August, 2013
Iroquois County’s Fall Sports
Iroquois County
March 2019
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
Page 1
Page 1
A guide to all the spring sports action around Iroquois County
March, 2019
SPRING SPORTS 2019 A special supplement to the Iroquois County Times-Republic
Watseka Warriors Iroquois West Raiders Clifton Central Comets Milford Bearcats Cissna Park Timberwolves Donovan Wildcats
Page 2
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
March 2019
The Comets are (front row, from left) Alex Winkel, Joey Bernard, Christian Ladehoff, Jeremy Snejberg, Caleb Kent, Trevor Swanson, Hunter Davis, (back row) Dominick Panozzo, Ben Caspary, Darryl Harris, Chandler Burrow, Caden Perry, Kodie Willis, Isaiah Ditta, Jerod Snejberg, Caden Chamness, Blake Stua, and Riley Meier.
Last year’s Comets state qualifiers return this season By WENDY DAVIS, Reporter wdavis@intranix.com Several state qualifiers will be on the track and field for Central’s Comets. Dave Ladehoff is coaching again this year to get them, and other, back on state ground. He noted senior Kodie Willis will be throwing shot put and discus Junior Isaiah Ditta and senior Jeremy Snejburg are running personal bests already in the 1600 and both went to state in cross country this year. Ditta, he said, is one of the premiere two mile runners, and last year he placed 13th at state. Already this year he’s run a personal best of 9:58:13 at the Illinois Top Times event. Junior Ben Caspary is ranked sixth in the state in the 110 high hurdles now. The 4x800 team that finished eighth at the recent indoor meet ran the third fastest time in school history, 8:31:58. Although there’s not a lot of competition in this event during the season, Ladehoff said,”They should be able to make finals, too.” It’s the same group of boys as last year. “Our 4x200 is a state qualifier,” Ladehoff said. Two of the four were needing to replace last year’s
graduating seniors. He said right now he’s trying to put the right boys in the right spots. The groups are running 1.39-1.40 now, and he said the group needs to drop about six more. “We’re heavy in the distances,” he said. Junior Trevor Swanson is running an open 800 and a two mile. Others on the track he noted are Chandler Burrow, Caden Perry and Caden Chamness. For the field events Caden Perry will be in the triple jump and Caleb Tholen will be in the shot put. “The junior are the upperclassmen are in the leadership role and they’ll be coming back next year.” On the girls side, the team is heavy on seniors. Senior Jenna Raines is running several distance events. Also to watch out for, he said, is Emily Gressens in the outdoor triple jump. Last year she was at state. Ladehoff said freshman Alexis Ward was running at state level in cross country, and she’s already ran well in Illinois Top Times. In fact, he said, most of he distance runners also ran cross country this year.
CENTRAL COMETS SCHEDULE Date Event 2/16 Auburn (Rockford) Boys’ Invite 2/23 Auburn (Rockford) Girls’ Invite 3/02 Indoor Meet at ISU--Boys and Girls 3/07 Hoosier Relays @ Purdue 3/12 Reed-Custer High School (Boys and Girls) 3/16 Comet Classic Invite@Reed Custer-B&G 3/22 Indoor State Track Meet @ IL Weslyan 3/26 Watseka High School 3/28 Paxton-Buckley-Loda High School 4/01 @ GCMS with IW 4/04 Girls’ Meet at Fisher 4/09 Coal City and Bishop Mac vs. Coal City 4/11 Track vs. Peotone and Tri-Point 4/12 Girls Only at Tolono Unity 4/15 Wilmington High School 4/16 Comet Carnival 4/17 PBL Frosh-Soph Invite--Boys and Girls 4/18 GCMS Falcon Invite--Girls Only 4/18 Manteno Invitational--BOYS ONLY 4/22 St. Anne, Momence, I W 4/23 Watseka F/S Invite 4/23 GCMS Falcon Invite BOYS ONLY 4/24 St. Anne HS (Cardinal Relays) 4/26 Herscher Invite 4/29 TVC GIRLS MEET @ PBL 4/30 Reed-Custer High School 5/02 PBL Boys Invite--Boys Only 5/03 Friday Night Lights Meet 5/06 TVC BOYS MEET @ DWIGHT 5/09 Girls Sectional @ TBA 5/13 DWIGHT TONY THORSEN INVITE 5/16 IHSA STATE FINALS-GIRLS 5/16 Boys’ Sectional @ TBA 5/18 IHSA STATE FINALS-GIRLS 5/18 IHSA STATE FINALS-GIRLS 5/23 IHSA STATE FINALS-BOYS 5/25 IHSA STATE FINALS-BOYS
Place Away Away Away Away Away Away Away Away Away Away Away Home Home Away Away Home Away Away Away Home Away Away Away Away Away Away Away Home Away Away Away Away Away Away Away Away Away
Time 8:45 p.m. 8:45 p.m. 9:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 10:00 a.m. TBA 4:30 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:15 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m. TBA 4:00 p.m. TBA TBA TBA TBA
The Lady Comets are (front row) Hailey Fontaine, Sydney Moore, Kaleigh Ladehoff, Avanna Lowrey, Lizzie Kleinert, Kati Girard, Lucintia Smolinski, Kendall Antons, Sarah Gigl, (back row) McKenna Goldtrap, Emily Gressens, Alexis Ward, Olzea Smolinski, Ella Ducat, Tori Hemp, Tessa Coulter, Maria Munoz, Gina Peters, Jenna Raines, Lexi Rath, Kaelyn Alberts, Laney Bottorf, and Fallon Gray.
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March 2019
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
Page 3
The Central Comets baseball team consists of (front row) Garret Graham, Jacob Shoven, Canyon Burrow, Jay Lemenager, Don Raines, Matt Gifford, (back row) Jacob Michelich, Parker Rabideau, Luke Balthazar, Trevor Meier, Tyler Pelehowski, Seth Raines, and Landyn Paraday.
Comets starting season with young roster By CARLA WATERS, Managing Editor cwaters@intranix.com After graduating 12 seniors last season, the Central Comets are looking to some newer players for this season. Coach Brian Kohn said, “We’re almost a new roster. We’re young. We should be baseball experienced, though, but we’re young in terms of starters and we’re young in terms of varsity experience. “We should be pretty athletic,” he said. “We should be able to do some things on the baseball diamond that should help us.” Pitching is “going to have to be a team effort,” Kohn said. “Normally, we’re going to have anywhere between 11 and 12 guys in the dugout at the same time and nine to 10 of those guys are going to have to be able to pitch when we need to, especially during busy weeks with games piling up, three, four, five….those games four and five could be pretty interesting. I’m sure other people are in the same boat as us.” With spring weather so unpredictable, games can get pushed back into another week, he said, which can see teams playing several games in a week to make up postponed games. The team is still learning, he said. “We got our ears pinned back
CENTRAL COMETS SCHEDULE Date Opponent Location Time March 30 Reed-Custer Away 10 a.m. a little bit by Mac (Bishop MacNamara in a game played March April 1 Peotone Away 4:30 p.m. 25). I wish that game was a little further in the season because I April 2 Iroquois West Home 4:30 p.m. think that would be a pretty good matchup once we’re rolling. Home 4:30 p.m. “We’re just going to have to learn by playing,” Kohn continued. April 3 Herscher “You can only do so much inside and we’ve been inside for about April 4 Iroquois West Away 4:30 p.m. April 6 GSW Away 11 a.m. four weeks now.” April 9 Dwight Home 4:30 p.m. As of March 26 the Comets had just played two games outside. April 10 Beecher Home 4:30 p.m. “We’re going to make some young mistakes and we’ll learn from April 11Dwight Away 4:30 p.m. them,” he said. April 16 Momence Away 4:30 p.m. He said there are some seniors he will be relying on for leaderApril 18 Momence Home 4:30 p.m. ship this year. “Canyon Burrow, Tyler Pelehowski, Seth Raines. April 19 Donovan Away 4:30 p.m. We’ve got a group of a core of juniors and a core of sophomores; April 22 Kankakee Trinity Home 4:30 p.m. we’re just going to have to come together to figure some things April 23 Cissna Park Away 4:30 p.m. out. The seniors last year kind of put a bullseye on our back and April 25 Cissna Park Home 4:30 p.m. nobody’s going to feel sorry for us, so we’re going to have to April 26 Tri-Point Home 4:30 p.m. figure this out as we go. May 2 Grant Park Home 4:30 p.m. “It’s always good when that target is on your back, but it’s May 4 St. Anne Away 10 a.m. Home 4:30 p.m. always interesting when those guys aren’t there to kind of defend May 7 PBL May 9 PBL Away 4:30 p.m. what they put on you. I guess it’s a blessing and a curse. It’s a welcome challenge.”
