Posts
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Hunters in Illinois harvested a preliminary record statewide total of 1,045 wild turkeys during the 2024-25 fall archery turkey season, according to information from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. The total compares last year’s harvest of 803 and the five-year average of 763 birds harvested. The previous record total for fall…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Karsyn Stratton felt the vibes. “I got here and I was loose and I was like, ‘Let’s have some fun today,’” she said. Quincy University women’s basketball coach Courtney Boyd felt that, too. ‘I looked at the team and I said, ‘I feel bad for whoever steps in the gym today because you…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The last impression is the one that lingers. The Quincy University men’s basketball players were well aware of that. “How is it going to end?” junior guard El Sieger said. “Is it going to end just by losing? Or are we going to compete and win? I think it was definitely good going…
Read Full Article COLUMBIA, Mo. — Austin Brown’s championship reign ended too soon. The Hannibal junior wrestler led Platte County sophomore Justin Shute 4-2 in the third period of Saturday’s Class 3 120-pound state title match at Mizzou Arena before Shute scored a takedown to earn a 5-4 victory and the crown. Brown had won the Class 3…
Read Full Article LEWISTOWN, Mo. — The latest district title won by the South Shelby girls basketball team might just be the sweetest in its current run of championships. Not only was it the fourth straight Class 3 District 6 crown earned by the Lady Birds, but Saturday afternoon’s 39-19 victory over Highland avenged a loss to the…
Read Full Article QUEEN CITY, Mo. — The reason the Canton girls basketball team didn’t receive the No. 1 seed for the Class 2 District 6 tournament seemed to make sense, at least on paper anyway. There was a three-game difference in the win column between top-seeded Milan and the second-seeded Tigers. What the straight numbers didn’t take…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Here is the area scoreboard for Saturday, March 1: Girls basketball Class 3 District 6 championship South Shelby 39, Highland 19 Class 2 District 6 championship Canton 61, Milan 35 Class 1 District 10 championship North Shelby 50, La Plata 39 Men’s basketball Quincy University 89, Indianapolis 77 Lincoln Land 75, John Wood…
Read Full Article GRIGGSVILLE, Ill. — What was it that Roger Daltrey of The Who told us in the early days of what we now refer to as classic rock? Wasn’t it something about, “The kids are alright?” Yes, it was. And yes, they are. The Brown County boys basketball team, dominated by a kiddie corps of 10…
Read Full Article BELLEVILLE, Ill. — The sea of blue that flooded the Belleville West High School gym made Dom Clay feel like he was at Blue Devil Gym. “It felt like home, for sure,” Clay said. As the Quincy High School boys basketball team kept extending their blistering scoring run to start Friday’s Class 4A Belleville West…
Read Full Article BELLEVILLE, Ill. — When the Quincy High School boys basketball team breaks their huddle with shouts of ‘Family,’ that is no coincidence. “It’s a testament to what they’ve built over the years,” Blue Devils coach Andy Douglas said. “They truly care about each other on the floor, and they care about each other more off…
Read Full Article PALMYRA, Mo. — Ryan McKinney was all smiles as he was surrounded by a sea of jubilant Palmyra fans. “We had nothing to lose coming into this game,” the junior guard said. “I mean, we had already lost to them three times. But, you know, if you win the one that matters, those three losses…
Read Full Article PITTSFIELD, Ill. — Brayden Saling’s second-half performance was so impressive that it even caught his coach off guard. As a matter of fact, Williamsville boys basketball coach Nick Beard was dumbfounded to learn his senior southpaw guard was held scoreless for the first two quarters. “I had no idea,” Beard said. But Beard wasn’t completely…
Read Full Article MACOMB, Ill. — The significance of playing the Class 2A regional championship at The Hangar wasn’t lost on Macomb boys basketball coach Jeremy Anderson or assistant coach Zach Keene. “Between the two of us, that’s more than 40 years of coaching,” Anderson said. “And we could only come up with four or five times we…
