Green Bay News

Coleman high school varsity wrestlers Alex and Hunter Stodola are no strangers to wrestling each other across the mat, as brothers, they’ve had plenty of practice.

“I think it’s kind of cool to see your little brother wrestle,” senior Alex Stodola said. “He always used to beat up on me, so it’s cool to see him do that to someone else. Although he’s still doing it though.”

The siblings, along with Lansins and Pillaths make up three sets of varsity wrestling starters on this year’s Cougars team. Quite the family affair for the defending Division III state champs

“It brings us closer together,” senior CJ Pillath said. “For example, Josh and I are close and Marc and Kevin are close. So with all of that, it kind of makes us all closer.”

Competition has certainly bred success with five of the six wrestlers ranked in the top 10 of their respective weight classes, according to WIWrestling.com.

“I hate watching him wrestle,” senior Marc Lansin said. “If he’s losing or not doing well, it makes me not do well. But if he does well, it kind of lifts me up. If he’s doing good, now I have to go out and do good.”

In a small town like Coleman, it’s no surprise that these three sets of siblings have had fathers or grandfathers play a part in the programs’ 10 state championships.

“Our grandfather wrestled here and his brother, so it’s great that we can be a part of it,” Pillath said.

A group of kin that isn’t afraid to knock each other down.

“Sometimes we have to step in there and make sure they tone it down,” coach Kevin Casper said. “We don’t want anyone to get hurt.”

Before always lifting their counterpart back up. In Coleman, Dylan Scott Fox 11 Sports.

GREEN BAY – Some people in our area got a Valentine’s Day surprise from some familiar faces.

From Oshkosh to Green Bay, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers mascots Fang and Whiffer made a big Valentine’s Day impression.

FOX 11 tagged along with Fang on one of his deliveries, which included chocolate, a rose, and game tickets. Unsuspecting people say they were surprised to see a big snake at their door.

Beth Lux, who was visited by Fang, said, “I was just shocked. I was afraid to open the door, I didn’t know what was going to happen.”

And organizer, Hilary Bauer, says it’s a way to make the day a little more memorable, “They don’t know what to expect because obviously when you see a big snake at your door or walk into your office, or even when we go to schools, it’s just cool to see the different kinds of reactions.”

The Timber Rattlers season will begin on April 9. The home opener is on April 12.

APPLETON – An Appleton police dog received a potential life saving gift.

Appleton East High School student, Kate Cichon presented the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Department K-9 unit with a new bullet proof vest.

“These vests are so important and it’s important that we protect those who protect us,” Cichon said.

Cichon hosted a school dance to help raise the money. She did the same thing last year — donating a vest to a different police dog.

Its handler, Patrol Officer Robert Zill  is thankful for the gift, “For someone to not be in the police department you know profession, to reach out and help our officers like that, that’s pretty amazing.”

Cichon says she’s trying to raise money for a third dog. Her goal is $2,500.

So far in Northeast Wisconsin about 50 police dogs have received vests through the Vest-A-Dog Program.

OSHKOSH – School districts say they are still stunned at an open records request, asking for their students’ personal information. However, some districts say they don’t have to give up as much information as others.

School Choice Wisconsin is a pro-voucher group that asked 30 public schools districts around the state for students’ names, phone numbers and addresses. That information is called directory data.

State law says districts have to turn over directory data information to any third party that asks for it. However, state law also says school districts can make their own policies for the directories. It means some districts will have to give up more information than others.

Oshkosh Area Public Schools Superintendent Stan Mack says his district won’t be giving as much student information to School Choice Wisconsin as others.

“Defining directory data within the range of possibilities is a local option,” said Mack.

School Choice Wisconsin sent out the open records request, asking for each students’ name, address, telephone number, grade level, and school.

Oshkosh says it will comply with the request, but based on its district’s directory data policy, telephone numbers or addresses of any middle or high school students will not be shared. However, the district defines elementary students’ numbers and addresses as directory data, so they will be shared.

“That’s kind of a historical elementary school tradition of how to encourage students to socialize,” said Mack.

Parents can opt out of data directory. However, that would prevent students from being in things like yearbooks and programs.

Unlike Oshkosh, the Green Bay Area Public School District must share all its students’ telephone numbers and addresses. It warned parents in an email that it was required under state law.

