In their first Section 2A Track and Field Meet as a co-op team, the JWP//WEM Bulldogs finished 3rd among 24 entered.

The Bulldogs scored 68 team points finishing behind champion Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial-Nicollet (93.5) and Maple River. The top ten teams included Sibley East (62), St. Clair/Immanuel Lutheran (51.75), Mankato Loyola/Cleveland (48), USC (36.75), Minnesota Valley Lutheran (36), Glencoe-Silver Lake (27), and Windom Area (26).

Three straight wins during a rainy Sunday night lifted the WEM girls flag football team into the 2026 High School Girls Flag Football State Tournament.

The Buccaneers shutout Fit Academy, 18-0 in their opening game. In the semifinals they defeated Farmington, 34-6. In the championship, the Bucs edged an undefeated NRHEG, 26,25, when sophomore Paetyn Judd returned an interception for a touchdown with less than 90 seconds to play.

WEM will open State Tournament play Monday, June 8 at 2 p.m. against Centennial at TCO Stadium. The...

For the past four years, WEM senior Robynn Schwichtenberg has been a varsity player for the Buccaneer softball team.

She has been recognized through the conference a couple of times with All-Gopher Conference honors.

Now Schwichtenberg has been recognized at a much higher level, being named to the Class A All Star Game. She was one of 22 players in the small school division selected to play in this series of games which will be held Sunday, June 7 at Caswell Park in North Mankato.

With three individual championship and three relay titles, the JWP/WEM girls track and field team pulled away to win the Section 2A, South Sub-Section meet Thursday, May 21 at St. James.

WEM senior Addison Condon won two championships, WEM eighth grader Rachel Mielke won one, and the 400-meter, 800-meter, and 1,600-meter relays each won events, helping the Bulldogs score 116 points.

The WEM flag football team recently finished their regular season with a 4-2 division record and a 5-3 overall record.

They will begin playoff action Sunday, May 31 in Waterville at 6:30 p.m. against FIT Academy. Other first round games include Farmington vs. Austin, with the winner playing WEM, NRHEG, the No. 1 seed and undefeated Panthers vs. Lakeville South, and Lakeville North vs. Fairmont.

The winning teams will play at 7:30 p.m. and the championship is set for 8:30 p.m. The winner will advance to the State Tournament.

WEM junior Alix Velzke had a week to remember while playing three games for the Buccaneer softball team.

She was the winning pitcher in two of her team’s three games, including four hitless innings pitched against Medford. At the plate she was 6-for-9 with four runs scored, six RBI, two walks, three doubles, a triple, and a home run.

WEM opened the week with a 6-2 loss to Randolph Thursday, May 14. The following afternoon the Bucs defeated Medford, 11-1, in five innings. Saturday in their regular season finale, WEM downed Waseca, 7-4.

WEM junior Gavin Atherton won the Section 2A True Team 200-meter and 400-meter Championships Tuesday, May 5 helping the JWP/ WEM Bulldogs place 3rd among the 14 teams.

Atherton was timed in 22.72 which edged out Oilver Schull of St. Clair (22.75), and Lucas Proehl of Maple River (22.97). Atherton ran the 400-meter dash in 51.51, which was almost a second faster than St. Clair’s Wyatt Lein. Atherton also placed third in the 100-meter dash (11.27).

Track and field enthusiasts knew when JWP and WEM decided to combine their teams for the 2026 season good things were in the making.

Both teams have had great success not only as individuals but as complete teams.

The Bulldog (JWP/WEM) girls team will now show the state how good track and field is in this area.

They are one of only 12 teams in Class A to advance to the Class A True Team State Championships. The event...

To see more on this story pick up the May 14, 2026 print edition of the LifeEnterprise. 

The WEM softball team played five games last week, four of which were nonconference, and came away with two wins.

The biggest game of the quintet was a a 4-3 win over NRHEG Thursday, May 7 in New Richland. The Panthers had only two losses in the Gopher Conference before losing to the Bucs.

The week started with a 10-1 loss to Cleveland Tuesday, May 5. The Clippers are 14-3 this season and one of the favorites in Section 2A to advance to State.

It was a game for the record books Monday, April 20 in Nicollet for the WEM baseball team.

The Bucs scored 21 runs in the bottom of the first inning on their way to a 36- 2, five inning win over the Raiders in a nonconference game.

Every player on the roster got a chance to play. They finished with 22 hits, they walked 20 times, finished with 27 runs batted in, had seven extra base hits, including three triples.

Seventeen players scored runs. 14 players had hits. 14 players had an RBI. 13 players received a walk.

The JWP/WEM girls track and field team is starting to show people why they are among the best teams in Class A.

JWP was the 2025 Class A State Champion. Now with the majority of their athletes back and the addition of some very good WEM athletes, the Bulldogs will again be a force to reckon with this season.

They competed in a pair of invitationals last week and claimed the championship in both of those.

Last month the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced its women’s basketball awards for the 2025-26 season.

Brianna Nusbaum (Spring Lake Park) collected her second consecutive All-Conference selection following another record-breaking season. She was also the only conference player named to the All-Playoff team for a 2nd consecutive year, which recognizes the top nine performers from the conference tournament.

With 10 returning letterwinners the WEM softball team will be looking to improve in both the Gopher Conference and Section this spring.

Under 12th year head coach Crystal Lamont (135-98 overall record) the Bucs were 3-7 in a very good Gopher Conference and 7-10 overall.

Last year the conference had three teams which placed in the top three at State.

With All-Gopher Conference senior Robynn Schwichtenberg (catcher) and junior Alix Velzke (pitcher) the Bucs return two of the best players in the league.

The JWP/WEM boys track and field team placed second Saturday, March 21 in the Gopher Conference Indoor Championship held at MSU-Mankato.

The Bulldogs, who entered into a co-op this spring between JWP and WEM, finished with 77 points to finish behind Triton with 114 points. Following in descending order were NRHEG (70), United South Central/Alden-Conger (68), Kenyon-Wanamingo/Goodhue (54), Hayfield (42), and Medford (30).

Winning the 4 x 800-meter relay in 9:46 were the quartet of Teagan Mulder, Wesley Heinz, Wyatt Jans, and Brennan Welvaert.

Condon, Velzke win WEM Girls Basketball MVP Awards

WEM senior Addison Condon and junior Alix Velzke received top honors during the WEM Girls Basketball Recognition Banquet Thursday, March 19.

Condon was named the Offensive Player of the Year Award for the second straight season. She scored 681 points, averaging 26.2 points per game, a school record for points and average.

Velzke received the Defensive Player of the Year Award. She had 108 rebounds, 64 deflections, and 48 steals in 26 games played.

Six Grizzlies finish their wrestling careers

Six WEM/JWP Grizzly wrestlers finished their careers at the end of February and one of those was named this year’s Most Valuable Wrestler.

Brady Murphy was named the Most Valuable Wrestler after finishing an outstanding career which saw him finish in the top 10 in many Grizzly school records lists.

Murphy, along with Zach Quast, Charles Adams, Devin Cowdin, Spencer Nordstrom, and Kayle Langford were seniors this winter who will be hanging up their wrestling singlets.