The Kettle Moraine boys lacrosse team had an extra 48 minutes to prepare for 2019 after an unexpected early exit from last season’s Wisconsin Lacrosse Federation state tournament. After getting stunned in the semifinals by eventual champion Verona, the Lasers suddenly realized that nothing would be handed to them because of their RPI or ranking.
“It taught us how we have to finish our job and live up to our expectations with our level of play,” Kettle Moraine coach Michael Stefan said. “It was a great growth opportunity for ourselves as coaches and the players to learn that things won’t just happen because we think they will happen. Verona worked harder for those 48 minutes than we did, and now we have an understanding of how fragile those opportunities really are.”
There was no such finish for the Lasers this season. No. 1 Kettle Moraine completed their unblemished Wisconsin schedule with a victory over archrival Arrowhead Wednesday night to earn a trip to tonight’s tournament finale against second-seeded Middleton.
Along with the humbling experience of the 2018 semifinal loss, Stefan said Kettle Moraine (18-4) has benefited from its core players working together within the same offensive system for another year. Senior attack Chris Bender led the offense this season with 81 goals and 118 points, and sophomore middie Nolan Rappis contributed 110 points, as well.
Kettle Moraine (18-4) cruised to another Classic 8 – Red Conference title with a 5-0 record while collecting non-conference victories over highly ranked opponents like Waunakee, Verona and Middleton.
Even though the Lasers beat Middleton by nine goals back in March, Stephan is not taking the Cardinals due to the final score of the teams’ first meeting.
“We played in March, so it doesn’t tell you how the teams are playing in June,” Stefan said. “We’re a different team now than we were then, and we have very skilled individual players who do well in certain matchups.”
Middleton (17-3) certainly turned things around after that season-opening loss to Kettle Moraine, as well. The Cardinals won the Big Badger Conference and defeated non-conference opponents like Stoughton, Neenah and Appleton United along the way. Middleton defeated Waunakee for the second time this season on Wednesday night to advance to tonight’s championship game.
The Cardinals are led offensively by senior attack Kevin Grelle, who has 72 goals and 98 points on the year. Middleton also boasts all-conference senior FOGO Nathan Kapp, who won 74 percent of his faceoffs this year.
While Kettle Moraine will make its third state final appearance in four seasons, this is Middleton’s first trip to the final since defeating Arrowhead in 2015. Overall, this is Middleton’s third state championship game. The Cardinals appeared in the 2003 and 2005 finales, winning the 2003 championship against Verona in four overtimes.
Most importantly for this generation of Cardinals, they want to win the game for coach Sanford Erdahl, the 2019 Big Badger Coach of the Year who is credited for turning the program around since taking the top job in 2017.
“Our coach hasn’t been here since the last time we went to state, so I think we have a dedication to play for Coach ‘Ford,’” Middleton senior defenseman Connor Hellenbrand said.
