December 28, 2022 at 8:56 a.m.
The top 10 games of 2022
The top 10 games of 2022
While there's certainly a bit of a "I'll know it when I see it" quality to these games, there are three common themes to memorable games.
For starters, I ask myself, was the game dramatic? Was there a late game-winning shot, a big comeback, a thrilling overtime? Then I ask myself what was on the line. Certainly a playoff contest typically carries more weight than the second game of the year. Finally, I ask, are there any other extenuating circumstances that make a game unique and memorable?
With those three factors in mind, I unveil my list of the top sports games of 2022.
1. Boys' soccer: Rhinelander at Rice Lake - Oct. 29
You have to go back to the 2016 boys' basketball playoff game between Rhinelander and Antigo to find a game that checks all three boxes as well as our No. 1 entry this year.
That 2016 contest - when Antigo held the ball for minutes on end before hitting a 3 at the buzzer to win 14-11 - is dubiously referred to as the Stall Game. This year's boys' soccer sectional final between Rhinelander and Rice Lake has also earned a dubious nickname - the Horn Game.
With a trip to the WIAA state tournament on the line, Rhinelander and Rice Lake played to a 0-0 draw through 80 minutes of regulation and 20 minutes of extra time. Penalty kicks would determine the state qualifier and Rice Lake was on the brink of its second straight state appearance before one of the most bizarre series of events I've personally witnessed in nearly two decades on the sports beat unfolded.
Just as Rice Lake's Abdella Chakouri was striking what the Warriors thought was a kick that would have given the Warriors a 4-3 win in penalties, a loud horn sounded from outside of, but in close proximity to, Rice Lake's Pug Lund Field.
The blast appeared to distract Rhinelander goalkeeper Cooper Radke as the ball went inside the left goalpost. Officials quickly disallowed the kick and ordered a do-over. This time Chakouri rang a shot off the right post to send the game to extra kicks.
That would have been bizarre and controversial enough, but a second, shorter blast occurred just as Kyle Wiese took his shot for Rhinelander in the sixth round of the shootout. The officials again called fo a do-over and Wiese converted. Radke then stopped Rice Lake's Sam Jevne to clinch the first WIAA state tournament appearance in the history of the Hodag boys' soccer program.
"All my years of coaching, which has been a long time, that's the most bizarre game I've had. I don't think I've even had one like that before," Hodag coach Nathan Bates said. "I didn't like the ending, based off the fact of what was going on. It's unfortunate, but I'm happy my boys were able to pull it off."
Rice Lake administration and local authorities were unable to determine the exact source of the dubiously-timed blasts that, ultimately, cost their team a return trip to the state tournament.
2. Legion baseball: Rhinelander vs. Medford - July 22
Medford's big sixth inning derailed Rhinelander's state tournament hopes in 2021. The teams did not meet in a regional championship game last summer, but their first-round game provided a signature moment that helped springboard the Rebels to their first Legion state appearance since 2012.
The Raiders appeared to be in a spot to foil the Rebels again, trailing 2-1 but threatening in the seventh inning with one out and runners at the corners.
Then came Schneider to Bixby to Orth.
Joe Schneider fielded a Braxton Weissmiller ground ball to short, flipped to Isaac Bixby at second, who relayed it to Devyn Orth at first as the Rebels turned a game-ended double play that preserved their one-run win.
"It was a game-saver right there," Rebels manager Dan Huhnstock said. "Just getting through the heart of their order with runners on base. The tying run would have scored if we didn't turn that double play. What an awesome turn, acrobatic, web-gem material there."
Medford was eventually eliminated in the loser's bracket while Rhinelander knocked off Antigo twice to clinch a state tournament berth.
3. Baseball: Rhinelander at Merrill - May 27
The above play took place at Merrill's Athletic Park, which has historically been a kind place to Rhinelander baseball. The Rebels won their first and only state title there back in 2010.
Athletic Park produced another memorable win for Rhinelander earlier this year.
On graduation day at Rhinelander High School, seniors Ryan Jamison and Jacksen Smith combined for a team no-hitter as the Hodags defeated Merrill 3-0 in the first round of the WIAA Division 2 baseball playoffs.
The Schneider brothers provided the offense for Rhinelander. Joe Schneider, in his second full game back from offseason knee surgery, hit a two-run home run in the first inning. Sam Schneider added a sacrifice fly in the third.
