Pressbox
HANNIBAL, Mo. — Roland Romano took a seat near the top of the south section of bleachers at the Veterans Sports Complex among a contingent of Ladue Horton Watkins fans. He was wearing a white cap featuring the name of the youth soccer teams he coached decades ago. The atmosphere of the Missouri Class 3…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The Quincy University football team’s struggles within the Great Lakes Valley Conference since the league introduced football as a championship sport have been well-documented. That narrative is changing. The Hawks finished the GLVC season with a 5-3 record, marking the first time they have won more than four games in league play ever.…
Read Full Article QUINCY — A chance meeting between two guys with an eye for the dramatic and a flair for putting on a show led to a partnership that is going benefit baseball fans in Quincy. WWE Hall of Fame wrestler and promoter Jeff Jarrett is part of the ownership group of the Quincy Baseball Club, which…
Read Full Article PLAINVILLE, Ill. — Once a week for the better part of three months, Charlie Smith and his 14-year-old son, Trent, rode 4-wheelers across their 100-acre Adams County property to collect the SD cards from three trail cams. When they downloaded the images, nothing really grabbed their attention. An occasional whitetail doe appeared, but mostly it…
Read Full Article QUINCY — It’s getting down to nitty-gritty time in the high school football postseason. Now that preliminary playoff rounds are out of the way, three area teams have advanced to the quarterfinals in Illinois and three Missouri teams will play for district championships this week. Reigning Illinois Class 1A champion Camp Point Central has been…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Their destination is Detweiller Park, a place the Quincy High School boys cross country team has not collectively visited in two decades. That changes Saturday. The Blue Devils qualified as a team for the Class 3A state championships, marking the first time the Blue Devils have advanced out of sectionals as a group…
Read Full Article QUINCY — In the days leading up to their first road trip of the season, Quincy University men’s basketball coach Brad Hoyt asked each of his players to come by his office for a one-on-one chat. “It’s a good check-in,” Hoyt said. All with a purpose. Hoyt can gauge the pulse of his new team…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The longest boys soccer game in Illinois High School Association history was played 40 years ago. Performing on the biggest stage on Nov. 3, 1984 — the state championship game at St. Charles High School — Quincy Notre Dame and Palatine Fremd battled through 80 minutes of regulation and another 40 exhausting minutes…
Read Full Article CAMP POINT, Ill. — Elijah Genenbacher has always been a do-whatever-it-takes type of teammate. This year, his willingness to play anywhere, anytime, against anyone led to Genenbacher shifting from running back to quarterback, and with is has come a seven-game win streak for the Camp Point Central football team. The Panthers won the WIVC North…
Read Full Article WARRENSBURG, Mo. — Weston King wasn’t giving up the football, even if it was the referee who asked it. Last Saturday, with the University of Central Missouri football team trailing Washburn 28-24 at the start of the fourth quarter, King found himself in a surprising position. The senior defensive tackle and team co-captain lined up…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Family first. Raul and Barb Hun have made that a priority with their eight children. It means nurturing relationships, remaining close and being there for each other through the good times and the challenging ones. “These are your first friends,” Barb explained. “These are the ones that will be your friends your whole…
Read Full Article WARSAW, Ill. — A recent obituary caught my attention. Darrell Althide of Basco died Oct. 17 at age 78. His funeral was last Tuesday. The obituary details a lovely family legacy. He was married to his high school sweetheart, Debeera, for 56 years and together they had four daughters who blessed them with six grandchildren.…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The community support Tim Hoker experienced while playing football at Quincy University is one of the reasons why he and his partners with Golden Rule Entertainment want to bring summer baseball back to the Gem City. Last week, Golden Rule Entertainment announced it was finalizing an agreement with Quincy University and the City…
Read Full Article QUINCY — What should a team’s nickname portray? Some suggest it needs to relate to history and tradition, like the Dodgers and Yankees. Some want it to showcase tenacity and toughness, like the Bears and the Steelers. Others believe it should be rooted in the community and the surroundings, like the Pacers and the Pistons.…
