The Stevens Point Curling Club had two teams competing in the State High School Curling Championship held Feb. 17-18 at the Wausau Curling Club. Sixteen boys and girls teams, 32 in total, from around the state competed for the title of state champions.

The Stevens Point boys’ team, seeded 12th, played well against Eau Claire, Kettle Moraine and Brookfield and finished 1-2 for the weekend. The boys team included Shane Summers, Thomas Whelihan, Isko Ollech, Ben Kroening, and Morgan O’Keefe and coach Lori Kawleski.

The Stevens Point girls team, coached by Patti Henning, won its pool by defeating teams from Menomonie, Wausau East and Lodi. The second-seeded team included Suzanna Viau, Rachel Kawleski, Anissa Zaske, Elizabeth Rubenzer and Krista Domaszek. They won the semifinal game against Wausau West to earn a spot in the final game against Pardeeville.

The championship game started out close, and after a few great ends, the Stevens Point team made key shots to win.

The victory earned them the title of 2017 Wisconsin State High School Girls Curling Champions, the first high school championship for the Stevens Point Curling Club in the 58-year history of the event.

The girls team started in the Little Rocks program more than six years ago and have developed a love of the sport, Henning said. The girls make it a point to curl on the weekends at the club and compete in junior bonspiels around Wisconsin and Minnesota and attend summer curling camps together. The girls also competed this past year in the Wisconsin U18 National Playdowns.

The Stevens Point Curling Club offers curling experiences for youth and adults of all ages. Many of the Stevens Point high school curlers began curling as part of the Stevens Point Curling Clubs Little Rocks instructional program, providing youth an opportunity to explore the sport of curling in a fun and safe environment.