Green Bay News

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Green Bay women’s basketball team rolled past Youngstown State, 73-27 Saturday afternoon. The 46-point victory is the largest for the Phoenix this season.

Kaili Lukan led all scorers with 14 points, with Allie LeClaire adding 13 off the bench.

Maybe the most impressive stat of the game came on the defensive side, where the Phoenix limited the Penguins to just six field goals in the contest.

With the win, Green Bay improves to 24-4 overall and 14-1 in the Horizon League. Kevin Borseth’s team returns to action next Saturday at 1 p.m., when they host Detroit in the team’s regular season finale.

DE PERE — Watch the De Pere girls basketball team play and buckle up.

The Redbirds are not interested in walking the ball up the court and letting you do the same. De Pere’s style of play puts pressure on the opponent and most times it’s not a good ending.

Saturday night Bay Port had the task of trying to keep up with the Redbirds and for a while the Pirates did. However, De Pere eventually ran away from the Pirates a posted a 71-55 regional final win, advancing the Redbirds to a sectional semifinal Thursday against Kimberly.

“They’re really athletic, but I thought we played better faster than they did,” De Pere coach Dave Johnson said. “We wanted to keep it up because they had kind of a tough one the night before with Manitowoc. We didn’t have to expend as much energy (Friday) night, so that was important.

“We wanted to get after them right away and play 84 feet. I thought we did a good job.”

We really wanted to start of strongly because we knew they were a really good team who could play and stick with us if they had momentum,” senior guard Margaret Miller said. “We had to kill that momentum to give ourselves a better shot at winning.”

No. 1-seeded De Pere (22-2) led just, 28-27, late in the second quarter but then the Redbirds made a decisive run. After entering halftime with a 34-27 lead, De Pere outscored No. 4 Bay Port (13-10), 9-1, to start the third quarter and open a 43-28 lead.

“We want to wear teams out,” Miller said. “We want to run the ball up and down the floor and tire them out in the second half and pick up a lead on them.”

When De Pere wears teams out, it scores … a lot. Friday, the Redbirds scored 86 points in a regional semifinal win. Saturday was “just” 71 points, but what makes the Redbirds lethal is anybody can score 15 points in the starting lineup, which is comprised of five seniors.

Saturday, Miller led everybody with 21 points, while Sarah Kuehn added 1 7points and Jessie Rabas 16, respectively.

“Having senior leadership like we have is tremendous,” Johnson said. “When we call timeouts, they’re already talking about stuff before we get to the huddle. That’s just kids that have played in the program for a while. They know what needs to be done at certain times.”

What needs to be done next is beat Kimberly, a team that has ended the Redbirds’ season the last two years. De Pere is looking forward to playing the No. 3-seeded Papermakers.

“They’ve ended our season now twice,” Miller said. “We really want Kimberly, we want to beat them. It’s not going to be easy. If we do what we do and keep running and keep pushing it; we felt it for two years now, we want this one bad.”

Johnson said games like Saturday can help De Pere extend its season.

“The rest of our games are going to be like this; Bay Port’s really good,” Johnson said. “If we play our game and shoot well, we’re going to be a really tough out.”

Follow Doug Ritchay on Twitter @dougritchay

De Pere senior Margaret Miller talks about her team;s 71-55 win over Bay Port in a Division 1 regional final.

DE PERE — The St. Norbert men’s basketball team beat Grinnell College 91-73 to clinch it’s third straight conference championship and advanced to its fifth NCAA Division III appearance in six years.

Terrence Garner had a team-high 24 points and 11 rebounds, including a dunk to extend St. Norberts lead to 17 with 4:30 to play in the game. Austin Elliot put up an impressive line of 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists. Ben Bobinski hit 3 three-pointers and finished with 12 points.

The Green Knights shot 57.1 percent from the field and only has 6 turnovers in the contest. Grinnell entered the tournament leading NCAA Division III in scoring at 116.5 points per game.

Bay Port visited De Pere in a Division 1 girls basketball regional final on Saturday.

De Pere won, 71-55.

GREEN BAY – As prom season approaches, the Green Bay community is making a difference for some local teens.

