How is this for coincidence? Brookfield Central, which is probably the best of the four teams I cover in Brookfield and Wauwatosa, has three quarterbacks fighting for playing time - Juniors Collin O'Gorman and Tom Showers and sophomore Jason Meichtry.

Brookfield East, Wauwatosa East and Wauwatosa West on the other hand, have three solid to excellent quarterbacks in Skyler Holden, Ethan Harris and Kevin Gorman, respectively. Yet all three of these teams might struggle to play .500 ball this year. All three of these players are the keys to their offense.

At Central, the Lancer quarterbacks have two D1 running backs Xavier Whitaker (The X-Man) and Jeff Lewis in that backfield and an outstanding line. Bryce Gilbert, Central's version of the Incredible Hulk, will play offense as well as defense this season. Gilbert is 6-2, 300 pounds and has muscles in places I don't even have places.

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Their cup runneth over for Cross Country teams in Brookfield this year. Tim Peterson, Will Casey (MUHS transfer) and Jordan Lindstrom (Brook Central), Mark Lindquist and Karl Brandstaetter (Brook East) and Taylor Conway and Natalie Dillon (Brook East) are runners to watch.

But look out for defending Greater Metro Champion Brook Central. Lorie Lewis has talent galore led by Hannah Trasser, the GMC runner of the year. Caitlin Wolters, Alyson Ambrookian and Kate Manske also bring all-conference credentials with them.

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A Sterling Catch - In the Tosa West win over Milwaukee North, Ray Sterling, Jr. made a big league catch for a touchdown. QB Kevin Gorman threw about a 20 yard pass on a line down the right sideline and hit Sterling in stride. But what was impressive was the way Sterling caught the ball with his hands outstretched, made a move inside and then outran the defenders. An outstanding play.

If the Trojans are going to be successful, their O-line and D-line will have to step up big time this year, because there are some good skill position players.

Be a hit and have a ball.

The best story last week was Bethany/Calvary upsetting Schmidt and Bartelt 'A', 8-1, to win the rec softball title. There were tons of fun angles on this game.

• SBA had won sixth straight titles and BC barely made the tournament, but qualified when someone had to drop out. 
• BC Manager Ted Blackschein had a big night at the plate and earned the title on his 41st birthday.
• BC's Jimmy Haas stopped SBA on 1 run - not bad for a 62-year old hurler who was playing in his 40th season.
• The game was played in a steady rain, which made the outstanding defense played by BC even more amazing.

Congrats BC, you had a heck of a run.

***

It might be a long year for the Wauwatosa East, Wauwatosa West and Brookfield East football teams, but a lack of a good quarterback won't be the problem. The Red Raiders' Ethan Harris was first-team all-GMC last year, while the speedy Kevin Gorman of Tosa West and Skyler Holden of Brookfield East can make things happen.

Speaking of Tosa West, the Trojans are playing Milwaukee North Friday at West. Like Tosa West, North did not win a game last year, so this might be coach Matt Good's first real shot at his first win as head coach.

At Brookfield Central, D1 signees Xavier Whitaker and Jeff Lewis in the backfield will be something to behold, but the Lancers need to settle on a quarterback. In you like to watch the line, look for 300-pounder Bryce Gilbert, who should be a two-way terror for other Greater Metro teams this year.

The other futbol teams - soccer - should have interesting seasons. Brook East and Central will battle Marquette for the GMC title and Tosa East, under new coach Eric Dale, should be improved. Tosa West will also be solid, although the Trojans might have some ups and downs because of their youth.

The Brook East girls cross country team and the Brook Central boys CC squad should be very good. Mike Vann will try and bring his successful coaching talents to the Tosa West boys CC team after doing an excellent job with the track team.

Look for the TW girls volleyball team to contend in the Woodland Conference again this year with Jenny Ciriacks and Sam Himmelspach leading the way.

***

Congrats to the Wauwatosa Spartans for winning their first Ironman Football League playoff game last Saturday, a 28-27 thriller over Rock County. They will now host the Burlington Blue Devils in a 6 p.m. game at Hart Park on Saturday night.

Fall prep sports have officially begun this week. My goodness, what happened to summer? (My wife said it was two days last week).

On Monday of this week, the high school linksters and kickers could officially work as a team.

That means Jon Mroz (Brookfield Central), Herbie Dundun (Brookfield East), Mike Parulski (Wauwatosa West) and new head coach Eric Dale (Wauwatosa East) will be getting ready for the soccer season. Dale replaced long-time Tosa East coach Bob Prange, who wanted to spend more time with his young family.

On the golf course, Chris Minchk (Brook East), Brian Scrobel (Brook Central) and Sarah Sallman (Tosa East/West) all will have their teams swinging away on the links.

Football, swimming/diving and tennis got underway Tuesday, so veteran coaches Doug Lange (Central) and Tom Swittel (T.East) will be getting their teams ready, while second-year coaches Sal Logue (B.East) and Matt Good (T. West) will be looking for a better season the second time around.

