lest_04-14-2016

2016 BEST OF THE FOX READERS’ CHOICE AWARDS

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OSW EGO LEDGER Cops, kids enjoy ‘heroes’ event THURSDAY, APRIL 14, 2016 • 75 ¢ • KendallCountyNow.com

Montgomery police, firefighters meet residents / 3

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Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

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OSW EGO LEDGER KendallCountyNow.com OFFICE 109 W. Veterans Parkway (U.S. Route 34), second floor Yorkville, IL 60560 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday 630-553-7034

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Effective Feb. 4, the Oswego Ledger is the successor newspaper to the Ledger-Sentinel, as contemplated by 715 ILCS 5/5 (e), which was a consolidation of the Oswego Ledger and the Fox Valley Sentinel, published every Thursday in Oswego, Illinois, in Kendall County

by Shaw Media. Periodicals postage paid at Oswego, Illinois, 60543.

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• Relevant information • Marketing Solutions • Community Advocates

ON THE COVER Montgomery Police Officer Ken Hester hands out badges to Michelle and Mikey Dominguez on Saturday at the Community Heroes gathering in the village’s downtown.

See story on page 10.

Photo by Eric Miller - emiller@shawmedia.com

SCHOOL DISTRICT 308

Sparlin hiring contract OK’d Will get $200K in 1st year; says state issues present challenge

By MATT SCHURY

mschury@kendallcountynow.com The School District 308 Board of Education has approved an employment agreement with Dr. John Sparlin to serve as the district’s next superintendent once the current superintendent, Dr. Matthew Wendt, leaves this summer.

Approval of the pact came in a split 5-2 vote Monday evening, with board members Lauri Doyle and Jared Ploger casting the two dissenting votes.

Sparlin is currently the associate superintendent for administrative services for the district. He joined the district in 2012 as the executive director for administrative services. He was promoted to assistant superintendent for administrative services in 2013.

In this role, Sparlin oversaw the departments of human resources, student services, food service, operations, technology, and transportation.

During his 23 years of working in education, Sparlin has served multiple school districts in Illinois.

“Obviously the number one priority for the district is always student achievement and what’s best for kids and how kids will benefit from the decisions that we make,” he said. “I think SD 308 is headed in the right direction.”

He noted that he expects the district’s budget challenges to continue over the next few years. Many of those budget issues come from the state not

fulfilling its promise to fund schools.

“Over the last five years… there is, I believe, over $20 million that the school district has not received from the state if we were being fully funded in regards to our General State Aid,” he said. “That plays a factor into the budget issue that we are dealing with right now.”

Another issue, Sparlin said, will be transitioning kindergarten to elementary John Sparlin schools and transferring early childhood to East View Elementary School in Oswego. East View currently serves as the district’s kindergarten center.

“If we decide to move kindergarten back to home schools, then we will begin the discussion on boundary line changes,” he said. “Those are two very large issues that are on the table now.”

Sparlin grew up in Plainfield and lives in unincorporated Will County on the border with District 308; his three children attend schools in Plainfield School District 202. His youngest daughter is in elementary school, his other daughter attends junior high school and his son is in high school.

He said having his children attend all three levels of education gives him a unique perspective.

As superintendent, he said he hopes to cooperate with the board of education.

“We need to be on the same page.

The board sets the priorities and the administration carries out those priorities. I have a very good working relationship with all seven board members and I’m just looking forward to July 1 to start working.”

n Departing District 308 superintendent looks back, ahead. Page 3 n Our View: A step towards full transparency on school chief’s contract. Page 4 Wendt is leaving District 308 to become superintendent of the Fayetteville Public Schools, Fayetteville, Arkansas, beginning July 1.

Sparlin’s employment contract is posted online at the district’s website, SD308.org, for the public to view. According to the document, Sparlin will be paid $200,000 the first year beginning July 1 and $205,000 for the contract’s second year.

In addition to his base salary, the contract calls for the district to make “all contributions” on Sparlin’s behalf to the Illinois Teacher Retirement System and to contribute $5,000 to a tax-sheltered annuity set up for Sparlin upon the successful completion of the first year of his contract.

The contract requires the district to make a second $5,000 contribution to the annuity at the end of the second year.

Sparlin will also receive $416.66 each month “for district-related travel and mileage expenses.” Other contract provisions grant Sparlin up to 25 vacation days “exclusive of legal holidays and weekends” and up to 15 sick leave days annually, including three that can be used as personal leave days.

The district should save about $67,000 a year with Sparlin’s contract.

Wendt was paid an annual salary of about $250,000 as well as a tax-sheltered annuity of about $22,000 a year.

BRIEF

CIVIC MEETINGS WEEK OF APRIL 18-22 Monday, 6:30 p.m.: Montgomery Historic Preservation Commission, Montgomery Village Hall.

Monday, 7 p.m.: Montgomery and Countryside Fire Protection District Board, Station One, Montgomery.

Tuesday, 9 a.m.: Kendall County Board, County Office Building, Yorkville.

Tuesday, 9 a.m.: Kendall County Board Forest Preserve Commission, County Office Building, Yorkville.

Tuesday, 6 p.m.: Kendall County Board of Health, County Health and Human Services Building, Yorkville.

Tuesday, 6 p.m.: Oswego Village Board Committee of the Whole, Oswego Village Hall.

Tuesday, 7 p.m.: Oswego Village Board,

Related

Oswego Village Hall.

Tuesday, 7 p.m.: Montgomery Village Board Committee of the Whole, Montgomery Village Hall. (Canceled) Wednesday, 9:30 a.m.: Fox Metro Water Reclamation District Board, Main Treatment Plant, Oswego Township.

Wednesday, 2 p.m.: KenCom Operations Board, County Public Safety Center, Yorkville.

Wednesday, 5:30 p.m.: Waubonsee Community College District Board, Waubonsee Community College, Sugar Grove.

Wednesday, 6 p.m.: Montgomery Beautification Committee, Montgomery Village Hall.

Wednesday, 7 p.m.: Kendall County Historic Preservation Commission, County Office Building, Yorkville.

Thursday, 5:30 p.m.: Oswegoland Park District Board, South Point Center, Oswego.

Boulder Hill home damaged

The Kendall County Sheriff’s Office is seeking information on an incident of criminal damage to property and criminal trespass to an unoccupied residence in the 0-100 block of Circle Drive East in Boulder Hill between April 3 and 4. Police said the inside of the home was damaged in the incident.

Anyone with information on this or other crimes is urged to call Kendall County Crime Stoppers at 630-5535999. Callers remain anonymous and are eligible for a reward of up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrest of the offenders.

– Oswego Ledger

By MATT SCHURY

mschury@kendallcountynow.com

Matt Schury - mschury@shawmedia.com

School District 308 Superintendent Dr. Matthew Wendt’s last day at the district will be June 30.

that Wendt’s salary and benefit package would be an investment for the district.

“At the end of the day it will pay off in the years to come. With the academic improvements, the support that the staff will receive going forward and the support for everybody as we go into Common Core [curriculum] in two to three years we won’t be where we are today – we’ll be in a better spot,” Walsh predicted.

Wendt said the role of superintendent has changed over the years.

“The positions at the district office – especially the superintendent’s position – has become much more political,” Wendt said.

“If we’re not engaged in the ‘politics piece’ then we’re likely missing out in being at the table when decisions are made for public schools,” he said. “You need to play the role because you are either deciding at the table what to eat or you might be on the menu.”

During Wendt’s tenure in District 308, the district continued its enrollment growth, though at a significantly slower pace than prior to the 2008 recession.

With more than 18,000 students, the district is currently the seventh largest in the state of Illinois.

“It’s not possible for a school system to stay the same when their student population has changed to

See WENDT, page 6

Oswego East lockdown lifted after incident resolved SHAW MEDIA No one was injured in a battery incident that involved a student and staff members at Oswego East High School on Monday, according to Oswego police.

The school was placed on lockdown for 10 minutes as a safety precaution at about 9 a.m. after police said they received a call of a battery incident.

The Oswego police school resource officer reported a 17-year-old male student pushed two staff members and the

officer. The student was directed out of the building and then attempted to re-enter it. He was prevented from doing so, but school authorities put the school on lockdown.

The incident was eventually resolved when police convinced the stu-

dent to be transported to an area hospital for an evaluation.

The student was not arrested, though police said the investigation is ongoing and information will be sent to the Kendall County State’s Attorney’s Office for potential charges.

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Thursday, April 14, 2016

School District 308 Superintendent Dr. Matthew Wendt will be leaving the district this summer, but before he departs, he sat down for an interview to talk about his career and role at District 308. He also talked about why he decided to leave and addressed some of the issues and challenges the district faces.

Wendt announced in late January he would be leaving the district after he accepted an offer to become the superintendent of the Fayetteville Public Schools in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Wendt’s last day in District 308 will be June 30.

Wendt was hired in 2012 to lead the district. He acknowledged that his tenure hasn’t been very long but he sees that as a national trend among school superintendents.

“The shelf life of a school superintendent nationally in districts of 5,000, 6,000, 7,000 students and larger is five or six years,” Wendt said. “In larger urban systems it’s now less than three years. It’s a tough job, the job has become more and more difficult because of the issues that school districts face today.”

Wendt said taking the job as superintendent of the Fayetteville Public Schools made sense because it will return him to his roots and means he can be closer to family. He grew up in Osawatomie, Kansas, about two and one-half hours north of Fayetteville.

“Family is a big piece,” he said.

Fayetteville is closer to his parents and his daughter, who attends his alma mater, Pittsburgh State University in Pittsburgh, Kansas.

Prior to coming to District 308, Wendt worked as superintendent for the Ankeny Community School District in Polk County, Iowa, six miles from Des Moines, Iowa’s capital.

In hiring Wendt, the District 308 Board awarded him a base salary of $225,000, but the value of the contract was increased to $236,296 with district-paid contributions to the Teacher Retirement System. The contract also included a tax-sheltered annuity that increased its value by several thousand dollars. Thenboard school president Bill Walsh said in May 2012

that level,” he said.

