Stillwater Area High School senior Joe Hoheisel was awarded the 12th annual Ponies Touchdown Club Scholarship. The award ceremony took place on Monday, May 6, 2024 in the auditorium. Hoheisel received an individual award and his name will be engraved on a plaque which hangs in the athletic hallway. Previous recipients include Aaron Romportl (2013), Jake Olson (2014), Nick Johnson (2015), Kevin Jones (2016 four-year) and Josh Wille (2016 two-year), Ben Peterson (2017), Charlie Richman (2018 four-year) and Carl Tomlinson (2018 two-year), Will Gleason (2019), Trey Kruse (2020), Ian Hanlon (2021), Austin Buck (2022), and Tom Blair (2023). In 12 years, the PTC has awarded $14,000 to college-bound alumni.

The Ponies Touchdown Club Scholarship, created in 2012, recognizes superior, holistic achievement as a student-athlete with special emphasis placed on contribution to the Stillwater Ponies football program.

First, the student-athlete is regarded as someone who invested thoroughly in academics, athletics and activities, and community service. The recipient is well-rounded, and has gained a diverse, co-curricular education. The recipient shares their time and talent generously and believes “giving is receiving.”

Second, the student-athlete has made a significant impact on the football program while using the experience to become a better person. The player promoted, influenced, and furthered the objectives of the program, which include having fun, growing as a person, representing our school and community with class, and helping us become the best team possible. The Ponies Touchdown Club Scholarship recipient is an ideal representative of the Stillwater Ponies football program.

Hoheisel became an impact player from his first varsity play - the first offensive play of the 2021 season. Junior quarterback Max Shikenjanski connected with Hoheisel, a sophomore wide receiver, for a 39-yard completion. The first of what would be a career school record of 111 receptions to go with a school record for catches in a season (56 in 2023).

“The moment was never too big for Joe,” said Ponies Head Coach Beau LaBore. “For three years Joe used a combination of size, speed, and reliable hands to make a lot of plays.”

The Ponies have enjoyed success with the Class of 2024 seniors and Hoheisel, including three sub-district championships and two section championships. The experience has been profound for Hoheisel.

“Football affected me in a way no other activity made me think twice about,” Hoheisel said. “This thing I’m mentioning is the appreciation for a sense of community. Whether that's through giving back to the people who are in it, or having a whole group of guys working towards the same objective, or even all the people coming together to watch and support each other. All these facets of a community football generates formulated my comprehension of how irreplaceable it is to experience that bond between so many people.”

Hoheisel was a two-time All-District performer and earned Academic All-State honors, just one of 18 players state-wide in Class 6A to do so. Hoheisel, who will attend Creighton University this fall, accumulated a 4.0 GPA while taking a some of the most challenging classes at SAHS including Human Anatomy and Medical Terminology, AP Geography, AP Calculus, AP Psychology, AP Microeconomics, AP Statistics, and CIS Human Physiology.

Hoheisel was also awarded the Coach Wes Windmiller Scholarship, which is dedicated to a graduating basketball player. Off the field he served others through the Pony Youth Camp, VAA Football, Adaptive Football Day, the food drive, Tackle Cancer, and more.

“The accumulation of all these enlightening lessons and experiences football has allowed me means a great deal because it inspires me to continue the excellence of what an athlete, student, friend, brother, and son looks like,” said Hoheisel.

Other Ponies football players earning scholarships include John Halley, Luke Mace, Zach Nelson, Ethan Stabenow, Shawn Stephens, Cameron Winters, and Sam Young.

Each year, Ponies Football kicks off the season with a spring meeting. This year, we will offer one meeting to our ninth grade families and another to the 10-12 grade families in the Stillwater Area High School Auditorium.

2024-2025 9th Grade Spring Meeting: Sunday, April 28 from 5:00-6:30 PM

2024-2025 10-12th Grade Spring Meeting: Sunday, April 28 from 7-8:00 PM

We look forward to seeing all current 8-11 graders in attendance with at least one parent or guardian. Reminder to all 2024 11-12 grade players, jersey selection will take place afterward.

In 2023, Stillwater repeated as sub-district champions. The Ponies went 5-0 in those games for the third year in-a-row, with each of the first four games requiring a fourth quarter comeback. For just the second time in school history, the Ponies have won four consecutive conference / sub-district championships. In 2024, the team seeks to tie the school record of five straight, strung together from 1992-1996. The Red and Black, which finished 8-3, also repeated as Class 6A Section Champions beating Rochester Mayo 49-31. The season ended in the State Quarterfinals, falling to State Runner-Up Edina, who lost to Centennial 28-27. We say goodbye to the senior class whose two-year varsity record was 17-5 while displaying Pony Pride in the classroom with a team GPA of 3.26 and almost 1,000 hours of community service. Stillwater returns experience at most positions and will be led by captains Joe Fredkove, John Karkula, Conor McGlynn, Cal Nitti, and Siwon Youn.

The Junior Varsity finished 6-1 with contributions from players in all four grades.

The sophomore team showed depth with eight players earning a varsity letter. The team still finished 5-3 overall, going 4-2 in one score games.

The Ponies freshman team won the sub-district (5-0) and finished 8-0 overall. These young men jumped all over their competition, leading by 50 points or more in five games and outsourcing the competition 50.8 to 6.6.

The vast majority of our 9-11 grade athletes participated in a winter sport or workouts with ETS via Pony Strength. The participation and accountability in the weight room was strong and contributions on the mat, floor, and ice took place all winter.

The spring brings huge sports participation by football players, primarily in track and field, baseball, and some lacrosse. An additional 15 football players are in Pony Strength under ETS Trainer and Ponies Football Assistant Coach Lucas Garbe. After the spring season, we look forward to players coming together for summer Pony Strength and Pony Camp.

Summer Pony Strength sign ups are available like other school sponsored activities via EduTrak, while Pony Camp registration takes place through Community Education. Additional information and links for registration can be found on poniesfootball.com.

The Ponies Touchdown Club is the program’s booster club. Created in 2012, it seeks to raise funds, organize events, and assist the needs of the Stillwater Ponies Football Program. The PTC, which is in its 14th year of operation, has helped transform the program in many ways.

To better understand the PTC’s impact on the program, it is important to know what the school district provides our football program.

• most of the coaching staff
• home game officials
• away game busing
• helmet reconditioning
• some equipment replacement.

Most of the rest must be procured in other ways. The PTC works to increase the safety of our players, give them the best opportunity to grow and develop away from the field, properly coach them on the gridiron, and ensure a quality experience overall.

The primary fundraiser for our program is the Pony Card sale which is conducted by the coaching staff and the players. However, additional funds are needed and have been accomplished by the PTC. The Ponies Game Day Program, All American Sponsors, memberships and some other small initiatives have accomplished far more than we can list here.

In 2023, we replaced dozens of helmets and continued cycling in new shoulder pads. Although not as many are required for replacement in 2024, this incremental process continues.

The football program has our players in excellent equipment. Participation in our limited fundraising initiatives and membership at any level by all families can ensure this tradition continues. Please support our players!

Our players and coaching staff are excited to inch closer to the 2023 season. See you at the spring meeting!