Photo by Keith Stewart
Okaw Valley sophomore guard Alex Martin works his way beneath Heritage/Villa Grove 6’4’’ big man Cameron Knell Tuesday night.

Four turnovers to start extra period OV’s demise

by Kirk Whitaker
Arthur/Sullivan Reporter

Oh what a difference a few practices make.

After coming off a 35 point margin loss from Arthur-Lovington last Friday, Okaw Valley showed up ready for Heritage Villa Grove in LOVC play Tuesday night.

OV held a 13-11 advantage at the end of one, but the Timberwolves let it get away for a little while in the second. With 11 lead changes in the first half, Heritage came round to take hold of a 32-23 lead at the half.

“We played well at times, we struggled at times,” said OV head coach Tony Sparks. “We were down double digits at one point, but I was proud of the way we battled back and trusted our stuff and each other and got back into the game.” Read More

Photo by RR Best
Pictured is the Sullivan girls’ varsity basketball team with their first place Okaw Valley Tournament trophy.

Beats state-ranked Clinton by one point

by Kirk Whitaker
Arthur/Sullivan Reporter

It  sure was fun to watch.

Sullivan and Clinton, the two girls’ teams atop the Okaw Valley Conference, proved why they were the OVC’s best Saturday night.

After what felt like a lead change after each possession—16 in just the second half—Clinton senior guard Haley Toohill slashed to the bucket and dropped a bucket to put the Lady Maroons up 70-68 with 15 seconds to go. Read More

Neuhauser comes up big with 24 pts, 11 rebounds

Photo by Keith Stewart
Emily Neuhauser battles Monticello's Hannah Smith for the ball Thursday night.

by Keith Stewart
keith@newsprogress.com

Don’t tell Sheri McCain that her team is 8-1, let alone undefeated in their conference.
Seriously.
It’s not that the Sullivan girls’ head coach isn’t aware of that fact. She’d just rather you not jinx things.
“It’s a good feeling for them, because when I first took over, I don’t think people thought Sullivan would be at the top of the conference or undefeated at this stage,” said McCain. “I’m happy for how hard they’ve worked these last couple years. They deserve this, this moment. But I told them, you can’t take anything for granted, and I think that’s what happened the first quarter.”
Thursday night, McCain and company travelled to Monticello, where they stood the chance of being knocked off of their 4-0 undefeated conference streak. And despite a scare from the first quarter, the Lady Red turned things around defensively and traveled the hour back with a 57-38 victory in tow.
“It was an aggressive game, but it was a good win on the road. We were tired. We had a new defense, and tonight we played in spurts. They were exhausted.”
Sullivan trailed quickly in the first despite Alyssa Marshall’s two-pointer to start the game. Monticello junior Layne Buzan responded by scoring the bucket and one, putting her team up 3-2. The Sages got out to as large as a seven-point lead before the Lady Red fought back. A Maggie Plank bucket cut the lead to five and was followed by Emily Neuhauser’s additional two after grabbing the offensive board.
The quick and nimble Neuhauser was Sullivan’s go-to girl Thursday, leading the night with a double-double in 24 points and 11 rebounds. Fellow friend and teammate Brittin Boyer also recorded a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Read More

Photo by RR Best
Windsor’s Alex Allen tries to drive past Sullivan’s Ty Molzen during Friday night’s matchup.

Windsor’s Allen also earns double duty

by Kirk Whitaker
Arthur/Sullivan Reporter

Both Sullivan and Windsor came into Friday night’s game looking to get off the snide. Windsor previously fell short in overtime and was defeated by five by Shelbyvile—while Sullivan fell to Arthur and St. Anthony last week as well.

As such, last Friday’s game was hard fought. Yet with a close halftime score of 18-17 in favor of the Redskins, there were some exciting performances in the first half, especially from sophomore Ty Molzen.

The 6’4” Molzen scored Sullivan’s first two points off an offensive rebound and was responsible for five of Sullivan’s seven first quarter points and had 10 of Sullivan’s 18 points in the first half along with nine rebounds. Seven of Molzen’s rebounds in the first half were on the offensive glass. Read More