It’s safe to say that Saturday was one of the biggest days of high school sports of the winter season.
The Heart of Illinois Conference Tournaments finished off with a lot of close calls and last-second shots, and the Redbird Roundball Classic provided two must-see matchups. The Mid-Illini and Big 12 also hosted their conference tournaments in boys wrestling, with many wrestlers from the area taking home individual titles.
Check out all the scores, recaps and top performers from the day in Saturday’s edition of The Roundup!
In boys basketball
El Paso-Gridley 71, Tri-Valley 69 (OT): The Heart of Illinois Conference Tournament championship came down to the final two schools, the No. 1 seed Vikings and No. 2 seed Titans. After a close-fought battle, the championship game went to overtime. Lucas Shaffer ended up being the hero, hitting a clutch three in the dying seconds, helping El Paso-Gridley (15-5, 3-3 Heart of Illinois) clinch the title. Shaffer would end the night with 9 points, while teammates Micah Meiss and Jayvion Mason would score 20 and nine respectively. For Tri-Valley, Brayden Stombaugh had an electric 32 points, alongside Ayden Jensen’s 17 and Tommy Kinsella’s 13.
Metamora 61, Evanston 58: The Redbird Roundball Classic continued with Metamora (20-4, 8-0 Mid-Illini) taking on the Wildkits of Evanston. Bradley commit Matthew Zobrist was the talking point of this one, scoring 18 points, and hitting the go-ahead three pointer with 2.4 seconds left in the fourth quarter to win in dramatic fashion. Ashton Grieves added 12 points for the Redbirds.
Peoria High 61, Washington 47: Peoria High (18-6, 4-1 Big 12) came into this one after a big win against Peoria Notre Dame, and kept its momentum rolling against Washington (6-14, 3-5). LeShawn Stowers led the Lions with 20 points, while Fenix Foy was right behind him, scoring 12. James Johnson had a huge game for the Panthers, scoring 23 of the team’s 47 points.
Morton 75, Chicago St. Ignatius 57: Morton (18-4, 9-0 Mid-Illini) competed in the Fulton Eric Otten Shootout, against Chicago-area power St. Ignatius. The Potters were on fire from the tip-off and Silas Steffen led the Potters in points with 29, while Alex McKie tacked on 19 points, including 15 from beyond the arc.
Dunlap 62, Pekin 55: Illinois football head coach Bret Bielema was in attendance for this game, to watch football recruit Mack Sutter play for Dunlap (8-13, 5-3 Mid-Illini) and Sutter delivered, getting a double-double, with 23 points, 17 rebounds, and 4 assists. Even with another outstanding performance from Pekin’s Peyton Hess, who got 34 points, seven rebounds, and made 12 of his 14 field goal attempts, the Dragons (8-11, 1-7) couldn’t handle the Eagles in the second half, scoring 43 points in the third and fourth alone, including eight three-pointers.
East Peoria 67, Limestone 46: In a conference matchup between two solid teams, East Peoria (15-5, 5-3 Mid-Illini) were the better team in the end, winning against Limestone (9-11, 3-5 Mid-Illini). Both teams continue conference play on Tuesday, when East Peoria goes up against Canton, and Limestone travels to Dunlap.
Normal West 50, Pontiac 42: Normal West (6-15, 1-5 Big 12) hoped to get a second win in a row against the Pontiac Indians. The teams both put up a good fight, but the Wildcats emerged from Pontiac victorious by eight points. Normal West will hope to extend their winning streak as they take on Peoria High on Friday.
Lexington 62, Fieldcrest 57: The 3rd-place game of the HOIC Tournament brought a lot to the table and the Minutemen ended up taking down the Knights. Fieldcrest’s Ed Lorton was the team’s top scorer with 21 pts, with Kash Klendworth adding on 20, and Jordan Heider scoring 10 more.
Tremont 61, Dee-Mack 56: Tremont (19-3, 5-0 Heart of Illinois) looked to get 5th place in the HOIC Tournament against Dee-Mack (9-13, 3-3 Heart of Illinois). Off the back of performances by Andrew Dawson (17 points) and Griffin Meeker (11), the Turks were able to do just that. The Chiefs kept it close throughout, thanks to Jerry Hahn’s 17 points and 6 rebounds, alongside Levi Keyser’s 11 points and Shaun Denniston’s 10.
LeRoy 48, Heyworth 45: After a loss to Lexington and a win against GCMS, Heyworth (9-12, 0-4 Heart of Illinois) hoped to finish the HOIC Tournament strong by winning the consolation final. However, LeRoy was able to just squeeze past the Hornets and get the win. Chase Ruppert and Logan Mills led Heyworth in scoring with 22 and 12 points respectively.
