The Roundup, May 24, 2025: Multiple state champions in track and field, several thrillers in baseball regionals and softball sectionals

Normal U-HIgh's girls track team poses after winning the Class 2A state team title on Saturday. Photo via IHSA/Facebook

Saturday was full of big performances and memorable moments for many area teams and athletes in Central Illinois. 

El Paso-Gridley and Normal U-High won IHSA state team titles in girls track and field with both of them, Eureka, Dunlap and Normal Community all having individual state champions. 

Metamora and Dunlap won sectional titles in boys tennis with several other athletes qualifying for next week’s iHSA state finals. 

Class 1A and 2A baseball regional finals packed the schedule, with Eureka, Normal U-High, and Peoria Notre Dame advancing to sectionals, among others. Baseball also included East Peoria scoring 26 runs within two games before starting its regional journey.

Normal U-High softball continued its Cinderella run and won a Class 2A regional title and East Peoria did more of the same in softball, scoring 30 runs in a doubleheader

Check out all of the scores, recaps and top performers from the day in The Roundup!

In girls track and field

In Class 1A: El Paso-Gridley won its first Class 1A team title in school history on the strength of seven top-5 finishes and state titles from its 4x100 and 4x200 meter relays and Aubrey Phillips in the high jump. The relay team of Keyli Cogdal, Jaida Reed, Teagan Tibbs and Kiera Stoller won the 4x200 state title in 1:41.96, more than two seconds faster than runner-up Monmouth United, and the 4x100 in 48.90. Phillips won the high jump crown by clearing 5’5.75 and she also placed fifth in the shot put with a personal-best mark of 40’0.5. Reed finished second in the 100 in 12:09, as did the 4x400 relay team of Stoller, Haven Miller, Reed and Phillips in 3:59.63, just 0.57 seconds behind winner Pleasant Plains. EPG’s 4x800 relay of Caroline Wettstein, Kiley Knapp, Sophia Hinthorne and Miller medaled in fifth in 9:48.66. Tri-Valley had multiple athletes compete in the finals, led by Chloe McCormick who tied for seventh in the pole vault with a mark of 9’0.25. Adelin Bruce came in ninth in 3200 in 11:34.59 and 12th in the 1600 in 5:23.72. Aleia Baumann of the Vikings finished 11th in the triple jump (34’9.5). Illini Bluffs’ Tori Brown was the runner-up in the triple jump, putting up a distance of 37’3. Peoria Christian’s Addie Lehman finished third in the pole vault by clearing 11’1.75 and Tremont’s Anya Geltz came in 11th in the same event, clearing 8’6.25. Delavan’s 4x800 of Elyse Brinkmeyer, Khloe Stockham, Drew Robison and Annabelle LaFary placed seventh in 9:54.44. Elmwood/Brimfield’s 4x800 of Bristol Schmidgall, Olivia Stage, Mya Hill and Taylor Forney slotted in eighth, crossing the line in 10:00.64. Bloomington Central Catholic’s Summer Clark tied for 14th in the high jump (4’11) and Ruby Brady was 26th in the 3200 (12:36.60).

