Illinois
QUINCY — Operators of Adams County Speedway said Sunday night there likely will be some scheduling changes due to low attendance during July. Jim and Tammy Lieurance, the husband-wife team that has operated .29-mile dirt track at 8000 Broadway since its 2022 re-opening, told Muddy River News the weekly series will probably be cut from…
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LIBERTY, Ill. — The Liberty Booster Club will hold a bags tournament on Saturday, Aug. 12, at Liberty Park. Entry fee for this double elimination tournament is $25 person for adults and $15 for individuals 16 and younger. A blind draw will be used for partner selection. The event will offer a 50/50 raffle along…
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ROXANA, Del. — One more to glory. The Illinois District 17 softball team, composed of players throughout West-Central and Central Illinois, is one victory away from a Senior League World Series championship. A fitting winner-take-all finale will decide it. The Land of Lincolners will face the Southwest Region champions from Texas at 6 p.m. Sunday…
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ROXANA, Del. — An emphatic ending to a perfect stretch of play has the Illinois District 17 softball team looking like the team to beat. If the Land of Lincolners can keep that going, a World Series championship is within reach. District 17 finished an undefeated run through pool play at the Senior League World…
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ROXANA, Del. — One miscue won’t derail the Illinois District 17 softball team’s mission to win a World Series title. Leading Calgary, Alberta, by two runs in the sixth inning Wednesday at Lyons Field, the Land of Lincolners allowed two unearned runs as a fielding error contributed to the Canadian uprising. A pickoff ended the…
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ROXANA, Del. — The beat goes on. For the Illinois District 17 all-star softball team, it sounds a little something like this: Thump, thump, thumpity, thump. Caitlin Bunte doubled and tripled in her first two at-bats Tuesday, Ava Wombles smoked a home run to left field and the Land of Lincolners collected 13 hits in…
Read Full Article ROXANA, Del. — The bats didn’t end up as lost luggage. That’s bad news for the rest of the Senior League World Series field. The Illinois District 17 softball team opened its return to the World Series by showcasing what it has done so consistently well throughout its postseason run — hit. The Land of…
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QUINCY — Jeffrey DeLonjay moved closer to a second straight Adams County Speedway track championship Sunday night. DeLonjay collected his seventh straight — eighth overall — feature victory in the 4-Cylinder division. Barring some sort of major meltdown over the ensuing two months, he should be able to comfortably clinch the championship well before the…
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QUINCY — Ron Emmick and Vince Puleo have not been back to Quincy since the early 1980s, but that will all change when both return in early August. Emmick and Puleo, both household names at the elite level of karting, will be the former stars of the sport honored at the 22nd Vintage Kart Olympics,…
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BYRON CENTER, Mich. — Delaware, here they come. And a prolific offense is coming with them. The Illinois District 17 softball team is returning to the Senior League World Series in Roxana, Del., after overwhelming the Central Regional field with an unstoppable offense. Illinois took out Ohio District 2 in Thursday’s championship, winning 16-3 behind…
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BYRON CENTER, Mich. — Two games into the Senior League Softball Central Regional, the Illinois District 17 all-stars have created quite a debate. Which will the Land of Lincolners finish the tournament with more of — runs, hits or strikeouts? Right now,they’re piling up all three.. Tuesday’s 14-0 victory over Michigan District 2 featured Springfield’s…
Read Full Article BYRON CENTER, Mich. — The Illinois District 17 softball team is looking to make it back to the Senior League World Series. Monday, the all-stars took their first step — with authority. Quincy Notre Dame’s Caitlin Bunte struck out 13, Havana’s Kaydi Miller doubled twice and the Illinois squad beat the Johnston (Iowa) Senior All-Stars…
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QUINCY — Tanner Klingele says it’s one thing to reach the proverbial mountain top, but staying there is another story in itself. Klingele, the points leader in the super-competitive sport mod division at Adams County Speedway, solidified his No. 1 position Sunday night with a thrilling — and that’s likely a major understatement — victory…
