View from the cheap seats
A weekly perspective on sports
Casey Krautkramer Reporter The Record-Review
The Edgar varsity girls basketball team has a shot to make school history this weekend. The Wildcats are just two games away from making their first ever state tournament appearance.
First, Edgar needs to “solve the Assumption puzzle” as head varsity girls coach Tom McCarty termed it for attempting to be the only area team this season to accomplish this feat. The Wildcats play against the Royals this Thursday, March 3, in a WIAA Division 5 sectional semifinal at Marshfield High School.
Local girls basketball teams like Athens and Marathon have come close to beating Wisconsin Rapids Assumption this season, but nobody has quite been able to find a way to outlast the Royals.
“I think we are going to try to break up their rhythm and close them down a little bit,” McCarty said. “I think if we can limit our turnovers against their swarming zone defense and get good shots, then we’ll be right there with them at the end of the game.”
It seems opponents are very tired by the end of their games against Assumption, because the Royals fullcourt press the entire time, which allows them to come back for wins like they did against Athens in the regional championship on Saturday.
Athens’ varsity girls basketball squad came so close to beating Wisconsin Rapids Assumption in the regional championship, by leading the majority of the game until the very end in a one-point loss. My heart goes out to Athens head varsity girls coach Kyncaide Keefe and her players, especially the three seniors Cassandra Riehle, Elizabeth Van Rixel and McKennzie Schug.
The Bluejays played their hearts out against the Royals, and especially Schug who shook off an injury before halftime to come back and play in the second half.
Coach Keefe certainly has the Athens High School girls basketball program on the upswing and the future is certainly still very bright star sophomore players Jazelle Hartwig, twins Sophia and Sydney Coker and Addison Lavicka still have two more seasons to keep improving their basketball skills.
Should Edgar’s girls basketball team beat Assumption, then it would play in a WIAA Division 5 sectional championship at 1 p.m. this Saturday, March 5, at D.C. Everest.
Retired Edgar varsity girls basketball coach Betty Urmanski nearly guided the 2010-11 and 2011-12 squads to the school’s first state tournament appearance, after each of these teams lost in the sectional championship.
Urmanski has returned to Edgar this season as an assistant high school coach in place of the late Gary Brewster.
Edgar varsity assistant coach Holly (Denfeld) Nowak played on Urmanski’s 2010-11 and 2011-12 teams that nearly made it to state.
