Sports

A trio of senior letterwinners returns to lead the Waukon girls basketball team into its 2015-2016 season under second-year head coach Andy Sires. That trio helped last season’s squad to a 7-15 season during Coach Sires’ first season at the girls basketball helm, hoping to improve on both that overall mark and a 4-8 mark in Northeast Iowa Conference play that placed the Indians fifth in the final seven-team standings.
That senior trifecta includes Nicole Behrend, the lone returnee consistently in the starting line-up last season as a junior and the Tribe’s leading scorer from last season with an average of just over 10 points per game. Joining in that veteran trio are Madison Snitker and Bethany Stock, with fellow seniors Emily Hammel and Leah Riese rounding out this season’s list of upperclassmen leaders.

With 10 letterwinners returning from the best season in Kee girls basketball history, and half of those veterans making up the starting line-up of last winter’s 21-4 Lady Hawk campaign that was ended on the brink of a State Tournament berth, anticipation for the 2015-2016 season is running high for the Hawks. Kee girls basketball coach Danny Love knows that a rare advantage such as that can also offer its own bit of challenges, but those are challenges he’s ready and willing to face.
“We return all five starters from a team that was a game away from State,” Coach Love said. “I don’t think many teams can say that. With that comes a lot of expectations, and dealing with those is going to be something we work on every day.”
This season’s list of veteran returnees includes all three seniors on this year’s squad, along with four each of juniors and sophomores. Coach Love outlined what each of those returning letterwinners brings to the court:

The Waukon girls cross country team came into the fall of 2015 facing the challenge of competing at a longer distance this season than in season’s past, increasing from a four-kilometer (4K) distance in past seasons to a five-kilometer (5K) race this season due to a change made by the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union. With a goal of peaking at the right time of the season to try and extend their fall campaign to every team’s ultimate destination, the Lady Indians faced an additional challenge of competing in a State Qualifying Meet that featured what would turn out to be the top three teams in all of Class 2A, ultimately having their season ended at that State Qualifying Meet despite one of their best overall team efforts of the season.

The Kee football team played its way through one of its most challenging seasons in recent history, not only following a season in which the football Hawks graduated enough players to fill an entire Eight-Player field but also having a majority of their limited six letterwinners being sidelined by injury. The end result was a 2-7 season record for the Hawks that included a 2-5 mark in Eight-Player District 4 that placed Kee seventh in those final eight-team district standings, a district finish that brought the Hawks’ consecutive State Play-Off qualification streak to an end at six straight seasons.

Champs at Spartan Cheer Challenge, State Runner-Up at Iowa Championships

Farmers & Merchants Savings Bank of Waukon and Decorah recently presented a check in the amount of $1,316 to the Allamakee Athletic Booster Club for proceeds the bank received through its Fear the Spear Tailgate Party held Friday, October 2 of Homecoming Week at Waukon High School. Serving hamburgers and hot dogs grilled by the Allamakee Cattlemen near the Waukon High School, the bank accepted free will donations for the meal, with all proceeds being donated to the Allamakee Athletic Booster Club. Accepting the check on behalf of the Allamakee Athletic Booster Club are Lisa Christianson (far left) and Lynn Johnson (far right), and presenting the check on behalf of Farmers & Merchants Savings Bank is Sara Miller (center). The Allamakee Athletic Booster Club has received $8,125.83 in donations during the six years this Fear the Spear Tailgate event has been held. Submitted photo.

The Kee cross country team battled through the 2015 season facing a challenge similar to what it has always seemed to face in recent years, fielding just six high school boys and only one high school girl. But, according to first-year coach Pat Wagner, those seven high school competitors, plus a similar number of middle school competitors, worked to produce something greater than times and placewinnings this season.
“As far as on the course, the highlight of the season was at South Winneshiek, where all but one runner recorded a season’s best time,” Coach Wagner said. “Another highlight would have to be the idea that the runners were all very accepting of each other and grew as a group.  Everyone involved in grades 7-12 was made to feel part of the group. Finally, I feel like we grew from a work ethic and competitive standpoint.  As the season moved along, we seemed to practice better and better and ran harder in meets.”

Facing their desired rematch with the only team to defeat them this season, the Waukon football Indians traveled to the home of defending Class 2A State Champion and fellow Class 2A District 3 leader North Fayette Valley Friday, November 6 to play in the quarterfinal round of the Class 2A State Play-Offs. The host TigerHawks had dealt the Indians a 48-8 blow in late September in District 3 play, but as this game played out there was little to no evidence of that early-season whitewashing, the game going down to the final minute before the Indians had their season ended by a 24-20 final result.
“Our staff was extremely proud of the way these kids responded in facing a team that had completely outclassed us the first time,” Waukon football coach Chad Beermann said. “Our season ended, but the ending was not because we were outplayed. We lost because they were just the better team that night.”

For the third time in the last four seasons, not only have the Waukon football Indians qualified for the Class 2A State Play-Offs, but have now advanced at least as far as the quarterfinal round of those play-offs with at least two postseason victories in each of those three fall campaigns. This year’s gridiron Tribe joined the 2012 and 2013 football Indians by opening its Class 2A State Play-Offs with a 32-13 home victory over Union Wednesday, October 28 followed by a 42-21 road triumph at Aplington-Parkersburg Monday, November 2.

For the second consecutive season, the Waukon boys cross country team closed out its fall campaign where every high school cross country team wants to be, the State Meet season grand finale held Saturday, October 31 at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course in Fort Dodge. Looking to improve on the 14th-place finish they managed at last season’s Class 2A State Meet, and returning every one of their qualified competitors from that season grand finale from a year ago, the Indians did just that, running to a 12th-place team finish in the 15-team Class 2A field.