By Woodrow Carroll We love the underdog. The sports public long has been fascinated by an athlete or team overcoming odds, even if the perception is far from reality. At the start of the 2021 NCAA men’s Division I basketball tournament, we were introduced to a host of surprise teams.
By John Schutt NASCAR Cup Series, Food City Dirt Race, Bristol Motor Speedway Dirt, Bristol Tenn., Monday, March 29. The half-mile mile asphalt track nick-named the Colosseum of NASCAR racing, was converted to a dirt track. More than 2,000 truck-loads of special dirt was brought in to lay a perfect
Sports treats: • Major League Baseball opening day, Thursday, April 1. Will it be a full season of games following last season’s delayed start and abbreviated season? It would be great. Hope springs eternal: Can both Chicago teams be successful this season? Injuries may be factors. • Minor League baseball
Oswego High School’s Anthony Cikauskas brings pressure to Plainfield South quarterback Izaiah Huertz, 5, in Friday’s first game of the six-week season.
Aurora University fastpitch softball pitcher Hannah Tomasko offers a challenge to a batter in a March 14 home game.
East Aurora High School’s Nathaniel Mojica, 11, looks for an opening against Elgin defenders in Friday’s season-opener for both teams.
Evan Brown of Oswego High School sees a clear field on his way to a 30-yard touchdown run, the team’s third TD of the evening against visiting Plainfield South High School.
The knowledgeable sports fan understands that games are played on the field, in the courts, and not in the computerized world, or, within any rating system. It takes flesh, on occasion blood, physical prowess, and mental strength to achieve success. Each day is different and each game may have changing
By Bobby Narang Northern Illinois University head football coach, Thomas Hammock, kicked off Spring practice by discussing the upcoming season. The former Northern Illinois star running back enters a pivotal year in his head coaching tenure after the Huskies lost all six of their games last season in the condensed
By Woodrow Carroll As nice as was Loyola University’s 71-58 victory over top-seeded Illinois Sunday, at least from the victorious Ramblers’ stand point in the Division I men’s college basketball tournament which started with a field of 68 teams, it was not the first time the Ramblers took a meaningful
West Aurora High School’s Elijah Hardersen, 6, receives a challenge from Plainfield East’s Joseph Duarte, 9, in the soccer match Thursday, March 18.
Oswego High School’s Xavier Howard, 20, shoots over visiting Metea Valley defenders Saturday in the non-conference basketball game.
By Woodrow Carroll True or false? The first team to enter the men’s NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) basketball tournament undefeated ended up losing to Illinois. True of course! The question would have looked silly if Illinois were not the correct answer. The first NCAA tournament was in 1939 with
By Bobby Narang Benet Academy High School boys basketball head coach Gene Heidkamp made sure to take his time walking off the court Friday. The Redwings were one of the small group of boys and girls basketball teams to finish the truncated 2021 season March 12. The official end of
Aurora University’s Joseph Dey, 36, is pressured by Elmhurst University’s Ryan Camarata, 31, Wednesday, March 11.
Sports continue in a state of flux. With the Major League Baseball season on the horizon in an April 1 start, the let up in the COVID-19 is by no means complete. Lurking around the corner are tests, cancellations, and postponements in the schedule of playing games. Few of us
East Aurora High School’s Jacques Kelly, 4, stretches for control of the ball under the basket Saturday in a battle for control of the Upstate Eight Conference boys basketball race against Bartlett High School
By Woodrow Carroll Some things fall into place after many rough moments. For Chicago’s Loyola University men’s head basketball coach Porter Moser the present and future have a rosy glow. Sunday in St. Louis, Mo., Moser’s Loyola Ramblers defeated the Drake Bulldogs, 75-65, to capture the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament
March Madness refers to the time of the year when high school and college basketball tournaments generate enthusiasm, even growing to a fever pitch. High school basketball in the State, known as the Original March Madness, will be silent for a second consecutive year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last