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QUINCY — The challenges of playing, practicing, studying and sleeping on the road in order to play club volleyball are things Gabbie Wiley Weiman and Josie Stanford endured in their pursuit of high level competition and college scholarships. They don’t want the next generation to find it so arduous. “We had to go to St.…
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QUINCY — It’s getting to the point that Austen Becerra has won so many modified features this season it’s becoming difficult for him to remember the exact number. Such was the case Sunday night at Adams County Speedway. “This was No. 21 … or maybe it’s No. 22,” he said, trying to add up the…
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QUINCY — It’s never too late, right? For Adam Birck to defend his sport mod track championship at Adams County Speedway, the longtime driver from LaGrange, Mo., will need a dominating second half of the season. Birck took the first step toward that goal Sunday night, rolling to a definitive feature victory for his first…
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QUINCY — Ashton Winger is lovin’ life and livin’ large. Really, really large. The 23-year-old native of Senoia, Ga., roared to Wednesday night’s super late model victory in the UMP Summer Nationals annual Hell Tour stop at Adams County Speedway. Winger, earning his second tour victory in a week, did so in exclamation-point fashion. He…
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QUINCY — Adams County Speedway will play host to the UMP Summer Nationals Super Late Model Hell Tour on Wednesday, always one of the season’s most anticipated shows at the venerable dirt track at 8000 Broadway. There was no racing last Sunday, allowing track workers some extra time to fine-tune the facilities for an event…
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Videographer Justin Bailey put together a highlight package from Saturday’s Muddy River Showcase, which ended with an Illinois sweep. The Illinois girls won 87-48 and the Illinois boys won 118-80 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center.
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QUINCY — Austen Becerra is a busy guy, but he has no complaints. Along with working full time, the reigning modified track champ at Adams County Speedway races three nights per week and works on his ride for three hours or so on each of the remaining four evenings. Oh, he’s married, too. “You only…
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QUINCY — Jake Hoyt’s reaction was genuine. His appreciation of the moment was, too. Announced as the most valuable player for the Illinois all-stars after a 118-80 victory over Missouri in Saturday’s Muddy River Showcase boys basketball game, Hoyt walked toward midcourt to receive his plaque and shrugged and smiled at the person about to…
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QUINCY — It became obvious to the Illinois all-stars during their preparation for the Muddy River Showcase that Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball coach Eric Orne was taking this as seriously as anyone.. “Coach Orne made it really intense,” Unity’s Ashlynn Arnsman said. “It felt like a real regular-season game.” The Missouri all-stars realized how…
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QUINCY — Do you believe in Magic? The Illinois girls all-stars certainly do. Q-City Magic, that is. Six of the 10 players on the Illinois roster for the Saturday’s Muddy River Showcase began playing together in sixth grade as part of the Q-City Magic program coached by the late Gayland Blakemore. It allowed the Showcase…
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QUINCY — The Illinois boys all-star team put on a shooting display you’d expect in a marquee event, making 19 3-pointers in a 118-80 victory over Missouri in the second Muddy River Showcase on Saturday night at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman sat courtside and captured these…
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QUINCY — The Illinois girls had length and athleticism. The Missouri girls had guard play and quickness. It made for an entertaining chess match in the second Muddy River Showcase, played Saturday at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. A 30-10 spurt in the third quarter enabled the Illinois squad to pull away for…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Waterfowl hunters are encouraged to mark their calendars for the upcoming waterfowl hunting blind drawings that will take place at numerous public hunting areas throughout Illinois in July and August. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources will host traditional blind drawings at all sites scheduled for this hunting year. Participants are advised…
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QUINCY — The depth of talent that will be on display Saturday during the second Muddy River Showcase is quite impressive. Consider these stats: • Among the 40 players comprising the four rosters, 14 scored 1,000 or more points in their high school careers; • There are 14 planning on playing basketball in college; •…