Also during Wendt’s tenure, the district – which serves students residing in a 68-square-mile area that includes portions of Montgomery, Aurora, Joliet, Yorkville and Plainfield – launched a new website and dropped Oswego from its name in an effort to be more inclusive. He pointed out that the district has to recognize that 40 percent of the student body doesn’t have an Oswego address.

“I can’t be the superintendent of only the Oswego students,” he said. “I have to be the superintendent of all district students.”

He acknowledged that perhaps the name change wasn’t communicated the best way possible.

“It’s an issue that we likely could have handled differently,” he said. “It’s not about taking something away. It’s adding value to people who also want to feel part [of the district].”

Last fall, the board approved a new four-year contract with the Oswego Education Association, the district’s teachers’ union, as well as a five-year contract with the district’s support staff.

Wendt credits the cooperation between the two sides with good communication and regularly meeting with the officers for the two unions.

“So what we’ve attempted to do here in District 308 is to ensure that we have a strong relationship so that during the most difficult times we are working together well, and that’s paid off in this system,” he said. “I would like to believe that our union presidents feel that they are a part of the decision-making in this district and that they know that my door has been open and I’m just really confident that the next superintendent will have that same relationship.”

Wendt says he senses that they work well together even though they come from different experiences and backgrounds.

Wendt added that he is concerned with the polarizing atmosphere in national politics that is gotten down to the local government and created a toxic environment.

“There is an African proverb that I’ve lived by over

3

LOCAL NEWS | Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com •

Departing school chief looks back, ahead

Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

4

OPINIONS OUR VIEW

A step towards full transparency on contract School District 308 should be commended for posting new school district superintendent Dr. John Sparlin’s employment contract online at the district’s website (SD308.org) for the public to view. The district deserves further kudos for displaying the contract nearly a full week before the Board of Education approved it in a split 5-2 vote April 11.

The advance posting of the seven-page agreement provided any interested or curious district taxpayers time to study it and to bring questions or comments to the April 11 board

meeting or to contact individual board members prior to the meeting.

Those who examine the two-year contract will find that Sparlin will be paid $200,000 the first year beginning July 1 and $205,000 for the contract’s second year. In addition to his base salary, the contract calls for the district to make “all contributions” on Sparlin’s behalf to the Illinois Teacher Retirement System and to contribute $5,000 to a tax sheltered annuity set up for Sparlin upon the successful completion of the first year of his contract.

The contract requires the district to

make a second $5,000 contribution to the annuity at the end of the second year. Sparlin will also receive $416.66 each month “for district-related travel and mileage expenses.”

In days not all that long ago, we can recall the contents of the school district’s superintendent’s employment contract would be prime fodder for coffee shop speculation. Though all of the district’s employment contracts are public documents under state law, the media or any other interested citizen could expect to be asked to file a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)

request and wait a required number of business days before receiving a copy.

By placing Sparlin’s contract online, the district took a major step towards shortstopping the community rumor mill concerning the compensation and benefits for the chief administrator of what is easily the largest government agency and employer in Kendall County.

We are hopeful that other local government agencies will emulate the district’s action and place the employment contracts for their administrators online for taxpayer inspection.

Illinois’ Union loyalty was not inevitable during Civil War Most folks probably take it for granted that Illinois was staunchly proUnion during the Civil War. After all, Abraham Lincoln was from Illinois, and the state provided 259,000 soldiers for the Union Army, a total surpassed only by New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

And if you look locally at how Fox Valley communities contributed in the conflict, you could be excused if you accepted that Illinois was an eager participant.

After all, nearly 1,300 men and boys from Kendall County fought on the Union side against the Southern insurrectionists during the war – when the county’s entire 1860 population stood at just over 13,000. That means that nearly 10 percent of the county’s entire population of men, women and children served in the war.

More Kendall County volunteers served with the 36th Illinois and the 127th Illinois Infantry than any other regiments. The 36th had so many Kendall and Kane soldiers in its ranks it was nicknamed “The Fox River Regiment.”

Companies D (Lisbon), E (Bristol), and I (Oswego) were recruited in Kendall County, and Company F from Kendall and Kane counties – mostly from Newark and Aurora.

The 127th, too, had a healthy leavening of Kendall County men, with Company A recruited in Oswego, then the Kendall County Seat, and Companies F and K recruited in Little Rock and Bristol townships.

Besides the infantry, Kendall County men served in cavalry and artillery units, as well as in the U.S. Navy and Marines. Some of the Union swabbies from Kendall County served in the “Brown Water Navy” that crewed timber and iron-clad riverboats on the

caused in Illinois, even with the state’s favorite son, Lincoln, elected to the presidency, arose because Illinois was Roger a state with a split personality when it Matile came to slavery.

Although the Northwest Ordinance Mississippi and Ohio rivers where they under which Illinois was created helped with the capture of Vicksburg. banned new slaves from being importHowever, loyalty to the nation was ed, that didn’t stop the state’s early far from universal throughout Illisettlers from bringing them in anyway. nois. A number of counties, mostly in Most of the state’s early governors the central and southern portions of were slave-owners, and the southern the state, were heavily populated by half of the state was populated mostly disloyal, subversive factions, called by settlers from Virginia and the CaroCopperheads by Union loyalists. They linas, slave states all. were the Civil War’s “Fifth Column.”

On the other hand, the northern One group of southern Illinoisans even part of the state was largely settled by served in the rebel army. pioneers from the old Middle Colonies Traitorous elements in the Copperof New York, New Jersey and Pennsylhead counties fomented considerable vania, and New Englanders from Vertrouble, including an 1864 draft riot mont and Massachusetts, regions that at Charleston, during which nine were hotbeds of anti-slavery sentiment, people were killed, many of them especially among that region’s ProtesPhoto provided tant denominations.

Union soldiers. In fact, it got so bad An anti-President Lincoln pamphlet was that thousands of Union soldiers were When the nation finally was forced published in 1864 by C. Chauncey Burr, a to deal with the slavery issue, Illinois diverted from front line units to guard against uprisings by disloyal elements magazine editor from New York City, in sup- became a reflection of the national port of the Copperhead cause. throughout Illinois. split on the issue, with the southern In August 1864, young Alfred counties generally opposed to abolition Browne of Newark joined several of and the northern counties generally in state where treason caused problems his neighbors from Fox, Big Grove and for the war effort. Wisconsin had its favor. Divisions also were religious – Little Rock townships and enlisted in the Methodist Church split in two over share of riots, including one at Port the 146th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Washington, where Luxembourg immi- slavery.

Regiment, one of the 90-day regiments When the time came to choose grants rioted when they feared they formed to free up combat troops from sides in the slavery controversy, the might be drafted. doing guard duty in Illinois’ CopperIn fact, many of the nation’s newest southern counties found themselves head regions. overwhelmed by the large numbers of immigrants were among the strongest After arriving at his post in QuinNew Yorkers and New Englanders, not opponents of the war. The dreadful cy, Browne wrote a letter to Henry C. to mention the anti-slavery German, July 1863 riots in New York City that Cutter in Oswego reporting on his new resulted in 119 deaths were mostly Scottish and English settlers, who had military career. In the letter, Browne flooded into northern Illinois after the caused by Irish discontent over the told Cutter that the 146th had been sent draft. Although the draft may have Erie Canal opened in the late 1820s. to Quincy to put down Copperhead Illinois went for its favorite son, started the riot, it quickly turned into a activities and generally assure the loy- race riot in which many free blacks in Abraham Lincoln, in the election of alty of the surrounding countryside. the city were murdered.

Illinois wasn’t the only Midwestern The internal problems the war See REFLECTIONS, page 9

REFLECTIONS

FORUM

agement, as are the children who benefit from lessons, the brides and grooms who To the Editor: enjoy the draw of a working stable, and During my seven-year tenure as horse the missed opportunity to provide taxpaycare volunteer at Kendall County Forest Preserve District’s Ellis House and Eques- ers a noteworthy outlet of education and trian Center, I have spent hundreds of recreation. hours of my free time at Ellis, participating Effective today, I will no longer offer in the many great events and activities my time as a volunteer to Ellis House and that have occurred there.

Equestrian Center.

I have witnessed continuous turnover in staff, volunteers and equine residents. I Liz Klockars Oswego have observed both the joy and happiness of the many children and families who visit Opposed to Metra studies the facility, as well as the questionable To the Editor: actions of various staff members.

At the April 6 Kendall County Board One of the most valuable lessons I have meeting I expressed my opposition to ever learned came from a former, respectspending $6.5 million of taxpayer money ed boss: Companies and organizations do to study the feasibility of extending Metra not fail because of their people; they fail commuter rail service into Kendall County. because of their leadership. As a horse Funding for this study came from funds person myself and owner of one of Ellis’ earmarked by Congress several years original lesson horses, I have continually witnessed Ellis make poor decisions about ago, at a time when Kendall County was the acquisition and care of its main attrac- the fastest growing county in the nation.

About $1 million of the funds have been tion: the horses that call it home. spent, leaving $6.5 remaining, which now The newest horse, “Shadow,” has no some local politicians would like to spend business being part of a beginner lesson for additional Metra studies. program or at an educational facility I do not support this expenditure for sevlike Ellis. I question the reason she was eral reasons.

First, spending $6.5 million to purchased and why she still remains there. continue studying something we know we I also question how and why a facility cannot afford is wasteful and unnecessary of Ellis’s stature is supposed to run on spending. minimal, inexperienced, part-time staff We cannot afford to extend Metra and why those who are true professionals service to Kendall County. We have been have had their hours reduced to a meager told by Metra that it would cost $200 four per week. You simply cannot run a million to do this, and we taxpayers wedding venue and equestrian program would be footing the bill. Secondly, using on such limited staff. It has and will conMetra commuter service on a daily basis tinue to suffer, regardless of the revenue it only benefits a small number of county is projected to pull in. residents.