Prom can get pricey, and some people in our area are trying to ease that expense for area high school girls.

The YWCA and Notre Dame Academy hosted the second annual “Turning Dresses into Dreams” prom event Saturday.

The event is geared toward girls who cannot afford that perfect prom dress.

Community members and business donated new and gently used dresses for teens to look through.

Each girl had the option to shop with a personal shopper to help find that special dress.

Organizers say it’s a great way to help make a difference in their young lives.

“It’s really geared towards girls that can’t find that perfect dress, or maybe life’s circumstances happen where they can’t afford it, so they get to come here and shop,” said YWCA Women’s Empowerment Director Korissa Diehl.

The event takes place every year around the end of February or early March.

OSHKOSH – A new exhibit at the Oshkosh Public museum is creating quite the buzz.

New York-based artist Nathan Sawaya took Legos into the art world by creating a large-scale sculpture of a person.

“The Art of the Brick” showcases Sawaya’s abitlity to transform Lego bricks into something new by creating portraits as well.

Organizers say this is great way to encourage others to be creative.

“What Nathan wants to encourage is to create. And his method of creating is with lego bricks but you can create with anything so you have to see this to believe it,” said Oshkosh Public Museum curator Debra Daubert.

The event runs through June 10th.

GREEN BAY – Military veterans from around the area gathered at the Warpinski Community Center Saturday to enjoy some camaraderie and learn about resources.

The free networking event put on by new organization “Hope 4 Vets” offered peer to peer connections.

Veterans and their families also received free meals and warm clothes. They also took in live entertainment and other activities.

Organizers said this event is a great way to offer help for struggling military families and veterans in an effort to keep suicide numbers down.

“Giving back to our veterans is a big thing and your’re not alone. And we are there for you. Also, the community is there for you,” said program director Lynn Geiser.

Free haircuts were provided by “The Barbershop” and “Shear Sports”

Information on housing and benefits was also distributed.

HURLEY, Wis – Wisconsin State Patrol says one person was seriously injured in a crash Friday night near Hurley.

According to State Patrol a westbound vehicle crossed the centerline on Highway 2 at County Road D and struck an eastbound vehicle around 9:40 Friday night.

Both drivers were transported to Grandview Hospital in Ironwood, Michigan.

The 69-year-old eastbound driver, from Washburn was later flown to Wausau Asprirus Hosptial with critical injuries.

The crash remains under investigation.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – A man has died after a construction accident at the site of the Zoo Interchange in Milwaukee.

Officials say the accident happened before 8 a.m. on Saturday. Few details were released, and the victim’s name was also not being released.

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating.

OXON HILL, Md. (AP) – Scott Walker may have won three elections in the past four years, but he’s still finding his way in presidential politics.

The Wisconsin governor made a splash last month in first-to-vote Iowa, wowing Republicans and vaulting to the top of several still-way-too-early polls.

Then came “punts” on questions about evolution, President Barack Obama’s love of country and the president’s religion. This week Walker compared his political fight against union protesters to America’s actual fight against Islamic State militants in the Middle East.

“Take your worst day in any state capital around the country, and every day is like that on a presidential campaign,” said Republican strategist Kevin Madden, a senior adviser on Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign.

“The media scrutiny is brutal, the parsing of every quote never ends and all of your opponents – whether they’re from the other party or even inside your own – has staff solely dedicated to ruining every one of your events or interviews,” Madden said.

While Walker has yet to formally announce a White House bid, other Republicans likely to run already view him as a threat in the unofficial race to emerge as the strongest alternative to former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, the early favorite of the party’s establishment. Walker’s newly formed political action committee opened a national headquarters in Madison, Wisconsin, a few days ago, and several key aides are slated to move to town next week.

Walker characterized this week’s episodes as media driven.

“I’m not going to take that bait,” the 47-year-old Walker said Saturday about his recent media encounters, while speaking to the Club for Growth’s annual winter meeting in Florida. “I’m going to talk about things that everyday Americans want to talk about.”

Walker was extending his weekend of presidential politicking to the influential anti-tax group meeting, where some of his 2016 competitors will also be.

