The Sauk Valley volleyball team pulled off another upset Wednesday at the NJCAA Division II National Championships in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, defeating No. 6 seed Catawba Valley 25-21, 25-22, 23-25, 25-21 to advance to the fifth-place match.
The 10th-seeded Skyhawks (16-8) got 29 kills and 14 digs from Emma Carlson, and 15 kills and 21 digs from Kiley Sanders in the victory. Audra Goff dished 23 assists, Madison craft added 22 assists, and Maddie Sands finished with 20 digs. Lexi Greve spiked nine kills, Juliana Rotella had six kills, and Gracey Lovgren and Shannon Lytle spiked four kills each, with Lovgren stuffing four blocks.
Sauk will play Gulf Coast State for fifth place at 1 p.m. today.
Prep volleyball
Oregon def. Auburn 25-13, 25-15: The Hawks improved to 12-2 with a two-set win at the Blackhawk Center.
Jenae Bothe had eight kills and two aces, and Brenna Noon and Kenna Wubbena each finished with five kills for Oregon; Wubbena also had five digs. Ella Martin added nine digs and two aces.
Fulton sweeps West Carroll: Fresh off a COVID quarantine, the Steamers won a pair of matches against the Thunder.
In Fulton’s 25-17, 27-25 win, Kylie Collachia had seven kills, 10 assists, seven digs and a block, and Gracie Sanderson added six kills and eight digs. Jersey Boyson dished seven assists, and Teegan Germann had 13 digs.
The Steamers also won 25-18, 21-25, 25-22. Tiffany Smith had seven kills, Sanderson added six kills, 15 digs and two aces, and Collachia finished with four kills, 14 assists, 16 digs, two aces and two blocks. Brooklyn Brennan had five kills, Lauren Mahoney added 10 digs, Boyson had eight assists, seven digs and two aces, and Germann chipped in 20 digs and two aces.
Pecatonica def. Polo 25-15, 24-26, 25-22: The Marcos battled, but fell in three sets in a nip-and-tuck NUIC match on the road.
Nicole Boelens had seven kill, nine assists, 14 digs, four aces and two blocks for Polo, and Marah Blake and Becca Wagner both had five kills and two blocks. Harper Clark added 13 digs and two aces.
Boys soccer
Oregon 2, Winnebago 0: The Hawks won a Big Northern Conference Tournament consolation game at Park West to advance to the fifth-place game.
Isaac Nelson had a goal and an assist for Oregon (4-7), which will host Byron on Friday. Alan Acosta scored the other goal for the Hawks, and Joey Gelander added an assist.
Men’s tennis
Prairie State 6, Sauk Valley 3: The Skyhawks dropped a dual Wednesday, but the No. 1 doubles team of Daniel Ferguson and Preston Engel notched a victory over a strong duo from Prairie State.
Sauk also got forfeits at No. 6 singles and No. 3 doubles.
The Skyhawks visit McHenry on Saturday, then host College of DuPage in their home finale on April 21. Spectators are encouraged to attend.
College volleyball
ISU season ends at NCAA Tournament: The Illinois State volleyball team saw its season come to an end Wednesday in the NCAA Tournament, falling to UNLV 25-21, 25-21, 20-25, 25-17 in a first-round match in Omaha.
Sterling native Kaylee Martin led the Redbirds with 14 kills and 15 digs, a day after she earned all-region honors by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
She was also the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament MVP, as ISU won both the regular-season and tourney titles in the MVC.
NBA
Roby starts again for Thunder in loss to Warriors: Dixon native Isaiah Roby made his second straight start after clearing concussion protocol Tuesday, and played 28 minutes in Oklahoma City’s 147-109 loss to Golden State on Wednesday night.
Roby had nine points, three rebounds, four assists and a steal for the Thunder (20-35), shooting 4-for-6 from the field and making his only 3-point attempt.
OKC was outscored 39-22 in the second quarter and 50-29 in the third as the Warriors turned the game into a blowout.
The Thunder are back in action on the road Friday night in Detroit at 6 p.m.
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