The Lady Comets consists of (back row) Hannah Offerman, Allison Cox, Kaylie Warpet, Shayna Lehmkuhl, Grace Poskin, Madelyn Meyer, Elizabeth Poskin (front row) Maci Romero, Mia Gasperini, Alexis Perzee, Kaylee Ketcherside, Ilana Van Hoveln, and Ella White.
First year Wielgus looks for improvement By ZACK WATERS sports@intranix.com The Lady Comets softball team have high expectations this season, and the team’s new coach, Kelli Wielgus, is confident of her team’s approach to achieve them. “We want to create an environment where each athlete can become confident with their role on the team,” she said. “I want my team to compete to the best of their abilities while having fun and still increasing their softball knowledge and skills.” With four returning seniors from last season, the team hopes to limit their errors and overcome the hardship of having a fairly young team. Some of the Comets key newcomers are Madelyn Meyer and
Shayna Lehmkhul. “Madelyn is a transfer in from Bishop Mac. She will be our number one pitcher and will be a great asset offensively. She also shows great leadership skills and is a great teammate,” said Wielgus. “Shayna missed the 2018 season due to a shoulder injury, but she will bring great things to the team with her strong arm and strong bat. She will also be a part of our pitching rotation.” Returning players are Maci Romero, Reagan Panozzo, Kaylee Ketcherside, Hannah Offerman and Alexis Perzee. Wielgus has high standards for her team. “We are capable of finishing the top of the SVC conference and our goal is to play in the regional championship.”
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CENTRAL LADY COMETS SCHEDULE Date Team LocationTime April 1 Peotone Away 4:30 p.m. April 2 Iroquois West Home 4:30 p.m. April 3 Herscher Home 4:30 p.m. April 4 Iroquois West Away 4:30 p.m. April 6 GSW Away 11 a.m. April 9 Dwight Home 4:30 p.m. April 11 Dwight Away 4:30 p.m. April 16 Momence Away 4:30 p.m. April 18 Momence Home 4:30 p.m. April 19 Donovan Away 4:30 p.m. April 20 Prairie Central Away 10 a.m. April 24 Manteno Away 4:30 p.m. April 26 Tri-Point Home 4:30 p.m. April 30 South Newton Away 4:30 p.m. May 2 Grant Park Home 4:30 p.m. May 4 GCMS Away 10 a.m. May 7 PBL Home 4:30 p.m. May 8 Beecher Home 4:30 p.m. May 9 PBL Away 4:30 p.m. May 11Milford Away 10 a.m.
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Page 4
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
March 2019
The Iroquois West boys are Andrew Schutte Jibril, Zach Gerling, Devon Keuchel, Diego Canerena, Connor Price, Jovanny Carmina, Kevin Butler, (front row) Lucas Alvaraz, Tony Espineza, Imanol Salazar, Jimmy Andrade, John Santoyo and Jacob Kuipers.
Two new coaches lead large Raider team By WENDY DAVIS, Reporter wdavis@intranix.com Two new coaches are taking over for the Iroquois West Raiders track team. Jim Price and Steve Massey have known each other for a while, as they both coached cross country at Iroquois West and Crescent-Iroquois junior highs, respectively. The two thought if they combined their skills they could take on a new set of runners, said Price. “We’re a pretty good team. We thought we could continue, and we’re both the coaches for both the boys and the girls.” Iroquois West has a strong number of student athletes this season. There are 30 girls making up the Lady Raiders team. “That’s the most we’ve had in a long time,” said Price, noting it’s mostly made up of freshmen. “That’s good for the future. The girls are also taking on a mix of field events and runners, he said. With a lot of them still young, the coaches are still trying to fit them where their strengths are. Returning this year are junior Jadyn Baker in the 3200 and shot put and senior Ashley Aguilera in the shot put and discus. On the boys side there’s about 20, keeping the roster about the same as it was last year. “There’s a few good runners,” Price said. Sophomores Connor Price and Lucas Alvaraz are running some distance, the 800 and 3200 and the 3200 and mile respectively. Junior Zach Gerling again is tackling the long jump. Senior Max Grant is back in high jump and low hurdles. The plan, said Price, is “to get kids into state this year”.
IROQUOIS WEST LADY RAIDERS SCHEDULE Date Location Time 04/01 GCMS 4:30 p.m. 04/04 Salt Fork 4 p.m. 04/09 Dwight 4:30 p.m. 04/11 Fisher 4:30 p.m. 04/16 Clifton Central 4 p.m. 04/19 GCMS 4:30 p.m. 04/22 Clifton Central 4:30 p.m. 04/26 Herscher 4 p.m. 04/29 PBL 4 p.m. 05/03 St. Joe-Ogden 4:30 p.m. 05/09 Girls Sectional 4 p.m. 05/13 Champaign 5 p.m.
IROQUOIS WEST RAIDERS SCHEDULE Date Location Time 04/01 GCMS 4:30 p.m. 04/04 Salt Fork 4 p.m. 04/09 Dwight 4:30 p.m. 04/11 Fisher 4:30 p.m. 04/16 Clifton Central 4 p.m. 04/22 Clifton Central 4:30 p.m. 04/23 GCMS 4:30 p.m. 04/26 Herscher 4 p.m. 05/02 PBL 4:30 p.m. 05/06 Dwight 4 p.m. 05/13 Champaign 5 p.m. 05/16 Boys Sectional 4 p.m.
IROQUOIS WEST RAIDERS ROSTER Name Age Lucas Alvarez So. Jimmy Andrade Fr. Kevin Butler Jr. Diego Camarena Jr. Tony Espinosa Fr. Zach Gerling Jr. Max Grant Sr. Devin Kuchel Jr. Jacob Kuipers So. Trysten Massey Sr. Connor Price So. Ryan Ritzma So. Imanol Salazar Sr. Jonathon Santoyo Jr. Andrew Schutte-Jibril Fr. Dane Thorne Jr.
IROQUOIS WEST LADY RAIDERS ROSTER Name Age Alexa Aguilera So. Ashley Aguilera Sr. Estefany Andrade So. Chloe Baker So. Jadyn Baker Jr. Kaylee Cote Fr. Kaylen Cote Fr. Celeste Cummings Fr. Uliana Curtis Jr. Eva Eckhoff Fr. Marissa Finckbone So. Clarissa Garcia So. Olivia Gaytan Jr. Kayla Hartke So. Alyssa Kolosky So. Jasmin Lopez So. Chelsey Medina So. Autumn Melgoza So. Cynthia Melgoza Fr. Kadie Miller Fr. Monica Mischke Jr. Itzel Munoz Fr. Elizabeth Reardanz Fr. Alyssa Regan Fr. Anahi Sanchez Sr. Jaden Silfies So. Cynthia Solorzano So. Lindsey Songer Jr. Elizabeth Trujillo Sr. Natalie Wilson Fr. Jovana Zavala Sr.
The Iroquois West girls are (back row) Chloe Baker,Cynthia Solorzano, Anahi Sanchez, Marissa Finckbone, Jovana Zavala, Lindsey Songer, Natalie Wilson, Elizabeth Reardanz, (middle row) Olivia Gaytan, Estephanie Andrade, Alexa Aguilera, Liz Trujillo, Jadyn Baker, Autumn Melgoza, Jasmine Lopez, Jaden Silfies, Kaylee Cote, Itzel Munoz, Kaylen Cote, (bottom row) Clarissa Garcia, Alyssa Regan, Cynthia Melgoza, Eva Eckhoff, and Kayla Hartke.
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March 2019
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
Page 5
The Iroquois West Raiders baseball team consists of (front, left to right) Tibaldo Alvarez, Lucas Frank, Cole Stone, Jack Pree, Peyton Rhodes, Nolan Frank, Ethan Martinez, Kade Kimmel, Auston Miller, Zach Sigler, (back row, left to right) Kaleb Pheifer, Josiah Harkins, Jack McMillan, Nathan Price, Ty Pankey, Ryan Tilstra, Aiden Tilstra and Ryan Brenner.
