February 2025

All things considered, Kevin Bavery was a relatively happy man Sunday morning.

Bavery, the Cardinals boys basketball coach, has watched his team plummet in the last 10 days with three straight losses.

So when the WIAA announced postseason seeds, Bavery thought his team might be on the road from start to finish.

Instead, Middleton received the No. 8 seed and will host ninth-seeded Beloit Memorial in a regional semifinal on March 7.

“All I wanted was a home game,” Bavery said. “I was hoping for the (No.) 8, but I wasn’t sure the way we’ve played lately. So I’m pretty happy with it.”

Middleton is 13-10 and is tied for fifth place in the Big Eight Conference at 10-7. If the Cardinals win their playoff opener — and seeds hold — they’d head to top-seeded Kettle Moraine (23-0) for a regional final on March 8.

The sectional semifinals would be March 13 and the sectional finals are March 15.

Middleton’s girls gymnastics team finished in third place at the Big Eight Conference meet last Saturday.

Verona’s co-op won the meet with a 140.450 team score. Janesville Craig (138.20) and Middleton (133.5250) rounded out the top three.

Middleton’s Aspen Goth was second in the all-around with a 35.8250, while teammates Abby Arnold (32.850) and Ana Bollig (31.950) were 11^th and 12^th, respectively.

Goth was second on the vault with a 9.3750. Middleton also counted scores from Arnold (8.30), Aubrey Anderson (8.30) and Bollig (7.750).

Goth was fourth on the uneven bars with an 8.6250. The Cardinals also counted scores from Arnold (7.90), Anja Schmidt-Voils (7.8750) and Anderson (7.750).

Goth was fifth on the balance beam (8.80), while Middleton also counted scores from Bollig (7.8750), Schmidt-Voils (7.8750) and Arnold (7.6750).

Two down.

Does Middleton’s hockey team have more in it?

The Cardinals are halfway to state following a pair of impressive wins last week.

Middleton defeated Baraboo/Portage, 6-1, in a WIAA Division 1 regional semifinal on Feb. 18. The Cardinals then toppled Sun Prairie, 6-2, in a regional final on Feb. 20.

“I am very encouraged with how we have played in both playoff games so far,” Middleton coach Jochen Hylbert said. “I think we are peaking at the right time.”

Middleton, the No. 4 seed in the sectional, advanced to a sectional semifinal where they faced top-seeded Madison Edgewood Tuesday night. That game ended too late for inclusion in this week’s paper.

The winner of that game would face either second-seeded Verona or third-seeded Waunakee in a sectional final Saturday at 6 p.m. at Madison Ice Arena.

“Our leadership has been solid and we are staying positive,” Hylbert said. “The boys believe in themselves and their teammates.”

STEVENS POINT — The Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association, which oversees most high school sports in Wisconsin, announced on Feb. 19 that it is changing its policy regarding the participation of transgender athletes in girls sports.

"Today the WIAA Board of Control voted to update the organization’s policy regarding student-athlete eligibility — affirming its compliance with federal directives that only students designated as females at birth will be allowed to participate in girls competitions," Stephanie Hauser, executive director of the WIAA, said in a release. "Working in consultation with legal counsel, our Board updated this policy to ensure clarity is provided to our membership as they work to comply with new federal guidance from the White House."

The ruling follows similar actions taken recently by the NCAA, which adjusted its transgender student-athlete participation policy on Feb. 6.