With most athletes off until later this week because of exam week, let's take a look at some highlights from the past week in Brookfield and Wauwatosa prep sports.

Wauwatosa East's 160-pounder Nick Morin became the all-time winningest wrestler in Tosa history by winning four matches last week (103-34). He surpassed Jake Benedict's 102 victories from 2001-05.

DSHA basketball coach Scott Witt felt as if his team lost the Greater Metro Conference title last Friday when the young Brookfield Central Lady Lancers beat the pre-season favorite Dashers, 45-38. "They (BC) have to lose two games and I don't think that's going to happen," Witt said. "I think it's between us and Brookfield East for second place."

The young Lancers only have two seniors in the top seven of their rotation and junior Joana Bielefeld (11.5 PPG) and sophomore Erin Lueder (12.5) are two of the GMC's top players. But that won't stop Dan Wandrey from worrying, because Central's head coach is the GMC's version of Lou Holtz.

Tosa West's Jesse Zeisse was inserted into the starting lineup for Andrea Kwak last week, when Kwak missed a practice. The results worked out great for both girls. Zeisse scored nine points in a win over Greenfield and then Kwak scored 10 in a double overtime win over Whitnall including four in the second overtime.

Brookfield Central handed Wauwatosa East a 53-51 loss on Jan. 15 and pulled into a first-place tie with the state-ranked Red Raiders. A couple things came out of this game. The key to the game was Central's discipline in their half-court offense, as the Lancers didn't fall apart after East rallied from a 10-point deficit. Central ran time off the clock in the final minutes, looking for a lay-up. Unsung hero Mitch Aprahamian was at the top of the key when he whipped a pass to Luke Duckett driving to the basket for a lay-up and the win.

The Central scoreboard had a short circuit (or something), because it went out a few minutes before the start of the second half, in the third quarter and then with two minutes left to play. When East's Tony Walls grabbed a loose ball and called time-out while flying out of bounds there was then a few seconds of controversy over whether the clock expired.

Tosa East's Hannah Weinberg-Kinsey has averaged 11.3 PPG, scoring 16, 8 and 10 points since breaking the middle finger on her shooting hand. She improved her scoring over three points per game. There is no truth to the rumor coach Rob Hamill is thinking of having the rest of his squad wear similiar splints.

After starting the season with 13 straight losses the co-op team of Wauwatosa East/West/New Berlin Eisenhower/West/Whitnall (now that's a mouthful) won their first hockey game, 6-2, over Oconomowc on Saturday.

Those words were my first introduction to wrestling as I remember watching it on TV with my Nana Skibosh.

Roger Kent, the regular TV announcer, would always say that same line whenever a wrestler - usually the villain - put that dangerous move on his opponent. It consisted of turning your opponent upside down, facing you, putting his head between your knees (ugh) and then while holding him tight to your chest, you would drop to your knees, slamming his head into the mat and knocking him out.

Eventually as I watched wrestling I realized that the helpless wrestler's head never hit the mat, only the villain's knees did. Of course, if it ever did really happen, there would have been several paralyzed or dead wrestlers in the American Wrestling Association and that would have been bad for business.

My next exposure to wrestling happened as a freshman in high school. I was big for my age - 177 pounds at 14 - so they put me at heavyweight. Since there was no one my size to practice with, I worked out with two seniors who weighed between 230-250 pounds.

Back then we would practice on the stage in the cafeteria. They would close the drapes to keep the heat in and since I wore a rubber top, I would sweat a lot. One practice after I was tossed around by the senior heavyweights I lost 13 pounds. Nice healthy way of losing weight back then.

When it came to wrestling in a regular match I had to face guys who not only out-weighed me by 30-40 pounds, but they were better wrestlers. It's no wonder that before the year was over, I could tell you how many lights were on the ceiling of every gym in the Braveland Conference.

My next exposure to wrestling started last winter when I switched from sports editor to columnist/writer (and now blogger). I have been fortunate because my three wrestling teams - Brookfield East, Brookfield Central and the Wauwatosa East/West co-op teams are good teams with excellent coaches who put up with a lot of questions from me.

On Thursday, Dec. 20, Brookfield East hosts Central in the annual "Battle of Brookfield" - wrestling style. A few years ago Bud Sines, Spartans coach, moved the site from the cavernous gym to the claustrophobic cafeteria, where the fans are only a few feet from the mat and the several banners featuring the various East titles are hanging from the rafters. If you have never experienced a match there, try and take it in.

TOP GRAPPLERS - All three teams have some excellent wrestlers once again this year. Just to mention a few names here - Central's Jake Taylor and Dryden Holmes, both 11-0; East's Zach Sines (19-0), Joey Woppert (17-2), Alex Buchberger (16-3) and Louie Fehr (14-4) and Tosa's Nick Morin (11-1), Pat English (11-1)and Glen Kendl (11-1).

I'm working on some holiday blogs, so look for me later in the week.

And remember, always be a hit and have a ball!