Bradford, Muskego stay 1-2, Oak Creek named team of the week in area softball rankings

Michael Whitlow, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

AREA RANKINGS

  1. Kenosha Bradford (17-0), 1

  2. Muskego (15-0), 2

  3. Westosha Central (12-2), 5

  4. Cedarburg (16-2), 3

  5. Arrowhead (13-4), 4

  6. Burlington Catholic Central (11-0), 10

  7. New Berlin Eisenhower (14-1), 7

  8. Oak Creek (13-6), –

  9. West Bend West (13-4), 6

  10. Sussex Hamilton (12-4), –

Others considered: Brookfield Central (10-5), Burlington (12-5), Germantown (12-5), Greenfield (13-6), Franklin (10-3), Kewaskum (14-6), Menomonee Falls (12-4), Milwaukee Reagan (13-5), Waterford (10-5), Wisconsin Lutheran (9-3).

Rita Sippy and the Oak Creek Knights have started to find their groove as the softball season winds down in May. The Knights have won seven of their last nine games, including a 4-1 mark last week.
Rita Sippy and the Oak Creek Knights have started to find their groove as the softball season winds down in May. The Knights have won seven of their last nine games, including a 4-1 mark last week.

TEAM OF THE WEEK

Oak Creek

While Bradford and Muskego continued their unbeaten seasons, one of last year's Division 1 state semifinalists had a pretty strong week itself. Oak Creek went 4-1 last week to jump into the new rankings. The Knights beat Arrowhead, Racine Horlick/Park co-op, Kenosha Indian Trail and Menomonee Falls by a combined score of 41-11. They closed out the week Saturday with a 4-0 loss to Sun Prairie East but have won seven of their last nine games and have been scoring in bunches. Junior pitcher Aly Skrobis dominated the week for the Knights. Skrobis threw in all four victories and combined to strike out 34 and allow only 12 hits. She had a five-inning no-hitter in a 15-0 win over Horlick/Park with 11 punchouts and had nine strikeouts against Arrowhead while also hitting a home run in the 11-1 win.

COMING UP

All games 4:30 p.m. unless noted

Kenosha Bradford at Sussex Hamilton, Tuesday: A short two-game week for the unbeaten Red Devils sees the area's top team face the Chargers, who joined the rankings this week at No. 10. It's a good nonconference test for both programs with conference title hopes and deep playoff aspirations.

Oak Creek at Franklin, Tuesday: The new team of the week heads to nearby conference rival Franklin. With a win the Sabers could jump into second place ahead of the Knights for second place in the Southeast Conference behind Bradford.

New Berlin Eisenhower at Wisconsin Lutheran, Thursday: The Lions followed up their first loss of the season last week to Greendale with a pair of dominant victories and now face a three-game week that could see them win the Woodland West conference title again. The Lions beat the Vikings 2-0 on April 23.

Germantown at Menomonee Falls, Friday: Five teams in the Greater Metro Conference have 10-plus victories overall and three teams have 12, with two of them in this big matchup. The Warhawks hold a slight edge at 10-2 in GMC play, but Falls sits at 9-1 and has a week full of conference matchups that it'll be favored in. This one could have big implications by the end of the week.

Kenosha Indian Trail at Muskego (doubleheader), 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., Saturday: It's been a tough go for the Hawks following a strong season in 2023, but they've played one of the area's toughest slates through 16 games. It's not getting any easier, as they head to Muskego to take on the unbeaten Warriors in non-conference action.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Bradford, Muskego stay up top; Oak Creek named softball team of week

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