Women's Basketball

December 13, 2000

EAU CLAIRE - UW-Eau Claire used a 21-10 run in the second half and went on to down UW-Stout, 82-67, in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) contest, Wednesday, Dec. 13 at Zorn Arena.

The two teams played to a 33-33 halftime tie, but Eau Claire exploded three minutes into the second half to go up 59-47 and Stout could get no closer that seven points.

The loss give Stout (6-2, 3-1) their first conference loss, while the Blugolds (8-1, 4-0) stayed perfect in league play.

Stout got 20 points from Amy Zelinger (Jr, Racine) and 10 points from Tina Gillen (Jr, Northfield, Minn), but Gillen was held scoreless in the second half. Zelinger had 11 points in the first half.

The Blugolds were led by Vanessa Schley with 10 points, LaToya Banks with 15 points, Megan Murphy with 14, Meagan Whatley with 11 and Janel Soppeland with 10. Schley added 12 rebounds.

Stout will hit the road next week when they travel to Las Vegas, Nev., to face Adrian College in the first game of the Adidas Division III Desert Shootout, Tuesday, Dec. 19.

December 12, 2000

MENOMONIE - UW-Stout's Amy Zelinger (Jr, Racine) was named player of the week by the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) for her performances Dec 9 and Dec. 6.

Zelinger, a guard, scored nine of her game-high 17 points in the final 3-minutes, 12-seconds of the game to propel the Blue Devils to a 79-77 win over previously undefeated UW-Stevens Point, Saturday, Dec. 9. Zelinger, who re-entered the game with four fouls, hit five-of-six free throws and canned two key field goals during the stretch. On the week, Zelinger scored 28 points, pulled down ten rebounds, had six assists and eight steals as the Blue Devils improved to 6-1 overall and 3-0 in the WIAC.

December 14, 2000

MENOMONIE - Times have been set for the UW-Stout Snowflake Jamboree and the Sixth Annual AAU Holiday Girls Basketball Classic, which are held in conjunction Dec. 27-30 at Johnson Fieldhouse in Menomonie.

High school girls games will fill the schedule Dec. 27 and Dec. 28, then the Blue Devils' tournament will close out the tournament after high school games Dec. 29 and Dec. 30.

The Second Annual Snowflake Jamboree will feature Upper Iowa University versus Mt. Senario at 6:45 p.m., Friday, Dec. 29 and UW-Stout taking on Mount St. Clare at 8:45 p.m. Championship day of the Jamboree will kick off with the consolation game at 5:30 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 30 and the championship game following at 7:30 p.m.

AAU Holiday Girls Basketball Classic Schedule
Wednesday, Dec. 27
Eau Claire Regis vs. Pepin, 9:30 a.m.; Gilman vs. Spring Valley, 11:30 a.m.; Auburndale vs. St. Francis, 1:15 p.m.; LaCrosse Aquinas vs. Denmark, 3:15 p.m.; Minneapolis North vs. Rhinelander, 5 p.m.; Somerset vs. Bloomer, 6:45 p.m.; Mukwonago vs. Menomonie, 8:30 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 28
Auburndale vs. Weyerhauser, 11:30 a.m.; Spring Valley vs. Denmark, 1:15 p.m.; Rhinelander vs. St. Francis, 3:15 p.m.; Gilman vs. Somerset, 5 p.m.; Mukwonago vs. LaCrosse Aquinas, 6:45 p.m.; Minneapolis North vs. Menomonie, 8:30 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 29
West Salem vs. Barron, 11:30 a.m.; Madison Memorial vs. Nicolet, 1:15 p.m.; Woodbury vs. Middleton, 3:15 p.m.; Colfax vs. Bloomer, 4:45 p.m.
Snowflake Jamboree - College Tournament
Upper Iowa University vs. Mt. Senario, 6:45 p.m.; Mount St. Clare vs. UW-Stout, 8:45 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 30
Snowflake Jamboree - College Tournament
Consolation game, 5:30 p.m.; Championship game, 7:30 p.m.

Men's Basketball

December 13, 2000

MENOMONIE - UW-Eau Claire used the free throw line to their advantage as they tripped up UW-Stout, 69-64, Wednesday, Dec. 13 at Johnson Fieldhouse in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) contest.

The Blugolds lived on the line, hitting 34-of-43 freebies, compared to Stout hitting 12-of-18. But it wasn't all free throws, as Eau Claire took the lead for good at the 9:33 mark of the second half and held the Blue Devils scoreless for the next six minutes.

Stout (7-3, 1-3) held a 36-33 halftime lead on the strength of Steve Krueger's (Jr, Three Lakes) 10 first half points. Eau Claire (5-4, 2-2) knotted the score one minute into the half, fell behind briefly, then never trailed after the 16 minute mark.

The Blugolds' Steve Syrjala came off the bench to lead all scorers with 16 points. Stout's Pat Von Feldt (Sr, Stevens Point) scored 15 and Krueger finished with 13. Andy Witte added 13 points for Eau Claire.

