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Ben’s Best of 2025: A look back at top moments
Williamsburg’s three-peat in softball top moment of 2025
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
The year 2025 provided some great moments from Hometown Current area athletes and teams, many of them I had the pleasure of covering.
So many moments deserve recognition, but for the sake of this exercise, let’s just highlight a few.
Here is a look back at my top five moments of the year.
1. Williamsburg softball three-peat
With every team in Class 3A striving to beat them, the Raiders put themselves forever in the history book this past summer at Rogers Sports Complex in Fort Dodge.
Williamsburg became the eighth team in state history to win three state softball titles in a row, regardless of class.
It was also the sixth-straight season the Raiders advanced to the state tournament.
The championship game against No. 1 Dubuque Wahlert was a classic from start to finish.
The Raiders jumped out to a 2-0 lead, and then Wahlert tied things up.
A single and stolen base from Makenna Hughes set up the go-ahead RBI from the bat of Alley Gorsh.
In the final three innings, the Raiders got out of several situations with runners on base by doing what they had all season — making the plays when they count.
Fittingly, the final out was caught by one of several key seniors, Taylor Pitlick.
The classic dog pile celebration ensued for the Raiders for the third straight season as they emerged champions.
2. 1A sweep of 4x400 relays
The State Track & Field meet at Drake Stadium in Des Moines saw the most area competitors, and many went home with medals.
The meet ended with a bang in the 4x400-meter relays.
Starting first with the girls in 1A, HLV-TC’s Emery Hall outkicked all of her competitors down the homestretch to give the Warriors gold in 4:02.22
It was HLV-TC’s second state title of the state meet, as Ema Roberts repeated as the girls high jump champion with a new 1A state meet record of 5 feet, 9 1/2 inches.
Shortly after, in the 1A boys 4x400, Iowa Valley completed the area and South Iowa Cedar League sweep in 1A.
Caleb Haack had some work to do on the final leg but was able to sprint past Woodbine in a 1A meet record of 3:21.30.
The emotions after showed how much it meant to the Tigers.
3. Sinn advances to 150-pound championship
This moment was about more than the result itself for Williamsburg’s Nile Sinn. It was about who was there with him.
Sinn had never beaten his opponent, Mount Vernon’s Mikey Ryan, in any of their previous battles.
But this time, in the Class 2A 150-pound semifinal match, the match was an instant classic.
It came down to the ultimate tiebreaker, and Sinn chose bottom, either he escapes within 30 seconds and wins, or doesn’t and Ryan wins.
Sinn escaped and the moments after captured what can make sports so great.
Sinn raced to embrace his father and assistant coach, Jeff Sinn, who had been there every step of the way through his career.
Also worth noting, Belle Plaine’s Aidan Timm finished third in 1A at 138 after overcoming a late-season skin infection that sidelined him for over two weeks.
4. A special season
It was a three-year ascension for the Williamsburg girls basketball team under head coach Stephanie Dacey with a special group of players.
From 5-17, to 14-9, to a regional final win over PCM in February. The Raiders advanced to state for the second time in program history.
Williamsburg did not stop there. The team won its first ever state tournament game over Des Moines Christian, 52-49, putting a cherry on top to the program’s best season in history.
The Raiders started the second half on an 11-0 run to build a double-digit lead that they would not let go of.
Senior point guard Carly Rich led the way with 19 points in the historical win.
In 1A, Montezuma made it to state for the sixth time in eight seasons, continuing its run as one of the most consistent programs in the state.
5. Heyne’s busy final weeks
Humble, hardworking and a joy to cover.
English Valleys’ Gage Heyne finished his prep career on a strong note, accomplishing something not many could do.
Heyne qualified for the state track meet in four events (3,200, 1,600, 800 and the distance medley).
The Bears’ senior finished runner-up twice, fourth, and fifth at state to cap off an incredible prep distance running career.
The moments after Heyne’s last race, the 1,600, was also special to see. Heyne had a moment with race winner Gavin Grunhovd of North Iowa. The two are now teammates at Wartburg College.
That was not all for Heyne.
Earlier in the week, Heyne also qualified for the state golf meet, competing in Waterloo the following week to close out his senior year.
