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Mallory Swanson of the Red Stars opened the season with a goal in a 3-2 loss to San Diego on Saturday, March 25. Photo by IMAGN

Pro Sports Report | Alex Morgan converts PK and Wave tops Red Stars in opener

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Two of the best scorers in the NWSL made great first impressions to begin the 2023 season. The Chicago Red Stars’ Mallory Swanson, coming off a scoring explosion in the SheBelieves Cup earlier in the year, scored a tying goal on a penalty kick in extra time in the first…

Morton College's Mia Simpson, shown during a game earlier this year, helped the Panthers to a fifth-place finish in the nation and surpassed 1,000 career points. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Area Sports Roundup | Morton College takes 5th in nation

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer For three quarters, Janiah Jones’ stats were bland. The Richard Bland College guard had just two points. But she lit things up in the fourth quarter, scoring 16 of her team’s 18 points to help Bland stun Morton College, 69-63, in the quarterfinals of the National Junior College Athletic Association…

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Track and Field | Oak Lawn’s Robert Wagner gets jump on season with highest leap at Top Times

By Tim Cronin Correspondent BLOOMINGTON — Robert Wagner, with a name straight out of Hollywood, starred in the high jump at the Illinois Top Times meet, held March 25 at Illinois Wesleyan University. The only thing missing for the Oak Lawn senior was a spotlight — and, from Wagner’s viewpoint — breaking his indoor personal…

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College Notebook | Richards grad Abby Mallo swinging a hot stick for Billikens

By Mike Walsh Correspondent Welcome to Division I softball, Abby Mallo. Mallo, a Richards graduate playing at Saint Louis University, was chosen the Rookie of the Week by the Atlantic 10 Conference for the week ending March 19. Mallo, a freshman, hit safely in all four games that week, recording a .429 batting average, a…

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Baseball | Brother Rice seeking spark after two-loss week

By Steve Millar Correspondent Brother Rice is missing some big pieces from the team that finished third in the state in Class 4A last season. Multi-sport superstar Jack Lausch graduated and moved on to play quarterback at Northwestern. Catching star Zion Rose, a potential high Major League Baseball draft pick this summer, transferred to IMG…

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Baseball | Chicago Christian kicks off Brandon Hickey era with win over Bremen

By Steve Millar Correspondent Brandon Hickey is optimistic about his first season as head coach of the Chicago Christian baseball team. The Knights struggled to an 11-18-1 record last year, when Hickey was an assistant. But he saw some things to be excited about. “We saw we had a lot of talent last year with…

Alex Knight, a Marist graduate now playing at Lake Forest College, was named to the All-Midwest Conference First Team. Knight’s average of 18.1 points per conference game led all players and he finished third in the conference in field goal percentage (52.6). Photo courtesy of Lake Forest College Athletics

College Notebook | Marist grad Alex Knight slaying buckets for Lake Forest

By Mike Walsh Correspondent Lake Forest College’s Alex Knight has been named to the All-Midwest Conference First Team in men’s basketball for the 2022-23 season. Knight, a 6-foot-1 sophomore guard who prepped at Marist, was the league’s leading scorer this season, averaging 18.1 points per conference game. He finished third in the MWC in field…

The Chicago Hounds' Julian Dominguez (11) battles for the ball against Utah earlier this season. Dominguez scored two tries in a 24-22 victory over Dallas on March 18. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Pro Sports Report | SeatGeek to host Major League Rugby championship; Hounds sniff out first win

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer SeatGeek Stadium, host of the expansion Chicago Hounds, will host this season’s Major League Rugby championship game. The game is scheduled to be played July 8 in Bridgeview. It will air nationally on FOX. “Moving the championship match to a predetermined venue has long been a goal of Major League…

Morton College's women's basketball team is playing in the NJCAA national tournament this week after celebrating its regional championship. Photo courtesy of Morton College

