This story is sponsored by Forward Financial Bank
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
A number of former local high school athletes have moved on to the next level and are playing sports collegiately across the country.
Periodically, MarshfieldAreaSports.com will publish a College Sports Roundup updating readers of some of those local athletes’ exploits at the collegiate level.
This is the first of three reports on area high school graduates that either recently finished their winter sport, or are just starting their spring sport at the next level.
Marotz, Momont compete at NCAAs
Megan Marotz, a 2013 Marshfield High School graduate, and Sylivann Momont, a 2016 grad of Auburndale High School, each competed in the pentathlon at the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships on March 10-11 at Naperville, Ill.
Marotz, a senior on the UW-Platteville track team, finished sixth and earned All-American honors as a result.
Marotz won the 800 meters in 2:22.30 to finish with 3,351 points in the five-event women’s pentathlon, breaking the school record by three points. She also finished second in the long jump (17 feet, 4¼ inches), ninth in the 60-meter hurdles (9.30 seconds), tied for 11th in the shot put (31-6½), and tied for 13th in the high jump (4-9).
Momont, a freshman for UW-Stevens Point, was third in the long jump (17-2), fifth in the shot put (34-10½), eighth in the high jump (5-½), 11th in the 60 hurdles (9.37), and 16th in the 800 (2:38.41).
Johnson finishes career at UW-River Falls
Paige Johnson, a 2013 Spencer High School graduate and former state player of the year for the Marshfield co-op girls hockey team, wrapped up her career on the University of Wisconsin-River Falls women’s hockey team.
Johnson, a senior, scored five goals and had 17 assists as she played in all 29 games this season for River Falls.
Johnson had a goal and an assist in a 5-1 win over UW-Superior in the opening round of the WIAC O’Brien Cup, which River Falls went on to win with a 3-2 victory over UW-Eau Claire in overtime on March 4.
River Falls lost its opening game in the NCAA Division III Women’s Hockey Tournament to Gustavus Adolphus College (Minn.) 3-2 on March 10.
Johnson, a defenseman, was a NCAA Division III All-American a year ago and a member of the Division III Frozen Four all-tournament team after River Falls was the runner-up in the national tournament in 2016.
Fleischmann wraps up season at Viterbo
Jared Fleischmann, a 2014 graduate of Marshfield Columbus Catholic High School, recently finished junior season on the Viterbo University (La Crosse) men’s basketball team.
Fleischmann started all 30 games for the V-Hawks this season, averaging 7.7 points, 4 assists and 2.6 rebounds per game as Viterbo went 18-12.
He shot 33 percent from 3-point range (24 of 73) and 69.4 percent from the free throw line (50 of 72), and scored a season-high 19 points in the team’s opener on Nov. 2 against Governors State (Ill.) University.