Matt Schuckman, Sports Editor
The fourth annual Muddy River Showcase takes place June 21 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game will tip at 2 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 4 p.m. General admission is $10. QUINCY — Alex Dance understands the commitment, work ethic and time management it takes to succeed…
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WARSAW, Ill. — What transpired on the water in Mississippi River Pool 13 the day before the Illinois bass fishing sectional didn’t leave either Gavin Grothaus or Jess Scott very confident. Getting skunked will do that. “We didn’t catch a single fish,” Grothaus said. “We were going into the tournament like, ‘Oh, boy, this is…
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The fourth annual Muddy River Showcase takes place June 21 at John WoodCommunity College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game will tip at 2 p.m.with the boys game to follow at 4 p.m. General admission is $10. CARTHAGE, Ill. — Reagan Reed had her college plans set. Then came a curveball. John Wood Community College…
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QUINCY — Jacob Kroeger’s success out of the bullpen for the Class A Augusta GreenJackets finally earned him a start, and the left-hander seized the moment. The Palmyra native threw five innings with just one run allowed in a 6-2 victory over the Myrtle Beach Pelicans on May 28. Kroeger struck out six, allowed five…
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MORGANTOWN, W. Va. — Every step Griffin Kirn has taken in his development as a front-line left-handed starter has led to this opportunity. Friday, the Quincy Notre Dame graduate is tasked with getting the West Virginia baseball team’s pursuit of a spot in the College World Series off on the right foot. Admittedly, there is…
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QUINCY — Tasked with building a roster that will help reintroduce summer baseball to the Gem City, Quincy Doggy Paddlers field manager Brad Gyorkos knew what he needed. It wasn’t players from high-profile NCAA Division I programs. It was players hungry for at-bats, innings and the chance to enhance their game. “We want people to…
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INDIANAPOLIS — A traffic jam created by the influx of Indianapolis 500 fans made things more difficult for the Northwood baseball team to exit Circle City late last Saturday afternoon. “It made our trip a little longer, but it was well worth it,” Logan Voth said. It gave the Timberwolves a little more time to…
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QUINCY — Cleaning out the notebook as coaching changes continue to occur … Illini West’s Reed, Macomb’s Robinson to play in IBCA girls game A pair of area girls basketball players will go head-to-head during the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association all-star event June 7 at Pontiac High School. Illini West forward Reagan Reed will play…
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QUINCY — Griffin Kirn went from a transfer portal addition to the ace of the West Virginia baseball team’s pitching staff. Now the goal is to hurl the Mountaineers to Omaha. Kirn, a Quincy Notre Dame graduate and the Great Lakes Valley Conference Pitcher of the Year last season at Quincy University, was named to…
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QUINCY — The voice Abram Wiewel hears when he steps into the batter’s box is the same one he listens to when he stands atop the pitcher’s mound. It’s his own. However, the message varies. “My hitting and pitching mentalities are kind of polar opposites,” said the senior stalwart on the Quincy Notre Dame baseball…
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MIDLAND, Mich. — Logan Voth could have chosen the safe route. Instead, he trusted his instincts. Upon leaving Quincy University after the 2023 baseball season with the dream of becoming an everyday college player, the Mendon Unity graduate had two choices. One was to transfer to Webster University, an NCAA Division III program in St.…
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QUINCY — The Quincy Invitational took place Saturday at Flinn Stadium, just as it did in January and last fall in the QHS gym, and last August at Westview Golf Course. Each was a different sport, each with the same name for its event. That’s a travesty that has taken too long to fix. But…
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QUINCY — The manner in which Quincy University athletic director Josh Rabe approaches hiring head coaches is quite simple. Know the person, know the system, know the product. And for the candidates he doesn’t enjoy a previous relationship with, Rabe doubles back to colleagues, former bosses and former players to gain a sense of what…
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QUINCY — Courtney Boyd didn’t recognize the phone number associated with the text message she received at the start of this week or the area code from where it was placed. “I had not put my name in for any position,” said Boyd, coming off her second season as the Quincy University women’s basketball coach…
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FOWLER, Ill. — Ben Dutton tried to swerve past the cracks and crevices that had formed in the tire ruts along the grassy lane leading to the back pasture where he was confident he’d hear turkey gobbling on this clear morning. About halfway to his ultimate destination, Dutton didn’t swerve in time and bounced hard…
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QUINCY — What took place on the backend of each of the Quincy Notre Dame girls soccer team’s scoring opportunities is what gets remembered. It’s the build-up to those opportunities that Raiders coach Mark Thomas likes to see. The off-the-ball movement of forwards Makayla Patton and Addie Flesch and the control of midfielders Sage Stratton…