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QUINCY — Jackson Stratton and Isaac Genenbacher had the same initial thought when they received invitations to play in the Muddy River Showcase. How can I make this work? The Quincy Notre Dame and Camp Point Central multi-sport athletes had committed to play in the Illinois Shrine Bowl, an all-star event for prep football players…
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QUINCY — We’re now deep enough into the dirt-track racing season to start making some assessments concerning the five weekly series at Adams County Speedway. That will be this week’s approach to our familiar Dirty Thirty Thoughts about the modifieds, sport mods, crate late models, stock cars and 4-Cylinders. Modifieds Championship favorite: Austin Becerra is…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. QUINCY — Jake Hoyt…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. MENDON, Ill. — Ashlynn…
Read Full Article QUINCY — There is one thing each of the players participating in the second Muddy River Showcase have in common. They can call themselves alumni. The top senior basketball players from West-Central Illinois and Northeast Missouri have all officially graduated from their respective high schools, but they will team up to represent their communities and…
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QUINCY — Sam Halstead has been racing at Adams County Speedway for more than 25 years, and has long carried the nickname “Superman” for his driving abilities. That nickname was truly befitting on a rather windy and unseasonably chilly Sunday night at 8000 Broadway. Halstead emerged from a four-car scrum on the final lap to…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. CAMP POINT, Ill. —…
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QUINCY — As hard as it is to believe, the local dirt-track racing season is already one-third of the way toward completion. That’s what all of those early rainouts can do. All of that wet weather aside, the five Sunday nights of racing we have seen have provided some early insights. If the season ended…
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QUINCY — Missouri S&T pitching coach Shane Herschelman made Quincy Notre Dame right-hander Jake Schisler a recruiting priority last year, liking the way Schisler attacked hitters and how his pitches had natural movement. After the spring Schisler had, Miners head coach Todd DeGraffenreid might have to consider using Schisler as a two-way talent. Schisler was…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. QUINCY — When it…
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QUINCY — Quincy Notre Dame sophomore Caitlin Bunte led a trio of area softball players who earned first-team all-state honors from the Illinois Coaches Association. Eight others received second- or third-team honors. Bunte, a left-handed pitcher and outfielder, was named to the Class 2A first team, while Pleasant Hill junior pitcher McKinley Lowe and Brown…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. WARSAW, Ill. — Alec…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Now THAT was close. Veteran driver Dave Wietholder reached victory lane for the first time this season when he edged Rick Stevenson to win Sunday night’s 18-lap modified feature at Adams County Speedway. And the term “edged” hardly does that final verdict justice. Wietholder’s margin of victory was just 0.01 of a second.…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Welcome to this week’s Dirty Thirty and a trip through each of Adams County Speedway’s five weekly classes, plus some miscellaneous observations. Five classes. Five notes, quotes and anecdotes. Five at-large thoughts. The math all adds up to 30, as in Dirty Thirty. Modifieds • The top modified qualifying time so far this season…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. CAMP POINT, Ill. —…
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QUINCY — Admittedly, the start of the dirt-track racing season has been a challenge for modified driver Shawn Deering. He’s hoping Sunday night’s feature victory at Adams County Speedway is a harbinger of better things to come. Deering led flag-to-flag en route to collecting a $1,000 paycheck, holding off a stout field that included the…
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Chargers' Deitrich in high jump finals at Illinois boys state track, Eagles' Gimm to throw in discus
CHARLESTON, Ill. — Three Quincy High School runners were unable to advance to the finals in the Class 3A boys state track and field championships during Friday’s preliminaries at O’Brien Stadium on the Eastern Illinois University campus. Boen Brockmiller placed 27th in the 200-meter dash, finishing in 22.90 seconds, while Eric McClelland was 34th in…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. QUINCY — The bookends…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The Dirty Thirty is back, bay-bee. We took some time off last week to take a closer look at the upcoming MARS late model special — and what a special it was, right?! — but now we’re back into the regular-season grind tied to the late models, modifieds, sport mods, street stocks and…