Normal U-High 57, BCC 50: In a big rivalry matchup, Normal U-High (13-11, 3-4 Central State Eight) was able to get a victory over the Saints, but not without a very good fight from their opposition. Owen Kirby led the Pioneers with 17 points, while teammates Cameron Johnson and Dallas Smith had 12 points and 6 rebounds each. As for the Saints, Keshaun Manney led the team with 22 pts, as well as getting another 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Trey Eller was close behind with 15 points.
Farmington 75, Knoxville 33: Farmington (7-11, 3-2 Prairieland), after an impressive win on Friday against Elmwood, returned home to play against winless Knoxville. As many predicted, the Farmers had their way with the Blue Bullets, winning by 42 points. Farmington will continue their non-conference set of games against Mercer County on Monday.
Princeville 53 Midwest Central 24: Princeville (18-3, 5-0 Lincoln Trail) extended its win streak to 14 behind 15 points from Tucker Sennett and 12 from Jake Williams.
In girls basketball
Eureka 42, Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley 41: The title game of the girls HOIC Tournament had everything one could ask for, offensively and defensively. Down by 2 with two seconds left on the clock, Mya Edwards, a welcome addition to the Hornets after missing the semifinal with a flu, hit a half-court buzzer beater to win the title in dramatic fashion. Eureka (19-6, 7-1 Heart of Illinois) was led by Gaba Musselman, who had 12 points along with Skylar Knapp.
Washington 55, Manual 26: Washington (25-1, 8-1 Mid-Illini), just coming off their 200th win under head coach Kim Barth, dominated the Rams by 29 points. Avery Tibbs led the Panthers with 18 points, while Dani Guedet contributed another 17 points, and Becca McDougall had 11 rebounds.
Morton 54, Galesburg 30: Morton (18-4, 9-0 Mid-Illini) traveled to Galesburg to take on the state-ranked Silver Streaks, where the Potters didn’t let go of the gas pedal and picked up a big marquee win. Paige Selke led the Potters’ scoring with 20.
Dunlap 77, Richwoods 60: Dunlap (16-10, 4-5 Mid-Illini) was led by the freshmen against Richwoods. With amazing performances by Amiyah Gulley (26 points), Keyaira Haywood (24), and Keniya Todd (22), the Eagles cruised past the Knights by 17.
Limestone 60, Bloomington 41: Limestone (11-12, 1-8 Mid-Illini) had their way throughout this game, as Bloomington (13-8, 6-1 Big 12) could not find a way to pass the Rockets on the scoreboard. Hannah West had a 23 point and 12 rebound game for Limestone and Michaela Pilgrim was at 26 points on the day. Sosi Dadekian led the Purple Raiders with a dozen points.
Peoria Notre Dame 57, Batavia 26: Peoria Notre Dame (21-4, 7-0 Big 12) had one of the biggest performances of the night, blowing out Batavia. Julia Mingus scored 20 points, along with 4 steals and 3 rebounds, while Lexi Baer was right behind her with 14 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists.
Normal Community 67, Lincoln-Way West 43: Normal Community (19-6, 5-2 Big 12) hosted Lincoln-Way East and the Lady Iron came out victorious against the 17-9 Griffins. Normal Community will get back to Big 12 play on Tuesday, as they take on Bloomington on the road.
Normal West 53, Bradley Bourbonnais 45: Normal West (9-13, 4-3 Big 12) looked in prime position to get a win last night against Bradley Bourbonnais, which is what the Wildcats went out and did. Normal West will have the Potters of Morton next on their schedule when they come to town on Tuesday.
Dee-Mack 43, Tri-Valley 41: HOIC Tournament No. 1 seed Dee-Mack (19-3, 8-0 Heart of Illinois) and No. 2 seed Tri-Valley (16-6, 5-2 Heart of Illinois) battled close until the end, but the Chiefs had the slight edge over the Vikings in the scoring department. Dee-Mack’s Lexi Cottingham and Dalia DeJesus each scored a team-leading 15, while Tri-Valley’s Brinlea Liebendorfer led the Vikings with eight.
Tremont 62, LeRoy 28: Tremont (21-4, 3-2 Heart of Illinois) played some of their best basketball in the fifth-place game of the HOIC Tournament. Holding LeRoy to just 28 points, the Turks earned a big win. Savannah Jost led Tremont with 22 points, and Lilly Elston was right behind her with 19.
