For the second straight year, Milwaukee Marquette and Kettle Moraine met for the WIAA Division 1 boys soccer state championship – the first time that's happened in any division during the tournament's 31-year history.
It was a far cry from last fall's lopsided final, as Kettle Moraine took the lead through Andy Chmielewski just 42 seconds into the match.
But the Hilltoppers rallied with goals from senior defender Mike Wabiszewski in the 32nd and senior midfielder Jacob Grindel in the 64th to post a 2-1 victory at Uihlein Soccer Park and win their third straight state title.
Marquette (23-1-2), which cruised to a 6-0 win in last year's final, outshot the Lasers (16-6-4) by a 26-6 margin but senior goalkeeper Kyle Ihn – a UW-Green Bay recruit – made 10 saves to keep the match tight.
The Hilltoppers are unbeaten in their past 45 matches against Wisconsin teams (43-0-2), dating to a 3-1 loss to Brookfield East on Sept. 28, 2010, and have outscored opponents 104-10 in 19 consecutive postseason victories since a 1-0 double-overtime loss to Hartland Arrowhead in a state quarterfinal on Oct. 29, 2009.
Marquette has qualified for the state tournament all 13 seasons since the school joined the WIAA in 2000 and has won a record nine state championships. The program has 24 state titles overall, having won 15 championships in the defunct Wisconsin Independent Schools Athletic Association, and has a 677-93-51 record in its 36-year history. The Hilltoppers have scored 2,741 goals all-time and allowed just 491 – that's an average score of 3.34 to 0.60.
Here are the final state leaders in goals, assists and points, based on statistics reported to Wisconsin Sports Network. Visit WSN for complete, sortable stats
Goals
48 – Jon Bucklew, jr., Somerset
40 – Andrija Novakovich, jr., Muskego
38 – Lucas Molski, sr., Stevens Point Pacelli
38 – Kortu Josiah, jr., Oostburg
37 – Jake Mullendore, sr., Amery
37 – Eric Miller, sr., New Richmond
Assists
28 – Jake Swihart jr. Oostburg
26 – Julio Martinez, sr., Beloit Memorial
25 – Audi Jepson, sr., Green Bay Preble
23 – Greg Borsari, sr., Milwaukee Pius
21 – Derek Ott, sr., Middleton
21 – Jacob Hernandez, sr., Appleton Xavier
Points
114 – Jon Bucklew, jr., Somerset
91 – Andrija Novakovich, jr., Muskego
90 – Lucas Molski, sr., Stevens Point Pacelli
90 – Jake Mullendore, sr., Amery
86 – Michael Elbing, jr., Amery
86 – Robert Holschuh, sr., Milwaukee Pius