MEN’S COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Skyhawks win season opener
The Sauk Valley men’s basketball team started the season hot Friday night, defeating Prairie State 91-70 in the SVCC Gym in Dixon.
The Skyhawks were hitting their shots from the start, and built a 50-38 halftime lead. Jamal Winston hit four 3-pointers and scored 14 points, and Devon House and Cade Nailor each had 13 points and eight rebounds. Riek Riek and Montez Mccoy each scored 11 points, with Riek adding five rebounds and three assists, and Mccoy dishing four assists.
Derian Duncan added eight points, seven assists and four rebounds, David Williams scored nine poiunts, and Andre Brandon chipped in seven points and five rebounds for Sauk, which plays Eureka JV at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
PREP VOLLEYBALL
Egan named Western Big 6 MVP
Sterling junior hitter Grace Egan was named Western Big 6 MVP this season, as the league announced its all-conference team Wednesday.
Egan was the Golden Warriors’ lone first-team selection, but was joined on the squad by second-teamers Karmen Weinrich (senior libero), Kathryn Rowzee (junior hitter) and Delali Amankwa (freshman setter). Junior hitter Katie Dittmar was an honorable mention selection for Sterling, which finished third in the league behind Moline and Rock Island.
COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
Trio of Skyhawks named All-Region
The Sauk Valley volleyball team had three players earn All-Region IV honors, the school announced Thursday.
Michal Willman, Kiley Sanders and Maddie Sands were honored by the coaches in Region IV, after the Skyhawks finished the season 36-2, including an undefeated run through both Region IV and Arrowhead Conference play.
Sauk plays in the regional tournament this weekend at College of Lake County, starting with Olive Harvey at 2 p.m. Saturday. The Skyhawks would then have to win twice Sunday to win the tournament title and earn a berth at the NJCAA National Tournament; those games would be at 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Three Warriors earn all-conference honors
Sterling senior midfielder John Cid was one of 13 first-team picks on the Western Big 6 all-conference first team, the league announced Wednesday.
Junior defender Yuriy Guerrero was a second-team pick for the Golden Warriors, and senior goalkeeper Sergio Garcia was named honorable mention.
Moline junior forward Saiheed Jah was named the conference MVP.
WOMEN’S COLLEGE SOCCER
Dixon grad named MVC Freshman of the Year
Former Dixon standout Taylor Harrison was named the Missouri Valley Conference’s Freshman of the Year, and also earned honorable mention all-conference honors for the Loyola Ramblers, the league announced Thursday.
Harrison is the fourth straight Rambler to win the Freshman of the Year award, after scoring four goals and dishing three assists this season. She has two goals and two assists in her last two games. Her 11 points is tied for second on the team behind junior Megan Nemec (20), who was named the MVC Player of the Year for the second straight season.
Loyola (11-2-2, 7-0-1 MVC) won its fourth consecutive regular-season conference crown, and will host the MVC Tournament this weekend.
COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY
Skyhawks send eight runners to nationals
The Sauk Valley cross country team competed in the NJCAA Region IV Meet at Kishwaukee College last weekend, and had four men and four women advance to the NJCAA National Meet on Nov. 13 in Richmond, Virginia.
The women’s race was a 5K, and sophomore Melissa Allen led the way with a ninth-place finish in 21:56. Sophomore Madison Bland placed 12th in 22:27, freshman Mika Martinez finished 15th in 23:04, and freshman Jorden Robinson took 22nd in 24:59, as all three also advanced to nationals. Sadie Lenz (26th, 25:36), Kayleigh Thomas (27th, 25:40), Emily Henson (30th, 26:46), Madisyn Nicklaus (31st, 27:21) and Zoe Ryan (35th, 28:29) also competed for the Skyhawks, who finished fourth as a team with 69 points. Moraine Valley won the team title (45), while Lake County’s Carly Leonard won the race in 20:12.
All four SVCC men who ran in the 8K regional race qualified for nationals. Chris Link took 23rd in 29:54, Cameron Abell was 26th in 30:12, Reece Bohms placed 27th in 30:40, and Ruben Leal finished 30th in 31:24. Carl Sandburg won the team title with 21 points, taking the top three spots led by race winner Calton Kibet, who broke the Sandburg school record with a time of 24:51.
COLLEGE TRIATHLON
Dixon’s Drengenberg finishes in top 10 at regional qualifier
South Dakota fourth-year junior Leah Drengenberg placed eighth at the NCAA Division I St. George Regional Qualifier last Saturday at Quail Creek State Park in St. George, Utah.
Drengenberg, a 2018 Dixon High School graduate, clocked a time of 1 hour, 8 minutes, 31 seconds, good for eighth place. She was the fourth athlete out of the water after the 750-meter swim, in a time of 10:15, then had a 34:10 in the 20-kilometer bike ride and a 23:01 in the 1,500-meter run.
South Florida’s Kira Gupta-Baltazar won the event in 1:04:31, followed by teammate Gillian Cridge in 1:04:52.
South Dakota has already qualified as a team for the USA Triathlon Collegiate National Championship on Nov. 13 in Tempe, Arizona.
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