Raiders look to core players to lead newcomers By ZACK WATERS sports@intranix.com After last years regional loss to Illinois Lutheran, the Iroquois West Raiders are looking to come back this season with a vengeance. Coming off of a 9-17 record last season, seventh year head coach Sam Rhodes said thought the team is fairly young this year, they have no shortage of talent. “We lost a number of upperclassmen at the end of the last season. Nineteen of the team’s twenty-six players this season are underclassmen. I have a number of athletic freshmen and sophomores that will need to step up regularly to complete,”
he said. One thing Rhode’s is confident in are his returning pitchers, Cole Stone and Tibaldo Alvarez, as well as his catcher Kaleb Pheifer, who led the team last season with a .400 BA. Some notable newcomers are Peyton Rhodes and Jack McMillan who are the teams shortstops and second basemen, and outfielder Austin Miller. With such a young team, Rhodes relies on his returning players to lead the team. “We have a solid core group that’s leading these underclassmen and grooming them for a varsity season.”
The IW Raiders softball team consists of (front row) Destiny Thomas, Emma Lopez, Alexis Fred, Addy Chandler, Sam Sigler, Mackenzie Conrad, Jacey Stiers, Taylor Hartke, (back row) Katie Fowler, Jordan Tammen, Shelby Johnson, Mallori Fairley, Abbi Kocher, McKinley Tilstra, Maddy Trammell, Caitlin Huff, Sophie Wagner, Ashton Miller, Asst Coach Jim Dill and Head Coach Sissie Poppie.
Young IW softballers take on adversity, inexperience By ZACK WATERS sports@intranix.com Second year Iroquois West softball coach Sissie Poppie is working on rebuilding the program this season after their 1-19 record last season. The team is made up of 14
underclassmen, 2 senior and one junior. “We are using this season to teach our young players the fundamentals of the game and to face the adversity of being a young, inexperienced team,” said Poppie.
Adversity is right. The team has had a slow start to the season due to poor weather and field conditions and are looking at a current 0-2 record so far. As one of the only seniors on the team, Poppie looks
IROQUOIS WEST LADY RAIDERS ROSTER # 3 5 6 7 9 10 11 12 13
Name Destiny Thomas Jacey Stiers Mallori Fairley Samantha Sigler Maddyson Trammell Sophie Wagner Emma Lopez Ashton Miller Abigail Kocher
Year Fr. Sr. So. Fr. Sr. Fr. So. So. So.
# 14 17 18 21 23 28 31 32 44
Name Taylor Hartke Alexis Fred Maggie Thorne Shelby Johnson Mackenzie Conrad Caitlin Huff McKinley Tilstra Addyson Chandler Jordan Tammen
Year Fr. Jr. Fr. So. So. Fr. Fr. Fr. So.
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IROQUOIS WEST RAIDERS ROSTER Name Year. Tibaldo Alvarez Jr. Gabe Alvarez Fr. Alex Arias Jr. Daltin Austin Fr. Boston Bobzien Jr. Ryan Brenner Sr. Landon Conrad So. Damon Fowler Fr. Lucas Frank Fr. Nolan Frank Jr. Ryan Fred Fr. Josiah Harkins Sr. Jordan Houser Fr. Kade Kimmel So. Ethan Martinez So. Jack McMillan So. Hunter Meyer Fr. Auston Miller Fr. Ty Pankey So. Kaleb Pheifer So. Jackson Pree So. Nathan Price So. Peyton Rhodes Fr. Zach Sigler Sr. Cole Stone Sr. Aiden Tilstra Fr. Ryan Tilstra So.
IROQUOIS WEST RAIDERS SCHEDULE Date Opponent Location 3/21 Trinity Academy Gilman 3/22 Illinois Lutheran Gilman 3/26 Momence Gilman 3/28 Momence Gilman 4/01 GSW Gardner 4/02 Central Central 4/04 Central Gilman 405 Prairie Central Gilman 4/08 Fisher Gilman 4/09 Cissna Park Cissna Park 4/11 Cissna Park Gilman 4/12 Trinity Academy Trinity Academy 4/15 K3High School Kankakee 4/16 Illinois Lutheran IL Lutheran 4/19 Ridgeview Gilman 4/23 Watseka Watseka 4/25 Watseka Gilman 4/26 St. Anne St. Anne 4/30 PBL PBL 5/02 PBL Gilman 5/03 Grace Christian Grace Christian 5/07 Dwight Dwight 5/09 Dwight Gilman 5/11 South Newton Gilman
Time 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 10 a.m.
IROQUOIS WEST LADY RAIDERS SCHEDULE Date Opponent Location Time 04/01 GSW GSW 4:30 p.m. 04/02 Central Central 4:30 p.m. 04/04 Central Onarga 4:30 p.m. 04/05 Prairie Central Onarga 4:30 p.m. 04/06 Armstrong Armstrong 4:30 p.m. 04/08 South Newton South Newton 4:30 p.m. 04/11 Ridgeview Colfax 4:30 p.m. 04/12 Kankakee TrinityKankakee 4:30 p.m. 04/16 Illinois Lutheran Illinois Lutheran 4:30 p.m. 04/19 Hoopeston Hoopeston 4:30 p.m. 04/23 Watseka Onarga 4:30 p.m. 04/25 Watseka Watseka 4:30 p.m. 04/26 St. Anne St. Anne 4:30 p.m. 04/30 PBL PBL 4:30 p.m. 05/02 PBL Onarga 4:30 p.m. 05/03 Grace Christian Grace Christian 4:30 p.m. 05/04 Schlarman Leroy 4:30 p.m. 05/04 Leroy Leroy 4:30 p.m. 05/07 Dwight Dwight 4:30 p.m. 05/09 Dwight Onarga 4:30 p.m. 05/10 Armstrong Onarga 4:30 p.m.
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Page 6
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
March 2019
The boys track team includes (front row, from left) Dylan Todd, Cameron Wonch, Bryce Denoyer, Tylor Durflinger, Shawn Farris, Rusty Kuhlmann, Shannon Woods, Dakota Gamino, Joe Fegan, (middle row) head coach Rich Dickte, Jameson Cluver, Quinn Korhonen, Ethan Keller, Matthew Henneike, Blake Castonguay, Erick Avelar, Fernando Orellana, Ethan Barragree, coach Troy Simpson, (back row) Justin McTaggart, Kelton Musgraves, Nathan Conrad, Keegan Zack, Justin Bunting, Noah Wellborn, Jordan Schroeder, coach Jim Styck, (not pictured) Almir Ademi, Hudson Arseneau, Max Gooding, Duncan McKenna, Peter Miller, Kade Murray, Preston Schroeder and Ethan LaBelle.
Watseka track looks to take conference, sectional titles By ZACK WATERS sports@intranix.com The Watseka Warrior track team is looking to repeat the success of its 2017 season this year. Playing a big role in making that happen is the amount of leadership power the team has this season. Boys coach Rich Dickte is looking forward to seeing the hard work put in from his 10 seniors rub off onto the underclassmen. “I think we are farther a long this season than we were last season and a lot of that has to do with our senior leadership. We are very senior heavy this year and that leadership helps,” he said. “I’m always lucky to have seniors that are really good about bringing the underclassmen along and showing them how things are done and the way the tradition is.” On the girls’ side, coach Troy Simpson is looking to rebuild after the loss of several upperclassmen last year.
“Where the boys have a lot of the senior backing, we have few seniors but we have a lot of freshman and sophomores. We have a good influx of kids that are learning the system and making adjustments,” said Simpson. “They are eager and hungry for knowledge. It’s been fun at practices and just seeing the way they compete and build each other up. It’s exciting.” Dickte is excited about the amount of talent on the team this season. Leading the pack for the boys is senior Keegan Zack. “Keegan is one of the best long jumpers and triple jumpers in the state of Illinois in class 1A,” he said. “Rusty Kuhlman is in the same regard when it comes to the shot-put and will be a great contender in the discus. We are fortunate that we have some state caliber athletes that can fill some events for us.” For the girls, Simpson looks to junior Megan Martell to
WATSEKA WARRIORS TRACK ROSTER
GIRLS Name Kaitlyn Bell Baylor Cluver Carolyn Dickte Emma Donaldson Acelyn Gamino Raegan Gooding Jena Horchem Haylee Ketchum Kourtney Kincade Jackie Lynch Megan Martell Dolly Murray Brianna Osenga Kinzie Parsons Rylie Parsons Natalie Sapp Arika Stanley Taylor Stillman Holly Wingren Teagan Wuethrich
Age Sr. So. So. Fr. So. Fr. Sr. Sr. Fr. Fr. Jr. So. Jr. So. Sr. Sr. So. Fr. Sr. Jr.