Walker’s candidacy will be predicated in large part on his actions as Wisconsin’s governor: stripping the collective bargaining rights of state workers during his first term, winning a recall election and then re-election despite the determined efforts of organized labor and Democrats to boot him from office.

But while those victories put Walker in an intense spotlight, it doesn’t compete with what he’ll face in the year leading to the Republican primaries. And his early steps as a top-tier presidential contender have been marked by stumbles.

The latest came on opening day of the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, during an energetic speech that seemed to quash concerns that Walker is too bland for presidential politics. Having again shed his suit jacket and rolled up his sleeves, as he did during his January appearance in Iowa, he was nearing the end of his appearance when he was asked about the Islamic State group.

“If I can take on 100,000 protesters, I can do the same across the world,” he said.

The remark was quickly followed by a clarification from Walker’s still-new staff, who said he didn’t compare the protesters, who spent weeks camped out in the state Capitol in Madison in 2011, to the militants. But the criticism of those who believe he did just that lingered into the next day. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said Walker’s “judgment is impaired.”

Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who is contemplating a second bid for the Republican presidential nomination, piled on publicly.

“You are talking about, in the case of ISIS, people who are beheading individuals and committing heinous crimes, who are the face of evil,” Perry said on MSNBC. “To try to make the relationship between them and the unions is inappropriate.”

During a trip to London earlier in the month, Walker refused to say whether he believed in evolution. A week later, he said he didn’t know whether President Barack Obama loves America or is a Christian.

Democrats are already using those missteps to raise money.

Frayda Levin, a Club for Growth board member, told Walker during an open question-and-answer session at the Florida meeting that she had heard him described as “not prepared to speak on foreign policy.”

Walker said he would appoint qualified advisers if elected, but said national security crises were akin to domestic quandries, describing former President Ronald Reagan’s decision to fire 11,000 striking air traffic controllers in 1981.

“The most important element in foreign policy and national security is leadership,” he said.

HAMPTON, Ga. (AP) – The No. 44 race car returned to its NASCAR shop in North Carolina on Saturday after it was recovered along a remote road in suburban Atlanta, apparently abandoned by the thieves who stole it from a hotel parking lot.

While the discovery didn’t occur in nearly enough time for Team XTREME to compete in this weekend’s race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, it was a huge boost for the small-budget operation in its bid to make the next event at Las Vegas.

“There was no damage whatsoever,” team owner John Cohen told The Associated Press. “Nothing was taken off the car. Even the antennas that went to the radio were still in the seats.”

Police in Gwinnett County northeast of Atlanta received a suspicious vehicle call at approximately 2:30 a.m. Saturday, nearly 24 hours after the race car was stolen, said Jeffery Richter, the public information officer. A motorist spotted the No. 44 machine along a darkened road and quickly realized it must be the stolen race car.

Cohen was called to the scene, confirmed it was his $250,000 race car off the shoulder of the road, and called a tow truck to take it back to their shop in suburban Charlotte.

“It was backwoods,” Cohen said. “There were no lights around. (The thieves) made sure no one could see them while they were getting rid of the car.”

While the truck and trailer that were hauling the race car weren’t found at the scene, the truck was spotted a few hours later in Stockbridge, Georgia, not far from the hotel where the theft took place, said Morrow police Detective Sgt. Larry Oglesby, who led the investigation in the south Atlanta suburb.

“The truck was on the side of the road,” Oglesby said. “A citizen driving by noticed it and said, ‘Hey, that looks like the truck on TV.'”

He said the handle on the driver side door was busted, as well as the ignition switch. While no arrests had been made, Oglesby said his department had a “person of interest” and was continuing to pursue leads to determine just how many people were involved. He also identified a vehicle used by the thieves, which was spotted on a surveillance video.

There was still no sign of the trailer and its other contents, which included a spare engine valued at $100,000 and racing equipment valued at $17,500.

“We’ve got two out of three,” Oglesby said. “Now we’re looking for the trailer.”

The car was found about 20 miles from the hotel south of Atlanta where it was stolen early Friday. Since the truck and trailer had no markings to indicate they were part of a race team, police speculated that thieves likely didn’t realize what they had stolen and might abandon the high-powered car.

