High School
MONROE CITY, Mo. — The opening night of the 98th annual Monroe City Tournament featured a pair of lopsided victories in the girls bracket and only of the four games played being decided in the fourth quarter. The third-seeded Louisiana boys outlasted sixth-seeded Mark Twain 60-54 behind 15 points from Jack Logan. Josh Brothers led…
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COLUMBIA, Mo. — The phone rings or the text message notification sounds on a Sunday night and Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball Eric Orne knows what it is. Abbey Schreacke wants in the gym. “Of course, I scoot down there to let her in,” Orne said. Had the 6-foot senior guard not had the desire…
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COLUMBIA, Mo. — Almost everything about the way Sunday played out — from the two-hour road trip to playing on a college-sized court — had the hallmark of a classic postseason matchup. All except the end result for the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team. Tied at 45 with four minutes to play in regulation,…
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COLUMBIA, Mo. — The final game of a three-day event showcasing high school girls basketball ended up being a thrilling conclusion for the organizers, sponsors and fans of the inaugural Sophie Cunningham Classic at Columbia College’s Southwell Complex. However, it didn’t end quite the way the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team would have liked.…
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The Liberty seventh grade girls basketball team will play for a state championship. So will the Pittsfield seventh graders. The Brown County and Quincy Junior High School eighth grade teams may, too. Liberty reached the Illinois Elementary School Association Class 2A title game by beating Altamont 31-19 in the quarterfinals and Nokomis 36-19 in the…
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QUINCY — The moment required Ari Buehler to ignore, focus and follow through. Not an easy task on any front. Fouled with 14.4 seconds remaining in regulation and the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team clinging to a two-point lead, the freshman guard first had to become oblivious to the chatter from the Unity players…
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QUINCY — As the Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball coaching staff met in the office adjacent to the locker room at halftime Saturday night, the Raiders were engaging in their own discussion. The theme of both conversations seemed to be the same. What is the Raiders’ identity going to be? The second half — particularly…
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EAST MOLINE, Ill. — Sent to the sideline with two fouls in the first quarter of Friday night’s Western Big 6 Conference boys basketball opener, Quincy High School sophomore guard Bradley Longcor III tried to talk his way back into the game. “He kept saying, ‘I’m not gonna foul. I’m not gonna foul,’” Quincy coach…
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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball players and coaches likely won’t watch the film of Friday night’s 66-35 loss to No. 1-ranked Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin at Belz Gymnasium until Monday or Tuesday. That’s when the Raiders will delve into how to fix what the Cyclones exploited. Before then, though, comes a better-be-ready-for-this…
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CANTON, Mo. — Never underestimate the power of a deep breath. Palmyra girls basketball coach Tim Southers said his primary goal at halftime Friday night was to simply try and get his club’s emotions under control. “I just told the girls to breathe and relax,” he said. They listened. And then they responded. The end…
Read Full Article CANTON, Mo. — What a difference a year makes. At least for the Palmyra boys basketball team. “A year ago, I’m not sure we would have won a game like this,” Palmyra coach Brian Rea said. Rea was assessing Friday night’s 64-52 victory over Canton, a game that saw the Panthers pull away down the…
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QUINCY — The first full regular-season Friday night of the prep basketball season gave us a glimpse of what to expect from now until March. That’s epic individual performances, down-to-the-wire games and teams coming of age. Here’s a look at what happened … • The Southeastern boys basketball team raced to an 18-1 lead in…
Read Full Article QUINCY — A busy Thursday night on both the courts and the mats led to some sterling efforts. Here is a look at what transpired … • The Central wrestling team won a pair of duals, beating Beardstown 40-36 and Illini West 60-18. The Panthers’ Hunter Bolton earned a pair of pins at 160 pounds,…
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QUINCY — Having the best small-school player in the state leading the charge has put the Southeastern boys basketball team in the crosshairs. Having an abundance of talented underclassmen has done the same for Quincy High School. The initial Associated Press state basketball rankings prove that. The Suns checked in at No. 1 in Class…
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QUINCY — The initial Associated Press state basketball rankings set up an intriguing showdown in just two days. The Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team — the defending Class 2A state champion — opens the season as the No. 1-ranked team in the state. The Raiders are 5-0 going into Thursday’s game at West Hancock…
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Here is the Muddy River Sports area boys basketball preview section, delving into teams from Illinois and Missouri as the 2022-23 season gets underway. Click the link below to download the section.
