Class 2A
Casey-Westfield 41, Cumberland 0
Class 4A
Bishop McNamara 35, Chicago Christian 21
Bloomington Central Catholic 49, Champaign St. Thomas More 8
Genoa 38, Hampshire 34
Class 5A
Hillcrest 36, Chicago Marshall 8
Kankakee 56, Harper 6
Class 6A
Chicago Morgan Park 18, Crystal Lake Central 15
Glenbard South 48, Riverside-Brookfield 31
Grant 32, Vernon Hills 31, 2OT
Highland Park 35, Prairie Ridge 28
Huntley 70, Batavia 63
Class 7A
Carmel 45, Wheeling 33
Crystal Lake South 24, St. Charles North 21
De La Salle 7, Belleville West 0
Downers North 8, Wheaton Warrenville South 7
St. Rita 44, Bradley-Bourbonnais 0
Woodstock 29, Machesney Park Harlem 21
Class 8A
Bartlett 10, Niles Notre Dame 7
Belleville East 17, Plainfield Central 15
Bolingbrook 62, Curie 13
Fremd 24, Palatine 7
Hinsdale Central 46, Downers South 12
Lincoln-Way East 35, Waubonsie Valley 17
New Trier 31, Lane Tech 10
October 2008 Archives
Erik Jacobsen, Andy Rohr and Brandon Mangia area all out in Genoa for The Courier News Game of the Week between Genoa-Kingston and Hampshire. They're reporting the weather is perfect for some playoff football. We'll try to keep you updated throughout the night on all the area action.
It's playoff time for Hampshire, Genoa-Kingston, Bartlett, St. Charles North, St. Charles East and Huntley.
Here's a year-by-year look at the rivalry between Hampshire and Genoa-Kingston since 1984. The teams meet Friday night in Genoa in round 1 of the Class 4A Playoffs.
Congratuations are in order for the Philadelphia Phillies, who on Wednesday night wrapped up their first World Series title since 1980.
The Phillies went an impressive 11-3 en route to the title.
Now the unimpressive part...
Saints, Royals claim top spot in final poll -- From the beginning of the season, the St. Charles East girls volleyball and the Larkin boys soccer teams dominated the area, each winning an Upstate Eight Conference title.
The following rankings include all 14 schools in the Courier News coverage area and are based on performance against like-sized schools.
St. Charles North heads into its seventh straight postseason appearance after a solid victory against a program that was fighting for its playoff life last Friday.
The North Stars went into Naperville and left Neuqua Valley with a 20-0 victory and the Wildcats' playoff hopes as well. Neuqua, despite 54 playoff points, won't be playing a 10th game for the first time since 2001.
Of the eight classes in the state playoffs, none has a richer tradition than the Class 4A bracket when it comes to total number of state championships.
Upstate Eight Conference football teams won't have to head south in the fall any longer.
The league's two-year engagement with the SICA came to an end when St. Charles East thumped Thornridge 42-0 last week. The outcome of that contest was fitting as UEC teams went 11-3 against their SICA counterparts the past two years, including a 6-1 advantage in 2008.
Who's hot around the area in girls volleyball entering the state tournament?
St. Charles East, Hampshire and Burlington Central.
BY. R.J. GERBER
AND BRANDON MANGIA
Staff Writers
Hampshire and Genoa-Kingston don't need any introductions.
The two schools are separated by only nine miles and have a long history on the football field. And the two programs will renew their rivalry this weekend when the 11th-seeded Whip-Purs (6-3) and sixth-seeded Cogs (7-2) hook up in Genoa in the first round of the Class 4A state playoffs.
ST. CHARLES -- Eight minutes separated highly-regarded Larkin from the program's third straight regional title on Saturday against host St. Charles North.
Unfortunately for the Royals, that is an amount of time they will never get back.
Ninth-seeded St. Charles North scored two goals in the final eight minutes, including the game-winner with 3:56 left, to shock the top-seeded Royals 2-1 and advance to the Wheaton North Class 3A Sectional semifinals.
The North Stars will next play Wheaton North on Tuesday.
