Women's Basketball

January 12, 2002

WHITEWATER - Coupled with a UW-Oshkosh overtime loss to UW-Stevens Point, UW-Stout moved into sole possession of first place in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) with a 82-79 win at UW-Whitewater, Saturday, Jan. 12.

The Titans, who had routed Stout a week earlier, lost 79-75 in overtime to the Pointers at Oshkosh. Stout is one half game ahead of Oshkosh.

The Blue Devils (12-5, 7-1) always have a hard time on the UW-Whitewater (6-9, 2-5) floor, and tonight was no exception with two Whitewater players - Wendy Gagnon and Cathy Rossi - scoring 24 points apiece.

The Blue Devils countered with Laura Verdegan (So, Tony) who had a career high 17 points and picked up four steals.

The Blue Devils' pressure game forced 31 Warhawk turnovers and Stout snagged 22 total steals with Stacie Anderson (Sr, Clayton) collecting a game hit six and Erin Churchill (Fr, Plum City) getting five.

Anderson finished with 14 points and Lindsey Erichsen (Fr, Spring Valley, Minn) tallied 13 points. Nya Geschke added 10 points for the Warhawks.

The Blue Devils are off until Saturday, Jan. 12 when they host UW-Stevens Point at 3 p.m.

January 9, 2002

MENOMONIE - UW-Stout turned up the defensive pressure late in the first half and throughout the second half and went on to crush UW-Superior, 110-71, Wednesday, Jan. 9 at Johnson Fieldhouse. The 110 points was a Stout school record.

While the defense was turning up the screws, Jamie Retzloff (Sr, Strum) was lighting up the scoreboard, as she scored 16 of her career-high 24 points in a four minute span in the second half in leading Stout to the school record. Retzloff, who played only 11 minutes in the game, hit a 3-pointer with 13 seconds remaining to establish the new school mark.

The game was close in the first half and Superior led throughout most of the first 10 minutes of the game. The Blue Devils (11-4, 6-1) stepped up their pressure on the inbound pass and the back court, forcing numerous Superior (2-11, 0-6) turnovers in the final 22 minutes of the game and the game was history. Stout had a 30 point lead with 10 minutes left in the game.

The Blue Devils had three other players in double digits. Stacie Anderson (Sr, Clayton) finished with 19 points, scoring 11 in the first half. Erin Churchill (Fr, Plum City) scored 11 points and pulled down a team-high nine rebounds. Tiffani Calmes (Jr, Colby) made her first career start and scored a career-high 10 points.

The Yellowjackets were led by Heidi McKay with 20 points. Lacey Catanzarite added 11 points and Stephanie Janigo chipped in 10.

The Blue Devils forced 33 Superior turnovers, while turning the ball over a season low 14 times.

The previous school record for most points was 109, set twice. The Blue Devils defeated UW-Platteville, 109-73, in 1992 and the next year downed UW-La Crosse, 109-87.

Men's Basketball

January 12, 2002

MENOMONIE - Just days after coming up short to the last place team in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC), UW-Stout played their "A" game and downed UW-Whitewater, the first place team in the league, 85-72, Saturday, Jan. 12 at Johnson Fieldhouse.

Inside man Steve Krueger (Sr, Three Lakes) led the way for the Blue Devils (8-7, 4-4), who led at the half, 37-24, with 29 points. Stout got a big game from point guard Barrington Smith (Jr, Oklahoma City, Okla). Smith scored a career-best 13 points and dished off six assists. Dave Loewe (Sr, Hiles) racked up 15 points, hitting 3-of-4 3-pointers.

The Warhawks (11-3, 5-2) got a game-high 30 points from Aubrey Lewis-Byers, but he was relatively quiet on the boards, pulling down five rebounds.

The Blue Devils took control of the first half by going on a 13-2 run beginning with 9:53 left in the half. Jeff Vandenberghe (So, Coon Rapids, Minn) drained a shot and Andy Bray (Jr, Menominee, Mich) came off the bench and hit back-to-back buckets to lift Stout's advantage to 22-13. Stout carried a 37-24 lead into the locker room after holding the Warhawks to only 30 percent shooting from the field.