In Class 2A: Normal U-High won its second consecutive Class 2A team title with Isabella Thurston winning the discus and the Pioneers having representation in many finals events. Thurston threw a personal-best 144’9 to win the discus with her teammate MacKenzie Matejka finishing second on a PR throw of 139’7. Thurston also finished fourth in the shot put with a throw of 37’6.5. Zoe Carter was the 3200 runner up (10:39.03) and took fifth in the 1600 (5:03.47). Hannah Safranek took home three medals, taking third in the 100 hurdles in 14.82 and teamed with Lydia McIntyre, Harper McIntyre and Addie Cortese on the Pioneers’ 4x200 that was second in 1:41.69 — 0.08 seconds behind winner North Chicago — and third in the 4x100 (47.53). The Pioneers’ 4x400 of Reagan Bull, Lydia McIntyre, Cecilia Wille and Caty Minton finished seventh in 4:02.08 with Minton also crossing the line in ninth in the 400 (59.22). Normal U-High’s 4x800 of Lana Alcorn, Nora Bloebaum, Josie Wamsley and Jocelyn Lewis was ninth in 9:47.69 and Emily Gross’ mark of 5’1 put her tied for 11th in the high jump. Eureka’s 4x400 relay of Sophia Watson, Brenna Metzger, Alayna Garza and Millie Kaufman won a state title by crossing the line in 3:57.54 with Watson and Metzger joining Meika Bender and Adeline Hubert on its 4x800 that took fourth in 9:31.07. The Hornets had two finals qualifiers in the pole vault as Reagan Bishop tied for sixth (10’6) and Bre Lehman came in 11th (10’2). Gaba Musselman finished ninth in the shot put (36’6.25) and Sierra Hermann was 15th in the 3200 (11:31.54). Metammora’s Baylie Nena finished a strong freshman season by finishing sixth in the 300 hurdles (45.42) and seventh in the 100 hurdles (15.18) with both marks being personal bests. Naomi Roth (high jump, 5’2.25) and Violet Weinman (pole vault, 10’6) tied for sixth in their respective events. Peoria Notre Dame’s Meghan Zopel closed out her career in sixth in the 3200 in a personal-best 5:03.60 and her Irish teammate Corrinna Fassino was eighth in the 300 hurdles (46.04). Limestone’s Grace Pauli (pole vault, 10’2) and Morton’s Elle Klopfenstein (long jump 16’8) both slotted in 12th to lead their teams.

In Class 3A: All eyes in Central Illinois were on the field events for Class 3A and for good reason as Normal Community’s Marco Reynolds won the shot put state title and Dunlap’s Samantha Yeh won the high jump crown. Dunlap led all area Class 3A teams with three athletes in the finals as Yeh cleared 5’8.75 to win a state crown, Madeline Kammerer slotted in 12th in the same event after clearing 5’3 and Abby Tudeeen finished 23rd in the 3200, crossing the line in 11:20.45. Reynolds won the shot put crown after throwing 42’9.5. Fellow Bloomington/Normal athletes secured solid finishes as Bloomington’s Claudia Ifft finished fifth in the pole vault (11’11.75) and Normal West’s Renee Warren was 13th in the 3200 (10:55.59). Richwoods’ Jaydah Green came in ninth in the 400  with a time of 57.45.

In baseball

Peoria Notre Dame 1, Farmington 0: The Fieldcrest 2A regional ended with No. 7 Peoria Notre Dame (16-17, 8-10 Big 12) facing No. 3 Farmington (26-8, 7-2 Prairieland) in the final. The Irish scored the lone run in the second after an RBI double from Joe Culp while keeping Farmington at bay for the rest of the game. Thomas Mickels had an impressive two-way performance for Peoria Notre Dame, leading the team with two hits and pitching 3 ⅔ innings with four strikeouts and five hits given up, securing the W. Anthony LeFante was credited with the save, only giving up one hit while striking out seven batters in 3 ⅓ innings. Carter Lambin had a 2-for-4 scoreline, which led the team, while Landon Crawford pitched all seven innings, but lost even with eight strikeouts.

Normal U-High 4, Prairie Central 0: After beating hosts Olympia three days before, Normal U-High (28-7, 8-1 Central State Eight) took on Prairie Central in their Class 2A regional title game. After starting the scoring in the middle innings, the Pioneers used that momentum to keep the Hawks from scoring at all. Lawson Shickel went 2-for-3 with an RBI, with Cole Brent and Braden Mehn driving in two more. Ethan Kieser pitched a complete game, only giving up three hits and striking out eight batters.

Illini Bluffs 5, Delavan 4: Illini Bluffs (18-5, 6-0 Inter-County) finished their own Class 1A regional by taking on Inter-County conference rivals Delavan (15-14, 3-3) in the title game and taking the victory. Despite having only 4 hits, the Tigers turned that into five runs, including four in the first inning, and after being tied at four, they got one more to cross the plate in the fifth. Will Giftos had one of those four hits while also providing two RBIs, while Drew Dunn came in as relief and pitched three hitless innings to secure the victory for Illini Bluffs. The Panthers were led by Bryson Horning and Braden Arrenholz, who had a hit and an RBI each, and the latter took the loss on the mound after 4.2 innings with 10 strikeouts and four hits given up.

