Girl's Basketball State Finals Wrap-Up

2009-10 IHSSN All-Tournament Team

We saw a wide array of talent throughout Class 1A and Class 2A this past weekend from freshman to senior. I decided to break it down by class, and name my All-Tournament teams from Redbird Arena in 2009-10.

All-Freshman Team
Micah Jones (Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City)
*How can you go wrong with a triple-double in a trophy game at the state tournament, regardless of class. Jones filled up the stat sheets with 13 points, 19 rebounds, 11 blocks, 4 assists, and 2 steals against Ridgewood.

Jordan Frericks (Quincy Notre Dame)
*The (6'0") Raider had a double-double in the state championship game, notching 15 points and 10 rebounds, while adding 2 assists and 2 steals in helping QND to a 2nd place finish in 2A.

Kassidy Gengenbacher (Quincy Notre Dame)
*One of two starters on the QND roster, the younger sister of All-State senior Karlee, Kassidy showed that we will remember the name Gengenbacher for at least three more seasons. In the semifinal win over Nashville, Kassidy had 7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 assists, and 1 block.

Shaye Harre (Nashville)
*The (5'9") Center scored 2 points in a semifinal loss, and turned around and had 2 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 steal in a bigger role Saturday in helping the Hornettes win the 3rd place trophy.

Erica Brown (Nashville)
*The (5'10") Forward saw minutes sparingly throughout the tournament, but did log 10 total minutes. Brown finished the state tournament with 1 rebound, 1 assist, and 1 steal, and should have a bright future in the Nashville program.

All-Sophomore Team
Annie Gelaude (Ridgewood)
*While she struggled from the floor (0-9), Gelaude was a nice presence for the Spartans off the bench as one of the first subs in. In all, she had 7 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block for the Class 1A third-place Spartans.

Breeanna Strauch (Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City)
*She was a spark plug for the Hornets, who finished fourth. The quick (5'5") guard tallied 6 points, 2 steals, and 1 rebound.

Faith Wendte (Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City)
*Wendte scored 14 points in the 3rd place game, while adding 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal. In the semifinal loss to Jacksonville Routt, Wendte logged 5 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist.

Kaitlin Phillips (Hinckley-Big Rock)
*Phillips would earn the Sophomore MVP of the tournament. A starter for the Class 1A state champions, Phillips had 5 points, 2 steals, 1 block, and 1 rebound in the state title win over Routt. In the semi's, she had 8 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 assist.

Bailey Doty (Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City)
*From a youthful lineup at CH-BC (only 4 juniors & seniors), Doty tallied below-average numbers at the state tournament from what she put out over the season. Over the weekend, Doty finished with 5 points, 4 steals, and 2 assists.

---NOTE---
For the upperclassmen, I will divide the all-tournament teams by class (1A/2A).

Class 1A All-Junior Team
Tess Godhardt (Hinckley-Big Rock)
*Godhardt would probably be my pick for 1A MVP, though it would be tough to decide between her and teammate Jenna Thorp. In the semifinal overtime win over Ridgewood, Godhardt scored the first six baskets of the overtime, lifting the Lady Royals to the 1A state championship game. Godhardt finished that semifinal contest with 19 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals. In the state championship, she totaled 9 points, 15 rebounds, 2 blocks.

Kelly Lonergan (Jacksonville Routt)
*Lonergan had two huge three-point baskets in the third quarter to spark a Routt run in the state championship game. She finished the state title game with 15 points, 4 steals, 2 rebounds. She had 7 points, 2 steals, 1 assist, 1 rebound in the semifinal win.

Ella Teel (Ridgewood)
*The sharpshooter had a nice tournament in helping the Spartans take home a 3rd place trophy back to Henry County. Teel struggled from the field in the tournament (5-24), which is rare form for her. Despite that number, she finished the tournament with an all-around stat line; 19 points, 7 assists, 6 steals, and 5 rebounds.

Erika White (Jacksonville Routt)
*I must admit, the first time I saw White step back and take a three-pointer, I was a bit surprised. Then she knocked it down, and did it again later. The (6'1") Forward showed some range at Redbird! In the opening game, White was (5-7) from the floor, finishing with 12 points and 2 rebounds.

Monica Gardner (Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City)
*Gardner struggled filling the stat sheets, but was the player in the Hornets starting lineup that did the intangibles that don't show up in the box score. She finished the weekend with 2 rebounds and 2 steals in 18 minutes of action.

Class 2A All-Junior Team
Jess Reinhart (Bloomington Central Catholic)
*The All-Stater dominated Bishop McNamara in the weekend opener, to the tune of 21 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 assists. She followed that effort up in the state championship game with 19 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals in helping lead the Saints to their first ever girl's basketball state title.

Allie Norton (Bloomington Central Catholic)
*I would annoint the All-Junior MVP a tie, between teammates. Norton and Reinhart would both be deserving of the Class 2A MVP. If I were to title a book about the Bloomington Central Catholic Saints junior duo of Reinhart and Norton, it would be called "The Perimeter and the Paint". What Reinhart did down low, Norton did just as much from outside. Norton finished the semifinal win over Bishop Mac with 15 points, 7 assists. In the state championship game, Norton knocked down five three-pointers and had a game-high 27 points, along with 7 assists, 4 rebounds, and 4 steals.

Jennifer Moeller (Nashville)
*The Hornettes Center is one of those blue-collar types. She gets down and does the Nashville dirty work down low. Moeller posted a double-double against Bishop Mac to take 3rd place. She finished the game with 11 points, 12 rebounds, and also doled out 3 assists.

Jenna Morris (Nashville)
*Morris was a player that was a floor general for the Hornettes, and a player that the team needed on the floor. Morris finished the tournament totaling 17 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block, 1 steal.

Erika Tatum (Bishop McNamara)
*Overall, I thought the Lady Irish underachieved throughout the weekend, but Tatum had a nice tournament run, never giving up the fight. Over the two days, Tatum scored 31 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 assists.

Class 1A All-Senior Team
Jenna Thorp (Hinckley-Big Rock)
*I would annoint Thorp and teammate Godhardt the co-1A MVP's of this year's tournament. Thorp is such a dominant presence, she plays the game so much differently than her peers...hence the next stop is at Division-One Northern Illinois. Thorp had 28 points, 22 rebounds, 6 steals, 5 assists, 3 blocks.

Michelle Williams (Ridgewood)
*Much like Thorp is to the Lady Royals, Michelle Williams is just that for the Ridgewood Spartans. She's the type of player a team needs on the floor throughout most of the game. Williams' numbers weren't great, but her presence is what counts. She finished with 6 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals.

Amanda Kruger (Ridgewood)
*Kruger was Klutch for the Spartans. She finished the tournament on (7-9) shooting from the field, and was (9-11) from the free throw line. In all, she had 23 points, 19 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks.

Morgan Eilering (Jacksonville Routt)
*The daugher of head coach Joe Eilering, Morgan excelled in the opening day to the tune of a double-double. In the Rockets win over CH-BC, Eilering had 12 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks, 2 steals. She had 6 rebounds in the state championship game.

Katie Lindsey (Jacksonville Routt)
*The post presence for the Rockets, Lindsey helped boost the Rockets into the title game. In the semi's, Lindsey posted 7 points and 6 rebounds, and added 8 points, 9 rebounds in the state championship game.

Class 2A All-Senior Team
Karlee Gengenbacher (Quincy Notre Dame)
*Gengenbacher was probably the best player on the floor the entire tournament. She posted a season-high 25 points in a state title loss to BCC and had this impressive stat line: 25 points, 7 steals, 4 rebounds, 3 assists. In the semifinal win, Gengenbacher had 14 points, 4 rebounds over Nashville.

Kelly Curran (Bloomington Central Catholic)
*Curran makes my list on her sheer defensive talent. I don't think I've ever seen a player tip as many passes as she did over the two games. She had 5 steals against Bishop McNamara, and in the state title victory, had 7 points, 5 rebounds.

Leigh McLaughlin (Quincy Notre Dame)
*Just by her gutsy performance in the state championship game, McLaughlin needs to be recognized. She tried to stay on the floor to play, despite obvious pain when rolling her ankle. She sat a few minutes in what appeared to be excruciating pain on the bench, then came out to start the 4th quarter and played all eight minutes. In the postgame medal ceremony, she walked with an obvious limp, while she had just been playing the most gutsiest performance of her career, quite possibly, playing the game 200 mph. McLaughlin had 11 points, 9 assists in that state championship game.

Carly Norton (Bloomington Central Catholic)
*The older sister to Allie Norton, Carly had a solid stat line for the state champion Saints, filling up every statistical category. She totaled 20 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, 7 steals through the weekend. The Norton Sisters went a combined (7-13) from the three-point line in the win over Bishop Mac.

Claire Obert (Quincy Notre Dame)
*The point guard for the Raiders did a nice job leading the team, and controlling the offense. Obert notched 6 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal against Nashville, and added 2 points, 5 rebounds, 4 steals in the state title game.

Game 109: Quincy Notre Dame vs. Bloomington Central Catholic (Girl's Basketball)

Game 109
(2/27/10)
Quincy Notre Dame vs. Bloomington Central Catholic (Girl's Basketball)
IHSA Class 2A State Championship

Here it is, the final basketball game in Class 1A/2A girl's basketball for 2009-10, hard to believe. In my next blog, I will highlight each class of girls at the state tournament, giving you my all-tournament teams by class (freshman, sophomore, etc.) for 1A & 2A.

Talking with the Quincy Herald-Whig's David Adam before the game, he mentioned the success and talent the girls in the junior high level have coming up into the program over the next few years, and says they have a legitimate shot to return to Redbird Arena and be a favorite the next few seasons.

Both squads have a glut of postseason experience in their school histories. QND is looking to win their third state title in school history, making their 7th state finals appearance. The Raiders have won a total of five trophies, winning back-to-back state championships (1982-83 & 1983-84), a 2nd place finish (1980-81), a 3rd place finish (1981-82) and a 4th place finish (2007-08). In total, QND has won 22 Regional championships, and 11 Sectional titles.

Bloomington Central Catholic is making their fourth appearance in the state finals, and their highest finish came with a 4th place trophy in (1982-83). The Saints have won 20 Regional titles, and 8 Sectional championships. Over the past two years, BCC enters this game with a (60-2) record. They were upset in last year's Sectional championship to Tolono Unity.

The Raiders have both experience and youth in their lineup with first team All-Stater Karlee Gengenbacher bringing in (23.3 ppg), with her younger sister Kassidy (Freshman) also in the starting lineup with classmate Jordan Frericks (6'0" freshman) also a starter. The rest of the rotation are two seniors (Claire Obert & Leigh McLaughlin). As a matter of fact, word from Quincy is that there are a total of 13 Gengenbacher granddaughters, and Karlee is the OLDEST! Sounds like we may be ushering in the Gengenbacher Era in high school girl's basketball. Thanks to David Adam for that nugget of information.