Read Full Article HANNIBAL, Mo. — Fans of the Hannibal boys soccer team will have two opportunities this week to watch the record-setting Pirates in person, and those who do should take note of how stingy the defense continues to be. Last Saturday, in wrapping up the North Central Missouri Conference championship, the Pirates posted their single-season record…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The final week of the high school football regular season has arrived. Quincy High School, Quincy Notre Dame and Camp Point Central have all clinched league championships in Illinois and are on the cusp of securing home-field advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Clarence Cannon Conference title is still…
Read Full Article QUINCY — There are three main points of emphasis high school football fans needs to understand in regards to the state rankings, which have created considerable interest and conjecture following Wednesday afternoon’s reveal of this week’s votes. One, the polls are discussion points and conversation starters. They provide some clarity on which teams could be…
Read Full Article COLCHESTER, Ill. — A sense of nostalgia grabbed hold pulling up in front of the small corner market, even for those who had never been there before. For Brigham John, it hit him with full force. As he explained while sitting at a table of six waiting to eat a late lunch, he longed for…
Read Full Article QUINCY – Of all the eye-popping statistics the Quincy High School football team has produced, and the choices are many considering its video game-like offense, one stands above the rest. This senior class has been involved in more victories (30) in the last three-plus seasons than the program achieved in the 1980s (16), 1990s (20)…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The high school football calendar is entering the home stretch with just three weeks remaining before postseason play begins, and both state-ranked Quincy teams are eyeing conference championships. Quincy High School will play its final home game Friday night against Sterling. The Blue Devils, ranked fifth in Class 7A, already have clinched a…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The weather Saturday didn’t mirror what many of us think of when we talk about basketball season, which normally invokes images of a winter coats and snow-covered roads. However, the 90-degree sun-splashed day made it ideal for the Quincy University men’s basketball team to stay inside. The Hawks officially began practice for the…
Read Full Article HANNIBAL, Mo. — Both teams must still play two additional league games after this week, but the North Central Missouri Conference football title could be determined Friday night when Hannibal travels to Kirksville. Both Hannibal, 3-2 overall and ranked fourth in Missouri Class 4, and Kirksville, 5-0 and ranked sixth, are unbeaten after two NCMC…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The Quincy University football team heads into homecoming weekend looking for just the second 3-0 start to a season since 1994, and it also is a birthday weekend for sophomore linebacker Brock Wiley, who turns 20 on Friday. Ahead of Saturday’s game against Upper Iowa at QU Stadium, Wiley joined Muddy River Sports…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Madalyn Boyer’s trepidation made sense. “I was nervous about it all day,” she said. Danielle White could relate. “It was a little emotional for me,” she said. When your hometown team becomes your nemesis for one night, it’s challenging. Boyer, a senior middle hitter on the Quincy Notre Dame volleyball team, and White,…
Read Full Article PALMYRA, Mo. — The Palmyra football team has accomplished what it needed to do during the first four weeks of the season. Win the winnable games. The Panthers ran their record to 3-1 Friday night with a 46-6 victory over winless Highland. That’s one more win than the previous two teams recorded combined. They haven’t…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Rick Little asked the simplest question that had a surprisingly simple answer. Yet, nothing was going to be simple about the job it led him to take. In February 2007, Little was a candidate for the vacant head football coaching position at Quincy High School. The Blue Devils had endured a two-win season…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The Quincy Racquet Club is celebrating its golden anniversary. Opened in 1974 to provide Quincy tennis enthusiasts the opportunity to play year-round — they had been seen shoveling snow off courts at Madison Park prior to that — the club is a central gathering spot for the tennis community and offers indoor and…
Read Full Article Schuckman: Prep football teams lining up to chase playoff bids at crucial juncture of regular season