Both teams shot well in the first half, then both cooled off tremendously in the second half. Stout shot 56 percent from the floor in the first stanza, then dropped to 39 percent. The Blugolds hit 47 percent before the break, then fell to 32 percent.

Women's Gymnastics

December 15, 2000

EAU CLAIRE - UW-Stout captured the top two spots in every event as the Blue Devils went on to pick up their first win over the season as they downed UW-Eau Claire, 167.45-159.00, in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) gymnastics meet Friday, Dec. 15 at Eau Claire.

Either Erika Opoien (So, Superior), Tasha Pasch (So, Northfield, Minn) or Katie Hanson (So, Duluth, Minn) placed first in each event with Pasch winning the uneven bars (8.65), the balance beam (9.15) and the all-around (35.20). Opoien took the vault (8.90) and Hanson the floor exercise (8.95). Pasch was second on the vault (8.80) and Hanson was second on the bars (8.40) and the all-around (34.20). Opoien was third in the all-around (33.10).

Andrea Hassel (Sr, Grand Rapids, Minn) was second on the beam (8.85) and Brenna Jones (Sr, St. Paul, Minn) was runner-up on the floor (8.80).

Stout will be off until Jan. 11 when they host Gustavus Adolphus at 7 p.m. in Johnson Fieldhouse to kick off a three-meet homestand. Stout will host UW-Whitewater Jan. 15 and UW-Oshkosh Jan. 22.

Stout 167.45, Eau Claire 159.0
(Top five, all Stout performers)
Vault: 1) Erika Opoien (ST) 8.9, 2) Tasha Pasch (ST) 8.8, 3) Lara Harris (EC) 8.75, 4) Erin Henrich (EC) 8.5, 5) Katie Hanson (ST), Kristina Reitzel (EC), Micaela Statz (EC) 8.45; Brenna Jones 8.25, Angie Swanson 8.05, Jennie Rosinski 7.85; Andrea Hassel 8.15, Ashley Soukup 7.55

Uneven Bars: 1) Tasha Pasch (ST) 8.65, 2) Katie Hanson (ST) 8.4, 3) Kristina Reitzel (EC) 8.2, 4) Erika Opoien (ST) 8.15, 5) Brenna Jones (ST) 7.65; Angie Swanson 6.80, Andrea Hassel 6.70; Scarlett Ramey 5.70, Ashley Soukup 5.65.

Balance Beam: 1) Tasha Pasch (ST) 9.15, 2) Andrea Hassel (ST) 8.85, 3) Katie Hanson (ST) 8.4, 4) Erin Henrich (EC) 8.05, 5) Erika Opoien (ST), Jennie Rosinsky (ST), Lara Harris (EC) 7.95; Brenna Jones 7.70; Ashley Soukup 7.10, Angie Swanson 5.10.

Floor Exercise: 1) Katie Hanson (EC) 8.95, 2) Brenna Jones (ST) 8.8, 3) Tasha Pasch (EC) 8.6, 4) Jolene Zgobica (EC) 8.55, 5) Micaela Statz (EC) 8.5; Andrea Hassel 8.45, Jennie Rosinsky 8.15, Erika Opoien 8.10; Angie Swanson 7.45, Ashley Soukup 7.35

All-Around: 1) Tasha Pasch (ST) 35.2, 2) Katie Hanson (ST) 34.2, 3) Erika Opoien (ST) 33.1, 4) Kristina Reitzel (EC) 32.5, 5) Brenna Jones (ST) 32.4, 6) Micaela Statz (EC) 30.9

December 12, 2000

MENOMONIE - UW-Stout gymnast Tasha Pasch (So, Northfield, Minn) were named players of the week by the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) for her performance Dec. 8..

Pasch had an outstanding first meet of the season when she captured the all-around event in a dual meet with UW-La Crosse, racking up 35.825

points and also won the uneven bars with an 8.825. She was second on

the balance beam with a score of 9.10. The Blue Devils will be at UW-Eau Claire, Friday, Dec. 15.

Football

December 16, 2000

MENOMONIE -- For Jeff Hazuga (Sr, Thorp) it was starting to become commonplace. Even Kevin McCulley (Sr, Fond du Lac) was starting to become familiar with the news. For UW-Stout offensive lineman Jeff Hutter (Sr, Beldenville), it was the first time as Hutter was named to an All-America for the first time.

Hutter, who played at both center and offensive guard, was a cornerstone of the Blue Devils rejuvenated rushing attack that rolled up an average of 221.4 yards per game and produced Stout's first 1000 yard rusher since 1991.

Hutter was named to the D3football.com All-America third team, while defensive lineman Hazuga, the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) player of the year, and punter McCulley were named to the second team. Hazuga earlier had been named to the first team of the AFCA All-America Coaches team and Hazuga and McCulley were both named first team of the Hewlett-Packard All-America team. All three players, plus six more Blue Devils, were named to the Don Hansen Football Gazette West Region team. That All-America team is yet to be announced.

Hutter was on track to graduate last May, but with one season of football eligiblity remaining, he reworked his schedule to give himself one last season as the Blue Devils finished at 10-1 overall, went an undefeated 7-0 in WIAC play, and advanced to the NCAA Division III playoffs for the first time in school history.