After scoring all eight points for the Raiders the night before, Karlee Gengenbacher looked to do the same tonight, taking over the game and scoring the team's first six points. She would finish with eight points after the first quarter, but the Raiders gave up 25 points to Central Catholic. The Saints stifling defense forced QND into 10 first quarter turnovers.

Allie Norton, the junior that won the Class 2A three-point contest, picked up where she left off, burning the nets from the perimeter. Norton knocked down a trio of three-pointers in the first quarter. Jess Reinhart was dominating down low, getting six points in the paint for BCC.

Quincy Notre Dame started to make a little run in the second quarter, holding that potent Saints offense to just seven points, while scoring 12 points and cutting the deficit down to eight points at halftime.

In the third quarter, it was a battle, with Karlee Gengenbacher exploding for nine more points in the frame, and entered the fourth quarter with 23 points, one shy of her game-high this season. Midway through the third quarter, on a fast break off of a Saints turnover, Leigh McLaughlin raced down the floor, then attempted a jump stop. With the momentum, she landed poorly on an ankle and came up in immediate pain. She tried to stay on the floor, but couldn't put much pressure on it. The Quincy Notre Dame trainer pulled her out of the game, and as she sat on the QND bench, she was grimacing in severe pain. With the look on her face, I didn't think we would see McLaughlin back in the game, which would be a serious blow to the Raiders, especially as their defense was starting to punish BCC.

As the game wore on, neither team was handling the ball well. In fact, the Raiders finished with 25 turnovers, and the Saints coughed it up 23 times. Towards the end of the 3rd quarter, McLaughlin went down into the tunnel to the locker room, and appeared to try to walk off the injury. She would re-enter the game and start the fourth quarter, as QND was trailing 47-37.

At the start of the fourth quarter, Gengenbacher came crashing into press row, nearly taking out my laptop and the Statview screen in front of me. I was able to pull down the laptop, and then had to save the Statview screen from getting knocked over. A listener in our chat room commented that the play was really loud. That's because the crowd microphone was a mere four feet away from the "crash site" right on the table.

Midway through the fourth quarter, Karlee Gengenbacher picked up her fifth and final foul, wrapping up her high school career with a season-high 25 points in a state championship game. She also added 7 steals, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. With her on the bench, QND continued to mount a comeback, and closed the game as close as three points (57-54), but Ms. Clutch, Allie Norton delivered two free throws, and the Saints cruised on for a 63-58 win.

Norton would score a game-high 27 points, including hitting five three-pointers and going (4-4) from the free throw line in the fourth quarter. Norton added 7 assists, 4 steals, and 4 rebounds. Jess Reinhart had 19 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals for the state champion Bloomington Central Catholic Saints.

It's not too often you see a high school basketball broadcaster get asked for their autograph, but that's exactly what happened as the media on press row was packing up. Of course, it's also not too often that a high school basketball announcer is an Olympics Bronze Medal winning volleyball player. Caren Kemner is the color analyst for Quincy Notre Dame girl's basketball on AM 930 WTAD. Kemner won a bronze medal for Team USA in the 1992 Barcelona Games, and was also an Olympian in the 1988 Seoul Games and the 1996 Atlanta Games. She is also the volleyball coach at Quincy Notre Dame. Kemner signed a pair of shoes for two little girls at the end of the state championship game.

With the clock approaching 10:30 p.m. I decided to get a late dinner, via McDonalds. I promised myself this would be my last fast food for a long time, as I have punished my body with high fast and sodium over the past three days. On the menu was a couple double cheeseburgers and fries.

Driving back through Fulton County, it was past midnight and the deer were out! My first near run-in happened on a backroad between Farmington and Fairview (my short cut back to Macomb). There were at least 8 deer that I could see, and luckily I avoided them. I would also encounter deer in three other locations driving through the county along Route 9. Don't deer know that nothing good can happen when you're out after midnight!?!

The Quest File Notes
Game 112
Date: 2/27/10
Result: Bloomington Central Catholic wins their first-ever state championship with a 64-58 win over Quincy Notre Dame.
Miles: 105

Game 108: Nashville vs. Bishop McNamara (Girl's Basketball)

Game 108
(2/27/10)
Nashville vs. Bishop McNamara (Girl's Basketball)
IHSA Class 2A Third Place

After munching down my Popeye's, I headed for a gas station to pick up a bottle of water for the nightcap. I stopped at a Marathon (I believe), and was in for a rude awakening when pulling out. The station was attached to a car wash, and the parking lot was very peculiar. Backing out, I did not notice a large concrete pole behind me and slammed into it. It gave me a bit of whiplash, and scared the bejesus out of me. I got out, and surveyed the damage...and there was none. None whatsoever. Obviously it didn't phase the concrete, nor was my Explorer damaged, I scanned it for a couple minutes and found no sign of anything.

When I arrived back at Redbird Arena, I took a look at my back bumper again, and saw a very little ding and concrete mark, but I had to look twice, and hard to find it. There were a few members of the media along press row, including David Adam from the Quincy Herald-Whig. Not too long after I arrived back at the gym, Keith Yex from WCAZ (Carthage) showed up, and chatted about his years covering Carthage/Illini West at the state finals, and how it felt weird for him coming over as an observer and not working.

Jim Taylor also stopped in to talk, and was looking on some perspective on the Camp Pt. Central boy's team, which he will be broadcasting next week at the Class 1A B-PC Sectional when they play Orion.

Jeff Findley from Bloomington stopped by to talk. He is in charge of public relations for the State Farm Classic in town, and talked about the field from last year, and a little bit of insight on the selection process for the tournament.

Fithian Oakwood girl's basketball coach Rick Bough dropped by to say hello. Bough has been blessed with All-Stater Amy Martin for four years. The senior was named the Champaign News-Gazette Player of the Year, and twice scored 40+ points in a game this season. In a game where she scored 47 points, she electrified the opposing defense for 20 points in one QUARTER! I don't think I scored 20 points my entire high school CAREER!

After watching Bishop McNamara against Bloomington Central Catholic, I was confused on how to take the Lady Irish. I didn't know if BCC was that good (which they were), or if I had just overrated Bishop Mac throughout the season. Just like the night before, the Irish just sort of lacked any intensity, any passion on the floor.

The Hornettes took advantage from the get-go, taking a 14-7 lead after the first quarter. Jennifer Moeller had three field goals in the first quarter. Bishop Mac made a resurgence in the second quarter, by outscoring Nashville 12-8 and it was a three-point game at halftime, with Nashville on top (22-19).

Bishop McNamara held one lead the entire game, a two-point edge with 6:22 to play in the first quarter. Nashville led by as many as 11 points with 5:41 to play before halftime, before a nice Irish run to cut it down to three.

The offense was stagnant for the Irish in the third quarter, not scoring a basket until 2:50 to play in the quarter, and the Belinda Schaffsma bucket was the only points scored by Bishop Mac in the frame, while the Hornettes scored nine points to lead (31-21) going into the final frame.

Erika Tatum unleashed some offense in the fourth quarter, scoring 11 points, but it was not enough to come back, and Nashville would claim the 3rd place trophy with a 44-35 win. Nashville was led by; Jenna Morris (13 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists), Jennifer Moeller (11 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists), and Melanie Rhine (10 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists). Bishop McNamara was led by Erika Tatum's (16 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals).

The Quest File Notes
Game 108
Date: 2/27/10
Result: Nashville leads Bishop McNamara from beginning to end, pulling off a 44-35 win for the 3rd place trophy in Class 2A.
Miles: 0

Game 107: Hinckley-Big Rock vs. Jacksonville Routt (Girl's Basketball)

Game 107
(2/27/10)
Hinckley-Big Rock vs. Jacksonville Routt (Girl's Basketball)
Class 1A State Championship

Before today's game, IHSA Media Relations Director Matt Troha stopped to talk. He asked me why the quest for 100 games? It's a pretty lame story, as I reached into the 80 games broadcast last season, I thought doing 100 would be neat. I broadcasted 87 games a year ago. That was spread out over some Monmouth College games, along with a junior high state championship game. This season, it has been strictly high school varsity boy's and girl's basketball games. I would like to give Matt a shout, as he has done a fantastic job working with the media in the IHSA office, now in his second year. Matt sends out weekly releases and keeps the media informed of everything around the state, and organizing state finals information. Illinois high school sports media is very lucky to have someone that has the passion and drive for his job that he does!

I like to make predictions on games, until deep in the postseason. That's when you never know what you're going to get. If I were to make this pick three weeks ago, first of all I would say no way Routt would be playing for a state championship. Boy, did I underestimate this experienced group of girls throughout the season.

The Lady Royals of Hinckley-Big Rock are the defending Class 1A state champions, with everyone back from that title winning squad. Neither team has the advantage with experience. Routt is making their third state finals appearance in the last four year. Depth could be a concern if foul trouble were to plague H-BR. The Royals have just eight girls on the entire roster.

Hinckley-Big Rock may have, or does have the most solid 1-2 punch on their roster. Senior Jenna Thorp (Northern Illinois University) and junior Tess Godhardt are a formiddable foe. The rest of the roster for the Royals is very solid. Routt is a bit different, there is no standout one player, just a bunch of good players, even off the bench.

Routt got off to a 7-4 lead after the first quarter, as the teams just grinded it out. Neither team was able to get the shots to fall throughout the game. Routt managed to shoot just (22%) from the floor all game, while H-BR was (38%).

The Royals outscored the Rockets in the second quarter (8-5), and we had a tie (12-12) at halftime. It is no surprise that the Royals defense would allow just 12 first half points (season average: 29 points allowed/game). Hinckley-Big Rock had been averaging 60 points/game throughout the year.

One of my fellow broadcasting compatriots was just down the row from me, Larry Bostwick of WVIL in Jacksonville. Larry does a great job covering high school sports in the Jacksonville/Beardstown/Rushville areas. Check him out at www.lbsportsproductions.com.

Kelly Lonergan gave the Rockets a spark in the third quarter with back-to-back three pointers, but H-BR All-Stater Jenna Thorp dominated the paint scoring four field goals, giving the Lady Royals a 25-22 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

The Royals did nearly all of their scoring in the paint, scoring 22 of their 38 points there. Neither team had much of an advantage throughout the game. The Royals biggest lead was six points, which was their margin of victory (38-32). Routt led by as many as four points, very early in the second quarter.

IHSA-TV man Lee Hall stopped by during a break in the fourth quarter, for a pre-interview talk. He would be talking with me at the next break. I will admit, I was a little bit nervous, but tried not to let it show. In watching the replay, I can't quite explain the look, maybe giddy...I don't know....certainly dorky! Lee opened the interview up with, "Lou Gehrig is the Iron Horse, Robert Downey Jr. was Iron Man, and Beau Spencer is the IHSA's answer to the Iron Man." He also asked me about my run-ins with the "men in blue". After seven or eight years of covering high school sports, I had never been pulled over. This season, four stops for speeding over the course of the season. Three times as the "wheel man", the other time as a passenger.