QUINCY — It takes five. To be considered for one of the 256 high school football teams to qualify for a postseason berth in Illinois, five victories are needed. Six wins guarantees a spot. Seven likely gets a favorable draw. Eight almost always results in a first-round home game. And nine means you’re perfect and…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The formula for the Quincy High School football team is simple. Catch us if you can. Quincy’s explosive offense has picked up where it left off last season by scoring 40 or more points in each of its first three games. The undefeated and state-ranked Blue Devils are churning out nearly 470 yards…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman and a series of guests spent two hours Friday night talking high school football for this week’s episode of Muddy Night Lights, powered by Farm & Home Supply. Three area coaches — Brown County’s Tom Little, Macomb’s Tanner Horrell and Palmyra’s Dalton Hill — joined us on…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The hunted, not the hunter. That’s the role the Quincy High School football program is embracing. Rarely has there been a season since the Western Big 6 Conference was formed in the early 1970s where the Blue Devils were the odds-on favorite to win the league title. As league play kicks off Friday…
Read Full Article AUGUSTA, Ill. — Tim Kerr went from watching videos to learn more about the game to becoming one of the most successful and respected volleyball coaches around. On Monday, the Southeastern skipper earned his 700th career victory as the Suns beat Liberty in straight sets. Kerr joined Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman on the…
Read Full Article KIRKSVILLE, Mo. — It appeared the book was closing on a career spanning more than four decades when Gregg Nesbitt announced in February he was retiring after 14 seasons as the head football coach at Truman State University. Instead, another chapter is being written. One day after Nesbitt announced he was leaving Truman State as…
Read Full Article QUINCY — They bowled. They glowed. They brought awareness to an important cause. The “Find Your Spark, Light the Dark” event took place Saturday at Tangerine Bowl where event organizers put on a show that glowed. There was glow-in-the-dark bowling and a Jeep glow show outside. It was done to bring awareness to suicide and…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman and a series of guests spent two hours Friday night talking high school football for this week’s episode of Muddy Night Lights, powered by Farm & Home Supply. Three area coaches — Pittsfield’s Zach Ferguson, Quincy High School’s Rick Little and Monroe City’s David Kirby — joined…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The legacy isn’t in the jersey number, no matter how meaningful it is for Brock Inman to wear it. That legacy lies in the leadership and leverage of how he plays. To that end, he’s upholding the legacy of No. 22 quite nicely. Inman is the third consecutive anchor of the Quincy University…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Rico Clay proved he could be a defensive force for the Quincy High School football team in last season’s opener against Quincy Notre Dame when he intercepted two passes, returned the first for a touchdown and came within 5 yards of doing the same with the second. This season, he displayed his offensive…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman and a series of guests spent two hours Friday night talking high school football for the debut episode of Muddy Night Lights, powered by Farm & Home Supply. Four area coaches — Camp Point Central’s Brad Dixon, Hannibal’s Jeff Gschwender, Pittsfield’s Zach Ferguson and South Shelby’s Adam…
Read Full Article MENDON, Ill.— It wasn’t the debut Sawyer Allen envisioned. After winning the starting quarterback job with his work over the summer and through preseason practice, the Unity-Payson sophomore approached the 2023 season opener at home against Winchester West Central with eager anticipation. “I had every opportunity to show Coach I want to be the quarterback…
Read Full Article Coverage of the QND football program brought to you by: QUINCY — When the Quincy High School football team heads across to town to face Quincy Notre Dame at Advance Physical Therapy Field for Friday night’s season opener, the entire Gem City community gets to celebrate the prep game. QND senior safety Wyatt Mueller knows…
Read Full Article QUINCY — At long last, the high school football season kicks off Friday night in both Illinois and Missouri. There will be the usual rivalry games — Quincy Notre Dame will host Quincy High School and Hannibal will host Jefferson City Helias. And Camp Point Central will open the defense of its state championship at…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Beau Eftink likes Dr Pepper. A lot apparently. He also likes winning and making birdies. A lot as well. Those things went hand-in-hand Saturday as the Quincy Notre Dame junior golfer won a playoff to earn individual medalist honors at the 75th Quincy Invitational and won a bet with Raiders coach Brian Hendrian…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The biggest leap of faith was made with complete faith it would work. Still, it took loyal readers to make that happen. Thank you for sticking by us. Today marks the third anniversary of the launch of Muddy River Sports, and because of your trust in the news we provide and the product…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Most mornings, Bill Stitchcomb wakes to his labrador retriever, Gus, pawing at the side of the bed or the smell of percolating coffee now that he has learned how to set the coffee maker to kick on automatically at 6:30 a.m. “My grandkids bought me the new coffee pot for Christmas,” he said.…