Yet, extending the service to Let’s face it: Kendall County is a Kendall County would be a tax burden on tight-knit community full of equestrian all county taxpayers.

In my book, this is enthusiasts. People talk, and reputation is everything. I can say with confidence that unfair taxation. From my conversations Ellis’ current reputation is less than stellar with county residents, I hear the same thing – our taxes are too high, and we and frustrations with the state of the can’t afford to live here. People need tax program are widespread. relief, not more taxes.

So I come to you today, as a taxpaying The $6.5 million earmarked for studying citizen and ask you to please “pull the Metra service is not “free money.” It is taxBand-Aid off” once and for all. If you cannot support the program the county board payer money, and I propose putting that money to better use on local transportachose to start and you are not willing to tion projects that would benefit the whole provide adequate funding and staffing, county. We have many road projects here then I urge you to put political agendas in Kendall that could use help with fundaside and do what is in the best interest ing. Yet, our federal government is broke, of the general public, the horses, and the our state is broke, and our municipalities taxpayers of this county.

I simply cannot stand by the continuum are struggling.

Rather than wasting public money on of poor decisions made in regards to this more studies, I would urge our county, facility. Sadly, we are now left with this city and village leaders to work together stunning and potential lucrative asset ready to sink. Kendall County citizens are to find more practical and beneficial use of those funds on local road projects that being short-changed by board misman-

look the creek and the property….We were concerned for the property which is zoned Submit letters residential and would prefer that it not be Letters must be accompanied by the developed in something inconsistent with writer’s full name, address and home the area [sic].” So, we are supposed to phone number. Only the author’s name believe that it overpaid for this property to and city of residence will be printed. preserve its view.

We reserve the right to edit all letters What this “answer” didn’t say was that for brevity and fairness. Send letters to OPLD went into court secretly to quash letters@kendallcountynow.com or a July 1994 Declaration of Restrictive Record Newspapers, 109 W. Veterans Covenant on this property that said the Parkway, Yorkville, IL 60560. property was to “be preserved in perpetuity” and “to not construct or place would help all of our county residents. any residential, commercial, industrial, In my opinion, it’s irresponsible to waste or office buildings of any kind; any roads, public money to study something when parking, or other paved or concrete areas.” we already know the answer – extending On March 10, 2016, the court’s order was Metra means higher taxes, and we cannot filed, declaring this covenant to be “null afford it. and void.” Yet OPLD wants us to believe it As your representative on the Kendall bought this property to preserve its view.

County Board, I encourage you to contact Shameful. me or your city or village board members With regard to my questions of why to let them know your ideas on better uses they rushed into this purchase, OPLD said for the $6.5 million. You are the taxpayers, they were negotiating to buy this property this is your money, and it’s important to since October 2014, paying for surveys, me to hear your ideas. engineering and environmental studies, and making sure their taxation gave them Judy Gilmour plenty of cash to pay for it. Yet, the very Kendall County Board member first time they published anything to the Yorkville public was a two-inch notice, on Christmas Eve 2015, in the newspaper, inviting Answers to questions? comment at its Feb. 24 meeting. Yet, on To the Editor: Jan. 4, 2016, the OPLD sent a letter to the I previously wrote about the questions adjacent neighbor saying “The Oswego directed to the Oswego Public Library District Board (OPLD) by disgruntled Public Library District has a contract to taxpayers over OPLD’s secretive purchase purchase the property commonly known of property across Waubonsee Creek. as 19 North Street, Oswego, IL…” So, OPLD That property paid $5,800 a year in taxes in effect invited public comment two and has a home and historical urban months out on a purchase it already made. barn on it. No answers were given at the Shameful. meeting, but several days later I received More to come. Don’t you think it is time a letter containing, as the deliverer put for you to start taking more of an active it, “answers to all our questions.” Let me interest in how your tax money is being illustrate how public officials “answer our spent? questions.”

No answers whatsoever were given to a Leonard R. Wass Captain, USN (Ret.) series of questions about preserving the Oswego historical urban barn, or other important questions. Instead, OPLD nailed notices on Barn should be saved the barn demanding the renters remove all Dear Editor: their items. Obviously there is now a rush I have followed with interest the Oswego to demolish this barn and probably the Public Library District’s plans to purchase home on it. the parcel of land on the south side of Another question was on OPLD’s intend- North Street that stretches from Route 25 ed use, asked after OPLD denied planning to the railroad right-of-way in Oswego. a parking lot (even after it stated that to I’m happy the land – the remnants of a several people, including me). huge oak savanna stretching north from Here’s what OPLD (who paid $25,000 Waubonsie Creek to Batavia and east to more than its $150,000 appraisal for this Naperville – will be saved from residential property) said: “…the Library District has development (most new homes can be the most vested interest in maintaining best viewed as black holes that vacuum and preserving the view from the thousands of square feet of windows that over• Continued on page 13

Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

Poor decisions at Ellis

5

Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

|LOCAL NEWS

6

Lower class sizes? Sadly, future looks bleak In my remaining Ask Dr. Wendt columns, I will update staff members, parents and citizens on the progress of topics and issues that remain important to so many people.

Class Size:

I wish there was better news about future class sizes. I am disappointed to report that the future appears bleak about any potential to lower class size. To accomplish this task, revenue is needed to hire more teachers.

The reality is that SD 308 is another victim of the circus in Springfield.

The continued “blame game” has cost SD 308 over $20 million in general aid funding that could have been used to hire additional teachers.

As I have noted in earlier columns, the school district’s student enrollment has not only increased in size, but the system has added more special education, EL, and free/reduced students.

Furthermore, the school district is challenged with a growing number of kids suffering from significant emotional and mental health issues.

To educate every child, expertise is needed at a level never seen before in the history of public education. How is this accomplished without new reve-

• WENDT

Continued from page 3 the last decade or so: ‘When elephants fight, the grass suffers,’” he said.

Wendt explained that when local elected officials are in a tense or emotional climate, that can affect others.

“We have a combative relationship in Springfield. The question I have for the public is do you believe that is having a positive or a negative impact on the local climate?” he asked, adding, “Well, it has a negative impact.”

Despite the challenges, Wendt stresses that he still loves the work.

“I still get up every day believing I have the best job in the world. I do, or I would go do something different,” he said.

When asked how he viewed his legacy at the district, Wendt said he was able to work with others to leave the school district in better shape.

“I don’t believe I have a legacy,” he said. “There is no legacy of four years of service. I would prefer to view this as a contribution,” he said.

He admits that the conversations around the district today are much different than they were in 2012.

He adds that the school board and administrators were talking about a third high school when he arrived and new attendance boundary lines were being drawn.

ASK DR. WENDT Dr. Matthew Wendt nue to employ these experts?

Until the Legislature approves a finance formula with less reliance on local community property taxes to support schools, SD 308 will face insurmountable challenges to reduce class size. Sadly, I believe class sizes will actually increase before ethical state leadership wins over the political atmosphere.

SD 308/Kendall County Special Education Cooperative:

The Ask Dr. Wendt column in December 2013 referenced the importance of a special education audit and the mission of SD 308 to improve governance, instruction and academic achievement.

For over two years, many people have worked hard to design and prepare the implementation of a new plan for delivering special education programming in SD 308. With the exception of a few employment details, the vision to lead and manage special education within the school system “There was a high level of of anxiety and I hope that in some ways we’ve been able to bring that down,” he said.

He adds that the district has been able to sustain itself through bond restructuring. As a result, he says, local property taxes are not going to increase as high as some prior projections.

“The taxes are still high but they were projected to be even higher,” he said.

Without a doubt, Wendt says the school district has changed during his tenure. The district was able to deal with that growth.

“In 2012 we did an outstanding job of supporting a school district of between 5,000 and 7,000 students,” he said. “Today we have a system in place that will support a student population of 20,000.”

Wendt says the response from the community since he announced his decision has been mixed.

“I acknowledge that there are parents and citizens that, you know, maybe this is a positive,” Wendt said.

He stresses that all the decisions made over his tenure have been board-approved.

“I never cast one vote at a board meeting. I have tried very hard to not have a personal agenda,” he said, adding that he has wanted to increase student achievement.

“We do have more students who are learning at higher levels today; I am most proud of that,” he said.

will soon come to fruition.

Although the process at times has experienced some challenges, questions and anxiety, I am convinced that the withdrawal from the Kendall County Special Education Cooperative (KCSEC) will improve all aspects of special education. As the audit informed us, academic achievement was at best stagnant, if not declining, yet over decades expenses continued to increase.

July 1 is an exciting time in our school district as all district special education services will be under the governance of the local board of education and those accountable for its implementation will be SD 308 employees. I am pleased to report that nothing stands in the way of finalizing the details and allowing the school district to move into a new era.

East View and Kindergarten:

Unless the timeline is adjusted, board discussion of moving kindergarten students out of East View and into elementary schools will take place over the next several months. Initial plans include a recommendation for kindergarten students to begin attending their assigned elementary school starting in the 2017-18 school year.

The SD 308 Board of Education must approve this plan. Administration is poised to request board approval before late summer. Stay tuned.

Brokaw and Early Childhood Programming:

Before early childhood programming can move to the current East View facility, expand services and be managed under one roof, the kindergarten transition to elementary schools plan must be approved. If the board approves moving kindergarten students in the 2017-18 school year to assigned elementary schools, I am confident the board will move forward with considering if the East View facility should be utilized for early childhood education.

Unless the timeline is adjusted, I anticipate this conversation taking place over the summer, but finalized no later than August.

• If you have questions, please email Dr. Wendt at AskDrWendt@ sd308.org, or via the Community Unit School District 308 website, at www. sd308.org. Citizens may also drop their question off at the Board of Education/District Administration Center.

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Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

|LOCAL NEWS

8

Official: Metra studies ‘unnecessary spending’

By MATT SCHURY

mschury@kendallcountynow.com At least one Kendall County Board member says she objects to the completion of engineering studies for the proposed extension of Metra commuter rail service into the county from downtown Aurora.