Hinckley-Big Rock went (8-13) from the free throw line in the fourth quarter to seal the victory, and their second consecutive state championship. Jenna Thorp finished her high school career with a state title game stat line of; 14 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks, and 2 steals. Tess Godhardt had 9 points, 15 rebounds, 2 blocks. The Rockets were led by Kelly Lonergan's 15 points, 4 steals, while Katie Lindsey added 8 points, 9 rebounds.

After the game, the celebration roared with the Lady Royals accepting their state championship medals, trophy and net from Redbird Arena. Something I have never seen before, was the scoreboard being lowered. I don't know why the overhead scoreboard was lowered, but the Hinckley-Big Rock Principal and Assistant coach used it as a photo op, standing next to it denoting the final score. One problem, though, the scoreboard had already put the Class 2A participants above the "38-32" final score. No problem, as each of them covered those schools with their arms.

I also had the pleasure of meeting one of the Lady Royals fans, Ryan Finley. We have talked throughout the season about girl's basketball, and sharing our knowledge from each part of the state throughout the postseason.

Afterwards, I headed out to get a bite to eat, before returning for the final two games of girl's basketball at the small-school level.

I punched in "food" in my Garmin to find something a little different. An A&W popped up, and it has been years since enjoying some good A&W, plus a Root Beer Float sounded delicious. Garmin directed me to the mall. Either A&W was inside the mall, or Garmin was sadly mistaken. Opting for just a quick drive-thru eat, I headed out to Popeye's. This was my first Popeyes Chicken experience, and it was amazing. I went with the three chicken tender meal with mashed potatoes and biscuit. This may have been better than an A&W Root Beer Float!

The Quest File Notes
Game 107
Date: 2/27/10
Result: Hinckley-Big Rock wins 2nd straight Class 1A State Championship, defeating Jacksonville Routt 38-32.
Miles: 10

Game 106: Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City vs. Ridgewood (Girl's Basketball)

Game 106
(2/27/10)
Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City vs. Ridgewood (Girl's Basketball)
IHSA Class 1A Third Place

Since I stayed up late on Friday, not hitting the sack until after 1:00 a.m. I had planned on sleeping in until 8:00 or 8:30. That would not happen, as I had too much to get done, and too much on my mind. My body's alarm clock beat the set alarm clock and woke me up at 7:00. I layed in bed thinking of all of the stuff I had to do, and needed to go out and find an ATM, get something for breakfast, and the most important of all....get coffee.

People have suggested to me to make lists. When I have a list, and accomplish things in an organized manner, it makes life much easier. Again, I need a personal assistant to make sure I do these things day in and day out, lol. The first task at hand, was making sure my scorebooks were filled out, so I wrote in the Class 1A games in the book. After that, I headed out to find an ATM and a McDonalds (sigh...more fast food).

Fortunately my bank (Heartland) is based in Bloomington, so there were plenty of ATM's to avoid those darn surcharges. Garmin took me downtown and to an ATM. One thing I have not conquered on the Garmin, is figuring out how to find a destination, on the way to a destination, as in finding a McDonalds on the way, or nearest, to the hotel.

As with my Winnteka trip and trying to find a Giordano's, the same happened with my McDonalds morning escapade, taking me out to College Avenue in Bloomington, in essence, taking me on a large out-of-the-way trip. The McDonald's dollar breakfast menu may be the best thing ever invented in the fast food history, ranking above the original McDonald's dollar menu in my book! I ordered a breakfast burrito, and a Sausage McMuffin, along with my large coffee. Driving back to the hotel, I passed a McDonalds (which was much closer and could have saved me at least five minutes!).

My next task was to collect everything and put it together in the room, in preparation for checkout. For some reason, I had stuff spilled out everywhere. After a shower, I packed everything up and took it down to the car and checked out around 10:15. My next stop was to find a gas station and pick up a bottle of water. I hit the Express Mart, which is half gas station, half liqour store near campus. For some reason, I am picky when purchasing bottled water. I don't like Evian or the Nestle, and it's all about the bottle. My first choice is Dasani, or Aquafina. For some reason, it just "tastes" better...if that makes sense, and I'm sure it doesn't!

Once again, I was one of the first media members at Redbird Arena, arriving around 10:30. Shortly after setting up, I peered down press row and WRMJ owner John Hoscheidt had settled in. With Jim Taylor broadcasting games on Internet for the IHSA, John was handling the play-by-play duties for WRMJ in covering the Ridgewood Spartans.

I worked for John when I broke into radio, giving a fresh-faced 19-year old a full-time gig as Sports Director at the former WHHK (Galva) and WGEN (Geneseo) while I was still in college. He also helped me get the radio gig in Macomb. We talked about the boy's basketball regional championships played out the night before, and he mentioned the teams they used to cover before consolidation hit the west central part of the state. WRMJ would follow Aledo, Westmer, Rockridge, Sherrard, Yorkwood, Warren, and Alexis. Now, those seven schools have been whittled down to four (Mercer County, Rockridge, Sherrard, United).

While we were talking Jim O'Boye walked over and we talked about my interview with Lee Hall that would take place at some point in the day for the IHSA TV broadcast. As the three of us talked, he looked at John and said, "You're Hoscheidt, you look a lot younger." I joked, "That's probably the first time you've heard that in a while!"

John's partner in crime Jim Taylor arrived shortly thereafter, and was filling me in on the Alleman-Sherrard Regional Championship game. There is no love lost between the Tigers and Pioneers that dates back to the 1990's. Apparently, there were some shenanigans on the floor at times during the game. The Alleman Pioneers won by 19 points, and at (6-20) advance to the Sectionals.

I felt CH-BC (How I will denote the Hornets from now on, over spelling out Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City) had the advantage in this 3rd place game. The Hornets were beat by 20 points the day before, while Ridgewood took Hinckley-Big Rock to overtime, and lost an emotional game. Spartans coach Bryan Brooks said in the postgame press conference, "That was the state championship game in my mind..." You see this happen a lot in games where teams leave everything on the floor in that semifinal game, and just have no gas left for a 3rd place game.

Early on, that's the way the game played out. CH-BC and freshman phenom Micah Jones were dominating Ridgewood. The Hornets jumped out to a 15-8 first quarter lead. Faith Wendte scored 7 points for CH-BC in that opening frame.

The Spartans slightly closed the gap in the second quarter, outscoring the Hornets 10-9, and a big basket by Amanda Kruger with 0:02 left in the second quarter made it a six-point game (24-18) at halftime. Ridgwood's momentum carried over to start the third quarter, as they had carried over an 8-point run after trailing by 11 points late in the second quarter. Ridgewood was down (24-13), and had closed the gap to (24-21) early in the 3rd quarter.

CH-BC rallied back and led by 8 points midway through the third quarter, but another Spartans run closed the gap to 35-32 after three quarters. Micah Jones entered the fourth quarter with four fouls. In their loss to Jacksonville Routt on Friday, the Hornets completely fell apart without her on the floor (foul trouble). Jones picked up her fifth foul with 5:32 left in the game, and CH-BC led by three points at that stage.

Jones, a FRESHMAN, would stun girl's basketball fans watching as she would notch a TRIPLE-DOUBLE in this game. Micah Jones finished with this amazing stat line: 13 points, 19 rebounds, 11 blocks, 4 assists, 2 steals. Remember the name: MICAH JONES!

Just like Friday, the Hornets looked lost with Jones no longer available. The Ridgewood run had begun, and would close out the game outscoring the Hornets, 22-9. The Spartans would go (10-15) from the free throw line down the stretch.

Obviously Jones stat line was most impressive. Faith Wendte (14 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists), and Hillary Shelton (4 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists) also helped the Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City cause. Shelton fouled out shortly after Jones in the fourth quarter.

Ridgewood, victorious by a 54-44 margin, were led by Amanda Kruger (16 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals), and Danyelle English (12 points, 9 rebounds).

Next up, our first state champion to be crowned in high school basketball for the 2009-10 season.

The Quest File Notes
Game 106
Date: 2/27/10
Result: Despite (Fr.) Micah Jones Triple-Double, Ridgewood claims 3rd place in Class 1A with a 54-44 victory.
Miles: 10

Game 105: Quincy Notre Dame vs. Nashville (Girl's Basketball)

Game 105
(2/26/10)
Quincy Notre Dame vs. Nashville (Girl's Basketball)
IHSA Class 2A Semifinal

When asked who I thought would win this matchup, I had a hard time picking. After mulling it over, I threw out a QND win by two points. What impressed me the most about Nashville was their 10-point win over Edwardsville (ranked #3 in Class 4A at the time) in January. This was also an Edwardsville team that I had just watched the night before move on to a Class 4A Supersectional. However, I have seen Quincy Notre Dame a couple times this year, and they have a very well-rounded club with a player that can change a game, in Karlee Gengenbacher.

As expected, these two teams battled from the onset. The game changer for QND struck, as Gengenbacher scored all eight first quarter points for the Raiders. She struggled at the free throw line, shooting just (1-4), while also knocking down a three-pointer. Nashville's Jennifer Moeller scored four points and we were all tied up after the first quarter, 8-8.

Both teams brought a very large crowd to Redbird Arena. Scanning the stands, it looked about even. Both school's had their boy's basketball teams playing for Regional Championships on this night. Nashville fell to Breese Central in their regional title game, 24-20. Quincy Notre Dame beat Illini West by ten points to advance to the sectionals.

The teams battled back-and-forth through the second quarter, each scoring nine points. Gengenbacher was held scoreless in the frame, but her younger sister (freshman) Kassidy Gengenbacher nailed a three-pointer. Kassidy is one of two freshman starters at Quincy Notre Dame, along with (6'0") Jordan Frericks. Claire Obert also knocked down a three for the Raiders. Scoring for Nashville was spread out, with Melanie Rhine, Annie Borowiak, Kourtney Heggemeier, and Jennifer Moeller all hitting field goals.

The Hornettes roster was filled with some tongue twisters. At the end of this blog, I will give you my Class 1A and Class 2A All-Name starting five. For Nashville, I give you Paige Schwartzkopf, Annie Borowiak (Buh-row-ee-ak), Keisha Setzkorn (Sets-corn), Kourtney Heggemeier (Heg-uh-myer), and Shay Harre (Harr-ee).

Jordan Frericks came alive offensively in the third quarter, sparking the Raiders to a 10-6 run in the quarter. Frericks scored 9 of those 10 points, going (3-4) from the charity stripe. The teams traded baskets, but QND came out in the end by six points (39-33).

Leading the way for Nashville was Melanie Rhine with (11 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals). Kourtney Heggemeier added (5 points, 9 rebounds). Quincy Notre Dame was led by Karlee Gengenbacher (14 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals). Jordan Frericks added (9 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals). Fellow freshman Kassidy Gengenbacher added (7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals).

After the game, I packed up all of the equipment, and headed out of Redbird Arena. I opted against eating ANOTHER fast food dinner, and did have a late lunch at about 4:00, so I enjoyed a package of chocolate donuts I had planned one eating for breakfast that morning. I headed back to the hotel and started writing blogs and getting day two notes prepared. Without further ado, the IHSSN All-Name Teams.

