Win at Waupaca keeps curling streak going

MEDFORD CURLING

It’s a goal of every sports team to be playing its best going into post-season play and the Medford Raiders’ curling teams seem to be doing just that.

The Raiders girls and boys teams ended their regular seasons Thursday with wins at Waupaca to keep the momentum they’ve been building for the past month rolling.

Next up is the Wisconsin State High School Curling Championships, which return to the Wausau Curling Center this Friday and Saturday.

After a 12-3 win over the Comets on Thursday, Medford’s girls team of senior Lyza Brandner, senior Karlee Westrich, senior Anya Apfelbeck and freshman Erica Brandner enters state as the seventh seed out of 16 teams and owns a 9-5-1 overall record.

The boys team, with junior Brett Lundy back at skip along with senior Dalton Casar and sophomores Alex Wilson and Nathan Willman, took care of Waupaca 14-7 to earn its fifth straight win and finish the regular season at 5-9. The season’s late surge pushed the Raiders into the 15th seed in the boys 16-team field.

Friday’s play in Wausau will feature boys draws at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. and girls play at 11:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Round-robin play will wrap up Saturday with draws at 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Pool champions will meet in the semifinals at 1:30 p.m. and the championships are set for 4:30 p.m.

Original Covid precautions had called for fans to be prohibited from attending the bonspiel until Saturday’s semifinals and finals, but that has since changed and fans will be allowed for round-robin play as well.

Medford’s girls will play in a pool that includes two-seed Pardeeville and the JV squads from Portage and Wausau West. The Raiders will play Portage II in the 11:30 a.m. draw Friday, Wausau West II in the 6 p.m. draw and Pardeeville in the 8 a.m. draw Saturday.

Wausau West I is the top seed. Poynette is the threeseed and Lodi is seeded fourth.

Medford’s boys will play in a pool that includes twoseed Poynette, seven-seed Stevens Point, who the Raiders beat for their first win on Jan. 27, and Kimberly. The Raiders open with Poynette Friday morning and face Point at 3 p.m. They end with Kimberly at 10:30 a.m. Saturday.

Wausau West is also the top seed in the boys bracket. Pardeeville drew the third seed and Portage is fourth.

Pardeeville is the defending girls state champion, while Poynette is the two-time defending boys champion.