Shane Hulsey, Sports Writer
PANA, Ill. — Even after a season-ending loss, Danielle White could not help but smile when thinking back on her first season as the Quincy Notre Dame volleyball coach. “That’s these girls,” White said of the source of that smile. “Our girls really set a great example, especially for my first year coaching, of what…
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ST. PETER’S, Mo. — Bodie Rollins could barely recall how the ball got to his foot, but he will never forget what happened after it left it. Six minutes, 45 seconds into the first sudden death overtime of Saturday’s Class 3 District 4 title game against Fort Zumwalt South, the Hannibal senior forward scored the…
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MONROE CITY, Mo. — Quincy Mayfield chose his words carefully. When asked how badly he wanted to avenge the Monroe City football team’s 44-22 loss to South Shelby in Week 3, the Panthers junior running back and linebacker paused for about five seconds to gather his thoughts. What he said — or did not say…
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HARTSBURG, Ill. — The scrappiness that catapulted the Camp Point Central volleyball team to Thursday’s Class 1A Hartsburg-Emden Sectional championship match was there. The Panthers just could not translate that scrappiness into enough points. Hartsburg-Emden captured the sectional championship on its home floor by sweeping the Panthers 25-17, 25-19. “It was just too much defense…
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HANNIBAL, Mo. — Seventh-seeded Mexico beating No. 2 seed and previously undefeated Kirksville in the Class 4 District 5 football quarterfinals may have looked like a significant upset on paper, but Hannibal coach Jeff Gschwender did not necessarily see it that way. “I can’t say that I was super shocked,” Gschwender said. “Mexico is a…
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RIVERTON, Ill. — Eva Breckenkamp was running on fumes, but she used what little fuel she had left in the tank to send the Quincy Notre Dame volleyball team to the Class 2A Riverton Sectional title match. The Raiders trailed Athens 25-24 in the third and deciding set in Tuesday’s semifinal at the Hawk Center…
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MONROE CITY, Mo. — The Monroe City football team’s 39-20 loss to Lawson in Week Seven goes in the books as just that — a loss. But looking below the surface, Monroe City coach David Kirby saw a glimpse of the level to which his team is capable of playing. “That was a big eye-opener,”…
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SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The Highland softball program’s 2005 state championship trophy finally has company. The Cougars bested Mid-Buchanan 4-1 Saturday at the Killian Softball Complex to capture the Class 2 state title. “I’m still trying to process it,” Cougars coach Paul Scifres said. “Hard to believe, pretty surreal.” Cougars pitcher Abby Lay retired the Dragons…
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GREENFIELD, Ill. — There was no way Tyce Fullerton was dropping this pass, not with what was at stake. Fullerton hauled in what turned out to be the game-winning 14-yard touchdown pass from Brown County quarterback Vince Little with three minutes left in the Hornets’ 18-16 upset of fifth-seeded Greenfield-Northwestern in the first round of…
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PALMYRA, Mo. — Laden Simmons thought the Palmyra football team had snatched the game away from Clark County. The Indians snatched it right back and put the dagger in the Panthers’ season shortly thereafter to close out a 26-22 victory in Friday’s Class 2 District 7 quarterfinal. Simmons’ second touchdown of the night tied the…
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WARSAW, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame volleyball team has already cleared a hurdle it couldn’t get over last season, but their quest for the ultimate prize is far from over. The Raiders swept Illini West 25-16, 25-11 in Thursday’s Class 2A Warsaw Regional championship. “This is another step in the journey,” Raiders coach Danielle…
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LEWISTOWN, Mo. — If he were in the other dugout, Paul Scifres would not welcome the thought of facing the Highland softball team right now. He would welcome some of his wife Kendra’s breakfast casserole before a state championship game, though. In his 18th season as the Highland coach, Paul Scifres has guided the Cougars…
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WARSAW, Ill. — Even Quincy Notre Dame volleyball coach Danielle White’s most ambitious projections couldn’t have predicted the start the Raiders got off to on Tuesday. QND scorched Monmouth-Roseville in the first set by scoring 20 of the first 21 points on its way to a 25-6, 25-15 victory in the Class 2A Warsaw Regional…
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Chargers take advantage of good fortune to close out regional semifinal, create matchup with Raiders
WARSAW, Ill. — As AJ Cook’s serve took what seemed like an eternity to creep over the net, the Illini West volleyball team held its collective breath. “I was just praying that it would hit,” Cook said. Cook was tasked with a pivotal serve in the second set of Tuesday’s Class 2A Warsaw Regional semifinal…
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PALMYRA, Mo. — Robert Fohey didn’t have some secret formula. He didn’t have some magical play that worked every time. Yes, he coached the Palmyra girls basketball teams to five final fours from 1981 to 1986. Yes, the Panthers reached the state championship game all five times they reached the final four and won three…