BOYS Name Almir Ademi Hudson Arseneau Erick Avelar Ethan Barragree Justin Bunting Blake Castonguay Jameson Cluver Nathan Conrad Bryce Denoyer Tylor Durflinger Shawn Farris Joe Fegan Dakota Gamino Max Gooding Matthew Henneike Rusty Kuhlmann Ethan LaBelle Justin McTaggart Kade Murray Kelton Musgraves Fernando Orellana Jordan Schroeder Preston Schroeder Dylan Todd Cameron Wonch Shannon Woods Keegan Zack
Event Sprints Sprints Distance Sprints Distance Mid-Distance Sprints Sprints Sprints Throws Shot/Disc Sprints Sprints Shot/Disc Sprints Shot/Disc Distance Mid-Distance Distance Sprints Sprints/Hurdles Sprints Sprints Sprints Sprints Sprints Sprints/Jumps
Age Jr. Jr. Sr. So. Jr. Sr. So. Sr. Fr. So. So. So. So. Sr. So. Sr. So. So. Jr. Sr. Fr. Fr. So. Jr. Sr. Fr. Sr.
WATSEKA WARRIORS TRACK SCHEDULE Date Opponent 03/02/19 WL Individuals 03/07/19 Hoosier Relays Boys & Girls V 03/22/19 PrepTimes Indoor Classic Boys V 03/26/19 PBL/Centl/lW/Mil Boys&Girls V 04/02/19 STM/PBLlFisher Boys & Girls V 04/08/19 HA/Tri·P/St. Anne/Milford/lL Luth 04/11/19 Momence/BH/Beecher/HA/Milford 04/16/19 Comet Carnival Boys & Girls V 04/17/19 PBL Frosh/Soph Invite Boys&Girls 04/18/19 Unity Invitational Boys V 04/18/19 Lady Falcon Invitational Girls V 04/23/19 Watseka FS Invite Boys & Girls 04/26/19 Herscher Invite Boys & Girls V 04/29/19 Girls TVC Meet Girls V 04/30/19 Herscher/Manteno Boys V 05/02/19 PBL Invitational Boys V 05/03/19 Lady Spartan Classic Girls V 05/06/19 Boys TVC Meet Boys V 05/09/19 Girls Sectional Girls V 05/13/19 News Gazette Honor Roll Meet 05/16-18/19 Girls State Meet Girls V 05/16-17/19 Boys Sectional Boys V 05/23-25/19 Boys State Track Meet
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Location Purdue Purdue Bloomington Watseka Paxton Watseka Watseka Clifton Paxton Unity Gibson City Watseka Herscher Paxton Watseka Paxton St. Joe Dwight Away U of I EIU Away BEIU
Time 8am 4pm TBA 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4pm 4pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:00pm 4:00pm 4:00pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:00pm TBA 5:00pm TBA TBA TBA
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offer up some strong competition for opposing teams. “Megan has had a really strong winter practice season so far and we are looking forward to seeing what she can do once outdoor season comes around.” Simpson and Dickte both anticipate on making another run at both conference and sectional titles and believe each team has the talent and drive to get there. “For our conference I think Clifton and Paxton will be tough, but I think we fair very well against them. In our sectional, we have the defending state champions from Ridgeview. But, that doesn’t mean we can’t beat them,” said Dickte. Though his team is young, Simpson said his team can still hang with the best of them. “When it comes to game time it really is anyone’s game. I can’t say that we are not in the mix.”
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WATSEKA WARRIORS SCHEDULE Date Opponent Location 03/12 Prairie Central Watseka 03/14 GSW Gardner 03/15 Beecher Beecher 03/18 Grant Park Watseka 03/19 Donovan Donovan 03/21 St. Anne St. Anne 03/23 Bis-Henn Watseka 03/25 GCMS Gibson City 03/26 Central Clifton By ZACK WATERS have done in the past. Our pitching is strong, but we have a lot 03/26 Central Watseka sports@intranix.com of hitters,” he said. 03/28 Central Clifton For his fourth season coaching the Watseka Warriors base“We have kids that can really slug the ball and we are going 03/29 St. Anne Watseka ball team, Joe Lyznicki looks to improve on the program he to use that to our advantage.” 03/30 Hoopeston Area Hoopeston has built. Lyznicki said his team will have their work cut out for them 04/02 PBL Watseka The bulk of this year’s team is made up of returning upduring conference games. 04/04 PBL Paxton perclassmen which Lyznicki hopes to be able to use to his “Our conference is going to be tough. Clifton is young, but 04/05 Tri-Point Watseka advantage as the season continues. they are very good. So is Cissna Park. Iroquois West is huge 04/06 GCMS Gibson City “We’ve got the talent,” said Lyznicki. right now. But, we are a good team, too, and it will be interest04/08 Cissna Park Watseka “These kids have played baseball together and grown ing to see what happens.” 04/09 Grace Academy Kankakee together, where as in previous years we haven’t had as much Lyznicki said the team has their eyes on a regional champi04/15 Cissna Park Cissna Park of that. This group of seniors are very good leaders this year. onship this season. 04/16 Dwight Watseka They care about the team and care about the work ethic. The “We are hoping to win regionals this season. We are hosting 04/18 Dwight Dwight want to play the game of baseball.” this year and we’d love to take home a regional win on our 04/20 Milford Watseka While he is confident in his teams ability as far as pitching is home field,” he said. 04/23 Iroquois West Gilman concerned, Lyznicki looks to his teams long list of hitters to to “The last time we won regionals on our home field was 10 04/24 Herscher Watseka give them success this season. years ago when we went to state. I’m a superstitious guy so we 04/25 Iroquois West Watseka “This year we have focused a lot more on hitting than we will see what happens.” 04/26 South Newton Watseka WATSEKA WARRIORS ROSTER 04/29 Kankakee Kankakee # Name Year Position # Name Year Position 05/03 Donovan Watseka 3 Mason Gibson Jr. P, UTIL. 23 Ben Lyznicki Sr. SS, RHP 05/06 St. Thomas More Watseka 9 Bretten Walwer Jr. UTIL. 24 Jayden Hemp Sr. OF, P 05/07 Momence Momence 14 Brock Horner Sr. OF, 1B 27 Henry Pavlak So. UTIL. 05/09 Momence Watseka 15 Nick Albright Jr. C, 2B, P 33 Shane McDivitt Jr. C, INF. 05/10 Grant Park Grant Park 17 Erik Raymer Jr. OF, P 36 Blake Dixon Sr. 2B 05/13-18 Regional Watseka 18 Dylan Thompson Sr. 3B, C 38 Caden Giroux Jr. 1B, 3B, P 05/21-25 Sectional TBA 19 Matthew Canady Sr. P, INF. 39 Carson Clatterbuck Jr. INF., DH 05/27 Super Sectional TBA 20 Conner Curry So. 2B, UTIL. 44 Dylan Harris Jr. 3B, P 05/31-06/01 State Finals Joliet
The Watseka Warriors pose for their photo: (front row, from left) Blake Dixon, Conner Curry, Erik Raymer, Ben Lyznicki, Dylan Thompson, Jayden Hemp, (middle row) Nick Albright, Mason Gibson, Dylan Harris, Matthew Canady, (back row) Joe Lyznicki, Joe Benner, Carson Clatterbuck, Bretten Walwer, Caden Giroux, Brock Horner, Shane McDivitt, Josh Rushbrook, and Kyle Giroux.
Upperclassmen to lead Warriors’ baseball team
Time 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 10:00 am 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 10:00 am 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 10:00 am 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 10:00 am 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:30 pm 4:00 pm 4:30 pm TBA TBA TBA TBA
The Watseka Lady Warriors pose for their picture: (front row, from left) Elizabeth Smith, Sydney McTaggart, Meredith Drake, Kadyn Stevens, Teagan Cawhton, Natalie Schroeder, Jada Goodman, (middle row) Courtney Thompson, Zoey Krueger, Allie Hoy, Claire Curry, Caitlin Corzine, Nicole Gotter, (back row) Cassie Peters, Hailey Lazarov, Mallory Drake, Kennedy McTaggart, Kennedy Bauer, Haley Essington, Magan Harris, coach Barry Bauer, (not pictured) Raegann Kochel.
