Heldt nearing Neenah career scoring record

Neenah big man Matt Heldt is closing in on the school’s all-time boys’ basketball scoring record.

The 6-foot-11 Marquette University recruit opened the week with 858 points at Neenah. Jeremiah Curtin, who happens to be a Marquette alumnus, holds Neenah’s career scoring record with 931 points.

Heldt, a senior who transferred from Appleton West following his freshman season, has 946 points for his high school career.

Heldt averaged 18.2 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.0 blocks as a junior, and was the Fox Valley Association co-player of the year.

“Matt’s made huge strides,” said Neenah coach Scott Bork. “He came in with some hype, but not a lot of bulk. His skill set has always been pretty good, but his biggest strides physically have been in the weight room. He bought in immediately the first summer he was here, coming at six in the morning to work out and has dedicated himself to it.”

In addition to his strong skills inside the lane, Heldt is a fine passer and a threat from the perimeter.

“When he gets to Marquette, I think Matt will probably be a four or five spot guy for them,” said Bork. “He’s worked hard to develop more of an outside game, so he’s not strictly a back to the basket guy. But he has a little bit of old school to him. You don’t see a lot of kids in the post who have developed post moves. Everyone wants to shoot the three, but he’s got post moves and he continues to develop other skills.

“I think Matt’s best basketball is in front of him. Two or three years down the road, I think you’re going to see something special.”

Heldt officially signed with Marquette in mid-November. He joins a Marquette 2015-16 recruiting class that is ranked among the nation’s top 10. It is led by Rice Lake’s Henry Ellenson, who scored 48 points Saturday in a 91-82 loss to Minnetonka (Minn.).

“When I started high school, I never thought I’d end up at Marquette,” Heldt said on his signing day. “I wasn’t thinking Division 1. But then I really started to improve and started thinking, maybe I can play somewhere.”

Heldt doesn’t know if he’ll be redshirted his freshman season, and could battle former Germantown star Luke Fischer, a transfer from Indiana, for playing time in the post.

“It’s all going to depend on practice, that’s when players earn their game minutes,” said Heldt. “I’ll give my best and I’m just going to be happy being a part of the team. I need to get stronger, and I need to be more consistent in the post and with my outside shooting.”

Heldt and the Rockets will have their home opener Friday, when always-tough Kimberly comes to town for a big 7:30 p.m. game.

Scales transfers back to Oak Park

Heldt lost some inside help recently when highly touted forward Rodney Scales decided to transfer back to Oak Park High School near Detroit.

The 6-foot-7 Scales scored two points in the Rockets’ 64-34 season-opening win over Peoria (Ill.) Notre Dame, before choosing to return to his previous school. He is considered to be an extremely talented player.

Scales actually made a much bigger contribution at Neenah in football. He was a starting receiver and caught 19 passes for 317 yards and two touchdowns while helping the Rockets to a 6-4 record.

“He just decided to go back to his old school,” Bork told Wissports.net. “I’m hoping he will be OK. Our guys are doing well. They are disappointed and worried about (Scales), but as a team, we’ll be fine.”

Neenah girls’ basketball team starts fast

Speaking of hoops, the Neenah girls’ basketball team is off to a terrific start.

Coach Andy Braunel’s Rockets take a 5-0 record (2-0 FVA) into Friday night’s 7:15 p.m. conference clash with league favorite Kimberly.

Dating back to last February, the Rockets have won 14 of their last 16 games. Among the wins was a 55-46 victory over Oshkosh West on Dec. 2 — Neenah’s first victory over the Wildcats in Oshkosh since 1997.

Bluejays receive top honors in Bay

Menasha landed two of the top honors on the all-Bay Conference football team. Playmaking quarterback Tyler Johnson was named as the Bay’s offensive player of the year, while defensive end Austin Behm was selected as the defensive player of the year and defensive lineman of the year.

Menasha running back Matt Rohde, tight end Zac Hawn, wide receiver Emanuel Jenkins and offensive lineman Angel Figueroa were first-team, all-Bay picks on offense along with Johnson. Defensive lineman Will Valle-Fuentes and Behm, linebacker Isaac Erdmann and Jon Smolinski and defensive back Kelvin Medrano were first-team picks on defense for the Bluejays.

Meanwhile, three Neenah players were first-team picks on the all-Valley Football Association-South football team. The Rockets’ Rob Pavletich was a first-team choice at offensive tackle, while cornerback Trevor Entwisle and linebacker Zack Gruett were first-team choices on defense.

Neenah’s Gritton lands high honor

Neenah native Thomas Gritton, a senior defender for St. Norbert College, has been named to the second team of the Capital One Division III Men’s Soccer Academic All-America team, presented by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

To be eligible for national or regional selection, a student-athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve, maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.30, and be nominated by his sports information director. The Academic All-America team is selected after All-District teams are picked from eight geographic regions nationally.

Gritton played in 13 matches this season for the Green Knights, and had one goal and one assist for three points. A second-team all-Midwest Conference selection, he was a two-year captain and played in 66 career matches. Gritton holds a 3.92 grade point average while majoring in economics and math.

Neenah to host wrestling tourney Saturday

The Ron Einerson Fieldhouse figures to be a busy place Saturday, as the annual Neenah Invitational wrestling tournament will be held.

Action in the multi-team event starts at 9:30 a.m. D.C. Everest, Denmark, Manitowoc, Marshfield, Pulaski, Racine Horlick and Waukesha West are among the schools entered.

— Tim Froberg: 920-993-1000, ext. 423, or tfroberg@postcrescent.com; on Twitter@twfroberg