Eagles’ spikers hope for postseason magic

Sauk Prairie’s girls volleyball team takes a big step up this postseason. But the Eagles believe they’re more than ready to handle it. Sauk Prairie, which reached the state tournament in 2020 and 2022, was moved from Division 2 to Division 1 this year due to the WIAA’s tournament performance factor. The Eagles received the No. 2 seed in their sectional and begin the postseason by hosting 15th-seeded Madison East in a regional semifinal Thursday at 7 p.m. If Sauk Prairie wins there, it would host either seventh-seeded Madison Memorial or 10th-seeded Sparta in a regional final Saturday at 7 p.m. The sectional semifinals are Oct. 31 in DeForest. The sectional finals are Nov. 2 and currently slated to be played at Onalaska. Middleton is the No. 1 seed in the sectional, while the Eagles are No. 2. Waunakee, Verona, DeForest, Holmen, Madison Memorial and La Crosse Central round out the top-eight seeds, which all have either first round home matches or byes. “We absolutely were hoping for the No. 1 (seed), but are just as excited for the No. 2,” Eagles coach Allison Steinmetz said. “Makes everything that much more exciting when the No. 2 knocks off the No. 1.” The Eagles finished the regular season on Oct. 15 with a five-set loss to Waunakee — 16-25, 25-19, 25-17, 21-25, 15-13. Greta Shadewald led the Eagles with 40 assists, 20 digs and two aces, while Mallory Hartwig had 18 kills, 14 digs, three blocks and three aces. Marissa Kruckman had 11 kills and Alaina Kraemer had 10 kills. Gracyn Meyer had five blocks and two aces, Mackenna Murphy had 18 digs, and Ella Logterman had three blocks. Now, the Eagles turn their attention to the postseason — where they’ll aim to reach the state tournament for the third time in five years. “In order for us to continue, we have to play as a team,” Steinmetz said. “Our focus right now is fine tuning all the little things — footwork, speed, agility, hit placement, strength of serve, accuracy of sets, serve receive. I wholeheartedly believe that we can make this trip. Our sectional is strong, but nothing we can’t handle.”