Sports

‘The Streak’ — which dates back more than 13 years now — was in danger.

Middleton’s boys volleyball team, which hasn't lost a Big Eight Conference match since Sept. 29, 2011, trailed host Madison Memorial, 2-0, on Sept. 30.

But the Cardinals did what they so often do — they rallied back and posted an incredibly impressive win.

Middleton overcame a sluggish start and surged back to capture a 23-25, 22-25, 25-23, 25-20, 15-12 win over the Spartans.

In the process, the Cardinals kept alive one of the most impressive streaks in state history — regardless of sport.

"This was a good test for us,” Middleton coach Dylan Griffith said. “We played in a tough environment with a loud crowd and the other team gunning for us. Starting down 0-2 in a best of five match is tremendously tough to do for anyone.

They broke five meet records.

They won 10 of 11 events.

And Middleton’s girls swimming team put on a show in cruising to first place at the Cardinal Relays held last Saturday at MHS.

Middleton finished first with 268 points, while Verona was second with 202. Madison West (150), Madison Memorial (89) and Sun Prairie East (81) rounded out the top five at the 11-team invite.

“Our team swam very well at the Cardinal Relays,” Middleton coach R.J. Leiferman said.

Middleton’s foursome of Tae Martin, Helen Machleidt, Brynn Sundell and Clara Kiehl won the 200-yard medley relay, while the Cardinals’ foursome of Tabitha Kuhl, Gianna Gabert, Aoife Ryan-Kaiser and Anna Dart was fifth.

Middleton’s 800-yard freestyle relay team of Abigail Frommelt, Audrey Alexander, Poppy Sickler and Jane Garlock was first, while the team of Lydia Keebler, Ellie Wolf, Olivia Rashid and Hannah Machleidt was third.

Verona’s girls tennis team edged Middleton for the Big Eight Conference title on Sept. 30-Oct. 1.

The Wildcats finished with 48 points, while the Cardinals were a close second with 46. Madison West (34), Sun Prairie West (26) and Madison Memorial (17) rounded out the top five.

Here’s how the Cardinals fared at all seven flights.

SINGLES

No. 1 — Middleton’s Lydia Sabat reached the championship match before losing to Verona’s McKenna Thorson, 6-0, 6-1.

Sabat had a straight set victory over Sun Prairie East’s Brenna Stampf in the quarterfinals, then edged Janesville Craig’s Rya Arreazola in the semifinals, 1-6, 6-2, 10-8.

No. 2 — Middleton’s Sophia Pientka reached the championship match, but lost to Verona’s Naisha Nagpal, 6-2, 6-1.

Pientka reached the title match with straight set wins over players from Janesville Craig and Sun Prairie West.

The postseason is approaching quickly.

And Middleton’s boys soccer team is putting itself in position for a top seed and a chance to make a run at back-to-back state titles.

The Cardinals had another big week, rolling past Sun Prairie East, 4-0, on Oct. 1 and downing Kettle Moraine, 7-0, on Oct. 5.

Middleton, ranked No. 3 in Division 1, improved to 13-3 and is 6-1 in the Big Eight Conference.

“Another good week in the books,” Middleton coach Kevin Pauls said. “It was nice to only have two games. We got in three regular practices which hasn't happened in a long time.

“Overall a good week. I thought we played well in both games and controlled things.”

Here’s a recap of Middleton’s week:

• Middleton 4, Sun Prairie East 0 — Jimmy Murphy had a pair of goals, and Tony Murphy had a goal and an assist. Riley Kann also added a goal as Middleton cruised.

The postseason is creeping closer.

And Middleton’s girls volleyball team continues to get better and better.

The Cardinals went to the Badger Invitational held at Badger High School on Sept. 28 and won the championship.

Middleton went 5-0 on the day and defeated Big Foot, 25-10, 25-19, in the championship match.

“We saw some teams we haven't seen before and played some solid volleyball throughout the day,” Middleton coach Ben White said.

The Cardinals opened with a 25-12, 25-17 win over Fort Atkinson, then defeated Big Foot, 25-18, 25-18.

