The Northwoods River News

Team review: RHS/NPHS Alpine skiing

Hodags have success on slopes, show room for improvement in 2025

There was plenty of success for the Rhinelander/Northland Pines Alpine ski team during the 2025 season. However, the most exciting thing for the Hodags might not be what they accomplished this year, rather the potential the squad has moving forward.

WIAA moves Hodags’ regional final game to Monday night

The WIAA postponed Saturday’s scheduled Division 2 boys’ basketball regional final game between Rhinelander and New Richmond to Monday night at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium. The move was made to avoid a situation where New Richmond would have played games on three consecutive nights.

Hodag swim team hands out awards

Given all the honors and accolades bestowed on the WIAA Division 2 state runner-up Rhinelander High School boys’ swim team during the season, coach Jenny Heck decided to keep the awards low-key Monday with the team convened one final time for the 2024-25 season.

RIA Peewee As to vie for state title this weekend in Waupun

After solid runs at state the last couple of years, the Rhinelander Ice Association’s (RIA) Peewee A hockey team is gunning for more this weekend when it travels to Waupun for the WAHA Class 3A state tournament.

HALL YEAH!

Hodag Hoops downs Medford at Raider Hall, claims second straight GNC crown

The Hodags held the Medford to 33% from the field and held on down the stretch to win 51-43 at Raider Hall, securing the team’s second straight Great Northern Conference title.

Hodag gymnasts finish 5th at sectionals

The Hodag posted a score of 119.2 points, good enough for fifth place in the seven-team Ashland sectional. While that score was more than 14 1/2 points better than its postseason performance a year ago, the team was unable to advance any gymnasts to the state meet in what proved to be a loaded sectional draw.

Lady Hodags fall to Menomonie to end season

An underdog Rhinelander squad without its leading scorer put up a fight Friday night but, ultimately, did not have enough to keep up with Menomonie in the WIAA tournament opener. Brooklyn Birt tallied 17 points, including 13 in the first half, as the fourth-seed Mustangs cruised past the fifth-seeded Hodags 57-42 in Menomonie.

Schwinger bows out in second round of state wrestling tournament

Rhinelander senior Logan Schwinger went winless in his two matches at the WIAA individual state wrestling tournament at the Kohl Center in Madison.

RHS Sports recap: Friday, Feb. 28

Girls’ basketball: Menomonie 57, Rhinelander 42 | Wrestling: Rhinelander at WIAA tournament

Just keep going: Schwinger’s wrestling career set to conclude at Kohl Center

Logan Schwinger gets the chance to end his high school wrestling career on the state’s biggest stage at the Kohl Center in Madison. He wrestled his opening round match yesterday evening and, regardless of the outcome, had the chance to come back today as he competes in the 190-pound bracket in Division 2.

Hodag Hoops breezes past Merrill in final non-conference test

RHS draws 2 seed, home game for playoffs

The Rhinelander High School boys’ basketball team is winning games, but is still struggling to fire on all cylinders as it hits the stretch run of the regular season.

Lady Hodags look to embrace underdog role in WIAA tournament

Even with a better overall record, the Rhinelander High School girls’ basketball team knows it will likely have its hands full this evening when it travels to Menomonie to begin the WIAA playoffs.

Hodag gymnasts face tough task in loaded sectional

By the numbers, the Rhinelander High School gymnastics team has improved from last year, exceeding its best score from last year by more than eight points. Despite that, the Hodags face a major uphill climb tomorrow as they look to qualify someone for the WIAA state meet for a second year in a row.

Holding on to hope

Hodag Hoops edges Mosinee, sets up GNC title game at Medford

The path toward a potential Great Northern Conference championship repeat for the Rhinelander High School boys’ basketball team has not been easy, but the Hodags now sit one win away from hoisting another conference trophy.

