Sports

Back to back.

Middleton’s hockey team had not won consecutive Big Eight Conference championships in 14 years.

But the Cardinals ended that drought when they defeated Sun Prairie, 7-1, on Feb. 4 and captured a share of the Big Eight title.

Middleton and Verona both finished the regular season 11-1 in the Big Eight and shared the title for a second straight year.

“Overall, I am very happy with how our young men have been playing,” Middleton coach Jochen Hylbert said. “What I am most proud of is that we are a team of leaders in the classroom as well as on the ice. We have done lots of mixing this season and I think we have found some good chemistry with line combinations. We are trying our best to be a well-balanced and disciplined team.”

Middleton was all those things — and then some — against Sun Prairie.

Middleton trailed, 1-0, heading to the third period, then erupted for a remarkable seven goals in the final stanza.

Middleton’s girls gymnastics team threw a party last Saturday.

Then, the Cardinals did a lot of the celebrating.

Middleton finished second at its own nine-team invitational.

Waunakee/DeForest finished first with 133.375 points, narrowly edging the second place Cardinals (133.20). Verona/Edgewood (130.375), Oconomowoc (126.250) and Wisconsin Rapids (125.650) rounded out the top five.

“Hosting the Cardinal Invite is always one of the girls' favorite parts of the season,” Middleton coach Alexis Cairo said. “Truly, the girls just went out there and had fun. I've found that when the girls focus on having fun, they have some of their best performances.”

That was certainly the case last Saturday.

Middleton’s Aspen Goth was second in the all-around competition with a 36.0750, while Abby Arnold was fourth (33.9750) and Aubrey Halverson was 14^th (30.80).

The phone rang, and when Tom Schmitt didn’t recognize the number, he ignored the call.

It was Thanksgiving morning after all, and there were a million things to do before settling in for turkey and football.

The caller was persistent, though, and when Schmitt’s phone rang a third time, he picked up.

Boy, was he glad that he did.

On the other end was Mark Fuller, an Executive Board member with the Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association. And Fuller gave Schmitt one more reason to be thankful on that memorable Thursday, telling Middleton’s former baseball manager he had been elected to the WBCA Hall of Fame.

Schmitt will be inducted at the Madison Marriott West in Middleton on Saturday at noon.

“Well it means a lot and it means that we’ve done the right things and had a successful program,” said Schmitt, who was Middleton’s manager from 2003-2018 before retiring. “Statewide people recognize Middleton’s achievements on and off the field.

Stevenson High School  (Ill.) has one of the strongest boys swimming programs in the Midwest.

So Middleton’s WIAA Division 1 two-time defending state champion Cardinals love welcoming the Patriots to town for the Middleton Invite each year.

The way MHS views it is that Stevenson provides a terrific test before the state tournament later this month.

Consider this year’s exam aced.

Middleton won the 12-team star-studded Cardinal Invite last Saturday. Middleton finished with 422 points to outdistance Stevenson (380). Verona (311), Madison Memorial (196) and Neenah (164) rounded out the top five.

Stevenson won last year’s invite, so the Cardinals enjoyed returning the favor this time around.

The Spartan Invitational is always one of the top gymnastics tournaments of the season.

The invite features 20 total teams that are divided into two divisions. Many of the state’s best programs are in attendance. And it serves as a terrific appetizer for the state tournament in March.

Middleton showed that its ready for the postseason by posting a season-best 134.0 and winning the 10-team White Division last Saturday. Waunakee/DeForest was second with a 133.2750, while Waupun (131.050), Madison Memorial (127.3750) and Watertown (126.150) rounded out the top five.

"Wow is a great way to sum up my thoughts about this competition,” Cardinals coach Alexis Cairo said. “Historically, the Spartan Invite is always one of the most stressful competitions of the season. I am so proud of these girls.”

With good reason.

Middleton was shorthanded, missing two key varsity performers. In their stead, though, several others stepped up.

When game-planning for Middleton’s boys basketball team, containing senior reserve forward Owen Ostreng certainly hasn’t been on anyone’s ‘to do’ list.

Ostreng earned playing time early in the season when 7-foot senior forward Will Garlock was recovering from a foot injury.

With Garlock back in the lineup, though, Ostreng — who was averaging one point and one rebound per game — bided his time, picking up a few minutes of playing time here and there.

