Top Stories
PALMYRA, Mo. — Quit is not part of the Palmyra baseball team’s vocabulary. If it was, an epic comeback would never have happened. Trailing Clark County 17-4 going to the bottom of the fifth inning of Tuesday’s Clarence Cannon Conference game at Flower City Park, the Panthers rallied for 14 runs in the frame and…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Nolan Wosman finally got his groove back. Hit in the helmet by a pitch in the first game of a four-game series against Illinois-Springfield on March 25, the Quincy University junior third baseman didn’t play the remainder of the weekend. He returned the following week and played in three of the four games…
Read Full Article 
PAYSON, Ill. — Kylie Simmons earned the ultimate sign of respect. Pitchers quit pitching to her. A senior on the Payson Seymour softball team, Simmons drew six walks in three victories last week as the Indians knocked off Unity, Griggsville-Perry and Pittsfield. The rest of the damage she did was more impressive. Simmons went 7…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — The Quincy High School baseball team got the Western Big 6 Conference portion of its schedule off with a bang. A big bang. Leading Rock Island 2-0 in the first game of last Saturday’s doubleheader, QHS senior third baseman Grayson Cook added the knockout blow by hitting a grand slam to left field…
Read Full Article 
CANTON, Mo. — The list of football players with ties to Culver-Stockton College who have been selected in an NFL draft begins and ends with Bob Hendren. The offensive lineman, who enrolled in C-SC before transferring to the University of Southern California, was chosen by Washington in the seventh round in 1946, when the league…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — The reaction to Mike Baker’s two-rail shot that kicked the eight ball into the side pocket to win a world 8-ball team championship loudly resonated. “When Mike made that eight ball and everybody erupted, the entire exposition hall heard us,” said John Ellis, a member of Quincy’s Bar Box Bandits, who won the…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Quincy University football coach Gary Bass made it clear to the Hawks’ defense what the matra needed to be throughout spring practice. Play smart. Play hard. Play fast. So far, that’s working. The Hawks showed considerable improvement defensively during Saturday’s controlled scrimmage at QU Stadium, doing more gang tackling than one-on-one tackling as…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Two big swings and two quality pitching performances gave the Quincy High School baseball team a leg up in the first Western Big 6 Conference doubleheader of the spring. The Blue Devils swept Rock Island on Saturday, winning the opener 6-1 behind Grayson Cook’s fifth-inning grand slam and completing the sweep with a…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Solid starts in both games of Saturday’s Mid-West Athletic Conference doubleheader put the John Wood Community College baseball team in good position. Poor finishes led to JWCC getting swept. Lewis & Clark rallied late in both games to snare a 9-8 victory in the opener and a 6-4 victory in the nightcap. JWCC…
Read Full Article 
MENDON, Ill. — Annabelle Schaffnit started to be apologetic for her answer. What the Unity senior softball player didn’t realize in the moment was how much her answer resonated. After chatting a little about the Mustangs and their ongoing season, Schaffnit was asked about how much her life revolves around sports. “I’ll be honest,” she…
Read Full Article 
The Illinois High School Association created a second class for boys basketball for the 1971-72 school year. The 2020-21 season would have been the 50th year of the boys basketball small-school tournament. Muddy River Sports is celebrating 50 years of small-school boys basketball by ranking the 50 best teams in Adams, Brown, Pike and Hancock…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — The Illinois High School Association created a second class for boys basketball for the 1971-72 school year. The 2020-21 season would have been the 50th year of the boys basketball small-school tournament. Muddy River Sports is celebrating 50 years of small-school boys basketball by ranking the 50 best teams in Adams, Brown, Pike…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — The much-anticipated reopening of Adams County Speedway will have to wait. Sunday’s scheduled season opener at 8000 Broadway has been postponed until April 24, according to first-year operator Jimmy Lieurance. The track was originally scheduled to open Sunday and then take off April 17, which is Easter Sunday. The entire 28.5-acre site is…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Caylin Haxel missed the chance Wednesday to witness one of the more unique moments in her husband’s highlight-filled golf career. So George Schrage got the call instead. After using his driver to clear the trees that create a right dogleg on the par-4 13th hole at Westview Golf Course, Blaise Haxel figured his…
