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MAY 8, 2008
Highlanders fall despite golden chances >> photos
Mequon - Part of what has made Homestead High School one of the foremost powers in state girls soccer is its ability to put away its opportunities.
Black Hawks gain ground, not victory
GRAFTON - After a pair of 6-0 losses to North Shore Conference powers Homestead and Whitefish Bay in recent weeks, Grafton High School girls soccer coach Don Arnold knew he needed to do something to change the dynamics for his team.
Martin’s triple powers Bulldogs
CEDARBURG - Courtney Martin’s triple with one out in the seventh inning scored Meghan Herrick from first base with the winning run Tuesday to lead the Cedarburg High School softball team to a 2-1 North Shore Conference victory over Milwaukee Lutheran at Bulldog Field.
A story that will move you >> photo
CEDARBURG - Amit Kaul is a believer in the power of movies. "I pattern a good deal of my life after the Rocky saga," said Kaul, who two months ago finished his third season as the coach of the Cedarburg High School boys swimming and diving team. "That’s something that’s always in my mind. I’m thinking of all the times when you have an athlete who’s on the verge of reaching his potential. It’s something you dream about but you never know when it’s gonna come (true)."
Hrkac completes incredible hat trick
THIENSVILLE - When Courtney Hrkac entered the pitcher’s circle Tuesday afternoon at Village Park, she had a pretty difficult act to follow. The last two times out, two of her Homestead High School softball teammates had tossed no-hitters, so the pressure was on the right-hander.
USM still perfect in MCC
RIVER HILLS - Morgan Geimer scored a hat trick and Betsy Lucas and Kelsie Harris each added a goal and two assists Monday to lead the University School of Milwaukee girls soccer team to a 7-0 victory over visiting Lake Country Lutheran in the Midwest Classic Conference.
MAY 6, 2008
Black Hawks blank Bulldogs
GRAFTON - Greg Listopad set a ringing tone by sweeping No. 1 singles and Noah Dalibor and Zach Ostrowski dropped only one game at No. 1 doubles Thursday as the Grafton High School boys tennis team blanked Cedarburg 7-0 in a North Shore Conference dual meet.
Giordana casts long shadow
CEDARBURG - At 5-foot-2, or 5-1 depending upon whom you ask, Bree Giordana hardly cuts an imposing figure on the mound. But the shadow the diminutive right-hander and her Kaukauna High School softball teammates is much longer, as the Cedarburg Bulldogs discovered at the frost-bitten championship of their own invitational Saturday at Bulldog Field.
Pentek: Winning mindset needed
GERMANTOWN - Frankly, Dave Pentek expected more from his Cedarburg High School girls track and field team Wednesday at the North Shore Conference relays.

Highlanders reborn after water-logged start
CEDARBURG - Because the spring sports season was so slow to arrive, April 17 marked only the third game of the year for the Homestead High School softball team. Even though the calendar hasn’t even peeled off a month of days since then, the date seems like a long, long time ago.
Season’s first loss no sweat for Dorn
KENOSHA - The Homestead High School girls soccer coach Rich Dorn knows not to read too much into his team’s first loss of the season, a 1-0 decision to Middleton on Friday on the first day of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Invitational.
10-game winning streak is snapped
RIVERHILLS - It doesn’t matter what level you’re playing at, baseball still comes down to who makes fewer mistakes. Thursday, USM lost that battle, and subsequently lost the game to the Burlington Catholic Central Hilltoppers 8-5.
Venue changes, styles don’t
RIVER HILLS and MEQUON - It’s been no secret that the weather has been a factor for area high school athletics so far this spring, cancelling tennis matches with the frequency of a Roger Federer service ace. On Saturday, the teams competing in the prestigious Nicolet Invitational had an ace of their own up their sleeves, changing venues and ensuring completion of one of the premier high school tennis tournaments in the state.
League catches up to Warhawks
GERMANTOWN - It hasn’t always been this way, but at the moment Grafton High School boys track coach Kevin Kriegel admires the strength of the North Shore Conference from afar.
Wildcats in it for long haul
RIVER HILLS and MEQUON - The University School of Milwaukee boys tennis team entered Friday’s opening-round match of the prestigious Nicolet Invitational looking to regain some confidence.
MAY 2, 2008

Wodsedalek dominates Sheboygan Falls
KEWASKUM - Brooke Wodsedalek didn’t need much help Thursday evening when Sheboygan Falls rolled into Kiwanis Park for a doubleheader. The Kewaskum pitcher got it anyway.