Judy Gilmour went on the record as saying she believes the federally earmarked money would be better spent elsewhere.

Last month U.S. Rep. Randy Hultgren, R-Plano, held a task force meeting to discuss what to do with the remaining $6.6 million in federal funds that have been earmarked for the studies.

“I’m not in favor of this study,” she said.

Reading from prepared remarks Gilmour told the board that spending $6 million to continue the engineering studies “is not a good use of taxpayer money.” Gilmour added that the county simply cannot afford a Metra service and should move on with other projects.

Metra Board Chairman Martin Oberman said at Hultgren’s meeting that the money might be better used for something else.

“Metra’s own spokesman told us it would cost $200 million to extend Metra to Yorkville and even more to go all the way to Sandwich,” she said. “This means one thing – that the taxpayers of Kendall County would be the ones to pay the bill.”

Gilmour read her remarks shortly before County Board Chairman John Shaw announced that a letter was sent to Hultgren stating the county and area municipalities strongly support the completion of initial environmental and engineering studies. The letter of support is signed by Shaw, Yorkville Mayor Gary Golinski, Plano Mayor Robert Hausler, Sandwich Mayor Rick Olson, Montgomery Village President Matt Brolley and Oswego Village President Gail Johnson.

Gilmour added that she hears from residents in the county that taxes are already too high.

“People in this county are paying some of the highest taxes in the entire state and even in the whole nation – we can’t ask people to pay more,” Gilmour said. “People need tax relief.”

She noted that while the money may be specifically earmarked for these studies, it is “taxpayer money and not free money.”

“The mindset of spending taxpayers’ Judy Gilmour money just because it’s there needs to stop, especially when we have so many critical needs we could be addressing,” Gilmour said. “We need to be realistic about this and not waste anymore public money on studies.”

She concluded that “this is unnecessary spending” and suggested that people were leaving the county because of high taxes.

Additionally, a small number of people use Metra service, according to Gilmour, and the money can be spent better on other transit projects that benefit the whole county.

“At a time when the federal government is broke, the state of Illinois is broke, cities are in trouble – let’s not forget that we were elected to represent the taxpayers and we should be watching every dollar very closely,” she said.

Shaw suggested Gilmour send her letter to Hultgren and the village of Oswego. Johnson, the Oswego village president, has gone on the record as being a strong supporter of proceeding with these studies, as have the other mayors in Kendall County.

“Kendall County is still the fastest growing county in the state by quite a bit,” Johnson said last month. “We just want the studies done so that when federal money becomes available we can say we need a piece of that – without that [study] we have nothing.”

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BRIEF American Legion Auxiliary Unit 675 meets Monday evening

The Oswego American Legion Auxiliary Unit 675 will meet at 7 p.m. on Monday, April 18, at the Legion Post home.

All members are encouraged to attend the meeting.

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For further information on the meeting, call Cheryl Magana at 630-740-8813. For information on joining the Auxiliary, call Deanna Steinke, membership chairman, at 630-553-5186.

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The statutory maximum for the banking violation is five years in prison, but sentencing guidelines suggest no more than a matter of months. Federal judges have enormous leeway, so Durkin will not be bound by the guidelines.

A presentencing filing late Friday revealed more details about the decades-old abuse allegations leveled Hastert, the Associated Press reported last week. An emailed statement from Hastert’s lawyer, Thomas Green, on Saturday – as in earlier defense filings – refers only in general terms to past misconduct by Hastert.

“Mr. Hastert acknowledges that as a young man he committed transgressions for which he is profoundly sorry,” Green wrote.

A graduate of Oswego High School, Hastert left his teaching and coaching career at Yorkville High School for the state legislature in early 1981. He entered Congress in 1987 and became speaker in 1999, holding the spot until his retirement in 2007. He now lives near Plano.

In the court filing, prosecutors say Hastert “was so sure his secrets were safe that he apparently had no fears about entering a profession where one is subject to constant scrutiny and media attention,” the AP reported.

1860, and followed that up by vigorously supporting the Union cause after the southern states began the Civil War by bombarding Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor. Certainly Illinois took the national lead by producing the wartime president, as well as the general – Ulysses S. Grant – who won the war for the North.

But during the war itself, while 620,000 men were being slaughtered on battlefields from Arkansas to Virginia to Pennsylvania, a fair number of Union troops, as I noted above, proved to be needed to keep order right here in Illinois lest insurrection break out.

Fortunately, the Copperheads were suppressed and kept suppressed. Unfortunately, many of the traitors who had caused so many problems, spilled so much blood, and caused the destruction of entire regions of the nation were never punished for their actions in taking the nation over the brink into civil war. And today, more than a century and a half after the fact, we are still dealing with the repercussions of their reckless, disloyal actions.

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Thursday, April 14, 2016

Federal prosecutors expect one person who has accused Dennis Hastert of sexual abuse to speak at his sentencing in his hush-money case, and the judge has indicated that he wants to consider that the former U.S. Speaker of the House lied to federal authorities, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.

Prosecutor Steven Block told Judge Thomas M. Durkin in court Wednesday that he expects someone identified in court papers as “Individual D” to make a statement at the sentencing April 27 in Chicago, according to one AP report.

Durkin also asked questions about Hastert lying to the FBI about an “Individual A” extorting him.

“That’s not conduct that’s 40 years old,” Durkin said, saying he expected to take it into account in sentencing.

Hastert plead guilty in October to breaking banking law in a scheme to pay $3.5 million to ensure “Individual A” stayed silent about being abused when he was a 14-year-old student at the Illinois high school where Hastert was the wrestling coach.

Hastert first withdrew $50,000 at a time and then later switched to just under $10,000 to evade reporting requirements.

Prosecutors say Hastert sexually

abused at least four members of the wrestling team when he taught and coached at Yorkville High from 1965 until 1981. They cite Individual A as saying the abuse occurred in a motel room when he was 14 and on the way home from wrestling camp.

Hastert allegedly touched others in a locker room after saying he would give them massages. Two wrestlers said Hastert performed sex acts on them.

Prosecutors also described a recliner where Hastert often sat in the locker room with a direct view of the stalls where the boys showDennis ered.

Hastert The prosecutors have said they would have preferred sexabuse charges, but the statute of limitation on sexual abuse ran out decades ago, according to the AP. Still, prosecutors considered Hastert’s conduct with the victims, all boys 14 to 17 years old, so egregious that they chose to pursue the banking charge to ensure he faced some punishment.

Defense lawyers have asked for the judge to spare Hastert prison time and give him probation instead, citing his health and the steep price they say he’s already paid in public shame.

Continued from page 4

LOCAL NEWS | Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com •

Prosecutor: Hastert accuser to testify

• REFLECTIONS

10

| LOCAL NEWS

Talking fire engines in Montgomery

OSWEGO POLICE REPORTS Paraphernalia arrest Oswego police arrested Christian L. Hills, 18, of the 200 block of Willowwood Drive, Oswego, and Jamie A. Snyder, 19, of the 500 block of Northgate Drive, Oswego, on Mystic Court at 11:37 p.m. April 11. Police said both have been charged with possession of drug paraphernalia.

Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

Purse, wallet stolen An Oswego resident told village police that someone stole her purse and wallet from her shopping cart while she was at a store in the 2300 block of Route 34 in the village April 10.

Eric Miller - emiller@shawmedia.com

Montgomery and Countryside Fire Protection District firefighters were on hand to explain the operations of their fire trucks and Montgomery police officers were handing out badges during Saturday’s Community Heroes gathering in downtown Montgomery. The event provided an opportunity for area residents of all ages to meet and talk with local police and firefighters. Above, Montgomery and Countryside Fire Protection District firefighters Max Hively and James Cooper explain the operations of their fire truck to Deacon Cribbs and his dad, Phillip.

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another driver struck her parked vehicle and then left the scene. Police said damage to the victim’s vehicle was estimated at over $1,500.

Cellphone stolen A Montgomery resident told Oswego police that someone stole her cellphone while she was at a business in the 200 block of Douglas Road in the village April 9. Police said the cellphone is valued at $280.

Vehicle burglary A make-up bag and briefcase were stolen from a vehicle that was parked and left unlocked in the 500 block of Half Moon Court In Oswego, village police reported April 8.

ID theft An Oswego resident told village police April 11 that she was recently notified by PayPal Scam costs $500 collections that she was a victim of an identity The owner of a business in the 70th block of theft incident involving a purchase last August. West Washington Street in Oswego told village police April 8 the business was scammed Hit-and-run reported out of $500 the previous day. Police said An Oswego resident told village police that someone called the business and told them another motorist struck and damaged her they were late in paying a utility bill and their vehicle in the 2300 block of Route 34 in the service could be cut off if they did not pay the village April 11 at 12:03 p.m. Police said the caller $500. offending motorist then fled the scene. Police said no one was hurt; they are investigating.

Vehicle burglary A gift card and Garmin GPS valued at Investigate hit-and-run $185 were stolen from a vehicle parked in a Oswego police are investigating a hit-anddriveway in the 500 block of Majestic Lane in run crash that occurred in a parking lot in the Oswego, village police were notified April 8.

2700 block of Route 34 in the village April 9.

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OSWEGO POLICE REPORTS Retail theft arrest Oswego police arrested Zackary A. Cherry, 24, of the 7800 block of Grove Road, Oswego, on charges of retail theft and possession of drug paraphernalia at a business in the 2700 block of Route 34 in the village April 5 at 10:20 p.m. Police said Cherry attempted to leave the store without paying for merchandise valued at $235.96. He is scheduled to appear in court on the charges next month.

Warrant arrest Oswego police arrested Kevin Andre Michael Thomas-Cox, 21, of the 1800 block of Nottingham Drive, Aurora, on a warrant for retail theft at a business in the 3500 block of Route 34 in the village April 5 at 3 p.m.

