By Hasti Ghasemivaghar, Current Staff
To this day, Cayden Henschel still doesn’t know why his life’s work vanished overnight.
Continue readingCategory Archives: Sports
Poor Sportsmanship in the Stands Threatens Youth Sports
By Mia Herdeman, Current Staff
It would be shocking to hear a bank employee being heckled on the job: “Hey teller, you stink at counting money!”
Continue readingFiled under Sports
West Bend Rider Chosen as Ambassador for Mountain Biking
By Amy Daniels, Current Staff
When she attended her first mountain biking practice, Anja Lanser never thought that six years later she’d be officially encouraging other girls to do the same.
Continue readingFiled under Sports
Speedy Freshman Heads to State
By Cassidy Scherzer, Current Staff
A West cross country runner leaves everyone in the dust as he now ranks as the second fastest ninth grader in the history of both West Bend High Schools.
Continue readingFiled under Sports
Rivals No More
East and West soccer teams merged due to low turnout
By Kayla Lemens, Editor in Chief
Despite being rivals in the past, West Bend East and West girls soccer combined this spring to form one co-op team.
Continue readingFiled under School News and Features, Sports
Ninth Grade Gymnast Keeps Breaking Records
By Sydney Neuser, Current Staff
Gymnast McKennah Orth, a ninth grader at West Bend East High School, is heading to state in vault, floor, beam and all-around competitions.
This honor follows a season with many highlights, including a single meet where Orth was part of breaking three school records while ending in a tie for another.
Continue readingFiled under Sports
Heading to the Big Dance
By Sarah Schmidt, Current Staff
Despite many obstacles, the varsity dance teams for West Bend East and West High have earned trips to a state competition.
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All-In: The Recent Success of Milwaukee Sports
VIEWPOINT
By Collin Chesak, Current Staff
The city of Milwaukee has overcome the challenges of small market sports and become an example for the entire country.
Continue readingFiled under Sports
An Oldie But a Goodie
WBHS senior helps revive old baseball tune with local ties
By Megan Landvatter, Current Staff
As the baseball season starts up again, a lost piece of Brewers history has been found and restored.
Continue readingFiled under Community, Entertainment, School News and Features, Sports
Ready to Dive In
COVID-19 will not cancel this year’s Dolphins show
By Norah Johnstone, Current Staff
This might be Bridget Pfiel’s second year coaching Dolphins, but it’s her first show.
Continue readingFiled under Sports
West Seniors Aim to Break Eight-Year Losing Streak
Playing the game is not always about the scoreboard
By Lily Mottet, Current Staff
With the end of the football season approaching, West senior Mason Wallschlaeger is putting everything he can into each game. Continue reading
Competitive Winter Guard Enjoys Inaugural Season
Team earned second place at Midwest Championships
By Caitlin Marsch, Current Staff
Which new team competes with sabers and flags? Continue reading
Filed under Sports
1,000 and Counting
By Alissa Ihlenfeld, Current Staff
The West Bend High Schools have recently seen not one, but two students reach a major milestone in their athletic careers. Continue reading
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WBHS Athletic Directors are Pioneers
By Samantha Dietel, Editor in Chief
The West Bend High Schools are home to two of Wisconsin’s few female athletic directors.
Erin Felber and Molly Hengst have both recently joined WBHS to head the athletic programs. Felber took on the role of West athletic director at the start of the school year, while Hengst began serving as East High’s interim athletic director in December. The two women have entered positions that are typically held by men in Wisconsin. Continue reading
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East Dance Program Recognized with National Award
Team also heads to state this weekend
By Kael Beltmann, Current Staff
When the West Bend East High School dance team found out they had won a national award, they had no idea they were even in the running. Continue reading
Dolphins Make Waves at School Board Meeting
Synchronized swimming team successfully petitions the district to overturn lighting directive
By Mattie Zautner, Current Staff
Over 60 dolphins swam into the last school board meeting.
Members of the Dolphins, the West Bend High Schools’ synchronized swim team, crashed the April 9 school board meeting to persuade district officials to allow the natatorium lights to be turned off during their show scheduled to open just three days later. Traditionally the show depends upon a darkened room for effect, but this school year the team had been notified that the lights could not be turned off for safety reasons. Continue reading
Filed under Entertainment, School News and Features, Sports
Video Made the Wrestling Star
By Auburn Larson, Current Staff
After placing fifth at the state wrestling tournament, Cayden Henschel grabbed his video camera.