Loewe scored 12 points in the second half, connecting on two threes and a couple of shots underneath. Krueger was steady, scoring 15 points in the second half. Smith got nine points in the last half and Bray got eight of his career-best 11 points in the final stanza.

Stout will be at Northwestern College, Thursday, Jan. 17, then will travel to UW-Stevens Point, Saturday, Jan. 19 to begin the second loop of league play.

January 9, 2002

SUPERIOR - UW-Stout scored only two points in the final 6-minutes, 44-seconds of the game and dropped a 55-52 conference decision to UW-Superior, Wednesday, Jan. 9 in Superior.

After trailing 29-25 at haltime, the Blue Devils (7-7, 3-4) built as much as a five point lead in the second half, thanks mostly to Steve Krueger's (Sr, Three Lakes) 14 second half points.

But Stout hit a wall with a 50-45 lead and allowed Superior (8-6, 1-5) to tie the game at 2:52 and take a 53-50 lead with 2:24 left in the game. Krueger made one free throw with one minute left to pull to within one point. The Yellowjackets' Tony Peterson gave Superior a 54-51 lead with 21 seconds left by connecting on two freebies.

Stout's Barrington Smith (Jr, Oklahoma City, Okla) made the back end of two free throws to pull Stout to within what would be the final score. After Superior's Jason Strilzuk missed two free throws, Stout's Jeff Vandenberghe's (So, Coon Rapids, Minn) 3-pointer came up shots.

Krueger led all scorers with 21 points and pulled down 14 rebounds. Teammate Nate Templer (So, Beaver Dam) had 10 points and eight boards.

Superior got 14 points from Brandon Vessel and 11 points from Don DeFoe.

January 7, 2002

KENOSHA - UW-Stout assistant men's basketball coach Eric Gardow participated in the Winter Olympic Games torch run, Saturday, Jan. 5 in Kenosha.

Gardow, who waged a nearly decade long battle with testicular cancer, was nominated for the honor by Garrett Stine, a native of Merrill. Gardow was called on to lend support to Stine, who was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2000.

For more on the story by Paul Cruz of the Dunn County News, go to:

Torch Bearer

Men's Ice Hockey

January 12, 2002

MENOMONIE - For the second consecutive game, UW-Stout put together a five goal period and went on to down the Milwaukee School of Engineering, 9-4, Saturday, Jan. 12, at the Dunn County Ice Arena.

The Blue Devils racked up five goals in the second period today, with Mitch Kellin (So, Cohasset, Minn) getting two goals in the period. Friday, Kellin led a five-goal third period with a two goal effort.

The Blue Devils got on the board first when Jake Hemmah (Fr, Red Wing, Minn) scored midway through the first half. The Raiders' (5-11-0) Joe Swanson knotted the score only 23 seconds into the second stanza, getting a power play goal.

But then, Stout's explosion began. Bryan Cummings (So, Austin, Minn) at 1:54 in the period, and Aaron Decker (Sr, Mound, Minn) followed suit three minutes later. Kellin got his first goal, a power play, at 10:25. Pete Eloranta (So, River Falls) picked up his first of two goals for the game before the Raiders' Bill Cielinski made the score 5-2 with four minutes remaining in the period. Kellin closed out the period with a power play score.

MSOE pulled to within 5-3 on a power play goal by Ryan Morin, but Eloranta made it 6-3. Nate Legler (So, Lakeville, Minn) recorded a power play goal. The Raiders got their final goal on a power play. Cullen Flaherty (Jr, Duluth, Minn) closed out the scoring with a power play goal with less than three minutes remaining in the game.

Drew Nichols (Jr, Victoria, Minn) capped off a solid weekend with a three assist afternoon. Friday, Nichols had one goal and four assists. Tony Ross (So, Buffalo, Minn) and Flaherty each had two assists on the day.