Warrant arrest Oswego police arrested Kristan D. Thoke, 33, of the 2000 block of

son made five unauthorized charges totaling $279.97 to his debit card over a nine-day period. Police said they are investigating.

Litter warrant arrest Oswego police arrested Sabras Salinas Vargas, 39, of the 1300 block of Monomoy Street, Aurora, on Wolf’s Crossing Road at Devoe Drive April TV stolen from RV 5. Police said Vargas was wanted A television set was reported on a warrant for failure to appear in stolen from an RV parked in the 30th court on a charge of littering from a block of Stonehill Road in Oswego on motor vehicle.

April 3, according to village police.

Traffic citations Identity theft Crystal M. Medina, 30, of the 400 Oswego police are investigating block of Parker Avenue, Aurora, an identity theft case reported by no valid driver’s license, speeding a resident of Cornell Drive in the and operating an uninsured motor village April 5. vehicle.

Miriam V. Martinez, 24, of the 100 Cannabis arrest block of Alden Road, Joliet, driving Oswego police arrested Daniel Cid on a suspended license.

Jr., 18, of the 40th block of Rocky Jumique R. Phillips, 18, of the 3000 Way, Boulder Hill, on a charge of block of Secretariat Lane, Montgompossession of drug paraphernalia ery, driving on a suspended license and cannabis. Cid is scheduled to and speeding. appear in court on the charge next Nico J. Garza, 20, of the 0-10 block month, police said. of Arbury Court, Bolingbrook, speeding and no valid driver’s license.

Unauthorized charges Eric Truillo, 29, of the 1000 block of An Oswego resident told village Fifth Street, Aurora, no valid driver’s police April 5 that an unknown perlicense and speeding.

Warrant arrest Montgomery police arrested Yesenia Sel Toro, 21, of the 2600 block of Jenna Court, Montgomery, on Orchard Road at Brentwood Drive at 6:46 p.m. April 4 on a Kendall County Sheriff’s Office warrant for possession of cannabis.

passenger in on Orchard Road at Countryside Drive at 2:56 a.m. April 8. Police said Saucedo has been charged with unlawful possession of alcohol by a minor.

Cannabis arrest Montgomery police arrested Joseph Brown, 20, of the 600 block Facing liquor charge of Redtail Court, Yorkville, after Montgomery police arrested Deisy they stopped the vehicle he was a Luna, 22, of the 700 block of Spring passenger in at 2:56 a.m. April 8 on Street, Aurora, at 11:14 p.m. April 5 Orchard Road at Countryside Drive on Douglas Road at Montgomery in the village. Police said Brown Road in the village. Police said Luna, has been charged with unlawful who was a passenger in a vehicle possession of cannabis. stopped by police, has been charged with illegal transportation of liquor. Warrant arrest Montgomery police arrested Ryan Paraphernalia arrest Fivecoat, 25, of the 0-100 block of Montgomery police arrested Acorn Lane, Yorkville, in the 2400 Nicolas Diaz, 21, of the 2700 block block of Concord court in the village of Alan Dale Lane, Yorkville, after April 10 at 2:18 a.m. Police said stopping his vehicle on Orchard Fivecoat was wanted on a Kendall Road at Countryside Drive at 2:56 County Sheriff’s Office warrant for a.m. April 8. Police said Diaz faces driving on a suspended license. a charge of unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia.

Traffic citations Carlos Anaya, 23, of the 700 block Alcohol charge of Spring Street, Aurora, no valid Montgomery police arrested Gadriver’s license. briel Saucedo, 20, of the 100 block Samuel Jones, 42, of the 100 block of Blackberry Court, Yorkville, after of Farnsworth Avenue, Aurora, they stopped the vehicle he was a driving on a suspended license.

11

Thursday, April 14, 2016

Fight reported at jr. high Oswego police took a report of a battery between two juveniles at Thompson Junior High School in the village April 5 at 12:45 p.m.

Farmington Lake Drive, Oswego, at a business in the 3500 block of Route 34 in the village April 6 at 6:16 p.m.

Police said Thoke was wanted on a warrants for forgery and unlawful acquisition of a control substance.

Thoke posted bond and was released pending a court appearance this week, according to police.

LOCAL NEWS | Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com •

• Continued from page 10

MONTGOMERY POLICE REPORTS

Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

| LOCAL NEWS

12

BRIEF Firefighters put out fire on apartment deck in Oswego Twp. Oswego Fire Protection District firefighters extinguished a fire on the deck of a second-floor apartment in the 2100 block of Light Road in unincorporated

Oswego Township at 9 a.m. April 11.

Fire officials reported damage was contained to the deck and siding on the exterior of the building. No one was hurt; a damage estimate was not available.

– Oswego Ledger

KENDALL COUNTY SHERIFF’S REPORTS Harassment report County sheriff’s deputies took a report April 11 concerning a 29-year-old male pizza delivery driver who had contacted a 16-yearold female on more than one occasion. The girl told the man not to contact her anymore, but he has continued to call her on the phone.

Police said they are investigating.

Arrest after Rt. 30 crash County sheriff’s deputies arrested Joel Lee Castillo, 23, of the 1700 block of Ivy Lane, Montgomery, after the vehicle he was driving on Route 30 at Dickson Road at 4:09 a.m.

April 9 drove through a stop sign, struck a directional sign and then landed in a ditch.

Police said Castillo was located nearby and taken to the Kendall County Jail in Yorkville.

Castillo has been charged with driving under the influence, driving on a suspended license, leaving the scene of an accident, disobeying a stop sign and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

conditioning unit is valued at less than $500, according to police.

Bird feeder stolen A bird feeder was reported stolen April 4 from outside an apartment building in the 1700 block of Light Road, Oswego Township, county sheriff’s police reported.

Identity theft A resident of Amesbury Road in Boulder Hill filed an identity theft report with the county sheriff’s office April 7. Police said someone used the victim’s personal information to obtain utility services valued at $2,000.

Motorist flees police County sheriff’s deputies are investigating an incident in which they were unsuccessful in attempting to stop a motorist for a speeding violation at Route 34 and Lakewood Springs Drive between 1:10 a.m. and 1:22 a.m.

April 5.

Investigate battery County sheriff’s police are investigating a battery that occurred on a school bus on Long Beach Road at Winrock Road in Boulder Hill April 9.

Warrant arrest County sheriff’s deputies arrested Tyler M. Wrona, 21, of the 400 block of Abe Street, Plano, on Rogers Road at Sandy Bluff Road at 5:34 a.m. April 5 on a Kendall County warrant for failure to appear in court on a Boulder Hill hit, run prior of charge of consumption of alcohol by Sometime between 11 p.m. April 7 and 7:20 a minor and a Cook County warrant for armed a.m. April 8, an unknown motorist struck a fire robbery. hydrant and speed limit sign in the 100 block of Saugatuck Road in Boulder Hill, according Property damage to the county sheriff’s office.

An unknown person tossed an ashtray at the entry door to a residence in the 0-10 Domestic disturbance block of Rocky Way in Boulder Hill, county County sheriff’s deputies responded to a do- sheriff’s deputies reported. The force of the mestic disturbance at a residence in the 1500 ashtray broke a window in the door, police block of Light Road in Oswego April 9 at 11:21 said. p.m. Police said a person battered another individual at the residence, but had left the Arrested on Rt. 126 residence prior to the deputies’ arrival. Police County sheriff’s deputies arrested Jenni said they are investigating.

Jean Marie Garza, 30, of the 600 block of Davidson Drive, Minooka, while investigating Circle Drive paint damage a traffic crash in the 6000 block of Route Someone entered a residence in the 90th 126 in Kendall Township at 8:52 p.m. April 5. block of Circle Drive East in Boulder Hill last Police said Garza, the driver of the vehicle, week and poured a gallon of paint on the floor was found to be wanted on a DuPage County and a wall in a bedroom, according to the warrant for failure to appear in court on a county sheriff’s office. prior charge of possession of cannabis.

Air conditioner stolen An air conditioning unit was stolen from outside a home in the 1700 block of Kennedy Road in Bristol, county sheriff’s deputies were notified April 7. Police said the home is in foreclosure and the theft was discovered by property management personnel. The air

Traffic citations Rogelio Carreon-Montalvan, 29, of the 1100 block of Summit Avenue, Aurora, failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

Peter Gabor, 70, of the 300 block of Walter Drive, Yorkville, disobeying a traffic signal, expired registration and no proof of insurance.

2 face firearms charges SHAW MEDIA Kendall County sheriff’s deputies arrested Deborah Lynn Krupinski, 56, of the 2100 block of Brookshire Court, Plainfield, and Terry Eugene Dreblow, 44, of the 4000 block of Moon Beam Drive, Crossville, Tennessee, at 4:45 p.m. April 9 on Caton Farm Road near Peterson Road in NuAuSay Township on charges of reckless discharge of a firearm and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon.

Police said Dreblow was also

charged with illegal transportation of alcohol and driving with an obstructed windshield.

Police said deputies were initially dispatched to the area of Wheeler Road and Hopkins Road, also in NuAuSay Township, on a report of shots being fired from a vehicle.

Police said a Glock 9mm pistol was recovered from the car and open alcohol containers were also located within the vehicle. Neither suspect has a valid FOID (firearm owner’s identification) card, according to police.

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Attempted child abduction reported in Montgomery Kaneland School District 302 officials have notified Montgomery police of an attempted child abduction near McDole Elementary School in the Foxmoor subdivision on the village’s far west side.

According to a text alert sent by the school district to district parents Tuesday afternoon: “On Monday, April 11, between 8:30-8:50 a.m., a McDole Elementary student was walking to school when approached from behind by a man wearing a black hooded sweatshirt. The man asked if the stu-

LOCAL NEWS | Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com •

SHAW MEDIA

13

dent needed lunch money to which the student replied, ‘No.’ The student was then asked if they wanted to come back to the man’s house to see his pets. The student said, ‘No,’ at which point the man grabbed the student by the shoulders. The student stepped on the man’s foot and ran unharmed to safety.”