Henschel, a sophomore at West Bend East High School, is known for being one of the top wrestlers in the state, but he is becoming more popular due to his YouTube vlogs which highlight his daily life. He started posting videos last November. Continue reading
Filed under School News and Features, Sports
That’s Snow Way to Practice
By Auburn Larson, Current Staff
On Tuesday, East golfers grabbed their putters and headed to the library.
The unexpected snow and freezing temperatures in April has forced many West Bend High Schools sports teams to practice in very unconventional ways this spring. Continue reading
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East Swimmer Wins State Title
Fitzgerald takes first in 200 individual medley
By Elise Marlett, Current Staff
West Bend East High School has a state champion swimmer for the first time since 2013.
Bryan Fitzgerald, a senior and member of the West Bend Boys Co-op Swim and Dive team, placed first in his claim-to-fame race, the 200 individual medley, at the WIAA Boys Division 1 state meet on Saturday. His time of 1 minute, 50.15 seconds is the eighth-fastest time in the history of Division 1 boys swimming for this event. He also participated in two relays, placing 14th and 22nd, and received second place in the 500 freestyle. The team placed 14th as a whole. Continue reading
Filed under Sports
Big Week for East vs. West Basketball
“Keep It Riehl Night” gives spectators a chance to win airfare tickets
By Auburn Larson, Current Staff
The traditional rivalry between West Bend East and West High Schools has just become more intense.
Games between East and West, which share a campus, have always meant athletes compete against their biggest rivals: Their classmates and friends. For the current basketball season, scheduling changes mean that these big games are going to happen on back-to-back nights with an exciting varsity doubleheader on Friday. Continue reading
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Gauge Then Engage: Area Athletes Learn Leadership Skills
By Auburn Larson, Current Staff
As a new North Shore Conference has been formed, so have new leaders.
Ten students from each school in the North Shore Conference attended a leadership conference led by Craig Hillier Nov. 1 at the Chandelier Ballroom in Hartford to learn about the power of quality leadership. The West Bend High Schools joined the conference when it was realigned for the 2017-18 school year. Continue reading
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Homecoming: Players Have No Fear
By Lexie Mull, Current Staff
Friday’s homecoming football game might prove to be spooky wooky. Continue reading
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Oh, the Places You’ll Go!
By Auburn Larson, Current Staff
Anne Rieke, on the cusp of graduating from West Bend East High School, never expected to be sent back to elementary school.
The idea belonged to Dennis Ziegler, East’s athletic director. Ziegler recently implemented a new program which involves East athletes reading books to elementary school students. Every Friday afternoon, six East athletes go to a local elementary school and read to an assigned class. Ziegler hopes that the interaction between East athletes and younger students will help create a stronger culture for West Bend academics and athletics. Continue reading
Filed under School News and Features, Sports
New Head Coach: East Volleyball Nets Former Marquette Player
Photo courtesy of Marquette University.
By Anthony Schlass, Current Staff
As fall 2017 rolls around, there will be some new blood associated with the East volleyball program. Former Marquette volleyball player Sara Blasier will be the new head coach for the Lady Suns.
Blasier grew up in Slinger and is the oldest of four kids in her family. However, she played for West Bend West High School her ninth grade year and later transferred to Slinger High School for her remaining three. Continue reading
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District Officials Weigh Options for Renovating Locker Rooms
By Hannah Bensen, Current Staff
In the boys locker room, only two of the eighteen shower heads are functioning.
The West Bend High Schools locker rooms have not been updated since they were built in 1970. As a result, East athletic director Dennis Ziegler is looking into potential plans to renovate the locker rooms and other high school athletic facilities. He hopes to implement these plans in stages over the next five years. Continue reading
Filed under School News and Features, Sports
A Bittersweet End to the Wisconsin Little Ten
By Justin Scherzer, Current Staff
The eight Wisconsin Little Ten conference teams are being sent their separate ways.