Class 1A All-Name Team
Tess Godhardt (God-Hart) (Hinckley-Big Rock)
Brittany Zenge (Zang) (Jacksonville Routt)
Marina Nuckles (Muh-reen-uh, Nuck-els) (Ridgewood)
Annie Gelaude (Guh-lawd-ee) (Ridgewood)
Bailey Doty (Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City)

Class 2A All-Name Team
Karlee Gengenbacher (Gen-gen-bock-er) (Quincy Notre Dame)
Keisha Setzkorn (Sets-corn) (Nashville)
Shaye Harre (Harr-ee) (Nashville)
Belinda Schaafsma (Scoffs-muh) (Bishop McNamara)
Emily Olszewski (Oh-sheff-skee) (Bishop McNamara)

The Quest File Notes
Game 105
Date: 2/26/10
Result: Quincy Notre Dame outlasts Nashville, 39-33 advancing to state title game
Miles: 0

Game 104: Bloomington Central Catholic vs. Bishop McNamara (Girl's Basketball)

Game 104
(2/26/10)
Bloomington Central Catholic vs. Bishop McNamara (Girl's Basketball)
IHSA Class 2A Semifinal

Walking back into Redbird Arena, I saw Galesburg Register-Mail sports writer Zach Creglow along press row at the opposite end. We talked a little bit, and discussed the big Galesburg/Moline boy's basketball game later that night.

With my new scorebook in tow, I had to sit down and fill out the book for the next two games, as well as gather my 2A notes, and compile stats for each team. Fortunately, there was plenty of time to do just that, and study the rosters, and in some cases, pronunciations. I'll give you my All-Name team in the next blog.

Fans began to fill in shortly after, and I heard my name being shouted out. It was Annawan Superintendent Joe Buresh. His daughter, Kelly, is a first-team All-Stater from both the Associated Press and IBCA. She will be teaming up with Quincy Notre Dame senior Karlee Gengenbacher at Quincy University next season. We talked about the Ridgewood/H-BR game. Annawan fell to Ridgewood in double overtime in a Sectional championship.

Bloomington Central Catholic is looking for a little redemption after going 31-0 last season, before getting upset in a Sectional championship (Tolono Unity). In the past two years, the Saints have gone 59-2.

The Saints and Bishop McNamara met on December 30th, and BCC won that game by two points (46-44). Bishop Mac plays a majority of their schedule against Class 3A/4A competition, and have faced some stiff competition with some of the best Chicago schools, such as Fenwick and Hillcrest.

Buresh asked my take on these next two games. I had predicted the night before, when asked in the broadcast chat room who would win, QND or Nashville, and I picked QND by two points. In this game, I told Joe that it was a toss-up and I'd take Bloomington Central Catholic by a few points. Boy, was I wrong.

The Saints came out, and just dominated from the onset. Playing in front of a very large fan section who had to only travel across town, the Saints jumped out to a 17-6 first quarter lead. It was the Jess Reinhart show, scoring 10 points in those eight minutes.

Bishop Mac tightened up and held their own in the second quarter, but had already dug that deep hole. They were outscored 13-11 in the second, and trailed BCC 30-17 at halftime.

Pronunciations come easy for me, until I start looking at the exact spelling. I had no trouble pronouncing Bishop McNamara's Emily Olszewski (Oh-sheff-skee), until I started looking at the actual spelling! Then I tripped once or twice. Another Fightin' Irish name that was tough was Nicole Coglianese (Cog-luh-neece), and Belinda Schaafsma (Scoffs-muh) was kind of tricky too.

It was more of the same through the second half, with Bloomington Central Catholic increasing their lead throughout the third and fourth quarters. The Saints would roll to a 67-40 win. Bishop McNamara was led by Erika Tatum's 15 points, the only double digit scorer. Bloomington Central Catholic was paced by Jess Reinhart's 21 points, along with Carly Norton and Allie Norton each toss up 15 points.

Both Norton sisters participated in the 3-point shootout preliminaries on Thursday night. Allie Norton advanced to the final four, which came between the Class 2A games tonight. After knocking down four three-pointers, and playing a large majority of the game, Allie picked right up where she left off in the finals.

Norton was one of three girls who tied with seven three's in the opening round, going into a shootout. She then went on to win the shootout, and the Class 2A 3-point showdown. Norton will shoot again next weekend during the Class 3A/4A finals in the Queen of the Hill competition.

The Quest File Notes
Game 104
Date: 2/26/10
Result: Bloomington Central Catholic cruises past Bishop McNamara 67-40
Miles: 0

Game 103: Ridgewood vs. Hinckley-Big Rock (Girl's Basketball)

Game 103
(2/26/10)
Ridgewood vs. Hinckley-Big Rock (Girl's Basketball)
IHSA Class 1A Semifinal

This was the marquee matchup in the semifinals in Class 1A. The defending state champs (H-BR) against the first year co-op Ridgewood. Both teams came in with (31-2) records. The Lady Royals have been battle tested with their two losses to a very strong Elmhurst Immaculate Conception, and a two-point loss to a strong 3A Aurora Rosary.

However, the Lady Royals had not been tested in the postseason, winning all of their games by double digits. In fact, Hinckley-Big Rock's average scoring margin this year is 62-29. Ridgewood comes in after being pressured in a Regional championship, beating Knoxville in overtime, and a double-overtime win in the Sectional championship over Annawan.

One thing that could be on Ridgewood's side is the deep bench. The Spartans normally play 11 players, while Hinckley-Big Rock's roster consists of only eight players. Of course, they do have a division-1 player in Northern Illinois-bound Jenna Thorp, and most likely a second D-1 player in (Jr.) Tess Godhardt. Godhardt tore up Redbird Arena as a sophomore in leading the Royals to the title.

Ridgewood has the Williams Sisters...I like saying that. No, not Venus and Serena, but Michelle and Stephanie. Michelle Williams (5'10" Guard) comes in averaging 7.1 points/game, 3.7 assists/game, and 2.8 rebounds/game, while sister Stephanie (5'11" Forward) averages 10.2 points/game, 7.3 rebounds/game, and 1.9 assists/game. Earlier this week, the two sisters signed to play Volleyball for Carl Sandburg College in Galesburg.

Despite having the Statview screen in front of me along press row, I still took turnover stats during the first game. The stats crew and I had differing opinions, apparently, on turnovers, so I just decided for this game to let them keep track, since they are official. I've written earlier about what constitutes a turnover in my stat keeping.

The Lady Royals jumped out to a 16-10 lead after the first quarter, led by Tess Godhardt's 8 points. Hinckley-Big Rock just dominated the paint, scoring most of their points throughout the game inside.

It was all Ridgewood in the second quarter, as the Spartans outscored the Royals 20-9. Ella Teel knocked down all four free throws she shot, as well as a big three-pointer in the run. She had 12 points at halftime, with Ridgewood taking a 30-27 lead into the break.

A sea of blue decorated Redbird Arena, with a huge contingent of fans from Hinckley-Big Rock. If blue is in your school color, and you make a state run, where blue! It stands out so much in a red Redbird Arena. It was hard to make out the Ridgewood section, with half of the fans wearing blue, and half wearing white.

Hinckley-Big Rock got into foul trouble in the third quarter, with Tess Godhardt picking up her third foul with 5:10 to play in the third. With her on the bench, the Spartans couldn't quite take an advantage, taking just a six-point lead, at 33-27. The Royals would rally back, even in Godhardt's absence, outscoring the Spartans 9-6 in the frame.

The teams traded baskets throughout the fourth quarter, but not too many, with just six points scored by each team. The Royals had the ball with 0:20 to play in regulation, game tied at 42-42. Ridgewood's defense held strong, and disallowed any good shot to get off by Hinckley-Big Rock.

It was all Royals in the overtime session, as they jumped out behind three Godhardt baskets, to take a 48-42 lead. Ridgewood would slice into that deficit, but not enough as the Royals would move on to the state championship game for the second straight year, with a 49-46 win.

Tess Godhardt scored 19 points for Hinckley-Big Rock, while Jenna Thorp added 14 points. Ella Teel led Ridgewood with 14 points, while Stephanie Williams pitched in 10 points in the loss.

Scary moments after the game, as a man collapsed on the baseline right at the end of the game. Emergency personnel aided the man, who appeared to respond. Someone on press row mentioned he suffered a seizure, but I was unable to get any confirmation. He was taken by stretcher to an ambulance.

After the postgame show wrapped up, I headed out, to find a new scorebook. Looking at the IHSSN facebook page, Dave Oloffson made a comment about how the Dick's Sporting Goods scorebooks were a little different. This was something I quickly found out on that run in Springfield prior to the Riverton Shootout. Which reminded me, that was just a couple weeks ago, and this is going to be my 5th scorebook, but I've only broadcasted 103 games now. After opening the scorebook and counting the pages, there is room for just 15 games, half of a normal scorebook....same price. Well, sorry Dick's, no more scorebook buying from me you sneaky....

I punched Dick's into Garmin and it took me right there. As I walked in, I started checking out their selection of clothes, and decided to pick up an Under Armour shirt. I've done more shopping in the last two days, than I have in the last year.

After that, I needed to find some lunch, so I headed to the first fast food joint with time winding down. It was Burger King, and I chose the Italian Chicken sandwich, something I hadn't seen on the menu before. It was very good, I would suggest it to any Burger King connosieurs.

Back to Redbird Arena, as we get set for broadcast #104....

The Quest File Notes
Game 103
Date: 2/26/10
Result: Hinckley-Big Rock wins a back-and-forth nail biter, beating Ridgewood 49-46
Miles: 8

Game 102: Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City vs. Jacksonville Routt (Girl's Basketball)

Game 102
(2/26/10)
Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City vs. Jacksonville Routt (Girl's Basketball)
IHSA Class 1A Semifinal

My alarm was set for 8:00 a.m. I fell asleep between midnight and 1:00 a.m. the night before watching some movie on Showtime. No, it wasn't one of those movies! When I awoke, I wanted to sleep just a bit longer after a long Thursday. I tossed and turned for about 10 minutes and decided I had enough work to do to keep me plenty busy before heading over to Redbird Arena.

I powered on the computer, and started to gather my notes for today's Class 1A games. I filled my scorebook out and tallied all the stats and studied the game one rosters, between the Hornets and Rockets.

One thing is for certain, I am a terrible planner. I need to hire a personal planner...one that works for free. I figured since I am staying at a hotel, they would have the basics. No shampoo, and a bar of soap that had chunks of something in it that lightly scratched my body. The shower head was also the worst shower head of any hotel I have stayed in. Normally I leave the hotel jealous of the strength of the water pressure. Not so here!

After getting ready and packed up, I headed out to have Garmin lead me the way. I am fairly unfamiliar with Bloomington/Normal, despite spending many, many weekends here during college. That's probably why I don't remember my way around!

