Category: 2018 HS State Championships

by Brian Salgado

Verona Defeats Waunakee for Fifth Title in Team History

The Verona boys lacrosse team wasted no time in relishing the opportunity it had to play in this year’s state championship game against Waunakee.

Just three days after taking out the top team in the state, Kettle Moraine, in the semifinal round of the playoffs, the Wildcats used a frenetic sense of urgency and a stifling defense to overwhelm Waunakee en route to a 9-4 victory. The win gave the Wildcats their fifth championship in program history out of eight appearances in the final game, and their first title since 2014.

“This is a team that expects to be here on a regular basis,” Verona coach Nathan Lutterman said. “We talked about very early wanting to ride a wave of emotion coming out, and we wanted to keep our positive energy up and not succumb to the negative energy.”

There wasn’t much for Verona (13-6) to be negative about Saturday night at Carroll University’s Schneider Stadium in Waukesha. The Wildcats jumped out to a 6-1 lead over Waunakee (19-3) by the 1 minute, 44 second mark in the first quarter. Verona played a press defense that forced countless turnovers by the Warriors, and they won most of the faceoffs, keeping Waunakee on its heels most of the first quarter.

“We really tried to get on their hands and pressure the ball out a lot,” Verona senior defender Declan Makuch said. “We were able to keep their points down and not let them score, and our offense helped us put some goals up.”

Senior attacker Ian Edwards put Verona on the board early on, scoring at 10:07 in the first quart. He assisted on another goal at 9:26 when he found sophomore middie Xavier Howard with a dish.

After Waunakee got on the board, Verona started a 4-0 run led by two goals from sophomore middie Haakon Anderson to take a 6-1 lead. The Warriors – who defeated Verona twice during the regular season – wouldn’t get within four goals the rest of the game.

Lutterman credits Verona assistant coach Sam Prete, the team’s defensive coordinator. The Badgerland Conference’s assistant coach of the year developed the game plan that saw the Wildcats hold their final four opponents to six goals or less.

“We saw today exactly the job he did when he came up with what he wanted to do with that Waunakee offense,” Lutterman said.

Along with the stellar defense, Edwards credits a moment of clarity for him and his teammates after the loss to Sauk Prairie in the Badgerland Conference tournament for the Verona championship run. He said the Wildcats had fallen victim to “heroball,” where every player tried to take things into their own hands when things aren’t going right for Verona. After the conference tournament, the Wildcats began playing as a team instead.
“Everyone bought into that, and it showed,” Edwards said. “After everyone became so selfless, it has been an amazing thing to be a part of.”

Despite the loss, Waunakee can celebrate a successful year as well as a solid foundation for the future of the program.

“The group had an exceptional season, and we played at a high level in almost every game,” Waunakee coach Michael Reiter said. “We played, in my opinion, as good as we’ve ever played.”

by Brian Salgado

Verona and Waunakee to Face Off in All-Madison State Championship Game

This was supposed to be the Year of the Lasers.

Kettle Moraine was getting plenty of press, traveling throughout the United States and Canada to play top-notch non-conference competition and returning to Wisconsin to rack up an undefeated in-state record.

But then the Lasers encountered Verona in the state semifinals. Now the state final game looks like a Madison-area block party as Verona faces Waunakee Saturday night at Schneider Stadium at Carroll University.

“No doubt, this is big for us as an area,” Verona coach Nathan Lutterman said. “Historically, Madison has been a stronger area than Milwaukee. But this year Milwaukee had the top-end teams while Madison year in and year out has a much deeper conference.”

Verona (12-6) is peaking at just the right time. Yes, the Wildcats already lost to Waunakee twice this year, but they have defeated the Middleton and Sauk Prairie in Madison Area-Red play. They also beat independent powerhouse Hudson, as well.

Lutterman chalks up the rough stretches to a a learning curve within his squad, which boasted the second-highest RPI in the state behind Kettle Moraine.

