never trailed the rest of the game.

West hung tight, with the help of Andrew and Jacob Duening.

The twins combined to score 10 of West’s 16 first-half points. Because both teams struggled with ball control in the first half — the teams combined for 24 first-half turnovers — West still had a chance, trailing by only three points at halftime.

“We weren’t playing great,” Wietor said. “We were showing an improvement over the course of the first half. I thought we had come into halftime with a little bit of momentum even though we were down.”

Vande Zande also hit a 3-pointer with 2:29 left in the third quarter to give East a 31-21 lead and prompting a timeout by West.

It was the first time the lead got into double digits.

“I tell the kids if the shot is open they have the green light,” Tomczyk said.

West did all it could to stay close to its rival, but outside of the Duening twins, the Spartans struggled offensively.

Andrew Duening finished the game with 19 points and nine rebounds.

Collin Liebherr scored 19 points to lead the Suns and added five rebounds. Alex Manhardt had 13 points and nine rebounds, and Vande Zande finished with 11 points and three steals.

With the victory, East has now won three straight games in the series after West had won eight of the previous 10. The victory also snaps a three-game slide and, most importantly for the Suns, it keeps them in striking distance of Wisconsin Little Ten Conferenceleading Wisconsin Lutheran.

The Vikings beat the Suns on Jan. 3 to take a one-game lead in the standings. They’ll reconvene Feb. 11 at Wisconsin Lutheran.

The Vikings, who are 5-0 in the WLT, were idle Thursday and will host Slinger at 7:15 p.m. today. The Owls are 4-1 in the conference and are trying to keep the conference race interesting.

“We’ve got to stay on their heels,” Vande Zande said of Wisconsin Lutheran. “We’ve got to keep putting the pressure on them.”

Changes imminent for preseason practice

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: Jan. 9, 2014

Changes imminent for preseason practice

Move hopes to reduce injuries

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN

Daily News Sports Editor

Wisconsin appears to be on its way to being the model for how to protect young football players in the heat of the summer.

Dan Brunner, former Hartford Union football coach and the director of the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association, said Wednesday a proposal by the coaches association is ready to be implemented by the WIAA and be in place in time for the 2014 season.

The plan?

To implement only helmets and shoulder pads to be worn in practice after three days of participation and full pads after five days.

Under the old rule, players could have full contact in full pads in practice after three days of participation.

In addition, teams will not be allowed to practice for more than two consecutive hours without a break.

“It’s got wholesale support from the (WIAA) board of directors and the majority of our membership that we polled,” Brunner said. “It’s a positive step in preventing heatborne illnesses.

“The offshoot of this is less injuries which occur early in the season. ... What’s really going to happen is what used to be the traditional two-adays is now gone.”

The length of the break after the two hours of practice on the field must be at least 30 minutes. Then teams can practice for up to an hour.

Also, every other day, teams can do an evening walkthrough practice after the allotted three hours of practice in one day, helmets only, after a three-hour break.

Some states also have similar rules in place, but were enforced by the governing association.

The WFCA is taking the initiative to putting these rules into effect, before that happens which, according to Brunner, puts Wisconsin in a class by itself.

“We wanted to get ahead of the curve,” Brunner said.

The proposal was presented to the WIAA in November and after a long meeting between the WFCA and the WIAA, the groups decided it was necessary to move forward with the plan.

It is waiting for a vote by the WIAA’s Board of Control. If OK’d, the proposal will go before the state’s athletic directors at the WIAA Annual Meeting in April.

Brunner is confident the proposal will pass without resistance.

“We’ve been assured this is going to pass,” Brunner said.

“Anything we can do to put a positive in football is good for us,” Hartford coach Tom Noennig said. “There’s so much negativity, especially about concussions. I know parents are struggling with their kids playing youth football.

“The more we can do to ensure their sons will be safe the better.”

Noennig, along with Slinger coach Bill Jacklin, said this move is a prime example of what’s on the minds of the coaches in the state association, which has more than 3,000 members.