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HAVANA, Ill. — One pitch, one swing, one sudden ending. Illini Bluffs catcher Lexi Brinkman jumped on the first pitch from Pleasant Hill’s McKinley Lowe in the bottom of the seventh inning Wednesday and smacked a walk-off home run to center field for a 4-3 victory in the semifinals of the Class 1A Havana softball…
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QUINCY — The second verse was highly reminiscent of the first. The same three super late model drivers occupied the podium Sunday night, only in a different order from a year ago. Ryan Unzicker, Jason Feger and Tommy Sheppard dominated the Mid-America Racing Series main event in front of a crowd of about 2,700 at…
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QUINCY — Each time the Quincy Notre Dame baseball team seemed poised for a big inning Saturday, something went haywire. Pittsfield right-hander Brennan Tomhave played a role in that. The Raiders’ overaggressiveness did, too. It finally took a simple approach in consecutive at-bats to generate enough offense to survive and advance. After the Raiders loaded…
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MENDON, Ill. — Carter Eyler’s high school baseball career is now history, and even though it ended with a loss, there was ample reason for the Central senior to hold his head high. And he did. Eyler, a lanky 6-foot-2 right-hander, held heavily favored and top-seeded Jacksonville Routt at bay for the large majority of…
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MACOMB, Ill. — One swing is all Sarah Stufflebeam needed to set the tone. After Kaitlyn Robinson retired the Rushville-Industry softball team in order in the top of the first inning of Friday’s Class 2A Macomb Regional championship game, Stufflebeam cracked a two-run home run in the bottom of the frame and propelled Macomb to…
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QUINCY — Quincy Medical Group is offering free sports physicals for all area student athletes at its locations in Quincy, Mount Sterling and Keokuk, Iowa. All who attend a sports physical at QMG will receive a complimentary T-shirt. Appointments are required. The QMG locations, dates and times of the physicals are: Quincy Call (217) 222-6550,…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. QUINCY — The fact…
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QUINCY — The MARS cars are on the way. Adams County Speedway hosts its first major event of the season Sunday when the MARS (Mid-America Racing Series) super late models arrive for their second visit in as many years to the Broadway Bullring. The 2022 MARS show drew an enthusiastic crowd of about 3,000, and…
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QUINCY — The Pittsfield baseball players didn’t understand it, nor did they appreciate it. A year ago, toting a 21-5 regular-season record, the Saukees were the No. 4 seed in their sub-sectional. This season, with a 25-4 regular-season record, they were relegated to being the No. 5 seed heading to the Class 2A Quincy Notre…
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QUINCY — A West Central Illinois rivalry gets a postseason chapter added to it Saturday. The Quincy Notre Dame and Pittsfield baseball teams advanced to the championship game of the Class 2A QND Regional by winning Wednesday’s semifinals and will square off at 11 a.m. Saturday in the title game at Ferd Niemann Jr. Memorial…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. MACOMB, Ill. — Connor…
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MACKINAW, Ill. — Josie Bryan decided to try tripling jumping about three weeks ago. It turns out she’s pretty good at it. State-level good in fact. The Illini West junior track standout finished second in the triple jump during Thursday’s Class 1A Deer Creek-Mackinaw Sectional, leaping 10.15 meters to qualify for the girls state track…
Read Full Article RUSHVILLE, Ill. — Unity’s Saylor Barry won two events and finished second in another, Liberty’s Arianna Neisen dominated the distance events and a bevy of area athletes punched their ticket to the state track and field championships during Wednesday’s Class 1A Rushville Sectional. The state championships take place May 18-20 at O’Brien Stadium on the…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Slowly, but ever so surely, the Adams County Speedway dirt-track racing season is beginning to take shape. Hopefully, the weatherman will cooperate Sunday night and for the first time this year we’ll have back-to-back weeks of sheet-metal mayhem at the Broadway Bullring. Until Sunday evening, here’s this week’s Dirty Thirty — 30 thoughts…
