Mike Ferron doesn't have any real regrets in deciding to attend UW-Stevens Point.

Ferron, who grew up in Racine, said living in a smaller, slower-paced city suits him well.

"I'm happy where I'm at," Ferron said. "Stevens Point is nice. It's peaceful. It's kind of relaxing. I like it."

Yet, as content as Ferron is being at Stevens Point, he'll candidly acknowledge it wouldn't have been the first place for him to matriculate and play football.

After a standout high school career at Horlick, Ferron had dreams of playing on a bigger stage in college.

"I wanted to be on the big screen," Ferron said. "I wanted to go to a Division I or Division II school. But I had to go to a junior college. I thought junior college would be easy, but it wasn't that easy."

Ferron first attended Mesabi (Minn.) Community College and then Rochester (Minn.) Community and Technical College before winding up at Stevens Point, where he is working on a degree in health wellness and excelling on the football field.

After five games, Ferron has emerged as one of the best runners in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The 5-foot-8, 215-pound Ferron has rushed for 662 yards, fourth-most in the WIAC.

Ferron's most impressive game was two weeks ago, when he scored two touchdowns in a 199-yard rushing performance in the Pointers' 45-42 victory over UW-River Falls.

Thanks to Ferron's contributions, Stevens Point is tied with Whitewater for first place in the WIAC at 2-0. The Pointers are 5-0 overall, the only unbeaten WIAC team.

While Ferron has posted some sterling numbers, he cares more about two letters: W and L.

"My goal is to help my team win every game and go undefeated in conference and try to get into the playoffs," Ferron said. "I don't care about how many yards I get as long as we win."

Andersen gets defensive

The Ripon Red Hawks are in contention for the Midwest Conference championship, and one of the major reasons is the impressive play of linebacker Ryan Andersen.

The former St. Catherine's High School standout is the leader of the Red Hawks' fine defense, which has allowed 10 or fewer points in three games this season.

Andersen, a sophomore who plays weakside linebacker, has 58 tackles this season, the sixth-most by any player in the Midwest Conference. He also has one interception. Ripon coach Ron Ernst raved about Andersen's development and performance.

"I would have to say he's our best linebacker," said Ernst, whose team is 4-2 overall and 4-1 in the MC. "Ryans's very quick and he's very intelligent. We're very pleased with him."

- Andersen isn't the only person on the Red Hawks' roster who has Racine ties. Ken Piaro, the former Case High athletic director, is the Red Hawks' defensive line coach.

Piaro, who is retired after working 32 years for Racine Unified, is in his second season with the Red Hawks.

"We've known each other for several years and he said after he retired (from Unified) he'd like to coach here," Ernst said. "He's been a great addition."

Berkley beats the odds

When Amanda Berkley left Park High School to attend the University of Wisconsin, she hoped to continue playing soccer. But when that didn't pan out, Berkley decided to try out for volleyball, her secondary sport in high school. To the amazement of many in the program, Berkley not only made the team, but became a starter.

"She's a pretty amazing player," Badgers coach Pete Waite said. "She didn't play club volleyball in high school; she was really into soccer. Most of our players just play volleyball (year-round) through high school, so for her to make our team was unique."

Berkley made such a favorable impression on Waite that after her freshman year she was awarded a scholarship. Berkley, now a senior, plays on the back row on the right side and has helped the Badgers to 14-1 overall and 6-0 Big Ten Conference record.

The 5-foot-5 Berkley has a team-high 17 services aces, which ranks her seventh overall in the Big Ten.

Berkley also came up big Saturday night when the ninth-ranked Badgers beat Indiana 30-17, 33-31, 30-16 before 7,074 at the Field House in Madison.

In that game, Berkley had a team-high nine digs.

"She's really fearless in the backcourt and isn't afraid to stick her nose into the thick of things," Waite said of Berkley, whose major is kinesiology/physical education with a health certificate. "She's been a big part of our team not only because of her skills, but also because of her personality. She's a special kid."

Kuiper in select company

Former Case High School standout Emily Kuiper, a sophomore at UW-Whitewater, tied for 10th in the recent Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships held Oct. 6-7 at Windwood Golf Course.

Kuiper had rounds of 87 and 82 to lead the Warhawks to a 690 team total and third place in the WIAC Championships.

Meghan Sobotta of Eau Claire won medalist honors with a 159 (80-79) and UW-Stevens Point won the team championship at 656.

Wisconsin's D'Alie honored

Rae Lin D'Alie, the former Waterford High School star who led the Wisconsin women's basketball team to a school-record 32 wins last season, was chosen the Italian Athlete of the Year by the Italian Workmen's Club of Madison.

D'Alie was honored at dinner Saturday night in Madison.