Eureka 7, Macomb 2: No. 1 seed Eureka (31-4, 11-0 Heart of Illinois) dominated the hosts of their 2A regional, Macomb, in a seven inning beatdown. The title game started out with five runs in the first inning from the Hornets which turned into seven in the fifth. The Bombers were able to salvage two in the sixth, but the game was dominated by both Eureka’s offense and defense. Andrew Zimmerman collected three hits along with Tanner Wiegand, who also totaled two RBIs. Cohen Alstat’s 5 ⅔ innings on the mound resulted in six strikeouts, four hits given up and a win.

Heyworth 8, Roanoke-Benson 0: Back to Class 1A, where Heyworth (23-14, 4-7 Heart of Illinois) hosted their regional title game against Roanoke-Benson successfully. The Hornets scored a run in every inning except for the fifth, including three runs in the fourth, to take the title in front of their home crowd. Boston Katz had three hits on the day, which led the team, while Logan Mills drove in three runs going 1-for-4. Carter Brooks earned the W for Heyworth after a 6 ⅓ inning performance that ended in nine strikeouts and four hits given up.

IVC 6, Orion 3: Class 2A’s Bureau Valley regional title game had IVC (23-10, 8-1 Illini Prairie) facing underdogs Orion, but the former prevailed. The Grey Ghosts turned four hits into a hefty six runs, which outnumbered the Chargers’ three, and are moving on to their own sectionals to play Peoria Notre Dame. Keegan Schol was one of four IVC players to register a hit, but the third baseman also tacked on three RBIs, driving in half of the team’s runs. Gabe Perez had 10 strikeouts to his name along with seven hits given up in a complete game, giving him a well-deserved win on the mound.

Normal West 4, Springfield Southeast 3: Normal West (21-14, 13-5 Big 12) competed in a weekend tournament hosted by Champaign Central, taking on Springfield Southeast to start. After a three-run second inning, the Wildcats gave up two runs in the third, grabbed another in a half-inning later and gave up one more in the seventh. Two of Normal West’s five hits came from Sam McCully, while Cooper Temples and Sean Jenkins had a hit and an RBI each. Ryder Coone did the good things for Normal West on the rubber, pitching six innings and only giving up three hits.

East Peoria 12, Kankakee 0: East Peoria (27-8, 9-5 Mid-Illini) participated in the tournament as well, taking on Kankakee in their first matchup. Five innings was enough to decide this one, as the Raiders scored in four consecutive innings, including six runs in the second. Jordan Marsh went 2-for-2 even though he wasn’t in the starting lineup, leading East Peoria in hits, while Joe Clark took the victory on the mound after four innings with one hit given up and three strikeouts.

East Peoria 14, Normal West 1: The two then faced off in their final matchup, with East Peoria dominating the whole way through. The Raiders took this one in five, too, scoring ten runs in the fourth to give them a cushion to get the W. Jackson Beasley led East Peoria with three hits and Roman Moody was right behind him with two. R.J. Duncheon went three innings, getting seven strikeouts and giving up a single hit to earn the win on the mound.

Dunlap 9, Dixon 2: Dunlap (26-7, 11-3 Mid-Illini) had one more game to prepare for regionals, going up against Dixon in a stellar victory for the Eagles. In a total of six innings at the plate, nine runs were scored, including four in the second, while the Dukes went until the seventh without scoring one, getting two in their final chance. Davis Weeks and Isaac Babbs hit the ball twice with Weeks providing an RBI, and with six pitchers total working the mound, Dunlap’s star was Eli Michanicou, who went two innings without giving up a hit en route to a win.

In softball

Normal U-High 5, Westville 2: Normal U-High (18-16, 3-5 Central State Eight) thwarted a comeback attempt from Westville to become Class 2A St. Joseph-Ogden Regional champions, extending their Cinderella run as a No. 7 seed. Up 5-0 in the bottom of the seventh, the Pioneers gave up two runs before getting the final out. Meera Sunderam generated the most offense of the team with three hits while Lola Phillips and Emme Steward provided two RBIs each. Makenzie Post earned the win on the circle despite allowing 12 hits and two runs through the full seven innings.