“Our coaches association is one of the best ones in the country,” Jacklin said. “We have a lot of coaches that care about kids. ... Ultimately the goal is you teaching football, life lessons and protecting the kids. That says something about the state coaches association.”

“It’s important to tell everybody that we’re looking out for the safety of kids,” Noennig said. “We want them to know we’re doing things the right way.”

Preventing or minimizing injuries was a motivator for this step. Another motive was to help programs that might struggle with its participation numbers, especially if teams have depth issues and are hit by injuries before the season even starts.

“It’s harder every year to keep kids out for football,” Noennig said. “In August, there’s more kids on the sideline than there are in September and October.”

These changes only apply to the preseason practices in August before school starts. Brunner said there are discussions about the rules after school has started or in the week of a team’s first game, if school hasn’t started.

“We think this will improve numbers,” Brunner said of the changes, which he added have been discussed for the last two or three years.

West vs. East: Not just bragging rights on the line

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: Jan. 8, 2014

West vs. East

Not just bragging rights on the line

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN

Daily News Sports Editor

Yes, the West Bend East versus West Bend West rivalry is unique.

However, for the first time in recent memory, Thursday’s boys basketball game has more at stake than just in-house bragging rights.

Positioning in the Wisconsin Little Ten Conference is at stake as East and West try to stay within reach of conference-leading Wisconsin Lutheran. The same Vikings team that beat East on Friday night and has won 22 straight conference games and eight straight league titles.

A loss for East or West will make winning or even contending for the WLT crown a bigger challenge moving into the second half of the season. “When we lost to Wisco, we did fall one game behind them,” East coach Ryan Tomczyk said. “It just makes it that much more important for us. The goal for us is to compete for the conference title. Whether we’re playing West or anybody else.”

East won both matchups last season against West. However, West had been in control of the series before last season, winning eight of the previous 10 matchups.

“They got us twice last year and I think that still sits on the minds of our returning players,” West coach Ryan Wietor said. “But we can’t think about that too much.

“For us to move forward, every game is crucial, not just the East-West game,” he added. “You try to instill that it is a conference game and that we’re going to approach it the same. We want to take strides at being at the top of the conference and you have to beat the teams in front of us.”

Going into Thursday night, East is ahead of West in the WLT standings.

East will go into the game, which is slated to start at 7:15 p.m., with a 7-4 overall record (4-1 in the WLT), while West is 4-5 (3-2).

Not since at least 2002 has each team gone into the first East-West game with at least a .500 record. West is a game under .500, but has played a tough schedule, with eight of its first nine games having been on the road, including a pair of games at the John Chekouras Tournament at Homestead High School in Mequon.

The Spartans lost to Homestead in the championship of that tournament after beating Waupun, which is led by Mason Domask, who is in the top 15 in scoring in the state.

West is coming off a loss Friday at Hartford Union, a game Wietor wasn’t pleased about with his team.

“I think they had a really good game plan against us,” Wietor said of Hartford. “I don’t think our guys stepped up to the challenge.”

The Spartans are led by twin brothers Andrew and Jacob Duening. The duo is averaging more than 23 points per game. Mike Frei is averaging 9 points per game and Kyle Wilde is averaging 8.

“Their size is definitely going to give us a challenge,” Tomczyk said. “It puts stress on us to block out and rebound.

“The X-factor is needing someone to come into the game and give us a lift.”

The Suns have dropped three straight since a 7-1 start, its best in more than a decade. However, like West, East has lost to tough competition, including Milwaukee Rufus King and Wisconsin Lutheran.

Senior Collin Liebherr is having a strong season, averaging 15.3 points per game, which is second in the conference behind Watertown’s Jake Larkin (17.3). Alex Manhardt and Ben Vande Zande are also averaging double figures for East at 12.3 and 10.8 points per game, respectively.

“I like the way they play the game,” Wietor said. “They play hard, they play confident, they shoot the heck out of the basketball.”

