Afternoon Sports Briefs: Ramage, U.S. squad take bronze in World Juniors

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BUFFALO - University of Wisconsin hockey defenseman John Ramage is coming home with a bronze medal from the World Junior Championships. The U.S. took third place yesterday with a 4-2 win over Sweden in the consolation game in Buffalo.

Ramage had two shots-on-goal, both in the third period. But he did not figure in the scoring for any of Team USA’s contests – even though he played in all of them. He was the only Wisconsin player in the tournament. The Americans took home back-to-back medals for the first time in the event’s history. They won the gold a year ago.

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The University of Wisconsin women’s basketball team plays at Michigan State tonight. The Badgers are 2-0 in the Big Ten, and they’ve won five straight to even their overall record at 7-7. Michigan State is ranked 11th in the country at 13-1. The Spartans are 1-0 in the conference, and they have an 11-game winning streak – the second-longest in the team’s history – and they’ve won 14 straight at home. Alyssa Karel leads the Badgers in scoring with almost 15 points a game. Taylor Wurtz is Wisconsin’s top rebounder, with almost seven-and-a-half boards per contest. Michigan State is off to its best start in the program’s history – but they’ve lost four straight to the Badgers. Lykendra Johnson has averaged 11 points and almost seven rebounds in five career games against Wisconsin.

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The UW-Green Bay women’s basketball team will try to go 3-0 in the Horizon League tonight at Youngstown State. The Phoenix have won their last 10 games against the Penguins, most recently an 84-45 rout in March. Youngstown State is 0-2 in the conference and 2-11 overall. They’re led by sophomore forward Brandi Brown, who’s third in the league in scoring with 16 points a game, and third in rebounds with just over nine per contest. This is the seventh straight year that Green Bay is 2-0 in conference play, and they’re 13-1 overall. Part of the reason is that the Phoenix almost 14 steals per game, tops in the Horizon League.

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The UW-Milwaukee women will try to end an eight-game losing streak tonight, when they play at Cleveland State. The Panthers are coming off a 14-point loss to Detroit last Sunday. Lindsay Laur had her fourth straight double-double in a losing cause, with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Milwaukee is 3-10 overall, and 0-2 in the Horizon League. Cleveland State has won five straight home games. The Vikings are 8-5 overall, after starting the season at 5-0. They split their opening two conference games last weekend. Shawnita Garland leads Cleveland State with 13 points, four assists, and three steals per game.

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There’s only one game on the schedule tonight for Wisconsin’s small college basketball teams. The women of Mount Mary College will travel cross-town in Milwaukee to play Wisconsin Lutheran.

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The Milwaukee Brewers invited four minor league players to spring training today. Outfielders Caleb Gindl and Logan Schafer will be non-roster players who will get a shot at making the big club – along with catcher Anderson De La Rosa and infielder Zelous Wheeler. Schafer was the Brewers’ minor league player-of-the-year in 2009. But he missed almost all of last season with a sports hernia and a broken foot. Gindl hit .272 in Double-“A” ball last year with nine homers and 60 RBI’s. Wheeler batted .275 in Double-“A” with 11 homers, 65 RBI’s, and a .382 on-base percentage. De La Rosa batted .203 at Class-“A” Brevard County and .211 at Double-“A” Huntsville. The Brewers now have 11 non-roster invitees to spring training, some of whom have played with Milwaukee. They include catcher Mike Rivera, and relievers Tim Dillard and Mark DiFelice.

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Steve Stricker of Madison is playing in the PGA’s first event of 2011 – the Hyundai Tournament-of-Champions in Hawaii. Stricker, who had the PGA’s second-lowest scoring average a year ago, is scheduled to begin his first round at 4:40 Wisconsin time. He’s one of 34 players taking part in the tournament, which is being played at the Kapalua Resort in Maui.

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University of Wisconsin quarterback Scott Tolzien will suit up for the East-West Shrine Game in Orlando on January 22nd. The senior ended his collegiate career in the Badgers’ Rose Bowl loss on New Year’s Day, setting new single-season records with a .729 completion percentage and a passer rating of 165.8. Tolzien also set new Wisconsin career records in both those departments. A year ago, former Badger O’Brien Schofield was the defensive MVP of the East-West Shrine Game. This is the eighth year in a row that a Wisconsin player has been invited to that event.

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The Milwaukee Admirals will host Grand Rapids, Mich. tonight in the American Hockey League. The Admirals have won four-of-their-last-five, and are coming off a 3-1 victory over San Antonio last Sunday. Grand Rapids is 8-and-7 on the road this season, with an overall record of 16-16-1-4. Milwaukee is 20-11-2-4.

Tags: wisconsin sports, sports, proam