From State champions to 1,000-point scorers, area athletes did it all in 2023-24

School is out for summer, which means there is no better time to look back on the major moments of the 2023/24 high school sports season.

August• Aug. 25 — The Menominee High School football team wins its fifth straight M&M Game with a 26-0 shutout over archrival Marinette at Higley Stadium.

September• Sept. 20 — Marinette junior Kennedy Polomis is selected as the North Eastern Conference’s Golfer of the Year

October• Oct. 9-10 — Marinette junior Regan Hermanson competes at the WIAA Division 2 State golf tournament in Madison, Wis., where she finishes 32nd overall.

• Oct. 12 — The Niagara girls volleyball team sweeps Crivitz and Wausaukee to seal the team’s school-record fourth straight Marinette and Oconto Conference championship.

• Oct. 24 — Lena/STAA junior Logan Graef is named the Peninsula Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 8-player football.

• Oct. 28 — Peshtigo’s Rachel Nelson, Crivitz’s Ben Brown and Gillett’s Bradyn Wendorff take part in the WIAA State cross country championships in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis. Nelson takes 34th overall in the Division 2 race while Brown (84th) and Wendorff (27th) compete in Division 3.

• Oct. 31 — Gillett’s Wendorff and Hope Soper are chosen as the Marinette and Oconto Conference’s Most Outstanding Runners in cross country.

• Oct. 31 — Crivitz senior TJ Mueller is named the Northwoods Conference Defensive Player of the Year in football.

November• Nov. 25 — The Marinette boys basketball team snaps its 26-game losing streak with an 82-58 triumph over Coleman

• Nov. 26 — The Menominee Maroons battle Jackson Lumen Christi for the MHSAA Division 7 State championship in football at Ford Field in Detroit. The Maroons fall just short of the program’s fourth State title after a late defensive stand seals a 34-30 victory for Jackson Lumen Christi.

December• Dec. 7 — The Marinette girls basketball team takes down Oconto Falls 42-33 to move into first place in the North Eastern Conference for the first time since the Marines moved to the NEC in 2015.

January• Jan. 5 — The Marinette girls basketball team defeats Freedom for the first time ever in a 44-38 slugfest, snapping a string of 16 straight losses to the Irish.

• Jan. 19 — Oconto junior Addisyn Viestenz collects her 1,000th career point in a 62-25 victory for the Blue Devils girls basketball team over Sturgeon Bay.

• Jan. 23 — Marinette senior Sam Sommerfeldt becomes the fifth player in Marine boys basketball history and just the sixth Marine ever to score 1,000 career points in a 77-55 loss to Waupaca.

February• Feb. 13 — The Marinette girls basketball team defeats Little Chute 64-36 to clinch a share of the program’s first-ever North Eastern Conference championship.

• Feb. 15 — The Marine girls secure sole possession of the North Eastern Conference title by taking down Little Chute again, 45-22, ending Freedom’s streak of five straight NEC championships.

• Feb. 16 — Lena junior Eva Brooks surpasses 1,000 career points as the Lena girls basketball team blasts Suring 77-47.

• Feb. 24 — Lena’s Taylor Whiting captures the school’s first State championship in girls wrestling by defeating Pulaski’s Ava Peters 3-2 to win the 107-lb. Division 3 title in Madison.

• Feb 24. — Several area grapplers compete at the WIAA State championship tournament in Madison. Coleman’s Micah Kuchta (157 lbs.) finishes second overall, with teammates Kain Otto (285) and Parker Owens (106) placing fourth and fifth, respectively. Peshtigo has two Division 2 fourth-place finishes in Addisen Olsen (126) and Connor Thomas (120 lbs). Also competing at State were: Marinette’s Jazleen Fong-Baake, Peshtigo’s Ethan Brissette, Lena’s Sam Peterson and Coleman’s Isaiah Nowak, Brady Gross, Devin Otto and Peason Owens.

• Feb. 27 — Menominee senior Anna Axtell crosses the 1,000-point threshold, dropping a game-high 26 points to help the Maroons defeat Carney-Nadeau 57-39. Axtell becomes only the fourth Lady Maroon to reach 1,000 career points.

March• March 1 — The Menominee boys basketball team takes down Iron Mountain 51-49 for the third straight year in the MHSAA District 66 championship round.

• March 3 — The Coleman wrestling team finishes second overall at the WIAA Division 3 team State wrestling tournament for the third time in four years.

• March 5 — Menominee’s Anna Axtell is named the Great Northern Conference Defensive Player of the Year in girls basketball.

• March 5 — Marinette junior Chloe Seymour is chosen as the North Eastern Conference Player of the Year in girls basketball.

• March 5 — Lena’s Eva Brooks is named the Most Valuable Player of the Marinette and Oconto Conference in girls basketball.

• March 5 — Gillett’s Jesse DeBauch is voted the Marinette and Oconto Conference’s Most Outstanding Player, while teammate Aydin Franti takes home Defensive Player of the Year honors in boy basketball.

• March 7 — The Menominee boys basketball team advances to the MHSAA Division 3 State tournament by flattening Elk Rapids 58-37 to win the Region 17 championship.