Area Sports Roundup | Nazareth grads Martinucci, Evans have unfinished business at NJCAA National Tourney

By Jeff Vorva Staff writer The Martinucci family carries a lot of weight in the Berwyn-Cicero area. Tony Martinucci has coached boys basketball at Morton High School for 24 years, racking up five regional titles and a trio of conference crowns during his tenure. His daughter, Jovanna, is hoping to do something even more spectacular:…

Century's Zedan Said (No. 52) starts to get mobbed by his teammates after he hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with four seconds left in the SWIC eighth-grade championship. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Area grade school teams win SWIC championships

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Century Junior High School’s eighth grade boys basketball team had a target on its back all season. After enjoying an unbeaten campaign as seventh-graders, the Wildcats were the team everyone wanted to beat this season. Not one of them one did. Zedan Said made sure of it. The 5-foot, 90-pound…

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College Notebook | Area grads Hynes, McCormick earn honors

By Mike Walsh Correspondent University of Chicago women’s basketball player Grace Hynes has been named to the 2022-23 University Athletic Association’s First Team. The Maroons senior guard, a Mother McAuley graduate, led Chicago to a 23-4 overall record through their first 27 games, and went 10-4 in the UAA, good enough for second place in…

Jim Ramazinski is the new Evergreen Park football coach. Photo courtesy of Evergreen Park Community High School.

Area Sports Roundup | EP football gets new coach; Morton women head back to nationals

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer For the second time in two weeks, an area high school football team is getting a new head coach. Evergreen Park announced Jim Ramazinski has been named to the position. He will replace Jerry Verde. Ramazinski comes to the Mustangs with a wealth of coaching and teaching experience. He is…

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Pro Report | Sammy Malcolm leads Toronto to win over Hounds

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Sammy Malcolm. Chicago Hounds fans may remember that name for a long time. And not for a good reason. Malcolm was not just in the middle of things, he was the whole scoring show for Toronto as he tallied all Arrows points in a 27-26 victory over the Hounds on…

The Class 3A girls basketball state champs celebrated on Monday at Nazareth Academy. (Photos by Steve Metsch)

Nazareth girls ‘seal the deal,’ share state title glow at rally

By Steve Metsch The girls’ basketball team at Nazareth Academy did indeed live up to its slogan. Head Coach Eddie Stritzel said that after finishing second to Carmel in Class 3A one year ago, the team’s slogan for the 2022-23 season was “seal the deal.” “That’s great,” he said. “But with it comes a lot…

Brother Rice senior Ahmad Henderson scored 34 points, 29 of them in the second half, to help the Crusaders defeat St. Rita in a Class 4A sectional semifinal on March 1. He sustained an injury that kept him largely off the court in the sectional final against Kenwood. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Boys Basketball | Kenwood tops Brother Rice in sectional final

By Steve Millar Correspondent First-year Brother Rice coach Conte Stamas only got to spend one season with Ahmad Henderson, but he found out pretty quickly how special of a player he had in the star senior guard. Henderson has a knack for playing his best in the biggest moments. “When the game is on the…

Dan Chiarito is the new football coach at Chicago Christian after serving as an assistant in various capacities since 2009. Chicago Christian photo

Area Sports Roundup | Longtime football assistant gets to run show at Chicago Christian

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Dan Chiarito has been with the Chicago Christian football program since 2009, and in that time has worked under head coaches Joe Hamstra, Eric Washington, Jim Bolhuis, Nick Cook and Tom O’Connor. Now, he gets to run the show. Last week, Chiarito was named head coach of the Knights. He…

Hounds and Warriors are lifted during a lineout in Utah's 14-10 win over the Chicago Hounds March 5 at SeatGeek Stadium. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Rugby Report | Hounds drop home debut to Utah

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Caleb Strum called it “electric.” The Chicago Hounds right wing scored the team’s first try in SeatGeek Stadium history at the 30-minute mark to help give the expansion team a 10-0 lead over visiting Utah. Hounds officials estimated the crowd at just under 4,000 and the fans were making all…

