By Woodrow Carroll For the second consecutive season, Illinois’ kicker, James McCourt, a 6-1 and 215-pound senior, came through at the most opportune time for the Fighting Illini. Saturday at Rutgers, McCourt’s 47-yard field goal with :03 remaining in regulation gave Illinois a 23-20 victory, its first of the season,
Sports are in a topsy-turvey world along with much of our existence, propelled by the COVID-19 existence. Still, we continue. We are refreshed by a few signposts along the way. Although muzzled, muffled, and stifled, college football has found a way, in limited fashion, college basketball is ready to begin,
Three runners represented Waubonsee Community College at the 2020 NJCAA Division II National meet on Saturday in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Following the full-scholarship NJCAA Division I and non-scholarship Division III women’s and men’s events, the first Division II run was held. Waubonsee freshman Tony LoPresti paced the trio of competitors,
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors held a virtual update session November 11, to review recent developments related to the IHSA basketball season ahead of the Board’s regularly scheduled meeting November 19. The Board announced that they are formally inviting representatives from JB governor Pritzker’s Office and
By Bobby Narang York High School first-year boys head basketball coach Mike Dunn might have to wait a bit longer for his debut season at his new school. The former Yorkville High School coach has a long family history that dates back 100 years with York High School. But the
By Woodrow Carroll Both football teams at Northern Illinois University and the University of Illinois have worked themselves into bad positions without victories through last weekend. Northern Illinois, 0-1, following a defeat at the hands of the visiting University of Buffalo, 49-30, in a season and home-opener in DeKalb, was
Clarity in high school Winter sports is under way. We just do not know when it will arrive. Wrestling has been moved out of its traditional Winter role. The next question is when basketball will be played. The question to be resolved is will basketball be moved to Spring, or,
A trio of runners from the Waubonsee Community College cross country team will participate in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCCA) Division I National met in Fort Dodge, Iowa, Saturday. Daphne Kolody from the women’s team and men’s team’s Tony LoPresti and Dalton Klignensmith qualified last weekend in the
By Bobby Narang November is normally a special time of the season in high school sports. The weather turns chilly, leaves start to fall, and the football season is reaching a high point with the start of the playoffs. With basketball practices heating up and the State cross country meet,
By Woodrow Carroll The visiting Purdue University football team played Illinois in Champaign Saturday, which figured to be interesting with the unsettling and hovering nature of COVID-19 hovering. The nasty virus played its unfriendly and unsettling part. The game, the Illini home opener, proved to be better than expected. Illinois
Northern Illinois University senior punter Matt Ference is on pace to set school records. Northern Illinois University football photo
Arthur Graham, Naperville Central; Katrina Schlenker, Batavia; Micah Wilson, St. Charles East; and Lianna Surtz of Rosary in Aurora, forever will have a common thread woven by their high school cross country 2020 season. They captured first places in their final meets of the season. They are sectional champions. Their
By John Schutt NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity 500, Martinsville Speedway, Martinsville, Va., Xfinity 500, Sunday, Nov. 1. Chase Elliott won the championship at Martinsville to qualify for the final four in Phoenix at 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 8. Second place was won by Ryan Blaney, Joe Logano was in third,
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors met for a special board meeting Wednesday, Oct. 28, where the Board provided the latest information on the IHSA’s Winter sports season. The Board voted to move the sport of wrestling from the Winter season to the Summer season, which will
By Bobby Narang The future looks bright for the St. Charles North High School girls swimming team. But the present shines as well. The North Stars concluded their season in style, by scoring 228 points to win the St. Charles North Sectional championship Saturday afternoon. St. Charles East managed to
By Woodrow Carroll The Big Ten Conference made this season’s football debut Friday evening in Madison, Wis. with the University of Illinois at Wisconsin. The season opener was not pretty for Illinois. Wisconsin had things pretty much under control from start in a 45-7 victory. Illinois will seek to get
Compacting news and thoughts into limited space with other important and relevant items: • The Los Angeles Dodgers were a youthful and talented team in 2016 when the Chicago Cubs advanced past the Dodgers on the way to the World Series championship. This year was the Dodgers’ third trip to
By Bobby Narang In a normal year, the majority of the State would be preparing for an exciting blend of State competitions and playoff football. Not this season. Normal is not Fall State series following the Illinois High School Association’s (IHSA) decision not to take any risks due to the
Metea Valley High School’s Meera Baid uses a forehand return in the Class 2A West Aurora Sectional singles tournament Saturday at the Vaughan Athletic Center in Aurora.
By Woodrow Carroll Earlier this year there was considerable concern for Major League Baseball’s (MLB) getting off the ground this season. It was in jeopardy with the COVID-19 scare making life miserable. The MLB played this season, albeit in truncated form. For those of us used to a 162-game season,