• March 9 — Albany/Monticello outlasts Lena 57-54 in an overtime classic in the championship game of the WIAA Division 5 girls basketball State tournament in Green Bay.

• March 10 — Coleman’s Micah Kuchta is named the Marinette and Oconto Conference’s Most Outstanding Wrestler.

• March 12 — McBain stuns the Menominee boys basketball team 51-49 in the quarterfinals of the MHSAA Division 5 State tournament in Gaylord.

April• June 24 — Coleman senior Courtney DenRuyter notches the 500th strikeout of her career in a 10-0 victory over Lena/STAA. She finishes her prep career with a staggering 617 Ks.

• April 25 — Coleman’s Logan Kurth and Logan Lamine combine to throw a no-hitter for the Coleman baseball team against Niagara.

May• May 10 — Marinette’s Caden Genrich wins a North Eastern Conference title in the discus at Luxemburg-Casco.

• May 13 — Stephenson’s Kayela Putnam sets a new school record in the pole vault with a vault of 9’-6” at Bark River-Harris, breaking Debbie Palmer’s mark of 9’-2” set back in 1998.

• May 14 — The Marinette girls soccer team wins its second straight North Eastern Conference championship with a 6-1 thrashing of Luxemburg-Casco.

• May 15 — Menominee’s Nathan Komp and Darrent Butler collect Regional titles at the MHSAA U.P. Division 1 Regional championships in Gladstone. Komp wins the 400-meter dash in 15.53 seconds, while Butler soars to first place in the high jump with a leap of 6’-2”.

• May 16 — In their first season as a varsity program, the Peshtigo girls soccer team wins the Packerland Conference championship.

• May 17 — Marinette’s Wynn Erdman pitches the first perfect game in Marinette High School history as the Marinette softball team topples Two Rivers 10-0 in the opening round of the WIAA Division 2 Regional playoffs.

• May 17 — The Stephenson girls track and field team wins its fourth consecutive MHSAA Division 3 Regional championship.

• May 23 — The Menominee High School track and field team nabs three Great Northern Conference titles. Menominee’s girls 4x400 relay squad of Gianna Coduti. Erin Schuettpelz, Emily Schuettpelz and Lexi Marineau win the event in 4:22.72, Darrent Butler topped the long jump field (6’-4”) and Erika Peterson heaved her way to victory in the discus (88’-9.25”).

• May 23 — The Peshtigo High School softball team wins its fourth straight Regional title by thumping Tomah 9-1.

• May 28 — Peshtigo girls soccer standout Audra Bauman is named the Player of the Year for the Packerland Conference.

• May 31 — The Menominee High School softball team hosts the MHSAA Division 3, District 66 championship tournament for the first time and comes just short of ending Gladstone’s streak of 11 straight District titles, as the Braves defeat the Maroons 4-3 in the championship game.

June• June 1 — Stephenson’s Kayela Putnam breaks her own school record in the pole vault at the MHSAA Division 1-2-3 U.P. track and field finals in Kingsford. Putnam wins the Division 3 U.P. title with a record-setting vault of 10’-00”.

• June 1 — Menominee’s Darrent Butler and Stephenson’s Faith Cappaert capture U.P. titles at the Division 1-2-3 U.P. track and field finals. Butler wins the high jump (6’-2”), while Cappaert sprints to first in the 800m run (2:25.91).

• June 1 — Lena’s Anthony Seefeldt brings home a State title in the shot put with a throw of 51’-9.25” at the WIAA track and field State championships in La Crosse.

• June 1 — Lena’s Eva Brooks finishes runner-up in the high jump (5’-5”) at the WIAA track and field State finals.

• June 1 — Several area track and field athletes participated in the WIAA State championships in La Crosse. Coleman is represented by Victor Kostreva (110m and 300m hurdles), Dawson Patz (100m dash), Micah Kuchta (200m dash), Kolton Peters (300m hurdles) and Kiersten Jensen (discus). Christina Powers (shot put) and the boys’ 4x100 relay team of Dathen Sechen, Ethan Brissette, Madison Vorpahl and Tristan Krejcarek made up Peshtigo’s contingent. Crivitz’s Kylah Betka (pole vault) and Gilett’s Bradyn Windorf also made the cut.

• June 4 — Saint Thomas Aquinas Academy senior Kaiden Bailey competes at the WIAA Division 3 State golf championships for the fourth time in as many years. Bailey shoots a combined 120 to finish in a tie for 11th place.

• June 4 — The Lena boys golf team takes fifth place for the second consecutive year at the WIAA Division 3 State finals.

• June 6 — The Coleman High School softball team makes its first-ever appearance at the WIAA Division 4 State tournament, losing 12-0 in the semifinals to Fall Creek.

• June 9 — Crivitz senior Tegan Werner is tabbed as the Marinette and Oconto Conference’s Most Outstanding Player in baseball.

• June 9 — Coleman’s Courtney DenRuyter and Crivitz’s Taryn Tracy are named Co-Most Outstanding Players in softball for the Marinette and Oconto Conference.

• June 11 — Marinette girls soccer standout Sierra Schreiner is named the North Eastern Conference’s Offensive Player of the Year for the third straight time.