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Olney, Newton and Robinson departing Apollo to join LIC

June 25, 2010 By 1 Comment
flying shoe

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.

Filed Under: Conference, News Tagged With: , , ,

Vikings moving up to Class 4A

June 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment
danville

BY CHAD DARE CNHI

DANVILLE — Longer bus trips are on the horizon for the Danville athletic programs.

On Monday, the Illinois High School Association tentatively released the classification cut-offs for the 2010-11 school year and 35 schools will be changing for next year.

Among those making the move are the Vikings, who will move up to Class 4A.

“We already compete with schools like Normal Community and Normal West, so I don’t think it will be a big change,’’ said Danville athletics director B.J. Luke, who was a little surprised by the move.

The biggest change for the Vikings will be the sites of next year’s regionals and sectionals.

This past season, the longest trip for Danville was to Mahomet for the boys regional golf tournament and the girls sectional track meet.

The closest schools in Class 4A to Danville are Normal Community, Normal West and Bradley-Bourbonnais.

Those three schools along with Minooka were in the same regional for volleyball, boys basketball, girls basketball, baseball and softball.

“It will be a change, but I don’t think it will be a huge issue because our kids are used to traveling in the Big 12 Conference,’’ Luke said. “They could also send us up into the southern suburbs of Chicago.’’

In addition to moving up to Class 4A in sports like baseball, basketball, softball and volleyball, Danville will move up to Class 3A in the three-class sports like cross country, golf, track and wrestling.

That could be significant as the Vikings took third in the Class 2A girls state track meet and the boys tied for seventh.

“Moving up in class in the three-class sports isn’t that surprising,’’ Luke said. “When you are close to that cut-off line, you have to be prepared for either scenario.

“Our track teams are going to be competing against teams like East St. Louis and some of the best in Chicago,’’ Luke said. “We already schedule ourselves against those teams during the season. It’s going to be a little different, but I think our kids can handle it.’’

Another school that seems to live on the cut-off line is the Westville Tigers, who are back in Class 2A next year after just one year in Class 1A.

Westville’s Coal Bucket rival, the Georgetown-Ridge Farm Buffaloes, are set to drop from Class 2A to Class 1A in the sports where they do not co-op with Chrisman.

Other class changes of note include the Rantoul Eagles moving down to Class 2A and the Peoria Manual Rams will move up to Class 3A.

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Ford thrives at EIU

May 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment
danville

BY CHAD DARE Commercial-News

CHARLESTON —  Danville’s Cameron Ford feels at home in the discus ring outside of O’Brien Stadium.

A year ago, the senior took sixth in Class 2A event with a toss of 156 feet, 4 inches. At that time, it was his personal best.

Ford got that familiar feeling back on Friday as his toss of 156 feet, 11 inches in the preliminaries has the Vikings senior in second place.

“This is my best event right here,’’ said Ford, who also just barely qualified for the finals in the shot put. “I know I can take this if I come out here and perform.

“That throw that I had today could have been better, it was a little too high.’’

And Ford has a pretty good idea of what he can do in Charleston. During a practice session on Thursday, Ford’s best toss was more than 170 feet.

“Last year, I got better every time down here,’’ he said. “I have that confidence coming in here. With my practice session yesterday, I think I have it.’’

So, why does Ford do his best in Charleston?

“I like the competition,’’ he said. “And I just feel confident in this ring.’’

Ford acknowledged that his good throw in the discus made up for his disappointing performance in the shot put.

“I’m basically standing here, staring onto the board, hoping there is a ‘Q’ next to my name,’’ he said after managing just 51-3½ in the shot put preliminaries. “It’s frustrating to not do it when it counts.

“Of course, I scratched the good throw that would have gotten me into the finals.’’

Ford’s second of three attempts was easily 53 feet, but his momentum carried him out of the ring. About 20 minutes later, Ford found out that he was the 12th and final qualifier in the shot put finals.

“This means I get a chance to put up points for the team,’’ he said. “I know I can throw 55 and the leader is at 54-10.

