BELLEVILLE — The No. 3-seeded Sugar River Raiders captured their eighth-straight WIAA Division 3 regional title on June 3, defeating Delavan-Darien 2-0. The win came on the heels of a 10-0 win over Monroe two days before.

“They are a more physical team, and we sometimes struggle against teams that are physical. I think they are better than their seed represents,” Sugar River head coach John Ziperski said. Earlier this season, Sugar River defeated Delavan-Darien 2-1 at the annual Swiss Kick in a game shorted due to in-season tournament regulations.

In the win over Delavan-Darien (13-7-1), both teams had 12 shots on net and went into halftime squared away at 0-0. Anya Brenkman broke the scoreless tie with a goal just under eight minutes into the second half. Less than seven minutes later, Haley Thompson gave the Raiders a cushion with a goal of her own. Jenna Gentilli added an assist for Sugar River, while goalie Addison Lutz made 14 saves for the clean sheet shutout.

The Raiders (18-5-1), ranked No. 9 in the final Wisconsin Soccer Coaches Association Division 3 poll, travel to back-to-back state finalist McFarland (13-5-2) for the sectional semifinal June 8. The Spartans are seeded No. 2 and ranked No. 7.

The two teams have a history playing each other in the playoffs. Five times in the past 15 years the Spartans have bumped off the Raiders, while Sugar River has countered the favor twice, the last of which came in 2019 on a 0-0, 4-3 shoot-out.

Back in 2016, Sugar River knocked off a gauntlet of powerhouses on the road to state: McFarland, Mount Horeb and Madison Edgewood, as well as West Salem. Since 2005, only McFarland, Mount Horeb, Edgewood or Sugar River have won the sectional. Mount Horeb has since moved up a division.

Edgewood (16-1-2) is the state’s top-ranked team and the sectional’s top-seeded program this spring and will host Evansville (16-4-0) in the other sectional final on June 10. 

In the regional semifinal win over Monroe (2-16) on June 1, the Cheesemakers held their own over the first 25 minutes of the game. Then the thread was pulled and the unraveling began. The Raiders scored four goals in an 11-minute stretch that put Monroe into an inescapable 6-0 hole at halftime. In the second half, Sugar River scored four more times, including twice on long kicks from outside the box by Brenkman and Ella Woodmansee — the last of which was the 10th and final goal at the 64:09 mark that ended the game nearly 16 minutes early via mercy rule.

Anya Brenkman had five goals, while sister Bella Brenkman added two goals. Thompson, Gentilli and Ella Woodmansee had a score each. Lutz, Thomson, Gentilli, Lola Endicott, Lily Maynard and Tenley Faber each recorded an assist.

“We were just trying to extend the groove that we are working in. We spent half of the season mixing up our lineup. Our bench is almost as good as those that we start, it’s just a matter of the chemistry connection. We know that the postseason doesn’t go really long, and I was happy to get Lily (Maynard) back — she hasn’t played since the fifth game,” Ziperski said. 

Monroe had just one shot on goal early in the first half, while Sugar River pounded the net all game, scoring 10 times with 12 more shots saved by junior keeper Kaelyn Welch.

“We had injuries to two of our key defenders, which definitely allowed Sugar River to run away with the score more than we would have liked,” out-going Monroe coach Hannah Ormson said. “These girls have worked so hard all season.”

The Cheesemakers have several players that play club-level with the Raiders in the fall, including senior Atziry Ocampo, who led the Cheesemakers in scoring this year. The Raiders respected her as a forward and worked to keep the ball off of her foot.

“It was kind of fitting to see some of those girls play here one last time. My hat’s off to them and the effort that they put in,” Ziperski said.  

Monroe can potentially return 21 of its 24 players from this year’s roster, including eight juniors that made up much of their rotation this spring. 

“These girls are like a family. They are sisters and they truly care about each other. They play for each other and have really created such a unique bond this year,” Ormson said. “With only losing three players, will allow us to really build for next year.”