Year in Review: Top Sports Stories of 2024 – SweetwaterNOW

The local sports scene this year was packed with lots of action and memories, and we were there to cover it all.

We’ve selected a handful of our top sports stories, and we hope you have a blast revisiting these moments from throughout the year.

There’s something very special about the life lessons and examples that can be taken from our community’s athletes, coaches, and individuals. We take pride in telling your stories, and we couldn’t tell these stories without you. Thanks for letting us follow you around and cover your events and experiences.

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Now, before we head into the new year, let’s revisit the top sports moments of 2024!

Thirteen Sweetwater County Cheerleaders Earn All-State Honors

(January 11, 2024)

Thirteen Rock Springs and Green River cheerleaders have earned all-state honors for 2023. Seven were named for the Tigers with the Wolves having six.

Click here to read the whole story.

Sweetwater County Raised Over $63,000 for Final Make-A-Wish Week

(February 23, 2024)

The Wolves hosted the Tigers for the last Make-A-Wish game and the county raised $63,413.42. This is over the $62,529.66 they made last year which makes the total amount of money raised by the schools over the years over $1,077,107.

Click here to read the whole story.  

Wolves Win Second Straight State Championship While Tigers Finish Top Five

(February 24, 2024)

The Wolves and Tigers just wrapped up their wrestling season earlier today. Green River clinched their second consecutive 3A State Championship while Rock Springs finished fourth against some tough competition in 4A. The Wolves now have an impressive 19 state titles in Wrestling.

Click here to read the whole story.

Kale Knezovich, Green River’s First Four-Time State Champion Wrestler

(February 29, 2024)

The Green River Wolves have historically had one of the most competitive wrestling programs in Wyoming. Some GRHS alumni have grown to become prominent names in the wrestling scene, like Western Wyoming Community College’s head wrestling coach Art Castillo. Senior Kale Knezovich just added himself to the list of greats last weekend when he won his fourth individual state championship, the first Wolf to ever do so.

Click here to read the whole story.

Broc Fletcher Becomes Second Tiger to Become a Four-Time State Champion

(March 2, 2024)

Last weekend, the Rock Springs Tigers Wrestling team competed in the state championship and Rock Springs finished fourth with 182 team points and three individual state champions. One of those three individual champs was Broc Fletcher, making it his fourth state championship. This cements him as the Tigers’ second four-time state champion in school history. The only other Tiger to be a four-time state champion is John Lucchi who did so back in 1970-73.

Click here to read the whole story.

TRN Media’s All-County Basketball Teams

(March 18, 2024)

With basketball season concluded, we at TRN Media took a look back at the season and have compiled a list of who we think would make the team if there was an all-star basketball team for Sweetwater County for both the boys and the girls.

Click here to read the whole story.

TRN Media’s Winter Season High School Coach of the Year: Josh Wisniewski

(March 20, 2024)

Green River High School’s wrestling coach, Josh Wisniewski, has been named TRN Media’s Winter Season Coach of the Year for Sweetwater County after leading the team to consecutive state championships and being awarded as Wyoming’s 3A Wrestling Coach of the Year.

Click here to read the whole story.

Building Champions: Castillo’s Insight on Western’s Back-To-Back Championships

(March 26, 2024)

The Western Wyoming Community College wrestling team secured their second consecutive national championship, marking a historic milestone for the program and the county.

Click here to read the whole story.

Introducing Kasey Koepplin: New Leader of Tiger Football

(April 14, 2024)

The Rock Springs Tigers welcome Kasey Koepplin as their new head football coach, who brings a wealth of experience and a fresh vision to the program.

Koepplin brings with him 15 years of coaching experience, with 12 of those years spent at the high school level and three at the collegiate level. He most recently served as the head coach at Cibola High School. He played collegiately at Mayville State University.

Click here to read the whole story.

Rick Carroll Retires as GRHS Girls Basketball Coach

(April 16, 2024)

Sweetwater County School District No. 2 has announced that Rick Carroll, Green River High School head girls basketball coach, is retiring from his position. Rick Carroll has coached various sports during his tenure in Green River, with his most recent stint being the Green River High School Head Girls’ Basketball Coach.

Click here to read the whole story.

Isa Vasco Crowned All-Time Lady Wolves Scoring Leader

(April 30, 2024)

Isa Vasco, a sophomore soccer player for the Lady Wolves, achieved a great milestone in her career on Tuesday when she scored her 87th career goal in a match against the Lander Valley Lady Tigers. She became the all-time leading scorer in the history of Lady Wolves soccer. In the same match, she scored three goals which helped her team win.

Click here to read the whole story.

RSHS Lady Tigers Basketball Welcomes Mike Swenson as Head Coach

(May 22, 2024)

Rock Springs High School has announced the Lady Tigers basketball team is welcoming Mike Swenson as its new head coach. 

