Players experience soccer rush

Nine Middleton female athletes experienced quite a rush this weekend.

The girls were members of the U15 or U17 Rush Wisconsin Soccer Club teams that captured State Cup Championships on Saturday at Uihlein Soccer Park in Milwaukee.

"If we could have set up a ticker-tape parade for these girls, we would have,'' Rush Wisconsin administrator Sara Reikersdorfer said.

The U17 members from the school district were: Ashley Brooks, Caroline Keenan, Leia Peterman and Kaitlyn Wolfinger. The U15 members from the school district were: Nicole Bong, Grace Douglas, Sarah Ihrig, McKenna O'Sullivan and Amanda Wolfinger.

Both teams will represent the Wisconsin at the national championship series in Des Moines, Iowa next summer. Rush Wisconsin was the only club to qualify two teams in the girls high school State Cup Championship this year.
 
"It's been quite the drought, almost four years with no State Cup final appearances or wins. Well if you are going to end a bad streak, it might as well be on historic terms," Rush Wisconsin technical director Ben John said.
 
The U15 team, coached by Daren Milton, beat S.C Waukesha in the final in a shootout after both teams were held without a goal over the first 110 minutes. The game remained tied through the first five penalty kicks with both goalkeepers making a couple of saves.
 
The U17 team, coached by Ben John, beat defending State Cup champion Soccers Lake Country 2-1 in the final. Rush struck first on a penalty kick 12 minutes into the game, but Soccers LC tied it at 1 on a corner kick late in the first half. Rush took the lead for good almost 12 minutes into the second half off a well-executed counter attack, finishing with a scramble in the Soccers LC penalty box resulting in a deflection off a Soccers LC defender.

"I think in both wins, character was our twelfth man on the pitch,'' John said. "The U15s showed such poise and never wavered. The U17s showed a resilience and discipline that was inspiring."