Sports Wrapups: March 29

West track and field

The New Berlin boys finished third and the girls fourth in a quadrangular meet on March 20 at West.

Waterford's boys scored 70.50 points to win the event, followed by Menomonee Falls (55.50), West (41.50) and Sussex Hamilton (23.50).

Here are West's top individual performers: Chase Robles won the 800-meters in 2 minutes, 13.26 seconds and the 4x160 relay was first (1:19.87), while Mitchell Wanta was second in the pole vault (10-feet, 6 inches), the 3,200 relay finished second (9:17) and the 4x240 relay was second (2:13.13).

The Vikings were 2-3-4 in the 200 behind Dylan Wiese (25.47), Dino Poulos (25.55) and Paul Kennedy (25.61) and the 4x400 relay finished second (3:54.80).

Sean Marton was third in the pole vault (10-0), Robles was third in the 1,600 (4:47.23) and Sam Nigbur was third in triple jump (36-3).

The girls scored 27 points to finish behind Waterford (59), Sussex Hamilton (53) and Menomonee Falls (52).

Brittany Kozlowski won the 1,600 in 5:33.34 and Marissa Myers won the shot put with a toss of 32-5½ to highlight the girls.

Other top three finishes went to the 4x160 relay, which took second (1:33.23), Ana Liska was second in the triple jump (28-04.50) and Myers was second in the 55 dash (7.9).

Eisenhower softball

Coach Jeff Setz feels he has enough talent on his New Berlin Eisenhower team to defend the Lions' 2011 Woodland Conference Black Division Championship.

The Lions were 19-7 overall last year and 16-1 in conference play. Setz said to look out for Black Division opponents Whitnall and South Milwaukee and crosstown rival New Berlin West of the Blue Division this season as top contenders.

"Having seven returning starters is a positive," Setz said. "I think pitching experience and depth are the strength of the team."

Setz has plenty of talent returning, led by first-team all-conference pick Katie Lang, an outstanding junior pitcher and outfielder. But that's just the tip of the iceberg.

The Lions have six second-team all-conference picks also returning and they are all seniors - Jamie Kilps (P/OF), Bailey Meyer (3B), Shawna Rickard (C), Jenna Malinauskas (1B) and outfielders Rachel Weigand and Carolyn Bogard.

Setz is also excited about five promising junior newcomers - Anna Nacker (2B), Sam Lewiston (OF), Nicole Pandl (OF), Amber Cywinski (C,) and Emily Malkowski (3B).

The Lions opened with scheduled games at South Milwaukee and Shorewood this week and will play at Wauwatosa West on April 4.

West boys basketball

The New Berlin West boys basketball team had an outstanding year for a team with only one returning player with any valuable varsity experience in Dan Sidesky.

But the Vikings surprised a lot of people by finishing third in the Woodland Conference Blue Division with a 13-5 record and a 17-7 overall mark. The Vikings played well, even in most of their losses, losing by eight, six twice and four points twice.

West coach Jeff Lewiston will be losing five seniors from his team - Sidesky and Matt Rink, the team captains, as well as Jordan McKeon, Mitch Haag and Scott Wilsens.

"I'm very pleased with this team," Lewiston said. "They worked really hard. People thought we would fall off the table. They picked us for fourth or fifth in the division. But these kids worked hard, each doing what they needed to do to get better."

Lewiston said he felt his team was in good shape after going through a challenging early-season schedule. They suffered close losses to St. Thomas More and Eisenhower, but then nipped Whitnall, 51-50. They also won 12 of 13 games, including nine in a row from Jan. 3 to Feb. 3.

"We adapted to the people we had," Lewiston said. "We pressed, ran a little more than in the past. We kept people from getting into their offense. We controlled the tempo. We didn't always get steals, but we controlled how the game was played."

Junior forward Darin Sowinski emerged as a scoring threat (10.6) behind Sidesky (19.7).

"All of a sudden, things started clicking," Lewiston said. "We had different kids emerging. We had a big win over Wauwatosa West, rallying to win the game. That showed me a lot to come back and win. And we continued to get better.

"Danny made everyone better, (and) Rink was tremendous in the second half."

Both Sidesky and Rink have been with the team for three years.

Sidesky was a first-team Blue Division all-conference choice, while Sowinski earned honorable mention honors. Rink was an Academic all-conference choice.

The JV finished 13-5 and the freshmen team was 9-9.

Eisenhower boys basketball

Although the New Berlin Eisenhower boys had its streak snapped of six straight league titles which it won outright or shared, the Lions still had an excellent season under coach Dave Scheidegger.

Only a great season by Whitnall (15-2, 22-3) prevented the Lions from another championship, as they finished 13-4 in the conference and were 17-6 overall.

"It was a fantastic year," Scheidegger said. "We won one more game than last year. That's improvement. You define success in so many different ways.

"If you tell someone they would go into the second last game and have a chance to win their seventh straight title, I'll take that. We were very competitive to the end. This is a very competitive conference."

Scheidegger will lose six seniors to graduation, including two starters - Keith Kahlfeldt and John Crowley. Jake Sperka, Steve Itsines, Darren Lehsten and Dylan Petre will also graduate.

"These seniors were always improving, working hard, having fun (and) always here to practice," Scheidegger said. "They kept up the tradition of supporting the program and the school first. That's what it's all about - being loyal to the school. It's a good group, who had a lot of success."

Both Kahlfeldt and sophomore guard Reed Timmer earned first-team Black Division all-conference honors and junior Sandro Pesqueira earned second-team. Petre was an Academic all-conference selection.

Key returning players who played in 19 or more games will be Timmer, the team's leading scorer (17.5) and juniors Pesqueira (10.9), Mitch Arman (4.8) and Gerald Bufford III (2.9).

