Milwaukee, WI
These five area high school hockey teams look like state title contenders in 2025
KMMO Co-op boys hockey defeats Cedarburg, 7-2, Jan. 17
KMMO Co-op boys hockey defeats Cedarburg, 7-2, at Naga-Waukee Ice Arena in Delafield on Friday, Jan. 17, 2025.
Greater Milwaukee area programs in the field of Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association statewide boys and girls hockey teams are beginning to emerge as state title contenders as the postseason looms in mid-February.
The road to state begins with the start of regional play Feb. 18, sectionals beginning Feb. 25 and concluding with the WIAA state boys and girls hockey tournaments March 6-8 at Bob Suter’s LEGACY20 Arena in Middleton.
Here are five boys and girls programs gearing up for WIAA state runs, along with three sleeper teams to keep an eye on over the latter half of the season.
Arrowhead Warhawks boys hockey
The Arrowhead boys have not reached the WIAA state tournament since 2017, but the Warhawks look like a program that can contend with just about any team they meet on the ice this season. A 13-3 record entering the week speaks to their dominance, but even their losses have come close to some of the best programs in the state. Losses of 8-6 to Brookfield, 4-3 to Fond du Lac Springs and 7-4 to Muskego co-op all were late-breaking wins for the opponent in the third period. Those losses all came on the road, which Arrowhead has improved on over the course of the season. The Warhawks have won five straight on the road as part of an eight-game winning streak dating to Dec. 26. Arrowhead has scored with some of the best teams in the state led by Jack McKenna’s 55 points, but the defense led in goal by Ethan Burkard has also excelled. Seven opponents have been held to one goal or less, including two shutouts. Arrowhead will need that defense to travel should it make a run in the WIAA postseason.
Brookfield Stars boys hockey
The Brookfield-based co-op consisting of Brookfield Central, Brookfield East, Wauwatosa East, Wauwatosa West, Menomonee Falls and Sussex Hamilton students reached the WIAA state title game last year, losing 3-1 to Notre Dame in the title game. The 2024-25 team has come back on a mission this year, surging to a 14-2 record through action Wednesday night. It was an undefeated regular season up until a home and away series with Lake Forest Academy (Ill.) on Sunday and Monday, but the Stars have largely dominated in-state competition. Most notable of their 14 wins was a 7-2 rematch of last year’s state title game over Notre Dame, in which Brookfield scored seven unanswered goals to earn the victory. Other quality wins include a 4-2 decision over Madison Edgewood on Jan. 4 and victories over the top three teams trailing them in the Classic 8 Conference (9-3 over West Bend, 7-1 over KMMO and 8-6 over Arrowhead). The Stars are bursting with star potential, featuring two of the state leaders in points in Connor Hillig (55) and Cooper Simon (53) supplemented by the contributions of Adam Sexton (34), Parker Dysart (33) and Jack Templeton (28). This team is loaded with talent and experience, an excellent combo to have for any team looking to make a run in late February or early March.
Lakeshore Lightning girls hockey
Winning and losing have come in spurts for the Lightning this season, but there have been far more good stretches than bad for a team entering the week 12-5-1 on the season. A 3-2 Nov. 29 win over current Badger Conference leader Beaver Dam and knocking off Arrowhead in a 3-1 final Jan. 7 are feathers in the cap of the Lightning, but a couple other matchups with top teams in the state have not gone their way. A Jan. 28 meeting with the Fond du Lac Warbirds (14-4) will be a good test for Lakeshore as it attempts to prove it is in the conversation as a title contender. The Lightning can get scoring from a variety of avenues with seven players accumulating double-digit points, but will rarely find themselves in high-scoring affairs. Elizabeth Bowers (91.2 save percentage) has been a stalwart in goal, shutting out five opponents this season.
Muskego co-op Ice Force boys hockey
Muskego co-op’s three-headed attack of Ben Brown (52 points), Andrew Kunz (43) and Rogan Dewane (30) has led the Ice Force to a 12-5 record as the team chases a program-first state appearance. The Ice Force thrive in high scoring games, going 10-1 this season when scoring six goals or more. On the season, Muskego has hovered around the bottom half of the top 10 in goal-scoring for the state. The Warriors are set to face West Bend on Saturday in a matchup of teams chasing Brookfield for the Classic 8 Conference title. Matchups with Brookfield on Feb. 1 and McFarland on Feb. 7 should also provide a barometer for where this team is at as the postseason looms.
