Posts Tagged ‘Class 1A sectional’
Game Night Guide: Camp Point Central gets sectional title game rematch with Illini Bluffs
Class 1A Abingdon-Avon Sectional Championship Camp Point Central (25-8) vs. Illini Bluffs (32-3) Where: Abingdon-Avon High School When: 7 p.m. Friday Livestream: Central Illinois Sports on YouTube Scouting the Panthers: This group just knows how to win, whether that’s on the gridiron or the hardwood. The Panthers have won 52 basketball games the last two…
Read MoreMustangs push Stags to brink in both sets, fall short in sectional semifinal loss
CONCORD, Ill. — The Unity volleyball players knew the only way to compete against one of the state’s top Class 1A teams in Hartsburg-Emden was to play the way they had all season long — calm, collected and consistent. Finding themselves in a dogfight, the Mustangs never wavered in an attempt to upset the Stags,…
Read MoreSoutheastern’s injury-riddled season comes to end with sectional semifinal loss
CONCORD, Ill. — Behind the bleachers in the Triopia High School gymnasium, Southeastern volleyball coach Tim Kerr hugged his players as they exited the locker room Monday night. He offered words of appreciation, encouragement and consolation following his Suns’ 25-18, 25-21 loss to Decatur Unity in the Class 1A Concord Sectional semifinals. As Kerr approaches…
Read More‘Soul-crushing goal’ enables Chargers to upend Raiders, end defense of QND’s state title
CHILLICOTHE, Ill. — The response was swift, sudden and significant. “That was a bit of a soul-crushing goal,” Quincy Notre Dame’s Mason Monteyne said. Title-dashing, too. In the 14th minute of Wednesday night’s Class 1A Chillicothe IVC Sectional championship, senior forward Leo Cann gave the Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer team a 2-1 lead over…
Read MoreMatch-play mentality on back nine carries QND boys golf team to sectional championship
AUBURN, Ill. — As the Quincy Notre Dame boys golfers made the turn Monday, the situation seemed pretty cut and dry. Beat Bloomington Central Catholic head-to-head and win a sectional championship. Raiders coach Brian Hendrian didn’t shy away from telling his golfers that. “We went out there and played it like a Ryder Cup format…
Read MorePhoto gallery: QND, Macomb girls golf teams see seasons end at Class 1A Roxana Sectional
WOOD RIVER, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame girls golfers figured Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin was the bona fide favorite to win the Class 1A Roxana Sectional, but after that it would be a dogfight to see which two additional teams qualified for the state tournament. The Raiders didn’t happen to be in that fight at…
Read MoreTigers use walk-off home run leading off seventh to end Wolves’ season
HAVANA, Ill. — One pitch, one swing, one sudden ending. Illini Bluffs catcher Lexi Brinkman jumped on the first pitch from Pleasant Hill’s McKinley Lowe in the bottom of the seventh inning Wednesday and smacked a walk-off home run to center field for a 4-3 victory in the semifinals of the Class 1A Havana softball…
Read MoreTigers’ length keeps Panthers at bay as historic season ends in sectional championship game
BUSHNELL, Ill. — Being double and triple teamed is a nightly occurrence for Hank Alvey. He’s familiar with opposing defenses pushing and pulling him in every direction. It comes with the territory when you’re 6-foot-9 and opponents are looking for anything that may get under your skin. “It’s nothing new. That’s what teams have been…
Read MorePhoto gallery: Central fights to end in sectional championship loss to Illini Bluffs
BUSHNELL, Ill. — The bid to become the first team in program history to win a sectional championship fell just short. The Central boys basketball team struggled to combat Illini Bluffs’ size and lost 54-46 to end its season with a 27-5 record. Photographer Mike Pritchard shared this photo gallery from the game:
Read MoreSound the alarms: Sizzling effort from 3-point range, stingy defense carry Panthers into sectional championship game
BUSHNELL, Ill. — Not much could delay the inevitable, but the fire alarms blaring in the Bushnell-Prairie City High School gymnasium created a significant sense of confusion in the waning minutes of Wednesday’s Class 1A sectional semifinal boys basketball game between Camp Point Central and Peoria Christian. “It just came out of nowhere,” Central junior…
Read MorePayson’s magical run ends, but not before making Gibault work until final buzzer to win sectional semifinal
HARDIN, Ill. — In the end, Bryan Dieker may have captured the moment better than anyone else. “This was a great season for us,” he said. “This was the most fun I’ve ever had playing basketball.” Dieker, a 6-foot-1 senior forward on the Payson Seymour boys basketball team, had just completed the final game of…