Read Full Article 
Blessed and spoiled. There is no more apropos description for the fall of 1982. By then, my passion for baseball and complete love for the game was complete. I was blessed to watch my favorite team and my favorite player fight their way to the National League pennant, and I was spoiled to listen to…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame softball team fought the Law and the Law won. With two outs in the top of the ninth inning Wednesday and Brown County having already scored once in the frame to take the lead, the Raiders chose to intentionally walk Karsyn Moorman after a passed ball allowed both runners…
Read Full Article 
MOUNT STERLING, Ill. — Gabe Blakeley’s success and the 7-0 start for the Brown County baseball team are going hand-in-hand. In his last three games, Blakeley has gone 7 for 10 with five runs scored, four RBIs and three doubles as the Hornets outscored their opponents 38-2 in that stretch. That included a 4-for-4 effort…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Something had to give. Last Friday, when the undefeated Macomb softball team visited the Backyard to face undefeated Quincy Notre Dame, neither starting pitchers had allowed a run this season. That changed when the Raiders tagged Bombers starter Kaitlyn Robinson for three runs in the bottom of the first. QND ace Eryn Cornwell…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — The thought of playing to another draw became increasingly aggravating. “We just knew we couldn’t tie again, not after tying in each of our past three games,” said Grace Bertram, a junior defender on the Quincy Notre Dame girls soccer team. “We just couldn’t.” Yet, through 73 minutes of Monday night’s crosstown showdown…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Maryville sophomore left-hander Jacob Kroeger, a Palmyra, Mo., native, and Culver-Stockton College outfielder Ronald Applewhite each earned weekly honors from their respective conferences. Kroeger was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week after tossing a seven-inning shutout in a 6-0 victory against Drury last Saturday. Kroeger opened with five hitless…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — For the seventh time in the past nine seasons, the John Wood Community College men’s basketball program has produced an All-American. Sophomore forward Jarvis Jennings was named to the NJCAA Division II All-American third team, making him one of 30 players nationwide as selected by the NJCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Committee. Jennings,…
Read Full Article 
EVANSVILLE, Ind. — Alex Pribyl is settling nicely into his new role as a starting pitcher, and Sam Stephens appears to have his footing at the backend of the bullpen. That’s exactly what the Quincy University baseball team needs. The Hawks salvaged a split of Saturday’s Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader with Southern Indiana as…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Asked if he’d found a new leadoff hitter, Quincy Notre Dame softball coach Eric Orne chuckled and shook his head. “No,” he said. “We’ll get healed up and back to normal.” But should he consider leaving Abbey Schreacke in the leadoff spot, it creates a potent starting point as Macomb witnessed Friday at…
Read Full Article 
EVANSVILLE, Ind. — Spencer Walker continues to deliver efficient and effective innings, no matter how high the pitch count runs. It’s easier to do when the offense keeps extending the lead. The Quincy University senior right-hander pitched seven or more innings for the fifth time in his last six starts Friday night, throwing a season-high…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — So much of what Jeremiah Talton accomplished throughout his senior season boiled down to character and commitment, and his maturity as a player and a leader came to the forefront. Yet, there was still a kid in him, just the way it should be. Never was that more evident than after a Tuesday…
Read Full Article 
LIBERTY, Ill. — For a University of Illinois graduate who has remained loyal to his alma mater and is a basketball junkie through and through, walking out of the tunnel onto the State Farm Center court was like living out a dream. Seeing his players live out their dream of playing for a state championship…
Read Full Article 
The success of teams throughout the area on the boys basketball scene led to incredible memories and remarkable performances on both sides of the Mississippi River. Here is the inaugural Muddy River Sports boys basketball all-area team, with the the 10 players listed in alphabetical order:
Read Full Article 