Swenson, who was an assistant coach at the time, stepped in as interim head coach the week the girls competed in the state championship tournament. Now, he will be taking on the position as the team hopes to build on their previous season where they made it state for the first time in two years.

Click here to read the whole story.

GRHS Softball Players Support Former Head Coach

(June 26, 2024)

A group of Green River High School softball players are protesting Sweetwater County School District No. 2’s decision not to renew Blair McEndaffer’s coaching contract for next year’s season.

Click here to read the whole story.

Sweetwater County Rancher Rides to National Rodeo Success

(July 11, 2024)

Ira Dickinson, a sixth-generation rancher from Sweetwater County, who found his roots in wrestling and rodeo, has made his mark on the national stage.

Raised in the three corners area, Dickinson wrestled in the “Top of the Rock” in Rock Springs in 2008 and continued through his youth. He attended Rock Springs High School for his freshman year before transferring to Green River High School for the remainder of his high school education.

“I am incredibly blessed to be from Sweetwater County,” Dickinson said. “The support from local businesses, friends, and my family has been overwhelming.”

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Two Farson-Eden Students Qualify for National High School Finals Rodeo

(July 12, 2024)

In a remarkable achievement for the small community of Farson-Eden, two local high school students have qualified for the 76th National High School Finals Rodeo (NHSFR) in Rock Springs this week. 

Eighteen-year-olds Morgan Watts and Connor Weese will be competing in goat tying and steer wrestling, respectively, representing their school and hometown on the national stage.

Click here to read the whole story.

Lennon Spence Takes Helm of Tigers Boys Basketball

(July 31, 2024)

Lennon Spence, a former conference player of the year for the Rock Springs Tigers, has been named the new head coach of the Rock Springs High School boys basketball team. Spence, who brings experience in coaching youth sports at both the High School and Middle School level, is eager to lead the Tigers to success both on and off the court.

Click here to read the whole story.

Western Wyoming Wrestler Ready to Represent Puerto Rico at U20 World Championships

(August 26, 2024)

Zach Marrero, a Freshman wrestler at Western Wyoming Community College, is set to make history as the first athlete from the school to compete in the U20 World Championships. The 20-year-old will represent Puerto Rico in the 63 kg Greco-Roman weight class.

Marrero’s journey to this point is a tale of passion for wrestling and family heritage. Growing up in Strasburg, Colorado, Marrero was surrounded by wrestling.

Click here to read the whole story.

Crawford, Carey, and Yeager Clinch IMCA Track Championships at Sweetwater Speedway

(September 4, 2024)

The final races at Sweetwater Speedway saw intense competition as track championships were decided in three IMCA classes, with Jonathon Crawford, Brian Carey, and Bryson Yeager each claiming titles in their respective class.

Click here to read the whole story.

Cowgirls Forfeit Volleyball Match as Controversy Over Trans Athlete Swells

(October 3, 2024)

The Wyoming Cowboys have made the contentious decision to forfeit their upcoming volleyball match against San Jose State, becoming the third team this season to do so. The forfeiture, which follows similar actions by Boise State and Southern Utah, is part of a growing debate over San Jose State’s transgender athlete, Blaire Fleming. Concerns over fairness and safety have led to heated discussions across collegiate sports, with Wyoming ultimately choosing to withdraw from the match, scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 5, at the UniWyo Sports Complex.

Click here to read the whole story.

Green River Girls Swim Team Earns State Runner-Up

(November 10, 2024)

The Green River High School girls swim team concluded their season as state runners-up, with strong performances in both relays and individual events, affirming their standing among Wyoming’s top teams.

Click here to read the whole story.

Green River’s Jessica Demaret Named TRN Media’s 2024 Fall Coach of the Year

(November 21, 2024)

Jessica Demaret has been named TRN Media’s Fall Coach of the Year for 2024, a well-earned recognition after leading the Green River Lady Wolves volleyball team to one of their most successful seasons in recent memory.

Under Demaret’s guidance, the Lady Wolves achieved a 21-12 overall record, a second-place finish at regionals, and a trip to the state tournament, marking significant progress since her return to the program in 2021.

Click here to read the whole story.

TRN Media’s All-County Football Team 2024

(November 25, 2024)

With the football season wrapped up, TRN Media is excited to look back and recognize the outstanding student-athletes from our community. We’ve compiled a roster for what we believe could represent an All-Star team for Sweetwater County.

The roster includes 16 players on offense and 16 on defense, with some players featured on both sides of the ball. Additionally, we’ve highlighted a kicking specialist and a returner. To honor more talent, we’ve also included a list of honorable mentions—athletes who had strong seasons and were considered for the team. Players who earned spots on this list in both this year and last year are noted as well.

Click here to read the whole story.