December 2012

The city's municipal courthouse will be closed tomorrow as citizens brace for what is expected to be a major storm. "Due to the threat of inclement weather conditions and for the safety of citizens and employees, the Middleton Municipal Court will be closed tomorrow, December 20, 2012," said a statement from the court.

All initial court appearances and meetings with the pity prosecutor scheduled for December 20, 2012, will be rescheduled. Those with new dates will be notified by mail, according to the court.

VERONA — The fall was nasty, unnecessary, and borderline dirty.

Whether or not it derails Middleton’s season remains to be seen.

The Cardinals notched an impressive 62-51 win at Verona last Thursday. But it came with a price.

Late in the first half, Cardinals standout guard Derek Rongstad had a steal and was heading in for a breakaway layup. Verona’s Scott Ndobegang undercut Rongstad, though, causing him to take a nasty spill.

Rongstad used his left hand to break the fall, but instead broke a bone in that same hand. The injury will sideline him until at least mid-January.

Amazingly, the three-man officiating crew elected not to call a foul.

“It was an emotional game and that play certainly set the tone,” Cardinals coach Kevin Bavery said. “But there are a lot of times in life where you need to take the high road.

“We didn’t get the call and guys were mad. But we just have to play above that.”

Middleton did exactly that.

Welcome back!

That’s what Middleton’s girls basketball team was singing from the top of its collective lungs after destroying Madison East, 56-28, last Friday.

The Cardinals were giddy to welcome back preseason all-state forward Liz McMahon. McMahon missed the first month of the season with a broken finger, but made her debut a memorable one with a game-high 18 points.

“It's very good to have Liz back,” Cardinals coach Jeff Kind said. “She gives us some added scoring and opens things up for us on offense just by being a threat to score.”

Middleton improved to 3-2 overall and 3-1 in the Big Eight Conference. The Cardinals are in a three-way tie for second place in the league, one game behind Janesville Parker.

But with McMahon back, Middleton has a chance to become the kind of team Kind envisioned before he lost his best player.

It was another terrific week for Middleton’s wrestling team.

The Cardinals took a big step towards winning the Big Eight Conference with a 45-24 win at Janesville Craig last Tuesday.

The Cardinals then finished third at the 13-team Appleton West Invite last Saturday. Appleton North and Little Chute won the tournament with 198 points each, while Middleton was a close third (195.5).

“We did really well,” Middleton coach Kent Weiler said. “But we also didn’t go all that way to lose. We knew it was pretty close.”

Middleton senior Jake Cain improved to 18-0 on the season by winning another championship at 138 pounds. Taggart Haase also finished first at 170 pounds, while Wyatt Cory was third at 195. Brett Cain (113), Grant Laurent (152) and Lon Yeary (220) all finished fourth.

Jake Cain had a memorable day, pinning all five of his opponents. Cain was also named ‘Outstanding Wrestler’ of the tournament.