SJO’s 4-0 win over Uni High delivered multiple milestones: a second consecutive regional title, a first-time season sweep of Uni High, and a record-breaking 23rd win.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
St. Joseph-Ogden junior Yadi Acosta settles the ball during first half action against Unity last week. The Spartans' lead defender helped SJO reach several milestones in their regional title game against Uni-High.
by Clark Brooks
Sentinel Sports
ST. JOSEPH - The St. Joseph-Ogden soccer team is having an impressive, even legendary, season. If there’s one word that describes this year’s squad, head coach Chris Stevens said it’s “family.”
“They all play for each other and know how critical every player’s role is in our overall success,” he said.
On Saturday, that family played together to achieve several impressive milestones at Dick Duval Field. First, SJO’s 4-0 win marked the program’s second consecutive regional title. Second, it was the first time in school history the Spartans shut out perennial small-school powerhouse Urbana University High School. Third, when the final buzzer sounded, it was also the first time St. Joseph-Ogden had beaten Uni High twice in the same season. Finally, the victory pushed the Spartans to their winningest season ever, improving their record to 23-1-2.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
Tyler Hess dribbles the ball away from a Unity Rocket defender during Tuesday's semifinal match.
“We were extremely thrilled with our players’ performance this past week. We knew Uni High would come ready to play,” Stevens said. “We spent the week preparing both mentally and physically to get the job done. Earning the win against them the second time around was incredibly rewarding—and adding a shutout on top of that made it even better.”
Zach Harper recorded yet another hat trick, and Tyler Hess found the back of the net in the second half to send the Spartans to the Williamsville Sectional semifinal.
Next up, St. Joseph-Ogden will face Athens-Greenview-Illini Central in the sectional semifinal on Tuesday. The Warriors advanced after ending Monticello’s postseason bid with eight seconds left in the first overtime period, winning 3-2. Both the Spartans and Warriors defeated Argenta-Oreana and Meridian-Sangamon Valley by nearly identical scores during the regular season.
“We know both teams will come out playing like they have nothing to lose,” Stevens said about his game plan for Tuesday night. The SJO coaching staff has diligently analyzed game film and will be ready. “We’re going to stay true to our game plan—this team knows how to win, and that’s exactly what we intend to do.”
With three top scorers, the Spartans look poised to advance to the sectional final. Harper has scored 55 goals this season, followed by Hess with 34 and freshman Lucas Stevens with 22. Hunter Cler rounds out SJO’s top four scorers with eight goals.
When asked what the Spartans are doing best right now, Stevens pointed to the team’s mindset. “Consistency is the key,” he said.
St. Joseph-Ogden is scheduled to take on the Warriors at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Williamsville High School.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
Zach Harper lines up a shot on Unity's goal during their regional semifinal match. The senior scored six goals to give SJO the win on Tuesday.
Tagged: St. Joseph-Ogden soccer regional championship, IHSA sectional semifinal Williamsville, Zach Harper hat trick Uni High shutout, Illinois high school soccer postseason, SJO Spartans 23-1-2 record 2025 season
Back at the end of August, Prairie Central dropped a hard-fought match to Lexington but showed promise across all levels. The JV team earned a solid 2-0 victory to highlight the night.
FAIRBURY – A long rally here, a dig there, and a crowd that kept holding its breath — Prairie Central’s matchup with Lexington on Sept. 2 had all the energy of midseason volleyball, even if it ended in disappointment for the home team.
The Lady Hawks dropped a tight 2-0 decision to the visiting Minutemen, falling 25-19 in the opener and 27-25 in a second-set nail-biter that could’ve gone either way. For head coach Kirsten Smith’s squad, it was one of those early-season games that reveal a team’s character as much as its record.
“We came out a little slow tonight but we were able to get some energy as we went on,” Smith said. “The second set was exciting but Lexington got us on a five-point run that swayed the momentum in the opposite direction. Lexington played solid defense and played scrappy when it mattered, keeping our hitters from getting the kills we wanted.”
