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On Friday, March 18, Whitewater Track & Field athletes participated in the Nelson-Daniels Small School Invitational at UW-Whitewater. Strong team and individual performances were posted by both squads. Competing against over 20 schools from Wisconsin and Illinois, the Whippets began with a strong start from the Boy’s 4x800m relay. The team of Cooper Hammond, Nate Holden, Ethan Dugan, and Jack Hefty posted a time of 9:09.36, good for 1st place. Despite strong competition and on-track adversity, the boys crossed the finish line nearly 12 seconds faster than the next-fastest relay team. The other 1st-place finish of the night was posted by the Girl’s 4x200m relay team of Maddie Buehler, Kindyl Kilar, Olive Coburn, and Calli Grosinske. A strong start out of the blocks, stellar hand-offs, and a gutsy finish on the back stretch helped the relay team cross the line in a time of 1:54.88.
Other event place-winners for the boys included CJ Tomomitsu in the Pole Vault (T-2nd), Connor Raupp in the Shot Put (7th), and the 4x400m relay team of Hammond, Dugan, Tomomitsu, and Hefty (8th). For the girls, Kindyl Kilar placed 6th in the 55m Dash Final. All athletes who competed showed great effort and enthusiasm, cheering on and supporting their teammates through the 4x400m relay that was run late that night. The Whippets return to action on Tuesday for their second and final indoor meet, the ‘Fool’s Spring’ Invitational, hosted by UW-Whitewater.
Article Submitted by Matt Green
Whitewater High School Head Track and Field Coach
mgreen@wwusd.org
Photo Courtesy of Bob Mischka
On Tuesday, March 15, the Whippet Boys’ Basketball Team enjoyed their end of season banquet. Overall, the season didn’t play out as well as the players, the coaches, or the fans hoped. There were, however, some bright spots, and the players at all three levels improved as the season progressed. The JV2 squad came together as a team to overcome inexperience, illness, and injury to finish strong. The JV1 team, always in a tough spot as their players are always on notice to challenge Varsity in practice, provide minutes for Varsity in game situations, and work on developing their team chemistry in their own games, overcame these challenges to finish the season on a positive note.
The Varsity team, at different times throughout the season, was battling injuries and illness. Near the end of the season, the team started to find their rhythm and were more competitive than earlier in the season. This was most evident when the #12-seeded Whippets traveled to the #5-seeded Mariners of St. Francis near the shores of Lake Michigan in the first round of the WIAA playoffs. The boys battled through 13 lead changes and 11 ties to experience their most satisfying win of the season. The final score was 60-56 behind Jonathan Aron’s 25 points and five assists and Wyatt Nickel’s 13 points, six rebounds, and five steals. Arno Crowley contributed nine points and three steals, Ramon Wence poured in seven points and dropped seven assists and three steals, with Sam Brown providing a steady rudder guiding the Whippet ship with six points, four rebounds, and five assists.
Last but not least, the Rock Valley Conference coaches gathered last Wednesday to vote on All-Conference honors. The RVC coaches recognized Jonathan Aron and Wyatt Nickels for their season-long performances and rewarded them by naming them All-Conference Honorable Mention. Congratulations fellas and to all three teams!
Article and Photos Submitted by Jim Aron
Whitewater High School’s FIRST Robotics Team Ferradermis has been busy prototyping, designing, manufacturing, building, wiring, programming, and testing their 2022 robot since FIRST unveiled the new game for the Rapid React season on January 8. The team is currently between competitions, having traveled to Duluth, Minnesota for the Lake Superior Regional from March 2 – 5. They will be competing in Milwaukee at the Wisconsin Regional during Spring Break and again in La Crosse at the Seven Rivers Regional from March 30 – April 2.
This year’s game is sponsored by Boeing and themed around the elements of an airport. The game involves shooting oversized tennis balls (cargo) into an upper and lower hub in the center of the field and climbing a set of monkey bars in the hangar during the last 30 seconds of each match. As always, games are played with six robots on the field at a time, 3 on the blue alliance and 3 on the red alliance. To learn more about how the robots play the game, watch the game animation at https://youtu.be/LgniEjI9cCM
Prior to competing, members of Ferradermis enjoyed hosting the community for an Open House on Saturday, February 12. Team members greeted visitors and showed them the game animation before demonstrating the CAD model for the newest robot. Members of the mechanical, electrical, and programming teams then demonstrated how they accomplish their goals, and the tour wrapped up with a visit to the tables hosted by the Whitewater BrickLayers FIRST LEGO League teams from Washington, Lakeview, and Lincoln Elementary Schools.