“I’m not going to disappoint two days in a row.’’

Joining Ford in the shot put finals is Danville senior Keith Mayfield, who sits in eighth place with a toss of 52-3¾.

“I thought I was going to get more of it,’’ Mayfield said. “I wanted to make finals, and now I want to win state.’’

The Vikings also got a number of impressive performances on the track during Friday’s preliminaries.

Leading the way was senior Anthony Bacoat in the 100-meter dash as his time of 10.83 seconds was second only to Centralia’s DeVantre Whitelow, who set a Class 2A state record with a 10.68 time.

“I had a lot of pressure,’’ Bacoat said. “I wasn’t at state last year and coming as the No. 2 seed is kind of hard.

“I need to improve on my blocks. That is something I can think about tonight.’’

Bacoat and Whitelow were in the same heat on Friday and the Danville sprinter knew he spotted him a lead coming out of the blocks.

“I know as soon as the gun was shot, I saw the red guy (Whitelow),’’ Bacoat said. “I tried to catch him, but it was a little too late.

“I need to loosen up a little bit, I was nervous.’’

Danville coach Steve Luke said that while Bacoat didn’t get his normal start, his finish in the race was a welcomed sight.

“One of the things we have tried to get him to do over the last four years is to finish,’’ Luke said. “He had to make up some room and he did.

“I think if he has that start and finish, I think we will look at a different situation.’’

Bacoat said that not making the state meet a year ago was a driving factor in his off-season workouts.

“(Champaign Central‘s Denzel) Stewart and other people got me last year in sectionals,’’ he said. “I got tired of him beating me last year. I wasn’t going to tolerate it any more.’’

And, he said having Solomon Crenshaw as a teammate has also helped.

“(Crenshaw) is pretty dang good and I love running with him, but if I’m going to beat him, I had to drive harder,’’ Bacoat said. “When I figured I had to drive harder, that’s when I got my personal best.’’

Bacoat is also a part of Danville’s 400 relay team, which has the fifth best time entering today’s finals.

But, the Vikings said they weren’t properly prepared for Friday’s race.

“We warmed up for 20 or 30 minutes, but then we got into the (check-in) tent and sat there for too long,’’ Danville’s MykeTez Forman said. “We need to do a better job of stretching.’’

The Vikings relay team is expected to make a lineup change today.

Crenshaw, who failed to qualify for state at last week sectionals because of a leg injury, ran with the team on Thursday.

“Hopefully, we will have a little surprise in the 4-by-1,’’ Luke said.

Another member of that relay team is senior TeJuan Jackson, who qualified for the finals in the 200 and 400.

“It was a long day, but it’s what I came here to do,’’ said Jackson, who has the fifth best time in the 400 (49.93) and the fifth best in the 200 (22.07).

“TeJuan is sitting a lot better in the 200 than we thought,’’ Luke said.

But both Jackson and Luke pointed out that the 400 race was not as good as either one of them had wanted.

“I don’t think I ran hard enough,’’ said Jackson, who lost his heat race to Champaign Central’s Ian Wells, a guy he had beaten five times this spring. “The best way to beat him is to catch him on the curve. If I can catch him, I know I can beat him.’’

Luke said that Jackson will have Lane No. 3 in today’s finals with the top four runners lined up outside of him.

“He got out hard, but he got soft on the curve,’’ Luke said. “He will have to be sharper today.’’

Jackson missed qualifying for a fourth event as Danville’s 1,600 relay team ran a time of 3 minutes, 27.44 seconds, which was more than a second slower than the final qualifying team.

That 1,600 relay was the final race in the high school career of Danville’s David Groves.

The senior qualified for state in the 110 hurdles, the 300 hurdles and the 1,600 relay.

“In the 110s, I got knocked up with a hurdle from someone else,’’ he said. “In the 300s, I got tight over the curve. And in the 4-by-4, I still think we did a good job, but it wasn’t enough to make the finals.