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MENDON, Ill. — With postseason play beginning next week, the Unity baseball team sent a message to those in the Class 1A Brown County Sectional complex on Wednesday. Don’t count the Mustangs out. Quincy High School learned that lesson. Unity scored twice in the bottom of the fifth inning to take the lead and Sawyer…
Read Full Article CAMP POINT, Ill. — Senior Night turned into quite the affair for the Central baseball and softball teams. The Panthers punctuated a 10-1 victory over Triopia on the baseball diamond by bookending the game with four-run innings in the first and sixth, while on the softball field, the Panthers made a pair of third-inning runs…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. MENDON, Ill. — A…
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The Muddy River Showcase featuring 40 of the area’s top senior basketball players from Illinois and Missouri takes place June 17 at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center. The girls game begins at 4 p.m. with the boys game to follow at 6 p.m. Admission is $10 at the door. MOUNT STERLING, Ill. —…
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QUINCY — Now that’s more like it. Both Austen Becerra and Adam Birck looked more like defending track champions Sunday night, rolling to dominant feature victories at Adams County Speedway. Becerra and Birck stumbled out of the gate on opening night back on April 23, having to drop out of their respective main events with…
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QUINCY — The two-run lead vanished, and with it seemed to go with the momentum and the energy the Quincy Notre Dame softball team brought to The Backyard on Saturday. Mackenzie Flachs brought it all back. After Pleasant Hill’s Ava Wombles scored on Jade Peebles single in the top of the third inning to tie…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Here are this week’s Dirty Thirty dirt-track thoughts. You now the drill — the usual five reflections per class, plus five miscellaneous meanderings — all involving Adams County Speedway: Modifieds • Defending series champ Austen Becerra will be trying to dig out of a big points hole following his seventh-place feature finish the…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Four active drivers entered the current season with No. 1 all-time Muddy River Sports rankings among the five weekly classes at Adams County Speedway. Dave Wietholder is No. 1 in the UMP modified series, which has been a weekly class at 8000 Broadway since 2009, while Denny Woodworth is atop the crate late…
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QUINCY — There aren’t many places that make Tyler Dance feel as comfortable and confident as he does pitching at Ferd Niemann Jr. Ballfield. “That mound is one of my favorites,” the Quincy Notre Dame senior right-hander said. He hadn’t pitched from that mound since the QND baseball team beat Hannibal on April 5. Five…
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QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame baseball team returned to Ferd Niemann Jr. Memorial Ballfield on Friday after being on the road for 10 games over 20 days. The Raiders won all 10 of those games, and Friday, they scored a 12-0, five-inning victory over Camp Point Central to push their winning streak to 17…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Each week we’ll have 30 thoughts leading up to the ensuing Sunday’s duels in the dirt at Adams County Speedway — five for each of the five weekly classes, plus five miscellaneous thoughts. That’s six times five for 30. Welcome to the first installment of the Dirty Thirty: Crate Late Models Top 3…
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QUINCY — Abbey Schreacke and Danny Stephens each received one final prep basketball honor to add to each of their illustrious careers. The Champaign News-Gazette tabbed them both as first-team all-staters. Quincy Notre Dame’s Schreacke and Southeastern’s Stephens — both are bound for Mizzou — were named respectively to the News-Gazette’s 46th all-state girls basketball…
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QUINCY — The conditions were hardly ideal. Temperatures were in the 40s, coupled with what was often a brisk breeze. Hoods and gloves were mandatory gear for most in attendance. And the blowing dust was another problem for most of the program. But no one cared, and no one complained. Dirt-track racing returned late Sunday…
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BEARDSTOWN, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame baseball team didn’t record a hit until the fifth batter of the first inning Friday against Carrollton in the opening game of the Beardstown Tiger Showcase and had only two hits in the inning thereafter. The Raiders still scored 12 runs in the frame. Capitalizing on walks, hit…