School officials said they notified police immediately after the student’s mother reported the incident to McDole administrators. The individual is still at large.

Anyone with any information regarding the incident should call Montgomery police at 630-897-8707.

BRIEF Oswego’s annual Recycling Extravaganza returns April 23

Thursday, April 14, 2016

suitcases, toys and more. You can also exchange used books, videotapes, CDs The Environmentally Conscious Oswego and DVDs. Please note that tube televisions and la(ECO) Commission’s annual Reuse & Recycle Extravaganza will be from 8 a.m. tex paints will not be accepted this year.

Volunteers are also needed to help with to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 23, at the Oswethe event. go Public Works Facility, 100 Theodore To volunteer, call 630-551-2343 or Drive, just south of Oswego High School.

Items being accepted include bicycles, email eco@oswegoil.org. Volunteering at books, clothing, electronics, eyeglasses, the extravaganza is a great way to help the community. Volunteers should be keys, lawnmowers, LCD/LED/plasma middle school age and older. televisions, packing materials, poly– Oswego Ledger styrene, scrap metal, school supplies,

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR “Oswego stands apart from other towns in Northeastern Illinois with its enduring up property tax dollars) and I have no collection of urban barns,” the survey problem with the library district’s plans to notes. But unlike most of Oswego’s other remove the rental cottage on the proper- fine urban barns, we know who built this ty. However, the library’s determination one (well-known Oswego contractor Fred to demolish the Kohlhammer Barn on Kohlhammer), when (late May and early the property is both ill-considered and June 1904) and why – the Kohlhammer unnecessary. family lived in it while they were building In a March 31 Oswego Ledger story, a their new house (now owned by Pat and library official was quoted as saying there Cecilia McCarthy) adjacent to the barn. was “no record of any historical signifiThe McCarthys say they’re willing to cance for the buildings.” work with the library to separate the barn When it comes to the cottage, they’re from the rest of the parcel so the McCarright. When it comes to the barn, however, thys can restore and preserve it. they’re very much in error.

Over the years, we’ve lost far too many I have no idea who they checked with. It of Oswego’s significant historic structures, wasn’t the Little White School Museum, and sometimes there’s no choice but to and the Oswego Historic Preservation sacrifice one of them. This, however, is not Commission these days suffers from a one of those times. The Kohlhammer Barn near-total lack of support, and sometimes can and should be saved from unnecesdownright hostility, from village officials sary destruction, and it can be done at and so currently exists in name only. little or no cost to the library district and But if they had simply read Oswego’s its taxpayers.

2009 survey of historic structures, they’d find the barn listed on page 29 where it is Roger Matile Oswego rated as “historically significant.”

• Continued from page 5

adno=0372499

Water main flushing set in Montgomery, Boulder Hill OSWEGO LEDGER The village of Montgomery Public Works Department crews will be flushing water mains in the village and unincorporated Boulder Hill subdivision during the weeks of April 11, 18, and 25.

This procedure clears sediment from the water distribution line, helps maintain water quality, and verifies proper operation of the hydrants.

Residents are encouraged to refrain from washing laundry when flushing is done in or near their neighborhood as the temporarily discolored water may cause laundry staining.

Residents should also run their cold water taps first to clean out any sediment that may enter the water lines inside the homes.

Public Works crews will flush hydrants from approximately 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily according to the following schedule:

• Week of April 11: Areas east of Orchard Road to Hill Avenue (includes Parkview Estates) and north of Route 30 (Seasons Ridge) up to Ashland Avenue.

• Week of April 18: In unincorporated Boulder Hill, south of Route 30 to Circle Drive West and from Route 25 to Douglas Road; within the village of Montgomery, Lakewood Creek West, Fairfield Way and Foxmoor.

• Week of April 25: Areas west of Orchard Road to Dickson Road and from Galena Road to Jericho Road, including: Montgomery Crossings, Lakewood Creek, Blackberry Crossing, Blackberry Crossing West, Huntington Chase, Balmorea, Orchard Prairie North, and Saratoga Springs.

If you have any questions about the hydrant flushing program, or any other Public Works service, contact the Public Works Department at 630-8969241.

Oswego flushing water mains OSWEGO LEDGER The village of Oswego Public Works Department will be flushing water mains during the two-week period of April 18 to April 29, weather permitting. Crews will begin flushing at 7 a.m. each day.

Residents are asked to do laundry before that time or after 6 p.m. on these days to avoid rust discoloration of clothes. If clothes become discolored, notify the Public Works Department at 630-554-3242.

The Public Works Department flushes all fire hydrants in April and September under the recommendation of the Illinois EPA. Flushing does a number of things, including cleaning of water mains and moving fresh water to areas of the system that have low or very little usage.

Flushing cleans the water mains by

running high flows of water through fire hydrants to get rid of iron deposits that could produce colored water and, in some instances, plugged water meters.

Flushing also helps produce fresh water by opening hydrants at the end of water mains and pulling fresh water all the way to the end of the line. This helps if a resident lives in a new subdivision that has little water usage.

Remember, if the village crews are in your area, do not do laundry until after 6 p.m. on the days of flushing. Also, before running your hot water, run all cold water taps first to make sure the water is running clear. Only when it is running clear should you run your hot water.

Signs to alert residents of the upcoming flushing will be placed throughout the village the week before the flushing.

BRIEF Hilltop Gardeners seeking plant donations for sale

Boulder Hill entrance berm and on many other plant and educational projects.

Each year club members and friends doHilltop Gardeners Garden Club will hold nate their tried-and-true perennials for the its 50th annual plant sale on May 7. The sale.

The club would appreciate area ressale will run from 10 to 2 p.m. at Fox idents who may be dividing their garden Bend Golf Course Pavilion, 3516 Route 34, perennials and would like to donate them Oswego. It is the club’s only fundraiser for the sale.

Call Esther at 630-554-6810. and proceeds are used to beautify the OsPlants may be bagged rather than potted wegoland area, including the Heritage Garand a club member will pick them up. den, Hudson Crossing Park and Post Office – Oswego Ledger flower barrels, downtown clock area,

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Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

| LOCAL NEWS

14

Sign up now for community garage sale The village of Montgomery has announced its Spring Community Garage Sale will take place from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

May 19, 20 and 21. Each year, nearly 100 households participate.

The fee to participate will be $10 per address. Registration forms are available at the Village Hall, 200 N. River St. in Montgomery, and on the village

website at ci.montgomery.il.us/index. aspx?NID=507. The registration form gives the option of participating on all three of the scheduled dates or selecting specific days to participate.

The garage sale will be advertised in local newspapers beginning on May 18. Garage sale fliers will also be created featuring a map showing all garage sale locations, plus a 15-word ad for each address describing the items

LOCAL NEWS | Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com •

OSWEGO LEDGER

15

for sale. Maps will be available at the Village Hall and on the village website starting May 16. The deadline to be included in the advertising is 4:30 p.m.

Friday, May 6.

This event is sponsored by Montgomery’s Historic Preservation Commission. The $10 participation fee will help support Settler’s Cottage on River Street. For more information, call Debbie Buchanan at 630-896-8080, ext. 9003.

BRIEF

Photo provided

fellowship. Information about joining Oswego Area Moms & More can be found at momsandmoreoswego.org.

– Oswego Ledger

Thursday, April 14, 2016

The Rotary Club of Montgomery and Oswego Area Moms & More donated 46 hams to St. Olaf Lutheran Church in Montgomery.

The church has a small food pantry that serves several local families and is often overlooked for larger pantries in the area.

The collaboration between the three organizations is a great example of how different groups can work together for community projects. gomeryil.clubexpress.com.

Rotary is an International service orgaOswego Area Moms & More is an nization. Those interested in joining the organization of local moms who do varMontgomery Club can visit rotarymontious activities for moms geared toward

Members of St. Olaf Lutheran Church, Rotary Club of Montgomery and Oswego Area Moms & More.

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Rotary, Moms & More donate 46 hams to church food pantry

Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

| SPORTS

16 PREP ROUNDUP

Member FDIC

Wolves pick up two wins OSWEGO LEDGER

The Oswego East boys volleyball team improved to 7-6 with a pair of wins last week. The Wolves defeated Joliet Central 25-20, 21-25, 25-14 on April 6. Adam Densberger had three aces and a 2.45 passing percentage. Max Behnke had six kills, and Collin McClintic had 5.5 block kills.

Last Thursday, Oswego East improved to 1-1 in the Southwest Prairie Conference with a 21-25, 25-17, 25-22 win at Plainfield East. Densberger led the team with six kills and five digs. Josh Schroder had three aces and four kills.

Dylan Johnson had 12 assists.

BASEBALL

6-1. BJ Graves scored two runs and had one RBI. Shane Schatz had a dominant, six-strikeout performance and allowed one earned run, five hits and two walks over seven innings.

Oswego freshman: Oswego lost to Plainfield East by the score of 7-5. Kyle Graziano was 2 for 3 on the day. JD Miller doubled and scored a run. Defensively, Reece Barry made a diving catch in right field in the first inning to end the inning and save a run. In the second inning, with runners on first and second and one out, Bielawski made a diving catch of a line drive and doubled up the runner at first base.

SOFTBALL

Oswego JV: Oswego drop a tough Oswego East freshman: In the first game to West Aurora, 2-1, on March 28

week of games, Oswego East went 1-2.

The Wolves were led offensively over the week of games by Liam Geoffroy and Ian Kroemer both hitting above .500 for the week. In the second week of play, Oswego East defeated East Aurora 11-0 behind the solid pitching of Colby Walters and Liam Geoffroy. The Wolves swept a doubleheader over Naperville North, 5-2 and 2-0. The Wolves are now 4-2-1 overall after finishing in a tie with Yorkville.