FOX 11 asked Melissa Thiel Collar, legal counsel for Green Bay public schools, whether it could have put in a policy similar to Oshkosh to prevent giving telephone numbers and addresses to School Choice Wisconsin.

“I can’t predict what requests are going to come in,” said Thiel Collar. “We’ve never had a request to this magnitude, so we look at our policies as they exist and we comply with our policies and we go forward with how to best draft policies to meet our students’ needs.”

Thiel Collar says the district will change its directory data policy for next school year to prevent a similar situation.

School Choice Wisconsin says it is planning a marketing campaign, but does not know the specifics just yet. It’s in response to Governor Walker’s latest state budget proposal. It calls for an expansion of the state voucher program.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – A jury has acquitted a fired Milwaukee police detective who was accused of unlawfully beating a handcuffed suspect during a 2013 interrogation.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Rodolfo Gomez Jr. was found not guilty on Friday of felony charges of misconduct in public office and abuse of a prisoner.

The 48-year-old Gomez was charged after video showed him punching and kicking a man during an August 2013 interview at police headquarters. Gomez was fired from the department.

The trial featured testimony from several police officers, as well as experts who offered different opinions on whether Gomez’s use of force was justified.

APPLETON — For 16 minutes Thursday night the Xavier boys basketball team could do no wrong.

Shoot a 3-pointer, good.

Drive to the basket for two points, good.

Chase down the loose ball, check.

Don’t allow Freedom to get comfortable, check.

It was as good a first half as the Hawks could’ve played as they held a 36-18 halftime lead in a crucial Eastern Valley Conference game.

But as the second half played it out, it was obvious Xavier wasn’t going to cruise to victory. Freedom opened the third quarter with a furious rally and by the end of the third quarter the lead was down to five.

Nonetheless, Xavier maintained its composure and made enough plays and free throws down the stretch to outlast the Irish, 63-58, in a thrilling game at Torchy Clark Gymnasium.

With the win, Xavier and Ripon remain tied atop the EVC at 12-1, while Freedom dropped to 12-2.

“The atmosphere and environment is exactly why our kids do the work in the summer and throughout the season is to get ready for this opportunity,” Xavier coach Matt Klarner said. “To see them step up like they did in the first half made me real proud as a coach.

“Tip your hat to Freedom, they’re obviously one of the best teams in the entire state. They showed why in the second half and our guys were able to make enough plays. When the horn sounded we had more points than they did, so we’ll take it.”

Freedom, ranked No. 2 in the FOX 11 Top 11, was outplayed in every fashion by No. 9 Xavier (16-3) in the first half but came out with a different demeanor in the second half. The Irish (17-2)stunned Xavier with its rally.

They made a great run and outplayed us for a five- or six-minute stretch run,” Klarner said. “We made some bad plays, they capitalized on them.”

Freedom whittled the lead to two points on multiple occasions but never lost the lead or was even tied. After making it look so easy in the first half, Xavier dug deep to avoid what would’ve been a crushing defeat.

“We never hung our heads or got down,” Klarner said. “We said we were going to win this game. Our guys righted the ship, took care of the ball and made some clutch free throws and that’s how you win tough games.”

Xavier’s Sam Burkart was 6-for-6 down the stretch at the free-throw line to help clinch the win and he said it was all about stepping up.

“I just have to do it for my team; have to knock them down and seal the victory,” said Burkart, who led all scorers with 18 points. “It all comes down to the final minute of the game and we just had executed. That’s ultimately how we won.

“We did everything we could to seal it off. We couldn’t take a possession off otherwise we would’ve been beat.”

Xavier controls its destiny to defend the EVC title it won a year ago and among the final three games is a home game Feb. 20 against Ripon.

“Its’ really big to be in front here,” Burkart said. “We just have to keep the mindset that we’re not too good, have to keep our heads even keel and stay as a team.”

Follow Doug Ritchay on Twitter @dougritchay

GREEN BAY – The board of education for Green Bay’s Notre Dame de la Baie Academy has named its next president.

Kevin Shaw has been selected to lead the school. The Fond du Lac native is currently president of St. Mary’s Springs Academy in his hometown. He went to high school at St. Mary’s Springs, received his bachelor’s degree from St. Norbert College and an M.S. in administration from the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business. Shaw spent 25 years working in sales, marketing and training in the medical device industry and four years in enrollment management at St. Norbert.