I typed in Redbird Arena, and it showed nothing, so I simply put it Illinois State University, and I could certainly find my way around once getting close. I arrived at Redbird shortly about 10:30, and parked in the media lot.

Walking in, I was one of the first media members inside. IHSA media relations director Matt Troha directed me to my seat which was a great spot, right at the top of the key on the west side (maybe) of the gym. Fortunately, he had me down for two spots, since I needed that much area for my equipment.

Jim O'Boye, the man in charge of KOST, the company that produces the IHSA-TV programs walked up and spoke to me about the quest for 100 games. He jokingly asked me what was special about broadcasting 100 games, and I replied it was just a number that I wanted to reach. It's not a record by any means, just a nice round number that many broadcasters don't reach in one basketball season, as well as blogging about each broadcast.

Jim turned to Tom, who I believe broadcasts the state finals for IHSA radio, and said, "hey Tom, how many basketball games have you broadcasted this basketball season?" Tom took a second and said, "oh about 75." Jim said something to the effect of, "Geez Tom, this guy's done 100, you're slacking, I thought you have done 200!" Jim wanted to talk with me to have Lee Hall (the man with the bright blue sports coat) interview me, or at least talk about the quest for 100 broadcasts during one of the games this weekend.

I had plenty of time before the game, so I made sure my notes were all accurate, and went over pronunciations. My next job was to fill out the 2A scoresheets, to save me time in the afternoon. That's when I discovered that my scorebook ended after the second Class 1A game. Looks like a trip to Dick's Sporting Goods to pick up a 5th scorebook. That doesn't make sense....5 scorebooks, and only 103 (to this point) games.....more on that to come in the next blog.

Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City was a team I was actually familiar with. Not too many people were. The Hornets, not to be confused with the 2A qualifying Hornettes (Nashville) come from three small communities of Cowden, Herrick, and Beecher City, all well less than 1,000 in population each. Despite the small number, it looked like every member of those three communities came to Bloomington-Normal to support the Hornets, well outnumbering the Routt Rocket fans at Redbird.

Coach Carolyn Wendte was one of a handful of coaches who consistently provided me with updates and box scores on her team. To be honest, I knew absolutely nothing about the school, towns, opponents, anything, until Wendte started emailing me the scores. The team started the season (6-4), but then rolled off 20 consecutive wins heading into the state finals. As they kept picking up wins, I took notice. I cautiously waited, but kept them in the ear on the Illinoishighschoolsports.com message boards, as well as kept including them in my weekly coaches poll notes for the IHSSN coaches poll we ran the second half of the season.

C-H/BC is a very young team, with just one senior in the starting lineup (Hillary Shelton), while starting a junior (Monica Gardner), a pair of sophomores (Faith Wendte & Bailey Doty), and a freshman (Micah Jones). Meanwhile, Jacksonville Routt had the upperclass advantage with four seniors and a junior in the starting five.

Not only was the upperclassmen advantage on Routt's side, the Rockets also had state finals experience, appearing in their third state finals in the last four seasons. Meanwhile, Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City won the school's first-ever Sectional title in ANY sport this year.

In the first quarter, the teams matched up well with freshman Micah Jones scoring four points, and Routt's Erika White coming off the bench to score seven points. Routt led 13-11 heading into the second quarter. That's when it ended for the Hornets. Routt rolled off a 22-10 advantage in the second quarter to lead 35-21 at halftime, after Micah Jones got into foul trouble midway through that frame.

With Jones out of the mix, the Hornets looked completely lost. Routt really took CHBC out of their game, and forced many turnovers. To start the third quarter, Jones was back in the fold, and came up with a rebound and basket on the Hornets first posession. Things looked up...for a brief moment in the second half, before it fell back to Earth.

The Rockets outscored the Hornets 12-7 in that third quarter extending their lead. It was more of the same in the fourth quarter. Three Rockets hit double digits, with Morgan Eilering having a 12 point, 10 rebound day. Erika White also scored 12 points, and Samantha Heimgartner added 11 points. The Hornets got 12 points from Hillary Shelton. Routt would prevail 56-36 in a runaway to advance to the Class 1A state championship game.

Between games was the Country Insurance 3-point shootout. I took a few minutes off and the Regional Radio crew out of Kewanee showed up. Bob McKee and Russ Hughes would be calling the Ridgewood/Hinckley-Big Rock game, and spoke with them. Russ also brought me back a Pepsi out of the "hospitality room"...a room that is not so hospitable, with some chips, popcorn, and soda....not even water....not good IHSA....not good! At least put some water in there!!!

Other media members I talked to during the game was Cody Cutter from the Sterling/Rock Falls area. He runs the Northern Illinois Sports Beat website. Check them out at www.northernillinoissportsbeat.com.

The Quest File Notes
Game 102
Date: 2/26/10
Result: Jacksonville Routt's experience takes out Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City 56-36
Miles: 10

Game 101: Moline vs. Edwardsville (Girl's Basketball)

Game 101
(2/25/10)
Moline vs. Edwardsville (Girl's Basketball)
Class 4A Normal West Sectional Championship

I hate shopping....and I'm just not very good at it. From getting groceries to shopping for clothes, I have just not conquered the art of the sport. For one thing, shopping costs money. Over the past week I have gazed through my closet a few occasions and noticed that several of the shirts are getting to the point of retirement. With spring on the way, it has become time to sprucen up the wardrobe.

With my trip to Bloomington/Normal occuring a day early, I took off from work a little bit early to make a stop in Peoria and pick up some new shirts. I also had a mall gift certificate burning a hole in my wallet since Christmas. Of course, where do I stop first? Not the mall! Why spend the free money?!?! My first stop (and had actually just planned one stop) was at T.J. Maxx. I'm a guy that doesn't want to spend $100 for a shirt or two, while also caring a little bit about the rags that cover my body.

As I walked in, the store confused me. Of course, any store selling clothes confuses me. I headed to the men's section, did a once-over, and picked up a few items, a long sleeve casual shirt, a Ralph Lauren polo (blue, since I have a fill on black and white), and a black striped dress shirt. Jumping back in the car, I plugged in Normal West HS into Garmin, and it told me my arrival time would be 5:02. I had some time to knock out a little bit of that mall gift card, since I wanted to get to the gym at 6:00.

To Northwoods Mall I went, and went into J.C. Penney. Again, a look of confusion came across my face, so I aimlessly wandered until I found the athletic apparel. The object I have been searching weeks for is a casual/workout shirt that is long sleeve. Something along the lines of Nike or Under Armour. I found, on clearance, a Nike top, but it was white and I just purchased a long sleeve white top recently. I grabbed a black Nike workout top and a black Nike polo, and called it a shopping day.

As I headed east towards Bloomington/Normal I made a pit stop in Morton for a bottle of water and gum. This time, I went north instead of south off the Interstate, avoiding the dirty gas station from the last Bloomington trip (Galesburg/Normal West I believe).

I arrived at Normal West High School shortly before 6:00, and was one of the first people in the gym, having my pick of several different media locations. Normally, the broadcasters sit at the very top (about a good 50 rows, literally), but for the Sectionals tables were set up on the floor as well. My pick was the table on the floor at half court opposite the benches and scorer's table.

I walked over to the Athletic Director's office and talked with Stan Lewis. He said I could have my pick of the tables, so I went with my first choice. The Edwardsville Tigers team had just arrived via charter bus, and the team was in the gym. The Tigers seemed very relaxed and free-spirited, spending much of the pre-pre game just having a good time and goofing off.

Unpacking, I discovered that I had left my pen (the one and only pen I pack for some reason!) on my desk at work. I also didn't pack any pens in my equipment bag. Fortunately, I had some pens in the car, so I went out to fetch them. As I walked back into the gym, the Tigers team had sprawled across the gym floor at half court and were trying to spell E-H-S using their bodies. They had some missing links because a few teammates opted out of this exercise.

Blue pens are my favorite. Maybe it's because you don't find blue pens. I scrounge through the radio station just to find blue pens, because I like using them for scorebooks better than black pens. For some reason, it was a blue Bic that I pulled out of my car.

After getting my notes ready, I headed across to the Edwardsville bench and talked with head coach Lori Blade. Edwardsville has a very young team, and played four freshman in the game, and they each saw significant time.

After talking with Coach Blade, the Moline Maroons entered the gym. Moline had a much more determined look on their faces. The Maroons were not as easy going as Edwardsville had appeared getting off the bus.

One of the big reasons I decided to do this game was the audience that I get from Moline fans. The aunt of Emily Kauzlarich had recruited several family members to tune in online, so we had her family listening from the Chicago suburbs, Tennessee, and North Carolina. I also handed out my card to a couple Edwardsville fans, and we did have some Tigers listening in from Edwardsville. Also in the chat room, we had listeners from Moline, Naperville, Galesburg, Danville, and even Las Vegas.

My next stop was to climb the bleachers behind the benches, where Moline coach Steve Ford was camped out after setting up the video camera. We talked a little about the matchup tonight, and how it compares with recent seasons. Moline's season has ended at the hands of Edwardsville in each of the last two years.

The Maroons started hot, behind a pair of three-pointers from Emily Kauzlarich, both from the top of the key giving Moline a 6-0 lead to start. The Tigers came back and answered with a Caty Ponce three, and then Miranda Geever made it 9-3 with another trifecta.

Edwardsville mounted a 6-0 run to tie the game at 9-9, and the rest of the first quarter went back and forth. The game was tied, 15-15 heading into the second quarter. The offense was paltry in the second quarter, with neither team scoring until the 3:37 mark, when Marquisha Harris hit a shot off the glass from the low block. This started a run on offense, with the Maroons outscoring the Tigers 8-7 in the second quarter. Harris was fouled running the floor going in for a layup with less than a second on the clock, and went (1-2) from the line to give Moline a one-point edge at halftime (23-22).

Moline jumped out to a five-point lead in the third quarter (32-27), with Miranda Geever scoring seven points in the quarter. The bigs for Edwardsville, Mary O'Keefe (6'0"), and Emmonie Henderson (6'2" Freshman) got into foul trouble, both picking up their fourth fouls in the second half.

The Tigers trailed by three points heading into the last quarter (35-32), but the momentum quickly swung their way. The baskets weren't going down for the Maroons, and the Tigers began to capitalize. Edwardsville also committed just three turnovers the entire second half, after committing 13 turnovers in the first two quarters.

With missed basket, after missed basket and time running down, Moline was forced to foul. Edwardsville entered the fourth quarter (2-6), from the free throw line. They would go (16-22) in the fourth quarter. Moline entered the final frame (12-14) from the line, and missed their first two free throws of the fourth quarter, both one-and-bonus shots.

Caty Ponce, who had the hot hand all night for the Tigers, went (8-8) from the line in the fourth quarter. She finished with a game-high 23 points. Also hitting double figures for the Tigers were, Cierra Gaines with 11 points, and Emmonie Henderson scored 10 points. Ponce and Gaines are both juniors, while Henderson is a freshman. There is not a single senior that saw action from Edwardsville. The Tigers pulled out the win at the free throw line, claiming a 57-43 victory.

