Not quite yet, volleyball team misses op to beat STM

Emily Bigger celebrates a point for the Spartans in their home match against St. Thomas More last Thursday. Bigger contributed 32 assists in the 2-1 conference loss. Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

The atmosphere was electric in the main gym at St. Joseph-Ogden High School where the Spartan volleyball team faced conference rival St. Thomas More last Thursday. After an intense three-set battle, SJO fell in 2-1 decision to the visiting Sabers.

Leading by as many as five points near the mid point of the first set, The Spartans let St. Thomas clawed their way back into the contest to first an 18-all and again later at 21-all. The Spartans then won the next five points in a dominating fashion to take the set, 25-21.

"We knew what to expect because we have been watching film of them," said Lacey Kaiser. The senior contributed eight kills, seven digs and a pair of blocks over the course of the night. "We knew they would come out twice as hard in the second set after we won the first set."

After winning the first point in the second set, it would be the last time Kaiser and the Spartans, despite a monumental effort on their part, would see anything resembling a lead on the scoreboard for the remainder of the match.

"The second set, we really rallied back and fought," Kaiser said. "We haven't really shown that in past games we've played."

Kennedi Burnett, who echoed Kaiser on the team's strides to improved their mental toughness, led the Spartans with 13 kills. She was also credited with eight digs in the three-setter.

"We didn't let up," Burnett said, talking about how the team has been worked toward staying focused when things are not going their way on the court. "We have been working as a team to get back up."

Spartan head coach Abby McDonald said the team has shown growth since the season started, especially when the match momentum was against them in big games like this one against St. Thomas More.

"I didn't feel like we stayed in the match mentally," she said about her team's performance against the Sabers. There were some mental breakdowns that STM capitalized on. "We still have those moments, but it is much better (now). We keep saying it doesn't have to be our best yet."

Middle Stephanie Trame goes up to put the ball away against the Sabers. Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

The Spartans used well-placed tips and scrappy play to stay within striking position to reverse the score. Up by one at 12-11, STM engineered a six point run to go up 18-11. Not willing to going down without a fight, SJO rallied back to a three-point deficit at 23-20 before St. Thomas More closed out the set at 25-20.

"Their offense got going and we really didn't have an answer for it," McDonald said in evaluating the difference in the way her team played in the first set as opposed to the second. Mostly it came down to STM getting the ball to sophomore Anna Mcclure to put away. "We didn't have an answer on defense."

By the third set, St. Thomas More hit their stride mentally and emotionally and never once let Burnett or teammate Katelyn Berry, who chipped ten kills of her own for the Spartans, bully their way past them.

St. Thomas More led by as many six points before Berry and Kaiser's perseverance at the net paid off and pulling SJO within two points of taking the lead in the final set at 21-20. Their momentum stalled and St. Thomas More took the final set, 25-20.

Overall, McDonald was happy with how the team performed.

"I think the kids did a nice job of trying to stay in it," McDonald said. "I feel like they (STM) had more weapons on offense."

Hazardous waste collection day set

Have bottles of unused, out-of-date or unneeded automotive fluids or other hazardous chemicals in your basement or garage? Online registration for the fall Illinois EPA-Sponsored One-Day Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event in Champaign County is now open so you can dispose of them safely at the end of October.

Preregistration online is required for drop-offs. As of the time of publishing this article, openings for 11:15am to 2:45pm appointments were available. The one-day event will be held at a designated Market Place Mall parking lot between 8am and 3pm on October 26.

Allowable chemicals and items include chemical cleaners, oil-based paints, thinners, antifreeze, motor oil, gasoline, kerosene, weed killers, insecticides and pesticides, old or outdated medication, lead-acid batteries, and similar hazardous household products. Fluorescent and other high-intensity discharge lamps will also be welcomed at the collection site.

Items that will not be accepted include latex paint, explosives, propane tanks, fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, agricultural chemicals and business wastes. A complete list of household hazardous waste that will or will not be accepted is here: https://www2.illinois.gov/epa/topics/waste-management/waste-disposal/household-hazardous-waste/Pages/acceptable-wastes.aspx.

For more information about the Champaign County collection day or register before it is too late, visit https://hhwevent.simplybook.me/v2/

Wow! 42% of the student body earned academic letters at SJO

While St. Joseph-Ogden High School may be known outside of the community for its competitive prowess in sports like softball, baseball and football, all which receive a healthy dose of media attention through out the year, the student population is equally impressive when it comes to their studies and classroom pursuit.

Friday morning, SJO held an awards ceremony to recognize current students and May graduates from the Class of 2019 for their academic performance during the 2018-19 school year.

SJO students cheer for the football team at Friday's homecoming game against Pontiac. Despite a rigorous academic standards and plenty of opportunities for extracurricular activities, nearly half of the student population at the high school enjoys a GPA of 3.6 or better. Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

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One hundred and ninety-one individuals from last year's student body of 452 earned an academic letter. When you do the math, that is a remarkable number statistically and even more so when you compare it to other public schools not only in the area, but around the state.

