A few weeks ago in this space, I wrote that this had the makings of a special fall for Muskego High School, and the Warrior teams have certainly made that prediction come true.

Muskego took home four (count 'em, four) Southeast Conference championships last week, in most cases simply continuing successes from past years, and the best may be yet to come for these teams.

The Warriors claimed SEC crowns in both boys and girls cross country at Burlington High School.

The girls won for the third time in four seasons, placing three runners in the top six and seven in the top 25. Once again, sisters Taylor and Niki Drolshagen ran neck-and-neck and led the way, with Taylor fourth in 15 minutes, 28 seconds and Niki fifth with 15:29. They have been that close all season, and they are only sophomores.

The Muskego boys captured the first conference title in school history and did it fairly easily, scoring 33 points to beat runnerup Kenosha Bradford's 90. Matt Borneman, who was second, led five Warrior runners in the top 11.

In addition, the Muskego junior varsity teams both won their races, with the boys scoring 17 points and having six of the top seven runners and the girls tallying 22 points and having the top three runners. "It was cool to walk out of there with four trophies," girls varsity coach Richard Raney said.

The soccer team completed its third straight 9-0 run through the SEC, extending its streak to three straight titles. The Warriors outscored their SEC foes, 30-5, posting a .55 goals-against average. Even so, coach Eric Hess said it wasn't easy. "We knew we would see every team's A-plus game," he said. "Who would be the first team to knock off Muskego? This year went a little tougher than past seasons."

Finally, the girls volleyball team claimed the SEC tournament crown with a victory over Burlington in the final, adding that title to their 9-0 dual-meet championship. This makes seven of eight tournament titles for the Warriors under coach Karen Anderson.

Not to be forgotten in all of this is the Muskego swimming team, which also has not lost a conference dual this season and will try for its SEC championship on Saturday, Nov. 1 at Carthage College.

Now those Warrior teams set their sights on WIAA playoff competition. The girls volleyball team holds the top seed in its sectional and will open play at home on Saturday, Oct. 25, against either Waterford or Brookfield East.

The soccer team also has the top seed in its sectional and will begin action Thursday, Oct. 23, at home against DeForest. The cross country teams will run in a sectional Saturday, Oct. 25, at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside.

All would like to close their special seasons with state tournament appearances, and they all appear to have good chances.

As the temperatures get cooler, the varsity sports teams at Muskego High School look to be warming up nicely.

Several Warrior teams are off to hot starts, and it appears like the excitement will continue into October and November.

The boys soccer squad stands at 10-1 heading into this weekend's Wauwatosa West Quadrangular at Whitman Middle School. The Warriors are also 3-0 in Southeast Conference play and have claimed first place in the Brown Deer Cup and second in the Warrior Cup so far this season.

Their 1-0 victory over South Milwaukee on Sept. 16 was their eighth shutout of the season, but they also boast a strong and balanced offense. They have had six players score at least two goals in a particular game this season.

"I didn't know if we would get off to this quick a start," coach Eric Hess said, "but I knew we were capable of doing it."

The boys cross country team won the South Milwaukee Invitational on Sept. 13, while the girls took third, to go with two earlier second places in invitationals.

For the boys, Mike O'Connor ran the fourth-fastest time for a sophomore in school history at Grant Park, while the girls are led by sisters Taylor and Niki Drolshagen, who have been in the top 10 in their races.

The girls swimming team finished second at two major invitationals, its own Fountainwood meet and the Shorewood meet, and was 3-0 in Southeast duals going into this week. What's more, many of the key performers are underclassmen.

The girls volleyball unit, which has a strong tradition, has already won both the Warrior Invitational and Brookfield Invitational while going 3-0 in SEC duals going into Thursday's test against Racine Park.

"We really had to fight through some adversity (at the Brookfield Invite)," coach Karen Anderson said. "We did have slow starts most of the day, but our girls hung in there and never quit. They believed they could come back and win."

The other Muskego teams, while struggling at times, have also had their moments this season.

Overall, it looks like Muskego fans will have more to look forward to this fall than the colorama of leaves and pumpkin shopping.