Sports

Middleton’s boys golf team finished second at the season-opening Badger-Big Eight Conference Challenge held at Bishop’s Bay on Monday.

Waunakee won the event with a 311, while the Cardinals were second at 313. Milton (328) and Madison Edgewood (345) rounded out the four-team field.

Sophomore Sam Forslund led Middleton and was third individually with a 75. Forslund birdied a pair of par-5s — No. 5 and 11 — and made five bogeys on his way to shooting 3-over par.

Middleton senior Dain Johnson, a UW-Stevens Point recruit, and sophomore Luke Weiss both carded 79s. And MHS senior Charlie Jambor shot an 80.

Waunakee senior K.C. Nickel earned medalist honors with a 74.

• On deck: Middleton has a triangular with Sun Prairie East and Sun Prairie West Friday at Kestrel Ridge Golf Course in Columbus.

Middleton’s girls softball team is off to a 2-2 start.

The Cardinals split a pair of games during a trip to Florida in late March. Middleton then split two games at the Milton Triangular last Saturday.

Here's a recap of the Cardinals’ start:

• Middleton 6, Oconomowoc 2 — The Cardinals scored five runs in the second inning and Savannah Roessler threw a gem as Middleton downed the Raccoons at the Milton Triangular.

Roessler allowed just four hits, one earned run, struck out seven and walked four. Roessler also threw strikes on 62 of her 101 pitches (61.4%).

“Savannah Roessler turned in an incredible game in the circle,” Middleton coach Brittany Carl said. “She does a great job keeping hitters off balance and our defense backed her up the whole way.”

Annika Jafferis led Middleton’s offense with three hits and a double. Lily Kulow and Kylie Klock both had two RBI, while Mackenzie Zimmerman had a hit, an RBI and scored a run.

They couldn't get on their turf field due to the recent snow.

Practices had been canceled. Any form of a dress rehearsal was a pipe dream.

But Middleton’s girls soccer team overcame those challenges last Saturday and edged DePere, 2-1, in a game played at Breitenbach Stadium.

“The snow set back lots of teams in Wisconsin,” Middleton coach Mary Duffy said. “So we have things to work out, but so does everyone at this stage of the season. The way the first week went that is also to be expected. But I really liked the way some of the players worked together on the field.”

With good reason.

Despite the fact Middleton was playing together for the first time since tryouts, it found a way to prevail.

Sophie Kasel assisted on a pair of goals to lead the Cardinals’ attack. First, Kasel fed freshman Brooke Lister for a goal in the 31^st minute. Kasel later found sophomore Madalyn Kelm for a goal in the 46^th minute.

Twelve months ago, Middleton manager Brent Jorgensen began the season with a long list of questions — and very few answers.

Jorgensen and the Cardinals had eight starters to replace. The pitching staff was devoid of experience. And the everyday lineup was one giant uncertainty.

Jorgensen proceeded to push all the right buttons, several players emerged and Middleton produced a memorable season — highlighted by its first trip to the WIAA Division 1 state tournament since 2016.

Now, one year later, Jorgensen finds himself in a nearly identical position.

Middleton once again lost eight starters to graduation from its 2023 team. There is little returning experience on the Cardinals’ pitching staff. And the lineup will be a work in progress.

Now, the question becomes can Jorgensen once again work his magic and lead a young and inexperienced Middleton team to great heights?

Setting preseason goals is part of the preparation for most high school programs around the state.

But it was a no-brainer what topped the list for Middleton’s girls soccer team when the Cardinals got together to discuss what they wanted to accomplish during their 2024 season.

“The girls said: ‘The boys won it, so it’s our turn now,’ ” Middleton head coach Mary Duffy said, referring to the WIAA Division 1 state championship won by Middleton’s boys soccer team last fall. “I said, ‘All right, let’s bring it then.’ ”

With 15 returning letterwinners, led by the strong senior class of Mia Balistreri, Abigail Florin, Sophie Kasel, Thea Rohlwing, Samantha Von Ruden, and Lucy Jiao Wyse, the Cardinals are surely thinking. ‘Why not us?’

