Wisconsin Soccer Central

Just a few weeks after recording his 400th career victory, Greg Winkler stepped down as the boys and girls soccer coach at Fond du Lac High School.

The 54-year-old Winkler accepted a position as a teacher and girls soccer coach at George Jenkins High School in Lakeland, Fla.

Winkler took over the Fond du Lac boys in 1998 and the girls in 2006, compiling a 403-170-47 record between the programs. A 2-1 victory over Appleton Xavier on Aug. 23 was his 400th at the school, and his final match as Cardinals coach was a 3-1 victory over Kaukauna on Sept. 9.

The George Jenkins program he is taking over has played in four Florida High School Athletic Association Class 5A state finals in the past seven seasons. (Read article from the Lakeland Ledger)

Alex O'Connor, a Fond du Lac alum who played under Winkler and has been an assistant for the Cardinals for three years, was named interim coach. Fond du Lac got goals from Leo Almaraz, Matt Schneider and Connor Reams to beat Appleton East 3-1 on Sept. 16 to give O'Connor his first win after three one-goal losses.

• Senior Tyler Howard and junior Jake Demerath scored two goals apiece as Grafton topped host Slinger 5-3 in a non-conference match Sept. 4, giving Hawks coach Don Arnold his 300th career victory.
• Senior Sean Surtees converted a penalty kick in the 20th minute and Madison Memorial added two more first-half goals en route to a 4-0 victory over host Janesville Craig 4-0 in a Big Eight Conference match Tuesday. It was the 200th victory for Spartans coach Ben Voss, who has a 200-70-32 record in 13 seasons.
• Milwaukee Marquette dropped 12 spots to the final place in this week's Top Drawer Soccer Fab 50 and slipped three spots to No. 8 in the website's Great Lakes Region rankings. The Hilltoppers, who will face Rockhurst (Mo.) and Regis (Colo.) this weekend in Washington, D.C., in the annual Jesuit Classic, continue to top the TDS Wisconsin rankings – Brookfield East moved up to second and Whitefish Bay checked in at No. 3 after playing Marquette to a 2-2 tie last Saturday.
• The Hilltoppers also fell seven places to No. 21 in this week's National Soccer Coaches Association of America Top 25. Marquette leads a group of five state teams in the NSCAA Region VI rankings at No. 3, with Madison West eighth, Brookfield East ninth, Madison Memorial 13th and Whitefish Bay 14th.
• Platteville-Lancaster's 4-3 win over Sugar River on Sept. 2 in Platteville snapped the Hillmen's 29-game non-conference winless streak, the Platteville Journal reported. (Read full article) Ryan Pink scored twice for Platteville-Lancaster, which had been 0-24-5 outside Southwest Wisconsin Conference play since a 1-0 victory over La Crosse Logan back on Sept. 17, 2011.
• Jaden Stevenson has made quite the impact for Sturgeon Bay: The freshman striker has scored 37 goals through the Clippers' first 14 matches, according to reports from Door County Daily News.
• Derrick Grimm became the leading goal scorer in Howards Grove boys soccer history, scoring twice in an 8-2 win over Cedar Grove-Belgium in a Central Lakeshore Conference game Sept. 9. That gave Grimm 68 career goals, one more than 2012 graduate Nathan Mutsch, according to the Sheboygan Press. (Read full article)
• Two schools opened new soccer facilities earlier this month: Racine Prairie School cruised past Kenosha St. Joseph 10-0 in a Metro Conference match Sept. 3 in the first game on its artificial turf field, while Oconomowoc thumped Wisconsin Lutheran 9-0 in the first match on its new natural grass field Sept. 9.
• The Whitewater soccer programs launched a fundraising campaign as they attempt to raise $30,000 for additions and improvements at their home field, according to the Daily Jefferson County Union. (Read full article) The school district has committed $30,000 to the project, which includes construction of concession stand and press box, an equipment storage area, an outdoor team classroom and improvements to bleachers and other infrastructure. Fundraising will be done by selling custom engraved tiles that will be placed on the building, with prices from $100 to $300. Organizers hope to raise the $30,000 by Dec. 31, so construction can begin next spring before the prep girls season. More information on the project