Sports

Middleton’s boys tennis team won the Big Eight Conference dual meet championship with a perfect 9-0 record.

The Cardinals won four league matches in the past week to cap an unbeaten season in league play.

Middleton defeated Janesville Craig, 7-0, last Tuesday and rolled to a 7-0 win over Madison La Follette last Thursday. The Cardinals toppled Madison West, 5-2, last Friday and cruised past Janesville Parker, 7-0, on Monday.

In between, Middleton dropped a 6-1 decision to Brookfield East — the state’s No. 1 ranked team — last Wednesday.

The Cardinals now take aim at the conference tournament title, which was scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday at Nielsen Tennis Stadium.

“We're the front runner for conference, the favorite to win,” Middleton coach Deke Bradley said. “I think as long as we play well, we should be fine.  

VERONA — In less than a month, Middleton’s boys golfers hope to find themselves at University Ridge.

That’s where the WIAA Division 1 state tournament is held.

If the Cardinals make it through a rigorous postseason and navigate their way to state, look out.

Middleton showed the rest of the state exactly that last Wednesday and Thursday. The Cardinals shot a lights-out 598 and rolled to a 41-shot victory at the Morgan Stanley Shootout.

Cardinals senior Josh Haunty shot a 1-over-par 145 over the two-day event to earn medalist honors. Middleton sophomore Brady Thomas carded a 149 and tied for second.

The win helped Middleton jump to No. 2 in the latest Golf Coaches Association of Wisconsin poll.

“This win gives us the confidence that we can play well at the venue where it matters most,” said Cardinals senior and No. 1 golfer Josh Haunty. “But none of that matters if we don't get through our tough sectional.
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TOWN OF MERTON — Isaac Mezera celebrated his 37th birthday last Thursday. And after talking at length about what a blast 36 was, Middleton’s boys track and field coach said, “I can't wait to see what surprises 37 has in store.”

It didn't take long.

Middleton went to the Myhrum Invitational hosted by Hartland Arrowhead last Friday and gave a memorable performance.

Not only did the Cardinals win the star-studded 16-team invite, they dominated it.

Middleton won the boys title with 125.75 points. Host Arrowhead was second (68.0), Green Bay Preble (60) was third, while Mount Horeb, Fond du Lac and Mukwonago (59) all tied for fourth.

In a year where the Cardinals have become a dominant force, this might have been their best effort yet.

Tom Schmitt talked about playing spoiler.

About throwing a wrench into someone else’s season.

Perhaps Middleton’s manager was a bit premature.

Before the Cardinals hammered visiting Janesville Parker, 7-1, last Saturday, Schmitt didn’t think his team stood much of a chance at still winning the Big Eight Conference. And perhaps that will wind up being the case.

But after defeating the Vikings, the Cardinals still have hope.

Both Parker and Sun Prairie lead the league with 10-1 records, while Middleton is third at 9-3. But Sun Prairie and Parker still play each other twice, and Middleton hosts Sun Prairie May 22.

So while the Cardinals need a lot of things to break just right, their win over previously unbeaten Parker kept their slim conference title hopes alive.

“It was a lot of fun,” said Middleton manager Tom Schmitt, whose team improved to 12-4. “Especially after what they did to us down there.”

That’s for sure.

TOWN OF MERTON — The Myrhum Invitational is one of the elite track and field meets of the season.

Several standout Division 1 programs are in attendance. Some of the state’s elite athletes highlight the field.

So Middleton’s girls had to feel awfully good when the Myrhum ended last Friday night.

The Cardinals finished third at the star-studded 20-team event.

Arrowhead’s girls were first with 81.2 points. Muskego (68), Middleton (63), Milwaukee King (60) and Green Bay Preble (48) rounded out the top five.

“Friday was definitely a great night for MHS track,” Middleton coach Tara Franklin said. “The competition was incredibly tough.”

But the Cardinals were certainly up to the challenge.

Middleton’s 1,600-meter relay team of Hanna Doctor, Emily Zeker, Bobbi Patrick and Kayla Bauhs was first in 4:00.47.

