Wisconsin Soccer Central

The WIAA girls soccer tournament will get off to an earlier start than expected.

Two Division 1 regional semifinals originally scheduled for Thursday were moved to tonight: No. 6 seed Janesville Craig (3-13-0) at third-seeded Verona (10-6-3) in the top half of the Kettle Moraine sectional, and No. 7 seed Appleton East (9-8-0) at second-seeded Kimberly (16-2-2) in the bottom half of the Schofield D.C. Everest sectional.

The match at Goodman Pitch at Reddan Soccer Park in Verona is scheduled to kick off at 6 p.m., with the game in Kimberly set for 7 p.m. With Verona playing tonight, Madison Edgewood – which also calls Goodman Pitch its home – will be able to play host to its Division 3 regional semifinal against Lodi on Thursday night. 

All but one of the other 121 regional semifinals remain scheduled for Thursday. The exception is in the Division 2 Waunakee sectional, where No. 12 seed Elkhorn (8-11-0) will play at fifth-seeded Fort Atkinson (13-4-1) at 7 p.m. Friday – the winner then will play in a regional final the next day.

WIAA tournament brackets

• Waukesha Catholic Memorial has won its past 12 playoff games, outscoring opponents 54-2 and posting 10 shutouts in the process of winning back-to-back Division 2 state titles. The Crusaders' most recent postseason loss was a 1-0 overtime setback to Madison Edgewood in the Division 2 state semifinals in 2011. Catholic Memorial is in Division 3 this year with the 251-team field split into four divisions for the first time.
• Ashland (15-0-2) was the only state team to go unbeaten through the regular season. Five teams have been beaten only once heading in the playoffs: La Crosse Aquinas (17-1-1), Racine St. Catherine's (19-1-2), Superior (15-1-0), West De Pere (14-1-2) and Wrightstown (16-1-1).
• Whitefish Bay (16-2-3) moved up two spots to No. 38 in this week's Student Sports Fab 50, and rose three places to No. 5 in the website's Great Lakes Region rankings. The Blue Dukes also lead the Student Sports Wisconsin rankings, followed by Waukesha West and Menomonee Falls. The final spring National Soccer Coaches Association of America rankings will be released on June 17.
• Olivia Hanson scored twice as Eau Claire Memorial (16-4-1) blanked Rice Lake 4-0 on Monday to share the Big Rivers Conference title with Hudson (17-2-1) – both teams finished 11-1-0 and split their two matchups. The Old Abes have won or shared the past three Big Rivers championships and have won the league 11 times overall.
• The boys and girls High School All-American Soccer Games will be played in Cary, N.C., in 2014 and '15. Wisconsin has had representatives in each of the first three boys matches – only seniors who have completed their prep eligibility are allowed to play, meaning state girls players cannot be selected. This year's matches will be Dec. 13. Last year, the boys game in Dowingtown, Pa., had to be called early due to snow.