CAMP POINT, Ill. — Keaton Dickhut harbored ideas of being a multi-sport athlete when he entered high school, but physically, he didn’t exactly fit the part. “I couldn’t even jump up and touch the net if I wanted to,” said Dickhut, now a senior three-sport athlete at Central who said he checked in at 5-foot-7…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — One of the top prep basketball players in the history of the state of Illinois and an icon from the greatest era in the storied tradition of the Quincy High School boys basketball program is coming home to speak at the Fellowship of Christian Athletes banquet. Hall of Fame point guard Bruce Douglas…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Add another familiar face to the Quincy University men’s basketball team’s sideline. Tim Walsh, a former QU assistant, is returning to Pepsi Arena to be Steve Hawkins’ top assistant coach. Walsh served as an assistant coach under Hawkins from 1994-98 and also was on the Hawks’ staff for the 1986-87 season, which was…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — In the hallway outside the Illini West gym, in the wake of the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team’s 40-38 victory in a battle of state-ranked teams, Raiders freshman guard Sage Stratton struggled to shake what might have been. With less than four seconds remaining and QND inbounding the ball from the baseline,…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — It’s better to burn out than fade away. Those words are in the lyrics to the rock anthem “Rock of Ages,” released by Def Leppard in May 1983. Four decades later, they still ring true. Eric Orne burned out, but he never faded away. Following the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball program’s fifth…
Read Full Article 
The success of teams throughout the area on the girls basketball scene led to a vast number of players on both sides of the Mississippi River receiving postseason honors. Here is the inaugural Muddy River Sports all-area team, with the the 10 players listed in alphabetical order:
Read Full Article 
Jordan Hildebrand’s decision to stay at Millikin University for an extra year of eligibility, pursue a master’s degree and help the Big Blue women’s basketball team chase NCAA glory turned out to be a wise move. Not only will Hildebrand walk away later this year with two degrees in her hip pocket, but the 6-foot…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — In what they had dubbed a make-or-break weekend, the Quincy University baseball players made a strong case they intend on being a postseason contender. The Hawks may even be the Great Lakes Valley Conference’s team to beat. Taking three of four games from 13th-ranked Illinois-Springfield in the opening GLVC series of the season…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Gino D’Alessio‘s demonstrative reaction to being called out on a stolen base attempt and insistence he was safe made the decision easy for Quincy University baseball coach Matt Schissel to ask for a video review. After that, all they could do was wait. “I didn’t know what kind of view of the play…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Clutch at-bats in extra innings from both the Quincy High School and Springfield baseball teams allowed the clubs to split Saturday’s doubleheader at Ferd Niemann Jr. Memorial Ballfield. The twinbill was moved to the turf field on the Quincy Notre Dame campus due to wet field conditions at QHS. Quincy won the opener…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — A split of the first Great Lakes Valley Conference series of the season is guaranteed. Still, the Quincy University baseball team wants more. The Hawks want to send a definitive message they intend to compete for league and region titles, and to do so, it will take putting an exclamation point on the…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — The Quincy High School girls soccer team capitalized when it had the opportunities. Quincy Notre Dame and Hannibal did not. Thus, the Blue Devils exited the weekend with a pair of shutout victories, having taken a couple of significant steps in their journey to be a postseason contender. In the final game of…
Read Full Article 
FULTON, Mo. — Jake Schisler made certain the wind wasn’t a factor. Meanwhile, his teammates took advantage of pitchers who couldn’t keep the ball down. Schisler, the junior right-hander on the Quincy Notre Dame baseball team, tossed a two-hit shutout in an 11-0 victory over Fulton as the Raiders swept a pair of games Saturday…
Read Full Article 
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — It turned out to be a medal-filled weekend for area track athletes at the Illinois Top Times indoor championships at the Shirk Center on the Illinois State University campus. Jettason Rose led a trio of Quincy High School runners into the finals by placing in the top five in two events in…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Quincy High School girls soccer coach Travis Dinkheller’s preachings in practice rattled around in Bri Lannerd’s head as she stood over a 30-yard free kick. “I knew if I put it on frame it had a chance,” Lannerd said. “I tried to just give it a chance.” She might have to do that…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Spencer Walker has found a neighborhood where he’d like to stay. That’s down in the zone. The Quincy University senior right-hander thrived there for a majority of Friday afternoon’s series-opening game against No. 13 Illinois-Springfield, enticing the Prairie Stars into 12 groundouts over 8 ⅓ innings in a 7-5 victory at QU Stadium.…