Read Full Article PLEASANT PLAINS, Ill. — Same opponent, same circumstance, different venue. Yet, it was still the same result for the West Hancock boys basketball team. Facing Pleasant Plains in the Class 2A regional championship for the second straight year — last year it happened in Warsaw, this time in Pleasant Plains — the Titans struggled offensively,…
Read Full Article QUEEN CITY, Mo. — Winning one district championship proved significant. Capturing a second crown was rewarding. But a third? In a row? That will leave you almost speechless. Just ask Preston Brewer. “I honestly can’t put it into words how I feel about winning it three times in a row,” the senior forward said Friday…
Read Full Article COLUMBIA, Mo. — Austin Brown’s title pursuit remains on course, while Drake Brinkley is chartering his own championship journey as well. Two other Hannibal wrestlers are keeping their podium aspirations alive, too. On Friday’s first day of the Class 3 state wrestling championships at Mizzou Arena, Brown and Brinkley each won their first two matches…
Read Full Article WAVERLY, Ill. — One of the first things Central-Southeastern girls basketball coach Matt Long reminded his players at halftime Thursday night is they trailed by only six points. “He was right,” CSE senior forward Lauren Miller said. “We were only down six. For as bad as things had been, that had to mean something.” It…
Read Full Article CHATHAM, Ill. — In a year’s time, Sage Stratton’s tears turned into a bright smile. “It really feels so amazing coming back and actually winning it,” Stratton said. It being a sectional championship game, which the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team lost to Chatham Glenwood by a single point last season. The Raiders had…
Read Full Article COLUMBIA, Mo. — Brayden Pillars was better than almost everyone in the 165-pound weight class at the Class 1A state wrestling championships at Mizzou Arena. Only Rex Bryson was better. Pillars, the Palmyra senior, reached the state championship match in dominant fashion before running into Bryson yet again. The Centralia wrestler Bryson took down Pillars…
Read Full Article Top-seeded Highland pulls away in second half to eliminate Monroe City, reach Class 3 district final
LEWISTOWN, Mo. — The Highland girls basketball team’s fourth meeting of the season against Monroe City ended just like the first three. With a victory. Highland awakened in the second half Thursday night to eventually pull away from Monroe City 40-25 in the semifinals of the Class 3 District 6 tournament at Highland High School,…
Read Full Article LEWISTOWN, Mo. — More of the same. That’s what the South Shelby girls basketball team dished out to Palmyra in Thursday night’s semifinals of the Class 3 District 6 tournament at Highland High School. South Shelby scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter en route to pulling away for a 56-38 victory before…
Read Full Article WAVERLY, Ill. — When practice is finished, Lexi Niekamp isn’t. A freshman guard on the Central-Southeastern girls basketball team, Niekamp typically heads home after practice and puts herself through another tedious workout inside the indoor shooting facility on her family’s property. “Every night I’m in there shooting,” Niekamp said. Same shots, same rhythm, same amount.…
Read Full Article WAVERLY, Ill. — Trailing by 12 points midway through the third quarter Thursday night, the Central-Southeastern girls basketball team rallied to beat Pleasant Plains 51-44 in overtime in the Class 2A Waverly Sectional championship in Jim Roeschley Gymnasium. Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman sat courtside and put together this photo gallery:
Read Full Article CHATHAM, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team made an emphatic statement with its 57-17 victory over Mahomet-Seymour in Thursday’s Class 3A Chatham Glenwood Sectional championship game. That statement also prompted a question — Where does the Raiders’ performance rank in sectional history since the Illinois High School Association adopted the four-class system?…
Read Full Article CHATHAM, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team put memories of a sectional championship loss to rest by hammering Mahomet-Seymour 57-17 in Thursday night’s Class 3A Chatham Glenwood Sectional title game. Muddy River Sports Writer Shane Hulsey was there and put together this photo gallery:
