Last season, the WEM/ JWP wrestling team squeezed out a 1.5 point advantage over Ogilivie to win the St. Croix Lutheran Invitational.

The Grizzlies repeated as team champions, winning the title Saturday, Jan. 17 by more than 40 points over runner-up Cannon Falls. WEM/ JWP scored 215 team points in finishing ahead of Cannon Falls (172.5), Ogilvie (135), Chisago Lakes (126), and Robbinsdale Armstrong (106.5).

The WEM boys basketball team split a pair of Gopher Conference games last week.

They defeated Medford, 86-67, Tuesday, January 6 and were defeated by United South Central, 67-64, Thursday, January 8.

The squad is now 2-3 in the Gopher Conference West Division and 4-7 overall. They will host Randolph Friday, January 16, play at JWP Tuesday, January 13, and at Faribault BA Thursday, January 22.

In the win over the tigers, senior Talen Taylor scored 30+ points for the third straight game. He finished with 31 points, 14 rebounds, and five assists.

Ron and Laura Romnes decided to take a chance on starting an archery business.

So far, the customers have flocked in as quickly as the arrows have flown throughout their building in Elysian.

“It’s been awesome seeing people in here shooting their bows and arrows and socializing with each other,” Laura mentioned. “We’re building a community here.”

With how many have welcomed the Romneses and Elysian Archery, you would have thought they had been here for a while. Although they haven’t lived in Elysian for many years, they’ve been in the area.

The WEM girls basketball team scored more than 70 points in a game for only the second and third times this season during a split of two games last week.

The high-water mark for the Bucs was set earlier this year when they scored 74 points in a win over Kenyon-Wanamingo.

The Bucs scored a season-high 77 points Tuesday, Dec. 30 in a 91-77 loss to Tri-City United (TCU). Four days later they set a new season-high when they defeated Cleveland, 79-39, Saturday, Jan. 3.

Three players scored 20 or more points in leading the WEM boys basketball team to a 92-72 win over Tri-City United (TCU) in a nonconference basketball game Tuesday, Dec. 30.

In what is believed to be the first time in school history three players scored in excess of 20 points in one game, the Bucs scored a season-high behind 37 points from Talen Taylor, 28 points from Cole Bartz, and 20 points from Jacob Androli.

WEM never trailed in the game against winless TCU, building a modest 36-23 halftime lead.

Buccaneers have shown steady improvement

Starting his fourth year as head coach, David Schuster has seen his teams improve from four wins his first year to 13 wins the last two years.

This season Schuster is looking for his team to continue to improve with one of the conference’s top players and five seniors set to lead this team.

“I do believe we can compete with any team in the conference had finish with a better record than last year,”Schuster said. “We have the athletes.”

WEM senior Brady Murphy became the 13th Grizzly wrestler to reach 100 career wins when he pinned Ben Scheffler of Kenyon-Wanamingo in 80 seconds Thursday, Dec. 17 in Waterville.

Murphy joins 11 other WEM student/athletes and one from JWP who have achieved this milestone. His record through Thursday evening is 101-33.

Four WEM/JWP wrestlers picked up two wins during the Grizzly Triangular Thursday, Dec. 18 in Waterville.

Otto Root (114), Brady Murphy (145), Charles Adams (172), and Kavan Sheehy (215/285) each won both of their bouts while the Grizzlies split the two duals.

Class A 4th ranked Kenyon-Wanamingo averted an upset with a 46-23 win. The Knights trailed to two matches late in third period and turned the tables and picked up falls. This was an 18-point swing in the dual.

WEM/JWP recorded six, six-point victories on their way to a 39-35 win over Cannon Falls/Randolph.

WEM senior Addison Condon has her name etched on Buccaneer School records in two sports.

She holds volleyball and track and field records and has been an All-State performer in both sports.

She is now adding her name to another WEM sports milestone after scoring her 1,000 career point in the Tuesday night girls basketball game against Mayer Lutheran.

Condon becomes only the seventh WEM player to score 1,000 points. Through her four-year varsity career, Condon has amassed 1,066 which is fifth all-time.

The WEM/JWP wrestling team competed in five different duals last week, winning one of the five.

The Grizzlies hosted a triangular Thursday, Dec. 11 in Janesville and dropped a 49-22 decision to Class A state-rated Le Sueur-Henderson and were defeated by Waseca, 40-27.

The week ended with three duals at the Dave Sharberg Duals at Byron Saturday, Dec. 13. WEM/JWP defeated Dover-Eyota, 46-29, lost 34-33 on a tiebreaker to Rochester Mayo, and lost to Plainview-Elgin-Millville (PEM), 53-11.

WEM/JWP junior BreAna Masso won four straight matches to claim the 112-pound championship in the Buffalo Wild Wings Hutchinson Girls Wrestling Tournament Saturday, Nov. 29.

Masso finished with a technical fall and three pins in less than a minute, including a 59 fall in the championship bout.

Senior Kayle Langford placed 3rd at 142 pounds, winning five of six matches. She had...

To see more on this story pick up the December 4, 2025 print edition of the LifeEnterprise. 

WEM senior Talen Taylor was named the WEM football Most Valuable Player during the end-of-the-season awards recognition Tuesday, Nov. 25.

Taylor, a three-time All-District Player and the 2025 District Player of the Year, had a fantastic all-around season for the team which advanced to State.

On defense he finished with a team-high six interceptions, scored a defensive touchdown, had a fumble recovery, numerous pass break-ups, and 10.5 tackles.

Bucs tie for Gopher Conference title

The Gopher Conference announces the 2025 Girls Volleyball Awards and the 2025 Player of the Year is WEM senior Addison Condon.

Condon is a senior outside hitter for WEM. She is a 3-time All-Gopher Conference recipient. Addison becomes the fourth Buccaneer to reach the 1,000 career milestone for both kills and digs. She finished her career with over 1,345 kills and 1,760 digs. Addison was named to the 2025 and 2024 MNVBCA Class AA AllState Team and received the 2025 MNVBCA Academic All-State Award.

Four WEM girls basketball players who have played in 40 or more varsity games return to the 2025-2026 Buccaneer squad this winter.

The four include senior Addison Condon (72 games), senior Kaitlyn LaFrance (47 games), senior Alenka Jans (45 games) and junior Alix Velzke (44 games) return after playing many minutes over the last two seasons.

The WEM bowling team captured the regular season South Central Conference Championship.

Following this title, they finished as the conference runner-up in the end-of-theseason conference tournament held last Saturday in Owatonna.

WEM grad Ashlyn Pelant plays for the Yellowjackets

The Rochester Community and Technical College (RCTC) volleyball team ended on a high note Saturday, Nov. 15, beating the College of DuPage (Ill.) 3-1 in the third-place match of the NJCAA Division III tournament at Allian Energy Powerhouse in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The Yellowjackets, who entered the tournament as the No. 4 seed, finished their season 25-9 overall.

RCTC defeated College of DuPage 25-19, 12-25, 25-18, 25-18.