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SPRING VALLEY

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DUNN-ST. CROIX

MIDDLE BORDER

PIERCE COUN TY HERAL D

OCTOBER 7, 2015

LAKELAND SOUTH

PRESCOTT VOLLEYBALL

Prescott takes control of MBC

Cardinals defeat
Baldwin for
conference lead

By Blaze Fugina
bfugina@rivertowns.net

The Prescott volleyball

team held a 2-1 set lead as it
headed into the fourth set of a
home match between the last
two undefeated teams in the
Middle Border Conference last
Prescotts Bekah Miller sends a ball over the net during Tuesdays Tuesday.
match against Baldwin-Woodville. (Herald photo by Blaze Fugina)
Baldwin-Woodville was not

ready to give up, however, taking an 18-14 lead and threatening to push the match to a fifth
set. That is when the Cardinals
players spoke about the importance of ending things as soon
as possible.
I think we all took a deep
breath and were like, Okay,
this is our game, senior Lily
Weiser said. Weve got this.
And we just played how we
play.
Weiser picked up a number
of key kills down the stretch as

ELLSWORTH CROSS-COUNTRY

Bell paces the competition

Ellsworth runner
hopes to make
waves at state

take the second set 25-23.

Momentum then switched back
to the Cardinals in set three, as
they broke an early 8-8 tie to
win 25-22. This led to the fourth
set where Prescott was able to
close out the match.
Weiser and Bekah Miller led
with 15 kills, while Katelyn
Miller finished with 10. Alexis
Maxwell had 27 assists, with
Ashley Perry collecting seven.
Katelyn Miller led with 22 digs,
------- S E E M B C 4 B -------

ELLSWORTH CROSS-COUNTRY

Panthers run faster

at full strength
By Blaze Fugina
bfugina@rivertowns.net

By Blaze Fugina
bfugina@rivertowns.net

Sam Bell has been turning heads all season for the
Ellsworth cross-country team
after moving to Pierce County
for his senior year of school.
The former North St. Paul,
Minn. student has won nearly
every race he has competed in
since making the move across
the St. Croix River to western
Wisconsin. But the Panthers
runner has larger goals this year
besides just winning races in the
area. He wants to make waves
at the state level.
I want to win state, Bell
said at a cross-country race in
Spring Valley Thursday. If I
dont, Im okay with it. But Im
not going for anything else.
So far, so good for the former North St. Paul runner who
finished 47th at the Class AA
Minnesota state meet last season with a 5-kilometer time of
16:17. Bell said he has enjoyed
the training plan created by the
Ellsworth coaching staff.
This year I actually feel as
if I am running better than I did
last season, Bell said.
So how did the cross-country runner end up in Ellsworth
after previously attending high
school in North St. Paul? He
made the move this June along
with his father and brothers to
live in town with his dads girlfriend and her children.
We wanted something different, Bell said. We didnt
really like it back there. So
we decided to move here, and
see how it works out. And if
it works out really well, then
well stay.
So far, he has enjoyed the
move. He lives just a few
blocks from the high school,
and said Ellsworth has everything he needs right in town.
Bell has also enjoyed the variety of workouts planned by the
Ellsworth coaches.
Its been kind of new,
doing things Ive never done

Prescott tied the set at 20-20.

Then, with match point in hand,
Gabby Janovec picked up the
game-winning kill for a 25-21
four-set victory.
I think we were really
scrappy all around, Janovec
said. Everyone was doing their
part. We all have the heart and
the determination.
Prescott started the match
with a 25-22 set one victory
over Baldwin.
But the Blackhawks showed
resilience, fighting back to

Sam Bell runs through the Spring Valley cross-country course on a sunny Thursday afternoon. Bell
placed first in the 5-kilometer race by more than a minute, crossing the finish line in 16 minutes, 45 seconds. (Herald photo by Blaze Fugina)

like stretching and ab workouts

- and actual endurance workouts, Bell said.
In many of Bells races this
season, he has cruised to first
place finishes well ahead of

any competitors. This was the second place Brett Tomlinson

case during Thursdays Spring of Durand in 18:02.
Valley meet, when Bell finished
Bell has been determined to
more than one full minute ahead continue improving while priof the pack. He crossed the fin------- S E E B E L L 2 B ------ish line in 16:45, followed by