On Saturday, February 20, members of the team traveled to Sussex Hamilton High School to participate in a pre-regional scrimmage with 25 teams from southern and central Wisconsin. This annual event gives teams the opportunity to test their robot on a full official field for the first time. Teams also have the opportunity to see what other teams have created and discuss ideas. Sussex also includes sessions where students can discuss scouting and strategy at events, see each others’ Chairman’s awards presentations, and practice for Dean’s List interviews.
Duluth welcomed 112 high school FIRST Robotics Teams to the DECC on March 2, split between the Lake Superior Regional and the Northern Lights Regional. This was the first in-person regional event to be held since the first week of March of 2020, when Ferradermis competed at Northern Lights, and everyone was thrilled to be back in action! The 58 teams competing on the Lake Superior side of the curtain this year represented Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, and North Dakota. Because many COVID protocols were still in place, team members had completed two judging interviews prior to traveling north. At other regionals, the judges will mill about in the pits and interact with teams in a much less formal way.
The robot played 9 qualification matches in Duluth, with a record of 5 – 4. The team ended up ranked 38 out of 58, and did not make the playoffs. However, the team was thrilled to win the Gracious Professionalism Award for the Lake Superior Regional. Gracious professionalism is a main tenet of FIRST which expects teams to compete as hard as they can on the field but to also do everything they can to help other teams reach their own potential. Go, Ferradermis!
Article Submitted by Laura Masbruch
Whitewater High School Robotics Advisor and Banner Volunteer
lmasbruch@wwusd.org
Editor’s note: The following information was received from Whitewater Unified School District.
Photos courtesy of Tom Ganser
Lincoln had the pleasure of welcoming Acting Chief Dan Meyer, School Resource Officer Michele Martin, Detective Justin Brock, and Detective Shane Brandl to our school for some reading time! The members of our police department visited Mrs. Adelmeyer’s 1st-grade class and Mrs. Nelson’s 2nd-grade class as part of the Kiwanis Program, Cops ‘N Kids on Friday, March 4th. Each class enjoyed the visit and even received a free book!
By Lynn Binnie
Whitewater Banner volunteer staff
whitewaterbanner@gmail.com
UW-W’s women’s basketball played a thriller Sweet 16 game on Friday evening in Kachel Gymnasium, with Whitewater native Rebekah Schumacher hitting a layup with essentially no time left in overtime versus Smith College of Massachusetts. The Warhawks move to the Elite 8 for the first time since 2014, to play conference rival UW-Oshkosh for the fourth time this season. UW-W won two of the previous three games, including the semifinal in the WIAC tournament, 67-59. Oshkosh advanced to the Elite 8 with a 74-63 defeat of Baldwin Wallace (OH) earlier on Friday evening. Saturday’s tip-off in Kachel Gymnasium is at 7:00 p.m.
Further details on Friday’s game will be posted upon receipt from UW-W.
The Whitewater Boys’ Basketball Team traveled to Racine on Friday, March 4th, to take on Racine Saint Catherine’s, in a second-round regional game. Unfortunately, for the second time in three years, the Angels ended Whitewater’s season, as they defeated the Whippets, 62-45.
After an inspiring win against Saint Francis on Tuesday, Whitewater carried that energy into the first half, as they controlled the pace and took a 21-11 lead with a little over four minutes left. Saint Cat’s began to change the momentum, however, as they closed the half on an 8-2 run, but the Whippets still led 23-19.
The second half was controlled by Racine. The Angels took the lead, 24-23, a minute in, and never looked back, as they outscored Whitewater, 27-8, to take a 51-31 lead with five minutes left. The effort was there for the Whippets, but they just couldn’t get anything going against Saint Cat’s aggressive defense.
Whitewater was led by Jon Aron’s 12 points and 5 rebounds. Wyatt Nickels scored 11 points and had 5 rebounds. Arno Crowley scored 5 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, and Ramon Wence had 4 points and 3 rebounds. Sam Brown scored 5 points and handed out 3 assists.
Article Submitted by Dwayne Lange
The Whitewater Boys’ Basketball Team successfully began their regional tournament, as they traveled to Saint Francis and upset the Mariners, 60-56, on Tuesday, March 1st. The game was excitingly close throughout, with the outcome only decided in the last minute and a half.
In the first half, the two teams went toe-to-toe, with neither team gaining an advantage until Saint Francis inched ahead 29-24 with two and a half minutes left. The Whippets quickly erased that lead with a 10-3 run to finish the half and go ahead 34-32.
It was more of the same in the second half, as the teams continued to go back and forth, until Whitewater started to pull away, taking a 49-43 lead with six minutes left. That didn’t last, however, as Saint Francis scrambled back to take a 53-51 lead. The Whippets began their final run as Sam Brown’s 3-pointer put them ahead 54-53 with a minute and a half left. Free throws by Ramon Wence(2), Wyatt Nickels(3), and Sam Brown(1) closed out the scoring as Whitewater’s defense stifled Saint Francis, holding them to 3 points, with the last two coming with five seconds left.