Read Full Article PITTSFIELD, Ill. — Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball coach Greg Altmix was curious leading up to Wednesday’s Class 2A Pittsfield Regional semifinal game against Petersburg PORTA just how the Raiders would react. “When you come into a new program, you never know how guys are going to respond in the postseason,” said Altmix, the first-year…
Read Full Article BELLEVILLE, Ill. — Rico Clay Jr.’s instincts when it comes to making a play on the ball brought more than a handful of college football recruiters to visit the talented cornerback last summer and fall. Those same instincts helped ensure the Quincy High School boys basketball team’s season didn’t end prematurely. With the top-seeded Blue…
Read Full Article COLUMBIA, Mo. — The Palmyra wrestling team will have one wrestler chasing a state title and two others chasing podium finishes Thursday at the Class 1 state wrestling championships at Mizzou Arena. The Hannibal girls have a pair of grapplers fighting for state medals as well. Palmyra’s Brayden Pillars, a senior wrestling at 165 pounds,…
Read Full Article 'It's pretty high stakes': Monroe City, Palmyra to meet for fourth time, this one for district title
PALMYRA, Mo. — Get ready for Monroe City versus Palmyra IV. As expected, the top two seeds in the Class 3 District 6 boys basketball tournament won their semifinal-round games Wednesday night to set the stage for a fourth meeting this season in Friday night’s championship game. Trey Smyser hit four 3-pointers in the first…
Read Full Article PITTSFIELD, Ill. — The slight fadeaway. The tired legs from playing every minute of the game. Any number of factors could have contributed to the shot coming up just short. While the outcome was not what Tre Neiderman or the Illini West boys basketball team wanted, Neiderman accepted the result. “The fact that the last…
Read Full Article PALMYRA, Mo. — The Panthers will be playing in the Class 3 sectionals next week, but will it be the Monroe City Panthers or the Palmyra Panthers? The Clarence Cannon Conference rivals advanced to the championship of the Class 3 District 6 boys basketball tournament with semifinal victories Wednesday night. Top-seeded Monroe City beat fourth-seeded…
Read Full Article CHATHAM, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team refused to crack under the pressure. Their practice habits, especially when it comes to shooting free throws, have prepared Sage Stratton and her teammates for what they faced during Tuesday’s Class 3A Chatham Glenwood Sectional semifinal game against Decatur MacArthur. “We practice free throws so…
Read Full Article WAVERLY, Ill. — The order in which the connection occurs — Miller to Peters or Peters to Miller — doesn’t seem to matter much. It’s lethal either way. Tuesday night, it ruined the Staunton girls basketball team’s chance to make amends for two consecutive postseason losses to Central-Southeastern before the Bulldogs even had the chance…
Read Full Article WAVERLY, Ill. — With two older brothers who were all-state football players, Agnes Genenbacher really had no option other than to be tough and know how to take a tumble. “That’s my nature,” she said. Going against them also taught her to be competitive. “I always want to be the best in everything I do,”…
Read Full Article CHATHAM, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team saw a 15-point second-half lead dwindle to one in the fourth quarter before the Raiders made plenty of free throws to survive with a 62-53 victory over Decatur MacArthur in Tuesday’s semifinals of the Class 3A Chatham Glenwood Sectional. QND will face Mahomet-Seymour at 6:30…
Read Full Article WAVERLY, Ill. — By the end of the first quarter Tuesday night, there was little doubt the Central-Southeastern girls basketball team was headed to the sectional championship. Now the Panthers know a familiar face awaits. CSE beat Staunton 58-22 in the semifinals of the Class 2A Waverly Sectional, earning spot opposite Pleasant Plains in the…
Read Full Article CANTON, Mo. — Culver-Stockton College junior forward Connor Davis recently was named the Heart of America Athletic Conference men’s basketball Offensive Player of the Week. Davis earned the honor for the second time this season by averaging 26.5 points in two games last week. Davis scored 24 points at Central Methodist before recording 29 points…