“I think for large stretches of the year we were learning to trust each other as a team,” Lutterman said. “We were just learning to trust our teammates, learn the system and not rely on just one or two people to play the game. And you see it when you look at our playoff results.”

Those results include holding Middleton, Appleton United and Kettle Moraine to just six goals apiece.

Waunakee will have to contend with senior attacker Ian Edwards, who is a two-time All-American who set the program record for points in a season this and is close to scoring 300 points for his high school career.

For Waunakee, this is the Warriors’ fourth appearance in the title game with coach Michael Reiter at the help. They have lost their last two title games, including one versus Verona that went into overtime.

Waunakee – making a consecutive tournament appearance after losing to Kettle Moraine last year – is guided by senior leadership. The Warriors boast about eight athletes with two seasons on the varsity squad.

Senior attacker Jarrett Wulf leads the offensive attack with with 42 goals for the season. Reiter calls senior middie Jeremy Werner one of the best two-way midfielders the state of Wisconsin has ever seen.

Senior middie Connor Smith also had 30 goals – many of them in clutch situations – on the season. On defense, a pair of brothers mind the opponent: senior defenseman Alan Olkowski and sophomore goalie Ray Olkowski.

by Brian Salgado

Gimme 5! ‘Retooled’ Arrowhead Red Wins Fifth Consecutive State Title

This was the year Arrowhead Red finally was supposed to be vulnerable.

The Warhawks graduated 19 seniors in 2017. They were forced to promote four freshmen to the Red roster. They weren’t expected to mesh so quickly.

But Tom Truttschel and his storied Arrowhead Red found a way to once again dominate the competition en route to an unprecedented fifth consecutive state championship, defeating University School of Milwaukee (USM) 6-4 Friday night at Schneider Stadium at Carroll University in Waukesha.

“We retooled bigger than we ever have had to, and to have all these young players come together with these older players and really gel into one team,” Truttschel said.

Arrowhead Red (19-3) jumped out to an early 3-0 lead by relying on a couple familiar faces for the program. Senior middie Abbey Lippold scored first at 19 minutes, 57 seconds in the first half, and junior middie Jacklyn Batley followed up with another goal just 23 seconds later. The pair joined forces at the 7:05 mark when Lippold scored off a Batley pass, as well.

“This season, we started a lot of our games kind of slow on the offensive end,” said Lippold, who will play lacrosse for Marquette University next spring. “For us tonight, it was really important to have that strong offensive start.”

USM (16-3) responded with two goals late in the half. Senior middie Grace Berrien scored twice within 19 seconds to cut Arrowhead’s lead to one with 1:07 to go before halftime.

But Arrowhead squashed any potential momentum when junior middie Coryn Tormala put away a pass from freshman attacker Sydney Schultz as time expired to regain the two-goal lead.

The Warhawks extended their lead to 5-2 at the 11:26 mark of the second half when junior attacker Madelyn Dingmann scored on a pass from sophomore middie Stephanie Curry. The squads held each other in check until USM’s senior attack Hailey Stephany and Berrien scored within 11 seconds of each other to cut Arrowhead Red’s lead to one once again with 1:52 left to play.

However, the Wildcats couldn’t put away the tying goal, and senior attacker McKenna Lorenz’s insurance goal with 17 seconds left in the game sealed the title for Arrowhead Red.

“I thought they went down a little early and fought back like I knew they would,” USM coach Samantha Adey said. “Offensively, we couldn’t quite find the rhythm until late in the second half, and inevitably we came up short.”

Twelve years and seven titles later, one might wonder what keeps Truttschel motivated season after season. He simply fell in love with the sport once his daughters took an interested, and even with all his success, he doesn’t see that dying out any time soon.

