Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
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Friday Night Forecast |Week 2 Big Twelve football predictions
URBANA - This week's prediction poll for the Friday Night Forecast is closed. Here are this week's picks from area sports soothsayers.
Champaign Central vs Centennial
GAME-of-the-WEEK!Alan: Centennial .::. 33-20
Clark: Central .::. 28-21
Bloomington vs Normal University
Alan: Bloomington .::. 28-14Clark: Normal University .::. 42-21
Urbana @ Danville
Alan: Danville .::. 42-6Clark: Danville .::. 21-14
Normal Community @ Normal West
Alan: Normal Community .::. 27-24Clark: Normal Community .::. 35-26
Peoria vs Peoria Notre Dame
Alan: Peoria .::. 38-25Clark: Peoria Notre Dame .::. 24-13
Peoria Mannual @ Richwoods
Alan: Richwoods .::. 30-12Clark: Richwoods .::. 35-21
Boasting a nearly perfect prediction, Alan is our Big Twelve winner from Week 1, guessing six of seven outcomes correctly. Below are the results from Week 1 of the Sentinel’s inaugural Friday Night Forecast.
Week 1 Results
| Rank | Name | Record | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alan | 6-1 | Week 1 winner |
| 2 | Clark | 5-2 | His crystal ball may be cracked |
Cumulative Standings
| Rank | Name | Total Record | Wins | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alan | 6-1 | 1 | Week 1 winner |
| 2 | Clark | 5-2 | 0 |
Week 1 Results
Champaign Central vs Springfield
Alan: Champaign Central .::. 36-14Clark: Springfield H.S. .::. 27-14
Springfield 51, Champaign Central 41
Danville @ Bloomington
Alan: Bloomington .::. 38-20Clark: Danville .::. 28-21
Bloomington 40, Danville 7
Richwoods @ Normal Community
Alan: Normal Community .::. 45-13Clark: Normal Community .::. 14-7
Normal Community 40, Richwoods 6
Peoria Manual vs Normal University
Alan: Normal University .::. 42-18Clark: Normal University .::. 21-14
Normal University 71, Peoria Manual 22
Normal West @ Peoria Notre Dame
Alan: Normal West .::. 41-28Clark: Peoria Notre Dame .::. 28-24
Normal West 34, Peoria Notre Dame 14
Centennial vs Peoria
Alan: Peoria .::. 46-21Clark: Peoria .::. 24-21
Peoria 42, Centennial 0
Urbana vs St. Teresa
Alan: St. Teresa .::. 40-8Clark: St. Teresa .::. 35-14
St. Teresa 29, Urbana 7
CUPHD to host free car seat inspection in Champaign
CUPHD found 85% of car seats misused in 2024. Learn how to keep your children safe at their free Sept. 8 event.
CHAMPAIGN – Parents and caregivers will have the chance to ensure their children are traveling safely when the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District (CUPHD) hosts a car seat inspection event on Monday, September 8, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event will take place in the north parking lot garage of CUPHD’s main office at 201 W. Kenyon Road in Champaign. No appointment is necessary.
Certified child passenger safety technicians and instructor–proxy technicians will provide complimentary guidance on the proper installation and use of car seats. Families can expect to spend about 30 minutes with a technician, who will check whether children are in the correct seat for their age and size, confirm proper installation, and encourage parents to register their car seats with the manufacturer to stay informed about recalls.
Although the event comes ahead of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Child Passenger Safety Week, scheduled for September 21–27, organizers stress its importance. Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death among children, and NHTSA research shows that 46 percent of car seats are misused. At CUPHD in 2024, 85 percent of inspected seats were found to be misused, with the most common issues being incorrect seat type and improper installation.
"Most parents do what they can but are still unsure," said Christina Ladage. "So, they may be surprised to find out their children aren't as secure as they think. We want to help caregivers ensure their children are safe."
For families unable to attend, CUPHD offers inspections on the second Monday of each month, except on holidays. These sessions require appointments, which can be scheduled by calling 217-353-4932. A list of additional inspection opportunities across the country can be found at NHTSA’s website.
To further support child passenger safety, CUPHD’s Maternal and Child Health division is holding a car seat donation drive. An Amazon wish list is available at a.co/8de7909, and donations may also be dropped off in person at the WIC window in the main office lobby. Donated seats will go to low-income families, along with hands-on guidance on proper installation.
Centennial falls to Bulldogs in nonconference match at home
Centennial fell to Mahomet-Seymour 9-0 on Monday. The Chargers head to Urbana's Blair Park to take on the Tigers in a conference match.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
CHAMPAIGN – The Centennial girls tennis team could not keep pace with Mahomet-Seymour on Labor Day, dropping a 9-0 decision in a nonconference dual at Lindsey Courts.