When starters Drew Cooney and John Grimes were unavailable on Saturday, though, Ostreng didn’t squander his opportunity to provide a spark against traditional powerhouse Arrowhead, which advanced to the WIAA Division 1 state championship game each of the past two seasons.

 Ostreng proved to be the X-factor off the bench, scoring all seven of his points in the first half and finishing with four rebounds to help Middleton hold off Arrowhead 63-57 in a non-conference game.

VERONA — Turn the page.

Really, that’s all Middleton’s boys basketball team could do after a painful, agonizing, heartbreaking 67-66 loss at Verona on Jan. 30.

The Cardinals let a 15-point first half lead slip away, then had just one field goal in the final 3 minutes, 15 seconds as the host Wildcats closed the game on a 7-3 run to prevail.

Middleton, which desperately needed a win to stay in the hunt for a Big Eight Conference championship, saw those dreams vanish with the loss. The Cardinals fell to 8-7 overall and 7-5 in the conference, which left them three games behind first place Verona (10-2, 14-4) in the league.

Sun Prairie East (9-2, 12-4), Madison Memorial (9-3, 12-4) and Janesville Craig (8-3, 11-6) were also ahead of the fifth-place Cardinals in the ultra-competitive Big Eight.

Middleton was hoping it wouldn't have to share.

Unfortunately for the Cardinals, that’s not going to happen.

Middleton went to Verona last Friday with a chance to win the outright Big Eight Conference title. Instead, the Wildcats built an early 4-1 lead and held on for a 6-5 win.

Verona improved to 11-1 in the Big Eight Conference, is 13-8 overall, and earned at least a share of the conference title.

Middleton, which also defeated Beloit Memorial, 8-5, on Jan. 28, fell to 10-1 in the league and 13-9 overall after its loss to the Wildcats. The Cardinals could still claim a share of the league title with a win at Sun Prairie on Feb. 4.

Middleton trailed Verona, 4-1, after the first period and was swimming upstream the rest of the night. But the Cardinals made a terrific comeback.

Standout senior forward Wyatt Ehrhardt scored a pair of shorthanded goals in the second period to pull the Cardinals within 4-3.

Middleton’s wrestlers captured a pair of dual meets last week.

The Cardinals defeated Madison La Folette 65, 15, and downed Verona, 47-32, on Jan. 29.

Here’s how Middleton’s wrestlers fared.

MIDDLETON 65, MADISON LA FOLLETTE 15

138: Aiden Bell (MIDD) over (MLAF) (For.)

144: Pavil Jones (MIDD) over (MLAF) (For.)

150: Alborz Dehnavi (MIDD) over (MLAF) (For.)

157: Sam Zanton (MIDD) over Likita Hodges (MLAF) (Fall 0:28)

165: Finn Grauwels (MIDD) over Jabari Sparks (MLAF) (Fall 0:22)

175: Reese Miller (MIDD) over Andres Albino (MLAF) (Fall 0:33)

190: Reed Falk (MIDD) over James Massie (MLAF) (TF 19-3 3:32)

215: Isa Touray (MLAF) over (MIDD) (For.)

285: Leianna Chavez (MLAF) over (MIDD) (For.)

106: Maximus Schultz (MIDD) over (MLAF) (For.)

113: Emy Martinez (MLAF) over Kyle Mock (MIDD) (SV-1 9-6)

120: Lucian Borseth (MIDD) over (MLAF) (For.)

First came a nailbiter.

Then came a breather.

For Middleton’s girls basketball team, both had a happy ending.

The Cardinals nipped visiting Janesville Craig, 61-60, on Jan. 28. Middleton followed that with a 68-9 rout of Madison West on Jan. 31.

The Cardinals improved to 7-12 overall and are 6-8 in the Big Eight Conference with just five games left in the regular season.

Middleton trailed Craig, 33-23, at halftime but rallied back in the second half.

Junior guard Brooke Michelotti scored 20 points and led four Cardinals in double figures. Michelotti added two rebounds and two steals.

Junior guard Rowan Borne added 13 points, seven steals and three assists, senior guard Emily Utter had 11 points, three assists and two steals, and senior post Macey Blazek had 10 points, eight rebounds, five steals and four blocks.

Against Madison West, Middleton raced to a 37-6 halftime lead, then allowed just three second half points.