Read MoreHavana’s physical play slows Brown County in season-ending loss in sectional title game
ABINGDON, Ill. — Dave Phelps tried to highlight the Brown County girls basketball team’s laundry list of accomplishments this season during his postgame speech Thursday night. Those aren’t easy to see through tears. A record-setting 31-win season and the second Sweet 16 appearance in program history came to an end in the Class 1A Abingdon…
Read MorePhoto gallery: Brown County’s historic season ends in sectional championship game
ABINGDON, Ill. — The physical play of the Havana girls basketball team kept Brown County from finding any offensive rhythm Thursday night and resulted in a 40-34 loss in the Class 1A Abingdon Sectional championship game. The Hornets end their historic season with a 31-4 record. Mount Sterling photographer Scott Bemis captured the action in…
Read MoreFlip the switch: Halftime adjustments, resilient attitude carry Hornets into sectional title game
ABINGDON, Ill. — No one actually reached for the panic button. “We kind of hovered over it a little bit,” Brown County girls basketball coach Dave Phelps said. What kept the Hornets from hitting it is what made Tuesday night’s second-half rally possible. They never lost faith in each other. A nine-minute scoring drought in…
Read MorePhoto gallery: Brown County advances to Class 1A sectional championship
ABINGDON, Ill. — The Brown County girls basketball team overcome a rough first half offensively by scoring 19 points in the third quarter and pulling away from Elmwood for a 47-35 victory in Tuesday night’s semifinals of the Class 1A Abingdon Sectional. Mount Sterling-based photographer Scott Bemis captured action and shared this photo gallery with…
Read MoreSuns continue to rise to occasion, fight back in third set to win sectional championship
BRIMFIELD, Ill. — The Southeastern volleyball team’s cardiac kids made a comeback. More than one comeback, to be precise. Down 10 points in the decisive third set Wednesday night, the Suns staged an epic rally to defeat Hartsburg-Emden 25-11, 21-25, 28-26 in the Class 1A Brimfield Sectional final. To Southeastern coach Tim Kerr, his team’s…
Read MoreCrusaders get bounce back, knock Mustangs out in Class 1A sectional championship match
WHITE HALL, Ill. — The Unity volleyball team just couldn’t put it together on Wednesday night. Unforced error after unforced error piled up for the Mustangs in their Class 1A sectional championship match against Springfield Lutheran. The Mustangs made 10 unforced errors in the first set and followed that with four service errors in the…
Read MoreMustangs’ stellar play at net carries them into sectional championship match
WHITE HALL, Ill. — The senior members of the Unity volleyball team have been to the sectional three times during their prep careers. The first two times, the Mustangs were shown the door in the semifinals. Ashlynn Arnsman, one of four Unity seniors, is intent on making this final ride a long one. “It was…
Read MoreQuiet assassins: QND soccer team turns laser focus into rout of Mendota for sectional title
MENDOTA, Ill. — Everything Greg Reis observed Saturday morning left him convinced the Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer players had the right disposition to run down a sectional championship. “We had a special energy when we went to mass and then went to breakfast,” the QND coach said. Yet, the tone seemed to change when…
Read MorePhoto gallery: Quincy Notre Dame beats Mendota for Class 1A boys soccer sectional championship
MENDOTA, Ill. — Gusting winds blowing right in the face of the Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer players did little to diminish the Raiders’ pursuit of a state championship. QND moved one step closer to that goal with a 7-1 victory over Mendota on Saturday in the Class 1A Mendota Sectional championship. Check out this…
Read MoreRoad to redemption: QND takes first step to regaining sectional soccer championship
MENDOTA, Ill. — There will come a time when the Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer players will appreciate and yearn for the opportunity to take an afternoon nap. It might happen Thursday. Following Wednesday night’s 9-2 shellacking of Serena in the Class 1A Mendota Sectional semifinals, the Raiders embarked on a four-hour charter bus ride…
Read MoreRaiders’ ability to deliver quick strikes ensures Huskers never gain traction in efforts to rally
MENDOTA, Ill. — For a fleeting moment in both halves of Wednesday night’s Class 1A Mendota Sectional semifinal, the Serena boys soccer team saw a glimmer of hope. Quincy Notre Dame extinguished it each time before it ever got bright. The Husker trailed 2-0 nine minutes into the game, but a counterattack allowed them to…
Read MorePhoto gallery: Quincy Notre Dame vs. Serena in Class 1A Mendota Sectional semifinals