The Chargers (1-5) entered the contest fresh off a 7-2 Big 12 Conference win over Bloomington, but the Bulldogs (3-1) took control from the outset. The match began shortly after the conclusion of the Champaign Park District’s annual Labor Day Tournament, with Mahomet-Seymour winning all six singles and three doubles contests.
The closest match of the day came at No. 2 doubles, where Centennial’s Modi and Zumwalt pushed Flores and Gowler to a first-set tiebreak before the Bulldogs secured the win in straight sets.
Centennial looks to bounce back when it travels to Urbana for a conference matchup at Blair Park. Mahomet-Seymour, meanwhile, improved to 3-1 overall in dual meet competition.
Full Results
Final Team Score: Mahomet-Seymour 9, Champaign Centennial 0
Singles
- No. 1 – Adella Bird (MS) def. Ria Modi (C), 6-1, 6-1
- No. 2 – Haley Reed (MS) def. Taylor Diep (C), 6-0, 6-0
- No. 3 – Emmie Flores (MS) def. Krisha Patel (C), 6-1, 6-1
Doubles
- No. 1 – Bird/Reed (MS) def. Patel/Diep (C), 6-0, 6-0
- No. 2 – Flores/Courtney Gowler (MS) def. Modi/Rylin Zumwalt (C), 7-6 (2), 3-1
- No. 3 – Lillian Meyer/Harper Young (MS) def. Romi Sagiv/D Patel (C), 6-0, 6-0
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Swinging into the season, Diep falls in home singles match against Mahomet-Seymour
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
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Another "No Kings" protest coming, “We Are All DC” march this Saturday
Organizers call Trump’s rule “authoritarianism” as 50501 Movement readies marches in DC and nationwide.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
WASHINGTON - After more than 500,000 people rallied in over 1,000 communities nationwide during Labor Day weekend, organizers of the 50501 Movement are preparing for two major demonstrations against former President Donald Trump and what they describe as the billionaire takeover of American democracy.
The first is a national march this Saturday in Washington, D.C., followed by a second coordinated day of action, “No Kings,” scheduled for Oct. 18. Both events are being organized with the backing of a coalition that includes labor unions, civil rights groups, and grassroots organizations.
“With over 1,000 events across the nation this past weekend, we showed that we can do what Trump can't: show up for workers and for workers’ rights,” said Gloriann Sahay, chair of Political Revolution and a 50501 national partner.
March on Washington
The “We Are All DC” march is set to begin at 11 a.m. Saturday at Malcolm X (Meridian Hill) Park in Washington and end at approximately 4 p.m. Organizers say the demonstration will highlight opposition to the National Guard presence in the capital and broader concerns about authoritarianism.
“The National Guard in DC is a fascist circus of performative brute force that is meant to terrify the people,” said Sarah Parker, executive director of Voices of Florida and a 50501 partner. “But we are not afraid. We are mobilizing with local grassroots organizers and with the communities that are the most targeted, most impacted, and most ignored.”
National Day of Action
Organizers are also planning a second nationwide protest on Oct. 18. The “No Kings” day of action is expected to bring demonstrations to cities large and small across the country. The movement says the focus will be nonviolent protest, civil disobedience, and opposition to authoritarianism.
“We the people of the United States of America will not kneel at the foot of a mad king’s throne,” said 50501 press coordinator Hunter Dunn. “Fascism is the name of the plague slowly destroying this country.”
Groups organizing the national protests include the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Federation of Teachers, Common Defense, Indivisible, League of Conservation Voters, MoveOn, National Nurses United, Public Citizen, SEIU, and United We Dream, among others. A full list of partners is available at nokings.org/partners.
Urbana protest draws thousands
Champaign-Urbana has already seen its first “No Kings” rally. On a Sunday earlier this year, more than 3,000 people gathered in downtown Urbana to protest Trump’s policies and what they called the rise of authoritarianism in the United States. The demonstration was part of a coordinated wave of more than 2,000 events nationwide.
The rally began outside the Champaign County Courthouse and stretched down Main Street, where participants carried flags and signs opposing Trump and calling for democracy and civil rights protections. Organizers included the Party for Socialism and Liberation of Central Illinois, the Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center, the 50501 Movement of Illinois, and the Mahomet Persisterhood.
Similar demonstrations were held in cities such as New York and Chicago, as well as smaller communities across Illinois including Bloomington, Peoria, and Macomb.
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Nonprofit links Illinois farmers with health care to advance "food as medicine"
A Colona-based nonprofit helps connect food, farming and health care to advance nutrition-based medical interventions.
Image by svklimkin from Pixabay
by Judith Ruiz-BranchIllinois News Connection
A lot of these ecosystems have been siloed and working on their own problems.