“The rewards of getting the most out of the girls — that’s what keeps me coming back,” Truttschel said. “As long as I’m loving it, I’ll keep coming back.”

by WisconsinLacrosse

2018 Forward Lacrosse Boys All Star Teams

Face off – 1:30 Saturday June 9th

Forward Red Team-Boys

Coaches: Zach Iannucci, Kasey Burst

Attack Andrew Schermerhorn Appleton
Attack Will Lauterbach Arrowhead
Attack Hunter Kadrich Mukwonago
Attack Derek Brellenthir Oregon
Attack Cole Tietyen Homestead
Attack Carter Tompkins Deforest
FOGO Andrew Brooks Homestead
Midfield Erik Horman Appleton
Midfield Harrison Kessenich Oregon
Midfield Emerson John Oneida
Midfield Gavin Parr Eastside
Midfield Thomas Edmundson Lakeshore
Midfield Alec Kirkpatrick Arrowhead
LSM Ian Laatsch Appleton
LSM Matthew Endres Mukwonago
Defense Quinn Arnett Arrowhead
Defense David Beaulieu Homestead
Defense Sean Gordon Oconomowoc
Defense Deven Tomkins Deforest
Defense Jacob Ross Lakeshore
Defense
Goalie Adam Kasper Eastside
Goalie Austin Federici Wausau

 

Forward Blue Team-Boys

Coaches: Reid Mayberry, Declan McGuire

Attack Finn Maloney Bay Port
Attack Cam Logan Sauk Prairie
Attack Chris Bender Kettle Moraine
Attack Derek Gostomski Catholic Memorial
Attack PJ Dahlberg West Bend
Attack Caleb Ruger West Bend
FOGO Jackson Allsop Brookfield
Midfield Caleb Hotchkiss Kettle Moraine
Midfield Preston Borchardt Watertown
Midfield Will Vincent Marquette
Midfield Peyton LaMere La Crosse
Midfield Sam Gustafson Bay Port
Midfield Mitch Kaye Franklin
LSM Zach Davis Catholic Memorial
LSM Jacob Hawig Lakeshore
Defense Ryan Hensien Marquette
Defense Max Salscheider Bay Port
Defense Lukas Lundgren Kettle Moraine
Defense Klayton Kopet Watertown
Defense Elijah Gash Bay Port
Defense Tom Piotrowski Brookfield
Goalie Johnny Estrada Marquette
Goalie Jack Sundby Stoughton
by WisconsinLacrosse

2018 Forward Lacrosse Girls All Star Teams

Face off – noon Saturday June 9th.

Forward Red Team-Girls

Coach: Rachel Romens

 

Attack Olivia Olson Appleton
Attack Brook Uihlein USM
Attack Ashley Hoffman Franklin
Attack Sophia Gehling Waunakee
Attack Megan Mikolajewski DSHA
Attack Allie Marion Franklin
Defense Julia Fernandez Brookfield
Defense Maddie Kellner DSHA
Defense Margaret Rogers Middleton
Defense Olivia Thompson Waunakee
Defense Amanda Wachter Franklin
Midfield Eleanor Mackey Middleton
Midfield Evan Maupin Waunakee
Midfield Anna Davis Waunakee
Midfield Meghan Spangler Waunakee
Midfield Isabella Barnard Franklin
Midfield Cassy Allard Franklin
Midfield Emily Becker Kenosha
Goalie Sydney Lincoln Waunakee
Goalie Maddie Webler Franklin

 

Forward Blue Team-Girls

Coach: Michael Hodge

Attack Natalia Robinson Central Wisconsin
Attack Grace Black Brookfield
Attack Julia Carr Middleton
Attack Lexi Basel Middleton
Attack Megan Steffen Arrowhead
Attack Kylee Manser Arrowhead
Defense Claire Pelky Appleton
Defense Sarah Ernst Arrowhead
Defense Emma Hofman Arrowhead
Defense Anya Schmidtke Arrowhead
Midfield Emmie Mass Brookfield
Midfield Nikka Beachkofski Neenah
Midfield Paige Zahler Verona
Midfield Abbey Lippold Arrowhead
Midfield Kayla Gutzion Westside
Midfield Jacklyn Batley Arrowhead
Midfield Jessie Dombrowski Brookfield
Midfield Haile Kruchoski Kettle Moraine
Goalie Michaela Yngve Kenosha
by Brian Salgado

University School of Milwaukee Faces Arrowhead in Rematch of 2015 Final Game

As if it already hasn’t been a memorable season for Samantha Adey, she has the chance to make it one for the ages when she leads the University School of Milwaukee girls lacrosse team into tonight’s Wisconsin Lacrosse Federation state championship game against Arrowhead Red.