Fieldcrest 78, Fisher 33: The consolation finals of the HOIC Tournament was no problem for Fieldcrest (12-10, 4-3 Heart of Illinois) as it took care of the Fisher Bunnies, beating them by 45. TeriLynn Timmerman led the Knights with 28 points, as Pru Mangan scored another 24, and Macy Gochanour added 13 more.
IVC 61, Rantoul 39: IVC (16-6, 6-1 Illini Prairie) dominated conference foe Rantoul as the Grey Ghosts were on fire and couldn’t be put out. Rianna Foster led the team in scoring with 23 points, as well as nine rebounds, two blocks, and three assists. Mary Zerfass (11 points, six rebounds, three assists), Alayah Nelton (10 points, seven rebounds, two blocks, two assists), and Kayt Miller (10 points, six rebounds) also contributed to a well-deserved IVC win.
Quincy Notre Dame 51, Bloomington Central Catholic 37: BCC (16-7, 5-0 Illini Prairie) had a very tough challenge against Quincy Notre Dame, which proved to be a touch too difficult for the Saints. Bloomington Central Catholic will resume play on Monday, when they meet up against Paxton-Buckley-Loda.
Decatur St. Teresa 31, Normal U-High 19: Normal U-High (7-16, 1-5 Central State Eight) made a good effort but unfortunately, it wasn’t enough for the Pioneers to take down the Bulldogs of St. Teresa. Normal U-High will travel away from home on Tuesday today to take on Springfield Southeast.
In boys wrestling
At Pekin: Washington won the Mid-Illini Conference Title once again, finishing with 246.5 points as Morton (146.5) took second and Canton (136) came in third. Dunlap, East Peoria, Limestone, Metamora and Pekin rounded it the finishing order. The Panthers’ conference champions were Symon Woods (106), Logan Makiney (120), Noah Woods (126), Payton Cox (144), Wyatt Medlin (157) and Josh Hoffer (215). Morton’s title winners included Noah Harris (113) and Clay McKee (165). Canton featured five second-place finishers and Connor Williams winning the 285-pound bracket. Joseph Weeks of Dunlap proved his dominance, winning the 175-pound bracket while East Peoria’s Cooper Chester (132) and Dalton Oakman (190) won conference titles. Metamora’s Grady Neal won at 150 pounds.
At Champaign: Normal Community was the clear-cut champion at the Big 12 Conference Tournament, winning with 225 points over runner-up Richwoods (152) and third-place Peoria Notre Dame (105). Bloomington took fourth, Normal West came in seventh, Peoria High took ninth and Manual came in 11th. The Ironmen had multiple conference champions, including Jackson Soney (106), Caden Correll (113), Mason Soney (120), Cole Gentsch (126), Gavin Capodice (150), Victor Reyes (165), Jaren Frankowiak (175) and Cole Kretsinger (190). Richwoods’ Rikyis Doss (144) and Shaun Anderson (285) both won conference titles, as did Ian Akers at 132 for PND. Bloomington’s Kenner Bye was the 215-pound champion.
At LeRoy: El Paso-Gridley led a healthy contingent of local teams at the Randy Bowman Invitational, finishing fifth while Eureka took 11th, Heyworth took 12th, Illini Bluffs came in 15th, Dee-Mack slotted in 19th and Peoria Heights in 22nd. Ryden Barker won it all at 215 pounds for EPG while Tom Erwin (113) and Dominic Ricconi (190) finished second. Sam Hoffman was Eureka’s best wrestler, finishing second at 157 pounds. Trevor Soice (144) and Jarrod Fulcher (190) both finished fourth for Heyworth and Illini Bluffs’ Jackson Carroll was the 150-pound champion. Evan King led Dee-Mack by taking fifth at 106 pounds.
At Orion: Normal U-High finished 10th and Farmington finished tied for 15th at the Bob Mitton Invite at Orion. The Pioneers’ Ruben Rivera moved to 32-6 on the season by taking third at 126 pounds to lead U-High. Bradlee Ellis led Farmington once again by winning the 144-pound bracket and winning his fifth tournament of the season.
In boys swimming
At LaSalle-Peru: Dunlap finished sixth at the St. Charles North Invitational with Normal U-High taking eighth and Peoria Notre Dame finished 10th. The Eagles were led by Connor Devanna’s sixth-place finish in the 100 breaststroke.
At Palos Heights: Bloomington took seventh out of 12 teams at the Shepard Invite as Elijah Metz finished second in diving and Elliott Tolentino came in fourth in the 50 free.