Lady Warriors’ experience will be key to success By ZACK WATERS sports@intranix.com Coming off of an 18-7 record last season with a record of 3-1 already this season, the Watseka Lady Warriors softball team are off to a strong start early on. Head coach Barry Bauer said the Lady Warriors have several returning players, five of whom are seniors, so the team has no shortage of leadership or experience. “We have several returning seniors who can all lead our team. Magan Harris and Kennedy Bauer have started for all four years for us, Cassie Peters in center field has been solid, Courtney Thompson plays second base and Mallory Drake is at first,” he said. “Being so young, we kind of lean on all of them a bit.” With such an experienced team, Bauer is confident in his teams ability to get runs though how they get those runs is going to be different than it has been in the past. “In the last couple of years, we’ve been able to get some runs on our bunts and steals. I’m not sure that this team is
particularly built for that, so we are going to have to find some other ways to manufacture some runs.” Defensively, the Lady Warriors don’t offer much variety pitching wise with senior Magan Harris starting most of the team’s games. “Magan has been our work horse so far this season,” said Bauer. “We have to watch out for fielding errors so we can keep her pitch-count where it needs to be but I think we have the ability to back her up.” A conference win is what is on the agenda for the team this season, and Bauer said he sees no reason his team can’t achieve that and then some. “I think we are going to battle for the conference, I don’t see any reason why we couldn’t. Our non-conference schedule is basically what it has been in the past. So, I think we can compete for the conference and hopefully compete for a regional. Hopefully, we put ourselves in a position where we can take home a regional, too.”
WATSEKA LADY WARRIORS # 1 3 5 7 8 10 11 12 13 14
Name Natalie Schroeder Mallory Drake Sydney McTaggart Kennedy Bauer Claire Curry Caitlin Corzine Elizabeth Smith Kadyn Stevens Kennedy McTaggart Haley Essington
Year 10 12 9 12 9 9 9 11 10 10
Position 3B 1B P, OF C, CF IF P, IF OF OF, 1B 1B, OF OF
# 15 17 18 19 21 24 25 26 28 30 31
Name Jada Goodman Allie Hoy Teagan Cawthon Raegann Kochel Magan Harris Zoey Krueger Nicole Gotter Courtney Thompson Meredith Drake Hailey Lazarov Cassie Peters
Year 9 9 10 9 12 9 9 12 9 11 12
Position OF C, OF OF, SS, C 1B, OF P, SS, 3B IF OF 2B OF OF, P, SS OF
WATSEKA LADY WARRIORS SCHEDULE Date Opponent Location Time 03/11 Salt Fork Catlin 4:30 pm 03/12 Prair Central Watseka 4:30 pm 03/14 GSW Gardner 4:30 pm 03/15 Fisher Watseka 4:30 pm 03/18 Grant Park Watseka 4:30 pm 03/19 Donovan Donovan 4:30 pm 03/20 GCMS Gibson City 4:30 pm 03/21 St. Anne St. Anne 4:30 pm 03/22 Gtown-Rfarm Watseka 4:30 pm 03/25 Astrong-Poto Watseka 4:30 pm 03/26 Central Watseka 4:30 pm 03/28 Central Clifton 4:30 pm 03/29 St. Anne Watseka 4:30 pm 04/02 PBL Watseka 4:30 pm 04/04 PBL Paxton 4:30 pm 04/05 Tri-Point Watseka 4:30 pm 04/08 Grace Acad Aroma Park 4:30 pm 04/09 S Newton Watseka 4:30 pm 04/16 Dwight Watseka 4:30 pm 04/18 Dwight Dwight 4:30 pm 04/20 Milford Watseka 10:00 am 04/23 Iroquois West Gilman 4:30 pm 04/25 Iroquois West Watseka 4:30 pm 04/30 Oakwood Watseka 4:30 pm 05/03 Donovan Watseka 4:30 pm 05/04 Hoop Area Watseka 10:00 am 05/06 St. Thom M Champaign 4:30 pm
Page 8
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
March 2019
The 2019 Milford Bearcats baseball team pose for a team photo: (front row, from left) Luke McCabe, Ben Jackson, Nick McKinley, Nick Allen, Avi Gu, Jarid Woodby, Andrew White, (back row) Klaytin Hunsinger, Kaleb Harris, Aaron Banning, Alex Barney, Nick Warren, Brady Marshino, Caleb Atwood, Tanner Sobkoviak, Jared Schunke, and Trey Totheroh. MILFORD BEARCATS SCHEDULE Date Opponent Location 3/11 Watseka Milford “We are really excited about where With a .435 batting average in 2018, 3/18 IW Gilman we are at culture wise. All of our guys the team will look to Klaytin Hunsinger 3/19 Central Central support each other and I can’t wait to to get the bats moving offensively. Hun- 3/20 Cissna Park Cissna Park see them do what they do on the field,” singer, a junior, managed 27 hits with 20 3/23 Newman CathJacksonville said DeWerff. RBI’s in 62 at bats last season. 3/25 PBL Milford The Bearcats were unable to even On the mound, the team has a bounti- 3/26 St. Anne St. Anne play their first game of the season due ful selection of pitchers with 10 players 3/29 Westville Milford to poor fielding and weather conditions in the rotation. Brady Marshino, Alex 4/01 Salt Fork Milford until March 23 where they took on New- Barney, Tanner Sobkoviak, Jared Sc4/02 S Newton Kentland man Catholic. hunke, Nick Allen, Klaytin Hunsinger, 4/03 Bis-Henn Bismarck DeWerff says though expectations are Aaron Banning, Luke McCabe, Nick 4/05 Oakwood Oakwood high for the team, he wants his players Warren, and Nick McKinley will all see 4/08 Gtown-RF Milford to maintain a positive outlook no matter their fair share of pitching time. 4/10 Cissna Park Milford the circumstances. Sportsmanship and being a team 4/12 Schlarman Milford “We have high expectations this player are things DeWerff stresses as a 4/13 Beecher Joliet season, but I’m not going to set a bench coach for his team. 4/15 Arm-Poto Potomac mark as far as wins or losses. We focus “We are all in this together. The guy 4/18 Hoopeston Hoopeston on the day to day aspects of the game who is a pinch runner is just as impor4/19 Westville Westville and the process,” he said. tant as our number 3 hitter in my book,” 4/20 Watseka Watseka “If we can bring energy and effort and he said. 4/22 Salt Fork Jamaica a great attitude toward each other even “That’s the great thing about baseball. 4/24 BisHenn Milford when we are having a bad day, I think Every player matters.” 4/25 Oakwood Milford that will show on the field.” 4/29 Gtown-Ridge Georgetown MILFORD BEARCATS ROSTER 5/03 Schlarman Danville Name Year # Name Year # Name Year 5/06 Arm-Poto Milford Alex Barney Jr. 10 Aaron Banning So. 17 Benjamin Jackson Fr. 5/07 IL Lutheran Milford Kaleb Harris Jr. 09 Avi Gu So. 22 Nicholas McKinley Fr. 5/09 Hoopeston Milford Klaytin Hunsinger Jr. 07 Luke McCabe So.
MHS upperclassmen set to have winning season By ZACK WATERS sports@intranix.com After an 11-13 season last year, the Milford Bearcats baseball team is ready to get this year’s season underway. Led by head coach Greg DeWerff, the Bearcats are in no shortage of upperclassmen. DeWerff hopes to use this to his advantage throughout the course of the season. “Last year we had a lot of sophomores, but they’ve matured and stepped into that upperclassmen role along with our two seniors Brady Marshino and Jared Schunke. We lost two good ballplayers last year in Tyler Buhrmaster and Tyler Schmidt but our boys have stepped in to fill those roles really well,” he said. With eight of the team’s 18 total players upperclassmen, the experience and camaraderie will be an added benefit to the team’s success this season. # 23 13 14 19
Name Brady Marshino Jared Schunke Nick Allen Caleb Atwood
Year Sr. Sr. Jr. Jr.
# 18 11 08 15
Tanner Sobkoviak Jr.
12 06
Trey Totheroh Jarid Woodby
So. So.
20
Jordan Raymer
Fr.
21
Nicholas Warren
Fr.
01
Andrew White
Fr.
Time 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 3:30 p.m. 6 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 3 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 10 a.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m.