Read Full Article 
The Rock Island Alleman athletic department may finally have hit rock bottom, and it’s time for the Western Big 6 Conference to address it. Last week, the Pioneers informed the remainder of the WB6 they would not be fielding a girls softball team this spring. Dwindling numbers saw less than nine players attend the first…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — How many roads intersect with the Quincy High School boys basketball program? Quite a few it turns out. For example, the University of Missouri men’s basketball program’s newest coach, Dennis Gates, was a starting guard on the Chicago Whitney Young powerhouse that beat the Blue Devils in the semifinals of the Class AA…
Read Full Article 
MONROE CITY, Mo. — Brock Edris wondered aloud if Joshua Talton is the first player in the history of the Monroe City boys basketball program to be named the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association’s Class 3 Player of the Year. “It’s a pretty special honor,” the Monroe City coach said. It’s a rare one indeed. Talton,…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Brooke Boden’s ability to play either corner infield position or pitch gives the Quincy Notre Dame softball coaching staff some flexibility when it comes to setting a lineup. If she hits the way she did Monday, the coaches will need to find a spot for her wherever it may be. Boden, a sophomore…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Hoping to build some momentum heading into the first Great Lakes Valley Conference series of the season, the Quincy University baseball team is instead looking for answers. Specifically, how do the Hawks get guys out, especially late in games? Quincy averaged nearly seven runs per game during a four-game, non-conference weekend series with…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Theoretically, Quincy Notre Dame baseball coach Ryan Oden wouldn’t have wanted either of Saturday’s starting pitchers to throw more than 50 pitches in their first outings of the season. Neither Alex Connoyer nor Jake Schisler exceeded that limit by much, but their ability to stay in the strike zone and work efficient innings…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Spencer Walker tried to keep everything the Davenport baseball team hit in the ballpark despite winds blowing out to the short porch in right field. The rest of the Quincy University pitching staff didn’t have as much luck doing the same thing. After Walker tossed a seven-inning complete game and led the Hawks…
Read Full Article 
PALM HARBOR, Fla. — Luke Guthrie’s return to the PGA Tour lasted four days. A wayward driver kept him from sticking around at least a couple of days longer. The Quincy native reached 4-under par after back-to-back birdies early in the back nine of Friday’s second round of the Valspar Championship on the Copperhead Course…
Read Full Article 
PALM HARBOR, Fla. — Once Luke Guthrie found his rhythm on the greens, the Quincy native gave himself a chance to play on the weekend in his return to the PGA Tour. Guthrie birdied four of his final six holes Thursday in the opening round of the Valspar Championship at the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — The suggestion that having her long blonde hair pulled into a bulb atop her head was reminiscent of the Flintstones’ character Pebbles gave Lia Quintero the opening to explain what the hairstyle actually is. “It’s the gearshift,” she said. Varying levels of power come with it. “It’s good for speed, too,” said Quintero,…
Read Full Article 
SAUGET, Ill. — It took a few innings to get the offense rolling, but once that happened, the Quincy High School baseball team was able to come away with a season-opening split Wednesday afternoon. Three Collinsville pitchers limited the Blue Devils to three hits in a 5-0 loss in the first game of the Kickoff…
Read Full Article 
The news came as a surprise on many fronts when it was released late last Friday afternoon that Danielle Surprenant was resigning as the Western Illinois University athletic director. “We thank Danielle for her service to the University and for her leadership in Leatherneck athletics,” WIU President Guiyou Huang said in a press release. “We…
Read Full Article 
BROOKSVILLE, Fla. — Luke Guthrie is back on the PGA Tour, at least for one week. After shooting a 4-under 68 in Monday’s qualifier for the Valspar Championship, the Quincy native found himself in a three-way tie for fourth with only the top four scores earning the chance to tee it up in this week’s…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Jeremiah Talton’s senior season ranks as one of the best produced by a Quincy High School boys basketball player in the last quarter century. It’s fitting then he is only the second player in that span to receive first-team all-state honors. The 6-foot-6 Talton, who led the Blue Devils to a 28-6 season,…
