Bulldogs On Win Streak; Claim Three Packerland Victories

Issue Date: January 13, 2021

Bulldogs Sink Vikings on Lemke's Late Free Throws

It's always nice to win a close one.

The Peshtigo Bulldogs have been on the wrong end of some close losses, blowing some leads late in games after promising starts. But on Saturday, the Bulldogs got it done with a 60-59 win over Gibraltar, Peshtigo's first Packerland Conference win of the season.

The Bulldogs trailed 30-29 at the half, but they came out strong in the second half. With eight minutes to go, they led by nine points. That lead wouldn't hold, however, with it looking like it could be another heart-breaker for Peshtigo.

"That seems to be what we do. We play so good for the first half of a game and then we seem to forget what's going on. We had a nine point lead with eight minutes to go and then they fought back," Peshtigo coach Jason Boucher said.

With just 3.9 seconds on the clock, Landon Lemke drew a foul and calmly sunk both free throws to give his team a one-point lead.

"We rushed shots on offense and were a little lackluster on defense, but our kids played hard and that's the most important thing for our team right now is we play so hard and scrap so hard. I'm just happy for the guys that the feeling in that locker room switched a little bit tonight," Boucher said.

Lemke's final two free throws were only Peshtigo's fifth and sixth of the game, but they were all the team needed.

"Landon's free throws at the end were obviously big," Boucher said. "We have to do a better job of getting to the free throw line during the game but those free throws at the end were obviously the two that we needed."

Lemke led the team with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting. He shot five of the team's six free throws, making three.

Adam Bauman had 11 points on 4-of-10 shooting, Christian Boyle went 3-for-6 for nine points and Luke McMahon was 4-for-5 for eight points.

In the end, it was just enough

"It always feels good when you win a close game," Boucher said. "We've had a couple of them this year that ended up going the other way and we lost a couple early in the season by one or two points. It feels really good to finally get a close game win."

Lena Goes Wild on Tigerton

The Lena Wildcats were too much for the Tigerton boys to handle last Saturday evening when they took on the Wildcats in Lena for a non-conference showdown that saw the Wildcats the winners 64-38.

The crushing win saw the Wildcats fire in 36 first half points while clamping down on defense to hold Tigerton to 12 points.

Another 28 point over the second half by the Wildcats would be too much for Tigerton to overcome as they fired in 26 points of their own over the closing frame.

Lena's Max Beyer had a whale of a game with 24 points to his name. Sidney Sylvester chipped in in to the effort while Madson Simonson added eight to the total.

Tigerton was led by Kaeden Miller with 14 points and Zeke Griepentroy with eight.

Lena Survives Close Match With Gillett

The Lena Wildcats and Gillett Tiger battled tooth and nail Thursday evening in Lena, battling the whole way through for a 49-45 final readout in favor of the Lena Wildcats.

The close scoring was keyed in by Lena's Max beyer and Gillett's Ben Matczak who both posted some pretty good numbers over the first half. Beyer shot for 11 points while Matczak added up a triple helping of three pointers.

At the half the Wildcats were behind 23-19 but a superlative second half effort from the Wildcats, pushed Lena to the lead of four points by games end. The second half scoring saw the Wildcats take that edge with a 30 point effort while the Tigers feel short with their 22 points.

Lena was led by Beyer with 28 points and Jacob Belongia with nine points. Logan Shallow added six to the final tally.

Gillett was led by Aiden Patza with 11 points and Austin VandeCorut with 10 points. Aydin Franti also added up 10 points.

Crivitz Win Blow Out Over STAA

The Crivitz Wolverines were no match for the St. Thomas Aquinas Cavaliers Friday night in Crivitz as the Wolverines took the 66-26 victory.

Crivitz easily worked their way to a pretty sizable lead over the opening minutes as the Cavvies struggled to keep up with Crivitz's 33 point first half effort. STAA ended the first half with 19 points. Another 13 second half points would not be near enough to overcome the Wolverines lead which was extended by an additional 33 points over the second half.

STAA was led by Ethan Braley with 13 points and Ethan Russell with five points.

Crivitz's Alec Grandaw added up18 points while Tegan Werner got 12 points.

Kewaunee Sets Down Oconto

The Kewaunee Storm provide to be too much for the Oconto Blue Devils Saturday evening in Oconto as the Blue Devils fell behind in a 71-61 final readout.