Glen Slonac (T.East), Zervas Kosta (T.West), Dave Steinbach (Central) and Linda Lied (East) are back on the tennis courts, while Mike Rose (B.East), Bill Twitchell (Central) and Russ Weigel (T.East) return to the swimming pool while veteran swim coach Dale Schrank takes over at Tosa West.

Boys and girls cross country and girls volleyball is set for next week and boys volleyball is the last to start on Aug. 24.

I have some administrative stuff I wanted to get out to the public, so I thought I would use my blog.

SBCGLOBAL.NET EMAIL PROBLEMS 

First of all, if you have a sbcglobal.net email I want to let you know that we here at NOW newspapers and web sites CAN NOT reply to your emails. It is a problem our IT Department is working on. I find it frustrating because I haven't been able to track down phone numbers for some people and so I can't answer their emails and I don't want them to think I don't care.

So if you have a sbcglobal.net email and want me to reply to your email, include a phone number.

TOSA LITTLE LEAGUE SCORES

I want to thank people from the Tosa Little League for following the format I asked for and I want to thank them for their patience. We have been averaging about 300 lines a week of scores. That is a lot of lines. A normal cover story is about 120-140 lines, so you can imagine how much space 300-plus lines takes up.

This past Thursday we had 340 lines and were able to print about 100. Whatever is left out is placed on top of the following week's scorecard so it won't be left out the following week. At the top of each week's scores I've been writing (3 weeks ago), (2 weeks ago) and (Last week's) scores. So once again, thanks for your cooperation, understanding and patience.

HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL TALK

It looks like Brookfield Central and Brookfield East will be right in the battle for first place in the North Division of the Greater Metro Conference. Before running into the Lancer buzzsaw this week, the Wauwatosa East Red Raiders had been playing much better this year. As for Tosa West, coach Chad Mateske will be asking for volunteers to pitch as injuries an inexperience have cut into the Trojans' pitching. Recently, the Trojans were down to about 11 active players.

BREWER TALK

I said at the beginning of the season and I will say it again, the Brewers don't have much starting pitching and their lack of OBA hitters will hurt the consistency of the offense. Yovani Gallardo - because of his inexperience - is at best a No. 2 starter - but he is a very good starting pitcher. After that, Jeff Suppan, Brad Looper and Dave Bush are No. 5 pitchers on good staffs and No. 4 pitchers on average staffs. Manny Parra is still their second-best pitcher based on that magic word "potential" and hopefully that trip to the minors will straighten him out.

Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder can play with anyone, but the Brewers need more hitters who hit for average or have a better OBA. Everyone knows that when the hitters are hot they can play with anyone. But when they are not, they are pretty hard to watch. More contact hitters equal less slumps because anything can happen when you get people on base.

You know what you get from Corey Hart, J.J. Hardy and Mike Cameron - you just don't know when you're getting it. Craig Counsell and Casey McGehee have had wonderful years on the plus side. Based on how the Brewers pitchers are performing, you can drop the let's catch Jason Kendall every day stuff because he handles the staff so well and get Mike Rivera in the lineup more than once a week.

Finally, play Mat Gamel EVERY day no matter who is pitching. He hit lefthanders better than righthanders in the minors and you will NEVER find out what kind of player he is unless he plays all the time. It is not brain surgery.

I agree with Doug Melvin - I would not even consider trading Gamel or Alcides Escobar. I would trade Hardy in a minute because of Escobar and I would trade Hart if it meant I would get a pitcher that would be here longer than three months.

The Brewers are in the Central Division race because the other teams have holes also. So they could stay in the race if everyone continues to struggle. But unlike last season, they won't be winning the wild card this year.

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Be a hit and have a ball.

This is it folks!  The softball, soccer and tennis team state tournaments are this week and the spring sport season is officially over.

Brookfield and Tosa have no softball teams at state once again (I never get to cover state softball). But Brookfield Central will be in the soccer tournament and the team tennis tournament.

The Lady Lancer kickers open at 5 p.m. against De Pere at Uihlein Soccer Park. Record-wise they have the worse record in the field, but don't tell that to Brookfield East and Homestead. The Lancers have been working their magic.

The Lancer boys will square off at 5:30 p.m. on Friday at the Nielsen Tennis Stadium against Homestead. Central has beat the Highlanders twice, but anything can happen because all the matches were close. The winner will face top-ranked Marquette (you can count on it). When asked the key to beating the Hilltoppers, Central's veteran coach Dave Steinbach replied "Beating Homestead first."

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Both Brookfield baseball teams should be fun to watch this year as they both are off to good starts. Central always seems to reload instead of rebuild and coach Tim Granger has the pitching to make the Spartans a contender this year also.

Over in Wauwatosa, the Red Raiders are better and it all starts with the talented Danny Sayles and catcher Tyler O'Brien. Both players are fun to watch. Coach Matt Dahlstrom will have a better team in his second season.

Coach Chad Mateske has plenty of Wauwatosa West arms to call on, but he will be looking for the ones with the most strikes in them. Mateske hopes to use the first part of the season to see what kind of talent he has and then hopefully get his team ready for the playoff run.

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The Lady Lancers finished second at state this year - anyone who complains should have their head examined. Kudos to Katelyn Malcore who came home with four medals. Bradley Tech was very talented team and Central would have had to have been perfect to beat them.