Read Full Article 
LIBERTY, Ill. — The road to Liberty High School’s first appearance in a basketball state tournament championship game began in 1975, when Paul Kreke accepted the only job offer he had after graduating from Quincy College. He became the head coach of a Liberty program that posted winning records only three times the previous 20…
Read Full Article 
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The arena entrance was breath-taking, and the postgame exit was humbling. Yet, the welcome the Liberty boys basketball team received in its own gym from a community that raced home from the University of Illinois’ State Farm Center following Saturday’s Class 1A state championship game made the experience complete. “I wasn’t expecting…
Read Full Article 
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Logan Robbins embraces playing defense. Actually, he enjoys it quite a bit. “It’s another way to impact the game,” said Robbins, a 6-foot-5 senior forward on the Liberty boys basketball team. “And if you can get the guy your guarding frustrated, it’s going to give you an edge.” It helps explain why…
Read Full Article 
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Alex Altmix harbors dreams of eventually being a head coach and running his own high school basketball program. Should his brother, Jordan, want the same thing, neither will have to search far to find a blueprint for success. It’s been in front of them since the day either picked up a whistle.…
Read Full Article 
LIBERTY, Ill. — When the two-lane state highway without a shoulder snakes past the farms and fields and reaches the eastern border of Liberty, a sign looms large on the right side of the road. “Give me Liberty” it reads, and it lists the population of this Adams County village as 600. There may be…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Steve Hawkins isn’t shy about his appreciation for quality cuisine. He is loyal to the restaurants he finds reliable and appetizing. So it came as no surprise Wednesday morning, hours before he was to be introduced as the new Quincy University men’s basketball coach, Hawkins ate breakfast at the Coach House, a longstanding…
Read Full Article 
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Greg Altmix was agitated, and he had no problem telling his Liberty boys basketball team why. The veteran head coach scanned the Class 1A all-state teams released Wednesday by the Associated Press and didn’t see any of his players on the first or second team despite their upcoming appearance in the final…
Read Full Article 
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Part of the wisdom Liberty boys basketball coach Greg Altmix has tried to impart on his players from his more than two decades on the bench is to enjoy the journey, not just the end result. So sitting in the lobby of the team hotel Thursday afternoon, while taking time to catch…
Read Full Article 
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Breiton Klingele’s hairstyle came down to a choice. Not a bet. Not a dare. Not anything other than a conscious decision to let it grow. “I just decided it one day, so I started growing it,” Klingele said. “No other reason. I just wanted a mullet.” The Liberty senior’s long, curly locks…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Steve Hawkins made the 430-mile drive from Kalamazoo, Mich., to Quincy by himself Tuesday night, but he was hardly alone. “Word started to seep out the last couple of days in the coaching world,” said Hawkins, who was introduced Wednesday as the next Quincy University men’s basketball coach. “My phone … well, it…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Jeremiah Talton’s impact on the Quincy High School boys basketball team’s success went far beyond points scored and 3-pointers made. Every coach in the Western Big 6 Conference felt that. It made it easy for them to vote for Talton, the 6-foot-6 senior swingman, as the WB6 most valuable player, the first season…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Muddy River Sports correspondent Ron Kinscherf captured images of the homecoming for the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team, which won the Class 2A state championship Saturday with a 63-56 victory over Winnebago in the title game at Illinois State University’s Redbird Arena. Below is a gallery of his pictures.
Read Full Article 
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — The fans of the Liberty and Southeastern boys basketball teams filled the Jacksonville Bowl on Monday night for a titanic matchup in the Class 1A Jacksonville Super-Sectional. Photographer Steve Davis captured the moments from start to finish. Below is a gallery of Davis’ images.