Hazuga racked up a school record 14 sacks to go along with his team-high 30 tackles for losses. McCulley, a preseason All-American, tied a school record for single season punting average with 41.0, but more importantly, was able to place his punts deep in the opponent's territory.

December 16, 2000

MERIDA, Mex.-- Carnegie Mellon linebacker Nick Zitelli recovered a blocked punt for a second-quarter touchdown, Albion´s Keith Debbaudt kicked a pair of field goals and Wisconsin-Stout´s Jeff Hazuga (Sr, Thorp) deflected a Mexico PAT attempt with one minute left in the game to give the USA a 27-26 win over Mexico in the 2000 Aztec Bowl on Saturday.

The Mexican all-star team scored twice in the fourth quarter to pull to within one point when Hazuga blocked the point after attempt.

Zitelli was voted USA Player of the Game by media in attendance.

December 12, 2000

MENOMONIE - UW-Stout defensive lineman Jeff Hazuga (Sr, Thorp) and punter Kevin McCulley (Sr, Fond du Lac) were named to the 2000 Hewlett-Packard NCAA Division III All-American Football Team.

Hazuga, the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) player of the year, led the Blue Devils in tackles for losses (30 for 144 yards) and sacks (school record 14 sacks for 115 yards) to help Stout capture their first WIAC title in 35 years and Stout's first ever NCAA Division III playoff berth. Hazugo, who transferred to Stout from St. Cloud State, finished the season with 62 tackles, 26 solo, and had four pass break-ups, three fumble recoveries and one fumble forced. Earlier in the week, Hazuga was named as an American Football Coaches' Association (AFCA) first team All-American.

McCulley, the Blue Devils' place kicker as well as punter, practically re-wrote the Stout record book for both areas. McCulley tied Andy Caflisch's single season punting average of 41.0 yards per kick, but shattered the school career punting average by more than a yard. McCulley averaged 39.4 yards per kick over his four year career, breaking the previous record of 38.1 yards by Mike McHugh from 1964-69. This season, McCulley had 76 punts, and set a single game school record when he sailed one kick 82 yards. Many times punting for placement, McCulley pinned 17 kicks inside the 20-yard line and was not blocked. McCulley was third in NCAA Division III in punting average.

Named the Football Gazette National Special Teams Player of the Week Nov. 6 after averaging 44.9 yards per kick in a 14-13 win over UW-Whitewater in the game that Stout claimed the conference crown, McCulley five times gave the Warhawks poor field position with his punts inside the 20. McCulley was the WIAC Special Teams Player of the Week three times.

As a place kicker, McCulley hit 32-of-34 extra points attempts and was 15-of-29 for field goals. He was second on the team in scoring with 77 points and finished his career with 163 total points, good for second on the Stout all-time scoring list. McCulley connected on 85-of-97 extra point attempts.

Stout finished the 2000 season with a 10-1 overall record, 7-0 in the WIAC.

Volleyball

December 18, 2000

MENOMONIE - Kandice O'Brien (So, Kasson, Minn) and Amber Birner (Fr, Warren) were named as the most improved players for the UW-Stout volleyball team, coach Jill Jolliff announced recently at the teams' annual awards banquet.

O'Brien played in 118 of 136 games and collected 265 kills - fourth on the team - and had nine solo blocks and 52 assisted blocks. Birner, a true freshman, appeared in 51 games and had 35 kills and seven solo blocks and 19 block assists.

Senior Laura Huntoon (Byron, Minn) was named the defensive player of the year, and Brooke Palmer (Jr, Mantorville, Minn) was named the offensive player of the year. Huntoon, a back-row specialist finished the season with 43 service aces and 242 digs. Palmer, an all-Midwest Region pick, led the team in kills with 477, had 44 aces, 265 digs, 33 solo blocks and a school record 99 block assists.

Rachel Eidet (Jr, North Mankato, Minn) and Laura Bogenschutz (Fr, Baxter, Minn) shared the hustle award. Eidet, an all-conference honorable mention pick, finished with 396 kills, a team-high 47 service aces and 460 digs, had 11 solo blocks and 40 assisted blocks. Bogenschutz took over as the team setter, and set a new single season school record for assists, picking up 1417. She also had 46 service aces and 334 digs.

Erin Walt (So, Maplewood, Minn) received the spirit award and Dyan DePas (So, Waunakee) received the Blue Devil award.

The Blue Devils completed the season at 24-12, their best finish since the 1994 season.

Fourth year award: Laura Huntoon; Third year award: Rachel Eidet, Sara Weflen, Aira Ryan, Brooke Palmer, Kim Roshell; Second year award: Dyan DePas, Erin Walt, Kandice O'Brien; First year award: Amber Birner, Jaime Stendahl, Laura Bogenschutz, Courtney Brengman, Maren Christensen, Kelly Davis, Katie Wagie, Ann Syrstad, Sarah Hovland, Emylee Kuglin.

Updated: December 18, 2000