The breakdown of top sports stories from the 2010s decade continues today taking a look at the year 2017 for area schools.

The Winfield-Mt. Union trophy case got a little more crowded after the spring of 2017 when junior Kaleb Hagge won a golf title. Hagge won the class 1A tournament by six strokes and posted a 36-hole score of 137. He paced a Wolves’ squad that finished third as a team with 649 strokes. Nolan Ross also cracked the top 20 in 19th overall. On the girls’ side WMU’s Sophie Kongable finished top 10 in ninth.

Southeast Iowa had plenty of first place showings at the state track and field meet in Des Moines. In back-to-back springs Jovonte Squires was the winner in the class 1A boys long jump with a leap of 21’7.75’’. Sigourney’s Avery Moore nabbed the top spot in the boys’ 400m (49.19), Summer Barthelman did the same in the girls’ 400m hurdles (1:05.19), Autumn Barthelman in the 100m hurdles (15.26), and the Savages’ shuttle hurdle relay team of  the Barthelman sisters, Leah Carter, and Sloane Magill. 

Columbus Community/Winfield-Mt. Union wrestler Jared Kadel had a big sophomore campaign that culminated in a state runner-up finish. Kadel placed second in class 2A at 106 lbs to finish the year 42-8.

The Lone Tree football squad did some damage in 8-player and returned to the postseason. The Lions posted an 8-3 record and fell to HLV in the first round of the playoffs. Bryce Houser recorded 1,374 yards on the ground and had 26 touchdowns for an offense that put up 48 points a game.

A couple area boys’ basketball teams claimed a division crown in February of 2017. Keota won the South Iowa Cedar League East Division with a 14-2 league mark and 17-6 overall. Jacob Wickenkamp, Cole Stout, Avery Conrad, and Hunter Wilson all averaged 12 points a night for a balance attack. Highland took care of business in the Southeast Iowa Super Conference North Division winning with a 16-1 conference record and 19-5 overall. Freshman Zack Lasek busted onto the scene and averaged 15 points and seven rebounds a contest. 

Tomorrow we continue our coverage of top stories diving into the year 2018.