There was plenty happening across the Chippewa Valley and western Wisconsin sports scene this weekend, with strong starts continuing at UW-Eau Claire and UW-Stout, a big rivalry win for Eau Claire North and several important high school football matchups on the horizon. Blugolds Football Off to a 2- 0 Start The UW-Eau Claire football team continued its impressive start to the season with a 34-17 victory over Carroll College, improving to 2-0. Paxson Rothmeyer has been off to a fantastic start, and the Blugolds have shown plenty of promise through the first two games. The season-opening win over Alma was particularly impressive, considering Alma was receiving votes in the national rankings. The Alma game was a grind, while UW-Eau Claire was able to jump out to an early lead and control things against Carroll. The Blugolds will look to finish their non-conference schedule with a perfect 3-0 record when they take on Carthage College this Saturday. After that comes a bye week before the conference opener on October 3. And while it’s tempting to look ahead, the focus has to remain on taking care of business against Carthage. The conference schedule gets significantly tougher, including a road trip to face No. 6 UW-Platteville. If UW-Eau Claire can finish the non-conference portion of the schedule undefeated, the Blugolds will put themselves in a strong position heading into conference play. UW-Stout Also Starts 2-0 The UW-Stout Blue Devils are also off to a 2-0 start after defeating Augustana 37-34 in another high-scoring game. Stout has been putting up points early in the season, scoring 34 against Dubuque before following that up with 37 against Augustana. The Blue Devils will look to remain undefeated when they face Roosevelt University this weekend. Blugolds Volleyball Making Noise The UW-Eau Claire volleyball team is off to a 5-1 start, and the Blugolds have already faced some strong competition. During the Captain’s Classic, UW-Eau Claire lost to No. 25 NYU but bounced back with victories over No. 19 Christopher Newport University and another ranked opponent. The Blugolds then returned home and dominated their own tournament, dropping just two sets over three matches. UW-Eau Claire now has a couple more home opportunities, taking on Bethel on Wednesday and College of St. Benedict on Friday before getting deeper into conference play. There are plenty of reasons for excitement surrounding this year’s team, especially with players such as Chippewa Falls product Sammy Pearlberg, a conference Player of the Year and All-American. One matchup to keep an eye on later this season will be against No. 1 UW-Oshkosh. The teams will meet in Eau Claire, setting up what could be a tremendous atmosphere. Eau Claire North Wins Crosstown Showdown The Eau Claire North football team picked up a historic win Friday night, defeating Eau Claire Memorial 34-14 in the latest edition of the crosstown rivalry. The game drew a tremendous crowd, with long lines of fans waiting to get into the stadium. North running back Brody Heimbach was the star of the night, scoring five touchdowns as the Huskies picked up the first victory of the Mike Sins era. It was also North’s fourth consecutive win in the rivalry. Memorial came out strong and made some big plays early, including a strong performance from Jackson Zuliger, who showed off the speed that has made him one of the fastest players in the conference. Memorial is still searching for its first victory, but the team has shown it can compete. The Old Abes return home this week to take on Superior, which is 1-3. For North, the Huskies will hit the road to take on D.C. Everest. With the regular season already approaching the halfway point, every game becomes increasingly important as teams begin positioning themselves for the playoffs. Big Week Ahead in the Big Rivers Conference The Big Rivers Conference has become particularly interesting, with River Falls, Hudson and New Richmond all sitting at 2-0 in conference play. Hudson has been rolling, with quarterback Berkey putting up big numbers, while New Richmond continues to be led by one of the state’s best players in Whitting. And, naturally, those two teams are about to meet. Hudson vs. New Richmond is one of the biggest games on the local schedule this week, and the result will leave only one of those teams undefeated in conference play. Chippewa Falls also remains in the race after suffering its first loss in a hard-fought game against New Richmond. The Cardinals could get right back into the mix with a victory over River Falls. Regis Continues to Find Ways to Win In the Cloverbelt Conference, Regis remains unbeaten after narrowly defeating Elk Mound. Regis is now 4-0 and has shown that it can win both high-scoring games and close, physical battles. Elk Mound deserves plenty of credit for taking Regis down to the wire. Durand-Arkansaw and Regis are both 4-0 overall and receiving votes, while Elk Mound, Fall Creek and Mondovi are all sitting at 3-1. Mondovi suffered a tough loss to Edgar after having opportunities to win the game. The Wildcats could get another shot at Edgar in the playoffs, and if they can clean up some of the mistakes from the first meeting, they should feel confident about their chances. Altoona Keeps Finding Itself in Close Games Altoona is still looking for its first victory after falling to Osceola by just one point. The Railroaders have been involved in several close games this season. They nearly knocked off Regis and also lost to Fall Creek by just eight points. The Osceola game was another back-and-forth battle. Owen Gunderson provided plenty of highlights, but ultimately Osceola had just enough firepower to escape with the one-point victory. Altoona will return home this week to take on Prescott, giving the Railroaders another opportunity to get into the win column. More Local Sports Notes There was plenty of other activity across the area. Spring Valley remains undefeated at 3-0 and is leading the Dunn-St. Croix Conference along with Glenwood City. Glenwood City has been one of the more interesting teams to watch this season. After a strong run years ago, the program appears to be entering another promising cycle, with a group of players that has been hardened by tough conference competition. Cross-country season is also rolling along, with a big meet coming up at UW-Barron County. Golf is beginning to move toward the postseason as well. With roughly two to three weeks remaining in the regular season, the state championships are getting closer. High school volleyball is also heating up, with teams such as Hudson and Barron continuing to play well as conference play approaches. Fall Sports Are Heating Up The calendar may say September, but it already feels like the fall sports season is flying by. Football teams are approaching the midpoint of the regular season. Volleyball is moving toward conference play. Golf and tennis are beginning to look toward postseason competition, and cross-country is well underway. For local sports fans, that means the stakes are only going to get higher from here. And with several big matchups coming up across the Chippewa Valley and western Wisconsin, there’s plenty more to keep an eye on. ...read more read less