Sports

Brian Finnel has been waiting for this moment.

The day when his Middleton cross country team was healthy. The time when his Cardinals were in peak form.

And the time MHS won a major invite.

That time came last Saturday, when Middleton won its own invitational with 36 points. Sun Prairie was close second with 39 points, followed by Verona (63), Janesville Parker (114), Milton (146) and Beloit Memorial (164).

“It's so fun when things come together and guys race up to their potential,” Finnel said. “That's the beauty of seeing the day-to-day operations, you get great glimpses of what the boys can do.

“I felt we were physically and mentally ready on Saturday. Not to mention, there was an awesome atmosphere and energy that really enhanced the day, too. Honestly, you could not have asked for a better day weather wise and for footing.”

So much remains uncertain.

So much is undecided.

Middleton boys soccer coach Kevin Pauls heads to his postseason seeding meeting this week. And Pauls and the Cardinals remain unsure how things will play out.

Middleton’s regional includes Verona, Waunakee, Madison Memorial and La Crosse Central. The Cardinals still play Verona and Waunakee, and Madison Memorial hasn't decided if it will even be playing in the postseason.

So, predicting the sectional seeding is certainly tough.

For now, all the Cardinals can do is try to keep winning. And that was a mixed bag last week.

Middleton rolled past Janesville Craig, 7-1, on April 20. The Cardinals also fell to Monona Grove, 4-2, on April 24.

If there’s one school Middleton’s football team dislikes more than any other, one team they would pick to defeat, it would be Verona.

“100%. 100%. No doubt about it,” Cardinals safety/running back Quinn Calvin said. “It’s Verona more than Sun Prairie, more than anybody.”

“To me it’s personal. Outside of school, they think they're the best and they’re not. They’re always talking, online chats and stuff, talking smack all the time. Thinking they’re better than everybody when they’re not. It’s been like that since fourth grade. We can’t stand Verona.”

Which is why Friday was so painful for the Cardinals.

Middleton led virtually the entire night. But Verona took its first lead of the game with less than two minutes remaining, then held on for a 28-21 win at Otto Breitenbach Stadium.

Middleton fell to 3-2 in this alternate-fall season, while the Wildcats improved to 2-3.

Tom Cabalka admits there are far more questions than answers.

There will be new faces up and down the lineup. There will be plenty of rust to kick off.

But after spring sports were canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Cabalka and Middleton’s boys golf team can’t wait to begin their new season. The Cardinals’ first competition of the year will be Thursday at Black Wolf Run in Kohler.

“I am super excited to get back out there,” said Cabalka, Middleton’s veteran coach who has led the Cardinals to one state title and three runner-up finishes. “I'm mostly excited for the guys though. They have all had a very tough year with not a lot of activity and direct friendship. It should be a very fun season and I'll be thrilled to see their faces. It's been a long time coming.”

Perhaps no program in the state was as devastated to lose the 2020 season as Middleton.

In this unmatched and unprecedented alternate-fall football season, it can be hard sometimes to tell how your team is progressing.

In Middleton’s case, there are only four teams on the schedule — and the Cardinals will play three of them twice. So perhaps the best way to determine growth is by comparing Round 1 vs. Round 2.

If that’s a reasonable barometer, it’s safe to say Middleton is evolving quite nicely.

The Cardinals rolled past host Beloit Memorial, 49-6, on April 16. Middleton was much smoother offensively and just as sound on defense as it was in a 38-0 win over the Purple Knights on March 26.

Middleton improved to 3-1 this spring, while Beloit fell to 0-4.

“I think we’ve gotten better each week,” Middleton coach Jason Pertzborn said. “And that was the challenge this week, especially to the offense. We can’t be satisfied with what we did a few weeks ago. And our guys bought in and took care of business.”

These are unprecedented times for girls golfers playing an alternate-fall season this spring.

Instead of coming off a summer schedule with their games in top form, there’s a lot of rust to knock off from a winter of inactivity.

Middleton is handling the challenge with aplomb, though.

The Cardinals had three competitions last week, and won them all. Middleton beat Madison Memorial in a dual meet on April 12, won a triangular on April 14 and defeated Sheboygan North in a dual meet on April 15.

“The entire team is playing well,” Middleton coach Becky Halverson said. “We are really proud of them. It’s very clear they are all appreciating the time they have been provided to compete.”

Middleton rolled past Madison Memorial, 333-455. Vivian Cressman and Ellie Frisch led the Cardinals with 82s, while Glenna Sanderson shot an 84 and Amanda Beckman carded an 85.

Middleton’s boys soccer team dropped two of three games last week.

Verona defeated the Cardinals, 5-3, on April 13, and Sun Prairie bested Middleton, 3-1, on April 15. The Cardinals rebounded with a 4-0 win over Neenah on April 17.

“Overall the week was tough, but we gained some knowledge and will learn from our errors,” Middleton coach Kevin Pauls said.

The Cardinals are now 2-2-1.

Here’s a recap of Middleton’s week:

• Verona 5, Middleton 3 — The host Wildcats scored the final three goals of the game and prevailed.

Middleton got goals from Ezra Joseph, Ben Tutewohl and Chris VandenBoom to take a 3-2 lead in the 54th minute. Joseph also had a pair of assists.

But Verona scored three goals in the next 22 minutes and rallied for the win.

Middleton’s cross country teams both finished second at the Green Bay Preble Triangular last Saturday.

On the boys’ side, Preble won the meet with 29 points. Middleton was second with 34 and Pulaski was a distant third (69).

“We knew going in this was going to be a tough challenge,” Middleton coach Brian Finnel said. “Preble is consistently a top-10 program in Wisconsin. The boys raced well, but were a bit tired I could tell going into this one.

“I think that was a good learning experience for all of us — myself included. While this wasn't the end all, be all, it would have been great to get the win. Hats off to Preble, they are a great team. I hope we get to see them again down the road.”

KAUKAUNA — Cole Sweitzer couldn't look.

Neither could Ruben Emmerich.

The two Middleton boys volleyball standouts sat on the end of their bench Saturday evening and put their heads down. At the other end of Kaukauna High School, Kimberly was receiving its gold trophy and individual medals after winning the WIAA state championship.

And Emmerich, Sweitzer and many of the Cardinals kept thinking about what could have been.

“It was difficult to watch,” said Sweitzer, a junior outside hitter. “We were really hoping to end on a higher note. We just couldn’t get it done.”

The Cardinals came awfully close, though.

Middleton battled nerves and inconsistency and dropped the first two sets. The Cardinals mounted a spirited rally, but Kimberly simply had too much firepower and eventually posted a 25-21, 25-22, 16-25, 25-23 win.

Middleton girls tennis coach Matt Given admittedly doesn’t worry all that much about final results.

Instead, Given just asks his team to give him everything they have — and the rest will take care of itself.

That was certainly the case at the Monona Grove Sectional on April 14.

Middleton took first place in six of seven flights and was the runaway winner of the sectional. The Cardinals finished with 53 points to easily outdistance runner-up Madison West (36).

Middleton sent four players to the individual state tournament, which will be held Thursday and Friday at Lake Geneva Tennis Club and Badger High School. The Cardinals that advanced to individual state are singles players Netra Somasundaram and Sophia Agapov, and doubles teams Karsen Dettman/Noor Rajpal and Rose Ryan/Cece Hujanen.