Place Name: First Place Contestant Name: Ripon Commonwealth Press Entry Title: 50 years since Title IX: Coll, Landerman reflect on evolution of women's sports since law went into effect Entry Credit: Jonathan Bailey Judge Comment: Well done feature about the evolution of Title IX sports at a local college. Enticing lead and good flow throughout the story.
Place Name: Second Place Contestant Name: Sun Prairie Star Entry Title: Jeff Boos steps down as boys basketball coach Entry Credit: Ryan Gregory Judge Comment: Good balance in a story about a long-time basketball coach stepping down. What I really liked about it ws the balance between his decision to step down and what it means and his history as a coach, with a larger focus on the former. Not bad at all.
Place Name: Third Place Contestant Name: The Northwoods River News Entry Title: A team and its rooster: Unusual mascot helps propel Hodag harriers to state meet Entry Credit: Jeremy Mayo Judge Comment: Quirky story about an unusal team mascot for a local cross country team: A rooster statue. The topic makes it stand out from the pack, or should I say flock?
Place Name: Honorable Mention Contestant Name: The Tribune-Phonograph Entry Title: Former rivals now teammates at UW-SP Entry Credit: Ross Pattermann Judge Comment: Pleasant story about high school football rivals playing together on a college football team after a long hiatus from football because of Covid. Stands out because of the unusual angle for the story.
Competition Comment: There were some well done stories about local teams making playoffs, but what stood out were stories from the unusual suspects.
There features about outstanding teams or outstanding performances are important and were interesting, but in a competition, it is the usual that tends to stand out. Continue the important stories about local successes, but continue to look hard at the unusual side of sports, too.