Pictured is the 2019 Lady Bearcats softball team: (back row, from left) Reyse Mussard, Abby Tovey, Kaylee Warren, Maya McEwen, Kendall McCalla, Brittney Bailey, Lyndsey Leitz, (front row) Jadyn Schermann, Jakki Mowrey, Jordin Lucht, Sam Conley, Emmaleah Marshino, and Julia Bushnell. LADY CATS SCHEDULE Warren’s health on mound key to Lady Cats’ success MILFORD Date Opponent 3/14 By ZACK WATERS Last year, she had some back issues so she couldn’t 3/18 sports@intranix.com play consistently throughout the season. This year 3/25 The Milford Lady Bearcats are looking to improve with her healthy I think that is going to be a huge 3/26 from their 5-9 record last season. contribution to our success.” 3/29 Second-year coach Alyse Morefield is confident in The team is looking to finish this season off with 4/01 her teams abilities so far this season. a positive winning record in their conference, a goal 4/02 “Things are going really well so far. We have a they were unable to obtain last season. One thing Mo- 4/03 really good group of girls who work really well to4/05 refield believes will help get them there is the teams gether. I’m excited and confident for what the rest of 4/08 the season holds,” she said. “I expect my girls to work hitting ability. 4/10 “Hitting is definitely one of our strong suits for sure. hard all year and stay mentally tough and confident.” 4/12 Not that our fielding isn’t but batting wise we are very One thing Morefield is looking forward to is watch4/15 solid.” ing Kaylee Warren on the mound. 4/18 “I’m very confident in our main pitcher Kaylee. The Lady Bearcats current record is 1-0. 4/19 MILFORD LADY CATS ROSTER 4/20 4/22 # Player Year # Player Year 4/24 12 Brittney Bailey Sr. 16 Reyse Mussard Jr. 4/25 14 Lyndsey Leitz Sr. 07 Kaylee Warren Jr. 4/29 4 Kendall McCalla Sr. 10 Julia Bushnell So. 5/03 17 Sam Conley Jr. 03 Jordin Lucht So. 5/06 09 Maya McEwen Jr. 08 Jadyn Schermann So. 5/09 01 Jakki Mowrey Jr. 05 Emmaleah Marshino Fr. 5/11 11 Abby Tovey Fr.
Donovan Iroquois West PBL St. Anne Wetville Salt Fork South Newton Bismarck-Henning Oakwood Gtown-RF Chrisman Schlarman Armstrong-Potomac Hoopeston Westville Watseka Salt Fork Bismarck-Henning Oakwood Gtown-RF Schlarman Armstrong-Potomac Hoopeston Clifton Central
Place Donovan Onarga Home St. Anne Home Home Kentland Bismarck Muncie Home Home Home Armstrong Hoopeston Westville Watseka Catlin Home Home Georgetown Tilton Home Home Home
Time 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 10am 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 4:30pm 10am
March 2019
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
Page 9
The Bearcats are (back row, from left) Spencer Wells, Brad Stock, Jakob Lowe, William Teig, Seth VanHoveln, Cale Clauss, (front row) Noah Garcia, Eddie Bushnell, Raven Satkoski, Caleb VanHoveln, Angel Salinas, Dragan Miljkovic, and (not available for photo) Evan Shaner. MILFORD BEARCATS/LADY CATS SCHEDULE Date Location Time 4/01 GCMS 4:30 p.m. 4/02 PBL 4:30 p.m. 4/04 Catlin 4 p.m. 4/08 Watseka 4:30 p.m. 4/09 Catlin 4 p.m. 4/15 Covington 4 p.m. 4/17 PBL 4:30 p.m. 4/18 Clinton 4 p.m. 4/22 Clifton Central 4:15 p.m. 4/23 Watseka 4 p.m. 4/25 Ridgeview 4:15 p.m. 4/29 Hoopeston 4:30 p.m. 5/02 PBL 4:30 p.m. 5/06 Catlin 4 p.m. 5/07 Ridgeview 4:15 p.m. 5/08-10Girls Sectional4 p.m. 5/15-17Boys Sectional4 p.m. 5/23 State (EIU) 4 p.m.
Milford teams look to improve from last season By ZACK WATERS sports@intranix.com The Milford Track team is looking to improve from last year this season. At this point in the season, the teams’ primary focus is endurance, which coach JD Jennings said the team is working very hard on. “Right now we are keeping a focus on speed endurance with a little focus on relay performance as well,” he said. “We have worked on acceleration development and top speed work. As the season progresses we will build into relay performance which
MILFORD BEARCATS ROSTER Angel Salinas Brad Stock Cale Cluss Caleb Van Hoveln Dragan Miljkovic Eddie Bushnell Evan Shaner
Jakob Lowe Noah Garcia Raven Satkoski Seth VanHoveln Spencer Wells William Teig Malaki Verkler
is the cornerstone of our team’s peak performance.” Last season, the team received fourth place in the 4x100 relay at the state championship and 6th place in the 4x200 while also managing an 11th place spot in the 4x400 at state. The team looks to their returning runners to help lead the charge and push the team to state this year as well. “Our key relay returners include Anna Jennings, Morgan Kaeb, Lexy Puetz and Hannah Osborn. They are all faster and will have more endurance than last year,” said Jennings. “Everybody is all in.”
MILFORD LADY CATS ROSTER Anna Hylbert Anna Jennings Autumn Wells Hannah Osborn Izzy Cohn Cheyenne Gray Kiah Jensen
Lakita Walker Lexy Puetz Makayla Kuester Morgan Kaeb Sarah Hardison Sarah Teig
The Lady Cats are (back row, from left) Autumn Wells, Cheyenne Gray, Anna Hylbert, Alexis Puetz, Lakita Walker, Sarah Teig, (front row) Hannah Osborn, Anna Jennings, Isabelle Cohn, Kiah Jensen, Makayla Kuester, Sarah Hardison, and (not available for photo) Morgan Kaeb.
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Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
Knapper takes over as coach for Lady Wildcats By ZACK WATERS sports@intranix.com The Donovan Lady Wildcats softball team are looking to improve on last season’s 6-16. The Wildcats new coach Molly Knapper is eager to watch her teams progress and rebuild this season after the loss of several seniors last year. “We have a pretty young team this year. A lot of our starters are freshman. We lost 5 seniors last year, so going in we knew we were going to have a hard time filling those positions,” she said. “But the girls seem to be getting along really well and everything is coming together strongly.” In short supply of pitching this season, the team looks at junior Jerzie Waltz to take charge on the
DONOVAN LADY CATS SCHEDULE Date Opponent Location 4/01 St. Anne Donovan 4/02 Manteno Donovan 4/03 St. Anne St. Anne 4/08 Beecher Donovan 4/10 Beecher Beecher 4/11 Kankakee Trinity Kankakee 4/12 North Newton North Newton 4/16 Grace Christian Grace Christian 4/19 Central Donovan 4/22 Illinois Lutheran Donovan 4/24 Illinois Lutheran Illinois Lutheran 4/26 Kankakee Trinity Donovan 4/29 Grant Park Grant Park 5/01 Grant Park Donovan 5/03 Watseka Watseka
mound with sophomore Sophie O’Brien as relief. But Knapper is confident that her team has the capabilities to back up their pitchers both offensively and defensively. “We have been working a lot on our hitting and we have a really decent infield so I think we are going to see some good things.” The Wildcats have yet to see a win so far this season, which Knapper said may take some time before the team finds their groove. Helping her lead her team are seniors Jacqulynne Schill and Evaln Zavala who have been providing the team spirit and solidarity. “They do a very good job.”
DONOVAN LADYCATS ROSTER # Name Year 01 Faith Hann Jr. 04 Jerzie Waltz Jr. 06 Jacqulynne Schill Sr. 07 Kayden Stahlschmidt Fr. 08 Evaln Zavala Sr. 09 Sophie O’Brien So. 10 Emilee Tosh Jr. 11 Hannah Schiel Fr. 12 Paige Ortiz Jr. 14 Autumn Dewing Jr. 15 Hope Mitton Jr. 17 Claire Miller Fr. 25 Hannah Smith So. 27 Kenzie Faupel Fr. 38 EmaLee McManaway Fr.
Time 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 4:30 p.m.
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DONOVAN WILDCATS SCHEDULE Date Opponent Location Time 4/01 St. Anne Donovan 4:30 p.m. 4/03 St. Anne St. Anne 4:30 p.m. 4/04 Hoopeston Hoopeston 4:30 p.m. 4/08 Beecher Donovan 4:30 p.m. 4/10 Beecher Beecher 4:30 p.m. 4/11 Kankakee TrinityKankakee 4:30 p.m. 4/12 North Newton North Newton 4:30 p.m. 4/15 Kankakee TrinityDonovan 4:30 p.m. 4/16 Grace Christian Grace Christian 4:30 p.m. 4/19 Clifton Central Donovan 4:30 p.m. 4/22 Illinois Lutheran Illinois Lutheran 4:30 p.m. 4/29 Grant Park Grant Park 4:30 p.m. 5/01 Grant Park Donovan 4:30 p.m. 5/03 Watseka Watseka 4:30 p.m. 5/06 Cissna Park Cissna Park 4:30 p.m.