Nothing resolved between Cooney, Slinger
SLINGER - After the Slinger (7-4-1, 3-0-1) girls soccer team finished in a 0-0 tie with Oconomowoc that saw goose eggs all through regulation and two overtimes, the Owls were out shooting penalty kicks long after the game was over.

Walk-off wonders
Nicole Zimmerman rounded second base and kept on running right into the waiting arms of her teammates. The West Bend East senior softball player stroked a two-out, walk-off double over the head of Wisconsin Lutheran’s left fielder to give the Suns a stunning 3-2 comeback win Thursday night in the nightcap of a doubleheader at the West Bend High Schools softball diamonds.
MAY 1, 2008
Running wild >> photo
THIENSVILLE - Perhaps it was the arctic chill that shrouded cozy Village Park. But Tuesday’s North Shore Conference game between the softball teams from Port Washington and Homestead high schools was beginning to stagnate.
Depleted Bulldogs bring it together
MILWAUKEE - Down several players with various injuries and ailments, the Cedarburg High School girls soccer team was still way too much for Milwaukee Lutheran in a North Shore Conference game on Tuesday, drubbing the Red Knights 5-0.
Hannam writes perfect script for Grafton
GRAFTON - Coaches go into every game with a game plan of things they hope their team will be able to accomplish on the way to victory. Grafton High School softball coach Stu Hannam devised a formula for his team’s contest against Milwaukee Lutheran on Tuesday that his team executed to perfection.
Elder Hammes has had impact
CEDARBURG - John Hammes didn’t fully realize the impact he was having on the Cedarburg community until he received a call one evening from a resolute player.
Homestead’s Peck lost for season with a broken arm
MEQUON - After three weeks of carefully planning and organizing its lineup, the Homestead High School boys tennis team was really taking shape. Now, you can crumple the nearly-formed lineup and largely go back to the drawing board.
Smigelski, Hafeman lead HHS at Benson
WAUWATOSA - Mike Smigelski won the shot put, George Apfelbach won the 300 hurdles, Robert Hafeman won the triple jump and Danny Schiller won the high jump Friday as the Homestead High School boys track and field team easily captured first place at the prestigious Dan Benson Invitational.
Starters gone no problem for HHS
WHITEFISH BAY - The odds seemed stacked against the Homestead High School girls soccer team when it traveled to Whitefish Bay to face the eighth-ranked team in the area in a key North Shore Conference showdown on Tuesday evening. It’s here! It’s finally here! One of the days that I look forward to all year is finally within reach.
Wildcats quietly make it 10 in a row >> photo
GREENDALE - Apparently, even the Wildcats were getting bored with their victories. Coming into Tuesday’s game against the Martin Luther Spartans, the University School of Milwaukee Wildcats were outscoring opponents in an impressive fashion. In fact, the Wildcats had outscored opponents by better than a 2 to 1 ratio.
APRIL 30, 2008

Cougars find glove in all the right places
KEWASKUM - The top of the sixth inning of the second game of Tuesday’s doubleheader against Campbellsport was a microcosm of the day for Kewaskum. Two of the hardest balls the Indians hit all day turned into outs.

Kerrigan fans 15 as Orioles get just what they need
SLINGER - A two-game sweep over the Slinger Owls (4-6) is exactly what the Hartford softball team needed as they were entering Tuesday night’s competition with a record of 1-6.

