Sports

There were countless tense points.

Many anxious moments.

In the end, though, Middleton’s boys tennis team exacted a bit of revenge on conference rival Madison West.

Middleton won the Madison Memorial Sectional at Nielsen Tennis Stadium on May 29 with 44 points, edging the runner-up Regents, who finished with 40 points. The Cardinals earned a trip to the WIAA Division 1 state team tournament for the fifth time in six seasons.

One year ago, West ran away with the sectional title, besting runner-up Middleton, 52-34. This year, though, the Cardinals rebounded nicely and earned a trip back to state.

Middleton earned the No. 2 seed at the WIAA Division 1 state team tournament, which will be held June 13-14 at Nielsen Tennis Stadium. The Cardinals will face seventh-seeded Kimberly in the state quarterfinals on June 13 at 5 p.m.

There’s an old wives tale that says teams carrying a 2-0 record against an opponent struggle to win a third matchup.

In reality, that’s fake news.

In the NFL, for example, the team that wins the first two matchups wins the third one roughly 70% of the time. In college basketball, data from STATS LLC shows that teams entering a third matchup with a 2-0 record have a winning percentage of 72.4% in the third contest.

That data didn't make Middleton’s girls softball team feel any better, though, when they were embroiled in a scoreless battle with visiting Verona midway through their WIAA Division 1 sectional semifinal on June 2.

The Cardinals’ bats came alive, though, Middleton senior ace Megan Button was virtually unhittable and MHS surged to a 4-0 win. That marked the third time this season the Cardinals (23-4) defeated Verona (18-6).

Middleton’s girls softball team paraded around Firefighter’s Park on May 29, proudly displaying the regional plaque they had just captured.

In the wake of the Cardinals’ dominant 7-1 win over visiting Holmen in a WIAA Division 1 regional final, the Cardinals posed for pictures. They savored the moment.

In the midst of the revelry, though, Middleton manager Brittany Carl made one thing perfectly clear.

“We’ve gotten this plaque before,” Carl said. “We ideally want another one a week from today.”

Middleton, the No. 1 seed in its sectional, hasn’t reached the state tournament since 2008. And these Cardinals realize there’s no time like the present.

How good was the performance of Middleton’s boys golf team at the Battle of the Rock on May 12?

Consider this: the school record for an 18-hole match is 286 set in 2019.

The Cardinals fired a sensational 291 at Wild Rock in Wisconsin Dells to win the 24-team invite going away. Edgerton was second with a 300, while DeForest (309), Waunakee (309) and Winneconne (309) all tied for third.

“All four players played extremely well,” Middleton coach Tom Cabalka said. “Wild Rock is a great golf course and certainly not easy, especially on and around the greens. A 291 was excellent team golf.”

Middleton junior Reis von Ruden shot a remarkable 4-under par, 68. Von Ruden had an incredible 10 birdies — including five on each side.

Von Ruden also shot 2-under, 34, on each nine. Von Ruden hit 15 greens in regulation and had just 29 putts.

“Unbelievable,” Cabalka said. “Unheard of.”

It was a special day that Bennett O’Connor admitted was high on his bucket list as a pitcher for Middleton’s baseball team.

So not even the threat of inclement weather and the presence of winds gusting more than 30 miles an hour were going to hamper the 11^th annual Cardinals ‘Strike Out Cancer’ baseball game at Middleton’s Breitenbach Stadium on May 15.

“I’ve been looking forward to this game for my entire career,” said O’Connor, a first-team All-Big Eight Conference selection in 2024. “I was told a couple of weeks ago I was throwing it. Ever since then, I was pumped up and very, very nervous at the same time.”

O’Connor and shortstop Jackson Guerrero led the way as Middleton rallied from an early deficit to pull out a 2-1 victory over Sun Prairie East and cap off what was expected to be a record-setting fund-raising day.

The win also helped Middleton put a 4-3 loss to Sun Prairie East on May 13 in the rearview mirror.

SUN PRAIRIE — They didn’t win the conference title last Thursday night. But they didn’t lose it, either.

And that’s the attitude members of Middleton’s softball team are embracing following a 4-2 loss to rival Sun Prairie East, just MHS’ fourth setback of the season and first in Big Eight play.

Middleton could have clinched a share of the league title with a victory. Instead, MHS dropped into a first-place tie with East (both 13-1) with two league games remaining.

“They wanted it more today,” Middleton pitcher Megan Button said. “I don’t think that that’s going to be the outcome at the end of the season. I think that this team really wants it. We just got down really easy on ourselves.

“We are our biggest critics, so finding ways to be able to pick yourself up, go attack and have fun.”

Middleton’s boys track and field team finished in third place at the Big Eight Conference meet on May 16. The Cardinals’ girls finished fourth.

Sun Prairie East won the boys race with 141 points, while Sun Prairie West (100), Middleton (83.50), Janesville Parker (64) and Madison La Follette (63) rounded out thew top five.

Sun Prairie East’s girls also finished first with 154.50. Verona was second (116.50), while Madison Memorial (93), Middleton (76.50) and Janesville Craig (65) rounded out the top five.

Here are Middleton’s top five finishes:

BOYS

• Kingston Penn won the 100-meter dash in 11.04 seconds and was third in the 200 (22.57).

• Matthew Arnold won the 300-meter hurdles (39.82) and Maxwell Hunter was third (41.54).

• Samuel Bauch was second in the 110-meter hurdles (14.93) and River Moll was third (15.68).

• Middleton’s 800-meter relay team was second (1:31.88).

Soccer coaches from across the state will gather this week do their postseason seedings.

Barring anything crazy, Middleton should be in position for a terrific seed in its sectional.

The Cardinals stayed atop the Big Eight Conference with impressive wins over Madison East and Sun Prairie East. Middleton then suffered its first loss of the year, a 1-0 setback to Oregon on May 16.

The Cardinals are currently 9-1-5 and are the highest-ranked team in their sectional. Middleton also has head-to-head wins over Madison West and Verona, the other top teams in its sectional.

Here’s a look at the Cardinals’ week.

• Middleton 8, Madison East 0 — The Cardinals rolled past the Purgolders in a game stopped in the 65^th minute due to the mercy rule.
Maddy Kelm had two goals to lead Middleton’s attack, while six other Cardinals added one goal.

Connie Watson got Middleton started with a header off a Zoe Sharaf corner in the fourth minute.

Middleton’s boys tennis team split a pair of matches at the I-94 Classic hosted by Brookfield Central on May 16-17.

Here’s a recap of the Cardinals’ weekend.

• Brookfield Central 5, Middleton 2 — The Cardinals notched a pair of singles wins, but fell short against the defending WIAA Division 1 champion Lancers.

Senior Henry Arp posted a 6-4, 4-6, 10-8 win over Central’s Austin Tilkins at No. 2. And at No. 3 singles, Middleton’s Cam Hosfield earned a 6-2, 6-3 win over Henry Hyde.

• Middleton 5, Lake Geneva Badger 2 — The Cardinals won all three doubles matches and downed the Badgers on May 16.

Bodi Russo and Caden Cheng notched a 6-1, 6-4 win at No. 1 doubles. At No. 2 doubles, Middleton’s Blake Gibson and Zander Endres earned a hard fought 3-6, 6-1, 10-2 win. And at No. 3 doubles, Eric Sun and Lucas Kurtz prevailed, 6-4, 1-6, 10-7.