Stout worked the net extensively, outshoting the Raiders, 58-27. Ben Plester (Sr, Chemainus, BC) recorded the win with 23 saves. Matt Hirsch took the loss with 49 saves.

The Blue Devils will host UW-River Falls, Friday, Jan. 18 at 7:30 p.m., then will be at River Falls, Saturday, Jan. 19.

January 11, 2002

MENOMONIE - Mitch Kellin (So, Cohasset, Minn) scored two goals in the third period to lead a five goal UW-Stout third period outburst as the Blue Devils downed the Milwaukee School of Engineering, 8-4, Friday, Jan. 11 at the Dunn County Ice Arena.

But it was John Schaffner (Fr, Janesville) who got Stout (6-9-1) going in the third. Seconds after a hard hit took Schaffner to the ice, the freshman bounced back to score his first collegiate goal, getting assists from Dan Riffe (So, Byron, Ill) and Tony Farnsworth (So, Buffalo, Minn). Schaffner's goal put the Blue Devils up, 4-2.

But MSOE (5-10-0) was not to be denied. The Raiders scored two goals in less than a minute to knot the score. Ryan Puffer scored the first with 5-minutes, 19-seconds off the third period clock and Rob Kaufman notched the second 49 seconds later to tie the score at 4 apiece.

Kellin broke the tie, scoring unassisted at 8:57. Charlie O'Hearn (So, Traverse City, Mich) moved the score to 6-4, taking a pass from Kellin in front of the net in traffic 35 seconds later.

Drew Nichols (Jr, Victoria, Minn) added his own unassisted goal at the 9:32 mark and Kellin finished off the scoring at 15:14, with assists from Kevin McLaughlin (So, Oakland, Calif) and Nichols.

The game looked to be a blowout early when Stout's Aaron Decker (Sr, Mound, Minn) scored unassisted only 44 seconds into the game. Cullen Flaherty (Jr, Duluth, Minn) scored his first points of the season, netting a power play goal seven minutes into the contest with assists by Nichols and O'Hearn.

The second period proved to be another story as the Raiders tied the score. Jacob Basen scored on the power play, with assists by Lee Jenke and Joe Swanson at the four minute mark. Four minutes later, David Kinnunen got the equalizer, with an assist by Matt Hirsch.

Stout led at the end of two when Nathan Legler (So, Lakeville, Minn) scored shorthanded midway through the period, with an assist by Nichols.

The shooting was fast and furious in this contest, with Stout outshooting the visitors, 53-32. Blue Devil goalie Jeff Dotson (So, Chanhassen, Minn) turned away 28 shots while Raiders' goalie Sam Carrico stopped 45.

Women's Gymnastics

January 12, 2002

ST. PAUL, Minn - UW-Stout took three of the top four places on the balance beam as the Blue Devils dropped a 171.525-160.85 decision to Hamline University, Friday, Jan. 11 in St. Paul, Minn.

Hamline's Melissa Stanton took the top prize on the beam with a 9.345, but Stout finished second, third and fourth. Erika Opoien (Jr, Superior) was second (8.75), Tasha Pasch (Jr, Northfield, Minn) was third (8.20) and Mandi Neuman (Fr, St. Paul, Minn) was fourth (8.05). Jill Birschbach (Fr, Chilton) and Lacey Schroedl (Fr, Minneapolis, Minn) tied for sixth (7.85).

Pasch was second on the floor exercise (9.125) and Schroedl was third on the vault (8.85). Pasch was second in the all-around (33.925) and Schroedl was fourth (32.60).

The Blue Devils will compete in a triangular Friday, Jan. 18 at Seattle Pacific University. The host school is an NCAA Division II school and the University of California-Davis is an NCAA Division I university.

Hamline University 171.525, UW-Stout 160.85
(First place, all Stout performers)
Vault: 1. Melissa Stanton (Ham) 9.25; 3. Lacey Schroedl 8.85; 5. Tasha Pasch 8.55; 6. Erika Opoien 8.975; 8. Jill Birschbach 8.10; 11. Mandi Neuman 7.60; Scarlett Ramey 7.30.

