Lakeland West Preview 2025-26

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Final 2024-25 Standings:</strong><br><br>1. Clear Lake 17-1 (23-3); 2. Grantsburg 15-3 (17-8); 3. Turtle Lake 13-5 (21-6); 3. Unity 13-5 (14-11); 5. Webster 10-8 (15-12); 6. Shell Lake 9-9 (13-11); 7. Luck 6-12 (11-15); 8. Northland 4-14 (7-18); 9. Frederic 3-15 (8-19); 10. Siren 0-18 (4-21). <br><br><em>Note: Clear Lake moves to the Dunn-St. Croix, Unity switches to the Heart O'North and Northwood transitions to the Lakeland East. Joining the Lakeland West is the new co-op program at Prairie Farm/Clayton. </em><br><br><strong>2025-26 Picks</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/turtle-lakesch/">Turtle Lake</a></strong> -- After qualifying for the WIAA State Tournament for the first time in school history last season, the Lakers are poised for more big things in 2025-26. Coach Angie Wagner will rely heavily, once again, on her son -- senior [player_tooltip player_id='2406762' first='Brandon' last='Wagner'] (6-6, 21.2 ppg, 14.4 rpg). A NCAA Division II football recruit for Minnesota State Mankato, [player_tooltip player_id='2406762' first='Brandon' last='Wagner'] is a muscular forward who can score inside and outside while also dominating in the rebounding department. He scored 27 points and hauled down 14 rebounds for the Lakers in their 66-54 loss to Sheboygan Lutheran in the Division 5 semifinals. Joining [player_tooltip player_id='2406762' first='Brandon' last='Wagner'] as key returning players are senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='2426178' first='Camden' last='Davis'] (6-5, 10.3 ppg, 7.0 rpg) and junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='3022619' first='Brody' last='Tarman'] (5-11, 12.8 ppg, 4.4 rpg). Davis and Tarman are returning starters from the 21-6 squad. Also back is senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='3022621' first='Andrew' last='Buck'] (5-11, 1.4 rpg).<br><br><strong>2.<a href="https://prephoops.com/team/grantsburg/"> Grantsburg</a></strong> -- A long-time power in the Lakeland Conference, Grantsburg figures to put another strong unit on the floor as the Pirates look to contend for the league title and better a 17-8 record. Coach Michael Myers has four starters back, but must replace his top scorer and rebounder in the graduated [player_tooltip player_id='3020447' first='Jayden' last='Brown'] (6-5, 26.8 ppg, 9.4 rpg), who is now playing at St. Scholastica College. Juniors [player_tooltip player_id='2524556' first='Caleb' last='Rombach'] (6-3, 16.0 ppg, 6.4 rpg), [player_tooltip player_id='3020114' first='Daxter' last='Schultz'] (6-1, 9.5 ppg, 5.8 rpg) and [player_tooltip player_id='3020109' first='Dylan' last='Seeger'] (6-1, 4.0 ppg, 6.7 rpg) along with sophomore Ryker Steisel (5-8, 4.5 ppg, 3.0 rpg) are returning starters for the Pirates. Also back is junior [player_tooltip player_id='3020105' first='Lyle' last='Lozier Jr.'], (6-0, 6.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg). Team chemistry and athleticism are listed strengths while rebounding and depth are question marks. <br><br><strong>3. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/webster-2/">Webster</a> </strong>-- In a league that features some dominating big men, Webster boasts one of its own in senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='2750092' first='Quinn' last='Widiker'] (6-6, 17.4 ppg, 16.1 rpg). The son of Webster coach Greg Widiker, [player_tooltip player_id='2750092' first='Quinn' last='Widiker'] can take over a game with his ability to score and clean the glass. He figures to get plenty of help from returning starters [player_tooltip player_id='3022836' first='Ronald' last='Hatch'] (5-9, 5.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg) and [player_tooltip player_id='3022839' first='Hunter' last='Sears'] (6-2, 9.