“Have you seen that show ’48 Hours?'” Cohen said. “I figured if we didn’t have it back in 48 hours, we were not getting the car back. The first 24 hours is crucial. It was definitely right at 24 hours when we got the car back.”

The team didn’t bring a backup car to Atlanta, so it had to withdraw from Sunday’s Sprint Cup race after missing Friday qualifying. Travis Kvapil was set to drive.

Since the No. 44 car wasn’t damaged, Cohen said it should be able to run at Las Vegas with Kvapil behind the wheel. The team also plans to send a backup car.

Kvapil is also set to run for Team XTREME the following week at Phoenix.

Normally, the car is transported using the team’s hauler, an 18-wheel tractor trailer. But, with a winter storm moving through the Southeast this past week, Cohen sent the hauler to Atlanta a couple of days early.

Back at its shop, the team continued putting in 18-hour days to prepare the car, a different version than the restrictor-plate version that raced in the season-opening Daytona 500. The No. 44 was sent to Atlanta late Thursday aboard the much-smaller trailer, accompanied by crew chief Peter Sospenzo and six other team members.

They got to Morrow, not far from the speedway, and stayed overnight at a hotel. The trailer, with the red race car inside, was parked outside along with the black 2004 Ford F-350 pickup truck. Surveillance video showed the truck and trailer being driven out of the parking lot shortly after 5:30 a.m., Oglesby said.

The team was scheduled to leave for the track at 5:45 a.m.

“I’ve been doing this since 1979,” Sospenzo said. “I’ve probably been to 1,200 hotels and 1,200 race tracks. Never once has this happened. It’s crazy. But there’s a first for everything, I guess.”

MICHIGAN CITY, Ind. (AP) – Indiana State Police say a man from Wisconsin wanted after allegedly firing shots inside an Illinois store was arrested following a standoff on Interstate 94.

State police say 34-year-old Vincent Toliver of Madison, Wisconsin, is facing preliminary charges of possession of stolen property and resisting law enforcement. He could not be reached for comment because he was being held in the LaPorte County Jail on Saturday. It was not known if he has hired an attorney.

State police say they believe Toliver fired shots in a Walgreen’s store in Broadview, Illinois, about 10 miles east of Chicago, then led police on a chase until being stopped on I-94 near Michigan City about 8:30 p.m. State police said I-94 was closed until the standoff ended about 10:10 p.m. Friday.

WAUSAU, Wis. (AP) – A Marathon County judge has sentenced Warren Krohn to 25 years in prison in the 2012 beating death of popular Wausau bowler Kerby Kniess.

Daily Herald Media reports that Circuit Judge Gregory Grau handed down the sentence Friday after hearing more than two hours of testimony.

Krohn, 23, of Wausau, was convicted of felony murder and burglary in December. His co-defendant, 21-year-old Zachary Froehlich of Wausau, was sentenced on Nov. 4 to 35 years behind bars.

Kniess fell asleep on the night of June 18, 2012, after watching a Milwaukee Brewers game with a friend in a detached, furnished garage where he had been living. Prosecutors say Krohn and Froehlich went into the garage to rob him, and that Krohn knew Kniess was staying in his friends’ garage.

WAUSAU, Wis. (AP) – A 13-year-old boy has died after he was stabbed during a fight in Wausau that may have been prompted by an earlier dispute over social media.

Wausau police say the stabbing happened at about 5:30 p.m. Friday.

Police say there was a dispute earlier in the evening over social media. Several people, including the stabbing victim, got into one vehicle and drove to a house on the 900 block of Jefferson Street.

One person in that vehicle fired a BB gun at juveniles who were on the porch. A fight broke out, and the teen was stabbed. Police say a friend took him to the hospital, where he died of his injuries.

One juvenile suspect is in custody.

APPLETON – Looking for some healthy recipes?

Kimberly Neher and Kerry Evers — from Nutritional Healing in Appleton — joined FOX 11’s Emily Deem on Good Day Wisconsin.

Both women created some wonderful, healthy recipes!

Click here to learn more about Nutritional Healing.