“I look forward to leading and serving as Notre Dame Academy’s next President,” Shaw said in a prepared statement. “In the competitive Green Bay educational market, parents demand excellence. I will continually strive for NDA to possess the qualities to encourage excellence: visionary leadership, strong Catholic identity and spiritual life, financial stability, quality academics, effective marketing and communications, strategic enrollment management and a vibrant student life.”

Shaw is set to succeed Robert Pauly, who has been Notre Dame’s president since 2010. Shaw is scheduled to take over June 1.

Xavier’s Sam Burkart talks about his team’s 63-58 win over Freedom on Thursday.

BUTTE DES MORTS – And while many spearers will be on Lake Winnebago Saturday, some will be heading to the upriver lakes.

The Department of Natural Resources allocates 500 licenses a year through a lottery system.

The lakes flow into Lake Winnebago, and are northwest of Oshkosh, and some say it’s the best place to spear a sturgeon.

On the north shore of Lake Butte des Morts near Oshkosh, spearfisherman Dennis Jones and his dog Bert are getting ready for another season on the ice.

Jones will be in select company on the frozen lake.

“You kind of have to wait your turn, and it took me, I think it was five or six years to get enough preference points to get a tag,” he said.

“This last year we had over 6,500 people apply. So this lottery fishery began in 2007. At that time, we only had 2,500 applicants. So the average was one in five years, that people were going to get a permit. Now, we’re looking at one in 10, one in 15 years,” said Ryan Koenigs, D.N.R. Sturgeon Biologist.

So what makes the upriver lakes so good? Fish biologists say it comes down to opportunity. In a typical season, spearers can harvest a fish on the upriver lakes about 50 percent of the time, compared to about 10 percent on Lake Winnebago.

“Overall, the lakes are shallower. So water clarity doesn’t play as much of a factor. There’s also a high concentration of fish in the upriver lakes, because it is a nursery ground for immature fish. Then, it’s also a staging area for fish that are going to spawn this upcoming Spring,” said Koenigs.

Jones dunked a new orange decoy to check the water clarity.

“I can see the bottom. Of course, I don’t have a lot of water. I think we probably got five to six feet of water where I’m set up. And two feet of that is ice,” he said.

Jones first speared 50 years ago. Since then, he’s only speared one fish.

He says the lottery license is nice, but it’s no guarantee.

“You never know. One spot is as good as the next. The fish has to be there. That’s what it’s all about,” said Jones.

The spearing season for everyone starts at 7 a.m. Saturday morning.

Cold and wind are in the forecast, so officials are asking people to be extra careful.

GREEN BAY –  A small dog that somehow made its way from Arizona to Wisconsin may be headed home this weekend.

The dog, Nicholas, is still at the Bay Area Humane Society.

Officials there say they received calls from people looking to help get the yorkie back to Arizona and they say one option means he would fly home Sunday.

Nicholas was found in Howard last Friday, and had been missing for two months.

Nicholas’ owner, Linda Baldazo, says she can’t wait to be reunited, “It’s amazing that he’s over there. If only he could tell us the story of how he got there. I would love to hear if only he could talk.”

The Humane Society was able to track down his owner, because Nicholas had a microchip implanted in him.

Freedom visited Xavier in a key Eastern Valley Conference boys basketball game Thursday.

Xavier won, 63-58.

MARINETTE – The owner of a Peshtigo bar has been charged with possessing refilled liquor bottles and purchasing beer from an unlicensed wholesaler.

Beverly Monnette owns The Spot. The state Department of Revenue says agents found bottles of Captain Morgan rum which showed signs of being refilled inside the bar. Prosecutors say Monnette admitted refilling empty Captain Morgan bottles with Admiral Nelson brand rum. Agents took 12 bottles, and testing showed their contents were not consistent with Captain Morgan brand rum.

Refilling liquor bottles is illegal because it can pose health and safety risks, officials say.

Agents also took 194 bottles of beer that prosecutors allege had not been bought from a proper wholesaler. Wisconsin law requires alcohol to go from a manufacturer to a wholesaler before a retailer can sell it to the public.

If convicted, Monnette could spend six months behind bars for possessing refilled liquor bottles and nine months for buying from an unlicensed wholesaler.