Earlier in the season, she notched the 100th win of her coaching career, which happens also to be the 100th win of the USM program she founded 10 years ago. And tonight at Carroll University’s Schneider Stadium starting at 7:30 p.m., Adey will lead her program to its second title game since 2015, facing Arrowhead Red in a rematch of that loss three seasons ago.

“Three years ago this was a mismatch, but it’s not as much of a mismatch this year,” Adey said. “This is as talented a lacrosse teams we I’ve seen in the state, and I have every reason to believe we can win Friday.”

It’s difficult to argue with that assessment. USM (16-2) is led by senior midfielder Grace Berrien, an All-American, first team All-State selection and a member of the Classic 8 all-conference first team. After finishing the 2018 regular season with 34 goals, nine assists and 47 draws won, she’ll take a gap year to travel through South America before attending the University of Virginia.

The Wildcats are also led by senior attacker Brook Uihlein, who led the team with 36 goals during the regular season. She also scored the game-winning goal Tuesday night in USM’s semifinal game against Whitefish Bay/Nicolet/Shorewood with less than 2 minutes to play.

Berrien and Uihlein also are the two Wildcats still in the program who played against Arrowhead Red for the state title back in 2015. But three years is a long time in high school athletics, and Adey said her senior captains have grown a great deal.

“I think they’re totally different women and leaders than they were three years ago,” Adey said. “They are leaders on and off the field, and I think their level of composure on the field is different, too.”

Another year means another trip to the title game for Arrowhead Red (16-3), who will be playing for a fifth consecutive title. It is coach Tom Truttschel’s seventh appearance in the title game, as well.

This iteration of Arrowhead Red’s state finalist squad is unique because of the youth it features on the roster. The Warhawks won the Classic 8 Conference with an undefeated record despite having four freshmen on the Red team for the first time since 2012. However, those freshmen come with serious pedigree.

Freshman attacker Kylee Manser, for example, made Team Wisconsin earlier this season, becoming one of the top 22 girls in the state invited to play in a national tournament on the East Coast over Memorial Day weekend. She has 48 goals for the season, tied for the team lead with junior midfielder Jacklyn Batley.

“[The freshmen] have been looking forward to the chance to get onto Arrowhead in general, but when they made Arrowhead Red, it was like, ‘Wow,’” Truttschel said. “It has been a while since we’ve had freshmen on our team, so it means a lot to them. And they became part of a strong team with our seniors, juniors and sophomores — they weren’t out on an island.”

The Arrowhead Red youth movement is led by upperclassmen with plenty of championship experience. Along with Batley, senior middie Abbey Lippold scored 41 goals for the Warhawks, and junior middie Coryn Tormala added 38 goals, as well.

by WisconsinLacrosse

Boys 2018 All State Awards

All-State

Chris Bender                    Junior                 Attack                 Kettle Moraine
Ian Edwards                    Senior                 Attack                 Verona
Will Lauterbach               Sophomore        Attack                 Arrowhead
Quintin Arnett                 Senior                 Defense              Arrowhead
Elijah Gash                       Senior                 Defense              Bay Port
Declan Makuch               Senior                 Defense              Verona
Johnny Estrada                Senior                 Goalie                 Marquette
Erik Horman                    Senior                 Midfield              Appleton
Caleb Hotchkiss               Junior                 Midfield              Kettle Moraine
Will Vincent                     Senior                 Midfield              Marquette
Andrew Brooks               Junior                 FOGO                  Homestead
Ian Laatsch                      Junior                 LSM                     Appleton