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CENTER, Mo. — The Palmyra girls basketball team is showing what it takes to win convincingly. The Palmyra boys are showcasing what it takes to win tough. Tuesday night, that combination led to a doubleheader sweep. The Palmyra girls blitzed to a 23-7 lead over Mark Twain at the end of the first quarter and…
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BEARDSTOWN, Ill. — The number of 50-point games fashioned by an area boys basketball player can be counted on both hands. Southeastern’s Danny Stephens moved the number closer to having to go to the toes to keep track. In the championship game of the sixth Beardstown Tiger Classic, the 6-foot-7 Stephens scored 52 points in…
Read Full Article The Thanksgiving turkey hangover has passed, and area boys and girls basketball teams are looking to find a rhythm to their seasons. Monday night revealed what is possible when teams find their groove. Here are some of the highlights … • The Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team improved to 5-0 with a 73-29 victory…
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QUINCY — Something the Quincy High School boys basketball coaching staff noticed watching game film revealed itself even further during Saturday morning’s shootaround. The Blue Devils’ primary post players — sophomore Keshaun Thomas and senior Sam Mulherin — weren’t controlling the block. “We watched them post straight up,” QHS coach Andy Douglas said. “They were…
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QUINCY — With a never-in-doubt 58-39 victory over Springfield Lanphier on Saturday night at Blue Devil Gym, the Quincy High School boys basketball team captured the championship of the 51st QHS Thanksgiving Tournament. It is the Blue Devils’ 36th tournament title. Check out this photo gallery of images from freelance photographer Mathew Kirby and Muddy…
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QUINCY — Granted, Quincy Notre Dame’s 58-33 boys basketball victory over St. Louis Gateway STEM was not a thing of beauty. But not every performance in a long high school basketball season can come across as a Rembrandt. Every so often, there’s going to be a MAD Magazine cover show up, too. Such was the…
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QUINCY — By the midpoint of the first quarter there was only one real question surrounding the Quincy Notre Dame-Warrenton girls basketball matchup that was playing out at The Pit. Would Warrenton wind up with more points or turnovers by game’s end? If your choice had been “points” you would have been correct, but only…
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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Every comeback starts at a tipping point, the moment where momentum and mojo shift dramatically. Everything lined up for a Lena-Winslow punt to be just that. Having forced the defending Class 1A state champion to punt from its own 23-yard line with 7 minutes, 53 seconds remaining in the third quarter Friday…
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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — As they worked their way past the long line of Decatur St. Teresa faithful waiting to enter Memorial Stadium, a group of Camp Point Central football fans were abruptly stopped by some curious Bulldogs fans. “Did you get it done?” one asked. The disappointment echoed in the tone of the response. “It…
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QUINCY — Butler College Prep girls basketball coach Xaver Walton got exactly what he wanted. The Lynx returned seven players from last year’s team that lost by three points to Minonk Fieldcrest in the Class 2A super-sectional. When Walton learned defending Class 2A state champion Quincy Notre Dame was looking for a team to play…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Sam Mulherin’s soft bank shot in the waning seconds of overtime was neither a fluke nor an accident. Mulherin’s basket, a wide-open jumper just a few feet to the left of the hoop, wound up providing the margin of victory in the Quincy High School boys basketball team’s hard-earned 57-56 victory Friday night…
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QUINCY — The first 3 ½ minutes of Quincy Notre Dame’s season opener against McCluer on Friday night was … almost unwatchable. The Raiders missed their first six shots, turned the ball over twice and missed three out of four free throws to trail 6-1. “It was really bad. Really bad,” senior Jackson Stratton said.…
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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The Central football team’s magical postseason run ended Friday with a 30-8 loss to top-ranked Lena-Winslow in the Class 1A state championship game at the University of Illinois’ Memorial Stadium. Central finished its season with a 13-1 record and the single-season program record for victories. Here is a gallery of images from…