GREEN BAY – The cost to go to a Packers game in 2015 is going up.

The Packers announced Friday they plan to increase the price on stadium bowl tickets for the 2015 season.

The increase will range from $3 to $5 per ticket, depending on seat location in the general seating area.

Invoices were sent to season ticket holders earlier this week.

Suite tickets will also increase this year, anywhere between $5 to $105.

Projected ticket costs are:

• End zone seats – $80 (increase of $3)
• South end zone, 700 Level – $89 (increase of $4)
• End zone to the 20‐yard line – $92 (increase of $4)
• South end zone, 600 Level – $96 (increase of $4)
• Between the 20-yard lines – $105 (increase of $5)

Payment is due in the Packers’ ticket office March 31.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s upcoming address to Congress has been shining a light on deep divisions between the United States and Israel; among the chief differences, Iran’s nuclear program.

But there is also a long list of similarities between the two countries.

“The two countries really have very similar interests in the region and in the world,” said Michael Brenner, director of the Center for Israel Studies at American University.

“They share common values and they actually want the same thing.”

They also have analogous historical experiences.

“Both nations were born in blood, were birthed in violent revolutions,” said Ron Lipsman, a professor emeritus in mathematics at the University of Maryland, who spent years living in Israel.

Lipsman made a list of what he views as some of the most important similarities, including that both are nations of immigrants, both are capitalist and both follow the principles of democracy.

There’s one other important connection:

“Both countries have a bulls-eye on their back, threatened by malevolent forces near and far,” Lipsman said.

It’s a threat many believe is reason enough for the countries to set aside differences and work together.

KEWAUNEE — Five games into this season the Kewaunee boys basketball team was winless, which certainly wasn’t how the Storm wanted to open the season.

There was a solid reason for the slow start as the team was being led by first-year coach Keil Ganz, so there had to be an expectation of Ganz and the team getting familiar with one another.

Apparently, the familiarity set in during the sixth game, because that was the start of a turnaround. The Storm won its sixth game and followed with 11 consecutive wins before losing earlier this week against N.E.W. Lutheran

“There was hope, guys wanted to win,” Ganz said. “Think the first five games were us getting used to each other and me getting used to them. I think it clicked there and we were able to win a couple after that.”

Sharpshooting Logan Brusky wasn’t sure what to think after the slow start.

Definitely questioned where we were but it also motivated us,” he said. “We didn’t want to have a season like last year. We really wanted to have a winning season.”

The previous two seasons Kewaunee won a total of 12 games, including eight last season. This year, the Storm already has 12 wins and the team’s confidence is high.

“For the seniors, it’s a lot of fun,” said Brusky, averaging 18.1 points per game. “A lot of us played our sophomore and junior year and we were the younger guys. We won 12 in a row. Last year, we won eight games all together, so the confidence is there.”

“They go into every game expecting to win, which is different than how we started the year,” Ganz said.

Now it’s about finishing the season strong. Kewaunee (13-6) lost in overtime to N.E.W. Lutheran on Tuesday but followed with a win against Denmark, so the goal is to win the final three regular season games so it can enter the postseason on a roll.

The Storm is in a tough Division 3 regional with the likes of Roncalli and Packerland leader Southern Door and a postseason run would be nice.

“It would mean a lot to make a run,” said Ganz. “I think we raised the bar and I think it means a lot to them to be a part of it.”

“Just keep battling, win out the rest of the season,” Brusky said. “That’s the only thing you can really do from here.”

Kewaunee hasn’t been to the state tournament since 1981, so a state trip would be quite a way to end a season that started so slowly.

“We’d love to put a number up there,” Brusky said, looking at the boys basketball banner. “For sure.”

Follow Doug Ritchay on Twitter @dougritchay

GREEN BAY – The Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary will be participating in the Great Backyard Bird Count.

It’s an annual four-day event that bird watchers of all ages can do. Participants simply count the birds at a nearby location for 15 minutes. Then they tally the number of each species, and fill out an online checklist on the Great Backyard Bird Count website.

Last year, more than 140,000 people participated from 135 countries.

Officials say the event helps recognize bird trends over time.

Mike Reed of the Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary says, “Over the years this will be very valuable in determining whether a certain species is increasing, if it’s decreasing, if we’re seeing a habitat change. Birds are really good indicators of the environmental quality.”