Middleton followed with a 25-23, 25-18 win over Elkhorn, then toppled Clinton in the semifinals, 25-20, 25-7.

In the championship, Middleton downed Big Foot 25-10, 25-19.

“We continued to get better and really started to click at the end of the first set vs. Clinton in the semifinals,” White said. “We kept that going through set 2 vs. Clinton and in the championship vs Big Foot.”

Middleton’s football team has made the postseason every year since 1996 — a remarkable string of 27 straight seasons.

That’s tied with Hartland Arrowhead for the most consecutive playoff appearances.

When the Cardinals started the season 3-3, though, that streak appeared to be in some danger.

Fortunately for the Cardinals, a soft schedule down the stretch was just what the doctor ordered.

Middleton hosted Madison East on a rare Saturday afternoon game and routed the Purgolders, 70-8. The Cardinals improved to 4-3 overall and 3-2 in the Big Eight Conference, while East fell to 0-7, 0-5.

The game was played Saturday due to the Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah.

Middleton raced to a 35-0 lead, had a running clock throughout the second half and posted a runaway win.

Iron sharpens iron.

It’s a philosophy Middleton boys soccer coach Kevin Pauls full embraces.

That’s why Pauls and the Cardinals — who are the defending WIAA Division 1 champions — set up a daunting schedule every season.

Last week, that meant the No. 4 Cardinals ventured to the star-studded Great River Classic in Bettendorf, Iowa. And Middleton played extremely well all weekend, going 2-1 against some of the top teams in the Midwest.

Middleton also defeated Madison East, 3-2, on Sept. 24, making it a week Pauls and his Cardinals were awfully happy with.

“I'll take a 3-1 week, given one was a conference opponent in East and one was (a win) over the top team in Illinois,” Pauls said. “We will continue to work and get better as we push to the post season just a couple weeks away.”

Here’s a recap of the Cardinals’ week.

GREAT RIVER CLASSIC

VERONA – Take away a three-minute stretch and there was little difference between the Verona and Middleton High School football teams during their Big Eight Conference battle last Friday.

Unfortunately that small stretch made all the difference.

Locked in a scoreless duel deep into the second quarter, things quickly turned in Verona’s favor. The Wildcats scored a pair of touchdowns in a 63-second stretch late in the first half.

Tre Poteat, Verona’s star defensive back, then returned the second half kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown and a commanding 21-0 lead.

Verona leaned on its defense the rest of the way and held on for a 21-7 victory over the Cardinals.

“I’m disappointed in the score, but I thought the effort was good,” Middleton co-coach Tim Simon said. “We didn’t make a lot of mistakes, but just enough where that shows.”

The top boys volleyball teams in Wisconsin were present.

The elite players in the state were on hand.

Middleton hosted the Cardinal Invite last Saturday, a star-studded tournament featuring the top-five teams in the state.

In many ways, this tournament could be a preview of next month’s state tournament. And that could be good news for Middleton.

The third-ranked Cardinals went 4-1 on the day and fell to No. 1 Sussex Hamilton, in the championship match, 18-25, 25-22, 15-13. The Chargers went on to sweep Kimberly in the championship match, while there was no third place match.

“On the day I was super impressed by the level of play and you certainly can't complain about playing the best competition in the state all day,” Middleton coach Dylan Griffith said. “I'm super proud of the guys for how they competed throughout the tournament, but certainly there's always more things to work on.”

The WIAA Division 1 state meet isn't until Nov. 2.

A case could certainly be made, though, the real state meet takes place every year at the Midwest Invite in Janesville.

Middleton’s boys had a solid showing at the event, finishing 14^th out of 52 teams. Amazingly, 14 of the state’s top 20 teams were on hand, as well as several standout teams from Illinois.

“Needless to say, this was an extremely deep field this year, definitely the best I have ever seen,” Middleton coach Brian Finnel said. “Honestly, I was hoping for a sixth to ninth place finish for us.”

Green Bay Preble won the event with 178 points, while Brookfield East (196) was second. Middleton finished with 382 points.

Verona and Madison West — two teams that will be in Middleton’s sectional later this month — were fourth and 10^th, respectively.