"(It) means 42% of our students earned at least a 3.6 GPA for the entire school year, had no D or F’s, and was enrolled in at least five academic classes," said Principal Gary Page, III, in his address to students, parents and family members in attendance at an all-school assembly. "To put that in perspective if a student takes six academic classes they need an A in four classes and at least a B in the other two to achieve a 3.6."

Noting that the majority of the students are involved in two or more extracurricular pursuits like the performing arts, FFA or are multi-sport athletes, the number of students receiving an academic letter is certainly impressive.

"When you combine that statistic with our high standards for classroom rigor it screams excellence," Page said, proud of the accomplishment made by not only the students who earned the awards, but also the teachers and staff who work hard to create an environment of high expectations. "There is no substitute for showing up and working hard when it comes to success."

Below is a list of this year's academic letter winners by class.

Class of 2019 • Graduates

Gage Atwood, Cassidy Bagby, Erin Beyers, Kaylee Blanchard, Joel Branson, Rebecca Campbell, Kayla Canas, Daniel Carlson, Sarah Chahine, Peyton Crowe, David Cummins, Emmy Daniels, Liam Davis, Abigail Dunham, Avery Edwards, Nathan Emmert, Emory Ericksen, Jasmine Febus, Michael Foreman, Emilie Fox, Cole Franzen, Adam Frerichs, Rachel Gherna, Mikayla Harshbarger, Kaitlyn Hess, Zach Hill, Kalli Ingram, Kenneth Lahners, Hannah Lewis, Nathan Logan, Erinn Miller, Caroline Moore, Eve Owens, Angela Palmer, Ben Reitmeier, Adam Rose, Madison Rubin, Abigail Schlueter, Elizabeth Schluter, Samantha Schmidt, Ben Setterdahl, Jacob Shaw, Kaitlin Shoviak, Grant Siegmund, Rylee Sjuts, Brianna Suits, Maclayne Taylor, and Nathan Walden.

Class of 2020 • Seniors

Lindsey Aden, Jenna Albrecht, Mallory Ames, Taylor Barnes, Katelyn Berry, Emily Bigger, Kaylee Blackburn, Erin Bridgewater, Ginny Bytnar, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Kristen Costa, Drew Coursey, Kathryn Cramer, Andrea Cunningham, Faith Dahman, Hannah Dukeman, Asjah Fonner, Jaiden Freeman, Robert Gebbink, Payton Grimsley, Lucas Grindley, Erica Guelfi, Emily Hardimon, Ethan Hinrichs, Chance Izard, Cody Johnston, Lacey Kaiser, Danielle Kelso, Nathan Maier, Ava Mills, Carson Mills, Alivia Norem, Nolan Peacock, Taddy Pettit, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich, Lexi Ribbe, Jenna Schaefer, Joshua Sexton, Rylee Stahl, Kenly Taylor, Stephanie Trame, Anna Tranel, Isabelle Vliet, Brayden Weaver, Sam Wesley, Zoey Witruk, and Jackson Wooten.

Class of 2021 • Juniors

Isabelle Brooks, Crayton Burnett, Josh Buttjer, David Bytnar, Taylor Campbell, Kylie Duckett, Hanna Eastin, Nadirah Edwards, Emily Fisher, Dakota Franzen, Alexandra Frerichs, Emily Froman, Atleigh Hamilton, Emmy Houston, Lukas Hutcherson, Logan Ingram, Cailer Kellenberger, Shelby Kofoot, Spencer Lahners, Ethan Lane, Aiden Livesay, Alyssa Maddock, Tyson Madsen, Sophia Martlage, Flannery McCorkle, Garren Meeker, Abigail Moberg, Samantha Naylor, Alec Painter, Erin Patton, Aidan Roberts, Indira Robinson, Mazie Ronk, Evan Schmitz, Max Shonkwiler, Tessa Smith, Payton Vallee, Nora Walden, Brayden Wendt, Rachel Wilson, and Logan Wolfersberger.

Class of 2022 • Sophomores

Addison Allen, Tyler Altenbaumer, Kailyn Anderson, Ella Armstrong, Madison Atwood, Abigail Behrens, Ella Besson, Andrew Beyers, Brandie Bowlin, Mara Burkhalter, Kennedi Burnett, Angela Chahine, Braden Clampitt, Anastasia Conerty, Deanna Cummins, Ben Cunningham, Sidney Davis, Zander Dressen, Ashley Eldridge, Jared Emmert, Hannah Fox, Zella Fuqua, Avian Gerdes, Brennan Haake, Liam Hamer, Lauren Harper, Claire Huffman, Payton Jacob, Alison Kearney, Ava Knap, Kelsey Martlage, Sophia McDade, Conrad Miller, Coby Miller, Elijah Mock, Jett Morris, Keaton Nolan, Jessica Palmer, Emma Parkinson, Hope Rajlich, JoLeena Reynolds, Kendra Riddle, Taryn Sexton, Alyssa Shoviak, Luke Stegall, Rebecca Steinbach, Mackenzie Trame, Ethan Vanliew, and Taylor Wells .