The four day event starts Friday Feb. 13 and runs through Monday, Feb. 16.

DENVER (AP) – The Federal Aviation Administration has grounded more than 300 Enstrom helicopters nationwide until they can be inspected for cracks like the one that may have caused a deadly Colorado crash.

In an emergency directive issued Thursday, the FAA said the investigation into the Jan. 26 crash so far indicates that the helicopter’s rotor blade came off because of a crack in the spindle, which holds the rotor blade in place.

The crash killed Alex Viola, a 23-year-old flight instructor from Arkansas City, Kansas, and Amy Wood, a 25-year-old student pilot from Boulder.

A representative for Menominee, Michigan-based Enstrom didn’t immediately return a call seeking comment.

The lawyer for Viola’s family, Gary Robb, praised the FAA for acting quickly to try to prevent further crashes. He plans to sue the company.

PORTAGE (AP) – Authorities are investigating a Columbia County prison inmate’s death.

WKOW TV reports that the Columbia County Sheriff’s Department was notified of a medical emergency in the prison Thursday afternoon. A 40-year-old male inmate was pronounced dead at the scene.

The sheriff’s office says it is investigating whether another inmate was involved in the death.

Officials say an autopsy is scheduled and they will not release the inmate’s name until family members have been notified. Officials with the sheriff’s department and the state Department of Corrections didn’t immediately return messages from the Associated Press on Friday.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) – A 19-year-old man opened fire near a popular all-female Mardi Gras parade, killing two people in the latest spate of violence to mar Carnival parties in this city, police said Friday.

John Hicks, of New Orleans, was arrested by police after the Thursday night shooting and faces two counts of second-degree murder, police Superintendent Michael Harrison said. He also was charged with using a firearm in a violent crime on a parade route.

Killed were 21-year-old Peter Dabney and a 22-year-old man whose name has not been released. They who were in a group that got into an argument with Hicks and his friends before the fight turned deadly. Police didn’t say what they were arguing about.

“We’ve seen this iteration of violence before where young men get into an argument over seemingly something not worth even having a fist fight over and it turns into an unfortunate set of lethal circumstances,” Mayor Mitch Landrieu said Friday.

The mayor praised the police for their quick actions. Carnival parade routes are lined with officers and surveillance cameras, and in this case, barriers were set up and parade rolled on. In at least eight of the past 11 years, shootings have marred the city’s Mardi Gras celebration.

The shooting happened about 10 p.m. Thursday on St. Charles Avenue on the edge of the city’s museum and art districts as the Muses parade and its masked female riders aboard two dozen brightly-lit floats were passing by.

Angela Matherne, of Thibodaux, was with family taking in the parade – a kickoff to the final Carnival weekend. Matherne told The Associated Press that she didn’t hear the shooting a block away “but saw people running in our direction and police in the opposite.”

Matherne said the parade kept going and she didn’t realize there had been a shooting until later, when she left the route.

Police spokesman Frank Robertson said one victim was struck in the chest and died in surgery, Robertson said. The other was struck in the neck and died at the hospital.

Police say Hicks confessed and that officers saw him toss a handgun before he was arrested after a foot chase. Detectives said Hicks tested positive for gun residue. A public defender assigned to his case did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

In 2013, four people were wounded in a shooting on Bourbon Street on the Saturday before Mardi Gras.

Video at the time showed many partying in costumes before what police described as an argument between one of the wounded and two other men.

The city will host several parades daily through Mardi Gras, which is Tuesday.

VAN HORNE, Iowa (AP) – A school district in Iowa has plans to expand Wi-Fi access on school buses for its students.

KCRG-TV reports that the Benton Community School District is planning on adding Wi-Fi access to more of its school buses to help students be more productive on what, for some, can be a very long ride. Officials say internet access will allow students to do their homework while on the bus since so much of it is online.

High school principal James Bieschke said, “It is definitely a benefit for students to be able to complete an assignment and send it off to their teacher.”

Currently, there is Wi-Fi on four of the district’s 18 buses. “It’s a good way to get your mind off things and help the ride go faster,” said 8th grader Bennett Gorkow.

District superintendent Gary Zittergruen said that Wi-Fi would likely be added to ten more buses at a cost of about $7,800. Officials said this is something they wanted to spend the money on because the district spans 330 square miles.