There should be good things in the future for the Lions, as their JV was 15-2 and the freshmen team was 10-7.

The Lions had their awards banquet Sunday night and the following honors were given out: Kahlfeldt earned the MVP Award and he and Crowley were team captains. Crowley also earned the Take Charge Award (taking most charges), the Best Defense Award and the Lions Pride Award.

Junior guard Corbin Messman also earned two awards - the Best Practice Player Award and the Rookie of the Year Award.

Both Pesqueira and Itsines shared the Most Improved Player Award.

Eisenhower girls track and field

The New Berlin Eisenhower girls finished seventh of nine teams at the Bulldog Invitational on Friday at West Allis Central, but it did take three first-place finishes in the process.

Taking first were Holly Plazak in the triple jump with a leap of 31-feet, 8 ¾ inches; Therese Thompson in the 3,200 (12:33.84) and Catherine Michaletz in the 55 low hurdles (9.28).

Michaletz was third in the 55 high hurdles (9.38) and Carley Ney was third in the 800 (2:40.79).

Hannah Kinzer finished fifth in the 3,200 (14:43.97) and Brittany Daniel was eighth in the long jump (13-6½).

The 4x800 relay finished fourth (11:49.20) and the 4x240 relay took sixth (2:42).

Brookfield East won the event with 149.5 points and beat out Pius XI (116.5). The other teams and their point totals were West Allis Central (76), Rufus King (67.5), Pewaukee (62.5), West Allis Hale (57), Ike (53), Milwaukee Bradley Tech (32) and Messmer (25).

West girls basketball

The New Berlin West girls basketball team had an outstanding 2011-12 season, finishing with its most wins since the 2007-08 season.

The year's well-balanced team finished second in the Blue Division with a 15-3 record and 18-7 overall. Their seven losses came to Pewaukee (44-42, 49-43), New Berlin Eisenhower (52-38, 49-23), Whitefish Bay Dominican (58-50), Sheboygan North (40-39) and Catholic Memorial (61-56).

The combined record of those teams was 99-25 (. 798) and if you toss out Catholic Memorial (12-13), a team they beat in the postseason (58-43), the record of those four was 87-12, an amazing .879 winning percentage.

West had winning streaks of five and four twice and showed consistency all season. They won the regional championship before losing to Ike in the sectional semifinals.

"We had a phenomenal year," said third-year head coach Corey Scheel. "It was not something we expected. We exceeded expectations with a younger group. We certainly didn't have any individual stars. It was a team effort all the way around."

Junior Stephanie Turner, a 6-2 presence in the middle and the team's top scorer (11.1), missed the last 10 games of the year (grades).

"We didn't miss a beat after we lost her because the kids adjusted well," Scheel said. "We were quicker overall on the floor. We pressed more. It worked well and I give lot of credit to the girls for that. They bought into the program and worked hard."

Scheel will lose only three seniors from this group - starters Rebecca Gasper (6.7 points per game) and Shannon Burke (5.3), who each played 22 games, and reserve Aubrey Giammarco (11 games, 4.5).

Returning will be Beth Ver Haagh, a unanimous first team all-Blue Division selection (10.5), Anne Kaczynski (7.0), Lizzie Kuhl (5.2), Rachel Gasper (3.3); sophomores Lexi Porter (6.4), Jenna Brzeski (4.3) and Morgan Knuese (1.9) and freshman Ali Boldt (2.0). Also hopefully returning will be Turner.

Burke was a unanimous second-team selection, Kuhl was honorable mention and Becca Gasper was an Academic Scholar-Athlete.

At the team banquet Sunday night, Scheel awarded the Play with Passion Award to Burke and the Viking Teammate Award to Giammarco.

West softball

New Berlin West looks forward to having its young, but talented, team compete and challenge the top teams in the Woodland Conference in defense of its conference title this season.

Co-head coaches Corey Scheel (sixth year) and Greg Klotz's (second year) team was 18-4 overall and 16-2 in the Woodland Conference in 2011.

Following West's first conference championship in 25 years, the team returns six starters and five players with all-conference honors.

Senior Moira Collins (3B) is in her fourth year on varsity and will fill the leadership role of being the team's only senior. Collins brings power to the lineup and consistency in the field.

Four juniors will return as key players to the Vikings' success. Abby Kunz and Carey Devine will lead the Vikings as they take over the pitching rotation this year.

Kunz is also a contact hitter who makes things happen on offense.

"Abby will need to continue to compete with the best pitchers in the conference," Klotz said. "Reducing her walks will place her with the elite pitchers in the Woodland. Carey brings a solid bat to the middle of our order. Carey had a breakout season last year as a very reliable pitcher. In the off-season, she has added five to seven mph on her speed and needs to continue with her great pitch location ability."

Kelly Duggan (IF/OF) will solidify her roll on defense and continue her aggressiveness on offense.

"She will be asked to do many things this year and has proved to be up for the task," Klotz said.

Alison Kuhne (1B) could have a breakout season at the plate and in the field as she gets the opportunity to fill a permanent role at first base.

Sophomore Mallory Klotz (IF) returns for her second season after leading the team in nine offensive categories as a freshman. She is a complete player, is defensively solid and has many tools at the plate that will keep defenses guessing.

The Vikings have five newcomers who will compete for spots in the starting lineup. These players bring depth and flexibility on defense, and a mixture of power, contact and speed on offense.

Juniors Aubree Sentkowski (Utility) will be counted on to bring power to the middle of the batting order and can play any position and Bobbi Jo Winter (OF, 2B) will use her speed in the field and on the bases to help West.

Sophomore Hannah Just (Catcher) is a solid defensive player, who will give the pitchers confidence behind the plate.

Sophomore Hannah Buth (OF) and Kailey Nealon (IF/OF) round out the talented newcomers.