By Ben Cox
Junior High Cross Country
Junior high cross country runners across the region competed in the IESA state cross country meet October 17-18 at Maxwell Park in Normal. To follow are the runners that qualified for the state meet from the area this year.
Boys 1A: Franklin – Andrew Ford, Kollin Ford, Mason Hill, Derrius Lyons, Adolph Prochazka, Carson Smith, Elliott Turpin and Nathan Willman; Our Saviour School – Jack Whalen and Tal York
Boys 2A: Virginia – Corbin Beck
Boys 4A: Jacksonville Middle School – Owyn Haverfield
Girls 1A: Franklin – Raelyn Aguilar, Makinsey Colwell, Ireland DeFord, Brooklyn Hill, Emma Kunzeman, Charlie Mutch, Mallory Smith, Alaina Strode and Phoenix Wessing; Illinois School for the Deaf – Celine Kuhn
Girls 2A: Virginia – Alais Anderson
Celine Kuhn’s qualification is of note because she became the first person ever from ISD to qualify for the IESA state cross country meet. Kuhn finished 111th with a time of 14:16.1. The top finisher for the girls in the area in 1A was Franklin 7th grader Brooklyn Hill, who finished 33rd with a time of 13:22.8. On the boys side, Corbin Beck of Virginia was the top finisher in the area in the 2A sectional, finishing 11th overall with a time of 11:18.
High School Football
With the Jacksonville High School Crimsons playoff prospects hanging in the balance, senior quarterback Braden Hutchison put his team on his back and carried them into the end zone on a quarterback sneak on fourth-and-goal with 39 seconds left to defeat the Decatur MacArthur Generals 36-33. The victory moved the Crimsons to 4-4 on the season, keeping playoff eligibility hopes alive. The Crimsons host Lincoln (1-6) on senior night on October 24, needing just one win to become playoff eligible.
Routt Catholic’s football game was moved up on October 18 to an early morning game at Freesen Field due to the threats of rain. The change in time didn’t help the result for the Rockets. The playoff bound Calhoun Warriors turned on the jets in the second half, defeating the Rockets 42-14. Routt wraps up their season on the road next week against Pleasant Hill-Western.
The West Central Cougars kept their playoff hopes alive with a 58-50 shootout win over the Mendon Unity Mustangs at home this past week. The Cougars are 4-4 on the season and need a win at Beardstown this week to become playoff eligible. Mendon Unity also is 4-4 and welcome in Greenfield-Northwestern who became playoff eligible this past week.
The reason why the GNW Tigers are playoff eligible is because they thumped the Triopia Trojans at home 35-12 this past week. The Trojans couldn’t seem to find an offensive answer to the Tigers in the second half of this past week’s game. The Trojans (4-4) need a win at home against WIVC South rival Carrollton (5-3) to be playoff eligible. Calhoun and Camp Point Central have all but clinched the conference titles in the WIVC and are looking to the playoff seedings in two weeks.
High School Volleyball
Routt (13-18) went 1-1 this past week, falling to South County on October 14 and defeating ISD in straight sets on October 15. Routt wraps up their season versus Liberty and New Berlin this week before starting Regionals at Rushville-Industry on October 28.
Triopia (23-9) also went 1-1 this week. They fell to Pittsfield in three sets on October 13 and won in straight sets over Beardstown on October 16. The Trojans play against Athens, South Fulton and West Central. They begin play in the West Central Regional at Bluffs on October 28 against Camp Point Central.
West Central finished 7th this past weekend at the Waverly Volleyball Tournament. Their lone win at the tournament came against Raymond-Lincolnwood. The Cougars are 3-27 and wrap up their regular season this week against WIVC foes Brown County and Triopia. They host the regional this year at Bluffs and start play against #1 seed Augusta Southeastern on October 27.
South County (14-15) finished 7th at their home tournament in Waverly this past weekend. They picked up wins over North Mac and West Central in the tournament. They fell to Porta A/C and Augusta Southeastern. Augusta was the tournament’s champion. The Vipers wrap up their season against Calvary, New Berlin and Porta A/C this week. They begin regional play at Rushville-Industry on October 27 as a 7-seed against Brown County.
Jacksonville High School (15-17) went 2-2 at the Bethalto Civic Memorial Tournament held this past weekend. The Lady Crimsons wrap up their season with games against Rochester and Mt. Pulaski this week. They will start postseason play hosting the regional in Class 3A. The Crimsons are a #5 seed and will take on Sacred Heart-Griffin on October 28.
High School Boys Soccer
Jacksonville finished their regular season of play this last week. They ended the season with a 1-1 tie against Mt. Zion, putting their record at 15-3-4 and 4-2-2 in the Central State 8 Conference. They begin play in the Class 2A Regional at Jerseyville this week as a #5 seed. They will face off against Springfield High on October 21 for a chance to move on.
High School Girls Tennis
The Jacksonville High School doubles team of Leah Range and Abby White finished 4th at the Mt. Zion Sectionals tournament. They fell in the 3rd place game to Sacred Heart-Griffin’s doubles team of Lucia Hassebrock and Catalina Mosquera 6-0, 7-5. Range and White move on to play in the 2A doubles state tournament this week. They are the first qualifiers for the state tennis tournament from JHS since 2014.
Illinois College Sports
The Illinois College football team rushed for 372 yards in a 64-14 victory over Knox College in a rain-shortened game at England Stadium on October 18. The Blueboys’ defense held Knox to 149 yards and was led by Drake Stuart’s 8 tackles. The Blueboys hit the road this week to face Ripon College.
The Illinois College men’s soccer team scored on a penalty kick with under a minute left to forge a 1-1 draw with Grinnell College on the road on October 18. The Blueboys return to England Stadium for the final time in 2025 as they entertain Lawrence University for senior day on October 25.
The Illinois College women’s soccer team punched its ticket to the Midwest Conference Tournament for the first time in program history with a 2-0 win over Grinnell on the road on October 18. The 6-1-0 record in Midwest Conference play is the best conference record in the program’s history. IC’s six conference wins are also a school record. The Lady Blues’ 10 overall wins are the second-most in program history, which is tied with last season’s total. The Lady Blues return home to close out the 2025 regular season portion of the schedule when they host Lawrence on October 25.
The Illinois College men’s swimming team ran its dual meet winning streak to 13 with a pair of wins on October 18 at the Decatur YMCA Pool. The Blueboys stopped North Central 143-31 and Millikin 139-48. IC has won 13 straight dual meets dating back to last season. Routt Catholic graduate Cade Emerick secured points for the team with a victory in the 1,000-yard freestyle. The Blueboys swim team travels next to the Monmouth Invitational on November 1.
The Illinois College women’s swimming team posted its first two dual meet victories of the season, cruising past North Central and Millikin at the same meet.