Prairie Central had its share of bright spots in the loss. Charlee Popejoy led all servers with six service points and two aces, while Kinley Elliott paced the attack with seven kills. Setter Kyah Creek distributed the ball efficiently, finishing with 17 assists, and sophomore libero Paige Young showed her defensive chops by collecting 18 digs. The front line saw contributions from Mia Elliott, who recorded two assisted blocks to slow Lexington’s momentum when the Hawks needed it most.
The loss comes on the heels of a two-set defeat to Illini Prairie Conference rival Pontiac (25-23, 25-18), but it follows a solid showing in the early-season tournament, where Prairie Central swept both Dwight and Tri-Point in straight sets. Those results, paired with Smith’s steady focus on growth and chemistry, suggest a squad capable of tightening up as the season wears on.
“We’re proud of our JV team as they really came alive against Lexington today,” Smith said, noting that the younger groups continue to make big strides. The JV earned a solid 2-0 victory (25-20, 25-16), while the freshman team battled through three sets before falling 25-15, 15-25, 15-6.
Backtrack: Highlights, Heartbreaks, and Hustle is the Sentinel's retrospective look back, highlighting games and athletic performances that might have been lost or overlooked in the regular season chaos.
TAGS: Prairie Central Lady Hawks volleyball, Lexington Minutemen volleyball, Illinois high school volleyball recap, Fairbury sports news, Prairie Central vs Lexington 2025
Archived articles published on October 26 in previous years from The Sentinel. Topics include local news, sports, community events, politics, and Opinion-Editorial viewpoints.
Each day, we revisit stories that shaped our community — from thrilling high school sports moments and heartfelt local events to coverage of state politics, healthcare developments, and opinion pieces that sparked conversation. Explore archived stories published on October 26 from previous years, offering a snapshot of life in Champaign County and beyond by The Sentinel.
Benton Rangers, 9-0 and dominant in the Southern River-to-River, host paper underdogs St. Joseph-Ogden for their First-Round IHSA 2025 playoff game.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
St. Joseph-Ogden's Wyatt Wertz slips a Pontiac tackle during their conference game on Friday. Wertz scored three times and racked up 202 all-purpose yards.
ST. JOSEPH - The IHSA playoff brackets are set, and St. Joseph-Ogden fans have something to circle on their calendars: the Spartans are headed south to take on the third-seeded Benton Rangers in the 2025 First-Round matchup. With a 2 p.m. kickoff on the slate, it’s a road trip with plenty of stakes, as SJO, the #14 seed, prepares to face a team that has steamrolled through the Southern River-to-River all season.
Benton enters the postseason riding a perfect 9-0 record, including an unblemished 5-0 mark in conference play. Their regular season reads like a highlight reel of dominance. In every game but one, the Rangers scored at least 34 points. Only DuQuoin came close to slowing them down, eking out a 17-7 loss that stands as the lone blemish on Benton’s record. On defense, the numbers are just as impressive: 66 points allowed over nine games. This is a team that knows how to control both sides of the ball.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
Unity's Crewe Eckstein, Josh Heath, and Tre Hoggard celebrate a touchdown during their regular season game against St.Joseph-Odgen.
A big reason for that control is Riley Spencer, Benton’s feature back. The 5'11", 180-pound junior broke the 2,000-yard mark last Friday, adding another chapter to what has been notable campaign for the Southern Illinois powerhouse. Hard to bring down and even harder to anticipate, Spencer has been a one-man highlight machine for the Rangers all season, and SJO’s defensive staff will have their hands full trying to slow him down.
The Spartans, meanwhile, enter the playoffs with momentum and a renewed sense of confidence. SJO snapped a three-game losing streak with a decisive 56-21 victory over Pontiac last week, ending the regular season at 5-4. They were firing on all cylinders, and the return of Wyatt Wertz two weeks ago has been a game-changer. The senior back has found the end zone repeatedly, scoring three times against the Indians and adding two more in the previous week’s win at Seneca. Kaden Wedig, who has been sidelined since Week 6 against Monticello, is cleared to suit up again and contribute. This depth will be critical against a well-oiled Benton machine.