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QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame volleyball team is heading into the postseason on a roll. The Raiders went 4-0 in the QND Volleyball Bash on Friday and Saturday, highlighted by a 25-20, 16-25, 15-11 victory over Breese Mater Dei, the No. 1 ranked team in Class 2A, on Friday. “It was some of the…
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MT. STERLING, Ill. — Tyce Fullerton couldn’t stomach missing the playoffs again. In 2023, it was out of his control. A torn ACL kept the Brown County running back and linebacker out for the final seven games of the season. The Hornets finished the campaign 3-6 and failed to reach the postseason for the first…
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HANNIBAL, Mo. — Bodie Rollins admitted the Hannibal career assists record had been on his mind in recent games. “Everybody knows that I’ve been a little selfishly unselfish lately,” Rollins said. The senior forward entered Thursday’s regular-season finale against Warrenton two assists away from breaking Corey Allensworth’s mark of 65 assists. Rollins tied the record…
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EAST PEORIA, Ill. — Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer coach Greg Reis knows once a team goes down 2-0, all they need is one goal to turn the momentum in their direction. “A 2-1 lead in soccer is always a dangerous lead because the team that was up is now being very cautious and the…
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QUINCY — Quincy Notre Dame volleyball coach Danielle White’s suit was fit for the occasion. So was the Raiders’ performance. The Raiders blitzed Quincy High School in the first set and staved off a late Blue Devils rally in the second set to win 25-16, 25-22 on Monday at the QHS gym. White took Pink…
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LEWISTOWN, Mo. — A home run trot? Not so much. A home run sprint? That’s more like it. Keera Rothweiler wanted to get to home plate as quickly as she could to celebrate with her teammates after her grand slam in the first inning of Highland’s 15-0 victory over Monroe City in the Class 2…
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HAMILTON, Ill. — Friday was a light day in weight training class for Illini West senior wide receiver and defensive back Tre Niederman, but his thoughts weighed heavily on him. As Niederman walked the track at Fuzz Berges Field during that class — Illini West football assistant coach Michael Lafferty, who teaches the class, was…
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LEWISTOWN, Mo. — Makenna Miller had to put the ball in play. By doing so, she sent the Monroe City softball team to the Class 2 District 5 championship game in the process. The Panthers junior third baseman strode to the plate with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning of Thursday’s district…
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LEWISTOWN, Mo. — Time will tell how long the Highland softball team’s postseason run lasts, but coach Paul Scifres believes the Cougars have something special brewing. Junior Abby Lay twirled a five-inning no-hitter and senior Haleigh Winter matched the school single-season home run record as the top-seeded Cougars rolled over fifth-seeded Clark County 13-0 Thursday…
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PLEASANT HILL, Ill. — Lane Hubbard doesn’t let the questions bother him. They fuel him. “A lot of times I hear people say, ‘Who’s Pleasant Hill? What’s the Wolves?’” said Hubbard, a senior runner on the Pleasant Hill cross country team. “Then I’m like, ‘I’m gonna show them.’” Wolves coach Pamela Roach hears the skeptics,…
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HANNIBAL, Mo. — Saturday was exhausting. Monday was relieving. After the Hannibal volleyball team played five matches in a nine-hour span at Saturday’s Quincy High School Invitational, a three-set victory in a match that took a little more than an hour was just what the doctor ordered 48 hours later. The Pirates made quick work…
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HANNIBAL, Mo. — With the future of North Central Missouri Conference members now in doubt, the remaining five schools now turn their attention to finding new homes. In a joint press release Thursday, Hannibal Public Schools, Kirksville School District, Marshall Public Schools, Mexico Public Schools, and Moberly School District announced the NCMC will dissolve after…
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QUINCY — After more than 10 hours of volleyball, it’s only fitting that the final match of Saturday’s Quincy High School Invitational provided another three-set thriller. Macomb outlasted Freeburg 25-13, 21-25, 15-9 to earn second place in the tournament. The Bombers fell behind 5-3 in the third set after a long, grueling rally that lasted…
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HANNIBAL, Mo. — Landyn Essig’s encore performance was just as impressive as his opening act. With the Hannibal football team leading Moberly 41-18 at the start of the fourth quarter of Friday’s North Central Missouri Conference game at Porter Stadium, Essig had already run the opening kickoff back for a touchdown, rushed for a touchdown…
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QUINCY — Andrew Brown was so close. Painstakingly close. With three minutes left and the Quincy High School and Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer teams deadlocked at 3 during Thursday night’s clash at Flinn Stadium, Quincy’s Logan Epping received a through ball on the right wing from Trace Routh. Epping kept his eyes up and…
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