O’s, Suns wind up scoreless
What’s better than 80 minutes of scoreless soccer in 35-degree weather? How about 100? Both Hartford and West Bend East’s soccer teams seemed relieved and even pleased with playing an extra 20 minutes in Tuesday’s double-overtime tie in West Bend . “A tie is definitely better than a loss,” Orioles’ coach Dave Pietsch said.
APRIL 29, 2008
Pentek remains upbeat at CHS
CEDARBURG - Three weeks removed from a somewhat disappointing performance at the North Shore Conference indoor meet, Dave Pentek is as encouraged as ever by what he sees from his Cedarburg High School girls track and field team.
Highlanders answer doubters
MEQUON - The question was posed so many times that John Krueger grew weary of it. And rapidly, too, like lightning strikes or a Tony Gwynn Jr. triple.
Strehlow leads Highlanders
BROOKFIELD - Anna Strehlow scored a pair of goals less than two minutes apart Thursday as the Homestead High School girls soccer team overcame a 1-0 halftime deficit to defeat Brookfield Central 3-1 in a non-conference battle of state-ranked teams.
Schlaeger’s blast powers Highlanders >> photo
GRAFTON - The portrait of a hard-luck pitcher, Nicole Brandenburg could do little as a handful of seeing-eye hits found their way through, over and around the Grafton High School softball team Thursday in its important North Shore Conference battle with visiting Homestead.
Koch powers Grafton
GRAFTON - Julie Koch tossed a no-hitter, her second of the season and the team’s fourth, to lead the Grafton High School softball team to an 11-0, five-inning victory Wednesday over Whitefish Bay in a North Shore Conference game at 9th Avenue Field.
Healthy HHS appears ready for NSC relays
MEQUON - Good news from the Homestead High School boys track team. The Highlanders, after enduring a spate of offseason and early-season injury woes and fresh off a championship at the Dan Benson Invitational, are healthy, rested and ready to take on the best the North Shore Conference has to offer at the conference relays Wednesday at Germantown.
Soccer needs a year-end showcase
At its recent yearly meeting, the WIAA alluded to the developing problems high school athletics are facing against the increasing number of student-athletes choosing to play for club teams and AAU programs instead of playing for their school.
USM aims to triple its pleasure
RIVER HILLS - The University School of Milwaukee boys tennis team certainly knows what to do for an encore. One year after toppling Madison Edgewood to take the second public-school championship in its sixth season of membership in the WIAA, the Wildcats again defeated the Crusaders for state supremacy
Wildcats don’t pull punches
RIVER HILLS - When Tim Bartz was asked about how he saw the Wildcats’ season going, he didn’t pull any punches. He figured the pitching could be a weak point, given some of the pitching staff’s lack of varsity experience. He also figured that the team would be able to score enough runs to overcome any shortcomings the pitchers might endure.
APRIL 26, 2008

