College notebook: Arnold leads charge for Danville golfers, Stratton sees first action, changes happening at JWCC

DANVILLE, Ill. — The influx of talent from West-Central Illinois is giving the Danville Area Community College men’s golf team a competitive edge.

Liberty product Blake Arnold is at the forefront of that.

Arnold tied for the individual low score at the Vincennes Invitational last weekend, shooting 4-under 140 over 36 holes at Country Oaks Golf Club in Montgomery, Ind. He lost in a playoff for medalist honors. The Jaguars finished third as a team, shooting a 589.

Monday, Danville turned around and finished second in the Parkland Invitational with Arnold finishing fourth individually. The Jaguars’ Grady Lancaster took individual medalist honors at Lincolnshire Country Club in Champaign, Ill.

Earlier this month, the Jaguars took second in the 17-team Illinois Central College Cougar Invitational at Metamora Field Golf Course. Arnold finished sixth individually and Quincy High School graduate Cameron Bergman was eighth. Luke Mettemeyer, another QHS graduate, shot an even-par 71 during the Cougar Invitational.

Stratton sees first action at Butler

INDIANAPOLIS — Butler University freshman safety Jackson Stratton made his collegiate debut in last Saturday’s 41-13 victory over Taylor (Ind.) at the Sellick Bowl in the Bulldogs’ home opener.

Stratton, an honorable mention all-state selection last fall at Quincy Notre Dame, made one tackle on a first-down running play in the third quarter with Butler ahead 31-7. Stratton had traveled to nationally ranked Montana for the FCS opener and was in uniform, but did not play.

JWCC pulls plug on women’s soccer season

QUINCY — John Wood Community College athletic director Brad Hoyt decided the risk was too great for the women’s soccer team to play its season with only 11 players, so he decided to err on the side of caution and cancel the Trail Blazers’ season.

JWCC had just 12 players on its roster at the beginning of the fall and likely would have only had 11 healthy bodies. It would have left the Trail Blazers with no subs and no answers had there been any injuries.

For the players’ health and safety, Hoyt chose to suspend play until the 2024 season. Hoyt said he and head coach Hayley Womack were working on roster structure in order to ensure the Trail Blazers are competitive next fall.

JWCC searching for softball coach

QUINCY — The John Wood Community College softball program is in need of a new leader after the school parted ways earlier this month with Chuck Gruber, who had been the head coach since the summer of 2021.

Due to the lack of a full roster, JWCC opted out of playing during the 2023 spring season. Trail Blazers athletic director Brad Hoyt said the school fully intends to field a team in the spring of 2024.

‘We are excited about a new direction and commitment to Trail Blazer softball,” Hoyt said in a press release. “Our softball program has hundreds of alumni and a rich 30-plus year history in our department and on our campus. It is our commitment to provide the student-athlete experience that has been synonymous with John Wood athletics within this program for decades to come.”

C-SC’s Lucas earns conference honor

CANTON, Mo. — Culver-Stockton College junior Logan Lucas has been named the Heart of America Athletic Conference men’s cross country Runner of the Week for his performance last Saturday at the Luther College All-American Invitational in Decorah, Iowa.

Lucas, a Monroe City, Mo., native and transfer from Iowa Wesleyan University, broke C-SC’s school record in the 4-mile run by more than three minutes in finishing 14th in the 113-runner field. Lucas completed the circuit in 21 minutes, 37.3 seconds, smashing the old mark of 24:40.0 set by Landon Ayers in 2017.

It was the second time in as many weeks that Lucas has set a new standard for the men’s cross country team. At the Mount Mercy Corridor Clash on Sept. 1, Lucas set the school record in the 5-kilometer race with a time of 16:22.1, breaking the previous mark of 18:53 set by Miguel Obregon in 2015.