Read Full Article ST. LOUIS — Brady Kindhart didn’t know where the baseball ended up after it landed beyond the center field wall. He later found out it was in the perfect hands. Mike Kindhart retrieved what will now be a forever family treasure and a reminder of how his son’s collegiate baseball career began. Monday afternoon, in…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Each week during Muddy Night Hoops powered by Farm & Home Supply — a 90-minute talk show centered on prep basketball — the Starry Star of the Week will be presented to one area student-athlete. Sponsored by Refreshment Services Pepsi, the Starry Star of the Week looks to highlight someone who did something…
Read Full Article PAYSON, Ill. — One by one, seniors and their parents were introduced before last Friday night’s boys high school basketball game between Payson Seymour and Western. Blake Schwartz’s name was called last. After exchanging hugs with his mom and dad in front of the Payson bench, he was asked by the public address announcer to…
Read Full Article VERSAILLES, Mo. — The Palmyra boys wrestling team is sending six grapplers to the Class 1 state championships after finishing fourth as a team at the Class 1 District 3 tournament at Versailles High School last Saturday. The state tournament begins Wednesday at Mizzou Arena in Columbia. Palmyra senior Brayden Pillars powered his way to…
Read Full Article ST. CHARLES, Mo. — Austin Brown’s road to winning another state wrestling championship has him heading back to Mizzou Arena. The Hannibal junior won the 120-pound championship at the Class 3 District 2 meet last Saturday at St. Charles High School, earning a 21-5 technical fall over St. Charles junior Derek Plaza-Smither in the title…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Club Four Volleyball is offering a youth volleyball development program for boys and girls in kindergarten through sixth grade. The program will run on Mondays and Wednesdays starting April 14 and ending on May 21. Players will work on volleyball skills on Mondays and then compete to apply the skills on Wednesdays. Experienced…
Read Full Article JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Hundreds of die-hard anglers line the banks at one of Missouri’s trout parks every year on March 1 for the opening day of catch-and-keep trout season. In years past, anglers have faced frigid winter temperatures, snow, sleet and ice, as well as sunshine and springlike weather — all in the attempt…
Read Full Article QUINCY — For the first time in quite some time, the Quincy University men’s basketball players were able to spend a Saturday night without lamenting what had taken place earlier in the day. “You can just chill knowing you won a game,” freshman guard Max Booher said. That hadn’t happened since Jan. 20. Saturday afternoon,…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The crack in Nicole McDermott’s voice explained just how much it stung to see the chance at another victory in Pepsi Arena slip away. “I’m a sore loser,” she said. Sure, with Saturday’s 94-86 loss to Maryville in Great Lakes Valley Conference play came the end to the Quincy University women’s basketball team’s…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Quincy University celebrated the 75th anniversary of Pepsi Arena on Saturday with a $5,000 winner, a Hall of Fame induction and a split decision on the court. The QU men’s basketball team rallied in the second half for an 82-75 victory over Maryville in Great Lakes Valley Conference play, ending a nine-game losing…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Here is the area scoreboard for Saturday, February 22: Men’s basketball Quincy University 82, Maryville 75 John Wood Community College 78, Illinois Central College 63 Missouri Valley 85, Culver-Stockton College 75 Women’s basketball Maryville 94, Quincy University 86 Illinois Central College 69, John Wood Community 57 Missouri Valley 85, Culver-Stockton College 78 College…
Read Full Article CARTHAGE, Ill. — Karly Peters heard Central-Southeastern girls basketball coach Matt Long loud and clear. With the Panthers trailing Petersburg PORTA 25-23 at halftime of Friday’s Class 2A Illini West Regional title game, Long’s message to Peters was short but powerful. “I told her, ‘It’s go time. Let’s go,’” Long said. Much of that encouragement…