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QUINCY — The lights go down, the flames go up and everyone in Blue Devil Gym awaiting the Devil’s arrival feels the chills. The players aren’t immune to that, no matter how focused on the game they might be. “I would think any abnormal person would say no they don’t feel anything,” said Tyler Sprick,…
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QUINCY — What do the Three Musketeers, DJ Khaled and the Navy SEALs have in common? They each could be the inspiration for the Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball team this season. Start with the Three Musketeers. In the legendary novel by Alexandre Dumas, the Musketeers stick together with the motto “Tous pour un, un…
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QUINCY — The exuberant kid who tagged along every opportunity he had when Chris Harmann went to Blue Devil Gym during a decade spent as a Quincy High School boys basketball assistant coach has matured That wasn’t a good thing for Harmann’s Dixon club. Tyler Sprick, a QHS junior guard and Harmann’s cousin, turned Thursday’s…
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QUINCY — The opening night of the 51st QHS Thanksgiving Tournament had everything Quincy High School boys basketball fans want — a down-to-the-wire affair, an intriguing storyline and a victory by the Blue Devils. Quincy opened with a 65-29 victory over Dixon after Springfield Lanphier outlasted Miller Career Academy 57-54. Muddy River Sports Editor Matt…
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QUINCY — As the Quincy High School boys basketball team trudged through another preseason practice, those responsible for the sound system in Blue Devil Gym tested the acoustics, the decibel levels and the clarity for pregame introductions. “They started playing everything and I got chills,” senior guard Reid O’Brien said. The Blue Devils also were…
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QUINCY — To the victor go the spoils. What exactly the spoils are Quincy High School boys basketball coach Andy Douglas isn’t divulging. Thursday night, in the opening game of the QHS Thanksgiving Tournament, the Blue Devils will square off against Dixon at 7 p.m. at Blue Devil Gym. It also pits two close friends…
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — Come Friday, the Camp Point Central football team will walk into Memorial Stadium on the University of Illinois campus for the Class 1A state championship game to square off with Lena-Winslow, the reigning state champion who has won five state championships since 2010. Leading the way with be an experienced, stout…
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QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame football program needed a home. The Central State 8 Conference needed another member to balance its scheduling paradigm. As it turns out, they needed each other at just the right time. Notre Dame and the CS8 collaboratively announced Wednesday morning the Raiders will join the league in 2024 for…
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QUINCY — The second-half rally and fight to the finish the Quincy High School girls basketball team engaged in Tuesday night had two components. “We totally changed our mindset,” Blue Devils senior guard Leah Chevalier said. “And a few people hit shots.” It was nearly enough to topple the reigning Western Big 6 Conference champion.…
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COLFAX, Ill. — Ross Riley’s explanation for the Camp Point Central football team’s Class 1A semifinal win over Ridgeview-Lexington was a simple one. That was fitting because the Panthers’ 44-8 victory was simple domination. “We were just going, and I was just running. I don’t know what else to say,” exclaimed a jubilant Riley. “It’s…
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MONROE CITY, Mo. — The bottom line? “Now we’ve got the chance to play 48 more minutes,” said Monroe City running back Ceaton Pennewell, only moments after his club had survived a grueling Class 1 quarterfinal test Saturday afternoon against Lincoln. Monroe City’s 26-12 victory at Lankford Field did not come easy. If nothing else,…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The knockout punch came quickly. Quincy Notre Dame scored early and often Friday night, opening its girls basketball season with a relatively easy 68-39 victory over Hardin Calhoun at The Pit. “I felt we played with a lot of confidence,” QND senior Blair Eftink said. “We were excited to play.” The game was…
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WEST PLAINS, Mo. — Two shifts in momentum completely changed the context of Friday night’s Class 4 state quarterfinal rematch. The first gave the Hannibal football team a boost. The second spelled doom for the Pirates. After Hannibal scored on the final play of the first half to take a seven-point lead to the locker…
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Here is the Muddy River Sports area girls basketball preview section, delving into teams from Illinois and Missouri as the 2022-23 season gets underway. Click the link below to download the section.