Honorable Mention All-State

Austin Bartel                   Senior                 Defense              Sun  Prairie
Jeremy Werner               Senior                 Midfield              Waunakee

All-American

Quintin Arnett                 Senior                 Defense              Arrowhead
Andrew Brooks               Junior                 FOGO                  Homestead
Ian Edwards                    Senior                 Attack                 Verona
Elijah Gash                       Senior                 Defense              Bay Port
Caleb Hotchkiss               Junior                 Midfield              Kettle Moraine
Will Lauterbach               Sophomore        Attack                 Arrowhead

All-Academic

Sam Collins                      Senior                 Attack                 Oregon
Zach Davis                       Senior                 LSM                     Catholic Memorial
Ryan Gerner                     Senior                 Defense              Homestead
Vincent Haight                Senior                 Defense              Catholic Memorial
Quinn Link                       Senior                 Midfield              Stoughton
Graham Sticha                Senior                 Midfield              Verona

Bob Scott Award

Vincent Haight                Senior                 Defense              Catholic Memorial

Coach of the year

Michael Stefan                Kettle Moraine

by WisconsinLacrosse

Girls 2018 All State Awards

First Team All-State

Attack

Grace Black             Brookfield     Senior

Brook Uihlein *         USM             Senior

Brooke Weber           WNS            Senior

Midfield

Emily Becker             Kenosha       Junior

Grace Berrien           USM             Senior

Abbey Lippold*         Arrowhead    Senior

Eleanor Mackey      Middleton       Senior

Aubrey McLaren*    WNS               Junior

Defense

Ayorkor Aryeetey*   USM              Junior

Lauren Lex*           WNS                Junior

Sarah Ernst         Arrowhead        Senior

Goalie

Lia Oren*            WNS                  Senior

Honorable Mention All-State

Jacklyn Batley     Arrowhead                   Midfield           Junior

Reilly Pfeiffer       Waunakee                     Attack Senior

Amanda Wachter  Franklin                         Defense            Senior

*Unanimous First-Team Selection

All-American
Emily Becker – Kenosha – M – ‘19

Grace Berrien – USM – M – ‘18

Abbey Lippold – Arrowhead – M – ‘18

Aubrey McLaren – WNS – M – ‘19

Lia Oren – WNS – GK – ‘18

All-Academic
Katie Andrews – Brookfield – M – ‘18

Lexi Basel – Middleton – M – ‘18

Anna Davis – Waunakee – M – ‘19

Eleanor Mackey – Middleton – M – ‘18

Coryn Tormala – Arrowhead – M – ‘19

Jackie Pitts
Amanda Wachter – Franklin – D – ‘18

by Brian Salgado

Arrowhead Red Heads to Fifth-Straight State Title Game

All it took was that first goal to set the tone for the Arrowhead Red girls lacrosse team on Tuesday night.

When junior middie Coryn Tormala scored on a pass from senior middie Abbey Lippold just 21 seconds in the the Warhawks’ state semifinal game against visiting Franklin, Arrowhead Red coach Tom Truttschel knew his youthful squad would be brimming with confidence the rest of the way.

The Warhawks rode that wave throughout the entire game, never trailing the Sabers en route to an 8-6 victory that sent Truttschel to his fifth straight state championship game and seventh overall.

“We talked about having a strong start, and that’s just what we needed,” Truttschel said. “It just builds confidence among the team.”

With its long history of success in Wisconsin girls lacrosse, Arrowhead Red (16-3) rarely has been short on confidence as a program. However, the Warhawks have been short on experience considering the Red roster features freshman for the first time since 2012.

The upperclassmen took over this game for Arrowhead as Tormala finished the game with four goals, including three goals in the first seven minutes of the second half.

“She really ignited the beginning of the game and the beginning of the second half,” Tormala said.