Read Full Article CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The road through the wrestlebacks ended abruptly. Three area wrestlers — Quincy Notre Dame’s Sam Darnell, Illini West’s Shawn Watkins Jr. and Pittsfield’s Tucker Cook — saw their seasons end Friday with losses in the consolation bracket at the Class 1A state wrestling championships at the State Farm Center on the University…
Read Full Article KEOKUK, Iowa — All that Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball coach Greg Altmix wanted was a chance. Through two and a half quarters of Friday’s affair with Keokuk, it looked like that opportunity may never materialize. But the Raiders never relented. “The guys just kept battling,” Altmix said. “They didn’t give up.” Down double digits…
Read Full Article GRANITE CITY, Ill. — With 4:43 remaining in regulation Friday night, Quincy High School girls basketball coach Brad Dance called his final timeout of the season. “I just challenged the girls,” Dance said. The Blue Devils trailed top-seeded Alton by 27 points in the Class 4A Granite City Regional championship, having played from behind since…
Read Full Article CARTHAGE, Ill. — Karly Peters led the Central-Southeastern girls basketball team’s second-half push, scoring 10 points in the third quarter of the Panthers’ 45-41 victory over Petersburg PORTA in Friday night’s championship game of the Class 2A Illini West Regional. Muddy River Sports Writer Shane Hulsey was courtside and put together this photo gallery:
Read Full Article QUINCY — Here is the area scoreboard for Friday, February 21: Boys basketball Quincy Notre Dame 64, Keokuk (Iowa) 62 Brown County 87, Pleasant Hill 55 Monmouth-Roseville 43, Macomb 37 Palmyra 69, Highland 36 Monroe City 52, Macon 20 South Shelby 60, Higbee 48 Marion County 63, North Shelby 59 Louisiana 72, Mark Twain 49…
Read Full Article JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — In the final seconds of a stressful fourth quarter, Sage Stratton and Ari Buehler took some time to relax and appreciate what they had just accomplished. As Quincy Notre Dame junior forward Jenna Durst stepped to the free-throw line for two shots with 5.9 seconds left and the Raiders leading Springfield 44-40…
Read Full Article CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The luck of the draw wasn’t on Ryan Darnell’s side. A runner-up in the Class 1A Clinton Sectional, the Quincy Notre Dame senior wrestler drew a spot at the top of the 215-pound bracket at the Illinois state wrestling championships, which began Thursday at the State Farm Center on the University of…
Read Full Article QUINCY — It wasn’t the prettiest of games, unless you’re a fan of turnovers and free throws, but the Quincy University women’s basketball team remains in the thick of the Great Lakes Valley Conference title chase. The Hawks scored the opening 12 points and built a 19-point halftime lead before withstanding a McKendree rally in…
Read Full Article BLUFFS, Ill. — Carrollton’s Harper Darr said she was finally able to “get out of her head.” As a result, the Brown County girls basketball team finds itself out of the postseason tournament. Darr’s season-best 18-point performance, including nine in the fourth quarter, helped propel Carrollton to a 47-43 victory in the Class 1A regional…
Read Full Article TAYLORVILLE, Ill. — Trailing by 13 points early in the second half, the Quincy Junior High School eighth grade boys basketball team got within two points in the fourth quarter but never got the lead in a 46-42 loss to the Michelle Obama School of Technology and the Arts (STA) from Park Forest in the…
Read Full Article QUINCY — If Brad Hoyt were telling a fishing tale, McKendree would be the big one the Quincy University men’s basketball team could never reel in. The Hawks seemingly had the Bearcats on the line, but they could never land the catch. McKendree’s blistering first half led to a 17-point halftime lead Thursday night, which…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The Quincy University men’s and women’s basketball teams are trending in different directions. The QU women extended their winning streak to 15 games with Thursday night’s 88-76 victory over McKendree in Great Lakes Valley Conference play at Pepsi Arena, while the QU men suffered a 76-62 loss to the Bearcats, extending the Hawks’…
Read Full Article QUINCY — As he sat down to talk about his looming trip to the state wrestling championships, Ryan Darnell tussled his sweaty mop of hair and asked if the interview was going to be recorded for video purposes. You could sense the relief when he was told it wasn’t. “Good,” the Quincy Notre Dame senior…