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QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame girls soccer team got a taste of what the Class 1A postseason path may look like, and it was no April fool’s joke. The Raiders played Alton Marquette to a scoreless tie Monday night at Advance Physical Therapy Field, finding the Explorers’ defense difficult to generate an attack against…
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QUINCY — A pair of local college baseball standouts earned Player of the Week honors from their respective conferences. Quincy University outfielder Matt Mateo and Culver-Stockton College right-hander Davin Meier picked up weekly accolades from the Great Lakes Valley Conference and the Heart of America Athletic Conference. Mateo helped the Hawks earn a weekend split…
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QUINCY — Riley Martin continues inching closer to living out every baseball player’s boyhood dream. Dayson Croes and Brock Boynton haven’t given up on their pursuit of that either. And Johnny Ray is doing all he can to keep the dream alive. The minor league and independent league seasons begin this week with four players…
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QUINCY — Roman Harrison is still in the adjustment phase. A back-of-the-bullpen performer since the day he joined the Quincy University baseball program, the junior left-hander made 44 relief appearances before ever being asked to be a starter. “It’s different for sure,” Harrison said. “I’m not really used to it quite yet, so I just…
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WAUKESHA, Wis. — Maddie O’Brien figures she better start saving her dollar bills now. Come August, her Carroll University women’s golf teammates expect her to spend them freely. That’s when the Quincy High School graduate turns 21 years old and can legally partake in one of the game’s unwritten but widely embraced rules. If you…
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PITTSFIELD, Ill. — Dalton Barnes could sympathize with what the Pittsfield community was enduring. In turn, the Saukees empathize with what Barnes and his family were going through. In the wake of the tragic auto accident that took the life of Pittsfield freshman basketball standout Reese Ramsey and hospitalized two of her teammates, Barnes and…
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CANTON, Mo. — Following his team’s Class 2 state championship victory over Canton, Eugene boys basketball coach Brian Wilde suggested Canton senior forward Preston Brewer should be the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association Class 2 Player of the Year. How prohetic. The 6-foot-8 Brewer, who led the Tigers to their state runner-up finish, which was the…
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QUINCY — Standing in the hallway leading from the locker room to the gym in Illini West High School, Sage Stratton experienced a moment that set her up to be a leader, a contributor and arguably one of Quincy Notre Dame’s all-time greats. The Raiders had just beaten Illini West 40-38 in a battle of…
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PITTSFIELD, Ill. — Piper Henry put pressure on her older sister, Grace, to come through in the clutch to make a historic moment complete. The senior delivered. With the Pittsfield softball team on the verge of finishing off its 24-7 victory over Southeastern on Tuesday, Grace Henry came to the plate with one out in…
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QUINCY — Eventually, AJ Stewart was going to be out of position, out of time or out of luck. It’s what Bella Brown, Leah Knudson and the rest of the Quincy High School girls soccer players were banking on. Stewart, the Rock Island junior goalkeeper, made six saves in the first half of Tuesday night’s…
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QUINCY — A new era of summer baseball has a new brand and a new name. The Quincy Doggy Paddlers. Golden Rule Entertainment, the company that owns the Quincy Baseball Club and made the decision to bring Prospect League baseball back to the Gem City, announced the team name and unveiled its logos Friday afternoon.…
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EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. — Everything Ryan Hellenthal experiences this week during the SIU-Edwardsville men’s basketball team’s appearance in the NCAA Tournament is connecting his past to his present and so many of the things that have happened in between. The Cougars, making their first NCAA Tournament appearance since becoming an NCAA Division I program in 2008,…
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QUINCY — A trio of Quincy High School boys basketball players received all-state honors from the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association and led a brigade of nine area players overall to receive plaudits. Quincy senior guard Bradley Longcor III received first-team honors in Class 4A, while Blue Devils senior forward Keshaun Thomas was a third-team selection…
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QUINCY — Three area players earned first-team honors and six others received mention on the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association girls all-state teams. Central-Southeastern senior forward Lauren Miller and Pittsfield freshman guard Reese Ramsey were first-team picks in Class 2A, while Brown County sophomore guard Kenzie Kassing was a first-team selection in Class 1A. Receiving second-team…
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