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — The Central football players have traded cut-off t-shirts and shorts for stocking caps and sweatshirts. When that takes place, something more significant has, too. In this case, the Panthers have reached the Class 1A state semifinals for the fourth time in program history. Central (12-0) travels for the first time this…
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QUINCY — Three area football players have been named to the Illinois High School Football Coaches Association all-state teams, while seven others picked up honorable mention all-state plaudits. Central senior running back/linebacker Isaac Genenbacher, Brown County senior fullback/linebacker Colby Wort and Macomb junior wide receiver JT Jeter were first-team all-state selections. Genenbacher has been a…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Quincy High School girls basketball Brad Dance talked throughout the preseason about how he felt his squad was going to shoot the ball better and score at a much higher rate. When the curtain opened on a new season Tuesday night, the Blue Devils backed that up. Four players finished in double figures…
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — Central quarterback Nick Moore’s post-game assessment was rather poignant. And precise. “The first half was kind of rough,” Moore said in matter-of-fact fashion. Yep, pretty much much nailed it, Nick. Fortunately, there are two halves in a high school football game. The margin of Central’s 24-12 Class 1A quarterfinal playoff victory…
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — Shut out in the first half and trailing by two scores, the Central football team showed why it has been one of the area’s most successful programs for the past decade. The Panthers simply refuse to lose. They rallied for a 24-12 victory over Greenfield-Northwestern in the Class 1A state quarterfinals…
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HANNIBAL, Mo. — The Hannibal football team outscored Jefferson City — and the thermometer — on a frosty Friday night at E.A. Porter Stadium. The Pirates’ potent run-first-and-foremost offense eventually wore down the Jays on an evening when the temperature never broke 30 degrees and ended with a 42-21 Class 4 District 5 championship victory.…
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MONROE CITY, Mo. — Monroe City senior Ceaton Pennewell channeled his inner Luke Kuechly on Friday night. With temperatures in the high 20s and a wind chill in the teens, Pennewell wasn’t about to let South Shelby think he was cold. While some of his teammates were a little more dressed for the conditions, Pennewell,…
Read Full Article PALMYRA, Mo. — A self-reported violation has led to the Palmyra football team officially forfeiting the final six games of its regular season, which included the Panthers’ lone victory against Highland in Week 8. Palmyra athletic director Brian Wosman confirmed the school submitted information to the Missouri State High School Activities Association showing a handful…
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QUINCY — Coming out of the halftime locker room, Quincy High School football coach Rick Little and his counterpart at Lemont, Bret Kooi, had to play a bit of a chess game. Kooi’s squad led 17-10. Little had first choice and elected to receive the second half kickoff. Kooi was left to decide whether he…
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — Don’t kid yourself, that well-grounded approach to offense employed by Central’s football team is by no means an accident or simple happenstance. Yep, there’s a specific method to the successful madness on those wind-swept plains just outside of Camp Point. “We’ve always been a running team here,” junior two-way lineman Reese…
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MACOMB, Ill. — Emily Horrell better get used to this if she hasn’t already. A few days before the Macomb football team played host to Murphysboro in the second round of the Class 4A playoffs, the wife of Bombers coach Tanner Horrell happened to be at a local retail store when two retirement-age women began…
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PRINCETON, Ill. — The vibes created by a crisp, energetic and efficient practice Thursday afternoon failed to linger as long as anyone associated with the Quincy Notre Dame volleyball program wanted or expected. “I guess we let it all out yesterday and couldn’t save it for today,” senior middle hitter Abbey Schreacke said. At least…
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PRINCETON, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame volleyball team rallied after losing the first set of Friday night’s Class 2A Princeton Super-Sectional to Genoa-Kingston, but the Raiders couldn’t sustain the momentum in the third set of a 25-19, 22-25, 25-17 loss. Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman captured the action from start to finish. Check…
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HANNIBAL, Mo. — Not even in his wildest dreams could Aaron Daughtery have ever envisioned what would unfold Friday night. Never, ever, ever. Daughtery, a sophomore defensive back making his first start in the Hannibal secondary, intercepted three passes — returning one for a touchdown — to help the Pirates overwhelm Warrenton 62-7 in the…