Former East star going into UW-M Hall of Fame
MILWAUKEE - Every day at work, Katie Pendowski stands in front of approximately 30 seventh graders at Badger Middle School and teaches them about language arts.
APRIL 24, 2008
Durst leaves to be with family >> photo
GRAFTON - There are small strides and then there are small strides. Not too long ago, Brian Durst was reminded that some of them represent progress of much greater importance than others.
Bystol’s ‘suggestions’ heeded as Bulldogs roll >> photo
CEDARBURG - For someone whose team was leading 4-0, Cedarburg High School girls soccer coach Joellen Bystol certainly was in a cranky mood Tuesday when her team gathered at halftime of its North Shore Conference game against Port Washington at the CHS soccer fields.
Bulldogs walk this way ... and that
CEDARBURG - None of the students currently roaming the halls of Cedarburg High School were alive when Aerosmith released the rock ‘n roll classic "Walk This Way" in 1975, but the girls on the school’s softball team made it their anthem during Monday afternoon’s victory over visiting Whitefish Bay.
Bulldogs already making memories
CEDARBURG - Despite competing in a conference that includes the likes of Homestead, Nicolet and Whitefish Bay, all of them perennial state qualifiers, the Cedarburg High School boys tennis team is hardly without its share of goals.
Fink addresses personal needs
Somehow, Henry Fink has applied what he learned as a teacher of learning-disabled children and an operating room technician to being perhaps the best fitter of custom golf clubs in the Milwaukee metropolitan area. He claims the individual differences that we all have as learners are identifiable when it comes to fitting us for a new set of clubs.
Highlanders brace for June battles
MADISON - The Homestead High School boys tennis team isn’t too familiar with losing the last few seasons, having advanced to the WIAA Division 1 state finals each of the last two years.
Highlanders brace for June battles
MADISON - The Homestead High School boys tennis team isn’t too familiar with losing the last few seasons, having advanced to the WIAA Division 1 state finals each of the last two years.
Hale propels Highlanders
MEQUON - Sophomore midfielder Mara Hale scored three-quarters of the way through the first half and the Homestead High School girls soccer team staved off several misfires Tuesday to edge Milwaukee Lutheran 1-0 in a North Shore Conference game.
APRIL 22, 2008
Pittz not retained by Cedarburg >> photo
CEDARBURG - Jerry Pittz entered this offseason on Feb. 24 eager to continue to put his stamp on the Cedarburg High School boys basketball program, hoping to rebound from a self-described disappointing year and build on some of the team’s late-season momentum.
Highlanders too much for county rivals >> photos
MEQUON - During the early part of the spring sports season, the wintry weather was a big factor, moving practices indoors and cancelling games. Ever since the climate has improved, the Homestead High School girls soccer team has been raining goals upon its opponents.
Bulldogs get even with rival Warhawks
CEDARBURG - Sometimes when a team faces the team that eliminated it in the previous postseason, they make it sound like a rematch the following season is just another game and nothing more special than any other game on the schedule.
Grafton controls its own invite
GRAFTON - The Grafton High School boys tennis team may have endured the toughest stretch that anybody in the state will see all season last week when it faced both Homestead and Nicolet, ranked second and third in the area.
Grafton controls its own invite
GRAFTON - The Grafton High School boys tennis team may have endured the toughest stretch that anybody in the state will see all season last week when it faced both Homestead and Nicolet, ranked second and third in the area.
Pitching tandem leads Bulldogs
CEDARBURG - Meghan Herrick and Melissa Hilgendorf combined on a four-hit shutout and Herrick delivered a run-scoring double in the third Friday to pace the Cedarburg High School softball team to a 1-0 victory Friday over visiting Port Washington.
APRIL 15, 2008
New era dawns for resurgent Black Hawks >> photo
GRAFTON - There was an unusual thing hanging over the tennis courts in Grafton Tuesday afternoon. Apparently, it’s called the sun. Joining the sun in the atmosphere around GHS is optimism surrounding the school’s boys tennis program.
Chossek prepared for new challenge >> photo
GRAFTON - For almost anyone, there would be a certain sticker shock associated with inheriting a team that has gone 3-24 over the last three seasons, with only one win in its last 21 North Shore Conference games.
Sluggish CHS still tops Nicolet
GLENDALE - There’s good news for followers of the Cedarburg High School girls soccer team. The Bulldogs, who appear to be rebounding nicely from a "down" year last season, stumbled through Tuesday’s important North Shore Conference matchup against host Nicolet and still managed to carve out a 3-2 victory, their third straight.
Forti will now play an even wider role
RIVER HILLS - Over the past 26 years, the name Don Forti has been synonymous with football at the University School of Milwaukee. Now, he has a title that accurately reflects his contributions, both to the school and the sport, as he has been promoted to the newly created position of Director of Football.
Highlanders have a ball
PORT WASHINGTON - Apparently when the Homestead High School girls soccer team got off the bus at Thomas Jefferson Middle School in Port Washington on Tuesday evening, the Highlanders decided that playing their sport of choice wasn’t going to be enough. Instead of merely playing soccer, they also played a game of keepaway.
Unstated goals the same at Homestead >> photo
MEQUON - This might come as a shock to most, but the Homestead High School boys tennis team doesn’t necessarily plan on competing for a WIAA Division 1 state title every year.
‘Mourning’ over, CUW returns focus to football
MEQUON - There are many things that Concordia University Wisconsin stands for that transcend intercollegiate athletics.
Palin powers Wildcats over BCC
RIVER HILLS - Beau Palin homered and drove in five runs and Joe Lubar survived four sometimes rocky innings Tuesday to lead the University School of Milwaukee baseball team to a 16-6 victory over Burlington Catholic Central in the Midwest Classic Conference opener for both teams.