The Whippets played their most consistent offense of the season, shooting 50% from the field and handing out 19 assists, and their defense frustrated Saint Francis with deflections and steals (13) throughout the game. They were led by Jon Aron, who went 12 for 17 (70%) from the field for 25 points and played a harassing top of the 1-3-1 zone. Wyatt Nickels had 13 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 steals to solidify the middle of the zone. Arno Crowley had 9 points and Ramon Wence had 7 points, and they each had three steals as they flew around on the wings on defense. And Sam Brown had 6 points and 4 rebounds, handling the point on offense while patrolling the baseline on defense.
Whitewater will next travel to Racine to take on Racine Saint Catherine’s on Friday, March 4th, at 7 p.m.
Article Submitted by Dwayne Lange
File Photo Courtesy of Bob Mischka
Well, that’s a wrap for the Whitewater Gymnastics team season. The girls competed in their last meet at Sectionals Friday night, February 25, at Elkhorn High School. Every one of these girls improved tremendously since the beginning of the season. Friday night they gave it their all, and we are so proud of their accomplishments. One of the coolest moments of the night was watching all five girls compete on Beam with 0 falls! We finished our season with a no fall Beam team. This was a huge milestone for the team and they should be “Beaming” with pride.
Halee Peters was a shining star, bringing in the highest scores for our team and ending her night in 10th place for All-Around with a 32.2. She was part of the no fall Beam team and scored a career best score on Bars. She scored very close to her season best scores on the other 3 rotations. Her Floor routine was fast paced, high scoring, and so fun to watch. She has the biggest smile of the whole competition and has been a great leader and mentor for the team.
Makayla Bazeley had a strong performance and continues to improve her skills and has already set some high goals for next year. She, too, was part of the no fall Beam team and contributed to the team score in every event. She had a beautiful, fun Floor routine and a solid performance on the Beam. Although quiet, Makayla is a force and is a strong competitor with a drive that will take her far! We love that we have three more years to watch her gain momentum and watch her flourish in this sport. We look forward to seeing her break the 30 mark for her All-Around score as she is close with a 29.5.
Nola Coburn has continued to impress as she improves every week and pushes herself to keep learning. It was so awesome to see her work so hard on her Floor routine and add in a back tuck at the end of one of her tumbling passes, which she performed flawlessly. Even at the end of the season, she wanted to add new skills to her repertoire to increase her difficulty. Nola scored her highest of the season on Vault with a 7.6 and once again beat her own high All-Around score by increasing to 25.425. Nola is another girl we are excited to watch for the next three years!
Myia Cobbs is another hard worker in the gym. She started the season on JV with only a couple events and has turned it into competing all four events at Varsity Sectionals. Talk about success! Myia has been improving every week, and her scores show it. Not only was she a part of the no fall Beam team, she also had her highest score of the season on Floor and increased her difficulty in her routine by adding in two back handsprings. She also increased her All-Around score on the season to 24.05. We can’t wait to see what she learns and improves on in the next couple years.
Brooklyn Griswold, another awesome freshman, has been working hard to increase her skills. She was very close to tying her score on Floor and on Bars. She has been a very consistent competitor. She’s another one that smiles through her fun Floor routine. Brooklyn also was part of the no fall Beam team, and the smile on her face after she landed her dismount showed she was pleased with her solid performance.
Miyu Takeda has really stepped up as one of our Vaulters. She is such a quick learner and picks up new skills with ease. She brings so much joy to our team and will miss her immensely next season.
Thanks to all that have come out to watch and cheer on the girls. It has been a fun season and we know next year is going to be even better.