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LANARK, Ill. — After falling into a deep hole to start Friday night’s Class 1A Eastland Super-Sectional, the Southeastern volleyball team looked like it had recovered and regained control of the match. But the Suns couldn’t fend off a Sterling Newman Central Catholic rally in the second set, and the Class 1A runners-up from a…
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MONROE CITY, Mo. — The Monroe City football team can outrun almost anything or anyone. That includes the weather. With the start of the Class 1 District 6 semifinal against fourth-seeded Westran moved up 90 minutes in order to avoid impending storms, the top-seeded Panthers ran roughshod before the first raindrops fell, churning out 434…
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QUINCY — Cole Wagy saw beyond the jersey, the helmet and the foe and took note of a fellow football player’s heartache. At that moment, the Quincy High School offensive lineman walked over, knelt down and put his right arm around his ailing adversary. “I didn’t even know his name,” Wagy said. Names aren’t necessary…
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FARMINGTON, Ill. — Five points. No more. Certainly no less. Forced to a decisive third set in Wednesday night’s Class 2A Farmington Sectional championship after Macomb staved off four match points, Quincy Notre Dame volleyball coach Courtney Kvitle convinced the Raiders to concentrate on winning five points at a time. “We knew we had to…
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FARMINGTON, Ill. — Certain moments cannot be forgotten. Try October 5 for example. With the Quincy Notre Dame cheering section split between two major events — the boys soccer team played at Quincy High School, while the volleyball team played host to Macomb — the Bombers brought a sizable, boisterous crowd to The Pit. A…
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BRIMFIELD, Ill. — The Southeastern volleyball team’s cardiac kids made a comeback. More than one comeback, to be precise. Down 10 points in the decisive third set Wednesday night, the Suns staged an epic rally to defeat Hartsburg-Emden 25-11, 21-25, 28-26 in the Class 1A Brimfield Sectional final. To Southeastern coach Tim Kerr, his team’s…
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WHITE HALL, Ill. — The Unity volleyball team just couldn’t put it together on Wednesday night. Unforced error after unforced error piled up for the Mustangs in their Class 1A sectional championship match against Springfield Lutheran. The Mustangs made 10 unforced errors in the first set and followed that with four service errors in the…
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FARMINGTON, Ill. — The trick was to treat the Orion volleyball team to a false sense of hope. Giving up seven of the first 11 points in Monday’s first semifinal match of the Class 2A Farmington Sectional seemed to do that. It didn’t take long, though, for Quincy Notre Dame to dash that hope. A…
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FARMINGTON, Ill. — Taking the court under the watchful eyes of a rival and future foe could have been slightly unnerving. Facing an opponent looking for retribution could have, too. The Macomb volleyball team ignored it all and delivered a prime in-the-moment effort Monday night, dispatching Sherrard 25-15, 25-14 in the semifinals of the Class…
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FARMINGTON, Ill. — The sectional championship showdown prep volleyball fans have anticipated for the past month is about to happen. Quincy Notre Dame and Macomb sidestepped their sectional semifinal opponents Monday night and will meet at 6 p.m. Wednesday for the title of the Class 2A Farmington Sectional. Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman took…
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WHITE HALL, Ill. — The senior members of the Unity volleyball team have been to the sectional three times during their prep careers. The first two times, the Mustangs were shown the door in the semifinals. Ashlynn Arnsman, one of four Unity seniors, is intent on making this final ride a long one. “It was…
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MACOMB, Ill. — Macomb football coach Tanner Horrell could only shake his head Saturday night. “That’s a pretty good 5-4 team, huh?” Horrell asked, referring to a Quincy Notre Dame team that gave his undefeated Bombers all could they handle before coming away with a 28-14 victory over the Raiders in an opening-round Class 4A…
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — The Dupo football team was barely off the bus after the long trip from the southern part of St. Louis Metro East area before Central had three touchdowns on the scoreboard Saturday. Frustrated Dupo fans who made the 115-mile trip had to be escorted from the visitor’s side track to behind…
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — One of the best defenses throughout the state in Class 1A lived up to that billing Saturday as the Central football team steamrolled Dupo 66-0 in a first-round playoff matchup. Check out this photo gallery of images from Central photographer Mike Pritchard:
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QUINCY — The bouncy, boisterous, energetic way the Illini West volleyball team plays can be distracting or intimidating. Quincy Notre Dame combatted that with plenty of noise of its own. Buoyed by a sizable, vocal crowd, the Raiders maintained an even-keel approach throughout Thursday night’s Class 2A QND Regional championship match at The Pit to…
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QUINCY — For the seventh time in the last eight seasons, the Quincy Notre Dame volleyball team can call itself a regional champion. This time, the Raiders gave their seniors a lasting memory in their final game at The Pit. QND beat Illini West 25-13, 25-17 to advance to the Farmington Sectional, where the Raiders…
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QUINCY — Quincy High School senior libero Carley Owsley wasn’t about to go down without a fight. “I was prepared for them to be all over the place and to make me move,” Owsley said Thursday night. “I wanted every ball.” And Owsley was able to dig a lot of them as the sixth-seeded Blue…
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MENDON, Ill. — Maybe, just maybe, the Unity volleyball team needed a wake-up call. The Mustangs, who won the first set against Brown County with relative ease Thursday night, eventually needed a fast-and-furious finish in round two to deliver a knockout punch. “I think we got a little ahead of ourselves after that first game,”…
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BIGGSVILLE, Ill. — Tim Kerr willingly accepted the blame. Ahead of Thursday night’s Class 1A Biggsville West Central Regional championship match, the Southeastern volleyball coach searched through some stats and realized senior Abbey McMillen had missed only eight serves all season and was serving at a 98-percent clip. He never should have looked it up…
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MONMOUTH, Ill. — Each season, the Macomb volleyball team has inched closer to being a sectional champion. Monday, the Bombers hope the trend continues. Macomb will carry its 32-3 record to the Class 2A Farmington Sectional, where it will face Sherrard in the semifinals following Thursday’s 25-12, 25-19 victory over Monmouth-Roseville in the Class 2A…
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QUINCY — The pressure to get pressure lies squarely on the Quincy High School football team’s defensive front. “And we have to pressure all night,” defensive lineman Caron Banks said. Otherwise, Chatham Glenwood quarterback Jack Knudson gains the edge. “We know he’s really good in the pocket and doesn’t scramble much,” QHS linebacker Ty Douglas…
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MENDON, Ill. — The Unity volleyball team launched its pursuit of a Class 1A state tournament berth with a flurry. Brown County did the same. Now the two must go head-to-head to see who survives. The Mustangs and Hornets won Class 1A Unity Regional semifinals Wednesday night in straight sets, propelling them to the regional…
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QUINCY — Annie Eaton’s smile is infectious, but don’t let that nice-girl persona fool you. She’s the quiet assassin of the Quincy Notre Dame volleyball team. And she relishes that role. “I like to control things out there,” Eaton said. “I like to run the offense.” The Raiders’ floor general was at her directorial best…
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QUINCY — If pressed, Dakota Lafferty will admit, at times, it is difficult not to look toward next season. Considering her Illini West volleyball team will play Quincy Notre Dame for a Class 2A QND Regional title Thursday, what’s the deal, Dakota? “We don’t have any seniors,” she said. “We start two freshmen, three sophomores…
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QUINCY — Quincy High School volleyball coach Kate Brown collected herself, looked out on the court at the QHS gym and broke into a wide smile. “This was a team we haven’t seen all season,” Brown said of her sixth-seeded Blue Devils, who moments earlier pulled off an upset of fourth-seeded Pekin in the Class…
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AUGUSTA, Ill. — Tuesday’s steady rain didn’t cause Danny Stephens or his father, Jeremy, any delays in getting the fields on the family farm worked over. “We finished them (Monday),” Stephens said. “So it was good timing.” And for as much as Stephens, the Southeastern senior, feels at home on the basketball court, he feels…
Read Full Article QUINCY — When the team bus rolled into the Quincy Notre Dame parking lot at around 7 p.m. Saturday, Raiders football coach Jack Cornell didn’t know which road his team would be taking in the postseason. As soon as Cornell knew, he told the players he’d spread the word. But there was a more important…
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LADUE, Mo. — Explosive is how senior running back Jackson Stratton labeled the Quincy Notre Dame football team’s offensive performance Saturday afternoon. “This is,” Stratton said, “the best we’ve been all season.” The Raiders picked the ideal time to peak. With its offense dominating the line of scrimmage and constructing big plays, QND was able…
