YEAR IN REVIEW - 2014: A look back at high school sports

As 2014 grows old and its grip on the present grows ever more feeble, the chance for one last look at some highlights of the past 12 months has arrived.

While 2015 eagerly awaits its opportunity to reveal the many secrets it has held near since the beginning of time, our chances to reconnect with the present will be plentiful soon enough.

In our backward glance over a year in high school sports, the catch phrase from the old television program, "ABC's Wide World of Sports," comes to mind: "The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat."

There were plenty of such moments over the past 12 months – the tough and the sweet. While we recall the lessons learned and forget the scars from the toughest, we focus here on the sweetest ...

WINTER

Sidney girls' basketball – After losing six seniors from the prior year, the Sidney girls' basketball team struggled to find its identity in the early going of the 2013-14 campaign. Before too long, however, the Red Raiders finally found their groove and compiled a 17-8 record. The season reached its climax in a dramatic come-from-behind 45-43 victory over Gering in the B-6 district final.

Trailing by 12 points with 5:33 left, Sidney exploded with a 16-2 run to capture the improbable championship. The Raiders, coached by Tyler Shaw, were aided by the experience of five senior starters Katelin Cole, Sarah Mahr, Rachel Petik, Abbi Porter and Cody Rowley.

Cole began the run with a pair of free throws and Mahr, the team's leading scorer, layed in the final hoop just before the buzzer sounded at Cougar Palace in Scottsbluff. Porter finished her career off by establishing the Raiders record for blocks in a game, season and career.

Though Sidney lost in the opening round at state to eventual Class B champion Grand Island Northwest, it was a season few will ever forget. Nor will any of the players need help recalling how special it was to play at the shiny new Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln – home of the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Leyton boys' basketball – For the second straight season, the Warriors had their season stopped by Falls City Sacred Heart at the NSAA D2 State Championships in Lincoln. Under the guidance of head coach Gary Oltmann, Leyton finished the season with an 18-6 mark that included only two losses to D2 progams.

The Warriors dropped its only regular-season contest to Minatare. But with the stakes raised, the Dalton gang earned a measure of revenge. When the Warriors met the Indians in the sub-district finals, they cruised to a 52-39 victory.

The Warriors had seven seniors on its roster, including leading scorers Brennen Cruise and Dylan Brenner. The other graduates off the squad included Alex W. Frerichs, Josh Reimers, Alex C. Frerichs, Seth Schuessler and David Blanke.

Now a senior, Cody McKay showed a glimpse of his future as he finished the season as the Warriors third leading scorer with an average at better than 11 points per game. He leads the team in scoring during the early going of the 2014-15 season.

Sidney boys' basketball – Erik Kohl's Sidney hoop stars fell just short in its bid for a District B-6 title. When the talented shooters of archrival Scottsbluff heated up in the fourth quarter of the title game, Sidney was unable to stem the tide.

Despite the crushing final defeat, the Raiders (17-7, 7-3) had by any reasonable measure an outstanding season. Sidney played in a talent-rich district in which three teams – Sidney, Gering and Scottsbluff – were all top-seven rated by the NSAA on the eve of the B-6 tournament.

Thrills were plentiful for the Raider rooters all season too. On three consecutive occasions during a single week in February, a Raiders game was decided by a single field goal. While Sidney lost two of those contests (Gering and Chadron), it nearly erased a nine-point deficit against the Bulldogs before succumbing to a Joses Palomo clock beater.

One night later at the Cabela's Athletic Facility, the Raiders led nearly the entire way before staving off a late rally by the Bearcat shooters. At the Bird Cage in Chadron six days later, Paxton Ehler looked like he had scored the winning three with seconds to go. But the Cardinals' Keenan Johnson stole the hero's cape away at the buzzer a few ticks later.

Besides losing the Raiders all-time leading scorer in Ehler, the Raiders also lost important contributors Nick Castner, Logan Lewis and Lucas Rosenbaum.

Creek Valley girls' basketball – Head coach Bill Wilber said a reluctant goodbye to three impact seniors who helped his Storm to a strong 2013-14 regular season. While top scorers Summer Mueller (18.4 ppg) and Jerry Straber (14.4) led the way offensively, Shania Brown was second on the team in rebounds.

On a five-game winning streak entering what proved to be its last game, the Storm were stopped 72-62 by Hemingford (20-4) in the sub-district final. Straber scored 28 points in her finale while Mueller was good for 20.

Sidney wrestling – While the Red Raiders had a host of wrestlers eliminated from a trip to state in the heartbreak round at districts, one grappler managed to get through. Junior Michael Muggli earned his third trip to the dance – this time at 145 pounds.

Muggli, coached by John Ganser, finished the season with 36 wins and 81 for his career. During the state tournament, Muggli opened with an overtime win over Tyler Berner of Syracuse, a loss to eventual runner-up Vince Thatcher and then a 7-3 triumph over Chase Nelson of Beatrice.

Despite having an extraordinary season, Muggli's trip to Omaha's Century Link Center finished in heartbreaking fashion. His last match was a 2-1 triple-overtime loss to Ashland-Greenwood's Cory Washburn with only the winner earning a medal.

Sidney bowling – By virtue of their runner-up finishes at the NHSBF Class C2 District Championship, both Sidney High School bowling teams qualified for state. It was the second consecutive year that both the boys' and girls' teams qualified for the dance.

The girls were led by senior co-captains Natausha Holtz and Kylie Ellwanger. Holtz, who finished third in the district tournament, would have earned an individual berth at state had her teammates not already punched her ticket. For Holtz and Ellwanger, it was the fourth straight season they qualified for state – either with the team or as an individual.

The underclassman making the trip to state included Mylisa Pennington, Jennifer Cochran and Zoey Mines.

On the boys' side, senior and team captain Michael Sukup earned his third consecutive trip to state. Though the team missed out, Sukup qualified for state as a sophomore. He was joined on the ride to state in 2014 by Tyler Miller, Spencer Ellwanger, Chance Harmon, Scott Bagnell and Dillon Grabowski.

SPRING

Sidney boys' track & field – The Sidney Red Raiders capped an outstanding season with a runner-up finish at the 2014 Class B NSAA State Track & Field Championships at Burke Stadium in Omaha. The win was clinched in the final event when the 1,600-meter relay team of Michael Banaszak, Hayden Lienemann, Lucas Rosenbaum and Hunter Secrest broke the school record.

The Raiders path to the podium inlcuded individual medal performances by Rosenbaum (T-3rd pole vault), Jake Heeren (3rd in shot put), Logan Lewis (3rd in 100 meters, 5th in shot put, 5th in 200 meters) and Hayden Lienemann (6th in 800 meters).

Besides the win at 1,600 meters, the other two relay teams also medaled. The 4x100 team of Lewis, Chance Anglin, Rosenbaum and Alex Linneman crossed in third. The sixth-place foursome at 3,200 meters included Jake Wiedeburg, Brody McKnight, Logan Uhlir and Lienemann.

Potter-Dix girls' track & field – The Coyotes' team finished 16th in a field of more than 60 that included several strong individual performances. Perhaps the best news for Potter-Dix is that it lost just one of its medal winners from 2014.

Senior Kate Woten made her second consecutive appearance at state a memorable one as she finished third in the 3,200 meters. Often a frontrunner, Woten studied the field and changed tactics for her grand finale. In the early going she hung well back in the pack before dramatically picking off runners late in the race to claim the bronze.

Freshman Alexus Rozelle served notice of her bright future