The loss saw Oconto give up a 36-32 first half lead, falling behind a 39-25 second half differential.

Leading the way for thew Blue Devils was Caleb Moe with 26 points and Josh Woller with 11 points. William Sherman added up 10 on the night.

Kewaunee was led by Sawyer Pribek with 18 points and Alex Rohr with 12 points.

Wausaukee Survives Niagara by One Point

The Wausaukee Rangers had to hang onto thier lead with an iron grip last Tuesday night in Niagara as the Badgers staged a second half comeback that saw them come one point from the lead but falling 57-56.

Wausaukee was able to hold the lead going into the intermission 27-25 but saw the Badgers stage a late game comeback to narrow the lead within one. Over that second half the Badgers shot for 31 points while stopping the Rangers at 30.

For the Rangers Brenden Versaskas was the nights best with 26 points. Teammate Danny Suennen pitched in nine to the effort while Corey Boesen added seven.

Niagara was led by Logan Weber with 23 points and Ed Swanson with 12 points.

Truckers Roll Over Marines With Solid Offensive Play

It just wasn't Marinette's night Thursday against Clintonville.

The Marines fell 70-42, struggling from the field while allowing Clintonville to succeed on the offensive end.

By halftime, Marinette had just 17 points to Clintonville's 35. Marinette shot 29% from the field as a team and only made two of their 14 attempted shots from deep.

Marinette's Asaia Polazzo scored 10 points on 3-of-7 shooting to lead Marinette. Jake Sommerfeldt's seven points on 2-of-12 shooting (1-for-6 three pointers) were second on the team and Keegan Polomis shot 3-for-8 for six points.

Marinette also grabbed just 15 rebounds as a team in the game and turned the ball over 13 times. Clintonville grabbed 33 rebounds in the game.

The Truckers also shot 54% from the field and 6-for-15 (40%) from downtown.

Bulldogs Come From Behind to Beat Blazers

Don't look now, but the Peshtigo Bulldogs are on a roll, and they're winning in different ways.

On Monday, it was a come-from-behind win over NEW Lutheran behind eight minutes of gutsy defense to extend Peshtigo's winning streak to five.

With eight minutes to play, Peshtigo trailed 47-42. That's when coach Jason Boucher switched defenses.

The Bulldogs had been playing a press zone, but they pulled back into a straight man-to-man defense.

"I think that really sparked us on defense," Boucher said.

That spark held up for eight minutes, during which NEW scored just two points to finish the game at 61-49.

"That's total effort and guts by our guys tonight. I'm proud of the way they fought back and battled on the defensive end," Boucher said.

Peshtigo's defense held NEW to 19-of-61 shooting from the field (3-for-24 from three).

Peshtigo went 21-for-47 from the field (44%), led by a 9-for-18 game from Landon Lemke, who had arguably his best offensive game as a Bulldog, scoring 27 points. He made all seven of his free throws as well.

Boucher said coaches had been harping on Lemke to get to the hole and score in the paint instead of settling for jumpers. It obviously paid off on Monday.

Adam Bauman scored 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting.

In addition to those two top scorers, Peshtigo's bench played well once again.

"That's been a huge bonus for us this year. When you have 10 or 11 guys that are ready to go at all times, it's not only fun to coach, it's fun to watch," Boucher said. "Those bench guys, it doesn't matter if they start, it doesn't matter if they play a couple minutes, they go in and give 100% and that's all we can ask as coaches."

Mauz Salem had seven points and five rebounds with three assists, Koby Cuyer had six points and Mason Doberstein didn't score, but led the team with four assists. Collin Engman had nine rebounds to lead Peshtigo on the boards.

Peshtigo out-rebounded NEW 32-18.

NEW's Elijah Lange had 13 points and Elijah Meerstein had 12.

Marines Can't Corral Mustangs, Fall 70-51 in NEC Action

Marinette fell 70-51 at the hands of Little Chute on Tuesday, with short lapses in the Marines' level of play the big difference.

Things were hotly contested early, with the Marines holding a 20-19 lead after an Asaia Polazzo basket.

That would be Marinette's last lead of the game, however, as the Mustangs would race out to a 32-22 lead by the half with a 13-3 run punctuated by an 8-0 run to end the half.

