Sports

The Kee boys basketball team played through a winless week, falling in a pair of Upper Iowa Conference (UIC) contests to teams lying in front of the Hawks’ current middle-of-the-pack ranking in the current UIC standings. The Kee boys first came close to reversing an earlier fortune against the only team still unbeaten in UIC play, coming up just short, 51-49, at home against MFL/MarMac Tuesday, January 25, and then suffered a differing trend in falling harder to a North Fayette Valley squad they had fallen to by just a point a couple weeks earlier, being dealt a 66-54 loss in West Union Friday, January 28.

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The Waukon boys basketball team played through a busy week, starting off this past week by extending a newfound winning streak to four games before having that streak ended and starting one in the opposite direction, but only by narrow end results. The Indians opened the week with a 61-53 win at Crestwood Tuesday, January 25 but then fell in back-to-back road games, 55-52 at Spring Grove, MN Thursday, January 27 and by a 56-53 final in overtime at Waverly-Shell Rock Friday, January 28.

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Meridian Snitker, Mia Kurth wrestle to top-six individual placewinnings to lead Indian team effort within top 20% of 145-team scoring field

The Waukon wrestling program was well represented once again at the fourth annual Iowa Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association (IWCOA) Girls State Wrestling Tournament held Friday and Saturday, January 21 and 22 at the Xtream Arena in Coralville. This year’s largest-ever event of nearly 700 young ladies competing from 158 high schools across the state of Iowa featured the mat Tribe’s largest-ever participation as well with five young ladies taking to the mat, with that Indian effort resulting in a pair of podium placewinnings among the top six wrestlers in their respective weight classes and a team finish within the top 20% of the meet’s 145-team scoring field.

The Kee boys basketball team played through another fairly busy week of multiple ballgames, competing in three games in a matter of five days this past week. The Hawks opened the week with back-to-back home games, first falling to Charles City, 59-48, Monday, January 17 before disposing of Postville with relative ease, 70-50, Tuesday, January 18. The Hawks then wrapped up the week hitting the road but doing so successfully with a 71-56 win at Turkey Valley Friday, January 21.

After not taking the court in more than a week’s time due to weather and other postponements a week earlier, the Waukon boys basketball team put together its first undefeated week of the season and established a win streak that now stands at three games after a pair of home wins this past week. The Indians first secured a non-conference win at home over Prairie du Chien, WI Tuesday, January 18 by a 62-52 final result before avenging an earlier season loss to New Hampton with a 64-49 triumph at home Friday, January 21 that marked their first Northeast Iowa Conference victory of this season.

In addition to cheering on its football schoolmates, the Waukon High School cheerleading squad participated in its own competition season this past fall. The Indians ended up finishing among the best in the state of Iowa once again this season in those competition activities over three consecutive weekends.

The squad started its competition season at the Triton Cheer Challenge held at Iowa Central Community College in Fort Dodge Sunday, October 24. In that competition, the Indians placed first in three different divisions of competition, including Band Chant, Time Out and Fight Song, along with finishing second in the Stunt division. Pictured above at that Triton Cheer Challenge are: Left to right - Front row: Shania Dundee, Ella Dehli, Kylie Strittmater, Princess Goc Ong, Hayden VanGorp, Candyce Klein Hagensick; Bank row: Remy Gulla, Gracia Goc Ong, Ana Acosta, Sofia Acosta, Keira Miller, CiAnne Robinson.

The 43rd enshrinement into the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association (WFCA) Hall of Fame will take place in Madison, WI at the Marriott West April 2 of this year, and among this year’s 12 newly inducted members will be Waukon High School 1988 graduate Jason Piittmann.

Piittmann, the son of Gerald and Diane Piittmann of Waukon, has spent the last 22 years at Kewaskum High School in Kewaskum, WI, assuming the head football coaching reins in 2003 and compiling a 16-year head coaching record of 140 wins against just 39 losses. Not straying too far from his own high school alma mater’s mascot namesake, Piittmann guided the Kewaskum Indians to 10 consecutive seasons of 10 or more wins during his tenure.

In what turned out to be its only competition of this past week, the Kee boys basketball team played host to North Fayette Valley Thursday, January 13 in a game rescheduled from December, aand senior Dalton Dibert made it worth the wait, as he poured in the 1,000th point of his high school basketball career in the game’s first quarter. Despite Dibert’s milestone achievement and a valiant comeback effort from a 34-19 halftime deficit, the Kee boys ended up having the game snatched away in the closing seconds for a 56-55 Hawk defeat.

The Waukon boys basketball team got the 2022 portion of its schedule underway with its busiest week of the season, saving its best for last for the week with its only win of the week and its second victory of the season, a 63-58 edging of Turkey Valley at the Upper Iowa University Winter Classic in Fayette Saturday, January 8. Prior to that triumph, the Indians opened the new year with three consecutive losses, 64-60 at home to Kee Monday, January 3, 59-44 at home to Crestwood Thursday, January 6 in a game rescheduled from December 10, and a 71-67 loss at Charles City Friday, January 7.

The Waukon girls basketball team returned to action following the holiday break, playing in its busiest week of the season and ending up with its most successful week of the season by winning all four games. That undefeated effort began with wins of 56-33 at home over Kee Monday, January 3 before three consecutive nights of triumph to end the week. That final streak included a 41-38 home edging of Crestwood Thursday, January 6 in a game rescheduled from December 10 by winter weather, a 66-36 road rout of Charles City Friday, January 7 and a 58-42 win over Wapsie Valley Saturday, January 8 in the Winter Classic at Upper Iowa University in Fayette.