Area Roundup: Martino vs. Mokena for 3rd in IESA girls
December 12, 2012 9:48PM
Phil Bodine.
Updated: January 14, 2013 6:55AM
A neighborhood battle is on tap at 6 p.m. Thursday when New Lenox Martino and Mokena meet at Rochester in the third-place game of the Illinois Elementary School Association Eighth-Grade Girls Class 4A State Basketball Tournament.
Martino (25-1) beat Edwardsville Liberrty 32-13 and Mokena knocked off Country Club Hills Southwood 30-24 in the quarterfinals. Hayley Holmes scored 15 points and Colleen Barrett 9 for Martino. Hayley Papoccia led Mokena to its victory with 11.
In the semifinals, Normal Kingsley downed Martino 37-17 and Rochester beat Mokena 36-21. Brittany Schultz scored 8 points for Martino, Rachael Toepfer 6 for Mokena.
Gardner (17-2) will meet Springfield Little Flower at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Clinton in the third-place game of the eighth-grade 1A state tournament. Celia Barner scored 15 points and Jenni Price 10 in Gardner’s 30-27 win over Washington St. Patrick in the quarterfinals. Gardner received 9 points each from Sydney Perkins and Mariana Ferrari in a 45-28 semifinal loss to Atwood-Hammond.
Seneca (17-5) qualified for the eighth-grade 2A tournament and dropped a 39-11 decision to Mendon Unity in the quarterfinals. Paige Hacker scored 5 for Seneca.
Area teams also were involved in the girls seventh-grade state tournaments, with Crest Hill Richland finishing fourth in Class 3A and Mokena taking fourth in 4A.
Richland (21-2) scored a 26-22 victory over Paxton-Buckley-Loda in the quarterfinals as Taylor Hopkins scored 11 points and Destiny Davis 9.
Hopkins had 8 points in Richland’s 58-20 loss to Monticello in the semifinals. Richalnd lost the third-place game to Auburn 39-18. Davis scored 10.
In 4A, Mokena (21-4) beat Ottawa Shepherd 41-28 in the quarterfinals as Natalie Spudic scored 17 points and Lauren Kraft 13.
Edwardsville Liberty, which had ousted New Lenox Liberty 33-11 in the quarterfinals, beat Mokena 30-15 in the semifinals. Hayely Ragland scored 5 points for Mokena. Kraft and Spudic tallied 8 points each in Mokena’s 25-23 loss to Chatham Glenwood in the third-place game.
Danielle Callahan had 7 points for New Lenox Liberty (15-9) in its quarterfinal loss to Edwardsville.
Football
USF’s Spacht selected: University of St. Francis senior center Doug Spacht has been selected to the American Football Coaches Association NAIA Coaches’ All-America Team.
Spacht spearheaded a USF offense that produced 172 yards rushing per game and allowed the 15th-fewest sacks (13) in the NAIA this season.
After helping lead the Saints to a 6-5 record (6-4 against NAIA opponents), Spacht was voted to the All-Mid-States Football Association Midwest League first team for the second time. In his two seasons with the Saints, Spacht started 23 games and helped pave the way for 16 100-yard rushing efforts by USF ball carriers.
Established in 2006, the AFCA NAIA Coaches’ All-America Team recognizes only 25 players – 11 on offense, 11 on defense and three on special teams – from among the NAIA’s 81 teams. Spacht joined Wayne Johnson (2010-11) and Clayton Norberg (2008) as Saints to earn selection to the team.
Baseball
Romeoville camp: The Romeoville baseball staff, led by Spartans coach Dave Haskins, is offering a six-week indoor winter hitting camp for players in grades 3 through 8. The camp includes drills, fundamentals, situational hitting and a new hitting philosophy to improve skills. The camp will run from 11 a.m. until noon every Sunday from Jan. 13 through Feb. 24 in the Romeoville field house.
The cost is $40. Checks can be made to Romeoville Baseball and dropped off at the main office at the school or mailed to the attention of Haskins at 100 N. Independence Blvd., Romeoville 60446.
Haskins may be contacted at haskinsdm@vvsd.org or (847) 650-3274.
