Local Sports

JOLIET — Coming in as a huge underdog Wednesday night, Joliet Catholic Academy knew it was going to have to be more energetic and hustle if they were going to take down the Minooka Indians boy’s volleyball team. That’s exactly what the Hilltoppers did, but it still wasn’t enough, as the Indians survived a 25-21, 22-25, 25-18 scare from JCA to claim their fourth straight regional title. 

Coal City nearly upended top-seeded Peotone before falling 2-1 in nine innings Tuesday at the 3A Manteno Softball Regional.

Morris took an early lead on top-seeded La Salle-Peru Tuesday at the Streator Sectional but was unable to hold on.

Normal Community double- and triple-teamed Minooka forward Jill Hetfleisch en route to a 3-0 sectional soccer win Tuesday.

Morris played Charleston to a draw for one half Tuesday but fell off the pace in the second half at the Normal West soccer sectional.

STREATOR — Coal City experienced two things for the first time Monday — it competed in a regional baseball play-in game, and it competed in the Class 3A postseason.

SENECA — Two individual qualifers and 1 qualifying relay team were the highlights for fifth-place Seneca at its own Class 1A boys track and field sectional late Friday.

COAL CITY — Coming out of the gate, it looked like the Kankakee softball team had its hitting shoes on. The Kays came out swinging and loaded the bases on three straight hits.

PONTIAC — After giving up its 4-1 lead in the 6th inning against Pontiac on Monday in the Streator regional play-in game, Erica Gualandi made sure her team would end up on the winning side, driving in the game winning run in the 9th inning to lead the Morris Redskins to a 7-4 victory. The Redskins advance to the regional semifinals Tuesday against LaSalle-Peru.

Saying that Haleigh Knapp was not at all nervous at the Class 2A Girls Track and Field State Final meet in Charleston may be a stretch.

GARDNER — For the longest time on Saturday, it looked like the Gardner-South Wilmington baseball team was going to put the 1994 season behind them. That is, of course, the last time the Panthers won a regional championship.

Teammate Leona Burton ninth in long jump

SOUTH WILMINGTON  — Top-seeded Gardner-South Wilmington took care of business in the championship game at its own Class 1A softball regional Saturday morning, defeating St. Anne 10-0 in six innings.

JOLIET — It had been so long since the Minooka girl’s soccer program had won a regional title that some of their varsity players hadn’t even been born yet.

Last year a lightning storm that passed through town ended the Morris vs. Yorkville regional soccer match. Right after the Foxes got the lone goal of the game, a bolt shot across the sky for the first time and the storm never left and Yorkville walked away with a shortened 1-0 victory.

MINOOKA — If this is not the greatest season in the history of the Minooka girls track and field program, it certainly merits a spot on its Mount Rushmore.

GARDNER — Gardner-South Wilmington baseball coach Todd Grieff knows how the Panthers’ bread is buttered these days. Heading into postseason action, it is only logical then that senior pitcher Mike Goodwin would be toeing the bump for the locals.

JOLIET — Minooka won its second straight Class 3A boys track and field sectional Thursday night, totaling 117 points for a 49-point win over second-place Plainfield East.

The Newark baseball team beat Serena 9-5 at the Putnam County Regional on Thursday, getting seven solid innings out of Joe Hughes.

GARDNER — In the bottom of the third inning of Thursday’s Gardner-South Wilmington Class 1A Regional, things looked like they were getting away from the hosting Panthers.