Read Full Article CARTHAGE, Ill. — Twenty-two. Tre Neiderman and the Illini West boys basketball players have had that magic number in their sights since setting a goal during summer workouts to eclipse the program’s single-season record for victories. “We knew that we could get it,” Neiderman said. Now the Chargers have it. With a 57-40 victory over…
Read Full Article CHICAGO — Here are the latest Associated Press Illinois boys basketball state rankings, as compiled by a statewide panel of sportswriters and sportscasters. First-place votes are in parenthesis: Class 4A School Record Total Points Previous 1. Kenwood (11) 27-1 118 1 2. Marist 28-2 92 5 3. Quincy (1) 27-3 86 2 4. Waubonsie Valley…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Here is the area scoreboard for Wednesday, February 19: Boys basketball Brown County 64, Carrollton 45 Illini West 57, Rushville-Industry 40 Calhoun 53, Pittsfield 34 Palmyra 54, Clark County 39 Columbia Battle 76, Monroe City 41 Girls basketball Palmyra 54, Clark County 49 Men’s basketball Central Methodist 87, Culver-Stockton College 63 Women’s basketball…
Read Full Article QUINCY — As he dribbled from one side of the court to the other, West Hancock senior guard Gavin Grothaus found himself dangerously close to a five-second violation. A turnover could have changed the outcome of the game. Instead, Grothaus avoided the mishap and made the biggest pass of Tuesday’s showdown with Quincy Notre Dame,…
Read Full Article ROCK ISLAND, Ill. — For a moment, Quincy High School boys basketball coach Andy Douglas thought maybe his team’s lackluster demeanor was just an aberration. The state-ranked Blue Devils lethargically took the floor for warmups prior to Tuesday night’s Western Big 6 Conference game against Rock Island at the Rocky Fieldhouse with a chance to…
Read Full Article CARTHAGE, Ill. — The Central-Southeastern girls basketball team did not have its usual explosiveness on Tuesday, but Panthers coach Matt Long was not all that shocked. “Whatever the reason was, there wasn’t a lot of intensity in the gym tonight,” Long said. Several players, including all-state forward Lauren Miller, still battling sickness could have had…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The West Hancock boys basketball team went toe-to-toe with Quincy Notre Dame on Tuesday night with a packed house at The Pit raising the decibel levels to as loud as the gym has been all winter. The Titans put a stamp on their West Central Conference title with a 65-58 victory. Muddy River…
Read Full Article CARTHAGE, Ill. — The stage is set for the Class 2A Illini West Regional championship as top-seeded Central-Southeastern advanced with a 49-34 victory over Illini West on Tuesday, while fourth-seeded Petersburg PORTA moved on with a 47-31 victory over West Hancock. The regional championship will be played at 7 p.m. Friday at Illini West High…
Read Full Article PALMYRA, Mo. — Even though the Palmyra girls basketball team hung on for the victory, neither Sydney Compton nor Clare Williams felt much like celebrating. Palmyra’s 70-69 margin of victory over Hannibal fails to illustrate how the Panthers blew an 18-point lead in the second half. The score also fails to show Palmyra (13-10) had…
Read Full Article PALMYRA, Mo. —The Palmyra boys basketball team scored the first 21 points Tuesday night against Hannibal. Game, set, match. Right? Well, not quite. Palmyra was not able to deliver what amounted to be the ultimate knockout punch until the opening minutes of the fourth quarter. That’s when the Panthers’ 6-foot-3 Mason Smith connected on a…
Read Full Article CARTHAGE, Ill. — The first four minutes of Tuesday’s Class 2A Illini West Regional semifinal game against Petersburg PORTA were everything West Hancock junior forward Jadyn Climer and the Titans girls basketball team could have asked for. “The energy was up,” Climer said. “We were like, ‘This is going to be a good game.’” Then…
Read Full Article JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — The scoring run impressed Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball coach Eric Orne, but he was even more pleased with the attitude and approach that enabled the Raiders to go on that run. “We knew we had to come out here and just take care of business,” Orne said. That is exactly what…