Uneven bars: 1. Stanton (Ham) 9.25; 6. Pasch 8.05; 8. Schroedl 7.55; Neuman 7.65; Opoien 7.15; 11. Ramey 6.85.

Balance beam: 1. Stanton (Ham) 9.345; 2. Opoien 8.75; 3. Pasch 8.20; 4. Neuman 8.05; 6. Birschbach, Schroedl 7.85; 12. Ramey 6.85.

Floor exercise: 1. Linsey Hamilton (Ham) 9.40; 2. Pasch 9.125; 8. Schroedl 8.35; 9. Opoien 8.15; 10. Neuman 8.00; 11. Ramey 7.80; 12. Birschbach 7.10.

All-around: 1. Stanton 36.975; 2. Pasch 33.925; 4. Schroedl 32.60; 6. Opoien 32.425; 7. Neuman 31.30; 8. Ramey 28.80

Women's Track & Field

January 7, 2002

MENOMONIE - While the field part of the UW-Stout track and field team has proven to be a decorated part of the Blue Devils, it is the youth of the program with 24 new faces that has second year coach Joe Harlan looking ahead to a bright future.

With approximately 50 on the roster, Harlan is seeing improvements throughout his entire program in every event area.

Still with a lot of untested youth at the collegiate level, Harlan has veterans to rely on - especially in the field events.

Laura Verdegan (So, Tony) finished third at the NCAA Division III national meet, captured the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) and set the school record (40-feet, 3.25-inches) in the outdoor triple jump last spring. Verdegan, a standout on the Blue Devils' basketball team, will join the Blue Devils after the basketball season over.

Jenney Luer (Sr, Colfax) advanced to the national outdoor meet in the discus and met the qualifier in the outdoor shot put. Along the way, Luer finished second in the conference meet in the indoor shot put, placed sixth and seventh, respectively, in the outdoor discus and shot put, and set the school discus record (151-11).

Speaking of record breakers, Andi Schwabenlender (Sr, Bristol) made a habit of breaking the indoor pole vault mark, five times breaking the record and eventually finishing the season with a height of 9-4. Schwabenlender placed sixth at the indoor conference meet in the pole vault and was fourth in the high jump. Schwabenlender also holds the school outdoor pole vault record.

Ann Marie Curtis (Sr, La Crosse) has been a steady performer for the Blue Devils in the jumps. Behind her several freshmen will be looked upon to make new contributions. Amy Biegel (So, Eau Claire) returns in the heptathlon.

Amy Arndt (Sr, Lakefield, Minn), Heidi Bedsted (Jr, Plainview, Minn), Lacey Osuldsen (Sr, Ladysmith), Meredith Nordberg (Sr, Bloomington, Minn), Lisa Sorvala (Jr, New Brighton, Minn) and Tracy Oostdyk (So, Spooner) will be expected to lead the distance team with balance and depth.

Heather Stiles (So, Eden Prairie, Minn), Danielle Wojcik (So, Spencer) and Lindsay Steinmeyer (So, Menomonie) will lead the sprint and hurdle crew that will have more than 10 new faces challenging for spots and major improvements this year.

Among some of the new faces include sprinters Kate Werner (Fr, Elk Mound), Sara Manion (Fr, Big Lake, Minn) and Kelly Young (Fr, Chisolm, Minn). Manion and Ramona Vann (Fr, Grand Rapids, Minn) will provide depth in the jumps. Angie McConnell (So, Blair) worked hard over the off-season and should contribute to the 400-meter run and the long jump.

Marci Schachtner (Fr, Deer Park), who participated in the shot put and discus at the Wisconsin state meet, will be converted to the multi events. Kendra Busch (Fr, Wayzata, Minn) and Tabitha Martin (Fr, Watertown) lead five new throwers.

"Although we are not where we need to be yet," Harlan said, "we are moving in that direction very quickly now. I am excited to watch this team develop as we lay the groundwork for better and better teams."

The Blue Devils will open their season Friday, Jan. 18 when they host the UW-Stout Quadrangular.

Updated: January 14, 2002