While I'm still drying out from a wet Friday night, I'll offer a few quick thoughts on what happened around the area in the final week of the regular season.
From Staff Reports
NAPERVILLE -- The Neuqua Valley offense that was clicking so well for weeks suddenly slammed to halt. And the timing couldn't have been worse for the Wildcats.
Neuqua managed only 167 yards of offense and six first downs in a 20-0 loss to visiting St. Charles North on Friday night in a game delayed 90 minutes by lightning. The loss will likely keep the Wildcats (4-5, 3-4 Upstate Eight Conference) from a seventh consecutive trip to the playoffs.
It also marked the first time Neuqua had been shut out since Week 3 of the 2003 season, a span of 57 games.
MARENGO -- Six weeks ago, this type of outcome seemed highly improbable.
After starting the season 0-3, Hampshire notched its sixth win in a row with a 34-7 win over Marengo on Friday night.
The win capped the Whip-Purs' perfect 5-0 run through Big Northern Conference East play and gave them the outright division title.
ALGONQUIN -- It wasn't pretty, but Jacobs managed to maintain its mastery over rival Dundee-Crown on Friday.
In the season finale for both teams, the Golden Eagles took advantage of three Chargers turnovers in the third quarter to rally for a 21-7 triumph in Fox Valley Conference Valley Division action.
By Troy Murray
For The Courier News
AURORA -- Larkin's hopes of becoming playoff eligible were dashed during a disastrous second half Friday night at Waubonsie Valley.
The Royals lost 51-13 to the Warriors in Upstate Eight Conference play after trailing just 14-7 at halftime. The game was delayed by inclement weather and did not start until around 9 p.m.
From Staff Reports
AURORA -- St. Edward finished its most successful season yet under fourth-year coach Mike Rolando with a 20-8 Suburban Catholic Conference triumph at Marmion on Friday.
Jimmy Mathisen scored on runs of 14 and 54 yards for the Green Wave and Moises Quiroga added a TD run of 25 yards. St. Edward (4-5, 2-5) reached the four-win mark for the first time since 2003 and only the third time since 1995.
ELGIN -- What began as a shootout quickly dissolved into a blowout as Lake Park handled host Elgin 43-23 in the final Upstate Eight Conference game of the season for both non-playoff bound teams Friday at rain-soaked Memorial Field.
From Staff Reports
ST. CHARLES -- Wes Allen rushed for 117 yards and three scores on 13 carries as St. Charles East easily dispatched visiting Thornridge 42-0 in non-conference play.
The Saints improved their record to 7-2 to close out the regular season. Tim Russell was efficient, completing all seven of his attempt for 92 yards and two touchdowns.
From Staff Reports
BYRON -- Genoa-Kingston outlasted Big Northern Conference West rival Byron 15-13 on Friday to move to 6-3, 3-2.
The Cogs battled back from an early 6-0 deficit, eventually extending their lead to 15-6 on 9-yard touchdown run by Chris Wilkins. G-K then had to hold off a late charge by the Tigers (2-3, 3-6).
By Howard Reicheneker
For The Courier News
BURLINGTON -- Harvard ran for 426 yards on its way to a 42-16 Big Northern Conference East Division victory.
Central (2-7, 2-3) fumbled and recovered the ball twice on its first three plays, forcing the Rockets to punt in rainy conditions.
From Staff Reports
JOHNSBURG -- Huntley was denied a perfect regular season in a 17-7 upset loss in Fox Valley Conference Fox Division action.
The Red Raiders (8-1, 4-1) were seeking an outright FVC Fox title. Prairie Ridge can gain a share of the crown today when the Wolves face Grayslake Central. That contest was postponed Friday night.
Dundee-Crown and Jacobs don't have any playoff aspirations, but that doesn't mean the two teams don't have something to play for in the final week of the regular season.
Here's a year-by-year look at the rivalry between Dundee-Crown and Jacobs.
An in-depth look at week 9's area contests in the BNC, FVC and SCC. The capsule for the Dundee-Crown vs. Jacobs rivalry game will be featured in a separate post.