As impressive as it was for Collin Taylor taking home the only state title - winning the high jump at 6-10 - his efforts helped boost the Spartans to sixth place in state along with the second-place finish of the 1,600 relay team which only had one senior (Andrew Amato) on the team. Big Mitch Aprahaniam finished his high school sports career with a third in the shot.

Also congrats to Drew Lied, who finished third for the Spartans at the state individual tennis tournament.

Tosa East's Hannah Weinberg-Kinsey and Tosa West's Ashlee Ballinger finished fourth and sixth, respectively.

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I hope to see you out at a local baseball game this summer.

Brookfield East senior C.J. Caliendo declined to play against his teammates - senior Mike Herrmann and junior Kyle Henning - in a playoff to advance to the state tournament on Monday and Tuesday.

Besides taking the top two teams from each sectional, three individuals from teams not making the next step also qualify. The top spot will filled by another golfer, so that left the three Spartans to play off.

Caliendo, who will be playing golf at Concordila College in Austin, Texas, declined. Herrmann, who will be attending the University of Wisconsin, but not golfing collegiately, and Henning, who has another year at East, will take part instead.

"It was a gentlemanly thing to do, a classy move," East coach Chris Minch called it.

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It was nice to see Brookfield Central first singles Michael Treis move on to state. Treis, a freshman, is the top singles player for the Lancers, but during the season he battles every team's ace. His 17-13 record isn't overwhelming, but this alloweds the Lancers to move everyone down a stop and make their singles play even better.

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It will be fun to see how high East record-holder Collin Taylor will go in the high jump at state. He jumped onll 6-6 at sectional, but he could be shooting for another three inches at La Crosse.

Mitch Aprahaniam, an outstanding tight end and the emotional leader of the basketball team, will be looking to do some damage with the shot put.

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Looking ahead to baseball, look out for East pitcher Jake Janowski, who is off to a great start already. Janowski blanked Marquette, 2-0, to help the Spartans improve to 3-1 in GMC play.

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Freshmen pitchers Amanda Kalupa of East and Britney Held of Central, had good seasons, and should give the GMC batters problems for the next three years.

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Everyone will be watch Chidera Obasih and Katelyn Malcore at state this weekend, but the key to Central's success will be what their teammates will be doing.

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I think Brookfield East will get by Central in the sectional semis to battle top-ranked Homestead for the right to go to state on Saturday at East.

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It was nice to see the Red Raiders send three players to state individual tennis - sophomore Nick Skanavis and the doubles team of Michael Rankin and Peter Conis.

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The Tosa East athletic teams will miss Hannah Weinberg-Kinsey, an excellent basketball player, and a top high jumper. Weinberg-Kinsey and Tosa West's Ashlee Ballinger tied for first at the seconal, jumping 5-3, but Weinberg-Kinsey took first with fewer misses. Look for East's Claire Gordee to make an impression at state. 

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Kelly LeDoux had an amazing season for Tosa West softball, pitching every inning of every game for the Trojans. There is no truth to the rumor her throwing arm is now four inches longer than her glove arm.

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Kevin Gorman of Tosa West and Jacob James of Tosa East qualified as individuals for state along with the Trojans 400 and relay teams.

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Congrats to Tosa West coach Mike Parulski and his girls soccer team for winning the Woodland Conference for the sixth team in seven years.

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Until next time,

Be a hit and have a ball!

10 Things to share...

• Congrats to Brookfield East's Taylor Conway for breaking the school record in the 3,200 meter run in the Lady Spartan/House of Speed Invite on April 22.
  
• How would you like to be Brookfield East hurdler Dan Osgood, the third-best hurdler in the Greater Metro Conference?  Matt Widule, who had perhaps the state's best time in the highs on Friday, and Justin Hodges, who spent the indoor chasing Widule, are all Danny has to beat.
  
• Phil Bartel of Brookfield Central and Mike Herrmann of Brookfield East shared medalist honors at the second Greater Metro Conference mini-meet on April 27. Each shot a 35.
  
• Weird ending to the Spartan Tennis Invitational last Saturday. The tourney lost three hours as it was moved inside because of poor weather conditions. Brookfield Central, like some other schools, had prom scheduled for Saturday night, so the title match with Marquette was postponed. Marquette was willing to play and Brook East tournament director Linda Lied was also ready to play because the courts were paid for. Top-ranked MUHS nipped Central, 4-3, three days earlier.
  
• Congrats to Brookfield East freshman Amanda Kalupa, who tossed her first prep no-hitter against DSHA last week. Catcher Katie Benz gets as assist for the game she called and SS Lexi Sotiros and RF Kennedy Curtis made two nice plays early in the game.
  
• Sometimes you have to take little steps first. The Tosa East softball team has struggled the past few years. Last week they lost to West Allis Central and played a complete game for the first time in two years. In high school there is a 10-run rule, where the game ends after 5 innings (4 ½ if the home team is winning) when a 10-run advantage is reached.
  
• Too bad the stormy weather rained out the Tosa Tennis Invitational last Saturday. It will not be rescheduled.
  
