NORPAC playoffs open in Cody

Heading into the first round of the NORPAC playoffs, head coach Craig Furstenau knew his team had a challenge ahead in its best-of-five series against the 48-2 Helena Bighorns. On Tuesday night, he saw just how tall that challenge was.

“You cannot make a mistake against those guys,” Furstenau said following a 9-0 Helena victory. “Any little error on your part and they’re able to jump on it.”

Three come home with state titles

Twelve Panthers came home with medals, three of them gold, and Powell finished a strong third in the Wyoming state wrestling tournament.

Jessee Craig, Jimmy Seckman and Olie Olson all finished the season as state champions, and Charles Wittick came within a point of joining them but had to settle for second. Robert Friday, Colt Nix, and Randy Andrews all finished third,  and Waylon Bays finished fourth. Kurt Bullinger, Trevor Griffeth and Clay Saldana finished fifth and Tyler Patterson sixth.

Three come home with state titles

Twelve Panthers came home with medals, three of them gold, and Powell finished a strong third in the Wyoming state wrestling tournament.

Jessee Craig, Jimmy Seckman and Olie Olson all finished the season as state champions, and Charles Wittick came within a point of joining them but had to settle for second. Robert Friday, Colt Nix, and Randy Andrews all finished third,  and Waylon Bays finished fourth. Kurt Bullinger, Trevor Griffeth and Clay Saldana finished fifth and Tyler Patterson sixth.

NWC’s 184-pounder scores national title

Northwest College sophomore Nick Petersen spent most of wrestling’s regular season ranked atop the 184-pound weight class. On Saturday in Spokane, Wash., he finished his junior college career the same way.

Petersen capped a stellar Trapper career with a 4-1 victory over Austin Moorehead of Rend Lake College to become national champion. It also helped pace the Trappers to an eighth-place finish at the 2011 national tournament.

Men denied sub-region title, women fall

The Northwest College Trappers suffered a sweep by Sheridan on their home court Tuesday evening. The men dropped the de facto sub-region championship game by a 67-62 final count. The Trapper women fell 84-77.

Men denied sub-region title, women fall

The Northwest College Trappers suffered a sweep by Sheridan on their home court Tuesday evening. The men dropped the de facto sub-region championship game by a 67-62 final count. The Trapper women fell 84-77.

Tribute to women’s sports pioneer will be Friday

Powell High School will pay tribute to not only one of its most storied athletes, but to a trendsetter in the field of women’s athletics this Friday when it retires the jersey of Dale Ann Meeker during a ceremony at the Powell-Cody basketball games.

Brackets released, rankings updated in advance of tourney

For the seven national tournament qualifiers from the Northwest College wrestling team, the brackets have been set. Competitors now know the identity of their first-round opponents and can begin to scout a possible path through the brackets.

For Trapper head coach Jim Zeigler though, this stage of the game is all about taking things one step at a time.

The list of possible candidates to fill the vacant Northwest College head volleyball coaching position has been pared to three people. Those individuals will visit campus later this month to complete the interview process.

“We feel pretty strongly about the candidates,” said Northwest College athletic director Andy Ward. “I look forward to meeting each one in person and getting to know a little more about them and their coaching styles.”

Water Fall Ice Festival brings climbers to Cody

Jim Shimberg has been waiting for this weekend for a year.

A climber for more than three decades, he set eyes on Cody for the first time last winter when he came to town for the annual Water Fall Ice Festival. Unfortunately, a broken leg suffered in the weeks prior to the festival prevented him from even venturing out.