Little Chute then made up for lost time in half number two. With the lead at 38-27, Little Chute went on another run, this time a 15-6 run to make it 53-33. It didn't get much closer than that, with the lead shrinking to 15 at its lowest for the remainder of the game.

"I thought overall there were a lot of positives. I think the biggest takeaway we had in the locker room afterwards was we played really good basketball for about 28 minutes tonight and that might have been some of the best basketball we played, but against a really good team like that, when you have a two or three minute lull in there, they're going to take advantage of it," Marinette coach Matt Joost said. "We talked about it going into halftime and that last two minutes of the half kind of killed us. It should have been five or less at half and I think it's a different mindset at that point for both teams, but overall, the effort was there tonight, we hung with them as best we could."

The difference in the game, Joost said, was that whenever Marinette started to make any sort of run, the Mustangs got a couple of buckets to quell the Marine momentum.

One bright spot for Marinette was Sam Sommerfeldt. The freshman hit five 3-pointers and all four of his free throws to lead Marinette in scoring with 18 points.

Joost said it was "by far his best game so far," but it wasn't a surprise to the Marinette coaching staff.

"None of us on this team are surprised he led us in scoring tonight," Joost said. "We knew that could definitely happen the way he can shoot and his teammates did a really good job of finding him when they needed to and he shot it with confidence."

Sommerfeldt is making progress, Joost said, adding that he wants to see more of Tuesday's Sommerfeldt going forward.

Jake Sommerfeldt had 10 points for Marinette.

Despite scoring 70 points, only one Mustang finished with double-digit points, with Tate Huss scoring 20 to lead the way.

No other Mustang had more than seven, so it was definitely a balanced offensive attack.

"The other guys on their team stepped up," Joost said. "And that's why they're toward the top of our league right now"�"

Peshtigo's Solid Defense Leads to Win Over Bonduel

The Peshtigo Bulldogs only scored 41 points against Bonduel on Thursday, but their relatively quiet offensive night didn't matter, as their defense propelled them to a 41-33 win.

The Bulldogs held Bonduel to 18% shooting, as the Bears made just nine of their 50 attempted shots in the game and five of their 26 attempted shots from deep.

"Our kids play hard. That was the hardest they've played on defense all year and it showed," Peshtigo coach Jason Boucher said.

The Bulldogs ran a press in the game, falling back into a zone defense, which worked well in the game, despite the fact that Boucher said the team worked on it for just about 15 minutes in practice the day before.

Boucher said he was proud of his players and added that the defense "shows teams something different."

Additionally, Peshtigo rebounded well out of the zone, finding a man and boxing out throughout the game. The Bulldogs grabbed 51 rebounds to Bonduel's 22.

Center Collin Engman led Peshtigo with 12 rebounds. He scored only two points, but he played his usual solid defense in the paint for Peshtigo.

Another player that Boucher pointed out was freshman Will McMahon. He didn't stuff the stat sheet, scoring two points with four rebounds and a steal, but he has been a steady presence for the Bulldogs despite his young age.

"He might not have scored many points tonight, but Will McMahon, the freshman, really calmed us down actually on offense," Boucher said. "He took care of the basketball, always in the right spots on defense and he was a big bright spot for us tonight."

Boucher said McMahon has a high basketball IQ, is gaining the coaches' trust and will be earning more minutes going forward.

Adam Bauman led Peshtigo with 11 points. Mason Doberstein had nine and Landon Lemke had seven.

Brett Margelofsky led Bonduel with 11 points and Carson Robaidek had 10.

