Sports

MADISON — Late last month, Middleton’s baseball team appeared to be on the fast track to nowhere.

The Cardinals had lost five of six games. Middleton had fallen to 5-6 overall.

And the Cardinals’ once-promising season was at a crossroads.

Today, Middleton’s right back where it hoped to be all along — competing for a Big Eight Conference title and postseason greatness.

The Cardinals pushed their winning streak to seven games after rolling to a perfect 4-0 mark last week.

Middleton has improved to 12-6 overall and jumped into third place in the Big Eight. Sun Prairie East (10-2 in the league) and Madison Memorial (9-2) hold the top two spots in the conference, but Middleton is just one game back of both in the loss column.

MADISON — She wasn’t trying to score. But she did anyway.

And what a beautiful goal it was.

Ursula Anstaett’s free kick from just in front of her own team’s bench — along the sideline 40 yards from the goal — arced perfectly just under the crossbar into the back left corner of the net. That broke a scoreless tie in the 45th minute of last Thursday’s Big Eight Conference clash between Middleton and Madison West and ultimately fueled the Cardinals 2-0 victory at Mansfield Stadium.

“I was trying to cross it in and I just kind of mis-hit it in a good way. I think that’s why I was so surprised it went in,” said Anstaett, a senior midfielder. “But that’s why you put it in the box — anything can happen.”

And anything did.

Anstaett’s goal, with 4 minutes, 59 seconds gone by in the second half, surprised her coach, too.

SUSSEX — Brittany Carl knew this could be Middleton’s best softball team in many years.

That this could be the first group of Cardinals to eventually make it to the WIAA Division 1 state tournament since 2008.

So Carl, Middleton’s manager, made sure to load up the schedule so her team would be battle-tested when the postseason arrived.

“We wanted to get tested,” Carl said.

That certainly happened last Saturday, when Middleton traveled to Sussex Hamilton for an exciting triangular.

The Cardinals survived an offensive onslaught in Game 1 and held off strong New Richmond team, 12-10.

Middleton then had its 16-game winning streak snapped, when fifth-ranked Sussex defeated the ninth-ranked Cardinals, 9-2.

Middleton fell to 18-2 overall, but still leads the Big Eight Conference with a 12-0 mark.

There’s no sporting event quite like a playoff in team golf.

Ten golfers. One hole.

Your five scores vs. the opponents.

Middleton and DeForest went head-to-head in a thrilling playoff at the Spartan Invite held at Blackhawk Country Club on May 5.

And while DeForest prevailed on the second playoff hole to win the overall title at this 21-team event, Middleton coach Tom Cabalka knows the experience will help prepare his team for the upcoming postseason.

“A playoff is always exciting,” Cabalka said. “Our five against DeForest's five. It was a great experience to play in front of a large group of spectators and handle the pressure well.”

The Cardinals and Norskies both shot sizzling 295s to tie for first place. Arrowhead was third with a 300, while Madison West (314) and Madison Edgewood (319) rounded out the top-five.

Middleton rallied to force a playoff with a string of birdies down the stretch.

Middleton’s girls track and field finished in third place at the 14-team Stoughton Invite on May 9.

McFarland won the met with 109 points, while Sun Prairie East was second with 101 points. Middleton (85.50), Madison La Follette (66) and Janesville Craig (58.50) rounded out the top five.

Middleton’s boys were also fourth.

DeForest won the meet with 99 points, while McFarland was second with 84. Sun Prairie East (83), Middleton (80.50) and Janesville Craig (59) rounded out the top five.

Here’s a list of Middleton’s top-five finishers.

GIRLS

• Sofiaa Dergacheva was second in the 100-meter hurdles (15.75), while Katerina Maeder was fourth (16.71).

• Olivia Chellevold was second in the 1,600-meter run (5:20.27).

• Sarah Blust was third in the 800-meter run (2:33.24).

• Middleton’s 400-meter relay team of Haley Jodlowski, Eire Riley, Alaina Kliefoth and Abby Arnold was finished third (51.89).

