by Justin Hatten
With East Richland High School set to join the Little Illini Conference for the 2012-13 school year, ERHS Athletic Director and Assistant Principal Chad LeCrone along with Olney coaches Dave Denton (football), Rob Flanagan (boys basketball), Brent McKinney (girls basketball), Brandis Grove (baseball) and Matt Powell (softball) gave their thoughts on the decision.
The LIC sent invitations to Olney, Newton and Robinson during a meeting on May 14.
Newton and Robinson approved the move Monday night while the East Richland School District Board of Education met Tuesday and voted unanimously (7-0) to switch conferences. Olney joined the Apollo Conference in 2003.
“After weighing the pros and cons, we felt this was the right way to go,” LeCrone said. “What it really comes down to is the best opportunities for our kids. Transportation was a factor and we have to look out for the best interests of ERHS.”
Olney currently travels to Mount Zion (103 miles) and Paris (80 miles). The longest trip in the LIC will be to Marshall, which is 68 miles.
“We’ve enjoyed the time we’ve been in the Apollo and we’ve formed a lot of good relationships,” LeCrone said. “We look forward to continuing to work with them as far as scheduling some non-conference games.”
Formed in 1970, the LIC will now have 12 members, including Albion (Edwards County), Bridgeport (Red Hill), Casey-Westfield, Flora, Lawrenceville, Marshall, Newton, Oblong, Olney, Palestine-Hutsonville (co-op), Robinson and Toledo (Cumberland).
According to Lawrenceville Athletic Director and Assistant Principal Paul Higginbotham, a championship committee will be formed to determine scheduling in every sport.
“The only thing pretty well set is the football schedule,” LeCrone said. “As far as the other sports, those details will have to be worked out. As an athletic director, I’m excited to get to work on that.”
Football played a major role in the LIC shakeup. Olney (654 students), Robinson (504), Newton (486), Marshall (438), Flora (437) and Lawrenceville (407) will comprise the large-school division while Casey-Westfield (374), Red Hill (337), Edwards County (323), Cumberland (314), Palestine-Hutsonville (241 combined) and Oblong (231) will make up the small division.
In addition to five division games, teams will play two non-conference games and two cross-over games. However, the three smallest LIC schools (Cumberland, Palestine-Hutsonville and Oblong) will never play the three largest schools (Olney, Robinson and Newton) in football.
Olney will kick off its 2012 football season against Columbia at McKendree University in Lebanon and will host Breese (Central) in week nine. The Tigers will face Red Hill and Edwards County in their two cross-over games.
“I feel like it’s the right move for us to make, speaking from a football standpoint,” Denton said. “It’s not a cure-all for our program but it puts us in a better competitive situation.
“We’ll be back to playing schools size-wise like we did in the NEC and we’ll get some old NEC rivals back on our schedule. We’ll also play a lot of schools in close proximity. There’s always pluses and minuses but in the long run I think it will benefit all the Olney sports programs.”
After Olney finished third in state in 2008 and Marshall placed third in 2009, Robinson captured the Class 2A state championship in boys basketball last March.
“The Apollo has paid dividends for us in terms of competition,” Flanagan said. “In the Apollo, you’re either gonna tread water or drown. It’s a grind every night and it toughens you up for the postseason.
“That being said, there’s plenty of talent in the LIC. Flora has been a rival of ours over the years and the NEC was one of the big drawing cards for me when I came to Olney.”
Flanagan thinks location gave Olney an edge over Paris when it came to an LIC invitation.
“Money makes a big difference in anything and our travel will be less in all sports,” Flanagan said. “It will give some life to our football program. The Apollo is a very physical league, a numbers league.
“Life is full of change and we’re looking forward to making the move. There’s been a lot of talk since we’ve been in the Apollo and conference shuffling is frustrating at any level so it’s nice to know a decision has finally been made.”
The Olney Lady Tigers shared the Apollo Conference girls basketball title with Charleston and Salem in 2009, the same year they advanced to the Class 2A State Tournament.
“Every night is a battle in the Apollo,” McKinney said, echoing Flanagan’s sentiments. “You can’t take any plays off and that prepares you for the postseason. Even though I’ve been here a short time (four years), I’ve enjoyed being part of some rivalry games.
“I like going to the Salem (Thanksgiving) Tournament and I hope we can continue to play tough 3A teams like Salem, Effingham and Charleston. On the girls side, Olney, Salem, Effingham and Paris all won a regional last year. That’s pretty impressive.”
One of McKinney’s concerns about heading to the LIC is whether or not enough schools will be able to field freshman and junior varsity teams.
“We need lower-level programs in all sports,” McKinney said. “I’ve got kids that need to play at the lower levels to prepare them for varsity.”
Olney had four LIC teams on its 2010 baseball schedule, including Edwards County, Flora, Lawrenceville and Red Hill. The Tigers beat Flora 5-2 in the championship game of the Robinson Regional.
“The most important thing is the travel will be a lot better,” Grove said. “That will help our kids and our fan base. It will be nice to not have to get up at 7:15 a.m. to drive to Mount Zion.
“Hopefully, we can still play most of the Apollo teams during the regular season. Playing in the LIC opens up some options on the weekends. When I played in high school, we hosted the Tiger Classic so maybe there’s a chance we could do something like that again.”
The Casey-Westfield Lady Warriors have won seven state titles in softball and Cumberland has been one of the top Class 1A teams in recent years.
“I’m excited for the move,” Powell said. “For us, competition-wise, it’s gonna be every bit as challenging as the Apollo. There’s a pretty rich softball tradition in the LIC and a lot of those teams are already on our schedule now.”
As is the case with basketball and baseball, the LIC currently has a eight-game schedule in softball with games being played during the week.
“I like the doubleheaders in the Apollo,” Powell said. “If you’re gonna be competitive, you’ve got to be ready to play on Saturdays. It’s difficult to beat a team twice in one day.
“At the same time, if the LIC format stays the same (eight games), it will give us a chance to maybe play in some weekend tourneys and get out and play some other schools we don’t normally see during the regular season. If we still want to play Saturday doubleheaders, we could do it.”
One thing Powell will not miss are the road trips to Mount Zion and Paris.
“It will be a lot nicer to travel less than an hour to play conference games,” Powell said. “When we go to Mount Zion and Paris, we typically leave between 7 and 8 o’clock (in the morning). It’s hard for the kids to stay focused.”
As of now, the Apollo Conference will be a six-team league in 2012-13 consisting of newest member Mattoon (enrollment 1,060), Effingham (927), Charleston (849), Salem (849), Mount Zion (839) and Paris (608).
Speculation is that Teutopolis could join the Apollo despite not having a football program.
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