Jamison and Smith did the rest. Jamison struck out five and worked around four walks over 6 1/3 innings before reaching the daily pitch limit. Smith finished things off, getting Nathan Brzoznowski to pop out before fanning Jack Hoock on a 2-2 fastball to end it.
"To win a playoff game is one thing but, to do it in the fashion that we did it today, it's definitely really special," Hodag coach Joe Waksmonski said. "It's something they'll be talking about to their kids, their grandkids for the rest of their lives."
4. Boys' basketball: Rhinelander at Shawano - March 4
There was a time during the second half of the regular season that the Rhinelander High School boys' basketball team seemed destined for a short stay in the WIAA tournament. The Hodags were mired in an eight-game losing streak that went from January into February and it looked as though the Hodags were going nowhere fast.
Of course, postseason play in any sport can be a matter of who gets hot at the right time. For the Hodags, their best basketball came in a five-day span at the start of March that resulted in the team's first trip to the sectional round of the WIAA tournament since 2014.
The signature moment of that run came in a regional semifinal game on the road at third-seeded Shawano. Rhinelander made only 4 of 12 shots from the foul line down the stretch in that game, and Shawano tied it on a Jacob Landon runner with 9.1 seconds remaining in regulation, but the Hodags took the lead on a Will Gretzinger 3 in overtime and held on the rest of the way to win 61-56.
The defining play turned out to be a hustle play by Hodag big man Jackson Zettler.
Zettler, who had just missed two free throws on the other end of the floor, sprinted back, got in position and took a charge against Michael Metcalf-Grassman on what would have been a go-ahead layup attempt with 13.6 seconds left in overtime. Instead, Metcalf-Grassman, Shawano's leading scorer, fouled out of the contest.
"That was really a heads-up play," Hodag coach Derek Lemmens said of Zettler's efforts to draw the charge. "Not only did it stop them from getting that go-ahead bucket, but it fouled out their best player and took the air out of their sails."
5. Boys' soccer: Rhinelander vs. Lakeland, at Medford - Oct. 22 & 27
To even get to the Horn Game and, eventually, the WIAA state tournament, the Rhinelander High School boys' soccer team had to get through two of its closest rivals over the past several seasons.
The Hodags did that in a fashion that became synonymous with their heart-stopping run through the playoffs - downing both Lakeland and Medford in penalty kicks to advance to the sectional final.
The Hodags prevailed at home 3-1 in penalties over Lakeland after the sides played to a scoreless draw in the regional finals. Rhinelander goalkeeper Cooper Radke had to deny Lakeland's Yaroslav Myshchyshyn on a point-blank chance in the middle of the second half to help preserve a scoreless draw and send the game to extra time, and then penalty kicks after 20 minutes of bonus soccer settled nothing. The Hodag senior finally ended it in the fourth round of penalties, denying Myshchyshyn on a look to the right post.
Five days later the Hodags got the last laugh over Medford, a team that beat Rhinelander for the GNC title in 2022 and ended the Hodags tournament hopes each of the previous two years.
Rhinelander rallied from a 0-2 deficit after the 12th minute to tie the game and eventually play to a 2-2 draw. The Hodags took the shootout, 4-2, to advance.
"The boys were motivated more than ever, coming off two losses in the playoffs to Medford," Hodag defender Charlie Heck said. "We finished what (past players) Joseph (Heck) and Hugh (Wiese) started two years ago and there's no greater feeling."
6. Girls' tennis: GNC meet - Sept. 29
The fall season at RHS was defined by overcoming and avenging early season losses. The Hodag girls' tennis team followed the same path as it rallied to win its 11th GNC title in 13 years.
The Hodags overcame a 10-point deficit in the standings following a 6-1 loss to Lakeland in the conference opener to rally all the way back to take a four-point lead over Lakeland entering the conference tournament Sept. 29 in Minocqua.
In a back-and-forth day that saw a number of upsets, it all boiled down to a championship match at No. 1 doubles where senior Taylor Riopel, with a different partner, overcame an early season loss to sisters Julianna and Kristina Ouimette. Riopel and sophomore Helena Wisner defeated the Ouimettes 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 to mathematically clinch the conference title for the Hodags.
"I just think, because this is our biggest rival, it felt even better," Riopel said. "It just hit more."