Think Regeneration supports farmers and ranchers who avoid pesticides, herbicides and minimize synthetic fertilizers. Slabaugh noted while Indigenous communities have understood food's medicinal purposes for thousands of years, modern medicine is only recently rediscovering the connections after decades of prioritizing efficiency over health. "I think doctors are now starting to understand that their patients are asking them, 'Well, what should I be eating?’" Slabaugh underscored "And this comes from doctors that we work with. They are totally unprepared for that question." Slabaugh argued doctors receive minimal nutrition education with much more time dedicated to pharmacology, creating an imbalance in how they approach health care. He stressed the initiative to promote food's medicinal uses requires partnerships across many sectors, including transportation, food storage, education, philanthropy and scientific research. "A lot of these ecosystems have been siloed and working on their own problems," Slabaugh contended. "I think this is a real attempt to kind of break down those silos and bring people back into the idea that we're all kind of participating in health, whether we're directly in health care or not."
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Madigan wins back-to-back titles at Labor Day Tournament
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
Sohum Gurrapu (left) and Hunter Madigan pose with their double trophies after the Open Men's Doubles championship match.
Hunter Madigan defended his singles crown while teaming with Sohum Gurrapu for the doubles title at the Champaign Labor Day Tennis Tournament.
CHAMPAIGN - For the second straight year, Hunter Madigan left no doubt about his place at the top of the Champaign Park District Labor Day Tournament. The top-seeded Madigan claimed the men’s open singles title with a run that ended in a championship victory over 15-year-old Sohum Gurrapu, a sophomore at Champaign Central, in his first appearance in the open division title match.
It took Madigan, a senior at St. Thomas More High School, three sets to defeat Gurrapu 3-6, 6-1, 1-0(5).
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
David Molitor poses for a photo with his sons after winning the Beginner/Intermediate Open Singles divison. Molitor defeated Jay Rafi 6-1, 6-0 in the title match on Monday. See the list of this year's champions at the bottom of this article.
Gurrapu, meanwhile, made his way to the final with a breakout performance. He began with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Lang Liu before defeating former Champaign Centennial standout Daniel O’Brien, 6-3, 6-2. In the semifinal, Gurrapu held off Alejandro Gomez, a high school state finalist, in a tightly contested 7-5, 6-4 match to secure his spot opposite Madigan.
In the singles final, Madigan’s experience and steady play proved decisive against Gurrapu, who nonetheless established himself as a rising talent in the area’s tennis scene.
"Playing against him in singles is tough," Gurrapu said. "It went pretty well the first set. I was hitting pretty well, hitting some winners."
He pointed out that the second set was different story.
"In the second set, Hunter picked up his level and I think I kind of lowered mine," he said recapping the title match drama. "It was still a good tournament overall."
The tournament concluded with the men’s open doubles championship, where Madigan and Gurrapu joined forces. Facing veteran duo Sam Ryu and Lino Jo, the high school players showed poise in a straight-set victory, 6-4, 6-4, completing a memorable tournament sweep.
Photos: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
Madigan said Gurrapu is a fun partner to play with. After all, the pair have shared a friendship tempered by more than a half of decade of competition.
"The way he plays just works really with me."
Gurrapu sang praises for his partner.
"His serves are amazing. I mean his kick serve just make it too easy for me at the net," he said. "Playing singles against him is tough. I hate playing against it (the kick serve). In doubles, it's just amazing, especially when he is your partner."
Complete Champaign Park District Labor Day Tournament championship results:
Men’s Open Singles:Main Draw Final: Hunter Madigan defeated Sohum Gurrapu 3-6, 6-1, 1-0(5)
Consolation Final: David Diep defeated Yannick Kluch 6-0, 6-1 Beginner/Intermediate Open Singles:
Main Draw Final: David Molitor defeated Jay Rafi 6-1, 6-0
Consolation Final: Christine Powell defeated Can Huang by default Men’s 35 Singles Round Robin:
Deciding match for 1st & 2nd place: Michael Bantz defeated Charles Sikora 6-4, 7-5 Men’s 45 Singles:
Main Draw Final: Nitin Bhosale defeated Daniel Morris 3-6, 7-6(5), 1-0(4)
Consolation Final: Alex Ramos defeated Eduard Kirr 6-4, 6-0 Men’s 65 Singles Round Robin:
Deciding match for 1st & 2nd place: Steve Fentem defeated Scott Aikman 6-2, 7-5 Boy’s 12 Singles:
Main Draw Final: Ari Velasquez defeated Yususf Malik 3-0 retired
Consolation Final: William Guo defeated Edward Dyer 6-0, 6-0 Men’s Open Doubles:
Main Draw Final:
Hunter Madigan & Sohum Gurrapu defeated Sam Ryu & Lino Jo 6-4, 6-4
Consolation Final:
Eduard Kirr & Christopher Stewart defeated Elijah Walker & Tuong Dang by default Mixed Open Doubles:
Main Draw Final::
M.K. Kim & Angad Mehta defeated Kyo Nakanishi & Paul Cheung 4-6, 6-2, 1-0(3)
Consolation Final:
Kym Man & Kevin Kim defeated Can Huang & Lang Liu 6-0, 6-1
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