An in-depth look at week 9's Upstate Eight Conference games in the area.
Bartlett quarterback Josh Hasenberg was voted the top player of week 8 by the Sun-Times after he helped lead the undefeated Hawks to a 28-14 victory over previously-unbeaten Thornton.
Bartlett's Tom Meaney was named the Chicago Bears High School "Coach of the Week" for Week 8.
Larkin football passed its first must-win test of the season last week, defeating Elgin in the Town Jug game.
The job gets more difficult tonight when the Royals visit Waubonsie Valley. Larkin sits at 4-4 and needs a victory to become playoff eligible.
Several weeks ago the Courier and several other papers reported St. Charles North senior standout Jonathan DeMoss would miss the rest of the football season and a good portion of the basketball campaign.
Then DeMoss surfaced in the North Stars' game against St. Charles East last week, making a long catch early in the contest.
Was this a surprise? Yes and no.
For the ninth edition of Courier Prep Football Weekly webcast, click here.
This week Andy Rohr and Erik Jacobsen preview the game of the week between rivals Dundee-Crown and Jacobs as well as break down all the area's games.
We'll be back next week with a CPFW playoff special.
Huntley might be off to its best start in school history, have the Fox Valley Conference Fox Division title in the bag and be a week away from making its second-ever playoff appearance, but that doesn't mean the Red Raiders will be taking it easy Friday when they travel to play at Johnsburg.
Not with a perfect 9-0 regular season only a win away.
When St. Edward coach Mike Rolando said the playoffs began for his team with the start of the Suburban Catholic Conference portion of its schedule back in Week 3, he wasn't joking.
The following rankings include all 14 schools in the Courier News coverage area and are based on performance against like-sized schools.
Rockets take over top spot: Following a title-winning weekend at the Lincoln-Way Central tournament, Burlington Central (29-5) leapfrogged St. Charles East (29-4) for the top spot in this week's volleyball rankings. Any way you slice it, coming out of there with five straight victories was a nice statement for the Rockets heading into the Class 3A state tournament.
St. Charles East (4A) did nothing to hurt itself, despite suffering two losses at the Autumnfest tourney. The Saints were defeated by Naperville Central -- for the third time this season -- and Joliet Catholic. Both respectable losses, to say the least.
Dani Lopez's growth as a basketball player has been astounding.
Watching the South Elgin senior center play two years ago would never have led you to believe a Division I scholarship was possible. But the improvement the 6-foot-9, 275-pounder has made of late is phenomenal.
Each week during the football season I produced a page with notes, rankings, stats and a feature where seven area players answered an assortment of pop culture queries. Here is an example.
2008_tuesday_page.pdf
Jacobs senior Conrad Krutwig committed Monday to play at South Dakota next year. The Coyotes are making the leap to Division I competition after a successful run at the Division II level under coach Dave Boots. South Dakota will play in the Great Western Conference.
"When I visited (South Dakota) a few weeks ago I liked it a lot," Krutwig said. "It just felt right and it felt like I had an opportunity to play there, and that was important to me."
Krutwig, a 6-foot-5 forward/center, earned All-Area second team honors last year. He averaged 15.4 points and a team-best 7.9 rebounds while helping the Golden Eagles finish 26-3 and win a regional title.
Krutwig is the second Jacobs player to commit to a Division-I program in as many years, following in the footsteps of John Moran, who will play at Northern Iowa this winter.
-- Erik Jacobsen
Senior forward Marcus Redburg, being counted on heavily by an Elgin High team that lost plenty to graduation, might not see game action until January.
Anthony Johnson, who once seemed destined for stardom at Dundee-Crown, recently verbally committed to attend Purdue.
The hot-shot guard from Whitney Young is the half-brother of former D-C star and 2004 Courier News Player of the Year C.C. Kilbert. Johnson, a junior at talent-rich Young, is a gifted shooter and very basketball savvy.
Johnson's family moved to Chicago before his freshman year at D-C, leaving the Chargers program before he arrived.
With the 2008 regular season about to end, what better time to take a look ahead to what we might expect in 2009.
