Preps Alcove: a look ahead to athletes and teams to watch in 2017

Each year as we turn the calendar, I like to take a look at the year ahead and present some teams and athletes to know for 2017.

Arrowhead girls basketball. Ranked No. 1 in the state in Division 1 and beating up on some very good competition thus far, Arrowhead has uncommon depth and has been the team to beat in the Classic 8 Conference and beyond. A young but supremely talented Mukwonago girls team appears to be the chief obstacle. Players such as Grace Gilmore, Caitlyn Harper and Megan Peterson lead a Warhawks squad that relies a lot on its junior class.

Oconomowoc baseball. The dominant force in the Wisconsin Little Ten the past two years, Arrowhead, will graduate a number of top-flight players, but Oconomowoc brings back an All-Star cast. Shortstop Zach Clayton and catcher Sean Meyer headline the list of returnees, along with pitcher Jonah Landowski. Oconomowoc missed the state tournament by an eyelash last year and should be a force to reckon with on the path to Fox Cities Stadium.

Arrowhead boys golf. Five of the six top players from the 2016 team are due back, and highly-anticipated freshman Piercen Hunt should also be in the mix this spring for a team that tied for fifth at last year’s state meet. Senior Bennett Knapek was an All-State choice last year, tying for fourth at state, with juniors Alex Yost and Matthew Reiser and sophomore Matthew Raab also key parts of the equation.

Oconomowoc boys soccer. The Raccoons came close to breaking through to a sectional final after winning the Wisconsin Little Ten, and it will be interesting to see how they stack up in the Classic 8 next year. First-team All Conference choice, Cameron Briggs, will return. Twin brother Dominic Briggs (second team all-WLT) should also be back for his senior year, as will current sophomore Nolan Rehard and junior Brendan Zimmer (both honorable mention).

Great 4x400 runners. Arrowhead and Sussex Hamilton girls both bypassed the standing state record at the state track and field meet last year, and both will return ample talent from those foursomes. Arrowhead’s Lizzy Bejna, Grace Gilmore and Kayla Vogt were all on last year’s second-place team, and Hamilton’s Morgan Price, Chelsea Parker, Megan Jansett and Bianca Stubler are back, as are 4x800 state qualifiers Rachel Jeffers, Carolyn Troutman and Taylor Fuerstenberg and pole vault qualifier Rachel Seraphine, not to mention 4x200 runners Amanda Hammond, Morgan Price and Elizabet Behrndt, who took fifth. Considering Stubler also took second in the open 400, this could be a special year for the Chargers. Did we mention the Kettle Moraine boys return three members of its 4x400 (Jack Chard, Conner Lilly, Ben Psichihulis)?

Mukwonago girls volleyball. The Classic 8 will be perhaps slightly more open in 2017 with Catholic Memorial graduating four superb seniors, and Mukwonago will look to fill the void. Sophomore Alayna Jansky was first-team All Conference this year, and junior setter Makenzie Vertz will return. Libero Katie Schoessow, another first-teamer who has been committed to Marquette since her sophomore year, will be back to solidify the defense.

Lake Country Lutheran girls volleyball. A five-set loss to eventual state champion Howards Grove in the sectional final suggests that the Lightning were supremely close to their first state championship. Brooke Andersen will be back for her senior year looking for that title before she begins her career at Iowa State.

Lake Country Lutheran girls soccer. The Lightning have made the state tournament each of the past five seasons; why should 2017 be any different? The Midwest Classic Offensive Player of the Year, Haddie Carlson, is back, as are second-team All Conference selections Lexy Rakowski, Erinn Hayward and Erika Van Der Voort.

Kettle Moraine girls cross country. Of course, Arrowhead will be among the favorites in girls cross country once again, but the Lasers are still strong after taking third place at the state meet last year — the program’s best-ever finish. Current junior Ellery Craven leads the way, along with scheduled returnees Mara Bajic, Josie Braun and Hannah Suarez.

Kettle Moraine softball. First-team All Conference players Katelyn Yute and Carlee Balk should be back to fortify the infield, while three second-team choices — catcher Abby Varick, infielder Michelle Salomone and outfielder Megan Abatto — are also due to return. With pitcher Sommer Kuntsmann also due back, the Lasers should be considered frontrunners for the Classic 8 title.

Pewaukee boys basketball. With the emergence of another big man in Grant Basile and a talented senior class headlined by Wyatt Cook and Aidan Nordquist, the Pirates are an intriguing unit this season in a Division 2 field that appears stacked.

Individuals to watch

Jacob Raschka and Blaze Beltran, Pewaukee wrestling. It goes without saying that these two have a target on their back after winning state championships last year. It will take a major upset to keep Raschka from repeating at 195, and smart money is on the heavyweight Beltran, as well.

Abby Cabush, Arrowhead girls swimming. She won the 200-yard freestyle as a junior after a couple close calls as a sophomore, and she’ll be a key figure as the Warhawks look to return to the top of the mountain in state swimming after finishing third in 2016.

Emily Lauterbach, Arrowhead girls golf. It’s scary to wonder how much Lauterbach will accomplish. She already won a state title as a sophomore with the second-lowest round in state history, and her team took home the title, as well.

Aubrey Hamilton, Arrowhead girls volleyball. The second-team All Conference choice in the Classic 8 as a freshman last year is on the cusp of being one of the state’s most powerful forces in the front row.

Dominic Dentino, Arrowhead wrestling. As a sophomore, he was a surprise state finalist last year with the chance to do even bigger things in 2017. Keep an eye on Arrowhead freshman Keegan O’Toole, as well.

Aaron Schulist, Mukwonago wrestling. Twice, Schulist has finished as state runner-up, and he’s hungry for one more victory this time around.

Carl Renz, Pewaukee baseball. The pitcher and utility man was named first-team All Conference in the Woodland last year during the summer baseball season, leading his team to the sectional final.

Mary Kremer, Arrowhead co-op girls hockey. The Sussex Hamilton junior is one of the leading point-scorers in the state with 18 as of Dec. 22.

Jared Jones, Kettle Moraine track and field. The junior took second place in the Division 1 pole vault at last year's state meet.

Zoe Goodmanson, Pewaukee cross country. The sophomore took 28th at the state cross-country meet and will also be a key part of the Pirates track team in the spring.

MacKenzie Schill, Pewaukee soccer/basketball. Already the all-time goal scorer in school history, Schill will be one of the area's best soccer players in the spring, but that's after she attempts to lead the basketball team to the upper tier of the Division 2 postseason.