Category Archives: Sports Feature

SOV Pole Vaulter Qualifies for State Track and Field Meet

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Photo by Jason Brown
Redskin Jadon Nuzzo pole vaults during the IHSA Class 2A Mahomet-Seymour Sectional at Moose Handlin Track Thursday.

•May 24, 2017•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports

Redskin Jadon Nuzzo pole vaulted 13 feet 7 inches for second place in the IHSA Class 2A Mahomet-Seymour Sectional at Moose Handlin Track May 18.

His finish qualified him for the State Track and Field meet at O’Brien Field on the campus of Eastern Illinois University in Charleston Saturday.

The Sullivan-Okaw Valley track and field team did not qualify any other athletes for state but placed six athletes and all four relays in the top 15 spots.

Josh Ernst threw the discus 118 feet 9 inches for 10th place.

Luke Bowman ran the 100-meter dash in 11.82 for 12th place and the 200-meter dash in 24.78 for 19th place.

Leighton Burcham long jumped 19 feet for 11th place and triple jumped 36 feet 11.5 inches for 15th place. Read More

ALAH Knight Baseball Advances in Regional Play

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•May 17, 2017•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports

The Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond baseball team improved its record to 6-10 with wins over Mt. Pulaski, Cerro Gordo/Bement and Sullivan this week.

Monday night, the Knights defeated Mt. Pulaski 13-6 to advance to the second round of the IHSA Class 1A Baseball Regional at Central A&M.

Will Cohan had five RBIs, which included a grand slam in the sixth inning.

ALAH scored eight in the first inning to set the tone.

Mt. Pulaski scored six late runs, but it was not enough.

The first inning rally started with a single by Kirk Herschberger, followed with a single by Waylon Schlabach, an error; single by Derek Rhodes, single by Eric Herschberger, a groundout by Shandon Herschberger, and a double by Marcus Vanausdoll. Read More

OV Softball Gets a Pair of Wins

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OVHS softball senior players Maddie Petrine, Kayla Wheeler, Jesse Robinson and Kailyn Boyer were honored this week.

•May 10, 2017•

The Okaw Valley softball team picked up two wins this week to improve its record to 13-9.

The Timberwolves defeated St. Elmo/Brownstown Monday and Arcola last Tuesday.

Monday night in Bethany, OV took an early lead with a run in the first inning, then tacked on four more in the third inning to take a 5-1 lead.

Both teams scored a run in fourth, and OV scored two insurance runs in the sixth for the final 8-2 score. Read More

Sullivan Baseball Improves with Two Wins

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Photo by Jason Brown
Zach Sowers pitches home.

Sullivan Baseball Improves with Two Wins

By Jason Brown
NP Sports

The Sullivan baseball team finished the week 3-1 with wins over Meridian and Warrensburg-Latham and a loss to Tuscola.

Monday the Redskins defeated Meridian 9-4.

Both teams scored two runs in the first inning, but Sullivan added two more runs in the second to take the lead.

Both teams scored a run in the fourth inning, but Sullivan tacked on another run in the sixth inning and one in the seventh.

Brett Tuttle was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored, and Zach Sowers drove in three runs with two hits.

Bryce Farris and Dalton Rogers each scored two runs, and Jon Gavin had a hit and a run scored.

Rogers pitched four innings for the win. He gave up two earned runs on three hits and one walk. He struck out three.

Sowers pitched three innings and gave up one earned run on three hits and no walks. He struck out two. Read More

Sullivan Baseball Wins Two for the Week

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Crossfire
Bryce Farris prepares for hot throw from Tommy Schibur in weekend Redskin action.

•April 19, 2017•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports

The Sullivan baseball team finished the week 2-3 with wins against Clinton and Arcola and losses to Altamont, Central A&M and Shelbyville.

Clinton Monday

It took eight innings, but the Redskins defeated Clinton 4-3 on a walk off single by Jon Gavin. Sullivan bookended scores with two runs in the first and two in the eighth. Gavin was 2-for-4, and Tommy Schibur was 2-for-3.

Schibur pitched six innings and allowed one earned run on two hits and five walks. He struck out four. Queintan Britton pitched two innings and struck out two. He allowed one earned run on four hits and no walks.