University School of Milwaukee boys hockey
Aside from a 10-1 Jan. 18 loss to SPASH, one of the leading statewide contenders for a WIAA state title, USM has looked the part of another potential contender with an 11-4 record. Another of those four losses came 5-2 to SPASH earlier this year, putting a dent in an otherwise stellar performance this season. The Wildcats are one of just three teams to knock off Neenah/Hortonville/Menasha this year, beating the Rockets 4-3 on Jan. 9. USM also beat another conference leader out of the Big 8 in Middleton on Jan. 17, winning 5-4. This is a young and emerging program, with five of its top six scoring leaders being juniors or younger. That list includes sophomore Everett Waltersdorf (27 points), junior Tyler Cook (25), senior Mateo Nunag (21), junior Henry Bechthold (18), junior Liam Fetherston (13) and junior Davie Moalusi (11).
Sleeper programs to watch
Arrowhead girls hockey, KMMO boys hockey, West Bend boys hockey
Milwaukee, WI
Former ‘Most Wanted’ Milwaukee man sentenced for killing cousin in 2020
MILWAUKEE – A Milwaukee man, previously named one of Wisconsin’s Most Wanted, has been sentenced to prison for shooting and killing his cousin in 2020.
In court
What we know:
A Milwaukee County jury found 39-year-old Brandon Gladney guilty of first-degree reckless homicide and possession of a firm by a felon earlier this year.
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Judge Michelle Havas sentenced Gladney to 29 years in prison on Friday, April 17. He was granted credit for more than a year’s time served and further sentenced to 14 years of extended supervision.
Arrested in Arizona after years on the run, court records show Gladney has also been ordered to pay the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office more than $1,800 for extradition costs.
Homicide investigation
The backstory:
The shooting happened in May 2020. Investigators said Gladney was captured on video apparently arguing with the victim, his cousin, outside a Milwaukee convenience store near 21st and Meinecke.
“It’s all on video, and it’s devastating for that family,” the marshal on the case told FOX6 when Gladney was profiled on Wisconsin’s Most Wanted. “You have a family member that shot and killed another family member.”
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Prosecutors said Gladney walked away but then returned with a gun pointed directly at the victim and shot him. The victim died from his gunshot wounds at a nearby hospital. Multiple bullet casings were found at the scene.
Gladney went on the run for years. He was arrested in Arizona in January 2023, years after he was charged.
The Source: FOX6 News referenced information from the U.S. Marshals Service, Wisconsin Circuit Court and prior coverage.
Milwaukee, WI
Brewers beat Marlins in extras, Mitchell’s double the difference
Brice Turang slides to home plate to score during a game between the Miami Marlins and the Milwaukee Brewers on April 17. (Photo by Chris Arjoon/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
MIAMI – Garrett Mitchell went 2 for 4 with three RBIs including a two-run double in the 10th inning and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Miami Marlins 7-5 on Friday night.
By the numbers:
Miami’s Calvin Faucher (1-2) entered a 4-all game in the 10th and walked Gary Sánchez with Brice Turang on second. Jake Bauers hit a single to load the bases.
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Luis Rengifo reached first on a throwing error by second baseman Xavier Edwards, allowing Turang to score. Mitchell followed with his double.
The Marlins scored one run in the bottom of the 10th when Jakob Marsee came home on Trevor Megill’s wild pitch. Megill settled in for his fourth save.
Coleman Crow, who made his debut on the mound for the Brewers, threw 77 pitches over 5 1/3 innings. He threw four strikeouts, gave up two earned runs and a walk.
The right-hander was 2-0 with a 4.07 ERA in two starts with the Brewers’ Triple-A affiliate in Nashville. He missed part of the 2023 season and all of 2024 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.
The Brewers scored three runs in the fourth inning. With the bases loaded, Mitchell hit an RBI single, Bauers scored on a forceout at first and Rengifo scored on a throwing error by catcher Agustín Ramírez.
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Miami’s Otto Lopez hit a triple to center field in the fourth and scored on a sacrifice fly by Owen Caissie. Lopez hit a two-run homer in the sixth to pull Miami within 4-3 and Ramírez doubled in the eighth to tie the game at four.
Abner Uribe (1-0) earned his first win of the season, coming on in the ninth inning.
Marlins third baseman Graham Pauley left the game in the seventh inning with right oblique discomfort after spinning out of the way of a pitch.