Oswego East sophomore: Oswego East dropped a 21-6 game to Plainfield South on April 5. Oswego East built an early lead against Plainfield South in Game 2 of the series and went on to an

in nine innings. Laurie Avila batted 3-for-4. Jenna Veber pitched four innings and allowed no earned runs on five hits. The game was scoreless until West Aurora broke the ice with one run in the fourth on an RBI triple. Oswego’s lone run came in the fifth inning on an RBI single by Samantha Koehler.

Oswego jumped out to an early lead on Geneva and captured a 14-0 victory.

An RBI single by Megan Maruna and a sacrifice fly by Corinne Daley (six RBIs) during the first inning fueled the Oswego offense early. Veber held Geneva hitless over three innings, allowed no earned runs, walked one and struck out eight.

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The Lightning girls basketball team from the Oswego Family YMCA won the Silver Division Championship at the Naperville YMCA Sports Complex this season. In its first year, the Lightning finished the regular season with a 7-2 record, earning the No. 1 seed and first round bye in the playoffs. In the championship game, the Lightning came back from three points down with less than two minutes left in regulation to send the game into overtime. The Lightning scored the winning basket in overtime with less than 15 seconds left. The team, coached by brothers Chris and Joe Jackson and Colton Ngumoha, finished 9-2. Pictured are (front row, from left) Chloe Bucher, Julia Johnson, Breen Aguirre, Aurora Jackson, (back row) Coach Joe Jackson, Stella Hunter, Nicky Hartigan, Savina Trujillo, Samantha Trujillo, coach Chris Jackson, Julie Ruggles and Allison Mensik.

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By CHRISTINE BOLIN DASCHER cbolin@kendallcountynow.com

Mike Klimavicius admits he checks weather updates quite a bit – especially if the forecast doesn’t look good.

Klimavicius is the owner of the Montgomery-based Swing Baseball and Softball Training Center, a new 22,000-square-foot indoor youth training facility that opened in January.

Now that spring is here, inconsistent temperatures and conditions have also arrived. If the weather is bad, business is good – and so far, most of April has kept the facility and Klimavicius busy.

“Those who come here are very grateful for this place when the weather is bad,” Klimavicius said. “They now have accessible tools that will continue

to develop their skills. It’s just nice to know there is an alternative for people to come inside and work on things.”

The facility is located at the intersection of Routes 30 and 31. The building used the Anchor Brush Company.

There are batting cages, pitching lanes, an open field area and a speed and agility area. There are seven cages available for both softball and baseball players.

They cater to as little as 6-year-old teeball players to high-school-aged club athletes. It is also open to the public.

“They’ve done a great job with this place,” Yorkville Fury 12U baseball coach Tom Harris said. “Anything you want to do with your team – hitting, fielding, pitching, an open area for strength and conditioning. A quick email to Mike, and within a matter of

an hour, we have time reserved. That’s it. You show up and practice.”

Teams in Kendall County and the surrounding area did not have many alternatives before Swing opened.

“It’s convenient for those in Yorkville,” Yorkville Fury 9U baseball coach Brian Drew said. “There isn’t a place other than ESP [Elite Sports Performance in Oswego] in the area that is comparable. With my older son, we used to travel all the way to St. Charles for indoor practices. Having this in Montgomery really saves time.”

The Yorkville Fury organization calls Swing home more than any other program. Other teams from Yorkville, Sandwich, Newark, Aurora, Oswego and Aurora University, however, have also practiced there when the weather

was unfavorable.

“It’s a bit of a drive, but it’s worth it,” said JR Veliz, the Newark varsity baseball coach who is also a hitting/ fielding instructor at Swing. “We don’t have the luxury of a drop-down cage or field house [at Newark], so this is perfect.”

Of course, the teams and coaches would rather be practicing and playing outside, but Yorkville Fury 13U baseball coach Joe Potrawski knows Swing is the place to be when that’s not possible.

“I can get more out of my boys in here rather than outside in 40 degree weather. Why risk getting someone hurt?” Potrawski said. “Other people are going to start catching on and start coming here.”

By KRISTIN SHARP

ksharp@kendallcountynow.com The Oswego boys’ volleyball team was forced to battle through adversity in last weekend’s St. Charles East Invite, but came out of it as an improved team. The scheduled ACT test limited the Panthers’ lineup, and Oswego

emerged with a 3-2 tournament finish.

The Panthers are now 9-6 overall.

“We had a couple guys missing because of ACT testing and they were some key players, but probably the best thing about the tournament was that guys who don’t normally get a chance, got a chance, and guys who are already ready go-to guys were even more so,

which helped them get more comfortable in that role,” Oswego coach Zach Splitt said. “My senior leaders did a very good job stepping up. Our team identity grew a lot this weekend. From a results point of view, I think anyone would argue that we came up a little short.”

Oswego opened the tournament

with losses to St. Charles East and West Chicago, but won its final three over Huntley, Zion-Benton and Oak Lawn.

On Monday, Oswego extended its current win streak to four with a 17-25, 25-22, 25-18 win at Waubonsie Valley.

Owen Bann had two aces, Nick Ramos had 12 kills, and Brandon Im had 13 digs.

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Oswego volleyball battled through adversity in St. Charles Invite

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SPORTS | Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com •

Take a Swing indoors if weather not cooperating

Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

| SPORTS

18 GIRLS SOCCER: OSWEGO 5, OSWEGO EAST 4

Balanced attack boosts Panthers

By CHRISTINE BOLIN DASCHER cbolin@kendallcountynow.com

The Oswego girls soccer team netted five goals from five different players against rival Oswego East. The Panthers, however, saw 80 percent of that scoring in the second half.

Trailing by two goals at the break, Oswego tallied four times – including twice in the first two minutes of the second half – en route to a 5-4 victory over the Wolves on the Panthers’ home field in Southwest Prairie Conference action.

Oswego (4-1-1 overall, 2-0 in the conference) is on a four-game winning streak after the 2-1 win over Hinsdale South in the first round of the Pepsi Showdown’s Gatorade Bracket on Saturday.

“We let our emotions get the best of us in the first half. We haven’t had that big emotional game yet,” Oswego coach Kelsey Champion said. “We just came out on fire in the second half. It was awesome.”

Oswego East (4-5 overall, 0-3 in the conference) entered the Pepsi Showdown’s Aquafina Bracket on Saturday and lost to Loyola, 5-0. They will play Metea Valley in Round 2.

“We were feeling good and confident [after the first half against Oswego],” Oswego East Hayley Morganegg said. “As soon as we start to feel shaky, it’s a struggle to get things back. We get confidence when we get goals, and it’s good.”

The Wolves led 3-1 at the half before Oswego quickly tied the game with two goals from senior Melissa Kasper and junior Brianna Welch in the first two minutes of the second half.

Sophomore Riley Parker scored the go-ahead goal that pushed the Panthers ahead 4-3 with 30:18 left in the contest.

Junior Kacie Moran’s goal with 15:57 to play gave Oswego its largest lead of the game, 5-3.

“The nerves were high, and we weren’t playing our best [in the first half],” Parker said. “We came back, and we played well. We settled down.

We started playing as a team more and playing together more. It came together.”

The Wolves’ lone goal of the second half was on a penalty kick from junior Jasmine Ruiz with 12:52 left to go. Oswego East’s three goals in the first half were from junior Taylor Peck, freshman Katie Olivas (assist from Ruiz) and a corner kick from junior Kara Blasingame with 11:45 on the clock. Oswego senior Jordyn Schoen tallied the first goal of the game on an assist from Moran.

Photos by Eric Miller - emiller@shawmedia.com

ABOVE: Oswego’s Margaret Pagone picks off a pass against Oswego East. RIGHT: Oswego East’s Jasmine Ruiz keeps her eye on the ball Thursday against Oswego.

“We let our emotions get the best of us in the first half. We haven’t had that big emotional game yet. We just came out on fire in the second half. It was awesome.”

Kelsey Champion

Oswego girls soccer coach Plainfield South 6, Oswego 5 (OT): Prior to Oswego, the Wolves fell to Plainfield South, 6-5, in overtime on April 5.

Ruiz (2), Maddy Lambert (2) and Peck scored the goals while Lambert, Blasingame, Olivas, and sophomore Riley Cassian had assists.

Against Hinsdale South, the game was tied 1-1 at halftime. Kaylee Zimbelmann (assist from Kasper) and Moran (assist Abby Grzetic) scored the goals for the Panthers, who will play Nazareth in Round 2.

By KRISTIN SHARP

ksharp@kendallcountynow.com

“She held us, and we were there for her.

This game our mentality was ball first, and we did that a lot. We made the plays we needed to when the bases were loaded, and we got the clutch hits when we needed them. It was a good win.”

Schussler made a pop up catch behind home plate to end the fourth inning and Johnson made a pair of catches in right field to end the fifth as Oswego East committed just two errors on the afternoon. Plainfield Central left five runners in scoring position in the game, and loaded the bases in both the sixth and seventh innings, but came up with a sacrifice RBI in the fourth and Schultz walked in one batter in the sixth.

“I have the confidence in [Schultz].

We’ve been in those situations where we’ve had the bases loaded and couldn’t do anything, so it was really nice to have that flipped this time and have the faith in the defense,” Oswego East

coach Laura Nussle said. “Having the faith in Emily to throw, and knowing our outfield is solid and our infielders can make the plays is great.”

Following a 15-5 loss to Minooka on April 5, Oswego East saw its next three dates washed out by cold, wet weather before returning to the field Monday against Plainfield East. That resulted in a 5-2 loss to the Bengals for an 0-2 start to the SPC season.

With a better weather forecast ahead, Oswego East is scheduled to travel to Romeoville on Thursday before hosting Hinsdale South on Friday in a makeup game. DeKalb will visit Oswego East on Saturday for a doubleheader, and conference play resumes Tuesday with Oswego visiting Oswego East.

“We’re definitely getting back into the swing of things,” Schultz said. “Just to be back on the field in nice weather is great.”