Black Bean Sesame Noodles with Edamame

Ingredients:
· 7 ounces Organic Black Bean Spaghetti Noodles from Explore Asian
· ¼ cup all natural peanut butter
· 1 tbsp. fresh grated ginger
· 2 cloves crushed garlic
· ¼ cup Bragg liquid aminos
· 1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil
· 2 tbsp. rice vinegar
· 1 bell pepper, sliced thinly
· 1 cup cooked, organic edamame
· 2 scallions, chopped
· ¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro
Optional: sesame seeds + red hot chili flakes
Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook noodles according to instructions.
In a large bowl combine peanut butter, ginger, garlic, liquid aminos, sesame oil, rice wine, and vinegar. Toss warm noodles into the sauce and top with the peppers, edamame, chopped up scallions, and cilantro. Gently toss everything together until well combined and all the noodles are lightly coated in the sauce.
Serve on your favorite plate and top with sesame seeds and red hot chili flakes. Enjoy!
Makes 6 servings.

Two very simple/healthy dips (which are quick to make so we provided two)
Blueberry Fruit Dip

1 container of blueberries (approximately 1.5 cups)
1 can white beans, drained and rinsed well
5 droppers of plain liquid stevia

Mix all up into food processor until well blended.
(Add more beans if you want it thicker)

Serve with slices of apple and enjoy!

English Toffee Dip

6 ounces unsweetened plain Greek yogurt
1 Tablespoon Natural peanut butter
5 drops of English Toffee liquid flavored stevia

Stir all ingredients together until well blended.

Serve with slices of apple and enjoy!

MOSCOW (AP) – A few hours after going on the radio to denounce President Vladimir Putin’s policies as mad, charismatic opposition leader Boris Nemtsov was gunned down early Saturday as he walked near the Kremlin.

Colleagues in Russia’s beleaguered and marginalized opposition pointed fingers at the state or at assailants fired up by fervent nationalist sentiment in state-controlled news media. But Putin and other Russian politicians suggested the brazen attack was a provocation against the state.

Nemtsov, 55, was shot while walking with a female companion on a bridge over the Moscow River about 400 meters (yards) from the Kremlin. Russia’s Investigative Committee said at least seven shots were fired.

Nemtsov was to have been a prominent participant in a march planned for Sunday in a Moscow to protest Russia’s policies in Ukraine, where the West alleges the Kremlin has provided troops and equipment to separatist rebels, and the economic crisis sparked by Western sanctions over Ukraine and the plunge in oil prices.

Organizers canceled the march and said they would seek permission to hold a mourning rally for Nemtsov on Sunday. City authorities had made no decision on that by midday.

Through the morning, hundreds of people came to the site of Nemtsov’s death to lay flowers.

Nemtsov was working on a report presenting evidence that he believed proved Russia’s direct involvement in the separatist rebellion that has raged in eastern Ukraine since April. Moscow denies backing the rebels with troops and sophisticated weapons.

Putin ordered Russia’s top law enforcement chiefs to personally oversee the investigation of Nemtsov’s killing.

“Putin noted that this cruel murder has all the makings of a contract hit and is extremely provocative,” presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in remarks carried by Russian news agencies.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Nemtsov committed his life to a more democratic Russia, “and to strong relationships between Russia and its neighbors and partners, including the United States.”

German Chancellor Angela Merkel praised Nemtsov’s courage in criticizing Kremlin policies, and urged Putin to insure that the killers are brought to justice, her spokesman Steffen Seibert said.

Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev echoed the suggestion that the killing was a provocation. “It’s an attempt to push the situation into complications, maybe even to destabilizing the situation in the country,” he was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency.

Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov agreed. “It’s a provocation; for big fires, sacrificial figures are necessary,” Interfax quoted him as saying.

Nemtsov frequently assailed the government’s inefficiency, rampant corruption and Ukraine policy.

In an interview with the Sobesednik newspaper, Nemtsov said earlier this month that his 86-year old mother was afraid that Putin could have him killed. Asked if he had such fears himself, he responded: “If I were afraid I wouldn’t have led an opposition party.”

