Foes find twice the trouble vs. talented siblings
Picking 10 first families of area winter prep sports
In sports, you often hear athletes refer to their teammates as “family.”
In some instances, they mean it literally. There is no shortage of high-performing sibling duos in the area in high school sports, so we set out on a simple quest to find some of the best. We sent out an e-mail to all area athletic directors asking for some of their top sibling performers, but, given the season, kept it to winter sports only.
From the responses received, here are 10 of
the best.
All stats are as of Friday morning.
Kyle and Nate Bowens, Kenosha Bradford wrestling
The Bowens brothers, both seniors, are both ranked at 220 pounds by WIwrestling.com, with Kyle at No. 6 and Nate listed as an honorable mention. Kyle was a Division 1 individual state meet participant last year and Nate placed third at the sectional tournament, narrowly missing out on a spot at state.
Katie and Maddie Gard, Oak Creek basketball
The Knights have won an incredible 85 consecutive Southeast Conference games, and the Gard twins are the two best players on this year’s team that looks to extend that streak.
Maddie leads the team at 15.2 points per game, with Katie second at 9.8. Both are sharpshooters, connecting on 17 of 46 three-point attempts and shooting a combined 53% from the field.
Cody and Tyler Goebel, Mukwonago wrestling
The Goebel brothers from Big Bend likely will leave their mark on the area wrestling scene. Cody, a freshman, enters the season ranked as the No. 6 106pound grappler in Division 1, while Tyler, a sophomore, is the state’s No. 10 wrestler at 120. Tyler wrestled at the individual state meet last season, going 2-2 at 106 pounds.
Bryce and Luke Haertle, Lake Country Lutheran basketball
Bryce, a senior, has been one of the state’s top scorers this season, tallying 27 points per game as the Lightning opened up with a 6-0 record. He has scored 35 or more points twice, including a 36-point performance Thursday night against Messmer. Bryce should eclipse 1,000 points for his career soon. Luke, a freshman, averages 15.2 points, good for second-most on the Lightning. Last weekend, Luke had a 32-point, 12rebound performance.
Ben and Cole Nau, Brookfield Central
The Nau brothers make up twothirds of the starting backcourt for the Lancers, who entered the week ranked No. 1 in the state in the wissports.net coaches poll. Cole, a senior, earned firstteam all-Greater Metro Conference honors last year and is committed to play at NCAA Division II Hillsdale College. Ben is one of the state’s top sophomores with a lethal three-point stroke and an average of 11.7 points per game. He already has Division I offers from DePaul and UW-Milwaukee.
Jalen and Kobe Johnson, Nicolet
The Johnson brothers transferred into Nicolet after playing for Sun Prairie in the 2017-’18 season. Jalen, a junior, is among the top class of 2020 recruits in the country and averages 17.5 points with a well-polished game that includes ball-handling, rebounding and court vision. Kobe is seeing his first significant action at the varsity level and averages 11 points for the Knights, the Journal Sentinel’s top-ranked area team. Just like his older brother, Kobe certainly will gather attention of high-level college coaches going forward.
David and Elise Joplin, Brookfield Central
A multi-sport athlete, David is second on the Lancers in scoring through three games at 13.3 points per game as a sophomore power forward. Along with Nau, he is among the state’s top sophomore prospects, with DePaul and UNLV already offering scholarships. As a freshman, David averaged 10.7 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Elise, a senior, is also second in scoring for her Lancers, who are 4-2. She has boosted her production from 4.9 points per game a year ago to 9.2 so far.
Michael and Lexi Penney, Brookfield East
The Penney siblings like to fly high. Michael, a freshman, just started at East but was already part of the winning diving relay at the Greater Metro Conference Relays last weekend. Sister Lexi, a junior, was the state balance beam champion in gymnastics as a freshman. As a sophomore, Lexi was fourth in the beam and took sixth in the all-around competition. She also dives in the fall, taking sixth at state this year.
Kevin and Michael Sandman, Wilmot basketball
Are the Panthers in need of a big basket? If so, enter Sandman. Kevin, a sophomore, averaged a team-best 13.5 points through a 4-0 start before a loss against Grayslake North (Ill.) on Thursday. Older brother Michael is next up in scoring at 11.5. The pair has combined to hit 20 three-pointers.
Cooper and Cade Willis, Union Grove wrestling
No group of brother wrestlers in the area are ranked higher than the Willis brothers. Cooper is just a freshman but has started high school with a record of 10-1 with six wins by fall. He’s the No. 3 106-pound wrestler in the state according to wiwrestling.com’s rankings. Cade is also No. 3, but at 120, after placing fifth at 106 at state last year. He’s in contention to win a state title as a sophomore this winter.