Read Full Article Random observations now that the Cardinals have clinched the season series against the Cubs: I didn’t realize it was a problem in need of a solution, but a change in the Illinois High School Association’s all-star game participation by-law went Into effect July 1. The new rule prohibits high school students at IHSA schools from…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Soon enough, Alex Stratman will return home and begin preparing for the fall hunting season, where he will serve as a guide for those chasing whitetail deer and turkey. After that, he’ll focus on guiding hunters during the spring turkey season. Before that happens, he’s going to savor every minute he has in…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Baseball’s trade deadline is 5 p.m. Tuesday. Will St. Louis be buyers, sellers or bystanders? After an excruciating slow start, the Cardinals used a 33-18 run during a 51-game stretch to catapult into contention in the National League Central Division and the wild-card chase. Hope replaced frustration. But they have the second-worst record…
Read Full Article PALMYRA, Mo. — The chatter and commotion steadily increased as a group of jiu-jitsu students and their parents gathered Saturday morning, just a few feet from the mats where a self-defense class was being taught and Royce Gracie happened to be sizing it up. The kids waiting to take the mat themselves were sizing him…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Is someone who hits left-handed but throws right-handed considered a southpaw? Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman doesn’t include those hitters in his list of his favorite local left-handed athletes, but he does find a place for some basketball players with beautiful left-handed jumpers and a couple of nasty southpaw pitchers. Muddy River…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Sleep can wait when the Olympics are on, right? That’s how I found myself thinking Thursday night despite the fact the opening ceremonies for the Paris Summer Games have yet to take place. As with any Olympics, a few of the events get started before the ceremonial kickoff, which is why the U.S.…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Caren Kemner is feeling Olympic. A majority of those who have represented the United States during the Summer Olympics at some point in their career likely are as well these days. The Paris Olympics get underway this week with the opening ceremonies happening Friday and competitive action taking place over a 20-day span.…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Random thoughts with the opening night of high school football season just 40 days away: • Illinois has had just four winning football seasons since the 10-2 Sugar Bowl team under Ron Turner in 2001. The program has been mired in mediocrity, managing just 15 campaigns of eight or more wins in 134…
Read Full Article MACOMB, Ill. — In the seven months since Joe Davis became the Western Illinois University football coach, one thing above all else has become abundantly clear to him and everyone around him. Loyalty matters. To his players. To the football alumni. To WIU fans in general. Davis and his staff have embraced that and used…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Jacob Kroeger’s day began job hunting and ended with flight plans. That’s quite a way to start the week. Monday morning, the former Palmyra multi-sport athlete and recent All-American left-handed pitcher at Maryville University had a meeting about a potential graduate assistant position with a regional college athletic program. Monday night, he signed…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Jonny Bottorff is gearing up for what should arguably be the best season of his collegiate football career. The Quincy Notre Dame graduate heads into the 2024 season as the projected starter at center for Northern Arizona. The 6-foot-3, 295-pound Bottorff earned second-team All-Big Sky Conference honors last season after transferring from Missouri…
Read Full Article QUINCY — One book is out, another is on the way. Former Quincy University baseball coach Jim Pransky has published a memoir based largely on the 25 years he spent as a scout for five Major League Baseball organizations. In “Baseball’s Test of Spirit: A Man’s Unlikely Odyssey into the Scouting World,” Pransky writes about…
Read Full Article Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman and Muddy River News Publisher Bob Gough discuss launching “Muddy Night Lights,” a two-hour prep football show that will air 10 p.m. to midnight on Friday nights during the regular season. Muddy Night Lights debuts August 30 on Muddy River Sports and Facebook Live.