• Stats are fun and sometimes they tell the truth. The Trojans' girls soccer team allowed 13 goals and were 0-4. In three matches where their defense came through, they didn't allow a goal and went 2-0-1.
  
• Last week's story on Tosa West senior Allison Gonzales touched a lot of people. People who have suffered similar problems have contacted me, including one doctor, looking to share their stories with the Gonzales family and help out. The day it came our on the NOW web sites we had 2,500 hits, by far more than any other story on the NOW sites.
  
• I hate spring in Wisconsin. Mom Nature is a big tease.

I hate - yes - hate - spring in Wisconsin. I have lived here my entire life and spring ranks third on my list of fall seasons behind Fall and our two months of summer.

Mother Nature is a big tease. She will 'wow' you with warm temperatures and then dump six inches of snow on you. Just when you relax and think, "Winter might be over," Mother Nature laughs in our face.

I'm sure the spring coaches in the area also feel the same way. Most of my Community Watches have been reporting postponed games/matches/meets.

But some of the early performances are encouraging for some of the team's able to play.

The Brookfield Central soccer team, who played DSHA Tuesday night, got off to a 2-0 start. Sophomore Gina Scaffidi, who was instant offense off the bench last year, scored three goals in the 5-0 win over Tosa West last Saturday.

Brookfield East, which could contend for the state title, has a load of talent coming back, hopes to host Nicolet Wednesday night.

Brookfield Central's state champion girls track team, led by Chidera Obasih, the 100 and 200 meter state champ. Coach Lorie Lewis has an impressive newcomer in Rubie Nordling (triple jump, 60 high hurdles and mile relay team). Brookfield East should also contend, as Jeff Ferguson's team has excellent depth.

Look for the Brookfield East boys to contend for the GMC title, as Justin Hodges and Collin Taylor will be leading the way for coach Mike Steiner's talented squad.

Hannah Weinberg-Kinsey of Tosa East should once again lead the Red Raiders girls track team, whether she is running or jumping.

Kevin Gorman and Mark Wesson have led the Tosa West boys early, but Ira Howard will be back soon as the Woodland Indoor approaches. The Trojans might have had a huge blow when Jimmy Bonkowski blow out his knee on his last jump on Saturday after winning the long jump.

Grace Shelstad, Laura Bavlnka, Christina Compton and Ashley Ballinger had good efforts in the Chris Wilson Invite on Saturday for the Tosa West girls.

Now if Mother Nature can give us all a break, maybe we can get this season started.

Be a hit and have a ball.

Three Brookfield schools and two Wauwatosa schools are still alive as the post-season heats up  -  the Brookfield Central girls and the boys teams from Brookfield Central, Brookfield East, Wauwatosa East and Wauwatosa West.

Hopefully the Central girls got a wake-up call last Saturday, when they rallied from a seven-point deficit with six minutes left to defeat a fired-up East team, 48-46, to advance to this weekend's sectional. The Lady Lancers will have their hands full, playing in a sectional whose four teams have a combined 76-10 record. Central (20-1) opens with Franklin (17-5) at 6 p.m. at Greenfield Friday and then with a win meets the winner of the Muskego (20-1) and Racine Case (19-3) at 7 p.m. Saturday.

The Central boys (10-11) beat Franklin, 59-48, to advance to Saturday's game at Milwaukee Hamilton (17-3) at 1:30 p.m. Brook East (7-14), working on a four-game winning streak, will play at Racine Park (17-3) at 1 p.m. East coach Andy Farley has his team playing well, as they beat a favored Waterford tea, 53-51, in OT in the first round.

If will be interesting to see how Wauwatosa East responds from it's trashing at the hands of Marquette to lose the GMC title the last time the Red Raiders were on a basketball court on Feb. 26.  The Red Raiders have struggled finding the right combination this year, have been inconsistent from the perimeter and have had trouble sticking with coach Tim Arndorfer's offense this year. If they beat Bay View (10-10) at home on Saturday at 1 p.m., they will face the winner of the Marquette (17-2-1) Tosa West (10-11) game on Friday, March 13, at the Al McGuire Center at 8 p.m.

Yes, Tosa West gets a chance Saturday night at MUHS at 8 p.m. to do something the Red Raiders couldn't do this year. Beat the Hilltoppers.

The Central girls and the Tosa East boys are the only "favorites" among the five teams. But that's what makes this time of the year so much fun.

Keep reading!  Be a a hit and have a ball.

CHECK OUT MY VIDEO PREVIEW OF THE BIG GAMES!

I love this time of the year, although it is a very busy time - especially if you have teams alive in the WIAA post-season ritual. The girls have been underway since Feb. 24, as I saw Tosa West handle Tosa East and Brookfield East beat Racine Park in first round games, advancing to Saturday's regional finals.

The matchups on Saturday weren't real exiting. No. 1 seed Brookfield Central (20-1), who destroyed Brookfield East (9-13) twice by 27 and 22 points, respectively, hosted the Lady Spartans in a 1 p.m. game and Divine Savior Holy Angels (18-3) hosted Tosa West (11-11) that night. I wasn't expecting a lot.