Although a number of area teams are dominated by talented seniors this year, there are a plenty of underclassmen making a big impact.
Look no further than Bartlett and Huntley, the two unbeaten teams in the area, to find some of the best young talent around.
Elgin standout receiver Jamal Cook was not in practice Monday.
Cook was absent from Saturday's game against Larkin for what the team called personal reasons. Cook practiced with the Maroons during the week leading up to that game.
When asked whether Cook will be back with the team for Friday's game against Lake Park,
Elgin coach Dave Bierman was unable to elaborate.
"I really can't comment on that right now," Bierman said. "At this time there is no decision (on whether he will play). Eventually it will all come out. There are just some things going on."
A message left for Cook and his mother, Thelma Dunner, was not returned.
-- Erik Jacobsen
The conference title scenarios are pretty cut and dry going into the final week of the season. Here's a look at what's on the line this weekend.
Picking one story line from Saturday's annual Town Jug game isn't easy, but what would you expect from a rivalry as storied and complex as this one?
Quiet and unassuming, but also tough.
Those are the characteristics that define the 2008 Hampshire football team and its leader, senior James Goebbert.
Not one to crave the spotlight, Goebbert did all the little things to help the Whip-Purs knock off rival Burlington Central 21-0 on Friday night in Burlington.
On special teams, Goebbert did his best impersonation of his favorite player, Bears return man Devin Hester. Goebbert returned the opening kickoff to midfield. When he fielded a punt at midfield after Central's first possession, he returned the ball to the Rockets 16-yard line. After that, Central punter Tim Maroder kicked the ball away from Goebbert for the rest of the night.
On offense, Goebbert snared an eight-yard touchdown reception in the second quarter on a throw lofted high in the air by quarterback Evan Brenner into the back left corner of the end zone. He also led the Whips in rushing with 87 yards on 12 carries.
On defense, Goebbert led a defensive secondary that kept Central quarterback Tim Botsford and the Rockets' new-look passing attack grounded for much of the night.
Not bad for a guy who had big shoes to fill when his older brother Jake graduated in the spring of 2006 with enough memories to last a lifetime after a successful run as a three-sport standout at Hampshire.
Jake Goebbert, who now plays baseball at Northwestern, forewarned my co-worker R.J. Gerber a few years back that his younger brother James is the better athlete between the two brothers.
James himself is a successful three-sport athlete, but there's little doubt he's not as comfortable in the spotlight as his older brother. Unlike Jake, who was the spokesman for his talented class of 2006, James does most of his work behind the scenes. He's not the basketball team's biggest scorer or the baseball team's biggest slugger, but don't be surprised if both those squads enjoy success this year the way the football team is now.
At times it seems like Hampshire's entire team is made up of James Goebberts. Senior quarterback Evan Brenner is a quiet leader who gets the job done on offense, special teams and defense. The same can be said of seniors Joe Moore, Bo Price, Matt Kuefner, Lucas Meyer, Jerry Eckler and Ron Bronke as well as juniors Ryan Burke, Caleb Kendricks and Ron Laramie. I might be missing a few in there, but it isn't hard on this Hampshire team where no player seems to want to be the big star.
Jake Goebbert was in attendance Friday like he has been most games this fall. He had to be pleased with what he saw as Hampshire took down the Rockets for the first time since Jake Goebbert's 2005 team accomplished the task. The Whip-Purs also clinched at least a share of their first Big Northern Conference crown since that 2005, a point that wasn't lost on the younger Goebbert.
"My brother was a senior when we beat them and now I'm a senior when we beat them," Goebbert said with a big grin. "It's great to beat them, and it's better to win the conference."
I haven't heard about many other area scores from Friday night but I don't need to, Huntley's 31-28 overtime win over Prairie Ridge was the best game of the night. Huntley came into the night as the underdog despite being undefeated. Prairie Ridge came in at 3-0 in the Fox Valley Conference Fox Division, the same as Huntley, but the Wolves played better against like opponents. Huntley erased a 28-7 third quater deficit and scored 24 unanswered points to pull off the overtime win. There's only so much space we have in the paper so here's a detailed description of what was without a doubt, the game of the week....