Moline was led by Miranda Geever's 16 points, while Emily Kauzlarich and Marquisha Harris each added 9 points. Geever and Kauzlarich are both seniors. The Maroons say goodbye to a total of seven seniors, four of which start. Both teams finished with 16 turnovers. At the free throw line, Edwardsville went (18-28), while Moline was (16-20).

After the game, I found out that the hotel I selected couldn't be ANY FURTHER from Redbird Arena, the sight of the next games, without leaving McLean County. My destination is the Extended Stay Hotels, which was the cheapest room in town. I am just here to sleep a few hours and take a shower, so fancy stays for me. Unfortunately, it is a pretty far drive to the Illinois State University campus.

I checked in following the game, then ran out to grab some food, and ended up just stopping at Steak 'N Shake and getting a Wisconsin Buttery, and returned here to write this blog.

The Quest File Notes
Game 101
Date: 2/25/10
Result: Edwardsville uses 25-8 fourth quarter run to down Moline 57-43
Miles: TBA (I set the trip in my car for once!)

Game 100: Monmouth-Roseville vs. Alleman (Boy's Basketball)

Game 100!!!
(2/24/10)
Monmouth-Roseville vs. Rock Island Alleman (Boy's Basketball)
Class 2A Sherrard Regional Semifinal

It was a hectic Wednesday, but could I accept anything else for the day of the 100th broadcast?!?! As the afternoon wore on, I was making out the local sports schedule for Thursday. I noticed that the Moline girl's basketball team was playing for a Sectional championship Thursday night, and it was at Normal West.

Throughout the week, I have contemplated on whether or not to head over to Bloomington-Normal a night early, take in the 3-point preliminaries, and be well-rested for the first games at the State Finals on Friday, already being in town. When booking my hotel this week, I decided against it. I have been a road warrior all season long, I would just hike over Friday morning and stay one night only.

As I sat there staring at the IHSA Scorezone screaming back at me that a Class 4A Sectional championship is right there in the twin cities, probably not even being broadcast. One of the main focuses for IHSSN is to broadcast games that are not already being covered by radio stations (at least on the web). Already knowing I have a nice listening audience following Moline, I shot over a quick email to Normal West (site host) Athletic Director Stan Lewis. I worked with Stan earlier this season when Galesburg took on their girl's basketball team. Stan even had a cooler packed with water, Gatorade, and Snickers for us at the press table that day.

Stan shot back a quick reply that the only coverage was going to be a couple cable access channels. I was set to add a broadcast to the schedule, and quickly sent out emails to my contacts at Moline and Edwardsville announcing my broadcast. I also had to amend my hotel reservations in Bloomington, to check in a night early. By the way, www.hotels.com is amazing and really easy to use.

Back to the task at hand, the 100th broadcast! Throughout the day, with the many mentions around the office of the 100th game, it brought me back to 2nd or 3rd grade, when we had 100's day. It was always on the 100th day of school, and each student had to bring in 100 of some item. Of course, I brought in 100 baseball cards, and I really can't think of what other classmates brought in, though I do remember 100 of those colored noodles.

My broadcast partner Jeff Thompson was accompanying me to the broadcast, and we discussed tonight's game on the way up to Sherrard High School. Despite being a (#4) seed, Alleman scared me the most. They came into this game at (5-20), but only played one Class 2A team (Quincy Notre Dame) all season.

We arrived at the school just a minute after 5:00. Our broadcast was to begin at 5:45 with the pregame show, with a 6:00 tipoff. I prefer the early tipoff as opposed to the 8:00 game in these Regional doubleheaders. The 3-point showdown and time in between games can sometimes force an 8:30 tipoff for the second game.

Walking into the school, I ran into IHSA official Duane Rakestraw. I asked him if he was working the game, and he said he has been out of officiating since the first part of January with a broken leg. He had just shed the crutches, and said he doesn't even know how he did it. Apparently, while working a game in Sterling, his leg just gave out on him, and was full of pain. The crew he worked with all season was officiating the game.

Once we sat at the small press table set up behind the scorer's table at Sherrard, WRMJ's Jim Taylor saddled in as well. He would be broadcasting the doubleheader, with color commentary provided by former Sherrard and current Mercer County basketball coach Brian Hutton.

Unpacked and ready for a pregame chat, I walked down to talk with Monmouth-Roseville coach Chuck Grant. He was unsure how his team would match up, and how Alleman would use their (6'6") swingman Keelan Prince. Grant was pretty confident with the Titans coming in, and said they had a much needed couple days off after the regular season.

During our talk, the three-point shootout began. Monmouth-Roseville's Alex Temple moved on knocking down a round-high nine three-pointers. His teammate Markus Hunter would also advance, hitting seven.

One of my major concerns when broadcasting at Sherrard is the cell phone reception. More often than not, our calls drop out, at least once, and many times more during a game here. Last week, I got a new phone (LG Banter), but alas, I have the same problems with this phone. Actually, it's more of an operator's issue as I never have a charged battery, and also always leave my battery charger at home (the place I am NEVER at!). When calling in to test the levels and line, it cut out...and cut out....and cut out....and cut out....well you get the drift.

The Titans bench was right in front of us, one or two rows. Jeff yelled down to Monmouth-Roseville freshman coach Jimmy Jordan to see if we could use his cell phone. He obliged, but the station cell phone was cooperating at this point, so we used Jimmy's as backup just in case the calls began to drop again. The signal lasted the entire game and through the postgame. For some reason, the phones from the radio station continuously drop cell calls at certain places, while other phones will not. We use U.S. Cellular at the station, which is the same carrier I have, and my phone has always worked, when the station phones have not. A bizarre head scratcher that has now haunted me for two whole years!

Alleman jumped out to a 8-0 lead early on, and extended that to a 10-3 lead. After one quarter, the Pioneers led 21-12, behind Keelan Prince's 11 points. Those 11 points were pretty quiet, compared to Matt Correthers (6'3" Jr.), who scored six points. Correthers was a strong presence in the post all night long.

The Titans turned things around in the second quarter, and outscored Alleman (18-14). Alex Temple continued where he left off, hitting three, three-pointers in the first half and had 11 points at halftime. Alex Bresnahan also hit three, three's in the first two quarters. Alleman held a 35-30 halftime edge.

With momentum in Monmouth-Roseville's favor, it quickly faded starting the second half. Alleman took advantage of a pair of Titan miscues and went on a 7-0 run to start the second quarter, extending their lead to, 42-30.

Following that run, Tim Chick, a Monmouth-Roseville junior went on a 6-0 run himself, getting the Titans back to within six points, and an Alex Bresnahan basket pulled M-R to within four points. However, that was all that would be scored in the third quarter by the Titans, with Alleman going on a 4-0 run to end the quarter.

The fourth quarter was all Alleman, and mostly at the free throw line, or with Tyler Yeocum slashing the hoop. Yeocum drove to the basket and hit four layups in traffic. He also went (8-11) on the night from the free throw line and finished with 19 points. Alleman started the game (5-13) from the line, before turning it on from the charity stripe in the second half, and ended the night (18-27) from the line. Monmouth-Roseville shot just four free throws (2-4), but also did a majority of their work offensively on the perimeter.

Keelan Prince scored a game-high 24 points, while Yeocum added 19 points, and Matt Correthers pitched in 13 points. Monmouth-Roseville was led by Alex Bresnahan's 13 points, and Alex Temple added 11 points. Alleman claimed the 69-52 victory, and will move on to face host Sherrard on Friday night for a Regional Championship with a trip to the Farmington Sectional on the line.

After the game we tracked down Jimmy Jordan to return his cell phone. Of course, we found the Titans coaches (Jordan, Jim Simpson, and Doug Dennison) with full plates in the hospitality room. Chuck Grant dropped in, and was still in a bit of shock over the season coming to an end. He will take the reigns in a few weeks of the Titans baseball team, as head coach for one more season.

Walking out with the Titans team, I asked Drew Cole if the players had figured out what year Michael Jordan was cut from his JV team. Apparently their was a friendly discussion in the locker room before the game on this very question. Titans filmer Max Richardson had informed us prior to the game and was asking the question to try and settle a dispute on whether or not it was his freshman or sophomore year. Drew was adamant that it was his sophomore season. Doing a quick Google search, and Drew is correct. Jordan was cut from the JV squad as a sophomore at Laney High School in Wilmington, North Carolina.

What better way to end the night of 100 broadcasts? A friendly stop by the police! With patches of ice on the roadway on Route 67, I decided not to set my cruise control. In not setting the cruise, I wasn't paying attention to my speed during Jeff and I's lively discussions cruising back. I believe it was a Warren County Sherrif's deputy vehicle that I passed, and I looked down and noticed I was creeping around 65 mph. He didn't break....at first. After holding my breath, the brake lights came on, and then I saw headlights approaching from behind. You may recall from a previous entry, that my front license plate was knocked off at New Trier High School, and I have not put it back on. Needless to say, it was not long for blue berries and cherries to shine in my rearview mirror.

The officer (Switzer maybe) seemed friendly enough. Asked for my ID and insurance. My insurance card expires in a week, yikes, didn't see that coming. Jeff made a comment that he thought I was going to get off by the friendly demeanor the officer showed. Then we waited...and it seemed as though it was just a long enough wait for a ticket to be written. The officer returned, handed me my ID, and said have a great night. Wow! A verbal warning! The hat trick of being pulled over. In the past three months, I have now been pulled over for speeding three times, and have come away with three warnings! I surely thought my luck ran out the second time. Either I should slow down....or buy a lottery ticket. I think I'll slow down!

After the game, I tuned in to WQAD (Quad Cities ABC-TV affiliate), to take in the highlights. Before showing the clips from this game, they congratulated me on my 100th broadcast....while showing my broadcast partner Jeff Thompson taking off his headset and talking to WRMJ's Jim Taylor. I had to laugh!!!

The Quest File Notes
QUEST....MET
Game 100
Date: 2/24/10
Result: Alleman takes care of Monmouth-Roseville to advance to Class 2A Regional Championship (69-52).
Miles: 136

The Game That Could Have Been...But Was Not...#100

The Game That Just Not Was
(2/23/10)
Peoria Notre Dame @ Galesburg (Boy's Basketball)

Originally planned as the 100th broadcast, the unforseen circumstance that Marty Touchette of the Monmouth Review-Atlas spoke of late last week bore its ugly head.

Late in the week, the IHSA was informed of a scheduling snafu by Galesburg High School. The office was notified by Galesburg's Western Big 6 compatriot, Rock Island. The question regarding the Silver Streaks basketball schedule was something not too many looked at during the course of the season.

2009-10 marked the inaugural season of the Galesburg boy's King Tournament. A fellow Western Big 6 school, United Township (East Moline), was also partaking in this tournament. A notation on the tournament schedule revealed that Galesburg and UTHS would not meet in the tournament, but one of their conference games would be used as a tie-breaker, if needed. Since that conference game was now also under the heading of a tournament game, it opened up Galesburg to pick up an additional game (non-conference).