Read Full Article 
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — Devin Klauser likely has never been in trouble for talking in class at Liberty High School. The senior is a guy of few words. Very, very few words. “He’s kind of shy,” Eagles teammate Cannen Wolf said, with the expected grin. The 6-foot-6 Klauser let his performance on the floor do his…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — If you took time to actually measure the measurables — the height of the rim, the distance to the 3-point stripe, the length and width of the court — you’re bound to find both ends of the Redbird Arena court meet the same specifications.. The Quincy High School boys basketball players might…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — Restless nights tend to accompany the calendar flip, when January rolls into February and high school basketball coaches worry about how to prepare for and sustain postseason success. When the nights grow shorter and sleep is a struggle in the middle of October rather than the middle of the season, something other…
Read Full Article 
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — Danny Stephens will be back for a curtain call. The 6-foot-7 Stephens’ junior year came to halt Monday night when he and his Southeastern Suns were beaten by a talented — and deep — Liberty team 49-42 in the Class 1A Jacksonville Super-Sectional at the Jacksonville Bowl. The defeat did not diminish…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman captured some of the action, reaction and atmosphere in photos during Monday night’s Class 4A Normal Super-Sectional between the Quincy High School and Bolingbrook boys basketball teams. Check out a gallery of his images below.
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Tanner Stuckman’s basketball career has been built around hard work, determination and an unwillingness to be told he couldn’t succeed. That’s why professional opportunities are coming his way. A graduate of Quincy Notre Dame and Quincy University, the 6-foot-9 Stuckman is currently playing in the National Basketball League of Canada for the Windsor…
Read Full Article 
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Jarvis Jennings struggled with the words that could accurately depict all the emotions tugging at his heart and soul. He didn’t need to speak. His eyes said everything. Glassed over by tears and saddened by the finality of it all, Jennings and the John Wood Community College men’s basketball team fought like…
Read Full Article 
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — A somber thought crossed Jarvis Jennings’ mind in the locker room Sunday afternoon. His John Wood Community College basketball career was finished. “It didn’t really hit me until I had to take my jersey off one last time,” Jennings said. “But that’s life. You take it to the chin and you have…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — Blair Eftink looked down at the state championship medal hanging around her neck and shook her head from side to side, almost in disbelief. “It’s crazy,” she said. Eftink then glanced around at her Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball teammates, who were milling about in the hallway outside the media room in…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — Friday morning, the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball players filed into St. Augustine Catholic Church, the quaint centerpiece of a devout congregation in their coach’s hometown of Ashland. Their mission was two-fold. Say a solemn goodbye to Mary Sue Orne, the mother of Raiders coach Eric Orne who passed away in the…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — The pain of slightly spraining her right ankle hobbled Abbey Schreacke for a short stretch of the second quarter Saturday. Yet, it was getting poked in the eye that brought her tears. “Once I got poked in the eye, I forgot about the feeling in the ankle, too,” Schreacke said. No one…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman spent Saturday at Illinois State University’s Redbird Arena chronicling the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team’s 63-56 victory over Winnebago in the Class 2A state championship game. Here is a gallery of images Schuckman collected throughout the Raiders’ run to a sixth state championship in program…
Read Full Article 
COLLINSVILLE, Ill. — Quincy High School boys basketball coach Andy Douglas’ heart nearly sank. Fortunately for Douglas and the Blue Devils, Normal Community’s Zach Cleveland’s potential game-tying 3-pointer with three seconds left didn’t fall either. “It did everything but go in. It hit the backboard then rimmed out. It takes a little bit of luck…
Read Full Article 
STANFORD, Ill. — When Cole Certa caught the ball two steps beyond the volleyball spike line and almost nonchalantly dribbled forward, concern immediately spread up and down the Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball team’s bench. “We were talking and saying, ‘He’s pulling it, he’s pulling it,’” Raiders coach Kevin Meyer said. “Sure enough he does.”…
Read Full Article 
WHITE HALL, Ill. — Understandably, Breiton Klingele found it difficult to keep his emotions in check. “Ever since I was little, all I have wanted to do was play in the state tournament,” he said. Well, Klingele, a 6-foot-4 senior forward, and his Liberty teammates now find themselves one step away from the Class 1A…