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QUINCY — Down 28-0 to Rock Island on Senior Night at Flinn Stadium, Quincy High School senior linebacker Kory Fletcher tried to keep a good attitude. “I kept thinking, ‘What if magic happens?’ ” Fletcher said. “And magic happened.” The Blue Devils rallied from that first-half deficit to pull out a thrilling 47-42 Western Big…
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CARTHAGE, Ill. — On a field where history grows with every blade of grass, the Illini West football team was intent on keeping history from happening. For nearly eight minutes, that seemed possible. Then in a blink, it became clear history wouldn’t be denied. Facing undefeated, state-ranked Macomb in the regular-season finale Friday night at…
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — At Central High School, the postseason has become an annual rite of passage once the calendar reaches deep into October. And it’s time — for the 14th straight year — for the Panthers to turn their attention to another playoff pursuit. Central, No. 4 in the latest Class 1A rankings, punctuated…
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HANNIBAL, Mo. — Markahl Humphrey ran for a career-high 193 yards and scored three touchdowns Friday night, triggering the Hannibal football team’s hard-fought 27-21 victory over Columbia Battle at Porter Stadium. The spotlight was thrust on Humphrey, a senior running back, following a first-quarter injury to junior all-purpose back Aneyas Williams, a major NCAA Division…
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MONROE CITY, Mo. — For all of the big-play capabilities Class 1’s top-ranked team possesses, the ability to grind out a drive and control the clock could be what separates the Monroe City football team from the rest of the field. It separated the Panthers from the rest of the Clarence Cannon Conference. Monroe City…
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QUINCY — Bradyn Little deliberated before answering, and even then the Quincy High School sophomore quarterback struggled to give a single response. So which one of his wide receivers is the best at making the tough catches? “Caeden (Johannessen) has had a few tough catches. And Jack (Mettemeyer). And Tykell (Hammers),” Little said. “Really, it’s…
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What’s at stake Friday night? For some high school football teams, it’s the chance to play another day. For others, history beckons. And there are those who want to finish with a flurry. Quincy High School wraps up the Western Big 6 Conference slate by playing host to Rock Island. With a victory, the Blue…
Read Full Article Prep volleyball is in the final week of the regular season, while college and prep soccer teams are heading toward the postseason. Here’s the rundown of Tuesday’s action: • The Macomb volleyball team showcased the ability to rally in an 18-25, 25-18, 25-21 victory at Unity. Kennedy Adair and Kathryn Lukkarinen had 10 kills apiece…
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QUINCY — The outcome matters. It has to, otherwise the sweat equity put into practice and the commitment to be at your best wouldn’t matter so much. Still, there are nights where the final score takes on secondary importance, where winners aren’t determined solely by the numbers on a scoreboard but more by the integrity,…
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QUINCY — Monday night’s crosstown showdown continued the mission to find a cure for breast cancer, and the atmosphere in the QHS gym as the Quincy High School and Quincy Notre Dame girls volleyball teams squared off proved to be electric. Here is a look at the images captured by Muddy River Sports Editor Matt…
Read Full Article ROCK ISLAND, Ill. — Quincy High School football coach Rick Little wants to see the Blue Devils play with an edge — no matter the opponent. If not, he knows it can prove costly. That will be a point of emphasis this week in preparation for the regular-season finale at home against Rock Island following…
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MONROE CITY, Mo. — Waylon DeGrave and Ceaton Pennewell give the Monroe City football team two entirely different looks in the backfield. DeGrave, a junior, provides the flash, while Pennewell, a senior, counters as the Panthers’ punisher. Both proved to be hard to stop on Friday night at Lankford Field. DeGrave broke off two long…
Read Full Article MARSHALL, Mo. — The defense gave the offense a rest Friday night, all while putting the finishing touches on another undefeated run through the North Central Missouri Conference for the Hannibal football team. Owen Andrews returned an interception 19 yards for a touchdown on the opening possession, and following a safety, Jack Parker returned the…
Read Full Article Here is a look at this week’s slate of high school football games and where those games will be broadcast on the radio or via livestream: Friday’s games Quincy Notre Dame (3-4) at Granite City (1-6), 7 p.m. • WTAD 930 AM, 103.3 FM • WGEM 1440 AM, 98.9 FM Hannibal (5-2) at Marshall, 7…
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Here are the latest rankings of Illinois high school football teams in each class, according to an Associated Press panel of sportswriters: Class 8A School W-L Pts Prv 1. Loyola (9) (7-0) 108 1 2. Lincoln-Way East (2) (7-0) 101 2 3. York (7-0) 88 3 4. Glenbard West (6-1) 74 4 5. Gurnee Warren…
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