From around the state:
If you didn't make it out to a football game in tonight's cold, wet weather, I'll try to keep you updated on what's going on around the area.
It's rivalry week here in Courier country, and in my opinion there's no better week on this year's schedule.
There's something about showdowns between natural rivals -- whether they play in the same town or in neighboring communities - that always seems to bring out the best effort from players, coaches, student cheering sections and sometimes even entire communities.
This weekend, area fans can't go wrong by going out to any one of three local showdowns. On Friday, Hampshire and Burlington Central will renew pleasantries in Burlington. Meanwhile, St Charles North and St. Charles East will be squaring off on the northwest side of St. Charles. On Saturday morning, Elgin and Larkin will meet for the 48th time at Memorial Field.
So what is it that separates these games from the rest? Answering this question has a number of layers.
Here's a look at the varsity football series between Burlington Central and Hampshire since 1974.
Here's a look at the all-time series between the Elgin and Larkin, plus some of the all-time team records from the Town Jug series.
St. Charles North and St. Charles East renew their rivalry Friday at North. Here's a year-by-year look at the rivalry.
Separation at the top: With Larkin's 3-0 victory over No. 2 Streamwood last week, the Royals further solidified their hold on the top spot in the boys soccer rankings.
This week, Larkin (17-1, 7-1 UEC) will look to wrap up its first league title in program history. In order to get it, the Royals will have beat St. Charles North on Tuesday.
The Royals hold a slim lead in the UEC standings over Neuqua Valley (6-1-2). The Wildcats close with Bartlett and East Aurora.
Here's a look at last week's top performances from around the area.
The following rankings include all 14 schools in the Courier News coverage area and are based on performance against like-sized schools.
With each passing week, talk of a perfect regular season continues to build for Bartlett.
The Hawks took a big step toward achieving that goal last Friday by going on the road and knocking off Neuqua Valley 31-28. It proved to be the toughest test of the year for Bartlett, which needed a 42-yard touchdown pass with 1:14 left to take the lead and an interception in the end zone as time expired to improve to 7-0.
There's no rest for the weary this week as the Hawks welcome undefeated Thornton in a non-conference showdown on Saturday at Millennium Field, so it's no surprise that talk of a perfect season remain tempered for the moment.
Week Seven's Courier Prep Football Weekly's Game of the Week didn't quite live up its name on Friday night. St. Charles North laid down the hammer on Larkin, putting up 41 unanswered points in the first half and rolling to a 41-0 victory with a running clock in the second half.
There was a show of power on both sides of St. Charles on Friday night.
While St. Charles East was cruising past South Elgin 42-3 on the east side of the Fox River, St. Charles North was busy pounding Larkin 41-0 across town.
St. Charles East coach Ted Monken is never one to shy away from a shootout.
Then again, that should come as no surprise when he's got a gunslinger like senior running back Wes Allen, who ran for six touchdowns each of the past two weeks.
Despite those heroics, the Saints could only earn a spit in those two games, beating Lake Park 42-41 in double overtime in Week 5 before dropping a 49-42, four-overtime affair against Neuqua Valley last week.
Could East be in for another wild affair this week?
Huntley football coach Steve Graves will be the first one to tell you his team hasn't met much resistance on its way to a 6-0 start.
Sure the Red Raiders have outscored their opponents 229-47, but those opponents own a combined record of 6-30 this season.
The Blackhawks have yet to find a taker for goalie Nikolai Khabibulin, probably because of the exorbitant contract GM Dale Tallon gave him years ago. Nobody in the NHL wants him. So what will the Hawks do with him?
Here are a few suggested destinations:
St. Edward football coach Mike Rolando checked in Tuesday for his weekly rundown looking ahead to Friday's game against state-ranked St. Francis. Here are a few excerpts from the conversation.
Green Wave fans, make a note that this week's game will start at 7 p.m. instead of 7:30. Also, there will be no sophomore game preceding the varsity contest due to problems with the field conditions at St. Francis.
Now on to the conversation...
