This Week In Pioneer Athletics
PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – Four University of Wisconsin-Platteville athletic teams are in action this week, including men’s basketball competing in the Sweet Sixteen and track and field competing at the indoor national meet. Baseball and softball begin their annual spring break trips on Sunday.
PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – Four University of Wisconsin-Platteville athletic teams are in action this week, including men's basketball competing in the Sweet Sixteen and track and field competing at the indoor national meet. Baseball and softball begin their annual spring break trips on Sunday.
Men's Basketball Takes on Case Western Reserve in Sweet Sixteen
The Pioneers men's basketball team advanced to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 2018 with a win over Loras on Saturday night. UW-Platteville now heads to Angola, Indiana for a matchup against Case Western Reserve on Friday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. The winner will play on Saturday against either host school Trine or WashU.
The Spartans, ranked sixth in the most recent D3hoops.com poll, advanced with a 97-79 win over Hope on Saturday. Anthony Mazzeo leads the team with 19.6 points per game, while Colin Kahl (15.0) and Sam Trunley (13.1) join him in averaging double figures for a team that scores 85.2 per game.
Follow the game over Loras, Head Coach Jeff Gard, Ben Probst, and Logan Pearson sat down to discuss the atmosphere and the win.
Track and Field Heads to Indoor Nationals
After competing in a pair of last chance meets last weekend, the Pioneers will send Justin Eichler, Cade VanHout, and Brenna Noon to the 2024 NCAA DIII Indoor Track and Field National Championships this weekend at the Virginia Beach Sports Center.
VanHout qualified after posting a school-record time of 6.82 seconds in the 60m dash last Friday at the Platteville Last Chance meet. His time enters the national meet tied for 15th.
Eichler's WIAC Indoor Championship toss of 20.97m is the second-best mark in NCAA DIII this season. He broke the Pioneers school record twice over the course of the indoor campaign.
Noon heads to the national meet ranked 15th in the shot put with a toss of 13.83m. She reached that mark earlier this season at the Sol Butler Classic on February 16.
Softball Begins Spring Break Trip Sunday
The Pioneers softball team heads to Leesburg, Florida on Sunday to begin an 11-game spring break trip. UW-Platteville takes on Macalester at 11:15 a.m. before playing McDaniel at 1:45 p.m.
Macalester has started the year 4-2 with a win over Luther College this past weekend. Sophie Futchko and Renee Nicholson have both started the year strong, with each hitting over .500 across the first six games.
McDaniel begin its season over the weekend with two wins over Eastern Mennonite by scores 3-1 and 10-2. Makayla Calamita led the team with a .714 batting average across the two contests.
Baseball Faces McMurry in Florida Sunday
The Pioneers baseball team begins its six-game spring break trip on Sunday when it takes on McMurry at 3 p.m. in Pensacola, Florida. The War Hawks are currently 6-7 on the year with a couple of wins over UT Dallas last weekend.