East Peoria 13, Streator 6: With 3A regionals starting on Tuesday, East Peoria (21-13, 7-7 Mid-Illini) saw their last action of the regular season with a doubleheader against Streator. Just like their baseball team, the Raiders dominated both contests in softball, limiting the Bulldogs to six runs while scoring 13, consistently getting two or more runs every other inning. Sidney Sawyer and Gracie Ahrens put up three hits each and drove in three runs altogether. Addison Duncheon took the victory, striking out 10 batters and giving up four hits after seven.

East Peoria 17, Streator 2: This time, the score was much more lopsided, with East Peoria winning by 15. This time, the game only lasted four innings before being called after eight runs in the second propelled the Raiders to a victory. Duncheon took to the plate this time to lead the team in hits with two along with Mersadees Sassman driving in four of the Raiders’ 16 RBIs. Keearrah Brown had a very good performance on the circle, pitching three innings and not giving up a single earned run.

Metamora 1, LaSalle-Peru 0: Metamora (26-7, 10-4 Mid-Illini) also took part in some doubleheader action, first taking on LaSalle-Peru. The only run came in the first, with a leadoff home run from Kaidance Till, and the defense did the rest. Addyson Wooden had the only other hit for Metamora in three at-bats, while Allie Nelson struck out 10 batters in the circle within all seven innings.

Metamora 10, Sterling 0: The Redbirds kicked up the scoring a notch in their next game against Sterling, totaling 10 runs through six innings. Till once again came to play, going 3-for-3 with two RBIs off of two doubles and a single, while Allie Lueddecke went for three hits and two RBIs as well. Nora Johnson did the work at the pitcher position, only giving up one hit and getting three strikeouts.

Rock Island 6, Normal West 0: Normal West (11-19, 5-4 Big 12) had a rough day on the field, failing to score a single run against Rock Island. All six runs from the Rocks were scored in the first three innings, which made for a tough challenge trying to comeback. Four Wildcat batters tallied a single hit, those being Elsah Ganschow, Rylee Hollings, McKinley Pate and Aleigha Bittner, while Piper Warwick took the loss in the circle after three innings, giving up six hits and six runs. Kate McGowan’s four innings of relief ended in a blown save, striking out four batters and giving up four hits.

In boys tennis

At Dunlap: Dunlap’s Class 1A sectional saw lots of area talent qualify for state on Friday, but the final four athletes and teams played for placement after. Dunlap finished in first in their own regional with 32 points after Andrew Choy and Harmin Patel finished second and fourth in singles, respectively, and Alex Fei/Ethan McRaven and William Song/Ethan Klemens faced each other in the final, with the former winning. Richwoods finished fifth behind them with 22 points, as Daniel Nathan placed first in the singles competition. East Peoria’s Connor Watson won the 3rd-place singles match against Patel, helping the Raiders place fifth with seven points. Ian Durst/Samuel Loeb lost their third-place match in doubles, leading to Peoria Christian tying for sixth with six points.

At LaSalle-Peru: The Class 1A LaSalle-Peru sectional was dominated by Metamora, whose 23 points placed them in first. Tommy Sopko/Adam Culp and Weston Lange/Jack Hessing met in the finals of the doubles bracket, with Sopko and Culp taking the gold, while Hunter Poole and Dane Hutchison faced off in the third-place match in singles, with Poole coming out on top.

At Champaign: Normal U-High took second on Champaign Centennial’s campus, led by Chase Boester/Ian Shin winning the doubles bracket with a 6-4, 6-0 score in the final. Parker Kim led the team in the singles competition, with the freshman placing fourth. The Pioneers finished in second with 22 points at the end of the day.

At Springfield: In the area’s only Class 2A sectional, Normal Community and Bloomington had players qualify for state the day prior. However, the Ironmen only finished in second while the Purple Raiders took fifth as a team, scoring 13 and six points, respectively. Evan Henneberg took third place in singles for Normal Community and Will Rinkenberger/Akshaj Peleti took fourth in singles. Phillip Haning was the only Bloomington competitor in the final four, taking second in singles.