Rebels bounce back to defeat Falcons

HARVEY | When Thornridge junior basketball player Victor Trout made a bucket off a steal to tie T.F. South on Saturday, it appeared the Falcons were poised to take control of the game.

T.F. South tops Argo in boys basketball

LANSING | Thornton Fractional South boys basketball coach John O'Rourke has seen his team start slow more often than he cares to remember this season.

Marian Catholic edges Missouri powerhouse in OT

CHICAGO | Marian Catholic senior Melanie Ransom said she adjusted quickly to joining the Spartans girls basketball squad this year.

Rebel rally falls short against Reavis

BURBANK | When one digs a hole, sometimes it can't be filled back up.

Spartans hold off Mighty Macs

CHICAGO | The Times No. 1 Marian Catholic's girls basketball team had a double-digit lead evaporate in a matter of minutes Saturday afternoon against host Mother McAuley.

Seton Academy boys basketball player Alex Foster signs with Minnesota

SOUTH HOLLAND | Seton Academy's Alex Foster, with his mind made up, said Wednesday it was the right time to sign a letter of intent to play men's basketball at the University of Minnesota.

Monee junior LB Nyles Morgan leads Warriors in solo tackles

CRETE | Crete-Monee's Nyles Morgan may only be a junior, but the linebacker has already caught plenty of eyes of college coaches.

Crete-Monee football team survives upset bid; tops Peoria Richwoods

CRETE | Revenge might in fact be good served cold, but it is even better when it also comes at the last minute.

Simeon escapes with playoff win over Bloom Twp.

CHICAGO | Facing third down and 39 yards to go in Friday night's Class 8A playoff game against Bloom Township, Simeon seemed unlikely to convert.

Vikings win sectional title in four games against Wolves

VALPARAISO | Once Valparaiso's volleyball team solved the middle, they solved their entire match against Michigan City.

Late goal lifts Tinley Park past Marian for regional title

CHICAGO HEIGHTS | Marian Catholic boys soccer coach Nasser Shahtaji said the beautiful game can be cruel at times, too.

Sandburg transfer Johnson leads H-F to win over former team

FLOSSMOOR | Homewood-Flossmoor quarterback Ron Johnson played Friday night as if he knew his opponent front and back, which he did.

Big second quarter propels Crete-Monee to victory

RICHTON PARK | Like a freight train beginning a 48-minute trip, Crete-Monee's football team started Friday night's game against host Rich South slowly, but eventually could not be stopped.

Big plays spur Bloom Twp. to win over Kankakee

STEGER | Bloom Township played its first half of football against Kankakee on Saturday as if it had the game already won.

T.F. North lets ball, game slip away at Oak Forest

OAK FOREST | When a football team loses as many fumbles as the amount of points they are able to put on the board, that team should expect to be in for a long game.

Meteors upset bid thwarted in the second half

OAK LAWN | It wasn't anywhere near the final score Thornton Fractional North coach Artie Rogers was looking for, but he said Friday night's football game against Richards was a step in the right direction for the Meteor program.

Mount Carmel plays football at school for only second time, wins big

CHICAGO | It was not expected to be much of a contest, and it wasn't.

Crete-Monee cruises past Glenbard South

GLEN ELLYN | Crete-Monee football coach Jerry Verde has always stressed the importance of a strong start to his football players.

Blazing Trojans blank Phillips; move to 2-1 for first time in four years

CHICAGO HEIGHTS | Bloom Township's football team started well against Chicago Public League opponenet Phillips on Saturday afternoon, then carried that early momentum with varying degrees of success to a convincing 36-0 win at Bloom Trail High School.

Mount Carmel erupts early for blowout win

CHICAGO | It doesn't take a mathematics genius or a brilliant football mind to know that when one scores nearly three points a play for the first half, the rest of the game is probably going to turn out just fine.

Sylvester, defense pave way to Meteors' win

DOLTON | Thornton Fractional North quarterback Davion Sylvester did not complete many passes in Saturday's rainy game against Thornridge.

Crete-Monee capitalize on turnovers against Marian Catholic

CHICAGO HEIGHTS | It wasn't exactly a textbook performance by a team ranked tops among Class 6A clubs, but Crete-Monee made big plays down the stretch for what matters most -- a win.

Caravan grounds down St. Patrick at Soldier Field

CHICAGO | With a four-point lead heading into the second half of Saturday's season opening football game against St. Patrick, Mount Carmel coach Frank Lenti and his Caravan turned to the ground game, which in turn ground the Shamrocks to pulp.

Kenwood Academy staves off T.F. North

CALUMET CITY | Artie Rogers saw too much of the type of uneven play Friday night that often ails teams in early-season encounters, and Thornton Fractional North's coach saw it in defeat.

Last preseason test for Valpo, Morton

HAMMOND | The football playbooks used Friday night under the lights at Morton High School were stripped down, basic, or as described on both side of the field, vanilla.

Times Illinois girls athlete of the year: Illiana Christian's Jaclene Bonnema

LANSING | Sports have certainly shaped Dyer resident Jaclene Bonnema's life, and in return, Bonnema's athletic talent helped shape the landscape of Illinois prep sports.