Morton College's Mia Simpson, shown in a game against McHenry earlier in the season, had 19 points and 20 rebounds on March 4 against Moraine Valley. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Hoops Wrap | Morton College taking aim at national title

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Morton College’s women’s basketball team took its first postseason step in its quest for a national championship. The Panthers, who finished second in the nation in the National Junior College Association Division II Tournament last year, handily defeated Moraine Valley, 91-51, on March 4 in Rockford to head into the…

Joey Countryman, shown at a meet earlier in the season, leaves Reavis with four state medals. Photo courtesy of Reavis High School

Area Sports Roundup: Reavis swimmer Countryman wins two more state medals

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer The best boys swimmer in Reavis history came close to achieving the school’s first individual state championship in the sport. Rams senior Joey Countryman took second in the 100 freestyle with a time of 45.23. Rockford East senior Camden Taylor won the event in 43.72 on Feb. 25 at the…

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Boys Basketball Class 4A | Bloom downs Marist for regional title

By Steve Millar Correspondent With Marist missing two key guards, freshman TJ Tate came up from the junior varsity team and got an opportunity to play in the playoffs. Tate made the most of the chance, coming off the bench and scoring 12 points in what would be the RedHawks’ final game of the season.…

The Chicago Hounds will make their SeatGeek Stadium debut Sunday against Utah. Chicago Hounds photo

The Hounds are here. And a few things you should know about pro rugby

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer So, about this new rugby team in town … The Chicago Hounds will make their historic home debut at 1 p.m. Sunday, March 5 against Utah at SeatGeek Stadium in a Major League Rugby battle. Given that rugby is not considered by most people to be a major sport around…

St. Rita celebrates its Stagg Regional title Friday night in Palos Hills. The Mustangs were one of 10 Chicago Catholic League teams to win regional titles this season. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Hoops Wrap | Chicago Catholic League dominates regionals with 10 champs

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer For more than a century, Chicago Catholic League football has bordered on being legendary. For decades, its baseball teams have frequently represented the league at the state tournament. But what the CCL’s basketball teams did last week was almost unheard of, when 10 of the league’s 14 teams brought home…

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Boys Wrestling State Finals | Mount Carmel’s Lemley wins 3rd Illinois title

Caravan’s Seth Mendoza and Crusaders’ Bobby Conway are also kings of the mat By Steve Millar Correspondent After winning his fourth high school wrestling state championship, Mount Carmel senior Sergio Lemley took a moment to look back on his career and what it took to have so much success. “It’s all in my heart and…

Nazareth's Gracie Carstensen, left, is guarded closely by St. Laurence freshman Sara Burzycki in Thursday's Class 3A regional final game in Burbank. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Hoops Wrap | Four area girls teams take regional titles

By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Four area girls basketball teams won regional championships to advance to sectional action, which was scheduled to start Feb. 21. Two of those teams will play each other right away. In Class 3A, Nazareth won the St. Laurence Regional and De La Salle won its own regional, setting up a…

Glenbard East Athletic Director D'Wayne Bates, a former Chicago Bears wide receiver, presents a medal to Shepard's Kahlen Ranson at the state bowling meet on Feb. 18. Ranson placed fifth at the tournament. Photo by Jeff Vorva

Girls Bowling State Finals | Shepard’s Kahlen Ranson rolls to fifth at Cherry Bowl

By Randy Whalen Correspondent While most competitors at the IHSA girls bowling state finals had practice time on the lanes the day before the tournament started, Kahlen Ranson did not. That worked out just fine for the Shepard senior. Ranson polished off her high school career by rolling a two-day total of 2562 to place…

Local News

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Frank Schuch, you’re the b-e-s-t

