June 7, 2012 at 2:40 p.m.
Dodge-Point boys win silver at state; Whitlatch, Hanson win state titles
The Dodge-Point boys did something that was a first in school history - bring home a team trophy as they took second place.
The girls team almost made history too by wining a trophy, but they fell one point short and finished third.
The boys team totaled 37 points for the solver trophy with Belleville-New Glarus winning the gold with 42 points. East Troy was third with 33.5.
Other area team finishes were: Platteville 14th with 18.5, Mount Horeb 15th with 15 and Boscobel 33rd with six.
Senior Austyn Whitlatch won a state championship in the 110 hurdles when he rna a finals time of 14.93. He was the lone runner to crack the 15 second barrier as Weyauwega-Fremont junior Luke Rohloff was second in 15.01.
The first of two D-P seconds went to senior T.C. Smith in the 300 hurdles. He ran a 39.65 final to be nipped by Gale-Etterick-Trempea-leau senior Ray Callaway,who won a 39.33. Smith had the fastest preliminary time at 40.09.
The 4x100 relay team ran a 43.2 to finish second to Luxembourg-Casco's 42.99. That Dodge-Point team was comprised of: T.C. Smith, T. J. Bramlett, Austyn Whitlatch and Payton Hanson - all seniors.
Payton Hanson also reached the podium for Dodge-Point as he finished fourth in the 100 meters with an 11.02. Peshtigo junior Brad Neumann won in 10.88.
He missed qualifying for the 200 meter finals by one spot as he ran 11th in the preliminaries with a 22.83 time. Jason Robson, Shorewood junior, won the event in 22.06.
Junior Trevor Wunnicke gained a point for his team when he took eighth in the 3200 in 9:37.94. Teammate senior Brett Hottmann finished 13th in 10:02.75.
The 4x800 relay team rounded out the boys competitors and they reached the podium with a fourth place finished in 8:00.33. Monroe won in 7:50.13, nearly six seconds ahead of Madison Edgewood.
The Dodge-Point team was comprised of: Joseph Lawinger (sr.), Jonah Nelson (so.), Brett Hottmann (sr.) and Trevor Wunnicke (jr.).
Aquinas won the girls top trophy with 31.5 points to Platteville's 28. Dodge-Point posted 27.
Other area teams were: Richland Center 32nd with eight points and Mount horeb 55th with three points.
Senior Molly Hanson gained the top spot in the 1600 in 4:54.8. Platteville senior Tricia Serres was second in 4:55.23
Dodge-Point sophomore Mairin Cahill finished fifth in 5:02.35 to make it two Dodge-Pointers to make it to the podium.
Hanson was looking for a double win when she ran the 800, but fell short taking fifth place in 2:16.78.
Aquinas senior Madeline Haupert won in 2:12.73.
The Dodge-Point team fared well in the 3200 with sophomore Anna Eisenzimmer finishing fourth in 11:05.03 and freshman Hannah Owens fifth in 11:05.87. That was the second set of Dodge-Pointers to be on the podium at the same time.
Ladysmith junior Andrea Osteno won in 10:48.78 over eight seconds ahead of anyone else.
The other Dodge-Point competitor was freshman high jumper Taylor Stanek.. She cleared 5' and finished in the 11th spot.
Kettle Moraine Lutheran senior Meghan Niemann won with a 5'6" effort.
Dodge-Point head coach Joe Hanson talked about the meet saying, "The biggest problem we had last weekend was the number of athletes and number of events we had competing at the State Champion-ships. For the coaching staff,the task seemed a bit overwhelming as these next 24 hours would be with little sleep and a constant knot in your stomach. The roller coaster ride started May 21st at 4:45 and didn't end until June 2nd at about 6:00 in the evening, but what a ride it was. The peaks and valleys were the highest heights and lowest lows I have ever witnessed in nearly 40 years of this amazing sport.
"23 athletes made the trip to La Crosse from the Dodge/Point program, 17 of them competed. 12 boys (Joseph Lawinger, Trevor Wun-nicke, Jonah Nelson, Brett Hottmann, Alex Trollop, Tyler Wunnicke, Austyn Whitlatch, Payton Hanson, TC Smith, TJ Bramlett, John Schmitz, Todd Tibbits and 4 girls (Molly Hanson, Mairin Cahill, Anna Eisenzimmer, Hannah Owens) came home with the precious metal that every athlete dreams of but few receive. Taylor Stanek, although not on the podium yet, was impressive as the only freshman in the high Jump field. Molly Hanson and Austyn Whitlatch stood above all others on the awards podium the middle of Veterans Memorial Stadium as they won their events and ended their spectacular senior year as Dodge-Point athletes.
"I am just so proud to be part of this program where the athletes are presented with life changing opportunities and excel beyond expectations, the coaches share responsibility for successes and failures without question or blame, the parents and fans come away with memories that will last a lifetime.
"As head coach, I can tell you I had little to do with the success of this years team. What I did do right was surround myself with a great staff of knowledgeable and caring coaches, Denny McGraw (mid-distance and distance) Andy Palzkill and Ryan Lipska (sprints, horizontal jumps), Matt McGraw (high jump), Scott Tolzman (throws), Kurt Van Dyn Hoven (hurdles) and possibly the most important and without a doubt the hardest working member - Brian Neil (an unbelievable media man, team photographer and team manager).
"To the athletes themselves, I cannot find within myself the appropriate words to thank you enough. You have set the bar at a record height, you have done what has never been done, you have been examples of what it takes and how to do it, you have made history! You have more than impressed us or made us proud, you've brought home a State Trophy."