DONOVAN WILDCATS ROSTER # Name Year 02 Andy Onnen So. 08 Caleb Klecan So. 11 CJ Swisher Sr. 17 Brodi Winge So. 18 Michael Paris So. 21 Kamerin Davidson Jr. Andy Albright Jr. Dalton Anderson Fr. Jordan Bard Sr. Lane Schrock So. Neyco Mabis Fr. Zachary Whitson Sr.
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March 2019
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
Page 11
Iroquois County at play February 16
Track Central@ Auburn (Rockford) Boys’ Invite
February 23
Track Central @ Auburn (Rockford) Girls’ Invite
March 2
Track Central @ Indoor Meet at ISU Boys and Girls Watseka @ WL Individuals
March 7
Track Watseka @ Hoosier Relays Boys and Girls
March 9
Track Central @ Hoosier Relays @ Purdue
March 11
Baseball Milford (Home) vs. Watseka Softball Watseka @ Catlin
March 12
Track Central @ Reed Custer High School (Reed Custer Indoor Meet--Boys and Girls) Baseball Watseka (Home) vs. Prairie Central Varsity Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Prairie Central
March 13
Baseball Cissna Park @ DanvilleSchlarman
March 14
Baseball Watseka @ Gardner-South Wilmington Softball Watseka @ Gardner-South Wilmington Milford @ Donovan
March 25
Baseball Milford (Home) vs. PBL Watseka @ GCMS Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Armstrong-Potomac Milford (Home) vs. PBL
March 26
Track Central/PBL/IW/MIlford/ Boys and Girls @ Watseka High School Baseball Milford @ St Anne Cissna Park (Home) vs. Dwight Watseka @ Central Iroquois West @ Momence Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Central Milford@ St. Anne
March 28
Track Central @ Paxton-BuckleyLoda High School Baseball Cisnna Park @ Dwight Watseka @ Central Iroquois West @ Momence Softball Watseka @ Central
March 29
April 11
Baseball Cissna Park (Home) vs. Bismarck-Henning Watseka @ Hoopeston
April 1
April 2
Baseball Milford @ Iroquois West Cissna Park @ Fischer Watseka (Home) vs. Grant Park Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Grant Park Milford @ Iroquois West
March 19
Baseball Milford @ Clifton Central Watseka @ Donovan Softball Watseka @ Donovan
March 20
Baseball Milford @ Cissna Park Softball Watseka @ GCMS
March 21
Baseball Watseka @ St. Anne Iroquois West @ Trinity Academy Softball Watseka @ St. Anne
March 22
Track Central @ (Indoor State Track Meet @ IL Weslyan) Watseka @ PrepTimes Indoor Classic Boys Baseball Cissna Park @ St. Anne Iroquois West @ Illinois Lutheran Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Georgetown-Ridgeview
March 23
Baseball Milford @ Newman Catholic Cissna Park (Home) vs. GCMS Watseka (Home) vs. Bismarck-Henning
Track Central (Home) Coal City and Bishop Mac vs Coal City Iroquois West @ Dwight Boys and Girls Baseball Watseka @ Grace Academy Iroquois West @ Cissna Park Softball Watseka (Home) vs. South Newton
March 30
March 18
March 16
April 9
April 10
Track Central @ Comet Classic Invite @ Reed Custer-Boys and Girls
Baseball Watseka @ Beecher Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Fischer
Track Watseka (Home) vs. HA/ Tri-Point/St. Anne/Milford/Il Lutheran Baseball Milford (Home) vs.Georgetown-Ridge Farm Cissna Park @ Watseka Iroquois West @ Fisher Donovan (Home) @ Beecher Softball Watseka @ Grace Academy Iroquois West @ South Newton Milford (Home) vs. Georgetown-Ridge Farm Donovan (Home) vs. Beecher
Baseball Milford (Home) vs. Westville Watseka (Home) vs. St. Anne Softball Watseka (Home) vs. St. Anne Milford @ Westville
Track Central @ GCMS with IW Iroquois West @ GCMS Boys and Girls Baseball Milford (Home) vs. Salt Fork Cissna Park (Home) vs. Armstrong Iroquois West @ GardnerSouth Wilmington Donovan (Home) vs. St. Anne Softball Iroquois West @ GardnerSouth Wilmington Milford (Home) vs. Salt Fork Donovan (Home) @ St. Anne
March 15
April 8
Track Watseka @ STM/PBL/ Fisher Boys and Girls Baseball Milford @ South Newton Cissna Park @ Momence Watseka (Home) vs. PBL Softball Watseka (Home) vs. PBL Iroquois West @ Central Milford @ South Newton Donovan (Home) vs. Manteno
April 3
Baseball Milford @ Bismarck-Henning Donovan @ St. Anne Softball Donovan @ St. Anne
April 04
Track Central @ Girls’ Meet at Fischer Iroquois West @ Salt Fork Boys and Girls Softball Watseka @ PBL Baseball Cissna Park@ Momence Watseka @ PBL Iroquois West @ Central Donovan @ Hoopeston
April 5
Baseball Milford @ Oakwood Watseka (Home) vs. Tri-Point Iroquois West @ Prairie Central Softball Watseka (Home) vs. TriPoint Iroquois West @ Prairie Central Milford @ Oakwood
April 6
Baseball Cissna Park @ Ridgeview Watseka @ GCMS Softball Iroquois West @ Armstrong
Baseball Milford (Home) vs. Cissna Park Donovan @ Beecher Softball Milford (Home) vs. Chrisman Donovan @ Beecher
Track Central (Home) vs. Peotone and Tri-Point Watseka (Home) vs. Momence/BH/Beecher/HA/ Milford Iroquois West @ Fischer Boys and Girls Baseball Cissna Park @ Iroquois West Donovan @ Kankakee Trinity Softball Iroquois West @ Ridgeview Donovan @ Kankakee Trinity
April 12
Track Central @ Tolono Unity Girls Baseball Milford (Home) vs. Schlarman Iroquois West @ Trinity Academy Donovan @ North Newton Softball Iroquois West @ Kankakee Trinity Milford (Home) vs. Schlarman Donovan @ North Newton April 13 Baseball Milford @ Beecher April 15 Track Central @ Wilmington High School Baseball Milford @ ArmstrongPotomac Cissna Park (Home) vs. Watseka Iroquois West @ Kankakee High School Donovan (Home) vs. Kankakee Trinity Softball Milford @ Armstrong-Potomac
April 16
Track Central (Home) Comet Carnival Cissna Park @ PBL Watseka @ Comet Carnival Boys and Girls Iroquois West @ Clifton Central Boys and Girls Baseball Watseka (Home) vs. Dwight Iroquois West @ Illinois Lutheran Donovan @ Grace Christian Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Dwight Iroquois West @ Illinois Lutheran Donovan @ Grace Christian
April 17
Track Central @ PBL Frosh-Soph Invite-Boys and Girls Watseka @ PBL Frosh/Soph Invite Boys and Girls
April 18
Track Central @ GCMS Falcon Incite Girls Central @ Manteno Invitational Boys Watseka @ Unity Invitational Boys Watseka @ Lady Falcon Invitational Girls Baseball Milford @ Hoopeston Cissna Park @ PBL Watseka @ Dwight Softball Watseka @ Dwight Milford @ Hoopeston
April 19
Track Iroquois West @ GCMS Girls Baseball Milford @ Westville Iroquois West @ Ridgeview Donovan (Home) @ Clifton Central Softball Iroquois West @ Hoopeston Milfford @ Westville Donovan (Home) vs. Central
April 20
Baseball Milford @ Watseka Cissna Park (Home) vs. Hoopeston Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Milford
April 22
Track Central (Home) vs. St. Anne, Momence, IW Iroquois West @ Clifton Central Boys and Girls Baseball Milford @ Salt Fork Cissna Park (Home) vs. Armstrong Donovan @ Illinois Lutheran Softball Milford @ Salt Fork Donovan (Home) vs. Illinois Lutheran
April 23
Track Central @ Watseka F/S Invite Boys and Girls Central @ GCMS Falcon Invite Boys Iroquois West @ GCMS Boys Baseball Cissna Park (Home) vs. Clifton Watseka @ Iroquois West Softball Watseka @ Iroquois West
April 24
Track Central @ St. Anne HS (Cardinal Relays) Baseball Milford (Home) vs. Bismarck-Henning Watseka (Home) vs. Herscher Softball Milford (Home) vs. Bismarck-Henning Donovan @ Illinois Lutheran
April 25
Baseball Milford (Home) vs. Oakwood Cissna Park @ Clifton Watseka (Home) vs. Iroquois West Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Iroquois West Milford (Home) vs. Oakwood
April 26
Track Central @ Herscher Invite Watseka @ Herscher Invitational Boys and Girls Iroquois West @ Herscher Boys and Girls