Marian Catholic's Kerri Evans is The Times Softball Coach of the Year

CHICAGO HEIGHTS | Eight seniors graduated from the 2011 team, so Marian Catholic softball coach Kerri Evans entered 2012 with the mindset that her Spartans would need to re-invent themselves.

Beecher's Savannah Soppet is Times Softball Player of the Year

BEECHER | Beecher junior Savannah Soppet keeps her busy daily schedule on a low-tech, big calendar that is kept for all to see in the Soppet house.

NWI Oilmen squeak past DuPage County Hounds

WHITING | The Northwest Indiana Oilmen provided the electricity at Oil City Stadium that Mother Nature thankfully kept away Saturday night.

T.F. South, Mount Carmel join eight other football programs at Richards Passing Tournament

OAK LAWN | With the end of another high school year barely in the past, it might seem odd to refer to the 2012 prep football season as being right around the corner.

Santori settles in and shuts down LaSalle-Peru's offense

JOLIET | Marian Catholic senior pitcher Ben Santori said that when he learned on Thursday that he would be the Spartans starting pitcher for the IHSA Class 3A state championship game, he was fine with the news.

Marian Catholic pitcher Brett Lilek expected to be drafted as Spartans eye state berth

NEW LENOX | Marian Catholic pitcher Brett Lilek is used to big decisions, both on the field and off.

Marian Catholic baseball team wins first-ever sectional title

NEW LENOX | Imagine what Marian Catholic pitcher Brett Lilek is like when he does have a good pre-start warmup.

H-F succumbs to big rally one out from win

TINLEY PARK | The last out of a baseball game is generally considered the toughest to get.

St. Rita tops Mount Carmel volleyball team to win De La Salle Sectional

CHICAGO | As soon as the final shot fell into the court Tuesday night, Mount Carmel senior Bob Walsh ripped off his volleyball jersey, just as he told his teammates he would.

Titans outslug Marian Catholic for Class 3A regional softball title

CHICAGO HEIGHTS | Tinley Park sophomore Maranda Stroz made it pretty clear Saturday afternoon why she is the Titans' designated player.

Mount Carmel volleyball beat Berwyn-Cicero Morton in De La Salle Sectional semifinal

CHICAGO | Morton simply did not have the size, the power, nor the overall talent to compete with Mount Carmel's volleyball team Friday night.

Rebels blanked by RedHawks, eliminated from playoffs

BURBANK | Try as they did, Thornton Fractional South's softball team was unable to break Marist's pesky defense Wednesday afternoon, nor solve RedHawk pitcher Audra Hecker's off-speed pitches.

H-F, Illiana Christian exit volleyball playoffs

NEW LENOX | When Illiana Christian's boys volleyball team showed Lincoln-Way Central it could defend the middle early in Tuesday's playoff match, the Knights simply moved their base of attack outside.

Beecher's Nykaza enters state race as runner to beat

Beecher distance runner Grant Nykaza knows what it feels like to be a champion. As a freshman and sophomore, Nykaza was part of Beecher's 3,200-meter relay team that won back-to-back Class 1A IHSA state championships.

Illiana Christian, H-F advance to regional semis

NEW LENOX | Illiana Christian's boys volleyball team has been looking forward to tonight's match with Lincoln-Way Central for some time now.

Chicago Christian slips past Illiana Christian for regional title

LANSING | First-year Chicago Christian softball coach Kevin Pittman spoke from experience when he said one can throw out the records when the Knights and Illiana Christian face each other in any sport.

Illiana's Vander Zee a leader

LANSING | On the boys volleyball court, Illiana Christian outside hitter Kyle Vander Zee is a quiet leader, not one to really blow his own horn.

Lincoln-Way North beats Marian Catholic in girls soccer regional final

CHICAGO HEIGHTS | When Lincoln-Way North midfielder Jessica Bean drove a shot past Marian Catholic goalkeeper Sarah Sieracki less than five minutes into the play of Friday's Class 2A Marian Catholic Regional championship match, it was only a hint of what was in store for the Spartans.

Beecher softball team rolls behind play of Soppet, Crews

BEECHER | When the Beecher softball team started the season by losing two of its first three games, Ladycats pitchers Savannah Soppet and Sarah Crews were not worried.

T.F. South badminton team eyeing a state title

LANSING | In his 29 years as a high school badminton coach, T.F. South coach Bob Tengstrand has learned he can never be sure what to expect when it comes time for the IHSA state tournament.

Blazing Trojans dominate field at SAC meet

CHICAGO HEIGHTS | Blooms Township made it look easy.

Providence tops No. 1 Mount Carmel again

CHICAGO | Leaving too many runners stranded on base is an unaffordable luxury when facing the Providence baseball team.

Wildcats prime for postseason by winning own track meet

HARVEY | Thornton senior Demetri Smith was matter-of-fact in his assessment of the Wildcats boys track team after they won the seven-team Thornton Track Classic Invitational on Saturday afternoon.