Read Full Article QUINCY — The best summer collegiate baseball is played on Cape Cod in Massachusetts, and Quincy High School graduate Kenny Taylor has a front row seat to see it all. The former Blue Devils outfielder is spending his summer as an intern with the Orleans Firebirds in the Cape Cod League, which means he is…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Random musings after digging into the archives on a random July night … • Lucas Loos finds his name on Baseball America’s list of the top 100 college senior sign targets for the upcoming Major League Baseball amateur draft. Because the Payson Seymour and John Wood Community College graduate has exhausted his NCAA…
Read Full Article URSA, Ill. — The sun had already started its dive toward the horizon as Armando and Cindy Gonzalez settled in to their chairs, but the fading daylight didn’t bother them. “Fresh batteries and all,” Armando said as he held up the lantern he planned to use after dusk. His wife of 30 years reached into…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Sweet or salty? Creamy or crunchy? King size or nibbles? How do you like your snacks? Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman and Daily Dirt scribe and Muddy River Sports racing writer Steve Eighinger break down their favorite snack foods for the latest episode of The List. If you have an idea for…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Catching up while wondering if any player 29 of the 30 NBA teams had no intention of drafting has received as much attention as Bronny James: The Illinois men’s basketball program, fresh off an appearance in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament, got a boost with the signing of Will Riley, a…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Vegas, baby! The Club Four 17U Boost volleyball team is heading to the Mojave Desert and what is quickly becoming one of the nation’s epicenters for major sporting events — Las Vegas — to play in the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championships. The team leaves Monday and will participate in pool play…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Count ‘em one, two, three. That’s how many individual tumblers from Gem City Gymnastics and Tumbling captured national championships during the United States Tumbling Association National Championships, held last week in Louisville, Ky. Palmyra’s Ruby Akerson won the championship in the advanced girls 14-15 division, while Payson’s Kaylin Vazquez-Epperson took the title in…
Read Full Article CARTHAGE, Ill. — If the best is yet to come, Wesley Robertson will rewrite the Illini West baseball program’s entire record book. What he did during his sophomore campaign was pretty impressive as a starting point. The third baseman set the Chargers’ single-season record for RBIs, driving in 50 runs as Illini West went 28-5…
Read Full Article QUINCY — For men of a certain age — I was born 10 days before Don Larsen threw the only perfect game in World Series history — the death of Willie Mays means another link to our youth is gone. Baseball was the national pastime for kids growing up in the 1960s. While we knew…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Zach Richardson first became a household name in this region as a three-sport standout athlete at Louisiana, Mo., and later as a member of the Truman State University football team. He made his way back close to home when he joined KHQA as a sports and news reporter. Three years later, Richardson is…
Read Full Article QUINCY — At its most fundamental level, the goal of golf is the same for a 5-year-old, a 75-year-old and everyone in between. Put the ball in the hole. The reaction to accomplishing that can be decidedly different however. Sometimes, it’s a fist pump and a Hallelujah. Other times, it’s an exasperated sigh or a…
Read Full Article NOTRE DAME, Ind. — It has been 40 years since Rich Marcolla last tossed on a pair of shoulder pads and strapped on a football helmet to play linebacker for St. John Vianney High School in suburban St. Louis. He, like many of the students at the all-boys Catholic college preparatory school, was a fan…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Muddy River Sports Writer Shane Hulsey put together a highlight package from the Illinois girls’ 78-43 victory over Missouri on Saturday in the third annual Muddy River Showcase at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center.