Tormala and Lippold were joined by junior middie Jacklyn Batley to give Arrowhead a significant advantage in the draws. The Warhawks won roughly 70 percent of the draws against Franklin (13-4).

The defense and goalie junior Abby Rick did their part for the Warhawks, who eventually held a 7-2 lead with 16 minutes, 28 seconds in the second half.

However, it looked as if the momentum was about to shift for Franklin as the first half came to a close. With about 2 minutes left before halftime, Arrowhead Red found itself in a player-down situation, and the Sabers brought the pressure. The Warhawks responded by disrupting three shots that veered far from the goal.

“It’s always nerve wracking to be a player down, but I didn’t even realize we were down,” Rick said. “We have a really good system to keep everyone on the ball and make sure we have the cutters picked up.”

Franklin coach Jill Kyhn admitted her squad fell victim to the pressure of facing a perennial powerhouse like Arrowhead Red, which disrupted the discipline and ball control the Sabers had been known for in 2018. It also didn’t help that a handful of Franklin’s shots on goal clanged off the pipes.

With the loss, Kyhn’s tenure as coach of the program she launched is one game away from ending. She will coach her last game for the Sabers Friday afternoon in the state third-place game at Carroll University in Waukesha. Kyhn also announced that senior defender Amanda Wachter won the 2018 Jackie Pitts Award as the top senior in Wisconsin.

Arrowhead advances to play University School for the 2018 state championship. Opening draw takes place Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Carroll University’s Schneider Stadium in Waukesha.

 

This season WisconsinLacrosse.com highlighted a select game each week from around the  State of Wisconsin. Made possible by a donation from Home Instead Senior Care

by Brian Salgado

Kettle Moraine Rolls Past Sauk Prairie to Advance to State Semifinals

If the Kettle Moraine boys lacrosse team is just now hitting its stride, the rest of state tournament field should be worried – more than usual, that is.

The Lasers entered their third-round playoff game versus Sauk Prairie undefeated in the state of Wisconsin. But Monday’s 18-6 victory could be considered the team’s most convincing win yet, which is saying something for a squad that’s now 12-0 against its in-state peers.

“This was the first game of the season that we saw them play the full 48 minutes, which was nice to see,” coach Michael Stefan said. “We started out fast, which we hadn’t been doing very much of at all this year, then we continued that throughout the whole game. Being able to play together collectively and selflessly was big for us.”

Sauk Prairie (12-6) managed to get on the scoreboard first when sophomore middie Riley Jelinek scored off a pass from senior attack Bryce Thistle with 9 minutes, 58 seconds left in the first quarter.

It would be the Eagles only lead of the game, however, as Kettle Moraine (14-7) took a 10-0 run into the 7:25 mark of the second quarter. Junior attack Jonny Licau scored six of his seven first-half goals during that run.

“We’ve got a few weapons, but he had a good matchup, so we kept exploiting it until they made a few adjustments,” Stefan said. “They gave him a few opportunities and a few looks, and because he is a great player, he was able to capitalize.”

Junior middie Caleb Hotchkiss scored two of his three goals in the opening minutes of the third quarter. When Sophomore Carson Winzer followed up with his third goal of the game with 9:25 left in the third, it gave Kettle Moraine a 12-goal lead and the winding clock for the remainder of the contest.

Even with the Lasers’ North American barnstorming tour this year, Licau said he and his teammates still have plenty to prove here in the Dairy State. This victory was a statement of things to come for Kettle Moraine.

“The difference tonight is we came in with intensity,” Licau said. “Tonight we really wanted to win and show Wisconsin what we have so we can come into the next game with ample power.”

Kettle Moraine advances to face Verona, who gave the Lasers their biggest in-state challenge on May 5 in a 12-8 contest that was tied entering the fourth quarter. Verona defeated Appleton United, 16-6, to move on to the semifinals.

Each week WisconsinLacrosse.com will highlight a select game from around the State of Wisconsin. Made possible by a donation from Amplify Lacrosse.