What’s next:
The Brewers and Marlins continue their 3-game series on Saturday, with Brandon Woodruff (1-0, 4.36 ERA) taking the mound for Milwaukee and Sandy Alcantara (2-1, 2.67) for Miami.
The Source: The Associated Press provided this report.
Milwaukee, WI
Beloit Memorial star Amare Hereford remains loyal, signs with Milwaukee Panthers
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Michigan beats UConn to win the national championship and we break down how they did it and where both programs go from here.
Loyalty is a word you rarely hear anymore when it comes to college sports.
Amare Hereford is an exception.
The night before he was able to put pen to paper and make his commitment to the UW-Milwaukee men’s basketball team official earlier this week, the Beloit Memorial standout was invited for an on-campus visit with the Wisconsin Badgers.
Hereford did his due diligence. What player wouldn’t have in his position?
“Me being an 18-year-old kid, my first high major [visit], I just decided to go check it out,” Hereford said.
UW put on the full-court press in an attempt to lock down the Wisconsin “Mr. Basketball” finalist.
“They offered me a scholarship,” Hereford said. “It all happened so fast. It was all within a day.”
Hereford went home, processed the situation with his family and came to a decision.
He would honor his commitment to the Panthers, with his signature cementing the deal and UWM announcing the news Thursday, April 16.
“No, it wasn’t really hard to turn down,” Hereford said, referring to UW’s offer. “I love every school and I appreciate every school that reaches out to me. But I’m going to choose a school that I have a great relationship with, with all the coaching staff, and that’s been thinking highly of me and recruited me for the longest time. And that was the Panthers.
“Wisconsin is a great school, of course. But I’m going to the school that has been with me for the longest time.”
The 6-foot-2, 175-pound Hereford is a huge addition for a Panthers squad that, like so many other programs due to transfer portal madness, is in the midst of rebuilding its roster for the 2026-2027 season almost from scratch.
“Amare will be a star here at Milwaukee,” coach Bart Lundy said. “He will be a fan favorite from the beginning. He is a complete basketball player but probably has as good of an ability to score as I’ve seen in any high school player. He is a great student and a great worker and completely fits our culture.
“We are so excited that he will represent the city of Milwaukee and the state and especially his hometown of Beloit.”
Indeed, Hereford put the ball through the net for Beloit Memorial at a prodigious rate, averaging 37.5 points per game – tops in the state – as a senior. He finished as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 2,493 points in four years.
Hereford also poured in 49 points in his final high school game, a WIAA sectional semifinal loss to Verona last month.
Hereford was tough to guard going to the basket as his 60.7% shooting this past season indicates, but he also shot a terrific 45% from from 3-point range (81 for 180) and capitalized on all the contact he drew to the tune of 83% accuracy at the free-throw line.
More than just a scorer, though, Hereford also finished with team-leading averages of 8.5 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 3.9 steals per game.
“My playing style fits the way [the Panthers] play – they get up and down, play fast,” Hereford said. “Coach Lundy said he definitely sees me running [point guard], having the ball in my hands, playing the same way I did in high school, finding teammates, getting to the rim and scoring at all three levels.”
Defense is typically where newcomers experience the biggest growing pains, learning the all-out effort it takes to guard at a high level on every possession.
Hereford, however, indicates he’s more than just a scorer.
“I love playing defense,” he said. “Hitting the gaps, getting steals and different things like that, being active with my hands a lot. I’m definitely looking forward to getting pushed defensively and picking up the ball full court, on-ball pressure in the half court.”
Hereford took his visit to UWM in mid-March, after the season had been completed, but saw enough games on TV to cement his opinion of the challenge ahead.
“The Horizon League is amazing,” he said. “There’s a lot of guards who play the same way I play, like to get up and down, play fast. That’s why I love Coach Lundy and the Panthers and the rest of the staff. They let guys be themselves. They play fast, get up and down, play together as one.
“They let everybody touch the ball and be themselves.”
Before Wisconsin entered the picture, Hereford said he’d narrowed his school choices to UWM and San Diego, where Whitefish Bay Dominican product and former Iowa State assistant JR Blount has taken over as head coach.
Now, Hereford projects as an important piece in the Panthers’ rebuilding process.
“Coach Lundy and the staff, they believe in me heavy. And I just want to prove them right,” Hereford said. “I want them to see that I can come in and make a huge impact right away for the team and in the Horizon League.
“I’m definitely going to come in and compete for my minutes. And obviously, I want to stay there.
“So, definitely looking forward to coming in and earning my spot.”
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