Through non-stop rain, the pressure to win and a fierce opponent, Peoria Notre Dame girls soccer pushed through and prevailed, earning a 3-1 victory in the Class 2A third-place game at state over Burlington Central. As the National Anthem began to play over the speakers at Benedetti Wehrli Stadium at North Central College in Naperville, the rain went away. Yet seconds after kickoff, it returned and never left but neither did the Irish’s drive to finish a record-setting season

With five consecutive Class 1A State Finals appearances and two state championships since 2021, small-school softball in Illinois has been dominated by Illini Bluffs for the last few years. With many of the Tigers’ starters set to return next year, there’s no indication that that trend will stop anytime soon either.  An overcast, drizzly Saturday just happened to be the day where state newcomer Ridgewood broke through the clouds to take down Goliath in a 3-1 victory over Illi

Illini Bluffs softball is dancing on a familiar floor yet again. Tigers sophomore Cora Ellison belted a home run to center field in the second inning of Friday’s Class 2A state semifinal game against Campbell Hill (Trico) to give the reigning state runner-ups an early lead. She made sure that it was the only run that the Tigers needed, pitching a complete-game shutout in a 3-0 victory.  With the win, Illini Bluffs pushed its streak of not only reaching state, but advancing to

On February 26, 2024, senior Mya Wardle and the rest of the Peoria Notre Dame girls basketball team looked jubilant as the scoreboard clock hit double zeros. The Irish were heading to state. When the final seconds of Tuesday’s Class 2A girls soccer super-sectional match against New Lenox Providence Catholic in Kankakee reached double zeros, they felt a similar sentiments: the Irish were heading to state.

Illini Bluffs’ softball team has made a habit of spending the first weekend in June at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria for the last four seasons.  After a clutch solo home run in the seventh-inning from sophomore outfielder Sara Finn in Monday’s Class 1A super-sectional game against Carrollton, the Tigers will continue that tradition for a fifth straight season.

The best boys track and field athletes in Central Illinois wrote the final chapter in their season on Saturday at the IHSA State Finals. There’d be enough of them to write a book.  When all was said and done, the book of Isaiah was Saturday’s bestseller, as Bloomington Central Catholic pole vaulter Isaiah Whitaker and Elmwood/Brimfield distance runner Isaiah Hill won Class 1A state championships and left nothing to doubt in a pair of dominating performances.  Morton’s senior-

Good things come to those who wait, and the Richwoods girls soccer team had to wait through 98 minutes of high-intensity soccer in its sectional semifinal game. The Knights had to weather multiple attacks from Morton, the Mid-Illini champions, and endure multiple agonizingly close opportunities to break a 1-1 tie that passed by the wayside. But with two minutes left in the second overtime period, they finally got what they had been looking for.

Metamora’s Nora Johnson has come up big many times for the Redbirds softball team this season. She’s thrown multiple no-hitters, had more than a couple big hits, and helped Metamora take down some strong opponents. There was one area power that the Redbirds hadn’t got the best of yet, but Johnson ensured that they did on Wednesday, hitting a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth inning to beat East Peoria 1-0 and take a half-game lead over the Raiders in the Mid-Illini w

Sectional track and field meets can induce a lot of stress and worry.  It’s a unique sport where athletes know exactly what needs to be done – finishing in a certain time, throwing or jumping a certain length, or being one of the top two finishers in an event – to fulfill their dream and advance to the state’s biggest stage.  Many area athletes saw those goals fulfilled, and their anxiousness washed away in scenes of jubilation at the Class 2A Metamora Sectional on Thursday.

First place in the Mid-Illini Conference was at stake Wednesday afternoon at Dunlap High School. Dunlap (15-2, 5-0) and East Peoria (15-3, 4-2) provided a dandy of a baseball game and the Eagles soared to a 4-3 victory and a series sweep that puts them in the driver’s seat – at least for now.

Bryce Heard the message and answered the call. So did the rest of his Homewood-Flossmoor teammates. They heard about Normal Community’s...

CHAMPAIGN - One week before Friday’s Class 4A state semifinal game, the hopes of Normal Community’s season were hanging on by a miniscule thread. Down 43-42 to Quincy with 4.3 seconds left in the game and with the Blue Devils in possession, the Ironmen forced a turnover that led to senior forward Jaheem Webber powering home a dunk with a second left on the clock and reviving Normal Community’s season.

Richwoods came into Friday’s Class 3A state semifinal with confidence, knowing that they had one game-changing forward, Lathan Sommerville, in their corner.  DePaul College Prep, however, had two.  With Rams forwards, 6-foot-7 Jaylan McElroy and 6-foot-6 Rashaun Porter spearheading a prototypical shutdown DePaul defense, Richwoods was its victim, falling 52-41 at the State Farm Center in Champaign.

It all seemed so familiar for Richwoods in Monday’s Class 3A Ottawa Super-Sectional.  Again, the Knights’ playoff foe was a state-ranked opponent. Again, free throws were either their best friend or their worst enemy. Again, Richwoods had to fend off a fourth-quarter comeback following a strong third frame.  What wasn’t familiar for Class 3A No. 1 Harvey Thornton was losing to a Central Illinois team. At least until they met Richwoods for the second time this season, with the

A sold-out Friday night with hardware on the line put the eyes of central Illinois and IHSA basketball fans on what was unfolding in Pontiac. The storylines heading into Friday’s Class 3A Sectional title game between Metamora and Richwoods seemed endless.  The Redbirds and Knights battled for the third consecutive postseason and rematched last year’s sectional title game. This time around, it featured a battle of two future Big 10 players and Richwoods wanting revenge twice a

Peoria Notre Dame’s run of destiny ended as it deserved to. With a state championship. The No. 1 Irish defeated No. 3 Nashville 48-46 in...

NORMAL — Peoria Notre Dame is state-title bound and left no doubt about it in a 71-25 win over Wilmette (Regina Dominican) in the Class...

Illini Bluffs girls' basketball is within striking distance of its first ever state championship.

It’s been a goal since the summer months, now it’s a reality.  Peoria Notre Dame girls basketball has reached state with one of the most talented groups that Central Illinois has seen. When the final buzzer sounded in their 55-39 win over Rock Island Alleman at the Class 2A Bureau Valley Super-Sectional on Monday, a wave of all sorts of emotions came over them.  “Finally,” Mya Wardle said about what her first thought was. “I've been waiting for this for four years but I'm sup

For the first time in twelve years, the Illini Bluffs girls basketball team is playing in the Class 1A state tournament and they earned their trip in fashion, defeating Galena, the top-ranked team in Class 1A, 47-41 at the Brimfield Super-Sectional.  The super-sectional bout was a close, defensive battle for the majority of the game before the Tigers broke out of the cage in the second half and reached a double-digit lead.