Read Full Article 
ABINGDON, Ill. — Late in the first half Friday night, Danny Stephens turned to the bench and tugged at his jersey, signaling he needed a break. The breather never came for the Southeastern standout forward, but that didn’t stop him from powering the Suns to a dazzling finish and 45-34 victory over Peoria Christian in…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — Redbird Arena can’t exactly be called cavernous, but the shooting background can create a need for an adjustment. Blair Eftink didn’t seem to mind, especially when 3-pointer after 3-pointer kept falling during warmups. “Abbey (Schreacke) was telling me the depth perception was a lot different than where we normally play,” Eftink said.…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — The ball ending up in Abbey Schreacke’s hands with the seconds ticking away didn’t come as a surprise. Neither did the fact she made the shot. Well, the first one wasn’t a shocker. The second made those inside Redbird Arena either jump for joy or drop their head into their hands. Schreacke,…
Read Full Article 
NORMAL, Ill. — A dramatic change in the way the Illinois High School Association schedules the boys and girls state basketball tournament games has completely altered the weekend plans. It’s a blessing in disguise for Quincy Notre Dame. After beating Pana 56-44 Thursday afternoon in the Class 2A girls state semifinals at Illinois State University’s…
Read Full Article 
STANFORD, Ill. — The first four minutes of the second half Wednesday night may have been the most energetic and engaged stretch defensively the Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball team has played this season. The Raiders even smiled at the suggestion they are at their best right now. But don’t read too much into that.…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Abbey Schreacke has been the most dominant player on the court nearly every game this season. So it came as no surprise when she was the leading vote-getter for the Associated Press Class 2A all-state teams, which were released Wednesday. The 5-foot-10 junior guard topped a list of five first-team standouts, three of…
Read Full Article 
ABINGDON, Ill. — Former University of Texas football coach Darrell Royal liked to say, “You dance with who brung you,” when referring to the importance of consistency — especially when his quarterback was handing the ball off to Heisman Trophy-winning running back Earl Campbell. The Southeastern boys basketball team has consistently danced with Danny Stephens…
Read Full Article 
STANFORD, Ill. — Charlie Lavery embraced the moment with vigor. Then Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball coach Kevin Meyer reminded him the job wasn’t complete. The Raiders led Maroa-Forsyth by 14 points with a little more than six minutes to play Wednesday night in the semifinals of the Class 2A Stanford Olympia Sectional when Lavery,…
Read Full Article 
COTTLEVILLE, Mo. — Oh, to be in the right place at the right time. Amongst a sea of hands, Nathan DeGuentz rebounded a wild shot and put in the game-winning layup with 1.2 seconds left to give the Duchesne boys basketball team a 45-44 victory over Monroe City in Wednesday’s Class 3 sectional at Francis…
Read Full Article 
QUINCY — Brad Hoyt is the long-time men’s basketball coach at John Wood Community College. He’s also the father of 17-year-old Jake Hoyt, a member of the Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball team. While Brad was coaching Wednesday night, Jake was playing against Maroa-Forsyth in a sectional tournament game at Stanford Olympia. Both enjoyed victories.…
Read Full Article 
The Show-Me Spotlight will appear each week to highlight Missouri area student-athletes. HANNIBAL, Mo. — Aaris Stolte’s historic season isn’t over. He’s confident the Hannibal boys basketball team’s run isn’t about to be through either. A senior guard who broke Brice Scott’s single-season 3-pointer record, Stolte and the second-seeded Pirates are looking to slide past…
Read Full Article 
COLLINSVILLE, Ill. — Any aspect of the final sequence — the split, the bounce or the bucket — could have been negated by a whistle. Ralph Wires prayed he wouldn’t hear one. With time evaporating rapidly and overtime looming, the Quincy High School boys basketball team’s sophomore point guard found himself in a now-or-never situation.…
Read Full Article 
WHITE HALL, Ill. — The inbounds play worked the way Liberty coach Greg Altmix thought it would. Clayton Obert set a screen for Logan Robbins, who curled toward the basket. “Our first option was actually open,” Altmix said. Cannen Wolf, who was throwing the inbounds pass with 2.9 seconds left in the game, didn’t agree.…
Read Full Article 
BEARDSTOWN, Ill. — Doubt never fully surfaced. Concern may have. Yet, no matter what level of uneasiness the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball players actually felt during the course of Monday night’s Class 2A Beardstown Super-Sectional, the unshakeable belief they have in each other always prevailed. “We stuck together,” junior guard Abbey Schreacke said. “That’s…
Read Full Article 