Here's the skinny on season basketball scheduling. Schools can schedule three tournaments, and play no more than 16 games in one season. If a 17th game is played, that school would no longer be eligible for another tournament, which in any case (after the three tournaments are played), would be the IHSA state series (Regionals, etc.).

The way the schedule, for Galesburg is layed out, Peoria Notre Dame would be the final non-conference opponent, since their final game (scheduled for 2/26), would be Moline in conference action (which must be played).

Was Galesburg within the rules by using the United Township conference game as a tournament game? Yes...and No! The Galesburg girl's basketball team does this very same thing with one of its tournaments. Alleman (Western Big 6 member) is also in one of the Silver Streaks girl's tournaments, and it has been agreed upon that one of their conference games be used as a tie-breaker. Teams in the Bloomington-Normal area also do this.

However, once the IHSA received word of this scheduling, they wanted to see proof. According to an article in the Moline Dispatch, there was no proof according to the UTHS Athletic Director (Mike Tracey). The contract did not stipulate this would also be a tournament game. The whole fiasco began on Friday (2/19), and it seemed clear that the Tuesday (2/23) game would be a no-go with Peoria Notre Dame.

As it played out, the game was cancelled midway through Monday, since there was no flyer on the contract that stated this game was to be counted as a tournament game. Sources reported that Galesburg coach Mike Reynolds and UTHS coach Marc Polite had a gentleman's agreement on it, but nothing signed.

The game that could have been the 100th broadcast was scrapped on a technicality. At least it makes for an interesting story, instead of a snow day! Fortunately, it would be just one more day to get the historic broadcast in.

Game 99: Sherrard @ Monmouth-Roseville (Boy's Basketball)

Game 99
(2/19/10)
Sherrard @ Monmouth-Roseville (Boy's Basketball)

It's hard to believe that this would be the FINAL night of Olympic Conference basketball. The league formed in 1976 with Abingdon, Aledo, Knoxville, Westmer, Orion, Sherrard, Rockridge, and Monmouth. During it's final season (2009-10), four of the six teams are charter members (Orion, Sherrard, Monmouth-Roseville, Rockridge), with Farmington and Macomb the other two schools in the conference. The Orion Chargers were the league's first boy's basketball conference title-holder, and after this night's action, would be the final league champion (tied with Macomb). Knoxville left the Olympic in 1982 and became a charter member of the Prairieland Conference, but returned to the Olympic ten years later. Ironically enough, Knoxville rejoined the Prairieland at the start of the 2009-10 school year. Farmington joined the Olympic in 1992, and voted to leave the conference at the end of this school year, rejoining the Prairieland Conference also. Five of the six remaining Olympic Conference teams will play under the West Central Conference banner beginning in 2010-11. These five, along with Illini West will make up the West Central's North division next year.

Prior to the game, I received a text message from Monmouth-Roseville Music Director Kevin Ferry. He was my color commentator during football season for the Titans, and got to know Kevin over the last few years when he was an assistant football coach for the B-PC/A Spartans. This is his first year teaching in Monmouth, and he formed a singing group called Velocity. They perform the National Anthem at select games. He sent me a message informing me that Velocity has been picked to sing the National Anthem prior to a St. Louis Cardinals game on July 3rd at Busch Stadium. When Ferry was at Avon, his group sang at Wrigley Field before a Cubs game.

Since I was in the "Shoebox", the name designated to the Monmouth-Roseville gym, I needed to arrive a good 45 minutes before the JV tipoff, to ensure I wouldn't have to climb over fans in the stands. Even at 5:15, there was a healthy amount of people already in the gym, which was to be expected for Senior Night. It was especially hot in the gym tonight, and it didn't help that I had to carry three bags of equipment. Normally we leave the Marti units at each gym (Monmouth & Galesburg), but it was needed for recent remote broadcasts, adding a heavy load to my arsenal of broadcast equipment.

As the JV game neared tipoff, Monmouth-Roseville cameraman Max Richardson set up shot on our broadcast balcony. We shared tips on how to reach the summit of the balconies, with the least amount of resistance climbing through the fans. His idea was to scale the side of the wall, but he is also much younger, I might break a hip. I suggested a hole be drilled through the center of the balcony, and installing a fireman's pole, adding a little bit of fun to the mix. In addition, this could give the broadcasters a workout, by trying to climb up the pole!

Sam Brooks was my broadcast partner for the night, with Jeff Thompson in southern Illinois watching his son, Brian, pitch for Quincy University. When Jeff is out of town, he normally finds a way to listen to the broadcast, or at least text the broadcast crew with witty comments. In return, we chide him on air. After receiving one of his texts in the third quarter, I informed the listeners that Jeff couldn't make it to the broadcast because his nails were still wet from his afternoon manicure. Speaking of third quarter, at the conclusion of the third quarter, and coming back from a commercial break, I informed listeners that I was Sam Brooks...not Beau Spencer. Sam found my blooper pretty comical.

When these two teams first met at Sherrard, the Titans took a 17-16 lead after the first quarter, then did not hold a lead until midway through the third quarter. Tonight, the Titans would once again take a late lead in the first quarter....17-16 and enter the second quarter just like the first meeting.

Markus Hunter was En Fuego tonight, hitting five three-pointers in the game, and scorching the nets for a game-high 22 points. The senior scored 14 points in the first half. Other seniors recognized on Senior Night for Monmouth-Roseville are; Cory Jensen, B.J. Salyers, Cody Whiteside, DeAndre McClendon, Cody Crouse, and Patrick Thompson, along with manager Eric Munoz.

Sherrard took a 31-28 lead into halftime, behind Mitch Heiar's 10 points. John Sedlock added 7 points before the break, and Andy Anderson pitched in 6 points. The Tigers were scoring at will in the paint, and were also winning the rebound battle all night.

Through three quarters, it was still a three-point game, with both teams knocking down some long range shots, and it was the Tigers over the Titans 47-44 heading into the final frame. Sherrard was able to close it out in the fourth quarter from the free throw line, scoring 10 of their 15 points in the fourth quarter from the charity stripe. Sherrard went (10-11) in the final eight minutes from the free throw line to claim a 62-53 win.

The Titans finished the game with 14 turnovers, and 8 of them came in the first quarter alone. The teams combined for 14 first quarter turnovers. Sherrard ended the game with 17 turnovers. Each team finished the regular season with a (17-8) record, with a possible showdown at Sherrard in the Class 2A Regional next week. Monmouth-Roseville is the top seed, while Sherrard is the (#2) seed.

The Quest File Notes
Game 99
Date: 2/19/10
Result: Sherrard seals game at the free throw line in a 62-53 win at Monmouth-Roseville
Miles: 70

Game 98: Annawan vs. Ridgewood (Girl's Basketball)

Game 98
(2/18/10)
Annawan vs. Ridgewood (Girl's Basketball)
Class 1A (Abingdon) Sectional Championship

Either way, a Lincoln Trail Conference team would be represented in the Elite Eight. I pondered over my decision on what game to broadcast. The reason I started the Illinois High School Sports Network was to go out and cover games that were not already being broadcasted on the Internet, giving fans an option they wouldn't already have to hear a game.

Both WRMJ (Aledo) and Regional Radio (Kewanee) would be broadcasting this game, and both are also on Network1Sports, where IHSSN streams. Knowing this, I checked out other Sectional championship games, in Class 2A at Monmouth College, Quincy Notre Dame faced West Hancock. I figured at least one Quincy station and WCAZ in Carthage would be covering this game. At Havana, the host Ducks were in action against South Fulton. No radio station covers these teams regularly, although WDUK in Havana does, however not online. I emailed Havana A.D. Butch Howarth to check in if the Beardstown or Jacksonville stations would be there, and said that 101.3 (Jacksonville sports station) would probably be there. Since the other sectionals would be covered, I elected to broadcast the Annawan/Ridgewood game since I was familiar with both teams, and had a very large listening base from Annawan, my hometown growing up.

I had 189 listners to the broadcast on Monday in the semifinals, and was hoping to beat that number tonight. In high school, I worked at the Annawan Hometown Market, and my old boss Lynn Williams put a sign in the grocery store advertising the broadcast, and of course utlized facebook to my Annawan alumni friends. At the end of the night, Network1Sports President Gregg Hitchcock phoned me with the good news, with a total of 212 listeners for the game, which was also more than either of the other station's broadcast.

Before heading over to Abingdon, Marty Touchette from the Monmouth Review-Atlas dropped by to talk with me about the quest for 100 games. We chatted for nearly 45 minutes about the idea, the website, the 100 games and the stories that have come with it. You can read his story on my quest at http://www.reviewatlas.com/highlight/x1650244962/Quest-for-100-almost-complete.

At 5:00, I locked up and made the quick drive over to Abingdon, which is mostly backroads from Monmouth. I drive through Cameron and cut across to Route 41. It was about 5:30 when I pulled into an already filling parking lot. I thought I may be the only other soul, outside of the tournament workers that would be arriving, but not so. Jim Taylor of WRMJ was just heading into the gym and a few vehicles filled with Annawan fans were also pulling up.

I did a once-over on my equipment bag, ensuring everything was inside, and it was. A long line greeted me at the entrance. Thank goodness for pass gates! The doors opened at 5:45, so the fans didn't have to wait to long to get in.

Jim Taylor and I talked for quite a while as we unpacked our equipment. Mostly nothing, as usual! Once unpacked, I filled out my scorebook and looked over the Annawan stats. Shortly thereafter, Ridgewood coach Bryan Brooks came up and dropped off his stats and we talked at length, and also did a pregame interview. Brooks is a Sherrard alum and played alongside former Annawan boy's basketball coach Eric Lawson. He shared some 3-on-3 stories following their playing days as Tigers in the early 1990's. Lawson is now the athletic director at Bureau Valley.

Afterwards, I made my way down to the hospitality room to get a quick bite. Taylor informed me of LaRoma's pizza, surely I could not miss out. In the hallway, I ran into Annawan superintendent Joe Buresh (father of all-stater Kelly), and had a short chat. Upon arrival at the hospitality room, I found Avon athletic director Dick Brown again, and joked it was the last place I saw him (on Monday). The officiating crew for the game was also inside (Tom Ernst, Tim Belford, Mark DiMarzio). I grabbed a slice of pizza and a water and talked with Brown. An old face from Annawan walked in, Pat Green. She lived across the street from my grandma and was also a school bus driver growing up.

The Annawan coaching contingent of Matt Huber and his assistant Jason Burkiewicz entered the hospitality room. Huber and I conducted the pregame interview over in the classroom area of the hospitality/home ec room. After our talk we discussed Annawan girl's basketball and the future being bright. The team will have a big loss with the graduation of Kelly Buresh, but do not lose any other players that see significant minutes. We also talked about the junior high program, where the 8th grade class has a record of (54-0) in the last two years.