Which is just fine with Duffy.

“We expect to win. We always like to win,” Duffy said. “There’s never a chance we’re on the field that we’re not looking to win.”

Middleton boys golf coach Tom Cabalka has the same routine every winter.

Cabalka and his wife, Carol, head south for a few months. Then they return to Middleton just in time for the start of the boys golf season.

This year, no one would have blamed Tom Cabalka for driving a bit faster than usual.

That’s because waiting back in Wisconsin is a Middleton team that appears poised for a banner season.

Middleton returns four of its top five players from a year ago. The Cardinals have a deep pool of talent to choose from to fill out their lineup.

And Middleton will be extremely motivated after losing a playoff at sectionals last year and narrowly missing out on a trip to the state tournament.

So when the Cardinals open their new season Monday by hosting three schools at Bishop’s Bay, expectations will be sky high.

Kevin Bavery believes all the pieces are in place.

A remarkably gifted big man. A talented point guard who comes from a basketball family. Skilled, athletic pieces surrounding both players.

Of course, if the pieces don’t fit, the talent level is largely irrelevant.

Bavery, Middleton’s veteran boys basketball coach, saw that unfold first hand this winter when a talented MHS team could never get fully in sync. The result was a 13-12 season in which the Cardinals went 7-11 after a 6-1 start.

Middleton will return a group with even more promise next year, which has Bavery awfully excited.

At the same time, he knows potential doesn't always equal production.

"On paper, of course the potential for next season is as high as ever,” Bavery said. “But paper and words don't get it done, action does. I think this is an action group who loves being in the gym and being together.”

Middleton junior center Will Garlock was named honorable-mention all-state in Division 1 by the WBCA.

The 6-foot-11 Garlock led the Cardinals in scoring (16.9), rebounding (8.5) and blocked shots (19) this season. Garlock also shot 66.5% from the floor (165-of-248) and knocked down 31.2% of his 3-point shots (10-of-32).

Garlock has NCAA Division I scholarship offers from Wisconsin, Marquette, Penn State and Virginia Tech and should be poised for a terrific senior season.

“Will has the highest ceiling of any player we've ever had here at Middleton, or I've ever had as a coach,” Middleton coach Kevin Bavery said. “He's a true 6-11, he has a high skill set in all phases of the game. He's gotten bigger and stronger and more skilled every year.

One of the top pitchers in the area returns.

Three other all-conference players are back.

And several critical returnees along with some exciting newcomers will all play vital roles.

Add it all up and you can see why Middleton’s girls softball team believes it could be ready for a tremendous season. The Cardinals — who went 18-10 and finished in fourth place in the Big Eight Conference last year — open their new season Friday when they face Madison Memorial at Jefferson Middle School at 4:30 p.m.

“I absolutely think expectations are higher,” said Middleton coach Brittany Carl, who’s beginning her fifth season. “We’re chasing a Big Eight title — 100%. We return the bulk of our team from last year and could not be more excited about that.

Like a lot of kids, Torin Pettaway is a football fan.

Until last summer, though, that’s all he was.

Not a football player. Just a fan.

The Middleton junior is not a beginner anymore. Now, he’s a Wisconsin Badger.

Pettaway didn’t play football until the fall of 2023, and on the heels of first team All-Big Eight Conference and Wisconsin Football Coaches Association All-Region honors, the 6-foot-5, 270-pound defensive end recently made a verbal commitment to the University of Wisconsin.

The timeline is so unique, even Pettaway has to pinch himself sometimes.

“I think about it every day to be honest,” Pettaway said of his meteoric rise. “I’m just very blessed to be in the position that I’m in, and very grateful and humble at the same time.

“Six months ago you couldn’t pay me to think that I’d be here right now. It’s still kind of crazy to me.”