When the current spring athletic season ends, the WLT will dissolve due to conference realignments by the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association in order to improve competition throughout the state. Both West Bend East and West High Schools will join the North Shore Conference. Continue reading
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Like Father, Like Sons
By Auburn Larson, Current Staff
Champ or coach? What should local athletes call Brent Henschel? For two of West Bend East High School’s strongest wrestlers, it’s just easier to call him Dad. Continue reading
Filed under Sports
The Comeback Kid
Odness returns to the court after severe knee injury
By Anthony Schlass, Current Staff
West Bend East senior Elizabeth Odness wasn’t used to becoming emotional before a basketball game. But she had never had to wait six months to play, either. Continue reading
Baker Dominates the Boards
West ninth grader ranks among the state’s leading rebounders
By Lily Mottet, Current Staff
Maddison Baker never considered that before her first season of high school basketball had finished, she would be ranked as one of the best players in the state.
Baker is a West Bend West High School ninth grader who has become a valuable center for the girls varsity basketball team. Wisconsin Sports Network reports that Baker is the third best rebounder in the state. Continue reading
Big Men on Campus
West grads help lead major university athletic programs
By Anthony Schlass, Current Staff
Two ambitious individuals from West Bend have upgraded from playing high school sports to directing big time collegiate athletics.
Both Craig Pintens and Mike Houck are highly respected officials at their respective universities. Pintens, a 1994 West High School graduate, is now at the University of Oregon and is the Senior Associate Athletic Director. Houck, a 1990 West graduate, is at the University of Oklahoma and serves as the Assistant Athletics Director/Strategic Communications. Continue reading
The Fab Five
Each tennis state qualifier from WBHS is a valedictorian candidate
By Auburn Larson, Current Staff
West Bend girls tennis has been serving up aces both on and off the court for the past four years.
This season four East seniors and one West junior qualified to play in the WIAA Division 1 Girls State Individual Tennis Tournament in Madison on Oct. 13-14. Perhaps even more impressive, though, is that all five girls have a perfect 4.0 GPA and are potential valedictorians. Continue reading
Filed under Sports
A Special Breed
West junior finds success in the saddle
By Anthony Schlass, Current Staff
Katelyn Schultz is not your prototypical student-athlete, but she recently accomplished one of her greatest feats.
Schultz, a West junior, competes in horse competitions and this year she went to Nationals, the largest single breed show in the world, and her horse won.
“It’s something I never thought would happen because it’s really expensive, but my parents support me so much. I was so shocked. You never think you’re going to be the one to win,” Schultz said.
Even with all of her success, Katelyn does have an everyday obstacle: She was born without depth perception, making sports like volleyball and basketball difficult to play. Continue reading
Filed under School News and Features, Sports
And Then There Were Four
Albrecht commits to Purdue
By Anthony Schlass, Current Staff
It was just a matter of time before West shortstop Evan Albrecht followed in the footsteps of his three West teammates and lifelong best friends.
By committing to Purdue University, Albrecht becomes the fourth Division I baseball commit for the Spartans, behind teammates Anthony Schlass (Oklahoma), Nathan Burns (Oregon State) and Jack Thelen (Wisconsin-Milwaukee). Albrecht, a junior, has played two seasons for the Spartans and has two more to go.
The recruiting process was not the most enjoyable for the sure-handed shortstop. Continue reading
Filed under Sports
Challenge Accepted
By Jessica Steger, Current Staff
Talk about the ultimate all-sports all-star.
Dennis Ziegler, the new East athletic director, has committed to a year-long challenge. He has extended an invitation to all East sports teams to give him an athletic challenge, and he will fulfill that request at their practice for that day.
On Tuesday, Ziegler joined the boys varsity soccer team for a pk5 shootout, acting as both a goalie and a shooter. He previously ran with the girls cross country team, running eight Decorah Hills, and joined the girls volleyball team by performing a five-ball drill with them. Continue reading
Filed under School News and Features, Sports
Talent, Discipline and Plenty of Snow
Devenport’s work ethic earned her a state championship
By Anthony Schlass, Current Staff
During her junior season, West skier Sarah Devenport won the girls giant slalom state championship in La Crosse with a time of 32.72.
It nearly made her ill. Continue reading
Filed under Sports
The West Bend Current 