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Sports Editor Matt Daniels with a look at what’s going on around the area:
Copper Creek Contractors logo
Three reasons we love sports today
➜ 1. Voting continues until noon on Thursday at our website for our latest High School Athletes of the Week, powered by Copper Creek Contractors.
➜ 2. The male finalists are Johnathan Iacobazzi (Sullivan cross-country), Ethan Merritt (Oakwood/Salt Fork soccer), Cooper Miller (Fisher football) and Evan Parish (Bismarck-Henning/Rossville-Alvin football). The female finalists are Emily Decker (Unity cross-country), Emily Dossey (Uni High swimming and diving), Christa Holohan (Watseka volleyball) and Ashley Wells (St. Thomas More golf).
➜ 3. The St. Joseph Middle School baseball team (19-4) plays in a Class 2A IESA state quarterfinal game at 10 a.m. Friday against Staunton (18-1) in East Peoria. The Panthers are the only area baseball team that will play in the IESA state tournament this weekend at the EastSide Centre.
Adalia McKenzie, left, and Shauna Green in July.
Numbers game: 8
returnees on the Illinois women’s basketball team this season off last year’s team that went 19-15 and won the WBIT title. It’s in stark contrast to only two returnees on the Illini men’s basketball team. Cori Allen, Shay Bollin, Kendall Bostic, Genesis Bryant, Makira Cook, Gretchen Dolan, Adalia McKenzie and Brynn Shoup-Hill are all back, with Cook and McKenzie joining coach Shauna Green on Wednesday in Rosemont at Big Ten media days.
Averie Hernandez (8) and the Illini volleyball team hosts Nebraska on Thursday night.
Crowd control
Three events I’m paying attention to
➜ 1. Nebraska at Illinois volleyball. Can the Illini (8-4, 0-2 Big Ten) pull the upset? Chris Tamas’ program will have to play its best match this season against the second-ranked Cornhuskers (12-1, 2-0), who bring a nine-match win streak going into Thursday’s 6 p.m. match at a sold-out Huff Hall in Champaign.
➜ 2. Danville at Champaign Central football. Danville (1-4) has to beat the Maroons (2-3) at Tommy Stewart Field on Friday night if the Vikings want to keep their playoff hopes intact.
➜ 3. Class 2A Danville boys’ golf regional. Turtle Run Golf Club on Wednesday is the site to see if Mahomet-Seymour or Monticello can win a regional title.
Prairie Central wrestling coach Scott Ziller.
Coach’s corner
Three questions with Prairie Central wrestling coach Scott Ziller:
➜ 1. My favorite sports team is … the Prairie Central wrestling team. I legitimately only follow our school’s sports teams.
➜ 2. Three coaches I’d like to have dinner with are … Dan Gable, Steve Kerr and Derek Leonard.
➜ 3. My biggest pet peeve is … when someone doesn’t take responsibility or initative for solving their issues.