Arcola Wednesday

Sullivan scored two runs in the first inning, five runs in the third and two runs in the fifth for a 10-0 win.

Sullivan recorded 13 hits and played errorless ball in the field.

Zach Sowers tallied three hits and three RBIs. Brett Tuttle and Schibur each had two hits, and Britton knocked in two runs. Sowers pitched seven innings and struck out five.  Read More

Players Drive Program for New Varsity Football Coach

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New SOV head varsity football coach Andy Kerley.

•April 12, 2017•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports

Sullivan-Okaw Valley announced that Andy Kerley has been hired as the new head varsity football coach.

“Sullivan is a community I’ve always had great experiences with as a visiting coach,” said Kerley. “From the other sideline the support levels have always seemed good. The town, the administration, everyone seems to support the programs of the school, and that is a great positive when looking at a place as a potential working environment. The infrastructure is mostly in place already to allow the program to blossom.”

Kerley spent seven years as the Cerro Gordo-Bement Broncos head coach with four playoff berths (2011, 2012, 2013, and 2015) and a 42-28 record.

He coached at Shelbyville for a year before taking the Cerro Gordo position.

At Cerro Gordo-Bement, he was selected as the Decatur Herald and Review Macon County Coach of the Year in 2011 and 2013, and he also was named as the ESPN 1050 Decatur Coach of the Year in 2013.

This summer should be very important to Kerley, and he cannot wait to start. Read More

OV Graduate to Enter National Baseball Hall of Fame

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•April 5, 2017•

Okaw Valley 2013 graduate Eldon Yeakel will be entering the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum on June 5.

Not as a player, of course, but instead as an intern.

Yeakel is the recipient of the 2017 Frank and Peggy Steele Internship Program for Youth Leadership Development that last from June 5 to Aug. 11.

“I always enjoyed playing and watching sports growing up and once my love for history started to expand then it was a perfect combination of my two interests,” Yeakel said. “I was really intrigued with the internship given that the family that funds the internship was an avid baseball card collector and a Pittsburgh Pirates fan and I have been a huge Pirates fan since I was young and have collected a large sum of baseball cards.”

To be selected, Yeakel’s application that included a cover letter, resume, and three recommendations warranted an interview about why he applies, what he wanted to do at the museum and what he planned to do as a career. Read More

Knights Bring Big Bats Out for Bulldogs

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•March 29, 2017•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports Editor

The Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond baseball team kicked off its season with a 1-2 record, winning over St. Teresa and losing to Monticello and Central A&M.

Against the Bulldogs of St. Teresa, the Knights exploded for 12 runs in the fifth inning to overcome a 6-3 deficit and blow the game open.

ALAH went on to win 20-12.

Shandon Herschberger recorded a game-high six hits (6-for-6) and four runs scored. He also knocked in three runs.

Lucas Otto recorded three hits, two runs scored and three runs batted in. Read More

ALAH Knights End Season at Regional Tournament

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Photo by Jason Brown
Adam Day guards Cumberland’s Connor Butler during the Pana regional tournament.

•March 1, 2017•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports

The Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond boys’ basketball team defeated Cerro Gordo/Bement and Arthur Christian but could not carry that momentum into a win at the Pana Class 2A regional.

ALAH fell to Toledo-Cumberland in the regional 61-32 to end its season.

The Knights trailed 13-4 after the first quarter and did not recover.

Shandon Herschberger led the Knights with 11 points and two assists, and Kobe Wells and Will Cohan each scored five points.

Colton Romine collected a team-high four rebounds, and Marcus Vanausdoll added a team-high three steals. Each player scored a basket. Read More

Timberwolves Advance in Regional Action

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Austin Hill passes the ball during Okaw Valley senior night Friday.

•February 22, 2017•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports Editor

The Okaw Valley boys’ basketball team won on senior night Friday then advanced in the first round of the IHSA Class 1A regional at Okaw Valley High School in Findlay Feb. 20.

The host Timberwolves defeated Edinburg in the first round of the regional.

Okaw Valley did not blow out Edinburg but did increase its lead by three points each quarter for a 12-point win, 51-39.

Taylor Coleman scored a game-high 20 points, and Connor Cloyd hit double digits with 12 points.

Garrett Fritts added six points, and Jared Bunfill had five.

Austin Hill and Austin Harshman each scored three points. Read More