Off and running

It had been a long five months since Sauk Prairie High School last participated in a live sporting event. The lengthy wait is finally over. The Eagles hosted Baraboo in a girls swimming meet on Aug. 25. And as enjoyable as Sauk Prairie’s 93-76 win was, getting back in the water was just as fun. “On deck, it felt different, with everyone distanced and masked,” Eagles coach Melani Guentherman said. “But as soon as the racing started there was a lot of excitement on deck.” There was a lot to be excited about as the Eagles finished first in nine of 11 events, including all three relays. More importantly, Sauk Prairie’s first sporting event since COVID-19 shut down high school sports back in March went off without a hitch. “I spent a lot of time with our aquatics director and athletic director before the meet to ensure that we were going to be able to safely host the meet, and adhere to masking and distancing protocols,” Guentherman said. “We have a few tweaks for next time, but we were all very happy with how it went.” In the pool, Sauk Prairie’s 200-yard medley relay team of Savannah Acker, Amelia Hunter, Riley Talmage and Cora Dunnum was first. The Eagles’ 200 freestyle relay team of Hunter, Carly Coy, Dunnum and Kassandra Miller was first, while the quartet of Trinity Doerre, Emily VandeHey, Grace Orr and Lauryn Drager was third. And Sauk Prairie’s 400-yard freestyle relay team of Miller, Talmage, Ashley Pape and Acker was also first. Miller won the 200-yard freestyle and Drager was second, while Acker won the 200-yard IM. Dunnum won the 50-yard freestyle and Pape was third, while Orr was third in the 100-yard butterfly. Dunnum won the 100-yard freestyle and Pape was third, while Miller and Drager were first and second, respectively, in the 500-yard freestyle. Acker was also first in the 100-yard backstroke. “I am very happy with the fantastic attitude of the girls on the team and their willingness to adhere to the new safety protocols,” Guentherman said. “We have a great group of girls, and they performed extremely well in the pool, especially considering they have only had a week of practice.”   SAUK PRAIRIE 93, BARABOO 76 200-yard medley relay: SP (Acker, Hunter, Talmage, Dunnum), 1:55.89. 200 freestyle: Miller, SP, 2:11.18. 200 individual medley: Acker, SP, 2:19.75. 50 freestyle: Dunnum, SP, 25.65. 100 butterfly: Lohr, B, 1:03.81. 100 freestyle: Dunnum, SP, 57.78. 500 freestyle: Miller, SP, 5:56.06. 200 freestyle relay: B (Brown, Belten, Stuczynski, Weyenberg) 2:06.08. 100 backstroke: Acker, SP, 1:01.67. 100 breaststroke: Gneiser and Stute (tie), B, 1:14.44. 400 freestyle relay: SP, (Miller, Talmage, Pape, Acker). 4:00.76. At Sauk Prairie.