East won’t play Wisconsin Lutheran until Feb. 11 at Wisconsin Lutheran, while the Spartans will get the Vikings on Jan. 28 in West Bend.

Both teams know a program that’s won eight straight conference titles, such as Wisconsin Lutheran, can quickly run away with the title if they can’t keep up.

In addition, Slinger is right in the mix at 4-1 in the WLT.

“It does put a little bit of extra sense of urgency,” Tomczyk said. “It’s going to be an exciting game because both teams are on the rise.”

Packers playoff game cold sore for fans

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: Jan. 3, 2014

Packers playoff game cold sore for fans

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN

Daily News Sports Editor

A change in the Green Bay Packers ticket policy regarding playoff games this season has fans stuck in the cold.

That’s not counting the expected frigid temperatures when the Packers kick-off their NFC wild-card playoff game Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers in Green Bay.

“The Packers really screwed up with some of the things they were doing,” said Jared Uhan, a sports account manager at Journal Broadcasting Group and brother of former West Bend West girls volleyball coach Alex Uhan.

“They should’ve never put themselves in this position,” Jared Uhan added. “I think they took advantage of the season ticket holders.”

The Packers’ game is in danger of being blacked out in the Milwaukee and Green Bay television markets, including Washington County, if the game is not sold out, which hasn’t happened at Lambeau Field since a 1983 playoff game against the St. Louis Cardinals.

The team has until 4 p.m. today to sell out the game or the game will be blacked out to local viewers. The deadline was 3:40 p.m. Thursday before the NFL granted the Packers an extension in attempt to sell out the game.

“I really don’t know,” Joe Baumann of West Bend said when asked why he thinks the Packers are having troubles selling tickets.

“This whole holiday season seems odd with the holidays (Christmas and New Years days) being on a Wednesday.”

In previous seasons, season ticket holders got first crack at playoff tickets, putting in a deposit for playoff tickets. Uhan said he had to put down a deposit of about $1,500. And if the Packers didn’t make the playoffs? The money was refunded.

That changed this year.

Instead, it would be applied to the season-ticket holder’s account for the 2014 season.

“It’s like taking your money a full year in advance,” Uhan said.

Uhan received the invoice about the playoff tickets in November. At that time, the Packers were reeling. Former MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers was out with a broken collarbone and the team was mired in an 0-4-1 slump, capped by a 40-10 loss to the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving.

Fans didn’t think it was worth the gamble. So they decided to spend that money on presents for the holidays.

“It was kind of a long shot three weeks ago,” Baumann said.

It all changed Sunday when Rodgers completed a touchdown pass to Randall Cobb in the final minute against the Chicago Bears to send the Packers to a division championship and the playoffs.

It all got interesting in the hours after the game, Uhan said.

He paid $1,500 for the highest possible scenario, which was a home game in the divisional round and the conference championship. The face value for Uhan’s tickets for those games are $152 and $230 per ticket, respectively, which is an increase of about 30 percent from the regular season prices. He was given four tickets for each game.

This year, the Packers will host the wild-card game ($125 face value) and possibly the conference championship. If the Packers don’t host a second playoff game, the money spent on the conference championship game would be a credit for next season’s account.

There is more to this saga.

When the tickets went on sale to season ticket holders at 9 a.m. Monday and to the general public at 3 p.m., four tickets was the maximum.

There was a catch.

Fans weren’t going to be allowed to print tickets off at home. They were only going to be available at will call, with a photo ID and the credit card used for the purchase. Uhan said he tried reaching a ticket office representative for two hours because the phone lines were busy.

“The Packers tried to prevent people from reselling them,” Uhan said, adding the Packers denied the issues saying it was a problem with Ticketmaster.

That rule has since changed and so has the limit on tickets.

“This was the worst year they could do that,” Uhan said of the Packers’ decision.

The cost and weather are the two biggest factors as to why area Packers fans aren’t budging on playoff tickets.