Read Full Article QUINCY — Muddy River Sports Writer Shane Hulsey put together a highlight package from the Illinois boys’ 92-70 victory over Missouri on Saturday in the third annual Muddy River Showcase at John Wood Community College’s Student Activity Center.
Read Full Article QUINCY — Before the Lil’ Devils program brought them together, before they spent 10 consecutive winters running side-by-side, there were games in the YMCA basketball league where Ralph Wires, Tyler Sprick and Cam Brown were on opposite sides. “I tore them apart per usual,” Wires said with a mischievous, sarcastic grin. His ability to dart…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Over the past few days, Muddy River News writer Steve Eighinger has been conducting a countdown of what he considers the best movies from the modern golden age of film, which he categorizes as 1960-1999. In his “Daily Dirt” column, Eighinger lists 10 movies from each decade that he considers top notch. He…
Read Full Article WENTZVILLE, Mo. — Joel Adam has a lifetime of ballpark memories. Like the times he snuck under the fence at old Q Stadium as a kid to take batting practice with his dad, Bill. Or playing high school and American Legion baseball for Mike Hellenthal in Quincy before continuing his career at Culver-Stockton College. There…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The first pitch came at noon from a pitcher I had never seen throw for a team I have never rooted for against a team I had no idea who was on their roster. Yet, I was all-in on the University of Kentucky baseball team. It will be the case when Arizona, UNC…
Read Full Article QUINCY — During nearly two decades of broadcasting games together for local radio stations, Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman and Raider Sports Network play-by-play voice Eric Ervin engaged in a variety of conversations and debates on road trips. Music was often one of the topics. Since they share a love of 1980s music, it…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Zach Willing is going for four in a row. A recent Quincy University graduate and a Quincy High School alum, Willing has won three consecutive Quincy men’s city tennis singles championships and will chase his fourth title this weekend during the city tournament at the Greeman Tennis Center at Reservoir Park. Willing took…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Most nights, while sitting in front of my laptop in my home office searching for inspiration in my writing or working out the kinks on a project or a plan, I’ll play music in the background. It ignites my creativity and brings my thoughts into focus in a way a quiet never does.…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Quincy Notre Dame had just seen its baseball season end with a 3-1 loss to Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin in the Class 2A regional semifinals. As the crowd began to disperse, with some fans celebrating and others consoling, David and Sharon Lunt loaded their lawn chairs and other items into a little wagon and…
Read Full Article JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Time became Timia Reinberg’s adversary. That’s an unfair fight. Time always wins because you can’t slow it down and can’t you speed it up. It plays at its own pace, which is always the same pace. “It means I had all day to just sit around there and wait,” the Monroe…
Read Full Article QUINCY — From playing baseball at Monmouth College to coaching at Quincy High School and with the Quincy Gems during the Central Illinois Collegiate League days, Randy Mettemeyer has spent enough time on the road to have watched a baseball movie or two. That made him the perfect person to join Muddy River Sports Editor…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Former Quincy High School soccer standout Donivan Bradshaw continues to rack up state championships as a coach. The number reached six last week when Jenks (Okla.) High School outlasted Broken Arrow 1-0 to repeat as Oklahoma Class 6A champions. Bradshaw, a 1996 QHS graduate who was selected as one of the top 11…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman’s passion for the St. Louis Cardinals, enjoyment of bird watching and competitiveness playing Jeopardy comes from the influence of his mom, Kathleen Schuckman. So to celebrate Mother’s Day, Schuckman invited his mom to join him for an episode of “Schuck on a Truck,” brought to you by…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The game and everything about it felt tedious. None of the Quincy University baseball players will deny that. “When you’re getting your butt kicked, it is a chore,” first baseman Austin Simpson said. A five-run loss in the series finale against the University of Indianapolis on April 14 left the Hawks eight games…