“The one disappointed me the most was the 110s, because I thought I could make finals and placed high.’’

The time for Groves in the 110s was 15.35 seconds in spite of having a hurdle in the lane next to him tumble over and hit his hand, injuring his thumb.

“David Groves ran two gutty races,’’ Luke said. “He got his thumb banged up pretty bad, and came back to run one of his better times in the 300s.’’

Danville has six individuals and one relay team in today’s finals and the Vikings are still hopeful of getting a team trophy.

“We got everything through that we had a good feeling about getting through,’’ Luke said. “We held our breath on the shot, and I think our kids can throw a lot better.

“There are a lot of things that we can get better at.’’

Today’s finals in all three classes begin at 10 a.m. as the Danville contingent will be joined by Georgetown-Ridge Farm/Chrisman’s Devon Darnell in the 110 hurdles event, Hoopeston Area’s Kraig VanWieringen in the 800 and Schlarman’s Jesse Hahne in the 1,600.

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3A girls state track: West’s Thompson wings it to discus finals

May 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
normal_west

By Randy Sharer | rsharer@pantagraph.com

CHARLESTON — Commitment is a necessity to excel in track and field, but it’s a hard thing to assess unless you are Kristin Thompson.

Her commitment is there for all to see on her right ankle in the form of a tattoo she got in March. It shows a winged foot above the words “field and track”.

The Normal Community West High School senior field eventer will take her tattoo into the 38th annual state meet discus final at 2:40 p.m. today hoping for a Class 3A title.

“I’m happy I’m in the finals and hopefully I’ll do better tomorrow,” said the top-seeded Thompson, who threw 142 feet, 3 inches in Friday’s prelims at O’Brien Stadium.

Even though Thompson exceeded her sectional mark of 142-1, she ranks second behind the 143-2 by Jazjuan Wallace-Sipp of Harvey Thornton. Thompson, the 2009 state runner-up, has a chance to rally judging by her school record of 143-4.

“I think I have it in me,” said Thompson, one of three Pantagraph area 3A qualifiers along with teammate Taylor Kirby and Normal Community’s Marie O’Leary.

Thompson planned to spend Friday night visualizing changes she needs to make and reviewing video of her tosses with first-year throws coach Chris Martoglio.

“He came in, wasn’t really familiar with the sport,” Thompson said. “He’s done all kinds of research outside. We are both learning together. He’s able now to watch me very efficiently and tell me specifically what I need to fix. I owe a lot to him.”

O’Leary’s training paid off in the 1,600-meter run with a school-record time of 5 minutes, 4.07 seconds, which ranks 10th in Pantagraph area history and made her the 10th fastest qualifier. Her old record of 5:06.05 came last year.

The Missouri recruit, who will also contest Saturday’s 3,200, finished second in her heat as Melissa Schmidt of Hoffman Estates outkicked her in the final 100 to clock 5:03.57.

“I give myself a B-plus because I should have worked harder the last 100,” O’Leary said. “I think I could have went stronger.”

Normal West’s Kirby, fifth in last year’s pole vault, advanced again by clearing 11-0 along with 13 others. She missed twice at 9-6, once at 10-0 and twice at 10-9 before making 11-0 on her first attempt. She didn’t get off the ground on several of those misses as she ran through the pit.

“It’s a mental problem,” said Kirby, who hopes for cleaner vaulting today and a clearance above her school record of 11-6. “Pole vaulting is so ‘in your head.’ ”

West freshman Emily Brelsfoard nearly ran into the 1,600 final, but her school record of 5:05.46 ranked 14th and narrowly missed the 5:04.79 cutoff. She’ll contest the 3,200 today.

“The 3,200 is my main event so I’m going to try as hard as I can in that one,” she said.

No. 7-seeded NCHS triple jumper Courtney Egts, who set three school records this season, the last at 36-6¾, bounded 35-4¾ and did not advance. It took 36-4 to move on.