Schwinger punches ticket to state wrestling tournament

Schultz, Lindner come up one win short

Rhinelander High School senior Logan Schwinger made the most of his final chance to punch a ticket to the WIAA state wrestling tournament.

Hodag gymnasts finish second in GNC Small

The Rhinelander High School gymnastics team appears to be peaking at the right time as the 2024-25 season nears its conclusion.

Mosinee runs past Lady Hodags in regular season finale

The Rhinelander High School girls’ basketball team was unable to keep up with Mosinee’s pressure Friday night, falling to the Indians 75-32 in the regular season finale in Mosinee.

Hodag hockey overpowered by Tomahawk in tourney opener

Tomahawk scored early and often in a 9-0 rout of the Hodags at SARA Park. Those results mirrored the two regular-season meetings between the teams, which the Hatchets won 10-0 and 9-0.

A look at the field for tonight’s WIAA D2 state swim meet

The last two Division 2 state champions are set for another battle tonight as the WIAA boys’ state swim and dive championships take place in Waukesha.

RHS/Pines boys’ skiers finish third in D2 at state

Even with a smaller team — both in numbers and stature — the Rhinelander/Northland Pines boys’ Alpine ski team held its own over the weekend at the WIARA State Championship in La Crosse.

Lady Hodags dominate Wausau East

The Rhinelander High School girls’ basketball team rolled over Wausau East in non-conference action Tuesday night. Vivian Lamers scored 20 points, Dawsyn Barkus chipped in 11 and the Hodags cruised past the Lumberjacks 53-17 in Wausau.

Hodag wrestlers advance four from regionals

Two boys, two girls qualify for sectionals

The Rhinelander High School wrestling team started postseason play over the weekend and moved four of its wrestlers one step closer to competing at the Kohl Center in Madison later this month.

Hodag hockey competitive in final regular season games

RHS beats Chequamegon/Phillips, falls to Medford in 2OT

The Rhinelander High School boys’ hockey team snapped a 10-game losing streak on Thursday and came a whisker away from finishing the regular season Saturday with a two-game winning streak.

Hodag gymnasts crack 120 points in Ashland

The Hodags posted a team score of 120.55 points and finished sixth in the eight-team field. That marked the first time Rhinelander has finished in the 120s since Jan. 19, 2019 at the Rice Lake Invitational, and the team’s best score since posting a total of 121.9 points at WIAA sectionals Feb. 22, 2018.

Lady Hodags run into Lakeland buzzsaw

Lakeland held Rhinelander without a field goal in the first half and the ninth-ranked T-Birds stormed away to a 70-15 victory in Minocqua.

Hodag Hoops puts clamps on Shawano in home win

The Hodags forced 21 turnovers and limited Shawano to 31 shots attempts as they beat the Hawks 49-34 in a non-conference contest at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium.

Shawano pulls away from offensively-challenged Lady Hodags

The Rhinelander High School girls’ basketball team had no answers for Shawano’s trapping half-court zone on Tuesday night and, ultimately, not enough firepower to keep up with the Hawks.

Hodag swimmers set to face tight battle at sectionals

The Rhinelander High School boys’ swim team has its sights set on another WIAA state title next Friday night in Waukesha. First thing’s first, however, the Hodags are seeking their seventh straight sectional title — which may be easier said than done.

Mosinee edges RHS gymnasts in GNC dual

The Rhinelander High School gymnastics team put up a solid total on Tuesday but it wasn’t enough to take down a Mosinee team that delivered its best performance of the year.

Kassler, Robins too much for RHS hockey

Eli Kassler scored six times and Owen Dickman added a hat trick as Antigo knocked off the Hodags 10-2 in the consolation semifinal round of the Great Northern Conference tournament in Antigo.

MAGNIFICENT SEVEN

RHS swimmers break seven GNC records en route to seventh consecutive title

Rhinelander was in a class of its own at the GNC championship meet once again, winning all 11 events en route to a 228-point romp over Tomahawk for the team’s seventh straight conference title. It was a performance that’s sure to cement the team’s legacy for some time to come as the Hodags broke seven GNC records and set four new Heck Pool records in the process.

