TOLONO -- Looking at a 15-point deficit with 5:15 left to go in the third quarter against an aggressive Bloomington Central Catholic team, the Unity girls' basketball team was going to have to wait a few days for that 18th win of the season. The Saints almost had the door shut until the Rockets clawed their way back into the game to trail by two with 1:05 left to play in the game.
Forty seconds later, Unity got possession of the ball on a rebound after Central Catholic missed a free throw and called time out. The last 21 seconds of the game are worth watching over and over.
After getting the ball past the half-court line, a couple of passes put the ball in the hands of Unity's Lauren Miller at the top of the key. Miller dribbled past three BCC defenders for a layup under the basket and missed. Teammate Raegan Stringer chases down the rebound and tosses the ball back to Miller.
Miller and every fan in the Rocket Center watched the ball after she launched it from in front of the Rockets' bench back in three-point territory. As the ball passed through the net, the backboard lit up. And then the final buzzer sounded. The junior guard was then mobbed and deservingly while head coach Dave Ellars celebrated with three victory hops, arms high above his head. The junior guard had just sealed the Unity's come-from-behind effort with the double-U, 45-44.
Dropping in 14 points for the night, Taylor Henry was the Rockets' leading scorer. The senior also had four rebounds and was credited with three steals.
Katey Moore, who had a solid night defensively, also finished the game in double figures with 12 points. The talented sophomore nabbed five boards and slapped down four shots in addition to her two assists and a team-high four steals.
Raegan Stringer and Maddie Reed rounded out the top three scorers for Unity with six points apiece. Stringer, whose rebound and pass helped make the game-winning shot possible, contributed four rebs and four assists to the comeback effort. Reed's six-point effort was from two 3-point shots converted in the third period.
The Rockets play their next two games on the road this week. Thursday, the team travels to Prairie Central for a conference match with the Hawks. Twenty-four hours later, Unity is back on the road again, this time to Mt. Zion.
Box Score
Final: Unity 45 - Central Catholic 44
1
2
3
4
F
Unity
7
10
15
13
45
Central Catholic
8
16
17
3
44
Unity --
Ray 0 (0) 0-0 -- 0,
Flesch 0 (0) 0-0 -- 0,
Renfrow 0 (0) 0-0 -- 0,
Miller 1 (1) 0-0 -- 5,
Steinman 1 (0) 0-0 -- 2,
Stringer 3 (0) 0-0 -- 6,
Moore 5 (0) 2-3 -- 12,
Reed 0 (2) 0-0 -- 6,
Alagna 0 (0) 0-0 -- 0,
T. Henry 5 (0) 4-6 -- 14,
Chandler 0 (0) 0-0 -- 0,
B. Henry 0 (0) 0-0 -- 0.
Central Catholic --
M. Uhren 0 (0) 2-2 -- 2,
Evans 0 (0) 0-0 -- 0,
Becker 3 (0) 1-4 -- 7,
S. Shanks 0 (1) 4-4 -- 7,
Schnierle 1 (1) 0-0 -- 5,
C Uhren 0 (0) 2-4 -- 2,
L. Shanks 0 (0) 2-2 -- 2,
L. Emm 1 (0) 0-0 -- 2,
E. Stenger 5 (2) 1-3 -- 17,
I. Metzdorff 0 (0) 0-0 -- 0.
URBANA
6:00 PM - Girls Junior Varsity Basketball @ Rantoul
7:30 PM - Girls Varsity Basketball @ Rantoul UNIVERSITY HIGH
6:00 PM - Boys Junior Varsity Basketball @ Cornerstone
7:30 PM - Boys Varsity Basketball @ Cornerstone ST. JOSEPH-OGDEN
5:30 PM - Boys Sophomore Basketball @ Prairie Central
7:00 PM - Boys Varsity Basketball @ Prairie Ridge
7:00 PM - Boys Varsity Basketball @ Prairie Central UNITY
5:30 PM - Boys Junior Varsity Basketball vs St. Thomas More
7:00 PM - Boys Varsity Basketball vs St. Thomas More
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CHAMPAIGN -- Eight players delivered points in St. Joseph-Ogden's 43-28 road victory at St. Thomas More on Monday.
The Spartans (14-6 overall, 4-0 IPC) piled on points in the first two quarters against the senior-less Sabers. Up 28-10, St. Joseph-Ogden never needed to glance over their shoulders at the scoreboard.
SJO's starting five were responsible for putting 36 of those points on the scoreboard. Peyton Jones, who finished the night 3-for-3 from the free-throw line, drained a team-high 13 points to lead SJO in the team's fourth conference win of the season.
The rest of the starting five, including Ashlyn Lannert and Taylor Wells with six points apiece, Payton Jacob had seven, and Ella Armstrong added another 4 for 36 of the team's 43 points.
The Spartans received bench points from Alyssa Hamilton, Addie Martinie, and Taylor Hug.
Sophomore Ruari Quarnstrom led all scorers with 19 points, 16 of those delivered to the STM side of the scoreboard in the second half.