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Richwoods freshman runs four state track prelims, qualifies in three

May 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
peoria_richwoods_knights

By JANE MILLER (jmiller@pjstar.com)

Journal Star

CHARLESTON —

Drained after a day of running four events, Brenna Detra still managed a smile.

The Richwoods freshman qualified for Saturday’s Class 2A girls track and field state finals in all three of her individual events — the 100-meter hurdles in :15.68, 300 hurdles in :45.98 and 200-meter dash in :25.91.

The only event she didn’t advance in at O’Brien Field was the 4×200 relay.

Detra’s 300 hurdles time was the second fastest of the preliminaries. Amber Farrell, a junior at the Illinois Math and Science Academy in Aurora, has the top seed time in the finals, :44.42.

“I just really wanted to make sure I got my spot in the finals,’’ Detra said. “I’m going to focus on tomorrow now.’’

The rainy weather, which plagued the meet much of its first two days, left puddles during the 300 hurdles.

“There was that, and you don’t get much of a break and you’re tired and I just thought, ‘You’ve just got to push through,’ ’’ she said.

Despite her loaded schedule for the finals, which begin at 11 a.m. Saturday at Eastern Illinois University, Detra will not be pacing herself.

“I’m going to just run — it’s the last meet and I want to show something as a freshman,’’ she said.

For Metamora senior Amanda Duvendack, it is her last state meet, and she definitely showed something in her races Friday.

The defending 800 champion is the top seed in that event by almost six seconds after she ran 2:13.71 in the second of two preliminaries.

Duvendack will be joined in the 800 finals by East Peoria teammates Emma Preston and Cassie Lohmeier and Notre Dame freshman Maureen Lawless.

“It wasn’t quite as fast as I wanted, but hopefully the weather tomorrow will allow me to do what I want to do,’’ said Duvendack, who wants a crack at the overall state record of 2:07.3.

Duvendack also anchored Metamora’s qualifying 4×400 relay in a season-best 4:00.20. Duvendack had to come from behind to win that race and took the baton with a look of determination.

“I knew when Ellen (Goins) gave me the baton in that race, that those girls did everything that they could,’’ Duvendack said about Goins, Jolie Zwick and Patricia Goettler. “I couldn’t have asked any more. And I knew I needed to do everything I could to get us there. And we’re going. So that was the motivation there.’’

Preston ran her second consective 2:15 in the 800 and finished second in the first heat of that race. She also raced in perhaps the most difficult conditions of the day as a heavy rain began to fall just as her heat came to the line.

“I like rain, though,’’ she said. “It makes things interesting.’’

Preston was supposed to run the 1600 but scratched out of that event.

“She’s had a sore ankle and we figure she has plenty of years of big races,’’ East Peoria distance coach Tim Broe said. “We decided to put all our eggs in one basket this year rather than double.’’ 

Notre Dame junior Molly Dahlquist anchored the team of Lawless, Jessie Wynn and Maggie Clark to a spot in the 4×800 finals, in 9:47.68. But Dahlquist missed qualifying in the 1600 after she ran 7.8 seconds slower than her seventh-ranked sectional seed time.

“The mile didn’t go quite as I wanted,’’ she said. “I just didn’t have it today.’’ 

Galesburg qualified its 4×800 relay of Becca Ladner, Dorothy Mangieri, Hanna Hawkins and Jackie Kennedy in 9:47.40 and advanced — barely — in the 4×200 with Cierra Latta, Sharron Diggins, Rainee Sibley and Bailey Jackson. The Silver Streaks suffered a bad handoff, which hampered their time.

“We had one bad handoff and we’re definitely going to work on it because we were right neck and neck with (top seed Springfield) Southeast before that,’’ Jackson said. “We can give them a run for their money.’’

Dunlap sophomore Lexi Hobbs competed in four events Friday and advanced in one — the long jump, where she has the fifth-best preliminary performance, at 18-8.25. LaSalle-Peru sophomore Ellen Renk also advanced in the long jump (17-8) and is seeded third in the triple jump (37-3).

Alycia Welch of Streator also advanced in triple jump.