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QUINCY — The wait is almost over. For the past six months, dirt-track race fans have been anticipating what Sunday night will bring at 8000 Broadway — the first green flag of the season at Adams County Speedway. “Everything is a go,” said Jimmy Lieurance, who with his wife, Tammy, will begin their second season…
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QUINCY — Dirt track racing guru Steve Eighinger offers his insight into each of the five classes which will be featured at the Adams County Speedway this season, beginning with this season’s lid-lifter Sunday night: LATE MODELS Defending champ: Denny Woodworth. Best bet to dethrone the king: Tommy Elston. Dark horse to watch: Darin Weisinger…
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QUINCY — An overturned call gave the Pittsfield baseball team new life, and the Saukees took advantage of it. With the game tied and two outs in the top of the seventh inning, Pittsfield’s Justin Pennock was called out at first base after hitting a ground ball to Quincy High School shortstop Blake Bunch. However,…
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QUINCY — The Illinois Federation for Outdoor Resources is warning Illinois hunters about the impact of the Protect Illinois Communities Act (PA 102-1116). Common sporting shotguns used by snow goose hunters in Illinois no longer will be allowed on public lands as of Monday, April 10, even though snow goose season runs through April 30…
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LIBERTY, Ill. — Landon Deege understands the reality the Liberty baseball team is facing. “We’re young, but we’re growing,” the senior said. With that comes the ups and downs of inexperience. The Eagles have won one game to date — a 1-0 victory over Illini West in which Jackson Sims struck out eight over five…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The Adams County Speedway season will start a bit later than scheduled. Track officials have postponed Sunday night’s scheduled opening until April 16. The track was scheduled to be off April 9 in honor of the Easter holiday. “The track is extremely soft, and with more bad weather likely this week we felt…
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BAYLIS, Ill. — Plans are underway for a fishing expo for youths ages 5-18 from 9 a.m.-noon on Saturday, April 22, at the John Wood Community College Agricultural Education Center, 37803 IL 104, in Baylis. Check-in will begin at 8:30 a.m. The University of Illinois Extension, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and JWCC will…
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QUINCY — The excitement in Tanner Klingele’s voice made it perfectly clear the dirt-track racing season is drawing close. Klingele, who will be a contender in the rugged sport mod class at Adams County Speedway, was one of the drivers on hand Saturday at the first day of the annual preseason race show at the…
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MENDON, Ill. — Brad Begeman hit pause before he hit send. At the end of last week, Begeman informed the Unity School District’s administration he planned to resign as the varsity girls basketball coach. Sunday night, following his team’s end-of-the-season banquet, Begeman told his players of his decision. All that was left was to email…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Local dirt-track race fans will soon get their first glimpse of the rapidly approaching season at the annual Adams County Speedway preseason show. About 40 cars and drivers will be on hand Saturday and Sunday at the Quincy Town Center, formerly the Quincy Mall. Fans will have the opportunity to get up close…
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QUINCY — The ending wasn’t the ceremonial sendoff Danny Stephens had earned, but the postseason accolades the Southeastern senior is receiving are a stirring reminder of all he has accomplished. Stephens, the 6-foot-7 forward, completed a trifecta of first-team all-state basketball honors, earning Class 1A plaudits from the Associated Press, the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association…
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MACOMB, Ill. — A state-ranked showdown to open the prep softball season came down to the final at-bat just like everyone hoped it would. Macomb’s Kaitlyn Robinson scored the tying run in the bottom of the sixth inning and then worked a 1-2-3 seventh inning to preserve a 4-3 victory over Brown County. The Bombers…
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CARTHAGE, Ill. — Sign-up is open for the 44th running of the Strawberry Strut in Carthage on Saturday, June 3. The Strawberry Strut is a classic five-mile run along the Carthage Lake. Other events in this year’s Strut are a 5K run, a 5K walk and a one-mile fun run/walk. To sign up, go to…
