Sports

There were no surprises.

Nothing shocking or astonishing.

Middleton’s girls tennis team simply did what it's done all season long — and that’s dominate the Big Eight Conference.

The Cardinals went to the two-day conference tournament inside Nielsen Tennis Stadium last Tuesday and Wednesday and rolled to an easy win. Middleton finished with 50 points to easily outdistance runner-up Madison West (32).

The Cardinals also won the conference’s dual meet title with a perfect 9-0 mark.

Middleton head coach Deke Bradley declined when asked to comment. The victorious Cardinals, though, were understandbly giddy.

“Winning conference was awesome,” Middleton junior Abbey Webber said. “I was really proud of every girl on the team. We all worked really hard this season and it really paid off.”

That’s for sure.

Middleton’s doubles teams stole the show, winning championships at all three flights.

A couple of early turnovers and a quick deficit might have rattled a lesser team.

But as it has throughout the season, Middleton’s football team showed its resilience. The Cardinals overcame those foibles and bounced back for an impressive 28-7 Big Eight Conference victory over Madison West at Mansfield Stadium Thursday night.

“We knew that it was going to be a heck of a game, but we were a little sluggish to start,” Middleton coach Tim Simon said.  “We had a couple turnovers in the first quarter, but then we got things clicking a little bit. The defense held and gave us good field position and the offense was able to move the chains and got us a few scores.”

Middleton improved to 6-1 in the league and is now tied with Janesville Craig atop the conference standings. West dropped to 4-3.

The bad news for Middleton’s girls golf team is they allowed a six-shot lead dissipate over the final six holes.

The good news for the Cardinals is it happened Wednesday, and not later this month.

Middleton finished second at the WIAA Division 1 Madison West Regional Wednesday. Verona won the meet with a 331-team score, while the Cardinals were second at 332.

Both teams advanced to Tuesday’s Middleton Sectional at Pleasant View Golf Course beginning at 9 a.m. Madison Memorial (342) and Waunakee (365) also advanced to sectionals.

“It was a good day for us,” Middleton coach Becky Halverson said. “It just wasn’t a great day.”

Middleton appeared headed toward greatness much of the day.

The Cardinals shot 161 on the front nine to Verona’s 162. And Middleton’s lead grew to six shots after 12 holes.

But the Cardinals struggled on holes 14, 15 and 16 and Verona took the lead. Middleton never could get it back.

Middleton’s boys and girls cross country teams have been models of consistency for years now.

They’ve been dominant forces in the Big Eight Conference. They’ve shined in the postseason and been staples at the state meet.

But the 2014 Cardinals might be poised for their greatest levels of success in quite some time. Last Saturday’s star-studded Midwest Invitational seems to be proof of that.

In the premier cross country event of the year, both of Middleton’s teams put on a show.

The Cardinals’ girls were second out of 30 teams, while Middleton’s boys were third out 37 teams. As good as Middleton’s programs have been, neither gender had cracked the top-three at this event since at least 2008.

“Finishing second and third at this meet is a huge deal,” Middleton co-coach Isaac Mezera said.

That’s for sure.

Green and growing.

Young and improving.

That’s the story for Middleton’s girls swimming team this fall. And the talented Cardinals took a big step in the right direction last Tuesday.

Middleton overcame fatigue from a busy schedule and edged upstart Madison Memorial, 86-84.

“I'd say this was our best earned win of the season,” Middleton coach Lauren Cabalka said. “All factors considered, the girls fought hard for this win and I am extremely proud of the way they finished this five-day stretch. 

“I think this meet reaffirmed that we are not a team to be overlooked in the Big Eight Conference. This is proving to be one of the tightest races to the end and we are very excited to be a part of it.”

In a five day stretch, Middleton had a pair of conference dual meets and competed in the ultra-competitive Waukesha South Invite. But the Cardinals had just enough left in their collective tank to edge the Spartans.

Ben Kollasch will head to the postseason soccer meeting on Monday.

And Middleton’s boys soccer coach will do so amid far more uncertainty than existed two short weeks ago.

Kollasch’s Cardinals fell to Madison West, 2-1, last Tuesday. The loss dropped the Cardinals into a third place tie in the Big Eight Conference.

Middleton, which had climbed as high as No. 2 in the Wisconsin Soccer Coaches Association poll, is now 0-3-1 in its last four games. And the Cardinals’ postseason seed is likely to be much lower than many predicted two weeks ago.

“We have had a slump here in the last two weeks or so, but the guys are refocusing and healing up nagging injuries,” said Kollasch, whose team is 9-3-2 overall. “We are a team that can play with any in the state, so no one should count us out of the postseason.”

MADISON — Friday couldn't arrive soon enough.

That’s how each and every member of Middleton’s football team felt this week.

The Cardinals were coming off their first loss of the season, a humbling setback in Sun Prairie on Sept. 19. And Middleton couldn’t wait to make amends.

“We had such enthusiasm from Monday on,” Cardinals quarterback Kellan Schulz said. “Everyone couldn’t wait to get back out there and get things turned around.”

Middleton did exactly that. And Madison Memorial paid the price.

The Cardinals rebounded in a big way, rolling past the host Spartans, 30-8, at Mansfield Stadium.

Middleton improved to 5-1 and now sits in a three-way tie atop the conference with Madison La Follette and Janesville Craig. Memorial fell to 2-4 and had its Homecoming game spoiled.

There is going to be pain each and every round.

This much Loren Skibba knows.

But when there’s gain, the discomfort can quickly be forgotten. And Wednesday was certainly one of those days for Skibba, Middleton’s brilliant junior golfer.

Skibba had a day to remember at the Big Eight Conference meet held at Evansville Golf Club. Skibba, who has battled back pain all season, shot a 3-over-par 75 and won the individual championship.

Skibba’s big day helped Middleton finish second to Verona for the team title. The Wildcats shot a 322, while the Cardinals fired a 331 and Janesville Parker was a distant third at 364.

“I couldn’t be happier for Loren winning the individual title,” Middleton coach Becky Halverson said. “She has worked so hard and her confidence has come a long way. 

The song remains the same. And it’s one Middleton’s girls tennis team is thrilled to keep singing.

The Cardinals wrapped up another Big Eight Conference dual meet championship on Tuesday following a 7-0 win over Janesville Craig. Middleton finished the conference season 9-0 in dual meets and went a remarkable 61-2 in those matches.

“I'm glad we were able to win conference again,” Middleton senior Emily Oberwetter said. “At the beginning of the season there was some uncertainty on how we would match up with some of the other teams since we had so many players graduate last year.

“But after our first couple of matches it became fairly clear that we would still be able to come out on top of our conference. I think it was especially a great experience for the new members on the team to be a part of a team this strong.”

Kaisey Skibba, Middleton’s No. 1 singles player, agreed.

Adversity is something that strikes every team in every sport.

The great ones find a way to battle through various difficulties. The others fade to black.

Middleton’s boys volleyball team was struck with more misfortune last week than most teams encounter. The Cardinals learned standout senior outside hitter Nolan Schoonveld would be lost for the year with a knee injury.

But Middleton refused to feel sorry for itself. The Cardinals rolled past Madison La Follette last Tuesday, then had an extremely impressive second place finish at the Wauwatosa East Invite last Saturday.

“I can’t wait to see what these guys can do for the rest of the year,” Middleton coach Ben White said. “We had a couple of guys completely new to playing and they more than held their own.