Metamora senior Morgan Ryan and Notre Dame sophomore Grace Shadid moved on in the pole vault.

In the weights, Richwoods senior Raven Robinson, Dunlap senior Emily Waldman and Galesburg junior Amy Blucker made the finals in the shot put and discus.

Morton senior Maggie McMurtrey and Galesburg sophomore Myra Diggins advanced in the discus.

CLASS 3A: Pekin freshman Kara Toel advanced to the finals of the 400 meters with the eighth-best prelim time, :58.19.

“There’s a lot of really quick times out there,’’ said Toel, who immediately after the race wasn’t sure she had made it. “I was kind of nervous, but when you get into it, it’s just going just like usual.’’

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Sparta romps to title at Nashville Sectional

May 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
sparta

Weather pushes back Class 3A sectional

Sparta senior Cody Klein was soaring once again Friday at the Class 1A Nashville Boys Track and Field Sectional.

And so was teammate Preston Nance.

Ranked as one of best in the Midwest in the pole vault, Klein cleared 16-feet, while Nance had a winning leap of 6-8 in the high jump as the Bulldogs eased to the team title at Nashville High School.

Sparta also got wins from Corey Hale in the discus (144-8), Jon Hill in the 1,600 meters (4:35.5) and Wade Reeves in the 3,200 (9:49.1). The Bulldogs also qualified for the Class 1A state meet in all four relays as they scored 140 points, 44 more than host Nashville.

The Class 1A State Track Meet will be held on May 27 through May 29 at O’Brien Stadium in Charleston.

Nashville won the 1,600 relay and got an individual victory from Gannon Mamell in the long jump.

Junior Brad Morr led a solid effort for Columbia with a win in the 800. Teammates Drew Spargo (3,200 meters) and Alex Starek (shot put) also advanced as did Freeburg’s Grant Grimshaw in the 800 and David Renner in the 1,600.

Class 3A sectional postponed

The Class 3A Normal West Boys Sectional Track Meet was postponed by unfavorable weather conditions Friday and has been rescheduled for today at Illinois Wesleyan University in Normal.

The field events will begin at 1 p.m. with the preliminaries of the running events set for 1:30 p.m.

Finals begin at 3 p.m.

Filed Under: News, SIRR

Tigers and Flyerettes are in hunt for Class 3A trophies

May 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
edwardsville

Competition proved tough at O’Brien Stadium

It was a good day to be an Edwardsville Tiger and an East St. Louis Flyerette on Friday during Friday’s preliminaries of the Class 3A state track and field meet in Charleston.

Edwardsville’s Emmonnie Henderson, a freshman, and Shanice Rice, a senior, qualified for the finals in two events while East St. Louis qualified in three relays and got an outstanding effort from junior Ashley Gaston to lead the way for metro east athletes at a windy O’Brien Stadium.

Rice qualified in the 100-meter hurdles (14.77 seconds) and also earned a trip to the finals in the 300 hurdles (44.22), while Henderson and Gaston continued their year-long battle in the weight events.

Henderson came up with the third best throw of the day in the discus (137-feet-2-inches), while Gaston is fourth heading into the finals at (133-9).

It’s the other way around in the shot put, where Gaston is second after the preliminaries at 41-9 and Henderson is third at 40-11.

The two will continue their battle today when the finals in all three classes take place at Eastern Illinois University. The first final is set to begin at 10 a.m.

And while neither the Tigers or Flyerettes head into the final day of competition as a favorite for the state title, both could make a run at a trophy with a good second day of competition.

In addition to Gaston, East St. Louis got the second-fastest time in the 100 hurdles from junior Timeka Watkins (14.38), while teammates Joymesia Howard and Kerryonna Green both advanced in the high jump. But if the Flyerettes are to make a run at a state title, they will need a great day from their relays. East St. Louis posted top seven times in the 400, 800 and 1,600 relays.

Edwardsville is in the finals of the 800 and 1,600 relays, while senior Hannah Faulkner made the finals in the pole vault.