But here is a reason people say everyone starts the post-season with a 0-0 record. Brookfield East came to play and Brookfield Central came to not lose. The Lady Spartans led 39-32 with 7:41 remaining before Central woke up and even then it took a beautiful drive to the basket by sophomore sensation Valerie Rose Agnello to score the winning bucket with 2.4 seconds left to play to give Central the win.

East coach Tara Schmitt had her gang fired up and ready to play, as gritty Kennedy Curtis (14 points), 6-4 Marley Blood (12) and the cat-like Vanessa Brown (12) had the Lady Lancers off balance all game.

But in the end, Agnello, perhaps the top first-year varsity player in the conference, came through once again for the Lady Lancers, as did Joana Bielefeld in her new role as playmaker.

Bielefeld, last year's top player in the conference, has seen all sorts of trick defenses and is not forcing the ball. Instead she is setting up teammates for easy buckets and focuses on winning instead of padding her offensive stats. She is a pleasure to watch as she is an unselfish star player - and usually 'unselfish' and 'star' don't go together now-a-days.

The DSHA game was much uglier than I expected. The Trojans held the talented Dashers to 28 points and shut them out in the final quarter. The problem was Tosa West got blanked in the second and third periods and only scored 3 points in the first period.

Once again the Tosa West offense struggled, getting off only nine shots in the second and third quarters, as the Dasher shut them down for 20:51 seconds.

So DSHA and Brook Central live to face another game. But special kudos to the Lady Spartans, who left it all on the floor in the near-upset of the Lady Lancers.

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I wanted to vent a little about something I saw, not once, but twice last week. Two of the biggest games in the GMC were played on Feb. 19 (BC girls at DSHA) and Feb. 26 (Tosa East boys at Marquette). These two games were for all the marbles. Winner wins the conference title. You would think people would be smart enough to figure there might be a large crowd in attendance - especially at DSHA, whose gym is a little bigger than my rec room (believe me, my rec room is nice, not huge).

But no, both nights people were walking around, looking for seats five minutes BEFORE tip-off, with eyes glazed over like, 'Wow, is this place crowded.' Folks, get with it. Expect a crowd at the game of the year in the conference for both the girls and boys. It's that time of the year. Get a clue.

There, got that off my chest. :)

Be a hit and have a ball until next time.

The fun begins this week as the girls playoffs start. The Wauwatosa East girls travel to Tosa West tonight for a WIAA Regional first-round game. Both teams have struggled offensively, so I figure the first team to 30 wins.

It could be the last time to see Hannah Weinberg-Kinsey and Margaret Panter of the Red Raiders team, two of my favorite players. While West has six seniors, led by Jesse Zeisse and Andrea Kwak. And I always enjoy watching little point guard Jackie Glaser play.

Brookfield East hosts Racine Park in the other girls game in my region. East has six seniors, led by Kennedy Curtis, Vanessa Brown and Kristina Dolney.

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The biggest game of the week on the boys side has Tosa East traveling to crosstown rival Marquette with the winner walking off with the Greater Metro Conference Championship. The Hilltoppers' win in the first meeting has pushed them ahead of the Red Raiders in the rankings and the sectional seeding.

Garrett Maloney destroyed the Red Raiders in the first game and the MUHS zone limited Eric Williams to two points. If the results are going to be different, those numbers have to change.

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The Red Raiders received a third-seed in the WIAA Sectional #8 rankings. The Red Raiders have a bye and then host Bay View or Pius XI at 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 7. Tosa West received a Seven seed and hosts Oak Creek on Tuesday, March 3. The winner of that game plays MUHS on March 7.

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Brookfield Central - a seventh seed - hosts No. 10 Franklin on Tuesday, March 3, at 7 p.m. and Brookfield East, which has been playing outstanding defense the past two weeks - takes its No. 11 seed to No. 6 Waterford that first night.

***

Zack Sines and Joey Woppert of Brook East, Dryden Holmes of Brookfield Central and big Glen Kendl of Wauwatosa head off to state Thursday to Saturday for the WIAA State Wrestling Championships at the Kohl Center.

Brookfield Central will take on some red-clad followers this week.  The Lancers travel to Marquette to meet the Hilltoppers Tuesday night and then return home to face them on Friday.  The unusual scheduling was because of the Jan. 16 postponed game because of cold weather closing schools was rescheduled to be played Feb. 17.  Thus Central and Marquette play twice within four days.

So why is this important to Tosa East fans? Pretty simple. The Red Raiders, whose only GMC loss came to Marquette, and the Hilltoppers are technically tied for first - Tosa East (11-1) and Marquette (10-1). The Red Raiders are 15-3 overall and MUHS is 14-2-1. The seeding meetings for the boys sectional are set for the weekend. If Marquette wins both games, they will probably have a higher seed than Tosa East because of the Hilltoppers win in their only meeting.  Milwaukee Washington will get the top seed, MUHS the second and the Red Raiders the third in the experts' opinions.

"I guess we will be Brookfield Central fans this week," TE coach Tim Arndorfer said. "We will have to see what coach (Mark) Adams (of BCHS) can come up with."