Hodag wrestlers take 5th in GNC tourney, finish 4th overall

Schultz repeats as conference heavyweight champ

The Hodags didn’t have the same success in the conference tournament that they had in the duals. Rhinelander finished fifth on Saturday in Minocqua and took fourth overall in the final conference standings.

Lady Hodags take care of Hatchets on senior night

Senior Makenna Sternitzky, who has battled injury the better part of the last two seasons, got the final bucket to the delight of her teammates and the home crowd as the Rhinelander High School girls’ basketball team defeated Tomahawk 52-32 at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium.

Hodag Alpine takes second in Northern Conference

The Hodag girls, taking advantage of a short-handed Wausau squad, won the Northern Conference finale at Ski Brule while the Hodag boys edged Ashwabay for the runner-up spot.

Hodag Hoops dominates Tomahawk

The Rhinelander High School boys’ basketball team got back in the win column in a big way Friday night, dominating Tomahawk on the road 81-13 in Tomahawk.

RHS hockey suffers back-to-back losses

A pair of non-conference games less than 24 hours apart yielded nearly identical results for the Rhinelander High School boys’ hockey team late last week.

Rhinelander gymnasts post season high in Marshfield

Despite being without a handful of its usual starters in the lineup, the Rhinelander High School gymnasts team still managed its highest score of the season on Saturday.

One more for the home fans

Rhinelander seniors get final RIA experience as Eagles co-op skates Fox Cities

On Monday night two Rhinelander seniors got one final curtain call in front of their home fans.

RHS gymnasts edge Antigo at home

The Hodags came through on their final event of the night to edge Antigo 114.425-112.225 in a Great Northern Conference Small division dual at the YMCA of the Northwoods. The win moved Rhinelander to 1-1 in the GNC Small and marked Rhinelander’s first dual meet win over the Robins in nearly two decades.

Offense cools as Hodag Hoops falls to Wausau West

Rhinelander High School boys’ basketball coach Derek Lemmens said Tuesday’s non-conference game at Wausau West would be a good test to see how the Hodags’ offense would fare against a strong defense.

Wrestling: Hodags fall to Antigo,bunching field for GNC tournament

The Rhinelander High School wrestling team missed out on an opportunity Tuesday to cement itself into second place in the Great Northern Conference heading into this weekend’s conference tournament.

Hodag hockey falls to No. 1 Tomahawk in GNC tourney opener

The Rhinelander High School boys’ hockey team was no match for the top-ranked team in Division 2 on Tuesday night as the Tomahawk Hatchets rolled past the Hodags 9-0 in Tomahawk in the opening round of the Great Northern Conference tournament.

Hodag Hoops races past Pines, reclaims share of GNC lead

Evan Shoeder had 13 points and 10 rebounds to lead a balanced Rhinelander attack and the Hodags used a 31-7 run spanning both sides of halftime to defeat Northland Pines 56-38 at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium.

Hodag gymnasts top GNC Small squad in return to competition

It’s been a long time between competitions for the Rhinelander High School gymnastics team but, in the opener of a busy stretch run to finish the season, it showed Saturday it is right in the mix in the GNC Small Division race.

Hodag hockey drops two more ahead of GNC tourney

The Rhinelander High School boys’ hockey team had a tough go of it to end the Great Northern Conference regular season, suffering an 8-0 home loss to Lakeland on Thursday night, followed by a 5-0 loss at Mosinee on Friday night.

Hodag wrestlers split duals in Three Lakes

The Rhinelander High School wrestling team split a pair of non-conference duals in Three Lakes. Rhinelander had enough depth to take down an extremely short-handed Iron Mountain (Mich.) squad, 54-12, but struggled in the lower weights in a 46-29 loss to host Laona/Wabeno/Three Lakes.