Read Full Article QUINCY — If watching the Cardinals flounder during the first six weeks of the Major League Baseball season has been painful, some fans in West-Central Illinois will get a reprieve of sorts. It was announced last week that subscribers to Comcast and its Xfinity television service can no longer watch any of Diamond Sports Group’s…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Let’s start with an explanation of an omission. Last week on “The List,” Travis Dinkheller joined me to break down a list of our top 10 Chicago Cubs players. We tried to make it clear we selected players we saw either in person or on television. That meant no Ernie Banks, no Bill…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The emotion spills out in ways Brock Boynton can’t always contain. Sometimes it’s a bat flip that goes a little too high or a little too far. Other times it’s the barbaric yawp everyone hears as he rounds the bases on a home run trot. And every now and then, it’s the toss…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The 51st Pepsi Little People’s Golf Championships will look a lot like the 50 before it. Many of the sponsors and volunteers remain the same. Ditto for the format. The youngest golfers will play at the Knights of Columbus Par-3 Course and most of the rest at Westview Golf Course during the three-day…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The work isn’t done because the pads came off. Come August, Quincy University football coach Jason Killday and his staff will see if the players embraced that message. The Hawks wrapped up spring practice Saturday at QU Stadium with an energetic, determined effort that highlighted many of the positives gleaned from five weeks…
Read Full Article Schuck on a Truck: QU safety Joseph Webb discusses spring practice, carrying momentum into offseason
QUINCY — The end of the spring is near for the Quincy University football program, which means the Hawks are a step closer to the debut of Jason Killday as their head coach. QU will open its season August 29 at Drake in Des Moines, Iowa. As far the progress made during the 15-practice session…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Stan Musial. Albert Pujols. Willie McGee. Ozzie Smith. Bob Gibson. Those were the most common names Muddy River Sports readers submitted as the players who would top their list of their top 10 favorite St. Louis Cardinals. Enos Slaughter got one mention, and Whitey Herzog had a couple of mentions, too. The most…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Experience has provided Josh Rabe with perspective. During Rabe’s three years as the Quincy University athletic director, the head coach of three of the most high-profile programs on campus has resigned to pursue another coaching opportunity. None of those programs could be considered in the midst of thriving at the time. So it…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Jim Pransky grew up in a secluded, rural area in northwest Pennsylvania near the New York border. The closest town was two miles away and few other kids were around. So, he threw baseballs at a pitch-back, listened to Yankees games on a transistor radio and voraciously read fictional sports series books by…
Read Full Article QUINCY — For those who grew up during the Whiteyball era, names like Ozzie and Willie had a special in their hearts. Those who lived through the 1960s and watched the St. Louis Cardinals win a pair of World Series titles will forever root for Gibby and Sweet Lou. If you experienced World War II…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The sideways glances. The whispers. The feeling of being judged. The general uneasiness of being in public and knowing your character is in question. Brian Holzgrafe felt it all. For too long. Far too often. For no fault of his own. That’s what a false accusation does to a person. It tears them…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Seated at a table just a few feet from the dais, Whitey Herzog looked across the room at legendary St. Louis Post-Dispatch baseball writer Rick Hummel and pointed out the Quincy native was more than likely the smartest person in the room. The Hall of Fame manager then leaned forward and said, “But…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The challenge facing the next Quincy University men’s basketball coach is three-fold. One, replenish the roster. Two, put fans in the stands. Three, win games. All three are intertwined. Prior to Steve Hawkins resigning Monday to pursue another coaching opportunity, four QU players had entered the transfer portal, although two of which are…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Some of the legends of karting gathered at the DoubleTree By Hilton on Friday night in Bakersfield, Calif., for the induction ceremony of the inaugural class of the Go Kart Hall of Fame. Forty-two people were enshrined, 16 posthumously. There were drivers, mechanics, promoters and manufacturers. All pre-dated 1993 and were selected for…
Read Full Article