O’Fallon suffered through a rough day, advancing only Sarah Rautio in the triple jump while also making the finals of the 400 and 1,600 relays.

Belleville East junior Jessica McKaskill made the finals in the 100 hurdles. The Lancers also qualified for the finals of the 400 and 800 relays.

Class 2A

If the Cahokia Comanches are to be in the Class 2A trophy hunt this afternoon, senior Rontacial Rogers will have to lead the way.

A key member on a Comanches squad which placed third in the 2009 Class 2A state finals, Rogers will have a chance at three state championships.

Rogers posted the ninth best time in the 100 (12.96) and also is on Cahokia’s 400 and 800 relays.

Cahokia also has freshman Joslyne Jones in the finals of the 300 hurdles. Junior Jessica Long is in the finals of the shot put.

The surprise performance of the day was turned in by Mater Dei’s Merideth Kloeckner in the long jump.

Kloeckner, a freshman, qualified for the state finals with a jump of 16 feet 10 inches at the Triad Sectional.

On Friday, after scratching on her first two jumps, Kloeckner came through with a pressure-packed leap of 17-3 to make the finals. She is in ninth place heading into the final round of jumps.

Triad junior Elizabeth Hampl is sixth in the shot put after a throw of 37-6.

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Streaks 4×200 earns practice time at motel

May 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
galesburg

by ZACK CREGLOW

The members of the Galesburg High School girls 4×200 relay team were not among the most popular tenants at the team hotel on Friday.
After a botched exchange Friday between freshmen Sharron Diggins and Rainee Sibley nearly cost the relay team a chance at today’s finals of the Class 2A state championship meet, GHS girls track and field head coach Jody Chapman planned an impromptu practice to work on handoffs.

In the hallway of the team hotel.

“I’m serious,” she said. “We are going to block off all the hallways.”

How fast would they have been?
At the time of the botched handoff, Galesburg was nipping on Springfield Southeast’s heels.

Southeast, the favorite to win the event today, finished with easily the best time of the preliminaries with a 1:42.06. Galesburg finished with a 1:45.26 but that begs the question: How fast of a time would they have recorded with a clean run?
“It was a two-second difference,” Chapman said.

Jackson bids adieu in jumps
It’s hard to think that Friday was the last time Silver Streaks fans would watch Bailey Jackson in the long and triple jumps.

The senior exploded on the scene as an athletic freshman and was one of the top jumpers in the entire state by her junior season, entering the 2009 state finals as the top seed in the long jump.

Jackson’s jumps on Friday — 15 feet, 8 inches in the long jump and 34-9 in the triple — were well short of her capabilities.
“In the 4 by 2, they called her heat … and then when she came back, (IHSA officials) said, ‘You don’t get any run-throughs,’” Chapman said. “That part’s not her fault and I think she was flustered.”

Not Top 3, but where?
With Jackson and the 4×400 relay both missing the finals, Chapman said that hopes of a top-three finish are dead. But that’s not to say that the Silver Streaks won’t leave Charleston with a lofty team ranking.

“We should be in the top seven,” she said. “The kids have really worked hard. They wouldn’t have made it this far if they hadn’t.”

What to watch for today
Galesburg competes in four events — 4×800, 4×200, shot put and discus throw — today in the finals while Bushnell-Prairie City/Avon/West Prairie’s Kendra Pierce attempts to etch her name in IHSA lore.

Pierce, a first-year wonder, has a legitimate shot at winning the 100, 200 and 400 in the Class 1A meet. Her first event comes up at 1:35 p.m. with the 100.

Galesburg’s Amy Blucker will be the first area competitor up today. She is scheduled to start throwing the shot put in the Class 2A meet at 10:45. Her primary event — discus throw — begins at 1:50 p.m.

Monmouth-Roseville will gun for a top-three finish in the 4×800 relay, which begins at 11 a.m. Galesburg will follow in the Class 2A race.
Galesburg’s best chance for a gold medal — the 4×200 relay — starts at 2:25 p.m.