Recent stories, opinions and photos

Issue Date	Department	Headline
03-03-2021	Sports	Cougars & Patriots Bow Out in Sectional Semis
03-03-2021	Sports	Maroon Girls Have Strong Defensive Showing
03-03-2021	Sports	Peshtigo Varsity Bowlers Headed to State Tourney
03-03-2021	Sports	State Boys Basketball Tournament in LaCrosse & Oshkosh This Week
03-03-2021	Front Page	Takes Down Light Pole
03-03-2021	Front Page	Crivitz Starting Over In Quest for Police Chief
03-03-2021	Front Page	Peshtigo School Superintendent Seeks To Partner More With City
03-03-2021	Front Page	Comprehensive Plan Deadline Topic at Marinette City Council
03-03-2021	Front Page	Peshtigo School Board To Meet On March 10
03-03-2021	Front Page	Barbara Johnston Celebrated 106th Birthday On March 3
03-03-2021	Community - Coleman	Coleman May Close Rosemont Street Alley
03-03-2021	Community - Coleman	Coleman School Board To Meet March 8th
03-03-2021	Community - Coleman	Coleman Utility Meet Monday, March 8
03-03-2021	Community - Coleman	7th Annual Equity Craft, Vendor Fair
03-03-2021	Community - Crivitz	Lady Leprechaun Shopping Day, Gun Show March 13
03-03-2021	Community - Wausaukee	$1000 Scholarship for Athelstane, Silver Cliff Graduating Seniors
03-03-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Legion Post 66 To Meet March 6
03-03-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Wausaukee Lions Annual Flower Sale
03-03-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Wausaukee Blood Drive Nets 51 Pints
03-03-2021	Perspectives	From My Window
03-03-2021	Perspectives	From our readers
03-03-2021	Perspectives	Country Cousin
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Roland C. Abel
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Barton C. Adrian
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Robert J. Barker
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Genevieve T. Cichon
03-03-2021	Obituaries	William W. Fernstrum
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Phyllis G. Fischer
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Noreen L. Garon
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Terry R. Granger
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Esther Jenquine
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Pieterdina G. Keller
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Thomas R. Kollross
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Mark R. Krzewina
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Lucille M. Lesperance
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Carol L. Philbrick
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Jeanette F. Schahczinski
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Ila R. Sparpana
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Maria M. Waldmeier
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Gale R. Wogsland
03-03-2021	Obituaries	Margaret M. Zona
02-24-2021	Front Page	Woman's Club To Donate "Story Time" Sculpture
02-24-2021	Front Page	County Board Applauds Selection Of Glenn Sartorelli To Head DHHS
02-24-2021	Front Page	Peshtigo Council To Meet March 2
02-24-2021	Front Page	Water Treatment Program Discussed At Town Meeting
02-24-2021	Front Page	Pound Village Board To Air Well Issues Feb. 26
02-24-2021	Community - Coleman	Coleman Board May Restore 5-Day In-Person Classes For Upper Grades
02-24-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Wausaukee To Hold Zoning Change Hearing March 10
02-24-2021	Community - Crivitz	By 4 to 3 Vote Crivitz Board Keeps Masks For This Year
02-24-2021	Community - Coleman	Country Line Dancing Resumes at Equity
02-24-2021	Community - Coleman	Lena School Staff Spaghetti Supper
02-24-2021	Community - Coleman	Coleman School District Pre-K Screening, Jr. K Registration
02-24-2021	Community - Crivitz	January Students of the Month at Crivitz Elem., Middle Schools
02-24-2021	Community - Crivitz	Crivitz Church Has Food and Fellowship to Go
02-24-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Wausaukee Lions Flower Sale, Bowling Tournament
02-24-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Silver Cliff Celebrates Centennial Aug. 12-14
02-24-2021	Sports	Coleman Tops Crivitz for Third Time to Take Regional Title
02-24-2021	Sports	Suring Falls to Athens in Sectional Semifinal
02-24-2021	Sports	State Runner-up Cougars Fall in Final 33-32
02-24-2021	Sports	Ice Shanty Removal Dates Approaching
02-24-2021	Sports	Peshtigo Girls Softball In Need of Players
02-24-2021	Perspectives	From our readers
02-24-2021	Perspectives	From My Window
02-24-2021	Perspectives	Country Cousin
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Marie R. Apple
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Tony F. Camp
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Jason S. Chaltry
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Dr. Richard R. Chaltry
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Judie Gowaski
02-24-2021	Obituaries	William H. Howell
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Pauline R. Ireland
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Kenneth J. Kalafut