Playoff preparation isn’t just about individual matchups; it’s about rhythm, timing, and knowing how to handle the spotlight. The Spartans have a chip on their shoulder. They know they’ll be stepping onto Benton turf against a team that has scored at will all season, but SJO’s mix of experience, recent success, and renewed health gives them a fighting chance. If the Spartans can control the tempo and execute cleanly on both sides of the ball, they’ll at least give Benton a game worth remembering.
The Illini Prairie Conference sent three other squads into the postseason as well, proving that local football remains highly competitive. Conference champions Bloomington Central Catholic, the #3 seed in the northern bracket, open against #14 Princeton, setting the stage for what promises to be a gauntlet of tough matchups. Up north, teams like IC Catholic, Bishop McNamara, Byron, and Richmond-Burton are all positioned to make deep runs. Raise your hand if you would like to see a semifinal battle between the Saints and the Byron Tigers in three weeks.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
Central Catholic quarterback Valshun Powe carries the ball for a first down against St. Joseph-Ogden last Friday. The Saints, who averaged two TDs per quarter to beat the visiting Spartans, will need that same scoring intensity in the Class 3A northern bracket.
In the south bracket, SJO will be joined by #4 Unity, who boasts an 8-1 record, riding a six-game winning streak, faces #14 Mt. Carmel in the first round. #5 Monticello squares off against #12 Paris in what promises to be a first-round home thriller. For SJO, the challenge is clear: one road game at Benton stands between them and another week of SJO football.
As Spartans fans look ahead, the questions are obvious: Can Wyatt Wertz keep rolling and lead the SJO offense? Will Benton’s Riley Spencer continue to carve up defenses like he has all season? And most importantly, can SJO rise to the occasion and turn the tables on a team that has dominated nearly every opponent it has faced? Suffering two unexpected upset loses, the time is now for Shawn Skinner's Spartans to break a few hearts.
St. Joseph-Ogden Spartans IHSA 2025 playoffs, Wyatt Wertz SJO Spartans football highlights, IHSA Class 3A South bracket, Illini Prairie Conference teams in IHSA playoffs
COLFAX, Ill. — Under the Friday night lights at Ridgeview High School, the stakes couldn’t have been higher. Senior Night. A packed crowd. And the Heart of Illinois Medium Division title hanging in the balance.
The GCMS Falcons delivered a performance that matched the moment, overpowering the Ridgeview Mustangs 55-27 in a game that showcased speed, grit, and championship-caliber execution. With the win, GCMS locked in a 7-2 regular-season record and a perfect 4-0 mark in division play, securing the title outright.
From the opening kickoff, GCMS dictated the tempo. Their offense churned out sustained drives, while the defense kept Ridgeview’s playmakers in check. Ridgeview, celebrating its seniors in front of a spirited home crowd, showed flashes of resilience but couldn’t match the Falcons’ relentless pace.
Photo: AlanLook.com/Alan Look
The Mustangs entered the night with hopes of a title-clinching upset, but GCMS’s balanced attack and disciplined execution proved too much. As the final whistle blew, the Falcons stood tall — not just as victors of the night but as champions of the division.
The win marked a defining moment in GCMS’s season, setting the tone for postseason play and reinforcing their reputation as one of Central Illinois’ most formidable programs.
Relive the GCMS Falcons’ championship-clinching victory with exclusive, high-impact images from the game, captured by Alan Look Photography. With more than 26 years documenting Central Illinois sports, Alan Look brings unmatched precision, timing, and storytelling to every frame. From sideline intensity to celebratory moments, these visuals are more than photos — they’re history in motion.
Tags: GCMS Falcons Heart of Illinois Medium Division title, Ridgeview vs GCMS high school football highlights, Central Illinois high school football championship game, Alan Look Photography sports action shots, Senior Night high school football game