Filed Under: News, Western Big 6

Apollo now ready to take Mattoon, Teutopolis

May 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment
mattoon

BY BRIAN NIELSEN

CHARLESTON – “All right!”

That was the immediate response from Mattoon Athletic Director David Vieth on Wednesday afternoon when told that the Green Wave’s wait for an invitation from the Apollo Conference is over.

“Now we have to take care of it on our end,” Vieth said.

But now the ball appears to be clearly in Mattoon’s court.

Four years after rejecting Mattoon’s application for membership, Apollo Conference principals voted unanimously Wednesday to invite Mattoon and Teutopolis to the league.

“Were in a tough spot,” said Charleston Assistant Principal and boys’ basketball coach Trevor Doughty, who attended the meeting substituting for Principal Diane Hutchins.

“Some of the schools wanted Mattoon in the Apollo a few years ago but some of the schools leaving didn’t.”

Indications are that Mattoon would need to join in order to give the Apollo the minimum of six teams to have a football conference after the likely departure of three schools to the Little Illini Conference.

“Robinson, Newton and Olney have been asked to join the (Little Illini Conference),” Doughty said. “They are, I’d say, 99 percent that they are going to go. They just have some things to work out. Paris was not asked to join.”

This would leave the Apollo with five schools – Charleston, Effingham, Mount Zion, Paris and Salem – needing Mattoon to join in order to have the minimum of six schools required by the IHSA to offer an automatic football playoff berth.

Teutopolis does not play football but could join in other sports. The National Trail Conference power has also had preliminary discussions about adding football.

Robinson, Newton and Olney need to give two years notice before leaving the Apollo in accordance with conference bylaws so their departure and the addition of Mattoon and possibly others would not take effect until 2012-13.

Snags could still arise in these conference changes and others might also eventually be invited to add stability to the Apollo which for years has faced possibilities of such an exodus.

“There are all kinds of names floating around,” Doughty said. “Breese Mater Dei wants in. The problem is the distance. There are rumors that Centralia wants in. We’ve also heard the Big 12 wants to expand and add some Apollo schools. But those are all rumors.”

Vieth’s initial reaction was not opposed to joining a conference also adding Breese Mater Dei.

“Breese would be just a little bit farther than Normal,” the Mattoon AD said. “That’s one (long) trip compared to four, if you include Danville (with Normal, Normal West and Bloomington).”

While Mattoon has generally seemed in favor of going from the school with the smallest enrollment in the Big 12 Conference to the largest in the Apollo, its move would still depend on school board approval.

So steps still remain.

“No. 1, it’s getting the invitation from the Apollo and then as an administration team it’s giving information to the school board,” Vieth said. “You present information and then the next meeting they may take action.

“It’s exciting. A lot of things are going to unfold with what other schools are involved.”

Filed Under: Big 12, News

Mattoon being wooed away from Big 12

May 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment
mattoon

The Apollo Conference principals voted unanimously Wednesday to invite current Big 12 member Mattoon High School, along with Teutopolis, to join its league.

The invitation comes four years after the Apollo Conference rejected Mattoon’s initial application for membership.

If Mattoon joins the Apollo, it would leave nine teams in the Big 12. Mattoon, which has the smallest enrollment in the Big 12, would become the largest school in the Apollo. The final decision awaits approval by the school board.

Indications are that Mattoon would need to join in order to give the Apollo the minimum of six teams to have a football conference after the likely departure of three schools — Robinson, Newton and Olney — to the Little Illini Conference.

That would leave the Apollo with five schools — Charleston, Effingham, Mount Zion, Paris and Salem.

“It’s exciting,” Mattoon athletic director David Vieth said. “A lot of things are going to unfold with what other schools are involved.”

Robinson, Newton and Olney need to give two years’ notice before leaving the Apollo, and the addition of Mattoon and possibly others would not take effect until the 2012-13 school year.

Filed Under: Big 12, Conference, News
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