If Adams helps the Red Raiders by beating Marquette that will only be a by-product for the veteran coach, who is trying to get his team back in the winning column down the stretch - that's what's first on his mind going into these two games.

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Brookfield Central (13-0, 18-1) travels to DSHA (12-1, 17-2) Thursday night for the season finale for both teams. The defending champion Lady Lancers won at the tiny DSHA gym last year, snapping a four-game losing streak there. The Dashers will be fired up to get a share of the title. Central, of course, has no interest in sharing it.  Central won the first game, 36-33, a rugged defensive game, which combined with some nervousness, made both offenses a little shakey.

First team to 40 (if the score goes that high) should win this game. It's always fun to watch Central's Dan Wandrey and DSHA's Scott Witt work the sidelines, their teams and the officials in this game.

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Congrats to all the swimmers from the co-op teams from Brookfield and Tosa for qualifying for state. The news in Tosa was particularly big, because the boys have not been there since 2005.

Special shoutout to the Tosa co-op wrestlers and the Brookfield East and Central wrestlers who advanced to sectionals on Saturday.

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The girls basketball seedings came out last weekend and Tosa fans should be happy, because they are guaranteed to have a team in the second round. Tosa East will travel to Tosa West on Feb. 24 for a 7 p.m. game to open postseason action. The Trojans nipped the Red Raiders, 33-31, in their non-conference meeting back on Dec. 2.

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The most surprising box score from Friday night came from Brookfield East, where the Spartans crushed Hamilton, 55-34. Way to go Andy Farley and the gang. The most impressive stat was the Spartans' defense, led by Demetri Tongas, held Kameron Cerroni and Brett Meinecke to six points each. They normally average 38 points between them.

The Spartans have lost several close games this year and deserve a win like this.

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Be a hit and have a ball until next time.

There will be two big Greater Metro Conference games coming up this Friday - one on the boys side and one on the girls.

5th-ranked Divine Savior Holy Angels (6-0, 9-1) and 7th-rated Brookfield Central (6-0, 11-1) meet in Brookfield at 7:30 p.m. Friday night. Last year Central won the title, beating the Dashers on the road (45-38) and then DSHA beat Central at home in the season finale after the Lady Lancers won the title (42-29).

These two games will probably decide the title, barring injury, illness or something unforeseen. Check out my matchup story in this Thursday's BrookfieldNOW paper and web site.

On the boys end, Wauwatosa East (5-0, 9-2) travels to Sussex Hamilton (5-0, 7-2) to face the Chargers in the battle for first. The Red Raiders won twice last year at Sussex (84-67) and at home (91-59), so I'm curious to see how far the Chargers have come this season. It will be fun to see what the Tosa East defense can do against Kameron Cerroni (22.2) and Brett Meinecke (17.8) the top scoring duo in the GMC.

Brookfield Central (3-2, 6-4), which lacks the super athlete like Cory Degner this year, takes on Marquette (4-1, 8-2-1) and Garrett Maloney (13.0). The game is huge for the Lancers, who have lost four of five games.

Wauwatosa West (5-0) has to beat Brown Deer (2-3) on the road Friday and not make it a 'trap game' before the game with New Berlin Eisenhower (5-0) on Jan. 23.

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Congratulations to Tosa East senior Glen Kendl, who needs one win to become Tosa's all-time victory leader. Going into Wednesday's match with Greendale, the 285-pound Kendl shares the lead with Nick Morin, who set the mark last year, with 115 wins. Kendl is 23-0. Two weeks ago, Zach Sines became Brookfield East's all-time win leader.

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The Brookfield East/Central co-op gymnastics team keeps getting outstanding performances out of junior Katelyn Malcore, one of the area's top performers.

Here's a get well wish for Central sophomore Elizabeth Tzortzos, who did a release move off the bars and peeled off and hurt her back in a recent meet against Menomonee Falls/Germantown. She will be out about a week. Liz is Central's No. 2 performer.

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Be a hit and have a ball until next time!

The Wauwatosa East boys went 1-1 in the Wisconsin Basketball Yearbook Tournament and it is easier to figure out a Rubik's Cube than the Red Raiders rotation.

"Yeah, it a perfect world that would be great," he said after the win over Pius XI on Saturday. "But we are still trying to find out who to start, who to play together. We have a lot of talent but no one is really stepping up."

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Most of the Brookfield and Wauwatosa High School basketball teams will be playing their final conference games of the year this week before taking some time off for Christmas and then returning for some holiday tournaments or some individual non-conference games.

Here's some early thoughts on the teams I cover.

WAUWATOSA

Boys

Wauwatosa East has been writing a similiar script like last season, but when a team goes 26-1, it's the bottom line that counts. Larry Bradley, Jr. may be in uniform by next Friday's game against Pius XI once the legal guardian paperwork is done and with that addition, I really don't see anyone in the Greater Metro Conference giving the Red Raiders a run for their money. They were possibly more talented than last year's team without the 6-3 Bradley.