Another talking point was the 21-point loss at Ridgewood in their only previous meeting. IHSSN was there to broadcast that night, and nothing went right for Annawan. I expected this game to be much different than that night...but didn't expect what was yet to come.

Back at the press table, Terry Duckett of the Moline Dispatch had arrived, and the Kewanee broadcast crew for Regional Radio was in attendance. Bob McKee was here on this night with his broadcast partner Steve Peart. Zach Creglow of the Galesburg Register-Mail also pulled in to press row.

Following the three-point shootout, the crowd quickly filled in. In fact, it was a standing-room only crowd, spilling over next to press row, and down along the doorway of the gym. Among those standing next to the media was Carl Sandburg College women's basketball coach Mike Bailey. He does a great job bringing in local talent to the Galesburg community college. I see Mike at many area games. He was checking in on some scores throughout the game, as he was closely following the Piasa Southwestern game, with a recruit for next year's team on their roster.

One thing coach Huber talked about before the game was hitting Ridgewood early, much like in the win over Brimfield on Monday. This didn't happen, as the Spartans jumped out to a 13-5 lead after the first quarter. Ella Teel was the spark for Ridgewood in that opening quarter, hitting a pair of three-pointers.

Ridgewood continued a run into the second quarter, taking as much as an 11-point lead late in the second quarter, and had a 9-point halftime lead (24-15). Teel had 11 points at the break to lead Ridgewood, while Annawan's Kelly Buresh had 10 at the break. The first half was pretty sloppy, with Ridgewood turning the ball over 15 times, and Annawan with 12.

The Bravettes made a run in the third quarter, taking their first lead of the game with 4:19 left in the quarter on a Chloe VanOpdorp three-pointer, her second in the Annawan run. Ridgewood was outscored 19-8 in the third quarter, and went just (0-4) from the free throw line. Annawan finished the quarter leading 34-32.

It was back-and-forth in the 4th quarter, and in the final minute Ridgewood held onto the basketball for one last shot in a 40-40 game. The Spartans did not get off a shot, and the game headed to overtime. Annawan went (5-10) from the line in the fourth quarter, including missing a pair of one-and-bonus shots.

In overtime, the teams scored just three points each. Again, at the end of overtime, Ridgewood had posession following an Annawan turnover with 0:18 left. And again, the Spartans did not get a good shot off, sending the game into double overtime.

Ridgewood was able to pull it off in the second overtime, with a 52-50 victory, setting up a Supersectional matchup against Colfax Ridgeview on Monday. The Spartans were led by Stephanie Williams' 19 points, and was joined in double-digits by Ella Teel (15), and Annie Gelaude (12). Annawan was paced by a game-high 21 points from Kelly Buresh. Chloe VanOpdorp pitched in 16 points.

The teams combined for 59 turnovers. Ridgewood committed 33 to Annawan's 26. Each team turned the ball over four times in the first overtime. Annawan had 2 turnovers in the second overtime, to Ridgewood's zero. The Spartans went (8-15) from the free throw line, while Annawan went (10-19).

The Quest File Notes
Game 98
Date: 2/18/10
Result: Ridgewood beats Annawan 52-50 in thrilling double overtime Sectional title game
Miles: 107

Game 97: Galesburg vs. Geneseo (Girl's Basketball)

Game 97
(2/16/10)
Galesburg vs. Geneseo (Girl's Basketball)
Class 3A Galesburg Regional

This Regional is wide open. For some reason, though, the (#2) Maple Leafs scared me more than top seeded Sterling. I saw Sterling play a couple times in December and was none too impressed. Even though both Geneseo and Sterling have really good records, they have not faced the competition that Galesburg has.

Galesburg/Geneseo was scheduled to tip off at 8:00, following the Rock Island/Sterling game. Rocky beat Dixon in the play-in game to face the (#1) seeded Golden Warriors. I arrived at John Thiel Gymnasium around 5:00, to get things set up, hit the hospitality room and just unwind before the broadcast.

I had to play MacGyver again before this game. Gregg Hitchcock of Network1Sports used the term when I had troubles and had to experiment when I was at the Sterling Shootout in December. Now everytime I have to piece things together untraditionally, I say I had to "MacGyver" it. What a great show that was!

This MacGyvering involved my cord that allows me to play my pregame interviews. When using my RemoteMix 4, I can use a 1/8" to 1/8", since there is a plug-in that allows me to do that. However, in my Marti games, I must use a mic cord, that has an 1/8" plug on the other end to plug into the recorder. You may recall, I believe I left my 1/8" to XLR (mic cord) at Wharton Field House last week (I think).

The piecing together of a couple cords and adapters worked, thankfully. During the last game at Galesburg I had to play the interviews back by holding the recorder up to a microphone. It worked, but not something I wanted to do again.

After getting everything put up, it was hospitality room time. Galesburg always puts on a good spread. It's just a solid hospitality room, nothing outstanding, but never disappointing. Today there were subs (from Pizza House I believe), Kitchen Cooked (my favorite) potato chips, some cookies, water, and Pepsi. I scarfed down a couple small subs, some chips, and a water. Also inside, was GHS assistant baseball coaches Mike Schwab and Jesse Hines, as well as Jake Miller. Assistant football coach Brad Swanson later joined. Discussion revolved around the baseball nets in the balcony of the gym that were hanging right over the bleachers. After we left the hospitality room, they put the nets back up and out of reaching distance for fans in the stands.

Galesburg assistant coach Jacque Howard came up and dropped stats off. She would be doing interviews for the stations instead of coach Massey tonight. Every once in a while, he will have his assistant do the interviews.

Jimmie Carr arrived shortly afterwards to take in the Rock Island/Sterling game which had just tipped off. It was a close game throughout the first half, but Rocky would take it to the top seed, and win handily, 60-36.

Just before halftime of the Rocky/Sterling game, I conducted my pregame interview with Jacque. She said Sadee Hamilton may play. She has missed nearly a month due to a back injury, but has progressed over the past week. She would play.

As I went back to our broadcast booth, the WGRG radio guys showed up. WGRG was a not-for-profit station formed about 5-10 years ago in Geneseo, then later donated to the school. There were three of them tonight, and we had room in the booth but would be pretty tight. They decided to just sit in the top of the bleachers next to the booth and we helped them get an extension cord to run down there.

One of the WGRG broadcasters looked familiar. As I got a closer look, it was because it was my cousin, Michael Atwell. He was the starting quarterback for the Class 5A runner-up Geneseo football team, and was also a state finalist for the High School Heisman. We talked for some time during the end of the first game, and told me that they had their choice to broadcast this regional game or the boy's game, and chose this one. Michael has narrowed his college choices down to Notre Dame, St. Louis University, and Washington University in St. Louis. If he heads to Washington, he will play football.

We all got a laugh out of the three-point showdown. Galesburg's Jessica Howard has made the 7th most three-pointers in IHSA history this season....was NOT a part of the shootout. Instead, the Streaks sent four girls that don't primarily shoot the three-ball. Likewise, Geneseo did the same thing. Even funnier, though, the four girls from Geneseo went a combined (2-12) the ENTIRE season from outside the arc. As a matter of fact, three of the girls had not attempted a single three all season!

Galesburg freshman Jessica Lieber knocked down 9 three-pointers to advance. Also moving on was Geneseo's Kelsey Burress and Jena Rice, and Galesburg's Megan Young won via a shootout with her teammate Sarah Nelson.

Before the game, Regional Radio's Nathan Baliva interviewed me for his pregame show, giving his listeners a take on the Galesburg season, and how exciting the fast-paced three-point shooting has been. He also asked me about the quest for 100 games, which is quickly approaching the milestone broadcast.

Nathan and I were talking earlier about the three-point shooting, so I wanted to dig up the home court stats. According to my figures, Galesburg had made an average of 12.1 three-pointers a game on this floor. The least amount made in a game was seven, which occurred twice. Unfortunately, the Streaks didn't reach that average tonight.

Geneseo had run a 1-3-1 zone defense all season, but tonight, switched things up. The Maple Leafs ran a 2-3 zone, which gave Galesburg fits all night. It seemed the Streaks didn't get the shots they wanted to, and finished just (7-43) from the three-point line, one of their worst marks of the season.

The Streaks led 13-5 after the first quarter, as the Galesburg press was too much for the Maple Leafs early on. Geneseo turned the ball over 14 times in the first eight minutes, and could not buy a bucket early on.

Geneseo scored 14 points in the second quarter, outpacing the Streaks by a point. Galesburg led at the break (26-19). Galesburg jumped out to their biggest lead of the game after three quarters, leading by ten (43-33).

That double-digit lead quickly diminished in the fourth quarter. Geneseo made a run, and most of it came at the free throw line. With the clock stopped, and the Maple Leafs continually going to the charity stripe, the big lead completely disappeared.

The visitors (despite wearing their home uniforms as the higher seed), would turn things around and lead late. The officials were not allowing any physical play, something the Streaks don't often encounter in the Western Big 6. With that, came a big disparity in fouls and free throws. For the game, Geneseo attempted 42 free throws, to Galesburg's 19.

Down the stretch, the officiating started to get inconsistent. What was a foul throughout the first 30 minutes, was allowed in the last two. The worst of it all came with 0:31 to play, when Galesburg's Sara Baker drove into the paint, drew contact where both girls took a tumble and nothing was called. After they fell to the floor, Galesburg was whistled for a travel call. This infuriated the Galesburg side, and assistant coach Jay Barshinger was assessed a technical foul.

The inconsistencies came to a head at the end of the game. With a six-point Geneseo lead in the final seconds, the Maple Leafs drove to the basket for a layup, when Baker extended her right arm into the back of the Geneseo player, with 0:01 on the clock. With her momentum and the help of the hand she fell hard into the mat behind the basket. This should have been called an intentional foul, but the final buzzer sounded and Geneseo claimed the victory, 62-56. Now it was Geneseo head coach Steve Brucher who was upset with the no-call in what could have been a dangerous fall for his player. He slammed his clipboard to the floor, then turned to Galesburg athletic director Ralph Henning and said something before shaking the Galesburg players hands. He also said some words to Galesburg coach Evan Massey when they shook hands.
Officiating did not win or lose this game, but it was very inconsistent in the final minute, and the way the game was called changed after 31 minutes.

The Maple Leafs overcame 37 turnovers to win the game, but also forced 27 Galesburg turnovers. Allison Wiese scored a game-high 21 points for the Leafs, and was joined in double figures by; Jena Rice (12), Devan Griffin (11), and Allie Hudson (10). Geneseo went (26-42) from the free throw line. This season they had only shot (53.7%) from the line. Galesburg was led by Jessica Howard and Sara Baker with 13 points each.

Galesburg will lose three seniors; Sara Baker, Maddy Boyer, and Shelby Pacheco. When asked about next year's plans using the "system", Massey didn't give too much information on the plans just yet, though it seems with the cast returning it will be done once again.

The Quest File Notes
Game 97
Date: 2/16/10
Result: Geneseo wins an ugly and sloppy game, knocking out Galesburg, 62-56
Miles: 100