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Mitchell A. Keyport
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Carol J. Kobus
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Robert E. Kons
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Darlene M. Kostuch
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Mark R. Krzewina
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Ann L. Lemke
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Grace L. Meyers
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Sandra J. Michaud
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Evelyn Nelson
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Norma Parker
02-24-2021	Obituaries	Alfred G. Polzin
02-24-2021	Obituaries	William Sweeting
02-17-2021	Front Page	Marinette Marine Breaks Ground For Largest Building Ever On Site
02-17-2021	Front Page	Peshtigo School Board Hears PSI, Administration Reports
02-17-2021	Front Page	Tyco/JCI Provides New Updates on PFAS Issue
02-17-2021	Front Page	Marinette School Classes Going In-Person March 1
02-17-2021	Front Page	Report To Chamber On The Fire Sesquicentennial, Kayak Dock
02-17-2021	Community - Coleman	Coleman School District Pre-K Screening, Jr. K Registration
02-17-2021	Community - Coleman	Suring School Distant Learner Numbers Drop From 58 To 31
02-17-2021	Community - Coleman	County Line Dancing Resumes at Equity
02-17-2021	Community - Crivitz	School Board To Consider Facilities, Masks, Prom
02-17-2021	Community - Crivitz	Middle Inlet Board OKs Purchase Of Fire Truck
02-17-2021	Community - Crivitz	Crivitz American Legion Gun Show March 13th
02-17-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Town of Wausaukee Sets Road Weight Limit Rules, Exceptions
02-17-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Parking On Boat Launch Road Remains Problem For Wagner
02-17-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Silver Cliff To Celebrate Centennial Aug. 12-14
02-17-2021	Sports	Area Teams Advance to Regional Second Round
02-17-2021	Sports	Regional Heart Breakers Leave Suring as Sole Survivor
02-17-2021	Sports	Boys & Girls Hockey Teams to Play for State Titles
02-17-2021	Sports	Whiting Wins Third Title; Casper Claims Silver
02-17-2021	Sports	Task Force Conducts Modified Marinette Realignment Review
02-17-2021	Sports	Marinette Youth Baseball Online Registration Starts March 1st
02-17-2021	Sports	PHS Alumni Scholarship Golf Outing July 16th
02-17-2021	Perspectives	From My Window
02-17-2021	Perspectives	From Our Readers...
02-17-2021	Perspectives	Country Cousin
02-17-2021	Obituaries	Delores M. Cline
02-17-2021	Obituaries	Robert J. Collard
02-17-2021	Obituaries	Ruth A. Davey
02-17-2021	Obituaries	James R. Derusha
02-17-2021	Obituaries	Gerald Elsner
02-17-2021	Obituaries	Melva Hetcher
02-17-2021	Obituaries	Susan K Meicht
02-17-2021	Obituaries	Darlene L. Szymusiak
02-17-2021	Obituaries	Darlean J. Webb
02-10-2021	Front Page
02-10-2021
02-10-2021	Front Page	DNR Listening Session Provides PFAS Updates
02-10-2021	Front Page	Tyco Announces Updates Of Recent Water Testing
02-10-2021	Front Page	City of Peshtigo Partners With Historical Committee
02-10-2021	Front Page	Mayor Genisot Gives State of City Address
02-10-2021	Community - Coleman	Ash Wednesday Service at Pound
02-10-2021	Community - Coleman	Annual Equity Craft, Vendor Fair June 19
02-10-2021	Community - Coleman	Coleman School District Pre-K Screening, Jr. K Registration
02-10-2021	Community - Crivitz	Community Ed Offers Farmhouse Spring Wreath
02-10-2021	Community - Crivitz	High Falls Fish-O-Rama, Radar Run, Winterfest
02-10-2021	Community - Crivitz	CBA Persons of Year Nominations Accepted
02-10-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Wausaukee Blood Drive is Feb. 15th
02-10-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Friends of Wausaukee Library Annual Fruit Sale
02-10-2021	Community - Wausaukee	Religious Ed Students Bowl for St. Jude Hospital
02-10-2021	Sports	Coleman Beats Crivitz, Stays Undefeated in M&O
02-10-2021	Sports	WIAA Tournament Play Begins; Gillett Advances Over Crivitz
02-10-2021	Sports	Coleman Wins Sectional; Advances to Team State
02-10-2021	Sports	Individuals Compete for State Wrestling Titles This Weekend
02-10-2021	Sports	DNR Publishes Sturgeon Spearing Season Forecast
02-10-2021	Perspectives	From My Window
02-10-2021	Perspectives	Country Cousin
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Marjorie A. Barley
02-10-2021	Obituaries	William J. Bohan
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Mary M. Coddington
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Sue Flanner
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Mary Ann Gardon
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Donald E. Hayes Jr.
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Sandy R. Hendrickson
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Charlotte A. Hoffman
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Sue M. Jones
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Karen A. Konop
02-10-2021	Obituaries	Joseph Krzewina Jr.