The following rankings include all 14 schools in the Courier News coverage area and are based on performance against like-sized schools.
Cream of the crop: St. Charles East (volleyball) and Larkin (soccer) remain atop the rankings for the third straight week. Both teams have big matches within the Upstate Eight Conference coming up this week. The Saints travel to Neuqua Valley tonight and the Royals host No. 2 Streamwood on Thursday.
Another exciting "Game of the Week" on Saturday as St. Charles North had to come from behind late in the fourth quarter to beat underdog South Elgin 35-24.
St. Edward's Moises Quiroga has been with the team through thick and thin as a four-year varsity starter. But on Friday the senior running back/linebacker was forced to watch St. Edward's 21-12 loss to Driscoll from the sidelines.
Quiroga was forced out of the Green Wave's game against Marian Central in Week 5 with a concussion. While St. Edward coach Mike Rolando said Quiroga's headaches were gone by Wednesday, keeping him out Friday against the Highlanders was a necessary precaution.
With Week 6 of the football season mostly in the books, the playoff picture is coming into focus.
Bartlett and Genoa-Kingston each secured their postseason invitations with convincing wins. Meanwhile, Hampshire, Larkin and St. Edward each made a case -- in different ways -- for why they might be playing after the regular season ends.
It's Game 2 now between the White Sox and Rays. Let's hope Mark Buehrle is in top form as the Rays' Scott Kazmir takes the mound for Tampa.
Erik Jacobsen and Andy Rohr take a look around the area in this week's edition of Prep Football Weekly. Check out the video and Erik's story on the Game of the Week between St. Charles North and South Elgin.
Sports editor R.J. Gerber also takes a look at St. Charles East's Wes Allen and Huntley's Jordan Neukirch, and how they're both helping their teams into the playoff picture.
It's Week 6 of the high school football season, and every team in the area is dealing with bumps and bruises.
For teams with 3-2 records like Dundee-Crown, St. Edward and St. Charles North, this week is critical as they look to give their playoff hopes a boost. However, the Chargers, Green Wave and North Stars could all be without key offensive playmakers when they take the field this weekend.
Wow! I'm almost left speechless after watching the Cubs undergo yet another amazing collapse.
Cubs fans can't completely give up on their team until the final out is recorded, but the squad's sudden lack of character and confidence is stunning. The Dodgers look like the far superior team in every facet, and the events of the first two games of the series offer very little hope that the Cubs can come back. Unless the Cubs suddenly regain their swagger, this season is over.
With Lou's crew 27 outs from another crushing postseason loss, it's never too early to begin reflecting on the latest promising season that ended in flames.
Here we go. Game 2. It's pretty much do or die for the Cubs. Is everyone as nervous as I am right now? If we win today then we go to L.A. and get to play in warm weather. That'll help our sluggers. Let's go Cubbies...
We seem to be having some problems getting our weekly prep football preview show up on the Courier Sports site.
Follow this link to enjoy the show. This week's game of the week is between South Elgin and St. Charles North. Also, get all of Erik Jacobsen's predictions for this weekend's games and more.
All right Sox fans, we made it. Things looked bleak last week but the Sox won three in-a-row to get back in the postseason for the first time since the magical season of 2005. How far can the Sox go this time? Things get started today against the surprising Tampa Bay Rays. Follow along with me right here and send in your comments as I'll be blogging live all game long.
Like many others in the area, I've been a die-hard Cubs fan my whole life. Never before have the Cubs have this good of a team and never before have the expectations of ending the 100-year drought been so high. I would have much rather seen the Mets, but we gotta play the Dodgers - one of the hottest, if not the hottest team in baseball. Join me throughout the game today for what figures to be one heck of an emotional rollercoaster.
I've been a Los Angeles Dodgers fan since 1984. I was a young kid at the time and my stepfather was from Garden Grove, Calif. That summer I visited Cali for the first time and took in my first big league game -- at hallowed Chavez Ravine (I remember something about Franklin Stubbs hitting a double down the first base line). I've had Dodger Blue running through my veins ever since.
Maybe that's also why I like hot dogs so much?