Read Full Article GRANITE CITY, Ill. — The growth in confidence and maturity of the Quincy High School girls basketball players can be seen by looking at two measuring sticks. On Nov. 23, the Blue Devils lost 42-29 to Edwardsville in a neutral site game in O’Fallon, Ill. Monday night, in the Class 4A Granite City Regional semifinals,…
Read Full Article PAYSON, Ill. — On paper, the Mendon Unity girls basketball team looked to be a definitive favorite. On the court, it proved to be a different — or at least more difficult — story. While the No. 3-seeded Mustangs ultimately prevailed in their Class 1A Payson Regional semifinal matchup against No. 8 Rushville-Industry, they needed…
Read Full Article MT. STERLING, Ill. — Brown County girls basketball coach Dave Phelps may not prefer it, but he can live with Hornets senior forward Ashlee Markert leaving a practice early or even missing an occasional team activity. He knows it’s what Markert needs to do. Signed to play volleyball at Western Illinois University, the 6-foot-1 Markert…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Local college basketball teams are entering the final two weeks of the regular season. The Quincy University women’s team finds itself in the thick of the Great Lakes Valley Conference race with four games remaining after being picked to finish seventh in the preseason coaches’ poll. A 14-game winning streak has catapulted the…
Read Full Article PITTSFIELD, Ill. — Pikeland Superintendent Todd Fox was in the middle of addressing the Pittsfield girls basketball team Friday morning when the door to the classroom where they had gathered cracked open. In walked Lincoln McCartney with a simple request. “I’m paraphrasing here, but she said something like, ‘Can I join this meeting?’” Fox said.…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Dom Clay got all the tears out of his system on Friday night, but that did not make Saturday any less emotional or memorable. For Clay and the seven other seniors on the Quincy High School boys basketball team, Saturday’s clash with Jacksonville marked their final game at Blue Devil Gym. “It hit…
Read Full Article CLINTON, Ill. — Ryan Darnell and Shawn Watkins Jr. will end their prep wrestling careers on the state’s biggest stage. It took some tenacity and resilience to get there. Darnell, the Quincy Notre Dame senior wrestling at 215 pounds, finished as the runner-up in the Class 1A Clinton Sectional, pinning his first two opponents before…
Read Full Article JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The Quincy University women’s basketball team’s game plan was obvious from the get-go Saturday. Own the paint. The Hawks shot 56.1 percent from the field overall and 69 percent inside the 3-point stripe, while collecting 46 points in the paint in a dominating 78-61 victory over Lincoln in Great Lakes Valley…
Read Full Article Comets use strong second half to reach title game TAYLORVILLE, Ill. — The Quincy Junior High School eighth grade boys basketball team will play for an Illinois Elementary School Association Class 4A state championship Thursday after winning a pair of games Saturday at Taylorville High School. The Comets beat O’Fallon Carriel 33-20 in the quarterfinals…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Here is the area scoreboard for Saturday, February 15: Boys basketball Quincy High School 66, Jacksonville 49 Palmyra 69, Bowling Green 56 Girls basketball Class 2A Illini West Regional Illini West 43, South County 40 West Hancock 39, Beardstown 29 Class 1A Payson Regional West Prairie 64, Payson Seymour 33 Rushville-Industry 56, Bushnell-Prairie…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Each time Keshaun Thomas gained position on a Moline defender in the post Friday night, Quincy High School boys basketball coach Andy Douglas could hear former assistant coach Tom Lepper barking at the guards to make the entry pass. In fact, Douglas could envision the lumbering 6-foot-9 Lepper getting off the bench and…
Read Full Article BARRY, Ill. — Taylor Graham had no doubt he got some heavenly help to allow his pivotal free throw to rattle in. “It definitely felt like it,” Graham said. “To be honest, out of the hand, I thought I missed it.” That free throw, which came with 13.6 seconds left and gave the Pittsfield boys…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Alex Dance and his four Quincy Notre Dame senior teammates don’t get many chances to play together at the same time on the basketball court. Naturally, they wanted to take advantage of the opportunity on Senior Night. “We knew this was one of our last chances to start together,” Dance said. “We just…