7. Girls' soccer: Lakeland at Rhinelander - April 28
Though Lakeland ultimately got the last laugh on Rhinelander in the GNC girls' soccer race, the Hodags got an early leg up thanks to a 1-0 victory over the T-Birds April 28 in Rhinelander.
Ava Lamers converted a penalty kick in the 67th minute, which proved to be the only score, while Rhinelander keeper Mya Krouze made 15 saves in victory as the Hodags used a defensive-minded formation to slow down the T-Birds.
"We went in tonight with a game plan and we stuck to the game plan," Hodag coach Nathan Bates said. "I said right away it's going to be an ugly first half and ugly second half. We had a formation set up for this specifically. It was a very defensive formation going into the game, and we knew that."
8. Boys' hockey: Rhinelander at Amery - Nov. 25
Whether this game will prove more meaningful by season's end remains to be seen, but the signature victory in the 2022-23 season for the Hodag boys' hockey team so far came in the season opening contest.
Layne Roeser tied the game with 12 seconds left in regulation and Sam Schneider scored on a breakaway 5:24 into the extra season as Rhinelander opened the season with a 5-4 overtime victory at Amery.
Both teams entered the holiday break ranked in the Wisconsin Prep Hockey Division 2 top 6. The Hodags (5-1-0) sat at No. 5 in the rankings while Amery is at No. 3 - with their only loss so far this season coming against Rhinelander.
The Hodags found themselves down on four separate occasions in the game. The only time they led all night was on Schneider's game-winner.
"When you're down and you come back, and you come back, and you come back, and a fourth time, that shows something," coach M.J. Laggis said. "We battled hard all night and found a way."
9. Football: Ashland at Rhinelander - Sept. 2
The only loss on our top 10 list still made history.
That history came at roughly 9 p.m. on Sept. 2 when, for the first time, Rhinelander High School hosted a varsity football game indoors.
Approaching thunderstorms forced a delay in the Hodags' GNC opener against Ashland right before the teams were preparing to begin the second half. The teams moved inside the 128,000 square-foot facility for safety and, once it became apparent that there would be a lengthy delay, the decision was made to finish the game indoors.
Neither team was able to score after play moved inside, with Ashland holding on for an 8-6 win.
"The atmosphere in here was electric. It was cool to have everybody come back in here, the students down on the other end," Hodag coach Aaron Kraemer said. "There are obviously things that are difficult. You can't really see the clock from where we were standing, but I'm not complaining. That was a really fun atmosphere. It sucks we weren't able to get it done, but that was a helluva football game."
10. Boys' swimming: Shawano at Rhinelander - Jan. 13
The Hodag boys' and girls' swim teams have not made this list often of the last few years if for no other reason than the fact that the majority of their duals have been blowout victories. Rhinelander scored one of those blowouts on the boys' side, 136-31, over Shawano in a battle of GNC unbeatens Jan. 13.
But the meet carried much more significance, as it was the first meet in the Heck Family Community Pool after the patriarch of the Heck family, Robert G. Heck, passed away. During the meet, Charlie Heck, Robert's grandson, helped help reset the pool record in the 200-yard medley relay. He swam the anchor leg of the relay, and had a 22.04-second freestyle split, as the team finished with a time of 1 minute, 41.05 seconds. Carter Gaber, Jack Antonuk and Daniel Gillingham were also on the record-breaking relay.
Honorable mentions: A trio of overtime games narrowly missed our list. In boys' hockey, Layne Roeser scored twice in the final 1:50 of regulation to force overtime in a game the Hodags eventually lost 6-5 to Antigo Jan. 27. In girls' basketball, senior Ava Lamers scored a single-game school-record 42 points in an 82-73 overtime loss at Rice Lake Nov. 21. In boys' basketball, Rhinelander rallied from down as many as 19 points in the first half at Wausau East Dec. 6, but relinquished a late second-half lead and eventually fell to the Lumberjacks 78-70 ... The Northern Edge girls' hockey team nearly scored a last-minute addition to this list as Wyndi Saari tallied a game-winning goal with 24.2 seconds in regulation to defeat Medford 4-3 on Dec. 20 ... In another memorable baseball moment against Merrill, the Rhinelander Rebels rallied to defeat Merrill Post 46 6-5 in the final day of the Rebel Invite June 19. That allowed Rhinelander to back into the title of the five-team tournament after Everest lost both of its games on the final day.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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