Track teams prepare for fast April schedule

By KRISTIN SHARP

ksharp@kendallcountynow.com The area track and field teams stepped outdoors last week to open the second phase of the season, and now Oswego and Oswego East will prepare for a fast April schedule of events.

Romeoville will host the girls’ Southwest Prairie Conference meet on May 5 before Oswego East hosts the boys’ league meet on May 12 – giving the teams just weeks to prepare.

The Oswego East girls will host their annual invite on Saturday, and the Oswego girls enter the Blue and Gold Falcon Invite at Wheaton North on Friday night. The teams will meet on April 20 for a girls’ dual meet on the Oswego track. Meanwhile, the Oswego East boys compete at Yorkville’s Matt Wulf Invite on Friday while the Oswego boys compete at West Aurora’s John Bell Invite on Saturday.

Girls Track and Field

The Oswego East squad comes off a strong indoor performance that included six medals at the Illinois Top TImes meet. The Wolves return six 2015 state qualifiers including senior Sade Akinfe, who took state runner-up honors in the long jump and senior Morgan Harris, who placed fourth in the 400-meter dash. Seniors Ashley Buado and Tara Schumacher (hurdles), junior Maya Taylor and sophomore Abby Flammersfeld (400) also return after state trips last spring as part of the 4x100 and 4x100-meter relays.

“There’s a lot of positive energy right now and we’re really trying to make the most of it and allow the senior group to pull along the depth in our younger classes.”

Lisa Cook

Oswego East girls track coach “We expected our returners to step up and perform well. We always look at the indoor season as preparation for outdoors and we use the Top Times meet as a checkpoint, but our sights are set on May,” Oswego East girls’ coach Lisa Cook said. “We’re really excited about where we are because we’ve never had a team at this point, this early.”

Rachel Rosch will add depth in the hurdles and Alexis Henz is an early standout in the distance events with Kendra Standish, Abby Cain and Isabella Gyori. Oswego Easts boasts depth in the high jump with juniors Stephanie Jones and Becca Staples other standouts in the field events include Kareema Lawal (throws), Asan Hawkins (throws), Mackenzie Kennedy (pole vault) and Alexia Stamas (pole vault).

“There’s a lot of positive energy right now and we’re really trying to make the most of it and allow the senior group to pull along the depth in

our younger classes,” Cook said.

Oswego returns senior Coral Ottesen after a state appearance in the pole vault last spring, and junior Kardia Dunah is back after running on the state-bound 4x100 and 4x200-meter relay teams.

Both have had early success outdoors, with Ottesen winning the pole vault event at the Metea Valley Invite last Saturday as she cleared 10-6, and Dunah won the high jump, clearing 4-10, while taking second in the 200 with a time of 27.32 seconds. Overall, Oswego placed sixth at the invite – seven points shy of fourth place. Oswego also had PR finishes in the 4x200 and 4x200 relays.

The 4x200 clocked in at 1:50.78 behind the efforts of Briana Krisch, Claire Barenie, Lauren Mitchell and Dunah to place second. The 4x400 relay of Krisch, Isabelle Christiansen, Jenna Yakesh and Maddie Kammerer finished third in 4:12.78.

“Kardia Dunah is consistently running and jumping well,” Oswego coach Jamie Bechina said. “Lauren Mitchell is also coming on strong in the sprint relays. Coral Ottesen is also vaulting well and ahead of where she was last year at this time. It’s exciting to see how much stronger she is this season.”

Oswego returns senior state qualifier Steven Strange, who will once again be the Panthers’ top 400 runner after placing eighth in the 2015 state finals.

Strange teamed up with Luke Moran, Jacob Smutzer and Brian Jimenez to set a new indoor school record in the 4x400-meter relay this winter. The 4x800-meter relay looks equally strong at this point thanks to Owen Kelty, Jackson Simon, Collin Boone and David Gaytan. Boone also set a new indoor record in the 800 event.

Bennett Peterson, a cross country state qualifier, headlines the distance crew in the 3,200 with Gaytan in the 1,600. Anthony Zajac (sprints), Nick Janca (high jump), Jimmy Gleason (throws), Christopher Grady (jumps) and Noel Garcia (jumps) will support the lineup. Jared Middleton, Matt Schaschwary and Matthew Ogilvie give Oswego depth in the pole vault.

Devin Breske will handle the hurdle events.

“We’ve got guys who can compete with all the best guys in our conference, but it’s just the depth. We don’t have as many guys on our team as other schools do, but quality over quantity,” Oswego boys’ coach Jeff Edwards said.

Oswego East’s season opener at the Boys Track and Field Stagg Invite was cancelled last week.

The Oswego boys capped off the The Wolves will be led by distance runindoor season with a championship ners Dylan Zangri (1,600) and Tanner finish at the prestigious Gene Arm- McQuality (800) as well as sprinter er Invite in Urbana, pulling ahead of Devonte Weathersby, who all placed at Morgan Park in the final event with a the Top Times Indoor Championships strong finish in the 4x400-meter relay. last month.

Thursday, April 14, 2016

Trailing by three runs in the top of the seventh inning, visiting Plainfield Central loaded the bases against Oswego East pitcher Emily Schultz.

The sophomore lefty kept her composure, inducing a pair of ground balls to shortstop Juvia Davis, who went to third baseman Sydni Mitchell for the force out, clinching the 7-4 victory over the defending Southwest Prairie Conference champion Wildcats on Tuesday.

“This game really helped. I just feel a lot more confident after this game,” Schultz said. “It’s a lot easier to pitch knowing you have such a strong defense behind you. It was really nice to come out and get our first conference win.”

Schultz struck out three and scattered seven hits in a complete game effort. She also scored a pair of runs after

two walks in the opening innings.

Oswego East (3-3, 1-2 SPC) jumped on Plainfield Central early with three runs in the first and four more in the second to take a 6-2 lead. Emma Benson lit the scoreboard first with a two-run double to left field, scoring Dani Williams, who led off with a single, and Schultz. Mitchell hit a sacrifice RBI to bring in Davis for the 3-0 lead.

Plainfield Central (3-3, 2-1 SPC) hit a two-run homer in the top of the second, but Oswego East answered in the bottom half of the frame. Rachel Johnson, Williams and Schultz loaded the bases for Davis, who knocked out a three-run triple to the right field fence with two strikes against her. Nicole Schussler drove in Davis with a sac RBI to build a 7-2 lead for the Wolves.

“Pitching has been one of our downfalls, and Emily Schultz came out ready to play,” said Davis, who hit 3-for-4 with three RBIs to lead the Wolves’ offense.

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SPORTS | Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com •

Oswego East softball gaining confidence

Oswego Ledger / KendallCountyNow.com • Thursday, April 14, 2016

20

SPORTS

BASEBALL: OSWEGO EAST 4, OSWEGO 3 (8 INN.)

Borvan’s RBI good for win Wolves clinch victory in eight innings to start crosstown series

By CHRISTINE BOLIN DASCHER cbolin@kendallcountynow.com

Jack Borvan was the king of the RBI on Tuesday.

In four at-bats, the senior right fielder on the Oswego East baseball team recorded three RBIs, including a walkoff RBI single in the Wolves’ 4-3 victory over rival Oswego in Game 1 of the three-game Southwest Prairie Conference series at Oswego East.

“The team was bringing a lot of energy from the bench,” Borvan said. “I got pretty excited up there and I knew I just had to hit one to right field. It did the job.”

The win moved the Wolves to 4-5 overall and 2-2 in the conference and Oswego to 8-2 overall and 1-2 in the league. The series will be completed on Thursday at Oswego East.

After seven innings, the game was tied at 3. Oswego East led 3-0 after four innings before the Panthers came back with a run in the top of the fifth and two more in the sixth.

After a scoreless seventh, Vince Schwartz led off the bottom of the eighth with a walk. He got to second on Sam Cummings’ sacrifice bunt before Julian Spencer entered the game as a pinch runner. The next batter, Borvan, then hit a walk-off RBI single that allowed Spencer to easily score and end the game.

“We have different guys stepping up, and we are starting to come together,” Oswego East coach Matt Engelhardt said. “[Borvan] has had a couple big hits for us in the last week, and we know in the late innings we are going to get some clutch hits. He came through for us today.”

Oswego East’s two runs in the bottom of the first were from RBIs from Cummings and Borvan that allowed Garrett Goetz and Daniel Nelson to score. Borvan’s ground out RBI in the third gave Nelson to score again after he led off with a walk.

Oswego ended up out-hitting Oswego East 12-4. Carter Turnquist recorded an RBI double in the fifth while Cody Peterlin (three hits) and Konor Gengler recorded the Panthers’ two RBIs in the sixth.

“We get down early – but credit to our kids – we battle back,” Oswego coach Mark Johnson said. “We’ve put ourselves in a hole like this a lot

Photos by Steven Buyansky for Shaw Media

ABOVE: Oswego East’s Jack Borvan (right) celebrates his game-winning walk-off single with teammates after the Wolves’ win against Oswego on Tuesday. BELOW LEFT: Oswego’s Mike Dato (15) attempts to interrupt a double play throw by Oswego East second baseman Jacob Leonard during the Southwest Prairie Conference contest on Tuesday. BELOW RIGHT: Oswego East pinch runner Julian Spencer scores the winning run after Borvan’s game-winning RBI single against Oswego on Tuesday.

this year. With today, it was a game of missed opportunities, but I knew our kids would come back. I was proud of the way they battled back, but we had opportunities to win.”

Goetz earned the win on the mound

in the final 2 ⅔ innings of relief with two strikeouts and no walks.

Oswego East notes: The Wolves dropped back-to-back SPC games to Plainfield South – 5-1 on April 5 and 5-4 in extra innings last Thursday before

defeating the Cougars 5-2 on Monday.

Oswego notes: The Panthers’ first loss of the season was an 11-1 decision against Plainfield East in six innings on April 5. On Monday, they beat the Bengals, 4-1.