Homecoming success! Spartans shutout Indians

After the final horn sounded, the Spartan football team along with student fans and cheerleaders celebrated their homecoming victory reciting, with enthusiasm, the school song. St. Joseph-Ogden picked up win number four after beating the Pontiac Indians 19-0 on Friday.

The shutout was the first for SJO since joining the Illini Prairie Conference. The last time the Spartans recorded one was nearly three years ago in a 44-0 rout over Rantoul on September 30 back in 2016. It was also the first time since their conference alliance St. Joseph-Ogden walked away from one of their gridiron confrontation with the Indians, who by the way led the series 2-0 until this weekend, victorious.

Spartan running back Brayden Weaver is wrapped up by Pontiac's Kodi Davis and Payton Cramer during on of his three touches against the Indians. Weaver was limited to 12 yards on the ground and 1-yard catch on Friday. Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

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The St. Joseph-Ogden defense rained havoc on the Indians (1-4), who started three freshman on the offensive line due to early season injuries to veteran players. Offensively, the defensive unit held the visitors to just 145 yards on the ground and an even 100 in the air.

"I think our defense is really starting to figure it out," said head coach Shawn Skinner. "They play well together. They play hard. Coach (Bob) Glazier does a great job with them."

Heading into week six, St. Joseph-Ogden has the second best defense in the league allowing just 43 points. Unity remains number one with 24.

"We've kind of figured out what our identity is," Skinner said. "We are a pretty good defensive team and we have guys who can make plays on special teams. We've got to some how, some way, shore up our offense."

He added: "We've got to do a better job on the offensive side of paying attention to detail."

SJO's offensive effort started off with a bang.

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He is an electric kid. He can make plays. You saw his speed."

~ Head coach Shawn Skinner

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The Spartans lit their half the scoreboard the earliest they have all season when Crayton Burnett unloaded floater into the outstretched arms of Brady Buss for 62-yard touchdown pass. The PAT was good, giving SJO a 7-0 lead with the elapse of just a minute and 37 seconds off the play clock.

Other than a couple of flashes of greatness, the offense stuttered and sputtered the rest of the evening.

"We made that big play at the beginning of the game, (then) our passing game kind of slowed down a little bit," said Burnett, who connected on seven of his 18 pass attempts for 120 yards. "I just got to hit my open receivers when I can."

Friday night's offensive potency is stark contrast from the season opener with St. Thomas More and the following game against Rantoul where SJO posted 24 first downs against the Sabers and 20 on the road against the Eagles. For the second consecutive week, the Spartans was held to just eight first downs the entire game.

Not satisfied and confident that his team will work toward play at their potential, Burnett added: "Once we can get our offense to the level we want it to be, we can be really good."

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks Racing past a pair of Pontiac defenders, Brady Buss makes a 68-yard touchdown run on a punt return electrifying Spartan fans and giving his team a 13-0 advantage.

St. Joseph-Ogden put another six on the board after forcing Pontiac to punt the ball away early in the second quarter. Brady Buss hauled the ball in and zipped down the visitor's sidelines for a 68-yard touchdown.

"He is an electric kid. He can make plays. You saw his speed," Skinner said. He praised his special teams coach for moving Buss into one of the two return slots. "Coach (Marshall) Schacht made that move two weeks ago. It was a great move by him. He is a threat for us."

The extra point attempt failed giving the Spartans a precarious 13-0 lead at halftime.

After a scoreless third quarter, the St. Joseph-Ogden offense marched the ball down the field in the fourth setting up a 4-yard touchdown courtesy of Jarrett Stevenson.

In his first game back after a two-week recover from an injury sustained against the Rantoul Eagles, Stevenson added 52 yards to bring his season rushing total to 324. He was happy to be back in pads and contributing.

"It's incredible stepping back on here with my brothers," he said. "It's great."

However, Stevenson was brutally honest about his performance in the first half.

"I played the worse first half of my life," he said. "I came back in the second half and enjoyed myself. I was able to run and get off that rust that I had."

Improving to 4-1, SJO needs just one more win to be playoff eligible for an at-large bid and another to guarantee themselves a spot in the IHSA postseason. Next Friday's road game at Prairie Central is critical in that regard and the coaching staff impressed upon the players the importance of practice in the week ahead.

The path to the playoff presents bigger obstacles on the Spartans' schedule after this Friday. IVC, undefeated at 5-0, and Monticello, last year's Class 3A state champions and in three-way tie for second in the conference with SJO and Unity, stand in the way.

But first, the team will enjoy the weekend homecoming gaiety.

"It's a good feeling. (I) definitely feel good about this win and will enjoy it," said senior lineman Conner Hodge. "Come Monday (we're) ready to work."