Huskies hang against all foes

West Allis - As the regular season winds down, the West Allis Hale boys soccer team is positioning itself to be a tough out in the upcoming WIAA playoffs.

The Huskies continue to be competitive against every opponent. They nipped Franklin, 3-2, on Sept. 27 behind three goals by Alex Kaul; dropped a tough 2-1 decision to Sussex Hamilton on Sept. 25 and played powerful Shorewood tough in a 2-0 loss on Friday night.

Hale moved to 2-4 in the Greater Metro Conference, with three of those four losses by one or two goals, and 12-7-1 overall. Last year, the Huskies finished with nine victories.

They closed out the regular season with games against Union Grove and Menomonee Falls earlier this week and will open the playoffs Oct. 9. Matchups and sites were to be determined this week.

"We've earned a reputation as a hardworking, skillful and extremely competitive team that is difficult to play against," first-year head coach Neil Dombrowski said. "We have a lot of players who are very dangerous in the attack. I think we're certainly a team on the rise and not a team anyone wants to play come the playoffs."

Against Franklin on Sept. 27, Kaul posted a hat trick, including the second-half goal that broke a 2-2 tie. The victory, which followed triumphs over Racine Horlick and Oak Creek earlier this season, kept the Huskies perfect at 3-0 against the Southeast Conference.

Hale fell behind Hamilton in the Sept. 27 contest when the Chargers scored in the 20th minute, but the Huskies tied the game in the 23rd minute.

The tie lasted until the 59th minute, when Hamilton scored the game-winner. Both Hamilton goals came on penalty kicks, as the game became extremely physical.

Hale then battled Woodland Conference leader Shorewood on Friday all the way, but the Greyhounds tallied at 31 and 55 minutes to win. Goaltender Alex Engel came up with three saves.

"As we near the postseason," Dombrowski said, "I am very excited to see how far we can get this year, and I'm very encouraged about the future of our young players."