Read Full Article SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The 2023 Illinois spring trout fishing season will open Saturday, April 1, at 58 ponds, lakes and streams throughout the state. An early opportunity at selected trout sites – the spring catch-and-release fishing season – will open March 18. No trout may be kept during the catch-and-release fishing period, but anglers can…
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MOUNT STERLING, Ill. — Graduation hit the Brown County softball team relatively hard, taking away eight players who contributed to back-to-back Class 1A regional championships. By no means should that suggest the cupboard is bare. Buoyed by the return of starting pitcher Taryn Moorman, the twin tandem of Katey and Klare Flynn and versatile Cyrah…
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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A coach once labeled as “just a Class A coach” showed his true wares on the state’s biggest stage against the state’s biggest competition. A team that faced one of the toughest schedules of any Class 4A squad this season proved it could handle any challenge with poise and precision. And a…
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QUINCY — An injury kept Danny Stephens from playing in the postseason. It isn’t keeping him from racking up postseason honors. The 6-foot-7 senior forward from Southeastern was named as the repeat recipient of the Red O’Flaherty Player of the Year Award as well as a Class 1A first-team all-stater by the Associated Press for…
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BUSHNELL, Ill. — Being double and triple teamed is a nightly occurrence for Hank Alvey. He’s familiar with opposing defenses pushing and pulling him in every direction. It comes with the territory when you’re 6-foot-9 and opponents are looking for anything that may get under your skin. “It’s nothing new. That’s what teams have been…
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BUSHNELL, Ill. — The bid to become the first team in program history to win a sectional championship fell just short. The Central boys basketball team struggled to combat Illini Bluffs’ size and lost 54-46 to end its season with a 27-5 record. Photographer Mike Pritchard shared this photo gallery from the game:
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BUSHNELL, Ill. — Not much could delay the inevitable, but the fire alarms blaring in the Bushnell-Prairie City High School gymnasium created a significant sense of confusion in the waning minutes of Wednesday’s Class 1A sectional semifinal boys basketball game between Camp Point Central and Peoria Christian. “It just came out of nowhere,” Central junior…
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BUSHNELL, Ill. — The Camp Point Central boys basketball team will play for the first sectional championship game in program history Friday night, advancing to the Class 1A Bushnell-Prairie City Sectional title game by beating Peoria Christian 51-39. Photographer Mike Pritchard shared these images for a photo gallery of the game:
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HARDIN, Ill. — In the end, Bryan Dieker may have captured the moment better than anyone else. “This was a great season for us,” he said. “This was the most fun I’ve ever had playing basketball.” Dieker, a 6-foot-1 senior forward on the Payson Seymour boys basketball team, had just completed the final game of…
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BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Amber Louderback and Kelly Ladd made history Saturday, becoming the first-ever girls state wrestling medalists from each of their respective high school programs. Louderback, a freshman at Central, finished fourth in the 125-pound class during the two-day event at Grossinger Motors Arena, while Ladd, a sophomore from Macomb, finished sixth at 135…
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — Jalen Conley found ways to get to the basket and make the Central boys basketball team work to stop him. The Panthers denied everyone else that opportunity. The top-seeded team in the Class 1A Central Regional showed its defensive dominance in the first half Friday night, allowing one only Bushnell-Prairie City…
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CAMP POINT, Ill. — The Central boys basketball team’s nearly flawless effort at the free-throw line allowed it to finish off a 46-35 victory over Bushnell-Prairie City on Friday night and win the championship of the Class 1A Central Regional. Photographer Mike Pritchard captured the action and shared this photo gallery with Muddy River Sports:
Read Full Article PAYSON, Ill. — The Brotherhood plays on. The Payson Seymour boys basketball team’s latest unexpected postseason success, a 42-39 overtime victory Friday night in the Class 1A regional finals against Triopia, allows the underdog Indians to keep their unlikely tournament dream alive. “It’s a brotherhood here in Payson, a family,” junior point guard Wyatt Neisen…
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