Read Full Article WARSAW, Ill. — Southeastern boys basketball coach Brandon Gooding was honest in his assessment. Brutally honest. “If we’d play a great team like West Hancock 100 times, they’d probably win all 100,” Gooding said. “But we’re trying to emphasize to our kids go out there and be a puncher, play as hard as you can.”…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The Quincy High School boys basketball team needs a victory Tuesday night at Rock Island to finish undefeated in the Western Big 6 Conferenece following a 69-52 victory over Moline on Friday night at Blue Devil Gym,. The Blue Devils are 26-2 overall and 11-0 in the WB6. Muddy River Sports Editor Matt…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball team led 20-2 after one quarter and 39-8 at halftime as they rolled to a 71-29 victory over Liberty during Friday’s West Central Conference tussle at The Pit. Four seniors — Alex Dance, Conner Young, Jackson Pyatt and Carter Miller — combined for 11 points in the…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Here is the area scoreboard for Friday, February 14: Boys basketball Quincy High School 69, Moline 52 Quincy Notre Dame 71, Liberty 29 West Hancock 63, Southeastern 27 Pittsfield 49, Western 43 Griggsville-Perry 60, Payson Seymour 54 (2OT) Jacksonville Routt 51, Brown County 45 Illini West 47, Bushnell-Prairie City 26 Macomb 49, Camp…
Read Full Article QUINCY — They braided their hair into pigtails in Reese Ramsey trademark style. They took the floor for warmups with red “RR” stickers affixed to their shooting shirts. They wore red ribbons in their hair. And they spoke emotionally and eloquently about a friend they lost and will remember forever. The Quincy Notre Dame girls…
Read Full Article CARTHAGE, Ill. — It all started with a piece of paper. Shawn Watkins Sr. will never forget the day his then 5-year-old son, Shawn Watkins Jr., returned home from Dallas City Elementary School with a flyer advertising the Little Chargers wrestling club — a youth wrestling organization in Carthage — and showed it to his…
Read Full Article QUINCY — Bring on the postseason. Quincy High School’s girls basketball team put the cap on another successful regular season Thursday night when it overwhelmed Moline 73-51 in a Western Big 6 Conference game before a crowd of about 290. Quincy, now 19-10 and one victory away from a third straight 20-win season, put four…
Read Full Article QUINCY — The final home game for the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team became an emotional tribute to a rival and friend and a hug to a community reeling from a tragedy. The Raiders beat Jefferson City Helias 61-36, but the night was honoring Pittsfield’s Reese Ramsey, who passed away in car accident Tuesday…
Read Full Article ST. LOUIS — Over the final four minutes of the third quarter Thursday night, the Quincy University women’s basketball team could see the game and the win streak heading in the same direction. The wrong direction. The Hawks were outscored by Missouri-St. Louis 11-4 in that stretch with the Tritons’ Anna Riera scoring just before…
Read Full Article ST. LOUIS — The Quincy University men’s basketball team couldn’t stop Missouri-St. Louis from going on a scoring binge whenever it wanted. The Tritons opened the game on a 9-0 spurt, then ripped off 13-2 stretch and closed the half on another 9-0 run. That was good enough for a 16-point halftime lead that catapulted…
Read Full Article CHICAGO — Here are the latest Illinois Associated Press boys basketball state rankings, as compiled by a statewide panel of sportswriters and sportscasters. First-place votes in parenthesis: Class 4A School Record Total Points Previous 1. Kenwood (10) 25-1 109 1 2. Quincy (1) 25-2 95 3 3. Homewood-Flossmoor 25-2 89 2 4. Hinsdale Central 27-2…
Read Full Article CHICAGO — Here are the latest Associated Press Illinois girls basketball state rankings, as compiled by a statewide panel of sportswriters and sportscasters. First-place votes are in parenthesis: Class 4A School Record Total Points Previous 1. Kenwood (5) 27-2 78 3 2. Lisle Benet (2) 26-2 68 2 3. Lyons 28-2 63 1 (tie) Nazareth…
Read Full Article