Wauwatosa West should be fun to watch this year this season with coach Mike Landisch's penetrate and kickback offense. This suits Ray Sterling, Jr. Bendell Lee and Sam Krenzien well, while Andy Minkley, more of a setup shooter, will get the hang of it. Barry Ballinger's play underneath will also be a key to the Trojans' success. It will also be interesting to see how the four suspended players fit in when they return soon.

Girls

Someone keep Tosa East coach Rob Hamill away from high places and sharp knifes. His girls have lost three games by a total of five points and have played better than their record indicates. Hannah Weinberg-Kinsey has recently been lighting up the net and that is something the Red Raiders need, a second scorer to go along with Margaret Panter.

The surprise team of the city might be Tosa West. Coach Mike Pietrowiak recently got scrappy Molly Boyle back and Jesse Zeisse will be back soon. The inside play of Ashley Ballinger will also be a key for the Trojans this season. Jackie Glaser, who was under the weather in a recent game, and Andrea Kwak have played well in the early going, among others.

BROOKFIELD

Boys

Mike Gosz, Hamilton Athletic Director, won't be getting a Christmas card from Brookfield East coach Andy Farley this year. The Spartans have opened up with Brookfield Central, Wauwatosa East and Marquette, all on the road. Daniel Patton is leading the way for the Spartans, is one of the top outside shooters I have seen this season. C.J. Gregg is a talented big man and Devonte Harper has done a good job of running the offense.

It's early yet, but coach Mark Adams has to be pleased with the Lancers quick start. Seven players are scoring between 5.0 and 7.0 points per game as Central has shown early season balance. Kevin Hynes, filling big shoes at point guard, and John Winius has hit some huge shots so far this season. Adams not only has a freshman on his team for the first time, but 6-4 Seth Mortag is STARTING on top of it.

Girls

My story in this week's paper goes into more detail on the defending champion Lady Lancers talented team this year. Joana Bielefeld and Erin Lueder do a great job of leading this team, but their suporting cast has improved. 6-1 Jesse Thomas, 5-10 sophomore Valarie Agnello, 5-9 Maggie Mattiacci and 5-8 Kate Sandstrom have all had key roles in Central's fast start. And coach Dan Wandrey has put in a devasting 1-3-1 zone defense this season.

If coach Tara Schmitt can get all her best players healthy or eligible, the Lady Spartans could be a force again. Marley Blood has been out with a high angle sprain and a few other players have had some athletic code and grade problems, but others have stepped up. One of the most aggressive players I have seen so far is Kennedy Curtis, who has helped East's inside game in Blood's absence.

Hope to see some of you at the Holiday Tournaments the next two weeks.

Be a Hit and Have a Ball.

The WIAA heard Wauwatosa East's appeal on sophomore transfer student Larry Bradley today and will make the announcement of their decision sometime next week.

To quickly summarize, Bradley, whose parents still live in Milwaukee, moved in with his uncle Marshall Williams, who lives in Wauwatosa. Bradley, a 6-3 guard, started for Milwaukee Vincent last season and averaged 7.3 points per game. He is considered one of the top sophomores in Wisconsin.

The WIAA denied a transferred waiver application in November. Tosa East appealed and pincipal Nick Hughes and athletic director Linda Vitrano traveled to Stevens Point for the hearing Friday. 

I was told the decision has been made, but the announcement is not until next week. Hello?  Takes that long to write a press release?

I have no inside information, of course, but I don't have a good feeling on this one.

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Seth Mortag, a 6-4 freshman forward, is not only the first freshman to make the varsity for veteran coach Mark Adams, but he is also starting for the Lancers. Mortag played on a summer AAU team coach by former Milwaukee Bucks guard Mo Williams. He scored 10 points in his first varsity game, a double OT win over South Milwaukee.

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Daniel Patton has stepped up for the Spartans, as the Brookfield East guard scored 25 points in the first two games, including 16 in the opener. He is a good outside shooter for coach Andy Farley's gang.

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Brookfield East and West Allis Central, usually the teams to beat in the Greater Metro Conference wrestling race, hooked up in the first dual of the conference season. The Spartans won 36-27 behind pins by Andy Wanta, Zach Sines and Joe Wahhab. East coach Bud Sines must be smiling.

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The school rivalries busted out early this season. Tosa West girls slipped by Tosa East, 33-31, in a thriller Tuesday night at West. The Tosa East boys travel to Tosa West Saturday night and then the Brookfield East boys and girls travel to Central for a twinbill on Tuesday night at 6 p.m. (girls) and 7:30 p.m. (guys).

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That's it for now. Look for more blogs coming at you more often now that the winter season is underway.

Be a Hit and Have a Ball!

Brookfield Central couldn't have drawn a nicer script for the final game of the football season.

Many people figured the Lancers chances of winning the title were slim and none when they dominated Marquette, but made five turnovers and lost, 10-6, a few weeks back. That left The Hilltoppers and West Allis Hale on top of the pack.

But the Huskies beat Marquette the next week, leaving Hale as the only unbeaten team in conference play, meaning if the Lancers beat Hale in Wednesday's season finale at Hale they would earn a share of the GMC crown.