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg) as the Tigers set out to better a 15-12 record. Also back and expected to play important roles are senior [player_tooltip player_id='3022831' first='Quaid' last='Belland'] (5-6, 4.5 ppg) along with juniors [player_tooltip player_id='3022835' first='Connor' last='Haessly'] (6-3, 4.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg) and Jacob Fornego (5-8, 2.4 ppg). <br><br><strong>4. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/frederic/">Frederic</a></strong> -- The Vikings won eight games last year and bring back six players. In addition, there is an influx of talented newcomers, including a promising freshman in [player_tooltip player_id='2406993' first='Sawyer' last='Dahl'] (6-4). Leading the way for Frederic are a trio of seniors who should provide leadership and toughness. That group includes [player_tooltip player_id='3020012' first='Carson' last='Anderson'] (6-2, 10.2 ppg, 7.5 rpg), [player_tooltip player_id='3020009' first='Brett' last='Bartlett'] (6-3, 9.4 ppg, 5.6 rpg) and [player_tooltip player_id='3020008' first='Leif' last='Lahti'] (5-10, 8.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg). Also returning to the starting rotation for coach Joe Draxler is junior [player_tooltip player_id='2399162' first='Royce' last='Anderson'] (6-2, 6.1 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 2.7 apg). Junior [player_tooltip player_id='3020006' first='Jude' last='Johnson'] (5-11, 3.2 ppg, 1.8 rpg) and senior [player_tooltip player_id='3020013' first='Isaiah' last='Moe'] (6-1) will contend for spots in the playing rotation along with the newcomers from a 10-10 JV squad. <br><br><strong>5. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/shell-lake/">Shell Lake</a></strong> -- Coach Ben Graese will have a competitive squad at Shell Lake with four key returning performers from a 13-11 squad. Leading the way for the Lakers this winter will be senior [player_tooltip player_id='3022164' first='Adam' last='Fritz'] (6-2, 7.8 ppg) along with juniors [player_tooltip player_id='3022166' first='Alex' last='Marcoux'] (5-10, 10.2 ppg), Nick McNulty (5-9, 4.3 ppg) and Brennan Schafer (6-1, 4.2 ppg). The league is loaded with experience and talented big men, but Shell Lake figures to be a thorn in the side of opponents all winter. <br><br><strong>6. Prairie Farm/Clayton </strong>-- Nick Schradler spent the past 15 years as the head coach at Clayton and now he takes over the newly formed co-op program between Clayton and Prairie Farm. Two regulars from Clayton -- [player_tooltip player_id='2451002' first='Dayne' last='Mumm'] (6-1, 27 ppg, 10 rpg) and [player_tooltip player_id='2937964' first='Karsten' last='Johnson'] (5-8, 4 ppg, 2 rpg) -- and two from Prairie Farm -- [player_tooltip player_id='3021809' first='Cooper' last='Berends'] (6-0, 8 ppg, 6 rpg) and [player_tooltip player_id='3021812' first='Jackson' last='Regalado'] (5-9, 4 ppg, 2 rpg) -- form the nucleus of the new program. Mumm is the top returning scorer not only in the Lakeland West but one of the better point getters in the state. Depth has become an asset for Prairie Farm/Clayton after both programs struggled in the past with numbers. Look for Clayton junior [player_tooltip player_id='3019451' first='Brody' last='Curtis'] (5-9, 2 ppg, 2 rpg) along with Prairie Farm senior [player_tooltip player_id='3021807' first='Jon' last='Wendt'] (6-4, 4 ppg 6 rpg) to play important roles as will Prairie Farm sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='3021808' first='Will' last='Fettig'] (6-2, 4 ppg, 4 rpg). <br><br><strong>7. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/luck/">Luck </a></strong>-- Overcoming the graduation loss of Ty Roehm (6-4, 22.9 ppg, 13.6 rpg) and Zak Walters (5-10, 16.0 ppg, 2.2 rpg) might prove troublesome at Luck as coach Josh Bazey's program lacks experience and depth. Two starters are back from an 11-15 team in senior [player_tooltip player_id='3020762' first='Joe' last='Tolan'] (5-9, 5.2 ppg, 4.3 rpg) and junior [player_tooltip player_id='3020768' first='Blake' last='Melin'] (6-3, 8.0 ppg, 5.8 rpg). But outside of those two players, there is very little returning experience. