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Brodie Goss swims at state.

Goss Breaks School Record

By Jason Brown
NP Sports Editor

Sullivan senior Brodie Goss picked the perfect time to swim his best races.
Heading into the Sectional meet at Centennial High School Feb. 16, Goss knew he had a good chance of making his first trip to state.
This had been a goal Goss had set when he was a freshman.
“He knew going into the state meet that this was a goal that was certainly attainable,” said coach Nichole Hendry. “He proved (us) correct, meeting that goal.”
He took advantage of the opportunity at sectionals and swam a personal-best time in the 100-meter breaststroke at 59.96.
“I surprised myself at sectionals,” Goss said. “I dropped two seconds which won the race and put me close to the school record.”
Brock Bales set the Redskin 100-meter breaststroke record with a time of 59:86 in 2013, which was also the last time a Sullivan swimmer advanced to state. Read More

Photo by Jason Brown
Avery Still works through traffic.

•February 13, 2019•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports Editor

During the IHSA Class 2A girls’ basketball tournament, so far, the Sullivan girls’ team has been a team of two halves.
In the semifinal of the regional, the No. 1 seeded Sullivan team trailed No. 7 seeded Warrensburg-Latham by one at halftime.
In the regional championship game, Sullivan and No. 4 seeded Villa Grove were tied.
In the semifinal of the sectional, the Redskins committed 15 turnovers and trailed Edwards County by five points at halftime.
But Sullivan coach Sheri McCain’s motto all along has been, “It isn’t how you start; it’s how you finish.”
And in the second half of each of these tournament games, Sullivan outscored its opponents by a combined total of 52 points to win all three games and advance to its second-straight sectional championship. Read More

Photo by R.R. Best
Emily White dribbles along the sideline against St. Teresa.

•January 30, 2019•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports Editor

After placing a disappointed fourth in the Central Illinois Conference Tournament with a loss to host St. Teresa last Friday, the Sullivan girls’ basketball team bounced back to defeat the Bulldogs to stay undefeated in the CIC regular season game in Decatur Monday night.
In the first meeting, St. Teresa had a 16-point lead by halftime, but the Redskins came out with a better start in the Monday rematch with a 16-10 first quarter lead.
The Bulldogs battled back to take a 26-22 halftime lead, but the second half the game Sullivan took over.
In the third, the Redskins went on a 21-13 run for blow the game open, then held on in the fourth quarter for the 54-48 win.
“I thought we played a tremendous game defensively tonight,” said Sullivan coach Sheri McCain. “We gave up 68 points to them on Saturday night, and tonight we held them to 48. We followed the game plan and did a great job attacking the basket.”
Lilly Null led the Redskins with team-highs of 17 points, seven steals and five assists.
“Lilly Null played a phenomenal game for us,” McCain said. “She was the difference offensively for us in the first half, and Avery Still was the difference in the second half.”
Avery Still hit double-digit scoring with 10 points, and Esther Miller followed with nine points and a team-high 11 rebounds.
Josie Orris recorded eight points, and Emily White added five. Read More

•January 16, 2019•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports Editor

After winning 14-straight games including 4-0 in the Central Illinois Conference, the Sullivan girls’ basketball team has risen to the No. 5 team in the Associated Press Class 2A State rankings.
But Sullivan coach Sheri McCain does not want her players to become complacent.
Thursday, Jan. 10, the Redskins stayed undefeated in the CIC after knocking off Clinton.
Instead of blowing out the Maroons in the first quarter as Sullivan has done with most opponents this season, the Redskins gradually increased their lead each quarter. Read More

Photo by R.R. Best
Redskin Esther Miller (No. 23) ties up Okaw Valley’s Mia Harris (No. 2) while Madison Vogel (No. 12) helps.

•December 19, 2018•

By Jason Brown
NP Sports Editor

The No. 10 Class 2A state-ranked Sullivan girls’ basketball team kept on rolling last week with three more nonconference wins.
The Redskins knocked off Mattoon Monday, Pana Saturday and Okaw Valley Thursday to improve its record to 11-1 on the season.
Monday night against the Green Wave, Sullivan jumped out to a 12-0 lead with just under three minutes in the first quarter when Emily White hit a 3-pointer on an out-of-bounds play.
Mattoon cut the lead to 16-11, but Sullivan scored the next four points for a 20-11 halftime lead.
To start the third quarter, Avery Still made two baskets, and Josie Orris hit a shot to extend the lead to 26-11.
Mattoon battled back to 26-17 until Lilly Null pulled up at the top of key hitting a three pointer for a 29-17 lead.
Null followed that with a transition basket to extend the lead to 31-18.
With just less than two minutes in the third quarter, Esther Miller stopped a Mattoon run at 37-27 with a steal at half court and a transition layup.
The score stayed the same until Miller hit two free throws to make it 39-27 with about seven minutes left.
Still extended the lead to 11 points 43-32 with a rebound put-back and another shot down low with 4:41 left in the game.
Miller scored down low and later made free throws to extend the lead to 47-33 with three minutes left in the game. Read More