Well, Sussex Hamilton, fighting for a playoff berth, became the perfect trap game for the Huskies, who beat Marquette and were looking forward to facing the Lancers in the finale. Hamilton coach John Damato had his Chargers ready to play and they knocked off Hale last Friday and now we have a three-way time for first with one game left.

While all eyes will be at the Central-Hale game in West Allis on Wednesday, Marquette has to look out for the same situation that got the Huskies last week.  You see, the Hilltoppers, who are in the playoffs, have to play a Menomonee Falls team (3-3) which needs to win or see its season come to end.

It's a wonderful drama and I can't wait to see how it plays out.

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On the other side of Brookfield and West Allis, you will find another big game. Brookfield East (0-6) and West Allis Central (0-6) meet at East and each will be seeking their first GMC win of the year. The loser finishes last.

You can bet the hitting at this game will be just as hard as the Central-Hale game.

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A congrats goes out to Hannah Trasser and Katie Peterson of Brookfield Central and Natalie Dillon of Brookfield East. They finished 1-2-3 in the GMC Cross Country Championships last Saturday. The Lady Lancers finished first and the Lady Spartans finished third.

The Brookfield Central-Waterford football game last Friday was the most exciting 7-6 victory I have ever seen. I thought I was in a bakery with all the turnovers flying about. Central coach Doug Lange figured it would take a while for his offense - no one returned from last year's starting lineup - to jell and he was right. He also said he hoped his defense would be up to the task - and he was right again. Matt Upson, Jack Moro and Dan Bowar led a veteran defense and came up with a big stop when the Wolverines went for a two-point conversion in the final minutes of play.

To say Wauwatosa East struggled against Milwaukee Riverside would be polite. The Red Raiders were outmanned on both sides of the ball. Coach Tom Swittel said he had some good skill players in Ethan Harris and Barret Powell and he was right about that. Harris might not survive the season, though, if he keeps taking hits like he did in the opener. If there is a better wide receiver in the area than Powell, I would like to see him.

Two coaches made their debuts in losing causes - Sal Logue of Brookfield East and Matt Good of Tosa West - but at least they each put 19 points on the board. QB Skylar Holden and WR C.J. Gregg scored twice through the air and Holden ran in a score for the Spartans. While TE QB Kevin Gorman rushed for 197 yards and three TDs, including one of 85 yards behind a good performance on his O-line.

Brookfield Central coach Brian Scrobel looks like his girls golf team will run away with the Greater Metro Title again after taking the first two mini-meets. The fourth-state-ranked Lady Lancers have talent to spare again this year led by Kelly Coakley, Chelsey McCoy and Tricia Mark.

Brookfield Central coach Bill Twitchell and Brookfield East coach Mike Rose should see their respective teams battling for the GMC girls swimming title again this year. BC coach Dave Steinbach's Lady Lancer netters are second in the state behind Homestead but the Highlanders have beaten them twice already, 7-0, and 5-2.

Led by Katie Peterson and Hannah Trasser, the Lady Lancer cross country team will use an outstanding spring which saw Central win the state track title, to make them a GMC favorite again.

Look for coach Mike Parulski's Tosa West soccer team to overcome some early suspensions and academic problems to make a run at the state meet again this season, while both Tosa boys volleyball teams should be force in their respective conferences once again this year.

As usual, Brookfield and Tosa fans will have their share of winners to cheer for in the Fall as well as some excellent individual peformances from teams which might not contend.

Be a hit and have a ball.

The high school football season officially kicks off Thursday night and in the Brookfield-Wauwatosa area that means Wauwatosa East does the honors, hosting Milwaukee Riverside.

As usual, the Red Raiders have to stay healthy to be effective as coach Tom Swittel has some outstanding skill players to rely on. Quarterback Ethan Harris and wide receiver Barret Powell, one of the best athletes in the area, should make an exciting combination this year. And Tyler Love and Mike Cupertino give Harris someone to hand off to.

The other three local high schools get into action Friday night, with Wauwatosa West hosting Cudahy as new head coach Matt Good makes his debut, playing a Woodland Conference game in the redone Woodland football conference. With Shorewood/Messmer dropping out, there is no longer a North and South Division, just once combined conference.

Which means teams won't play a balanced schedule. For example for the next two seasons, the Trojans won't play Brown Deer or Whitnall.  Sounds like the Big 10, doesn't it.  West's Good summed up the situation the best when he said "It is what it is."

The other new coach in town is Sal Logue, who moves from Brookfield Central to crosstown rival East. Logue, who is a teacher at both schools, will try and rebuilt the Spartans, who were 9-2 four years ago. Logue makes his debut at Waukesha South on Friday. Skylar Holden will start at QB for East (can't go wrong with a name like Sky) and Joey Woppert, the master of intensity, will get a whole lot of touches at running back this season.

Brookfield Central, one of the top contenders in the Greater Metro Conference, opens with Waterford at Central Friday night. Hall of Fame coach Doug Lange has lost all 11 starters on offense last year, but only one on defense. So Central will look for the defense to take control as the offense, behind quarterback Jack Korslin and a solid running back committee, gets its feet wet.

Are you ready for some football?  I am.

Be a hit and have a ball.