Speaking on radio just a few hours before his death, he accused Putin of plunging Russia into crisis by his “mad, aggressive and deadly policy of war against Ukraine.”

Nemtsov’s lawyer, Vadim Prokhorov, said the politician had received threats on social networks and told police about them, but authorities took no steps to protect him.

Interior Ministry spokeswoman Yelena Alexeyeva told reporters that Nemtsov was walking with a female acquaintance, a Ukrainian citizen, when a vehicle drove up and unidentified people shot him. The woman wasn’t hurt and was being questioned by police.

Kasyanov, the former prime minister, said he was shocked.

“In the 21st century, a leader of the opposition is being demonstratively shot just outside the walls of the Kremlin!” Kasyanov told reporters as Nemtsov’s body, placed in a plastic bag, was removed on a rainy and cold night, as the Kremlin bells chimed nearby. “The country is rolling into the abyss.”

“This is a monstrous tragedy and a loss for us all,” Alexei Navalny, Russia’s most prominent opposition figure, said on his Facebook page. He is currently on a 15-day jail sentence for handing out leaflets without authorization.

Garry Kasparov, a former chess champion who worked with Nemtsov to organize protests against Putin and now lives in the United States, said the killing shows that Putin and those who support him are lying when they say their popular support is strong.

“If you have 86 percent support, why do you kill someone like Boris?” he said.

Opposition activist Ilya Yashin, who last spoke to Nemtsov two days before the killing, said he had no doubt that Nemtsov’s murder was politically motivated.

“Boris Nemtsov was a stark opposition leader who criticized the most important state officials in our country, including President Vladimir Putin. As we have seen, such criticism in Russia is dangerous for one’s life,” Yashin said.

Nemtsov served as a regional governor and then a deputy prime minister in the 1990s and once was seen as a possible successor to Boris Yeltsin, Russia’s first elected president. After Putin came to power in 2000, Nemtsov became one of his most vocal critics.

Nemtsov was widely liked for his good humor, larger-than-life character and quick wit, but he and other top opposition figures long have been purged from state television and steadily marginalized by the Kremlin.

ASHWAUBENON – Your Saturday will start chilly with below zero temperatures in most locations.  The saving grace for today is that we’ll have a lot of sunshine.  Highs temperatures will be well below normal at around 20 degrees (Our normal high is 32).

Clouds will start to move in tonight and temperatures will dip into the single digits above zero.

Some light snow is possible on Sunday with mostly cloudy skies.  Highs temperatures will reach the mid 20s.  Snow amounts will be minor, from a dusting to a 1/2 inch in some areas.

Monday’s high will be near 25 with mostly sunny skies to start the work week.

Tuesday will bring a storm system into the region with the potential for heavy snow. FOX 11 meteorologists will keep you updated as the storm approaches.  Stay tuned to FOX 11 and check fox11online.com for impacts of this storm as it approaches.

LAKE WINNEBAGO – 10,000 anglers are expected to take to the frozen Lake Winnebago to raise money for a good cause this weekend.

The eighth annual Battle on Bago began Friday.

Organizers say the goal is to raise $300,000 during the two day tournament. The money will go to support area youth and conservation efforts throughout the state.

In eight years, the tournament has raised nearly $500,000, which has been split between 50 different organizations across Wisconsin.

Fox 11’s Pauleen Le spent the morning out on the ice to check in with organizers and anglers.

For more information on Battle on Bago, click here.

DE PERE – The St. Norbert men’s and women’s basketball programs showed by they’re No. 1 seed’s Friday, besting their opponents in the Midwest Conference tournament semifinals at Schuldes Sports Center.

Behind a combined 46 points from Steven Hofacker and Andrew Schwoerer, the Green Knight men held off an upset-minded Ripon team, 85-74. SNC will meet Grinnell College in Saturday’s championship game at 6 p.m.

Big offensive efforts also buoyed the St. Norbert women’s program to a 61-51 victory over Illinois College. De Pere native Brianna Byrne notched a team-high 20 points with teammate Heidi Van Sistine adding 14 points. The Green Knights will host Cornell College at 3 p.m. for the league championship.