Central-Southeastern slays another monster in winning State Farm Holiday Classic championship

Central-Southeastern’s Tori Fessler explodes with joy after the final buzzer as the Panthers beat top-seeded Paris 36-32 to win the championship of the State Farm Holiday Classic on Friday at the Shirk Center in Bloomington, Ill. | Photo courtesy Clark Brooks, PhotoNews Media

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Central-Southeastern girls basketball coach Matt Long referred to top-seeded Paris as “a monster.” Consider his squad the beast slayers then. The Panthers completed a remarkable run to the State Farm Holiday Classic championship Friday afternoon, making 5 of 6 free throws in the final 18.2 seconds to hand the Tigers their first…

Read More

Raiders enjoy sweet rewards after capping State Farm Holiday Classic with back-to-back wins

Quincy Notre Dame's Noah Lunt reacts to Alex Connoyer scoring the go-ahead basket against El Paso-Gridley with 6.7 seconds remaining in regulation Thursday afternoon in the State Farm Holiday Classic in Bloomington, Ill. | Photo courtesy Clark Brooks, PhotoNews Media

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Christina Meyer made a promise the Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball players intended her to keep. So after beating Kankakee Bishop McNamara 53-46 in Thursday night’s fifth-place game of the State Farm Holiday Classic, the Raiders reminded Meyer’s husband — QND coach Kevin Meyer — she said she’d buy the team milkshakes…

Read More

Lockdown defense carries Central-Southeastern into State Farm Holiday Classic title tilt

Central-Southeastern's Brilyn Lantz rips the ball away from Brimfield's Kylee Vaugh during their semifinal game of the State Farm Holiday Classic on Thursday at Normal Community High School. | Photo courtesy Clark Brooks. PhotoNews Media

NORMAL, Ill. — Because of the widespread success of the Central-Southeastern girls basketball players across all sports, it’s easy to forget how youthful the Panthers are. “I know,” C-SE coach Matt Long said. Still, a majority of the time, C-SE has three sophomores, sometimes four, on the floor. That makes this week’s run to the…

Read More

C-SE knocks off SHG with dynamic defensive effort in second half of tourney quarterfinal

Central-Southeastern's Lauren Miller, left, and Tori Fessler, center, helped the Panthers reach the semifinals of the State Farm Holiday Classic by upending second-seeded Springield Sacred Heart-Griffin on Wednesday night. | File photo courtesy Clark Brooks, PhotoNews Media

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Matt Long made it sound so simple. “In the second half, I thought we had a lot of energy and effort and it turned the game for us,” the veteran Central-Southeastern girls basketball coach said. The tenaciousness defensively brought about by playing with more energy and effort certainly did that. A five-point…

Read More

Turnovers, miscues leave QND boys basketball team with empty feeling after quarterfinal loss

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — A game of chase morphed into a game of giveaway Wednesday night. After opening the State Farm Holiday Classic with an aggressive, transition-based effort offensively that led to its highest scoring game of the season, the Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball team allowed two many empty possessions to derail it in a…

Read More

Panthers lock down in closing stretch to quell Fightin’ Irish comeback

Despite pressure from Bishop McNamara's Tessa DiPietra, Central-Southeastern's Brilyn Lantz looks to get a shot up in the paint during Tuesday’s game in the State Farm Holiday Classic at Normal Community High School in Normal, Ill. | Photo courtesy Clark Brooks, PhotoNews Media

NORMAL, Ill. — Having watched a nine-point advantage dwindle to three, the Central-Southeastern girls basketball players simply refused to let Kankakee Bishop McNamara draw any closer. The Panthers made their free throws, too. Central-Southeastern outscored Bishop McNamara 8-2 over the final 2 minutes, 40 seconds of regulation Tuesday night and earned a 36-27 victory in…

Read More

Catch me if you can: Raiders accept challenge to chase down point guard, thrive in transition

Quincy Notre Dame point guard Jake Hoyt dishes a pass during Tuesday's game against Providence St. Mel in the opening round of the State Farm Holiday Classic at Normal West High School in Normal, Ill. | Photo courtesy Clark Brooks, PhotoNews Media

NORMAL, Ill. — Fully aware his team’s offense needed to ratchet everything up a notch or two, Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball coach Kevin Meyer presented the Raiders with a challenge heading into the State Farm Holiday Classic. Catch Jake. Meyer told his point guard — senior Jake Hoyt — to push the pace at…

Read More

Raiders show growth, see potential for more after splitting final two games in Bloomington

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball coach Kevin Meyer never saw the absence of two starters as a ready-made excuse for any setback. He viewed it more as a chance to grow. Having split two games Wednesday in the small-school bracket of the State Farm Holiday Classic, the Raiders showed considerable growth and…

Read More

After St. Joseph-Ogden star gets loose in third quarter, Raiders miss chance to complete comeback victory

Quincy Notre Dame's Jake Wallingford goes past St. Joseph-Ogden's Ty Pence on his way for a layup during the first half of Tuesday's quarterfinal game at the Shirk Center in the small-school bracket of the State Farm Holiday Classic. | David Adam

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — It might not look like it in the scorebook, but Quincy Notre Dame actually did a good job keeping St. Joseph-Ogden star Ty Pence in check. Well, except for the final three minutes of the third quarter. Pence, a 6-foot-6 junior, scored 11 of his 26 points during that time frame, turning…

Read More

After loss in State Farm quarterfinals, Central-Southeastern coach questions if Winnebago is top Class 2A team in state

Central-Southeastern's Summer Ramsey is trapped on the baseline and surrounded by, from left, Winnebago's Annika Bielskis, Renee Rittmeyer and Campbell Shrank during Tuesday's quarterfinal game at Bloomington High School in the small-school bracket of the State Farm Holiday Classic. | David Adam

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — Central-Southeastern coach Matt Long has a pretty good idea of what a good Class 2A girls basketball looks like. He guided the Panthers to third-place and fourth-place finishes at the state tournament in 2016 and 2017. So after his team lost 33-21 to Winnebago, ranked No. 1 in the latest Class 2A…

Read More

After forcing 29 turnovers in victory over Stanford Olympia, C-SE girls earn shot at No. 1-ranked Winnebago

Freshman Lauren Miller puts pressure on a Stanford Olympia player during Central-Southeastern's first-round game on Monday during the State Farm Holiday Classic at Normal Community High School. | David Adam

NORMAL, Ill. — Central-Southeastern gets a crack on Tuesday against Winnebago, the No. 1 seed in the small-school girls bracket at the State Farm Holiday Classic and the No. 1-ranked team in the Class 2A state poll. Don’t be surprised if the Panthers throw a scare at the undefeated Indians. C-SE forced 29 turnovers in…

Read More

Holiday tournament guide: State Farm Holiday Classic small-school boys

QUINCY — Anyone associated with the Quincy Notre Dame boys basketball program understands how on-point a team is going to have to be to win the State Farm Holiday Classic small-school bracket. The Raiders have seen the top-seeded team at its best. QND lost to Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin 66-42 at the Pit on December 3…

Read More