Middleton girls soccer coach Mary Duffy loves to play a daunting schedule.

The way Duffy sees it, short-term pain eventually means long-term gain.

Last week, the Cardinals went through a murderer’s row and more than held their own.

Middleton toppled Verona, 2-1, and improved to 2-0 in the Big Eight Conference.

The Cardinals also split a pair of games at the Brookfield East Al Gusho Tournament. Middleton dropped a 3-0 decision to Muskego last Friday, but rebounded with a 3-0 win over Homestead last Saturday.

In the Cardinals’ win over Verona, senior forward Ellen Jesse scored on a penalty kick and sophomore defender Katya Boehnen scored late in the first half as Middleton raced to a 2-0 lead.

The Cardinals then held on due to a solid effort by senior keeper Liz McMahon (five saves).

SUN PRAIRIE — Middleton girls softball coach Cherie Hellenbrand knew there would be adversity at some point this spring.

In a two-month season packed with 22 games, there’s plenty of opportunity for difficulty.

But after taking some lumps last week, Hellenbrand remains optimistic her team has what it takes to battle back.

Middleton dropped two of three games and slipped into a third place tie in the Big Eight Conference.

Middleton defeated Janesville Craig, 11-7, last Tuesday. But the Cardinals fell to Sun Prairie, 8-7, last Wednesday and dropped a 3-0 game to Madison La Follette last Thursday.

Middleton is now 11-7 overall and 9-5 in the Big Eight Conference.

“As the season goes on we talk about never getting too high or too low,” Hellenbrand said. “You also really learn about yourself when faced with letdowns. 

Tom Schmitt was quick to admit, he wasn’t happy.

Middleton’s manager had just watched his team defeat Madison La Follette, 4-1, last Friday. But it was hardly an artistic performance.

The Cardinals left 14 runners on base. Middleton benefitted flop some sloppy Lancers defense.

And Schmitt knew if the opponent was a higher quality, his team would have been in trouble.

“No offense to (La Follette), but that’s not a state quality team,” Schmitt said of the Lancers. “We have to take some swings and get after it. We can’t have our (No.) 2, 3 and 4 hitters not producing from where they are in the lineup. There’s a lot of things we have to clean up.”

The good news for Schmitt and his Cardinals is this: although they’re not playing stellar baseball right now, they’re playing mostly winning baseball.

Middleton also split a doubleheader with Marshfield on Saturday, winning the opener 4-1 before dropping the nightcap, 10-4.

The end result isn’t what anyone wanted.

But Middleton’s girls softball team left Verona Monday evening feeling just fine about itself.

The Cardinals fell to Verona, 3-0, in a Big Eight Conference battle of heavyweights. But if the teams meet again in the postseason, Middleton is extremely optimistic the results can be reversed.

“I would definitely welcome that matchup,” Cardinals coach Cherie Hellenbrand said. “We played four games in three days, so we really didn’t have time to prepare for Verona the way we would have liked. If we have time to prepare, I think things could be different.”

Verona, the state’s No. 1 ranked team, improved to 9-1 overall and leads the Big Eight Conference at 8-0. Middleton, which sits in second place in the league at 8-3, is now 10-5 overall.

It was a perfect mid-season test.

And because it went so well, the looming final exams could be terrific, as well.

Middleton’s girls track and field team cruised to a first place finish at last Friday’s Cardinal Relays. Middleton won nine-team event with 169 points, while Sun Prairie (114.5) and Appleton North were second and third, respectively.

“Wow,” Middleton coach Tara Franklin said. “We did set out to put our very best possible relays together and it definitely shows.”

It sure did.

Middleton won 13 of 20 events and had several impressive individual performances.

Cole Jordee threw 35’ 8-1/4” and led Middleton to a first place finish in the shot put relay. Jordee also teamed with Kiara Cruz and Ciara Clay to win the discus relay.

Emily Bergum went 16’ 6-3/4” in the long jump, and teamed with Kayla Bauhs and Maygan Neisius to lead the Cardinals to victory there.