On January 16, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Champaign County dropped 62%. Individuals with active cases are supposed to remain in isolation based to prevent further spread of the contagion for a set number of days. The quiet drop from 6,681 on Friday to 2,602 posted on the Champaign-Urbana Public Health Dashboard on Saturday was not the result of the miraculous, instantaneous disappearance of the respiratory virus that 24% of the county's population has tested positive.
It wasn't hydroxychloroquine, ivermectin, or urine responsible for the significant one-day drop in the number of infected residents in the county. Under the cover of the MLK holiday weekend, the public health quietly changed how it calculated active cases. The sharp reduction was the result of the CDC's guidance shortening the required isolation period from 10 days to five almost three weeks ago back on December 27 of last year.
The CDC said:
Given what we currently know about COVID-19 and the Omicron variant, CDC is shortening the recommended time for isolation for the public. People with COVID-19 should isolate for 5 days and if they are asymptomatic or their symptoms are resolving (without fever for 24 hours), follow that by 5 days of wearing a mask when around others to minimize the risk of infecting people they encounter. The change is motivated by science demonstrating that the majority of SARS-CoV-2 transmission occurs early in the course of illness, generally in the 1-2 days prior to onset of symptoms and the 2-3 days after.
The last sentence in the statement evoked a collective gasp from virologists, epidemiologists, and medical researchers around the country. The problem is people are generally still able to transmit the virus longer three days after symptoms first appear. In the eyes of a vocal majority, the motivation to shorten isolation time was not based on science, but on political capital, economics, and irresponsible public health leadership. Alas, all of this is a topic for another discussion.
The Biden Administration, taking its cue from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and desperate to placate business leaders from America's top industries, seemingly has decided to fight the Coronavirus pandemic by simply juking the stats.
"Making robberies into larcenies. Making rapes disappear. You juke the stats, and majors become colonels. I've been here before."
~ Roland 'Prezbo' Pryzbylewski The Wire
As David Simons, creator and a writer for the hit HBO series The Wire, said years ago, it's all about the numbers.
"You show me anything that depicts institutional progress in America, school test scores, crime stats, arrest reports, arrest stats, anything that a politician can run on, anything that somebody can get a promotion on. And as soon as you invent that statistical category, 50 people in that institution will be at work trying to figure out a way to make it look as if progress is actually occurring when actually no progress is," he told Bill Moyers in a PBS interview. "I would be watching what the police department was doing, what the school system was, you know, you would look outward. But if you looked inward you'd see that the same game is played everywhere. That nobody's actually in the business of doing what the institution's supposed to do."
Let the poor and middle class get sick. Make the sick disappear. Juke the stats, so the rich keep getting richer. Welcome to Biden's pandemic response.
So instead of taking care of business and not keeping Americans safe, Biden's administration can point to the numbers and claim, "Look, we've created policies that reduced the number of people who have Covid. We've put the economy back on track."
At what cost now and in the future?
Washington and the CDC need a better plan. Sorry, but manipulating the numbers is not it. Nor is treating Americans like livestock, culling and trying to reach a state of herd immunity through involuntary infection. America's greatest asset is not its economy but its people.
Stress-free Thanksgiving tips for those short on time this holiday season
While gathering for Thanksgiving is intended to be a joyous occasion, everyone who has hosted the feast knows it can also come with a lot of stress, and expenses.
The good news is that whether you’re a Gen Z-er hosting your first Friendsgiving on a budget or you’re a busy family preparing for guests, there is a lot to be thankful for this year.
Recent study suggests childhood trauma could haunt Illinois adults for life
New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed 75% of U.S. high school students said they have had at least one adverse childhood experience, or ACE.
Research has shown ACEs can alter a child's brain chemistry and produce a prolonged toxic stress response. Experiencing at least one ACE as a child is linked to having alcohol and substance use problems in adulthood, and chronic diseases such as diabetes and obesity.
Tipped wage system isn't working, removing taxes won't save it
Both major presidential candidates have called for eliminating taxes on tips. But that won’t help most restaurant workers.
What will? Replacing the subminimum wages that tipped workers make with one fair wage nationwide.
The federal minimum wage for most workers is just $7.25. But for workers who get tips, employers are allowed to pay them $2.13 an hour. If tips don’t raise your hourly pay to at least the ...
Lavender Zarraga, APRN, a behavioral health provider at OSF HealthCare, says it’s not uncommon for her patients to ask for a medication that isn’t the right fit.
The culprit? She says symptoms of common mental health issues like depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and bipolar disorder can overlap. So, it’s important to stay in contact with your provider to make ...
One for the record book, Unity nearly pulls off underdog victory over Althoff
TOLONO - Unity head football coach Scott Hamilton said Althoff Catholic (4-0) was the best team he has coached against in his career.
Hamilton told the team after the game that, having coached over 400 games, there has only been a handful in which he thought every player on the field would have to play at their absolute best to even have a chance of winning. Friday night's game against Althoff, which brought three Division I recruits to town, was one of those occasions.
On January 16, the number of active COVID-19 cases in Champaign County dropped 62%. Individuals with active cases are supposed to remain in isolation based to prevent further spread of the contagion for a set number of days. The quiet drop from 6,681 on Friday to 2,602 posted on the 
While gathering for Thanksgiving is intended to be a joyous occasion, everyone who has hosted the feast knows it can also come with a lot of stress, and expenses.