Baseball
Cissna Park @ Kankakee Trinity Watseka (Home) vs. South Newton Iroquois West @ St. Anne
Softball
Iroquois West @ St. Anne Donovan (Home) vs. Kankakee Trinity
April 29
Track Central @ TVC Girls Meet@ PBL Watseka @ Girls TVC Meet Iroquois West @ PBL Girls Only Baseball Milford @ GeorgetownRidge Watseka @ Kankakee Donovan @ Grant Park Softball Milford @ GeorgetownRidge Donovan @ Grant Park
April 30
Track Central @ Reed-Custer High School Watseka (Home) vs. Herscher/Manteno Boys
Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Oakwood Iroquois West @ PBL Baseball Iroquois West @ PBL
May 1
Baseball Donovan (Home) vs. Grant Park Softball Donovan (Home) vs. Grant Park
May 2
Track Central @ PBL Boys Invite Watseka @ PBL Invitational Boys Iroquois West @ PBL Boys Baseball Iroquois West @ PBL Softball Iroquois West @ PBL
May 3
Track Central (Home) Friday Night Lights Meet Watseka @ Lady Spartan Classic Girls Iroquois West @ St. JosephOgden Girls Baseball Milford @ Schlarman Watseka (Home) vs. onovan Iroquois West @ Grace Christian Academy Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Donovan Iroquois West @ Grace Christian Milford @ Schlarman
May 4
Baseball Cissna Park (Home) vs. South Newton Softball Watseka (Home) vs. Hoopeston Area Iroquois West @ Schlarman (Double Header) @ Leroy
May 6
Track Central @ TVC Boys Meet @ Dwight Watseka @ Boys TVS Meet Iroquois West @ Dwight Boys Only Baseball Milford (Home) vs. Armstrong-Pontiac Cissna Park (Home) vs. Champaign Judah Christian Watseka (Home) vs. St. Thomas More Donovan @ Cissna Park Softball Watseka @ St. Thomas More Milford (Home) vs. Armstrong-Potomac
May 7
Baseball Milford (Home) IL Lutheran Watseka @ Momence Iroquois West @ Dwight Softball Iroquois West @ Dwight
May 9
Track Central @ Girls Sectional @ TBA Watseka @ Girls Sectional Girls Iroquois West @ Girls Sectional Baseball Milford (Home) vs. Hoopeston Watseka @ Momence Iroquois West @ Dwight Softball Iroquois West @ Dwight Milford (Home) vs. Hoopeston
May 10
Baseball Watseka @ Grant Park Softball Iroquois West @ Armstrong
May 11
Baseball Cissna (Home) vs. DanvilleSchlarman Iroquois West @ South Newton Softball Milford (Home) vs. CliftonCentral
May 13
Track Central @ Dwight Tony Thorsen Invite Watseka @ News Gazette Honor Roll Meet Iroquois West @ Champaign Boys and Girls Baseball Watseka (Home) IHSA Regional Tournament
May 14
Baseball Watseka (Home) IHSA Regional Tournament
May 15
Baseball Watseka (Home) IHSA Regional Tournament
May 16
Track Central @ IHSA State Finals-Girls Central @ Boys’ Sectional @ TBA Watseka @ Girls State Meet Watseka @ Boys Sectional Iroquois West @ Boys Sectional Baseball Watseka (Home) IHSA Regional Tournament
May 17
Baseball Watseka (Home) IHSA Regional Tournament
May 18
Track Central @ IHSA State Finals-Girls Baseball Watseka (Home) IHSA Regional Tournament
May 21
Baseball Watseka (TBA) IHSA Sectional Tournament
May 22
Baseball Watseka (TBA) IHSA Sectional Tournament
May 23
Track Central @ IHSA State Finals-Boys Watseka @ Boys State Track Meet Baseball Watseka (TBA) IHSA Sectional Tournament
May 24
Baseball Watseka (TBA) IHSA Sectional Tournament
May 25
Track Central @ IHSA State Finals-Boys Baseball Watseka (TBA) IHSA Sectional Tournament
May 27
Baseball Watseka (TBA) Super Sectionals
May 31
Baseball Watseka @ Joliet IHSA State Finals
June 1
Watseka @ Joliet IHSA State Finals
Page 12
Iroquois County’s Times-Republic Sports
March 2019
The Cissna Park Timberwolves — (front row, from left) Bryce Sluis, ZanePierce, Conner Lober, Keegan Boyle, Devin Hull, Brendan Truman, Dawson Savoree, Mario Renteria, (back row) Ryan King, Tharen Blanck. Damian Renteria, Will Petry, Ian Rogers, Rudy King, Malaki Verkler, Bailey Sluis, Coach Darryl Focken — stand in front of their dugout earlier this season.
Wildcats’ rotation to evolve over season
CISSNA PARK TIMBERWOLVES SCHEDULE Date Opponent Location Time 4:30 p.m. By ZACK WATERS mound last season, the Timberwolves have the talent. But Fo- 03/13 Danville-Schlar Danville Fisher 4:30 p.m. sports@intranix.com cken says someone who has really impressed him this season 03/18 Fisher 03/20 Milford Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. The Cissna Park Timberwolves baseball team has no shortis freshman Damian Renteria. St. Anne 4:30 p.m. age of guys that know how to play the game this season, and “Damian has pitched the most for us so far this season. He is 03/22 St. Anne 03/23 GCMS Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. with nine of the team’s 17 players being upperclassmen that a bull out their on the mound. He doesn’t ever complain about 03/26 Dwight Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. should come at no surprise. who he is competing against, he just goes out there and throws 03/28 Dwight Dwight 4:30 p.m. “Our rotation is going to continue to evolve this season,” the baseball and he throws it very well.” 03/30 Bismarck-Henn Cissna Park 10 a.m. said head coach Darryl Focken. As far as leadership, the Timberwolves have two guys that 04/01 Armstrong Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. “I have 12 guys that can really play ball. So, if you didn’t Focken knows he can always count on. 04/02 Momence Momence 4:30 p.m. play well in a particular game the next guy maybe gets a “Conner Lober and Keegan Boyle are my leaders this year. 04/04 Momence Momence 4:30 p.m. chance.” Both are terrific leaders, terrific athletes and terrific kids. They 04/06 Ridgeview Ridgeview 10 a.m. Focken looks to keep his players on their toes so that every do an excellent job of helping in practice and keeping every04/08 Watseka Watseka 4:30 p.m. player is always giving it their all. body in line.” 04/09 Iroquois West Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. “I think when you are looking a little bit over your shoulder With a conference as talented as Cissna Park’s, Focken 04/10 Milford Milford 4:30 p.m. and realize that maybe you aren’t playing the best, the kids 04/11 Iroquois West Gilman 4:30 p.m. knows the competition will not be easy but he welcomes it stop and realize that somebody is going to get that position 04/15 Watseka Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. head on. over them and I think that pushes them to work harder.” 04/16 PBL PBL 4:30 p.m. “I don’t think there is really any weak link in the conference One aspect of the team that Focken is confident in is his 04/18 PBL PBL 4:30 p.m. this year. I think everyone is really talented this season and I team’s pitching ability. With senior Mario Renteria as the 04/20 Hoopeston Cissna Park 10 a.m. teams left-hander and Ian Rogers who spent time on the look forward to the competition.” 04/22 Armstrong Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. CISSNA PARK TIMBERWOLVES ROSTER 04/23 Clifton Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. Clifton 4:30 p.m. # Name Year # Name Year # Name Year 04/25 Clifton Kankakee 4:30 p.m. 09 Conner Lober Sr. 29 Rudy King Jr. 01 Ian Rogers So. 04/26 K3 Trinity 4:30 p.m. 10 Mario Renteria Sr. 25 Zane Pierce Jr. 08 Brendan Truman So. 05/04 South Newton Cissna Park 05/06 Donovan Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. 03 Dawson Savoree Sr. 21 Will Petry Jr. 06 Damian Renteria Fr. 05/09 Judah Christian Cissna Park 4:30 p.m. 14 Bailey Sluis Sr. 17 Devin Hull So. 04 Bryce Sluis Fr. 05/11 Danville-Schlar Cissna Park 10 a.m. 26 Tharen Blanck Jr. 30 Ryan King So. 15 Brayden Sinn Fr. 11 Keegan Boyle Jr. 13 Malaki Verkler Fr.