State collegiate sports briefs: Waunakee TE verbals with UW-Madison

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MADISON - A junior tight end from Waunakee says he’ll play his college football at Wisconsin. Austin Maly has given his verbal commitment to play for the Badgers in 2011.

He had 24 catches for 527 yards and three touchdowns in his junior season at Waunakee, which won the Division-Two WIAA championship. Maly joins tight end Sam Arneson of Merrill and linebacker Jake Keefer of Baldwin-Woodville in the Badgers’ 2011 recruiting class.

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We’ll find out tomorrow if Wisconsin’s Barry Alvarez gets named to the College Football Hall-of-Fame. Alvarez is the winningest coach in Badger history, and the only U-W leader to win two straight Rose Bowls. He’s one of seven former coaches on this year’s Hall-of-Fame ballot – along with 77 candidates from the NCAA’s former Division-One. Two coaches and a dozen players will be selected as this year’s inductees, and they’ll be announced at a news conference in New York. ESPN News will show it live at 11 tomorrow morning. Alvarez says he would be thrilled to be selected. He calls it the most prestigious honor a college football coach can receive. To qualify for the ballot, a coach must be retired from coaching for three years – have at least 10 years and 100 games under his belt – and have at least a .600 winning percentage.

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Wisconsin will have almost 20 medal contenders at the NCAA Division III outdoor track meet which starts tomorrow in Berea Ohio near Cleveland. Brock Solveson of Concordia-Mequon and Ellie Sitek of UW-Oshkosh are the only top qualifiers in two events. Solveson, a senior, comes in with the nation’s longest distance in the javelin, and the second best score in the decathlon. Sitek, a senior has the division’s top discus throw and the second-best hammer throw. And this week, Sitek was named the women’s Field Athlete-of-the-Year for the Midwest Region by the coaches’ association. Other Wisconsin athletes with the nation’s best times-and-distances this year are Chris Wurtz of Oshkosh in the men’s three-thousand-meter steeple-chase – Shaun Davis of Whitewater in the men’s discus – Stephanie Perleburg of Oshkosh in the women’s steeple-chase – and Holly Ozanich of Oshkosh in the hammer throw. UW_Stout's Sean Larson is also a contender in the weight throw and discus events.

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Cameron Amsrud of UW-Milwaukee has been named the Horizon League's relief pitcher-of-the-year. And Panthers' junior Chad Pierce is a co-Newcomer-of-the-year, along with Matt Serna of Illinois-Chicago. The conference handed out its season awards yesterday, on the eve of the Horizon League Tournament which begins today in Gary Indiana. Amsrud, a sophomore right-hander, leads the conference with seven saves this spring. Pierce limits opposing batters to a .256 average, with an ERA of just over four. Milwaukee senior outfielder Tim Patzman made the all-conference first team, along with Panthers' sophomore utility player Paul Hoenecke. Shortstop Cole Kraft and designated hitter Sam Sivilotti made the second squad. Pierce made the all-league newcomer team, along with Panther teammates Jonathan Capasso and Jayme Sukowaty. UWM earned the second seed and a first-round bye in the league tournament. They'll play tomorrow in the second round of the winner's bracket.

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