MENDOTA, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer team looked like the team to beat in the Class 1A Mendota Sectional on Wednesday night, dispatching Serena 9-2 in the sectional semifinals. Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman made the four-hour trek to Mendota to capture images of the Raiders’ third postseason victory. Check out…
Read MoreQND’s Schuetz reaches final four in singles at sectional, earns berth in state tennis tourney
QUINCY — Evie Schuetz’s leadership proved invaluable for the Quincy Notre Dame girls tennis team throughout the fall. Her persistence and preparation is why the fall season isn’t over just yet. The QND senior earned a spot in the Class 1A state tournament, finishing fourth in singles in the QND Sectional on Saturday at the…
Read MoreCharging forward: Illini West boys golf team qualifies for state tournament for first time
MASON CITY, Ill. — Because the par-4 second hole at Country Hills Golf Course is nearly driveable, there was a slight lag in getting groups off the tee during the early portion of Monday’s Class 1A Illini Central Sectional. That enabled Illini West boys golf coach Christine Murphy and her husband, Shane, to check the…
Read MoreEftink leads charge as QND girls golf team captures program’s first sectional championship
LINCOLN, Ill. — The Illinois High School Association’s decision to use the iWanamaker scoring app for postseason golf events took some of the suspense away as the Quincy Notre Dame girls chased a sectional title Monday. However, it did little to diminish the Raiders’ joy. QND posted a 360 team score in the Class 1A…
Read MoreFifth-inning outburst enables Ducks to fly past Hornets and into sectional championship game
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — Karsyn Moorman waited, then delivered. The Brown County softball team’s left-handed-hitting first baseman drilled a two-run single after Havana made a pitching change in the second inning to give the Hornets a 5-0 lead in Wednesday’s Class 1A Jacksonville Routt Sectional semifinal. The Hornets were in a position to avenge their lone…
Read MoreLiberty softball team runs out of magic in sectional semifinal loss to state’s No. 1-ranked team
JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — For a fleeting few minutes, the Liberty softball team had everyone thinking its magical run might continue. With two outs in the top of the first inning Tuesday against the state’s No. 1-ranked team, the Eagles made a little noise. Larissa Neisen and Natalie Hildebrand collected back-to-back singles before a strikeout ended…
Read MoreRaiders’ Cucuk dominates sectional field to win singles championship and grab state berth
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Marko Cucuk didn’t shift into cruise control just because his spot in the Illinois boys tennis state tournament field was secure. A sectional championship, a better state seed and the momentum from a string of victories mattered just as much as qualifying for the championships. The Quincy Notre Dame junior took care…
Read MoreTrue believers: Raiders keep faith until final PK caroms off crossbar, outlast Cyclones to win sectional championship
QUINCY — Aly Young couldn’t stop smiling or shaking her head. Her excitement matched her disbelief. “It’s still just really crazy,” said Young, a sophomore goalkeeper on the Quincy Notre Dame girls soccer team. “I keep saying, ‘What the heck just happened?’” In one sense, the improbable happened. In another, destiny did. Either way, the…
Read MoreRaiders struggle to finish chances, Trojans bounce QND from postseason
CHILLICOTHE, Ill. — The Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer team gave itself a string of opportunities to erase Mendota’s lead in Saturday’s Class 1A Chillicothe IVC Sectional championship. The Raiders just couldn’t find a way to survive. QND knocked a couple of shots off the crossbar, saw Mendota goalkeeper Manny Trejo stop a penalty kick…
Read MoreAggressive attack carries Raiders into sectional title game against Trojans
CHILLICOTHE, Ill. — The effort in the two regional victories couldn’t be considered lackluster, but the pin-the-defense-back-with-an-all-out-attack seemed to be absent. Tuesday night, the Quincy Notre Dame boys soccer team brought it back to life. The Raiders scored three first-half goals, consistently applied pressure on the Somonauk goal and headed home with a 4-0 victory…
Read MoreEagles’ Arnold goes low to secure sectional championship, state tournament berth
PETERSBURG, Ill. — Last week’s regional golf championship didn’t allow Blake Arnold to escape doing any homework. “I bet I had three or four hours of work that night,” the Liberty junior said. So would winning a sectional championship bring any reprieve? “It’s not quite as bad,” Arnold said of the amount of homework he…
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