“The cost of the tickets along with the travel, parking, food, beverages is just too much right after Christmas,” West Bend’s Shari Prag said. “I may be an odd one, but I don’t need to go further into debt for a live game. I have too many other things that need to be taken care of with any money I have available.”

“If the tickets were 25 dollars cheaper, the working class could fit them into their budget,” Kewaskum’s Bob Schneider said. “After all the dollars spent on the holidays, a weeks pay to take the family to the game is a tough decision.”

West steps toward change

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: Dec. 28, 2013

West steps toward change

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN

Daily News Sports Editor

MEQUON — Just like their counterparts in the same building, West Bend West is trying to change the culture with its boys basketball program.

That’s why even after a 61-51 victory over Waupun in the eighth annual John Chekouras Classic at Homestead High School, which the Spartans led from start to finish, West was happy with the victory, but not satisfied.

“Our idea of playing well has changed,” West coach Ryan Wietor said. “We’re looking at moving forward here; not just being content with a win.”

However, the Spartans had to sweat out the ending more than they would’ve liked.

West (4-3) never trailed in the game and led 52-40 with 2:21 left in the fourth quarter.

The first half was good, but not great, Wietor said. Statistically, the half was great.

The Spartans committed just three turnovers in the first half, while forcing eight by Waupun. They also had just two first-half fouls.

And maybe the biggest stat from the first half, which West led 27-19, was the Spartans held Mason Domask, the 14thleading scorer in the state at 24.5 points per game, to just six points in the half.

Even in the third quarter, the Spartans stayed aggressive and ahead of the Warriors, leading by 14 points heading into the fourth quarter.

So what gives?

“It was lifeless,” Wietor said. “The tempo of the game was not to my liking.”

In the fourth quarter, Domask got loose.

The junior scored 17 points in the quarter and almost single-handedly got the Warriors back in the game. After trailing by 12 in the waning moments of the game, Domask carried the Warriors to within five points with 47 seconds remaining.

“We were in a situation where we had to score quick,” Waupun coach Dan Domask said. “We weren’t able to get the shots we wanted, so we kind of freed Mason up to just let him go and he hit some shots to help close the gap.”

Mason Domask scored 24 of the Warriors’ 32 second-half points, including the first 18.

West tried to cover the quick guard by mixing up its coverages. At times, the Spartans had Jacob Duening and Matt Koerner on Domask, both of whom are taller than 6-5 on the 6-3 guard. Then West had a shorter, but faster Joe Peplinski on Domask.

Wietor said he had confidence in Duening guarding Domask, but was still a bit uneasy about Domask’s abilities.

“I’m confident with him guarding anyone,” Wietor said of Duening. “But I know with his field goal attempts, if you shoot enough, there’s some that are going to go in.”

Led by key free throws by Mike Frei in the closing seconds of the game, West was able to avoid a letdown.

Frei led four Spartans in double figures with 18 points. Freshman Kyle Wilde had 13 points, followed by Andrew Duening with 12 and Koerner with 10, all in the fourth quarter.

“It was not pretty,” Wietor said. “I think we were still on Christmas break. A lot of just going through the motions.

“I’m not happy with our play. ... To be able to play poorly and get a win, we’re real happy about that.”

Wietor is in his fourth season at West, where he starred for the Spartans and remains the school’s all-time leading scorer. Wietor is now 23-53 as the Spartans’ head coach.

He’s trying to get things pointed the right direction at West. West Bend East, after Friday’s loss to Milwaukee Rufus King, is 7-2. The Spartans are trying to keep up.

“We have a group of 13 guys that were happy with the win, but not satisfied with how we played,” Wietor said.

“It’s a mentality we’re trying to instill,” he added. “We’re not just out here having a friendly game of basketball. We’re out here to compete every single night.”

Playing in the championship game of an in-season tournament is at least a start.

The Spartans will play either Menomonee Falls or Homestead in today’s championship game, which is slated to start at 8 p.m.

“We’re going to have to play light years better to have a shot tomorrow night,” Wietor said.