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='3020763' first='Kyle' last='Kohls'] (6-0, 2.9 ppg, 1.3 rpg) figures to factor heavily into the Cardinals' plans after getting some varsity minutes as a freshman. Bazey lists coachability, tenacity and a willingness to learn as strengths while leadership and lack of experience are concerns.<br><br><strong>8.<a href="https://prephoops.com/team/siren/"> Siren</a></strong> -- The Dragons have a new head coach in Ryan Karsten, who will try to guide the program to improvement after a 4-21 finish a year ago. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='3022218' first='Breysin' last='Reynolds'] (5-8) and [player_tooltip player_id='3022216' first='Waylon' last='Meyer'] (5-10) along with sophomores [player_tooltip player_id='3022219' first='Carmine' last='Songetay'] (5-8, 5.1 ppg), [player_tooltip player_id='3022215' first='Parker' last='Fingerson'] (6-2, 5.0 ppg, 3.4 rpg) and [player_tooltip player_id='3022213' first='Evan' last='Hunter'] (5-10) form the nucleus for Karsten's first squad at Siren. Lack of size and experience are concerns for the Dragons. <br><br><strong>Top Returning Scorers</strong><br><br>[player_tooltip player_id='2451002' first='Dayne' last='Mumm'] (Prairie Farm/Clayton) 27.0 ppg<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2406762' first='Brandon' last='Wagner'] (Turtle Lake) 21.2 ppg<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2750092' first='Quinn' last='Widiker'] (Webster) 17.4 ppg<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2524556' first='Caleb' last='Rombach'] (Grantsburg) 16.0 ppg<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3022619' first='Brody' last='Tarman'] (Turtle Lake) 12.8 ppg<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2426178' first='Camden' last='Davis'] (Turtle Lake) 10.3 ppg<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3020012' first='Carson' last='Anderson'] (Frederic) 10.2 ppg<br><br><strong>Projected All-Conference Teams<br>First Team<br></strong><br>[player_tooltip player_id='2750092' first='Quinn' last='Widiker'], 6-6, Sr., Webster<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2524556' first='Caleb' last='Rombach'], 6-3, Jr., Grantsburg<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2451002' first='Dayne' last='Mumm'], 6-1, Sr., Prairie Farm/Clayton<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2406762' first='Brandon' last='Wagner'], 6-6, Sr., Turtle Lake<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2426178' first='Camden' last='Davis'], 6-5, Sr., Turtle Lake<br><br><strong>Second Team</strong><br>[player_tooltip player_id='3022839' first='Hunter' last='Sears'], 6-2, Jr., Webster<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3020012' first='Carson' last='Anderson'], 6-2, Sr., Frederic<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3020114' first='Daxter' last='Schultz'], 6-1, Jr., Grantsburg<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3020768' first='Blake' last='Melin'], 6-3, Jr., Luck<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3022619' first='Brody' last='Tarman'], 5-11, Jr., Turtle Lake<br><br><strong>The Big Five</strong><br><br><strong>Best Shooter:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='2406762' first='Brandon' last='Wagner'], Turtle Lake<br><strong>Best Rebounder:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='2406762' first='Brandon' last='Wagner'], Turtle Lake<br><strong>Best Defender: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='3022166' first='Alex' last='Marcoux'], Shell Lake<br><strong>Best Collegiate Prospect: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2750092' first='Quinn' last='Widiker'], Webster<br><strong>Most Improved:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='2399162' first='Royce' last='Anderson'], Frederic</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->