| THE 72ND ANNUAL WISCONSIN DARTBALL STATE TOURNAMENT was held March 26 & 27, 2011 at the Radisson Hotel & Convention Center in Green Bay, WI. Another state tournament record 97 teams packed the hotel for a classic 2 day tournament, which was held in two convention halls, near the entrance to the adjoining Oneida Casino. Teams were divided into 4 divisions by team average: 14 - A teams, 32 - B teams, 36 - C teams, and 15 women's teams. Here are the results: |
| In the A division, the much coveted title was won by Gerhard's Plumbing of Eau Claire. Many of the team members played on the last Eau Claire championship team when MBC Sports won it in 2004. This time they defeated Neumann Plumbing of Howards Grove by scores of 14-3 and 12-9 in the championship match. Neumann had the lowest team average in Class A, but they beat two Milwaukee area teams and a Watertown team to advance to the final match. Last year they were the Class B champions. |
3rd place in A went to Jokers from Milwaukee, as they
beat Vern's Cheese (Chilton), who finished in the same
position (4th) as last year.
On the consolation side, the host team Pete & Sons from
Green Bay lost a close 1st round match, but rebounded
to average 20.8 runs per game for the tournament and
win the consolation title. They beat Eau Claire Auto in
two straight games. Eau Claire Auto beat last year's A
champions Geidel (West Bend) to advance to the
consolation final, while Pete & Sons advanced after
beating last year's 2nd place finisher Red Stone Bar &
Grill (S. Milwaukee).
beat Vern's Cheese (Chilton), who finished in the same
position (4th) as last year.
On the consolation side, the host team Pete & Sons from
Green Bay lost a close 1st round match, but rebounded
to average 20.8 runs per game for the tournament and
win the consolation title. They beat Eau Claire Auto in
two straight games. Eau Claire Auto beat last year's A
champions Geidel (West Bend) to advance to the
consolation final, while Pete & Sons advanced after
beating last year's 2nd place finisher Red Stone Bar &
Grill (S. Milwaukee).
| In the B division, a familiar name won the B title as Sauve's from Two Rivers beat Captain's Crew from Howards Grove. Sauve's was once the top A team in the state, but only a couple members from that group remain on the team. That also makes for a pretty good showing for the Howards Grove area, having a team reach the championship in both the A and B divisions. Grace Augusta (Augusta) beat Kenjay Fiedler Excavating (Sheboygan Falls) in the 3rd place game. |
| On the consolation side of the B division, Schult's Country Inn from Merrill rebounded from their first round loss to win 4 straight matches to win the consolation title over Mike's Shop from Barron. Chaser's Lounge (Kenosha) won a coin flip to take 3rd consolation over Farmers Insurance (Watertown). |
| In the C division, Strieter's Crew (Milwaukee) beat Coin's Crusaders (Kenosha) to win the C title. Strieter's beat Wyandot (Upper Sandusky, Ohio), while Coin's beat Castoffs (West Allis). Castoffs rebounded to outlast Wyandot to take 3rd place in the C division. |
On the consolation side of the C division, The Drunken Ducks (West Allis) beat East Side Lumber (Hartford) to win the C
consolation title. The Sports Corner's teams from Germantown met in the 3rd place game, as team III knocked off team I.
consolation title. The Sports Corner's teams from Germantown met in the 3rd place game, as team III knocked off team I.
In the Women's Division, it was a very familiar result. LR Trophy & Sportswear (Kewaskum) continued it's domination of
the division with their 9th straight title. This year they beat Landmark Girls (Athens) . The Landmark Girls finally made it to
the championship game after finishing third the last two years, but couldn't knock off the nine time champions. Sheila's II
(Denmark) also improved one place from last year by finishing 3rd this year. Photos by Leslie Faye (Plymouth) was the
4th place finisher.
the division with their 9th straight title. This year they beat Landmark Girls (Athens) . The Landmark Girls finally made it to
the championship game after finishing third the last two years, but couldn't knock off the nine time champions. Sheila's II
(Denmark) also improved one place from last year by finishing 3rd this year. Photos by Leslie Faye (Plymouth) was the
4th place finisher.
On the consolation side of the Women's bracket, Town Pump (Rhinelander) beat Greg's Catering (Franksville) to take the
consolation title. Town Pump beat Last Straw (Athens) to get to the consolation title game, while Greg's beat Emerald Hills
(Two Rivers).
consolation title. Town Pump beat Last Straw (Athens) to get to the consolation title game, while Greg's beat Emerald Hills
(Two Rivers).
| The shoot off and round robin is always a big event at a state tournament, with over 1400 entries this year. It took 10 or more hits out of the 20 darts to qualify for the Sunday finals. There were 24 qualifiers, which shot off for the final awards. The high qualifiers were Dennis LaPlant and Bob Leskovar with 14. Dennis outlasted Bob in a 2 round, high qualifier shoot-off to determine the trophy winner. The regular shoot off winner was Brian Shimanek (Green Bay), 2nd went to Chuck Spahn (Milwaukee), 3rd to Dan Plomedaul (Eau Claire), while Bob Leskovar (Milwaukee) took 4th. The round robin was won by Chuck Spahn, hitting the 5 targets in 6 darts, while Dennis LaPlant took 2nd, with 9 darts, and (3rd) Nick Horneck doing it in 11 darts. |
Pictured (l to r): Dennis LaPlant, Brian Shimanek, Chuck Spahn, Dan Plomedaul, Bob Leskovar, Dennis LaPlant, Chuck Spahn, and Nick Horneck.
| Another big highlight of the tournament was the 2nd annual Hall of Fame induction ceremony. This year 16 new members were added to the Hall of Fame in front of a large crowd at noon on Saturday of the tournament. They received a plaque to honor their Dartball accomplishments. Their Dartball biography can be read on the Hall of Fame page on this website (soon). |
Bert Berglin (Green Bay) Robert Cox Sr. (Kewaunee) Archie Dadian (S Milwaukee) Mark Drow (Oak Creek)
Martin Gaudian (Oak Creek) Jim Gospodarek (deceased) Eddie Hall II (Athens) Jeff Jentsch (Francis Creek)
represented by his wife and brother
Martin Gaudian (Oak Creek) Jim Gospodarek (deceased) Eddie Hall II (Athens) Jeff Jentsch (Francis Creek)
represented by his wife and brother
Dale Lenius (Watertown) Chuck Spahn (Milwaukee) Family of Gaylord Traeder (deceased)
Bernie VandenAvond (Green Bay) Spectators watch the Hall of Fame cermony held on the stage in Green Bay March 26,2011
Bernie VandenAvond (Green Bay) Spectators watch the Hall of Fame cermony held on the stage in Green Bay March 26,2011
Henry VandenElzen (deceased) Tom "Wilt" Walter (Oshkosh) Curt Yahr (Kewaskum) Rich Yahr (Kewaskum)
represented by his daughter
represented by his daughter
Above left: Robert Cox shot in this tourney with his sons Terry
and Bob, first time they shot together in a long time.
Above right: Jim Gospodarek's wife, daughter,and grandchildren.
Left: Long time team mates and now Hall of Famers:
Archie & Martin.
and Bob, first time they shot together in a long time.
Above right: Jim Gospodarek's wife, daughter,and grandchildren.
Left: Long time team mates and now Hall of Famers:
Archie & Martin.
| A big thank you to all the teams for participating in the tournament and to the Radisson Hotel for giving us the halls for the weekend. The food and service was great. Also super job by the Green Bay group in setting up and running this year's tournament. See you all next year in Eau Claire! |
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