Drake Lansman

Eastland's defense held tough and made key plays in a 48-41 win over Pecatonica to win the Class 1A Orion Sectional title and get back to the Elite Eight. 'We’re playing some of our best, grittiest basketball at the right time.'

Oregon junior wrestler Nelson Benesh is the Sauk Valley Athlete of the Week, presented by Loescher Heating and Air Conditioning. He was the Class 1A Byron Sectional champion at 138 pounds and finished fifth at state.

Eastland used a strong start, tough defense and an explosive finish to defeat Dakota 49-31 on Wednesday night. The Cougars advanced to face Pecatonica in Friday's Class 1A Orion Sectional final at 7 p.m. for the third straight year.

Newman battled a physical Pecatonica into overtime on Tuesday night, but the Indians came back to win 70-66 in the Class 1A Orion Sectional semifinals as Zion Braimah scored 34 points. Newman finished with a program-high 33 wins.

Sterling junior Jossy James was named All-Western Big 6 Conference first-team after tying for the league lead with 19 points per game. Nia Harris and Jae James were also named honorable mention.

Dixon advanced to the Dual Team State semifinals to guarantee the Dukes a state trophy. Blair Grennan, Kendra Ege and Michelle Naftzger are still alive at state wrestling, and Eastland basketball held on to beat Orion 46-45 in Friday's Sauk Valley Roundup.

Newman beat Forreston 75-48 to win the Class 1A Alleman Regional title on Friday night as all five starters had at least 11 points. 'I’d say our offense right now is on fire.'

Newman's best season since 2009 came to an end after a 60-55 loss to Wethersfield in Thursday's Class 1A Eastland Sectional final.

Eastland beat West Carroll 46-33 as Wyatt Carroll scored 17 points. The Cougars will face Orion in Friday's 7 p.m. Class 1A Bureau Valley Regional final after the Chargers beat Fulton 72-62. Erie-Prophetstown also fell short to Aurora Christian in Wednesday's Sauk Valley roundup.

Connor Politsch was a "game-changer", scoring 24 points to help Forreston beat Annawan 52-44 in a Class 1A Alleman Regional semifinal. The Cardinals will face Newman in Friday's regional final at 7 p.m.

Newman pushed the pace Wednesday night and it led to a season high in scoring after an 85-63 win over Alleman in the regional semifinals. The Comets (32-1) set their single-season wins record and advanced to Friday's Alleman Regional final against Forreston at 7 p.m.

Eastland battled adversity like it has throughout the season, but fell short late in a 41-38 loss to Wethersfield in Tuesday night's sectional semifinal matchup. The Cougars finished the season 27-7 with their first regional title since 2020.

Newman used a strong defensive effort and stayed composed late to beat Galena 42-32 and advance to the Sweet 16. The Comets will face Wethersfield on Thursday at 7 p.m. for the Class 1A Eastland Sectional title.

Top-seeded Newman opened the Class 1A postseason with a 73-38 win over AFC. Eastland won, Forreston beat Milledgeville 61-44, Fulton beat Bureau Valley 61-56 and more in Monday's Sauk Valley roundup.

Denver Sandrock set two school swimming records as he and Lucas Porter each qualified for state. Sterling took third as a team and coach Kyle Ruiz was named sectional coach of the year.