Article and Photos Submitted by Shawnda Peters
Whitewater High School Head Gymnastics Coach
speters@wwusd.org
Obituaries
Donald Walter Triebold passed on to his eternal home on May 21, 2026. Don was born on April 23, 1935, in Evanston, IL, to the late Frederick W. and Mildred (nee Stecher) Triebold. Through his teen years, Don lived and worked on the family’s dairy farm, where he developed a life-long work ethic. His first eight years of education were in a one-room country schoolhouse, in which all eight grades were taught by one teacher. He graduated from Whitewater City High School in 1953 and then graduated from UW Whitewater in 1958 with a degree in Business Education. He continued his education, and earned a Master’s … Read more
William Kincaid Davis, age 84, passed away on Tuesday, May 19 at Agrace Hospice Center in Fitchburg. He was born on November 1, 1941, in Madison, Indiana, the second son of Salvation Army Officers Agnes (Dixon) and William C. Davis. He attended several schools in Indiana and Illinois, including University of Illinois Experimental High School (Champaign), and graduated from Galesburg High School in 1958. He earned his bachelor’s degree from UW-Eau Claire in 1964 and his master’s degree from UW-Whitewater in 1972. He had an expansive career in education, beginning as an English teacher in Whitehall, Thornton Township (IL) and … Read more
Magdalene “Maggie” Stetter (nee Fritz), 79, of Whitewater, Wisconsin passed from this life onto the next on Monday, May 4, 2026. She was born on January 16, 1947, to the late John and Mary (Presser) Fritz in St. Stefan, Austria. Maggie immigrated from Austria with her parents and brother, became a US citizen, and grew up and attended school in West Allis, WI and then graduated with a teaching degree from University of Wisconsin – Whitewater. Maggie served as a substitute, English, and German language teacher in the Whitewater, Elkhorn, Delavan, and Palmyra schools and at Divine Word Seminary. Maggie … Read more
Lawrence “Larry” C. Hartung, a proud Marine Veteran of the Vietnam War, and longtime resident of Fort Atkinson, WI, passed away peacefully at his home on May 1, 2026. Larry was born June 7th, 1949, to Levon and Charles Hartung in Chicago, IL. Larry enlisted in the US Marine Corps in 1968 and served 3 consecutive tours in the Vietnam War. During this time, he became pen pals with his future wife, Candy, via a connection through his father. In 1970, he came home on leave to marry Candy. They celebrated 55 years of marriage on October 31st, 2025. During … Read more
Leo E. Wurzer, 65, of Eagle, Wisconsin passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, May 9, 2026 at his home. Leo was born on April 15, 1961 in Kenosha, Wisconsin to Cyril and Shirley (McNeil) Wurzer. He grew up between Pleasant Prairie and Antigo, spending his childhood summers on his uncle’s farm where he discovered his love for all things tractors. Although he never had a farm of his own, he was able to partially fulfill his dream by working as a driver for Robin’s Trucking in Whitewater, WI in his last days and collecting miniature Tonka toys. He began his career … Read more
Lois Cummings, 99, of Fond du Lac, WI (formerly of Janesville, WI, Fort Atkinson, WI, Fountain Hills, AZ, and Green Valley, AZ) passed away peacefully on May 5, 2026 at the Meadows Senior Residence in Fond du Lac surrounded by family. Lois was born on February 17, 1927 in Fort Atkinson to Edward and Clarice (Roseth) Stevens. The middle child of 9 children, she attended Fort Atkinson schools and graduated in 1944. On September 11, 1948 Lois married Grant Cummings at Saint Andrew Catholic Church in Delavan, WI. Together they had 3 children, Gary, Colleen (Tom) Sabel, and Patty (Paul) … Read more
Come celebrate William Kincaid’s Celebration of Life on Saturday, May 30th at 1 pm at Trippe Lake Park Pavillion in Whitewater. He truly enjoyed gatherings where his favorite foods and music could be enjoyed with some of his closest friends and family. We will honor him by carrying on one of his favorite traditions. Please bring your own beverages and chairs. There is limited seating. See you all there!
Gladys Jean (Riley) Hildebrandt, age 89, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, passed away peacefully on Friday, January 23, 2026. Gladys was born on December 26, 1936, in Whitewater, Wisconsin, to Theresa Egnoski Riley. She was married to Walter Sobolik Sr., and later married James A. Hildebrandt in 1976. Gladys was a hardworking woman who spent her life caring for others. She worked in school kitchens, restaurants, factories, and cleaning services. She concluded her working career as a full-time nanny. In that role, she lovingly cared for Andrew, Daniel, and Kaitlyn Drzewiecki, who became part of her chosen family. Gladys is survived by her sons, Wally … Read more
WHITEWATER – Nan Rowley died on April 15, 2026, at the age of 90. She was born on September 4, 1935, in a little house on the prairie in the Town of Johnstown, Wisconsin, the daughter of Wayne L. Wilbur and Florence (McQuillen) Wilbur. Nan attended primary schools in the towns of Johnstown and Richmond and in the City of Whitewater. Nan graduated with honors from Whitewater City High School. On June 19, 1954, Nancy and Ken Rowley were united in marriage in Whitewater and went to live on the Rowley family farm in Richmond. Over the years, Nan served … Read more
Marion H. Gorniak (nee Pfeiffer), 74, of Whitewater passed away peacefully on Saturday, April 11, 2026. She was born on October 24, 1951, to the late Harvey and Loraine (nee Drifke) Pfeiffer in Fort Atkinson, WI. On June 2, 1969, she was united in marriage to Alan Gorniak. She enjoyed gardening, flowers, and cooking, especially her rhubarb pies. She especially enjoyed spending time with family and friends and will be missed by all who knew her. Those Marion leaves behind to cherish her memory include her husband, Alan Gorniak; stepson, Alan Bauer; sister, Sue Ann Schultz, other relatives and friends. … Read more
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