WIAA DIV. 3 GIRLS SOCCER - Not the ending Medford was hoping for; Comets shoot to 7-0 win

Despite giving up a quick goal to start the game, the Medford Raiders had opportunities to seize some early momentum in Thursday’s WIAA Division 3 girls soccer regional semifinal at Waupaca.

The ball, however, didn’t bounce the way they needed to in those chances, Waupaca then opened up a big lead late in the half and coasted to a 7-0 win, ending Medford’s season at 6-12-1.

The fourth-seeded Comets (9-6-2) didn’t stop there. They went up to GNC cochampion Rhinelander Saturday and upset the Hodags 2-1 to win the regional championship. They’ll face third-seeded Ashland today, Thursday, in a sectional semifinal after the Oredockers upset the other co-GNC champion, second-seeded Lakeland, 1-0 in the other regional final Saturday.

“Some of their goals came with perfect shots,” Medford head coach Tanya Tessmann said. “Some came with a little luck and some were just on great shots. It wasn’t our best game and it wasn’t the way we wanted to end our season. We had some chances and some exciting moments.”

Taylor Kling had a hat trick and Ava Kneer scored twice as the Comets eliminated Medford in the regional semifinal round for the second straight spring. Last year’s game went to a shootout after a 1-1 overtime tie. That was not the case this time around.

Kling got Waupaca on the board just 3:09 in as a defensive breakdown by the fifth-seeded Raiders allowed her to get a one-on-one shot against Medford goal keeper Peyton Boelk. After that, Medford played its best stretch of the night.

At 6:30, Kodi Rappe intercepted a goal kick and had a one-on-one shot coming in from the left side against Comet keeper Sophia Saunders. She was unable to tuck her shot inside the near post. A little more than 12 minutes in, Amelia Pernsteiner got a shot off a corner kick by Megan Schaefer, but it carried just left of the net.

The Raiders got a momentum lift about 14 minutes in when Kling missed high on a penalty kick. Defensively, the Raiders got a non-goalie save from Kameron Decker, who deflected the shot off her shoulder over the net. Boelk grabbed the ensuing corner kick. Not long after that, she made a diving save to stop a shot by Kling.

But at 26:21, Waupaca doubled its lead to 2-0 as Tessmann said the Raiders got bunched up and lost track of Kneer, who took a drop pass from Kling and drilled a left-footed shot into the upper left corner.

At 33:36, Bobbijo Tesch got credit for the Comets’ third goal, which came off a scramble after a corner kick. Kling put Medford in a 4-0 hole at 37:31, stealing a goal kick and pushing a perfect shot just under the crossbar.

The Raiders avoided the eight-goal mercy rule in the second half, but Waupaca finished off the blowout win with three more scores. Kling rebounded a Boelk save on a shot by Tesch at 53:52. Boelk got a hand on a 21-yard shot by Kneer at 66:50, but that wasn’t enough to keep it out of the net. Greta Olson dribbled through the middle of Medford’s defense and connected on a short shot at 68:09 for the last goal.

“The girls never gave up,” Tessmann said. “It wasn’t one of our best games, but they never gave up. Everyone had some good moments. I thought Kameron Decker had a good game. She had the non-goalie save and had an intentional header to clear a ball out. She always plays aggressively. Bayley Metz had a good game. They had a hard time getting past her. She had a lot of steals at the left wing.”

Waupaca had 39 shots, 14 of which resulted in Boelk saves. Pernsteiner, Rappe and Metz had shots for Medford.

Thursday’s game was the final one for seven Medford seniors, including All-GNC first-team selections Schaefer and Talyn Peterson, as well as second-teamer Shayla Radlinger and Audrey Ruesch, Pernsteiner, Tana Rappe and Indya Mann.

“It’s always sad to see the seniors’ last game,” Tessmann said. “Of course the last game is always sad for everyone.”

The Raiders moved up a spot in the GNC standings this year, going from fourth to a third-place tie with Northland Pines at 5-5. A strong core of returning players in 2026 could be led by All-GNC honorable mentionees Mallory Richter, Metz and Chloe Kapitz, all juniors.

Medford is now scheduled to host the Division 3 sectional final Saturday at 1 p.m. The Waupaca/Ashland winner will face the Baldwin-Woodville/West Salem winner in that game.