The
Ellsworth
girls
cross-country lineup is led by
four solid runners who have
the potential to finish near the
top of the team standings at
most meets.
As long as the entire team
is healthy.
Ellsworth demonstrated
this ability to run strong as
they won the team title during
Thursdays Spring Valley
cross-country meet with a total
of 52 points. Four Panthers
finished in the top-10 individually. Rachel Mancuso took
second place (21:27), followed
by Julia Vanwatermeulen in
fourth (22:21), Claire Straub
in seventh (22:41) and Emma
Omicini in eighth (22:48).
The
return
of
Vanwatermeulen from injury
has been a big boost to the
Panthers this season, helping
to fill a gap as one of the
teams top runners.
I feel really good this
year about our team,
Vanwatermeulen
said.
Because Claire and Emma,
theyre coming up. And were
already up there, so thats four
in the top 10.
Vanwatermeulen
had
been out of the lineup for the
Panthers since the beginning
of the practice season, when
she was diagnosed with a
strained knee. The injury kept
her out of the lineup until her
return at a Durand invitational
on Sept. 24.
I strained my knee, so then
the doctor said six to eight
weeks, Vanwatermeulen said.
Then I just waited like two,
and then started running again.
I practiced three days, and then
I ran Durand. Im just trying to
get back up to winning again.
Meanwhile, fellow sophomore Rachel Mancuso has
continued running strong races
like she did last season. She
cautioned Vanwatermeulen to
take it easy when her knee
started bothering her earlier in
the season.

Julia Vanwatermeulen navigates the early part of the

Spring Valley cross-country
course Thursday. (Herald
photo by Blaze Fugina)

I told her, You should

probably take a break. I dont
want you to get overly hurt,
Mancuso said. Shes my running buddy, I cant lose her.
Both
Mancuso
and
Vanwatermeulen just missed
berths at state following the
sectional cross-country race in
Black River Falls last year.
Mancuso finished one spot
behind state qualification
in ninth place with a time
of 21:41. Vanwatermeulen
placed two spots behind her in
11th with a time of 21:41.
Both
Mancuso
and
Vanwatermeulen said they
want another shot at individual state berths this season in
sectionals. Plus, with a young
Ellsworth lineup, the girls pictured the possibility of having
a strong enough team to earn a
team sectional title.
If we can keep getting up
as a team, then maybe we
------- S E E R U N 3 B -------

PRESCOTT FOOTBALL

Prescott football seeks a rebound

By Blaze Fugina
bfugina@rivertowns.net

After starting the season with

two Middle Border Conference
wins, the Prescott football team
has lost its past three games to
some of the top teams in the
standings.
The most recent loss
came with a 49-10 defeat to
MBC leading Osceola during
Prescotts homecoming on
Friday. The Chieftains cruised
to a 35-3 halftime lead after
Ethan Ellingsworth scored four
rushing touchdowns.
They are big and fast,
said senior running back Nolan
Schock about Osceola. They
commit to the weight room, and
thats something we need to do
a lot more of over the summer.
After Ellingsworth scored
his first touchdown, Prescott

followed with its best drive of

the first half. A 23-yard run
by Schock helped the Cardinals
get the ball moving. The drive
stopped at the Cardinals 6-yard
line, however, and Gabe Diaz
knocked down a 23-yard field
goal for a 7-3 deficit.
Tanner Johnson also scored
a first-half touchdown for
Osceola, and he added another
in the third quarter for a 42-3
lead. Cal Germain found the
endzone on a 1-yard run in
the fourth quarter to give the
Chieftains a 46-point advantage.
Schock broke through for
a Prescott touchdown in the
fourth quarter, scoring on a
65-yard run with less than three
minutes remaining.
After the game, the
Prescott players recognized the
Chieftains large amount of ath-

GET UP TO AN

letes who were able to move the

ball and play sound defense.
They played very disciplined football, said senior
tight end Keegan Nielsen. Hats
off to them, that was a good
football game.
Nielsen led the Cardinals
receivers with two catches for
28 yards. Quarterback Luke
Murphy completed three passes
for 38 yards with one interception.
Schock led the ground game
as he rushed the ball for 120
yards with a touchdown.
Sophomore Derek Rundquist
led the defense with nine tackles. Nielsen had eight tackles
with one forced fumble, and
Schock finished with six tackles
and a sack.
Head coach Matt Smith said
the Chieftains are perhaps the
top team in the MBC this sea-

son. The Cardinals have seen

some tough teams over the past
three weeks, playing Somerset
(2-3 in MBC), New Richmond
(3-2) and Osceola (5-0).
After that stretch, Smith said
it is time for Prescott to regroup.
Weve got to move forward, weve got to recollect,
Smith said. I did see some
positives tonight. I thought we
ran the ball okay inside. We
defended okay at times inside,
but on the perimeter still too
many missed tackles. And still
not enough stability to sustain
drives, and to get a three-andout on defense.
The Cardinals will face
Baldwin-Woodville (1-4) next
week at home, a team that is
coming off a 34-33 overtime
victory against Ellsworth. The
schedule will get tough again
after that, with St. Croix Central

Nolan Schock tries to get around a Chieftains defender during

Fridays homecoming game at Prescott. (Herald photo by Blaze
Fugina)

(5-0) on the road to wrap up the

regular season.
With a 2-3 record in the conference, the Cardinals would
need to win those final two
games to qualify for the WIAA
postseason.
We need to come together as a team, and we need to

practice and work as hard as

we can to hopefully win these
next two games, Schock said.
Were hoping for a win against
Baldwin, and St. Croix Central
is going to be really tough. But
were going to work hard for
it.

Hwy 65 N | Ellsworth, WI
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800-331-1342

www.ellsworthford.com