. . By Joan Hadac Your correspondent in Clearing and Garfield Ridge (708) 496-0265 • [email protected] So many signs of life as we pull out of this pandemic, like early-blooming daffodils after a long, harsh winter. One of those signs is the return of the annual spelling bee at Byrne Elementary School, after a two-year absence.…

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Sweet surprise for police

Everyone likes cookies, especially when they’re Girl Scout cookies delivered by a sweet, smiling Scout–as illustrated by police at the Eighth District station last week. Officers, detectives and sergeants were delighted to grab one of 20 boxes of Thin Mints, S’mores, Do-si-dos, Samoas and other varieties from Charlotte Caughey of Brownie Troop 125. The young…

Blaire and Brooke Bestwina, owners of The Feed Store, sell thousands of birds each year. --Supplied photo

Egg prices drive chicken interest

Some becoming backyard farmers By Kelly White Complaints about the price of eggs have been so common in recent months, some folks who have never considered backyard farming are now thinking of buying a hen or two. To help educate people about the matter, The Feed Store, 5408 S. Harlem, is also hosting “Intro to…

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Stickney wins $550,000 grant from county for roadwork

The Cook County Board of Commissioners approved funding last week for transportation-related projects in Stickney and the South Side of Chicago. These projects are part of the county’s Department of Transportation and Highways. These projects are designed to boost economic development, build up regional transportation and improve the quality of life throughout Cook County. In…

Amber Tacker, RN, clinical coordinator (from left), David Trondsen, chaplain, Angela Seitz, dietitian, and Cathy Lasak, RN, manager of patient care, were thrilled to get a visit from Buddy, an Old English Sheep Dog, at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital. (Photo supplied by Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital)

Buddy returns to Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital

Therapy pets have been proven to be an effective tool for lifting the spirits of hospital patients of all ages. Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital last week announced the return of the pet therapy program that had been on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Buddy, an Old English Sheep Dog, and his handler Marty Strubin…

Abbey Murphy, a member of the U.S. women's Olympic hockey team, was the grand marshal at the 52nd annual Independence Day Parade in Evergreen Park. (Photo by Joe Boyle)

Evergreen Park receives IDOT approval for Independence Day Parade

By Joe Boyle The Village of Evergreen Park has made it official by requesting the Illinois Department of Transportation to approve temporary street closings for the annual Independence Day Parade. The parade will be held Friday, June 30. The annual event will require the temporary closure of all lanes along 95th Street, from Pulaski Road…

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Worth mayor looks forward to spring events

By Joe Boyle Spring arrived on Monday and Worth Mayor Mary Werner is looking forward to several activities that will be held in the southwest suburbs next month. Werner mentioned during the Worth Village Board meeting Tuesday night that the annual Spring Arts, Crafts and Vendor Show will be held from 9 a.m. to 3…

U.S. Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García (D-4th) shakes hands with Cook County Commissioner Brandon Johnson (D-1st), moments after the congressman announced his endorsement of Johnson last Friday at La Villita Community Church. --Supplied photo

Choosing sides in mayoral race

. SW Side endorsements start to emerge By Tim Hadac While neither Paul Vallas nor Brandon Johnson has campaigned on the Southwest Side to any significant degree, their supporters in this area are starting to go public. The latest endorsement to be snagged occurred last Friday, when U.S. Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García (D-4th), who failed…

Chicago Police Department

Crime spree in Back of the Yards

Armed bandits commit 10 robberies in less than two hours By Tim Hadac A burst of armed robberies in the Back of the Yards area has prompted police to issue a community warning. The 10 stickups occurred in less than two hours on Wednesday, March 15. Crime scenes include: 4600 block of South Albany at…

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Star student earns college scholarship

St. Laurence High School senior Priscilla Bonilla stands with her family, minutes after learning she has earned a four-year academic scholarship to the University of St. Francis. In college, she plans to study theology and secondary education, with a hope to return to St. Laurence one day as a teacher. A West Elsdon resident, she…

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