Middleton’s boys lacrosse team won two of three games last week.

The Cardinals rolled past Milwaukee Marquette, 17-7, on May 5 and cruised by Mukwonago, 18-9, on May 6.

Middleton then fell to Minnesota power Wayzata, 14-6, on May 9.

The Cardinals are now 11-3 overall this season.

Here’s a recap of Middleton’s week.

• Middleton 17, Marquette 7 — Senior attackman Arjay Johnson broke his own single-game scoring record with nine goals and powered the visiting Cardinals past the Hilltoppers. Junior attacker Roan Johnson added three goals, while senior midfielder Troy Teff and junior attacker Patrick Passini both had two goals.

Freshman FOGO Aksel Chelesvig won 100% of the face-offs in the first and fourth quarters and succeeded in 25 faceoffs over the course of the evening, which set a new single-game MHS record.

Middleton’s boys tennis team won two of three matches at the Sun Prairie West Invite last weekend.

Whitefish Bay defeated the Cardinals, 4-3, on May 9. The Cardinals then downed Nicolet, 6-1, and bested Eau Claire Memorial, 7-0, on May 10.

Middleton also won a pair of Big Eight Conference matches last week.

Here’s a recap of the Cardinals’ week.

SUN PRAIRIE WEST INVITE

• Whitefish Bay 4, Middleton 3 — The Cardinals were edged by the Blue Dukes on May 9.

Middleton got wins from its top two singles players — Alexander Bo and Preetham Peddireddy. The Cardinals’ No. 3 doubles team of Lucas Kurtz and Lucas Bush also won.

• Middleton 6, Nicolet 1 — The Cardinals won all three doubles flights and three of four singles matches on May 10.

Brad Crandell always has a question for candidates that interview for jobs at Middleton High School.

Crandell, the Cardinals’ assistant athletic director since 2022, believes that query tells him a lot about a candidate’s personality, as well as their passion for the job.

“One thing I ask is, ‘If you were to get this job, what’s the first thing you would do?’ ” Crandell said. “Will you celebrate? Will you call your wife or husband? Will you do a dance?

“I love it. I truly think it shows someone’s personality, who you are and if you’re truly passionate about it.”

Interestingly, Crandell found himself on the other end of that question last week.

Crandell was informed on May 8 that he was chosen to be Middleton’s new athletic director. And as Crandell walked from principal Peg Shoemaker’s office back to his own after hearing the good news, the irony of the moment wasn’t lost on him.

Bobbie Reinhart knows the task is large.

The decision is sizeable.

But Reinhart — Middleton’s principal-in-waiting — was picked to lead this undertaking for a reason. And the endless possibilities have him extremely excited.

Reinhart is heading the committee that will choose Middleton’s next athletic director. And if things go well in the days ahead, Middleton could have a new A.D. by the middle of the month.

“It’s definitely a big hire and we’re all really excited about it,” said Reinhart, who was named Middleton’s new principal last month. “We all know what athletics mean here at Middleton and I trust my team.”

The A.D. job opened last month when Jamie Sims — Middleton’s A.D. since 2020 — was appointed to Associate Principal. That job had been held by Reinhart, who was selected to replace Peg Shoemaker as Middleton’s next principal.

Joey Passaglia had a magnificent season as the starting quarterback for the Middleton’s football team last fall, earning first-team all-Big Eight Conference honors and throwing 32 touchdown passes.

Passaglia has been awfully good on the baseball diamond as well this spring.

Passaglia tossed six shutout innings, allowing just two hits and three walks with seven strikeouts to help blank visiting Madison West 7-0 in a Big Eight Conference battle on April 30.

That was just six days after he tossed a three-hit shutout in pitching a complete game 1-0 victory over Big Eight foe Janesville Craig.

“I learned a lot from football with all the pressure I faced, so it’s not as bad this year for baseball,” said Passaglia, a junior right-hander, who threw 93 pitches, including 53 for strikes, against Madison West.