Soccer Eagles close in on conference title

Sauk Prairie’s girls soccer team has been a force for years now. And the Eagles have once again put themselves in a position to win a Badger Small Conference title. The Eagles rallied back from a 2-0 deficit at Baraboo on May 16 and earned a 2-2 draw. That left Sauk Prairie in prime position to capture a conference title. The Eagles improved to 5-0-1 in the conference with just one league match remaining — at Mount Horeb on May 21. McFarland (3-1-0) and Baraboo (3-1-1) could still catch the Eagles, but only if those teams won out and Sauk Prairie lost to the Vikings. That’s why the Eagles’ tie at Baraboo was so important. That game began on May 9, but was suspended due to weather with the Thunderbirds holding a 2-0 advantage. Sauk Prairie battled back, though, seven days later to earn a draw. “The girls did well to respond and regroup at halftime to fight back to get the 2-2 draw,” Eagles coach Drew Kornish said.  In the second half, both McKenna Breunig and Alexis Atkinson had goals for the Eagles. “We felt a little unfortunate to not get one more to make it 3-2 as we outshot them 20-3 and 10-2 on frame,” Kornish said. Sauk Prairie then fell to Cedarburg — the No. 2 ranked team in Division 2 — 3-0, on May 17.  While the outcome wasn’t what the Eagles wanted against the mighty Bulldogs (12-2-2), Kornish was extremely encouraged how his team battled. “(The Baraboo) game left us with a lot of questions about who we were as a team and how hard we were going to fight the rest of the season,” Kornish said. “It also left us short-handed and very tired as we lost Ava Andres (starting left back) the day before to an injury.  “Although we were on the wrong side of a 0-3 scoreline, the heart and effort we showed against one of the front runners for a Division 2 state title this season on a short bench was something we can be proud of.  We had multiple new faces give us minutes against Cedarburg and we could not ask for more.” • On deck: Sauk Prairie played Mount Horeb Tuesday, then was set to find out its postseason path as playoff seeds were announced on May 22. Regional semifinals then begin on May 28 and regional finals are June 1. “As we turn the page, we look forward to a chance to wrap up a conference title as well as move on to the postseason,” Kornish said.