Milwaukee, Wis. – Champions in four divisions were determined at the 2023 State Boys Soccer Tournament Saturday at Southeast Sales Powersports Stadium at Uihlein Soccer Park.
In the Division 1 championship game, third-seeded Middleton (18-4-2) won the championship with a 4-2 advantage in a shootout over top-seeded Brookfield East (20-1-1) after the teams battled to a 1-1 tie in regulation and a scoreless overtime.
The Cardinals scored the game’s first goal at 44:14 in the second half when Tony Murphy netted an unassisted goal. The Spartans struck back with a goal by Ryan Berghauer off an assist from George Kotsonis at the 56:54 mark of the second half.
Brookfield East owned a commanding 14-3 advantage in the number of shots taken at 14-3, led by Berghauer with four, including three on goal. Murphy had two of the three shots for Middleton. Michael Fussell earned the win in goal for the Cardinals, making eight saves. Will Slawinski faced just two shots on goal in the game, making one save.
The Cardinals advanced to the final with a 5-4 advantage in a shootout following a 1-1 tie with Marquette in the semifinal, and the Spartans shutout De Pere 4-0.
Middleton wins the program’s second State championship in 14 tournament appearances. Brookfield East was runner-up in its 19th State experience.
Third-seeded Union Grove (20-4-2) captured the Division 2 crown with a 1-0 blanking of fourth-seeded West De Pere (18-4-2) in the championship final.
The lone goal of the game was scored by Owen Zikowski on a kick that was driven inside the right post at the 28:18 point of the first half.
The Broncos outshot the Phantoms 13-4 in the game, including a 5-1 advantage in shots on goal. Zikowski led all players with five shots in the game, including two on goal. Niall Hagen also positioned two of his three shots on goal. Evan Capelle had the only shot on goal for West De Pere.
Finn Jacobs stopped the only shot on goal against him in the game to be credited with the victory in goal for the Broncos. Ben Woller saved four of the five shots he faced in goal for the Phantoms.
Both teams defeated higher-seeded teams to advance from the semifinals. The Broncos defeated #2-seeded DeForest 2-0, and the Phantoms eliminated top-seeded Waukesha West 3-2.
Union Grove accomplishes the feat of winning the title in their first-ever State Tournament appearance, and West De Pere finished runner-up in its first appearance at State.
The #4 seed in Division 3 won the championship as Belleville/New Glarus (20-2-1) beat second-seeded Plymouth (15-4-2) 4-1 in the championship final.
Aiden Hatleberg scored the first of his three goals in the game at the 22:42 mark of the first half with an assist from Alvaro Perez to give the Raiders a 1-0 lead. The lead expanded less than two minutes later at 24:19 when a free kick was redirected to Josh Potter, and he scored with assists from Jack Leonard and Hatleberg.
Hatleberg scored again on an unassisted goal at 32:36, which gave the Raiders a 3-0 lead at halftime. The Panthers got on the board when Owen Plate headed the ball into the goal with assists from Jaren Baltus and Jack Jacquat at the 47:15 point of the second half. Hatleberg capped the scoring with shot that found the left side of the net at 76:31 of the second half.
Hatleberg tied a Division 3 State Tournament record with five goals in two games, and he set the record for most points in a tournament with 11, including five goals and an assist.
Belleville/New Glarus held a 16-12 advantage in shots, including a 9-7 edge in shots on goal. Hatleberg led the Raiders with eight shots, including five on goal, and Plate paced the Panthers with eight shots and four on goal.
Clayton Streiff made six saves to get credit for the win in goal for the Raiders, and Isaak Falk made five stops for the Panthers.
Belleville/New Glarus upset #1-seeded Pius XI Catholic 3-0 in the semifinals to advance to the championship game, and Plymouth cruised past third-seeded Somerset 5-0 in its semifinal to gain a berth in the title game.
The Raiders won their first State Championship in their second State Tournament appearance, and the Panthers were runners-up in their sixth State experience.
Second-seeded Shoreland Lutheran (19-4-1) posted a 2-0 shutout over top-seeded St. Mary Catholic (20-2) to claim the Division 4 championship.
Brayden Van de Water scored the only goal the Pacers would ultimately need with an assist from Ethan Senkpeil at 34:14 in the first half. The score remained 1-0 until the 70:59 mark of the second half when Owen Hahm provided Shoreland Lutheran an insurance goal with an assist from Van de Water.
The Pacers possessed an 11-9 edge in shots for the game, and both teams record four shots on goal. Gavin Moore attempted a team-high five shots for the Pacers, including two on goal, and Kieran Barrientos had five shots with two on goal to lead the Zephyrs.
Connor Hahm stopped all four shots that were on target to earn the victory in goal for Shoreland Lutheran. Hunter Schreiber made a pair of saves for the Zephyrs.
The Pacers advanced to the championship game with a 1-0 overtime win over last year’s runner-up Sheboygan Christian/Sheboygan Lutheran, the #3 seed, in the semifinals, and likewise, the Zephyrs notched a 1-0 win over fourth-seeded Washburn/Bayfield in its semifinal.
Shoreland Lutheran captured its second State title in as many appearances in the tournament, and St. Mary Catholic finished runner-up in its third State experience.