Sports

It’s time for a new streak.

That’s how Middleton’s boys cross country team views the upcoming season.

The Cardinals reached 11 straight WIAA Division 1 state tournaments between 2013-2023 before falling short the last two years. When Middleton begins its new season Saturday at the 24-team Arrowhead Night Classic, the Cardinals believe they have the makings for a special year.

“Last year we climbed as high as 10th in the state rankings, but I believe this group has a higher ceiling,” Middleton veteran coach Brian Finnel said. “We have a stronger front end, more depth competing for varsity spots, and a group that is extremely hungry after missing the state meet last year.

“Despite having another very challenging sectional alignment, I'm extremely optimistic about our prospects. There is a lot of talent on this team, and I think we have the pieces to put together a special season.”

The challenges will be immense.

The tests will be grueling.

But Middleton’s girls cross country team is ready for the trials that lie ahead.

One year after the Cardinals reached the state tournament for the first time since 2022, they’re excited to try doing it again.

Middleton took some big hits in graduation, but returns a deep and gifted group that will have big goals again.

The Cardinals begin their new season at the 24-team Arrowhead Night Classic Saturday.

“We’re going to be a good team with the depth, talent and, most importantly, work ethic we’ve demonstrated within the first week of the season,” Middleton co-coach Kelly Julian said. “Don’t sleep on us.”

Sleeping on the Cardinals, of course, is a fool’s errand.

The past decade has seen Big Eight Conference football fall off a cliff.

Soccer, on the other hand, has never been healthier.

The Big Eight Conference has produced the last four WIAA Division 1 state champions, with Middleton winning titles in 2023 and 2024. And 2026 could be more of the same.

Middleton enters the year ranked No. 6 by Wisconsinsoccerscene. Defending state champ Madison West is No. 1, while Verona and Madison La Follette figure to be formidable.

And when the state tournament rolls around in early November, a Big Eight school could once again be in the hunt for a gold ball.

“Our sectional has proven to be the best in the state giving us the last four state champs,” said Middleton coach Kevin Pauls, whose team opens its new season Thursday at Stillwater (Minn.). “So we like our chances.”

Middleton’s girls swimming and diving team, which has won three straight WIAA Division 1 state championships, opened their new season in style last week.

The Cardinals rolled past Sun Prairie West, 138-32, on Aug. 21. Middleton then won the DeForest Invite on Aug. 22.

Here’s a recap of those two events:

MIDDLETON 138, SUN PRAIRIE WEST 32

The Cardinals notched top three finishes in 11 of 12 events and rolled past the host Wolves.

Middleton’s 200-yard medley relay team of junior Tae Martin, senior Rian Jost, senior Brynn Sundell and senior Kayley Burt finished first. The quartet of sophomore Addy Hynes, junior Helen Machleidt, junior Addi Haack and senior Marie Schnurr were second, while the foursome of senior Norah Ebert, junior Gianna Gabert, junior Abby Pralat and junior Sabrina Bartlett finished third.

ASHTON — Go the distance.

That was the mantra driving Ashton right-hander Treyden Hewuse on a sun-splashed late summer afternoon at the Home Talent League’s own ‘Field of Dreams.’

Hewuse, the ace of the A’s staff, picked the perfect time to throw arguably his finest game of the year.

Hewuse tossed a three-hit shutout, finishing his 131-pitch outing with a flourish as host Ashton blanked Pine Bluff/Mount Horeb, 2-0, in an HTL championship tournament quarterfinal game on Sunday afternoon.

“That was more than I thought,” Hewuse said of his final pitch count. “That is definitely the longest I’ve gone. It’s my first complete game this year, so I’m glad it was on the big stage.”

Shortstop Keegan Fleischman’s RBI single in the third inning was all the offense that Hewuse needed.

Third baseman Dylan Carrington’s solo home run in the sixth inning added a welcome insurance run to help Hewuse keep the Bluffers at bay.

MENOMONEE FALLS — Middleton girls golf coach Becky Halverson called it a “learning process.”

After years of fielding one of the state’s top teams, it could take some time for the 2026 Cardinals to gel.

That was evident last week when Middleton finished in 13^th place at the Brookfield Central/Menomonee Falls Invite held Aug. 17-18. The first day of the tournament was played at Dretzka Park in Milwaukee and the second day was held at Wanaki Golf Course in Menomonee Falls.

Three-time defending state champion DSHA won the meet with a 610, while Bay Port (643) and Homestead (651) were second and third. Middleton was 13^th at the 29-team tournament with a 689.

Middleton’s girls tennis team opened ITS season winning three of four matches at the Madison Memorial Invite on Aug. 21 and 22.

Here’s a recap of the Cardinals’ performance.

• Middleton 4, Homestead 3 — The Cardinals won two of three doubles matches and two of four on the singles side and edged the Highlanders.

Middleton’s No. 2 doubles team of junior Ava Giles and freshman Elodie Sabat posted a straight sets win, while the No. 3 team of sophomores Grace Mayer and Zoe Baumgard also earned a win in straight sets.

In singles play, Middleton got straight set wins from No. 3 Nithya Uppala and No. 4 Rebecca Zhang.

• Arrowhead 6, Middleton 1 — The mighty Warhawks, who have won two of the last four WIAA Division 1 state titles, and were second another year, rolled past the Cardinals.

Middleton’s lone win came at No. 4 doubles where Zhang posted a 6-1, 7-6 (4) victory.

Carter Parks, Middleton’s brilliant junior tight end, turned toward the scoreboard at Otto Breitenbach Stadium on Aug. 20 and said, “we need to flush this.”

Parks began to point for effect when he noticed the score had already been removed.

There was a good reason for that.

It was Ugly, with a capital U.

Visiting Bay Port scored touchdowns on six of its seven first half possessions, established a running clock to open the second half and routed the host Cardinals, 56-15, in the season-opener for both teams.

It marked the first time since 2012 Middleton was on the wrong end of a running clock and just the third time this century the Cardinals experienced a running clock. It was also Middleton’s most lopsided loss in at least 30 years and the second-most points the Cardinals allowed in a game this century.

“I mean, there’s no sugarcoating this,” Middleton co-coach Tim Simon said.

No, there wasn’t.

MENOMONEE FALLS — Becky Halverson is busy by nature.

Halverson is the head golf professional and event coordinator at Pleasant View Golf Course. She coaches Middleton’s girls golf team, and she’s working toward obtaining her PGA Class A golf certification.

Last week, Halverson was thrilled to be harried because it left little time to fret.

Halverson interviewed for Middleton’s head boys coaching position on Aug. 11, then waited a few days for the final verdict.

Much to Halverson’s delight, she was offered the position on Aug. 14 and quickly accepted. She replaces longtime MHS coach Tom Cabalka, who retired after leading the Cardinals to a WIAA Division 1 state championship in June.

“I mean, I'm definitely honored,” Halverson said. “I definitely didn't know for sure that it was going to happen. I knew I would have to go through the process, and I knew a lot of people spoke on my behalf, but you never know.”

Resiliency.

Toughness.

Grit.

Middleton might have lost its 2025 season opener at Bay Port, 39-36, last season. But the Cardinals showed all three qualities in defeat.

Middleton trailed the mighty Pirates, 39-14, midway through the fourth quarter, but battled back within a field goal and fell, 39-36. Bay Port went on to play in the WIAA Division 1 state championship game, while the Cardinals eventually won the Big Eight Conference for the first time in a decade and went 9-2 overall.

Middleton’s refusal to throw in the towel and make things interesting against a championship-level program like Bay Port was key to its eventual success last season.