CHAMPAIGN - Oakwood-Salt Fork's Steven Uden settles in for the pin wrestling Canton's Jaxsun Owens in last season's Class 1A 106-pound first-round match at the 2025 IHSA Individual Wrestling State Finals. Unden won his opening bout by pin at 4:53. The sophomore rolled through the bracket to face Charlie Flores in the finals, falling in a close 4-0 decision to fill the runnerup spot. Two weeks ago, the junior (39-6) started his pursuit of a 2026 state title. He finished first at the Robinson Regional tournament in the 113-pound division and qualified for state after knocking off Althoff junior Jacobi Cobbs for the sectional title.
Past Photos of the Day
TAGS: Sentinel Photo of the Day, IHSA wrestling, Oakwood Comets, Steven Uden wrestles at state, Uden wins wrestling titles
Spartans open 2025-26 with a big road win at Oakwood. Hess leads the charge with a hat trick.
OAKWOOD -St. Joseph-Ogden’s boys soccer team wasted no time showing its firepower, striking for seven goals in a 7-3 road win over Oakwood on Thursday to begin the 2025-26 season. The Spartans flipped the script from a year ago, when the Comets handed them a 5-1 defeat in the same matchup to open the season.
Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks
Steven Newman returns to the Spartan lineup in 2025. The junior scored a goal in SJO's first game of the season, avenging last year's 5-1 loss to the Comets.
Senior forward Tyler Hess delivered a standout performance with three goals and an assist, sparking an offense that spread the scoring responsibilities across the lineup.
Four other Spartans added goals of their own. Steven Newman, Hunter Cler, Zach Harper, and Skyler Graham each found the net, while Harper and Graham also earned assists. Midfielder Lucas “Buddy” Stevens orchestrated the attack with three assists, setting up his teammates in key moments.
The win comes at the start of a grueling run, with SJO scheduled to play five matches in the first six days of the season. The Spartans visit Hoopeston Area on Friday before hosting Iroquois West on Saturday at Dick Duval Field.
SJO enters the season looking to build on last year’s strong campaign. After a slow start in 2024, the Spartans rattled off 18 wins and a tie before falling in the sectional semifinals to eventual Class 1A state champion Normal University. They finished with a 22-3-1 record, cementing themselves among the area’s top programs.
This fall’s lineup is anchored by returning seniors Quinn Stahl, Branson Pearman, and Harper, with fellow seniors Hadley Sweet, Michael McDaniel, and Rudra Chaudhory providing additional leadership and depth.
Upcoming SJO Matches
Fri, Aug. 29, 2025 – 4:30 p.m. at Hoopeston Area High School
Sat, Aug. 30, 2025 – 10:00 a.m. vs. Iroquois West High School at Dick Duval Field
TAGS: St. Joseph-Ogden boys soccer 2025 season opener, Tyler Hess hat trick vs Oakwood soccer, IHSA Class 1A boys soccer sectional contenders, St. Joseph-Ogden Spartans upcoming soccer schedule, Illinois high school soccer early season matchups
Unity's Danika Eisenmenger takes a swing at an Oakwood pitch in the bottom of the third of their non-conference game on windy Monday afternoon. Scoring seven runs in the first inning, the Rockets took a commanding lead on the way to 14-0 shutout against the visiting Comets (1-3) despite sustained wind out of the southeast exceeding 25 mph at times.
Charleston's Luke Bonsletter goes up for a shot on a fast break against ALAH. The junior scored 26 points in his team's 48-41 loss to SJO Friday night. The Trojans will be play for third place at the TODC tonight starting at 5pm.
Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks
ST. JOSEPH - The field is set for championship day at the Toyota of Danville Classic. St. Joseph-Ogden and Oakwood went undefeated in pool play and will face each other on the hardwood in a rematch of last year's title game starting around 6:30 PM tonight in the Main Gym at St. Joseph-Ogden High School.
Before that, St. Teresa and Charleston, who earned two wins against one loss in pool play, square off in the third-place game starting at 5pm. The markings of an exciting contest, St. Teresa's Raheem Tyus and Charleston's Luke Bonstetter will lead their respective teams for the in the prelude to the championship game. Tyus and Bonstetter led their teams in Friday's game, scoring 26 points.
The fifth place game features Paxton-Buckley-Loda against Evan LaBelle and the Watseka Warriors. LaBelle had an outstanding night, scoring 24 of his team's 51 points against Arthur-Lovington-Atwood-Hammond (ALAH).
ALAH will be the home team against Cissna Park, opening the final day's competition at 2pm.
Toyota of Danville Classic Championship Day Schedule
2:00 PM: 7th Place Game-Cissna Park vs. ALAH
3:30 PM: 5th Place Game-PBL vs. Watseka
5:00 PM: 3rd Place Game-Decatur St. Teresa vs. Charleston
6:30 PM: 1st Place Game: Oakwood vs. St. Joseph-Ogden
St. Joseph-Ogden 56, Oakwood 23:Addison Frick was perfect at the free throw line, 2-for-2, while leading the Spartans to their second-straight victory heading into the Christmas holiday lull. The 5-foot-7 junior finished the night with a game-high 20 points in the non-conference game moved to Wednesday evening to avoid inclement weather bearing down on East Central Illinois. Classmate Addison Seggebruch scored 10 points in SJO's sixth win of the season.
Seven other players contributed in the team effort heading into the State Farm Classic, where they will open tournament play against the Sherrard Tigers (9-2) in the Small School bracket.
Senior Addie Wright carried the Comets scoring effort with eight points and Jaydah Arrowsmith added a free throw, a three-pointer, and short-range bucket in the the loss.
Just a mid-season reminder to varsity coaches at Unity, Urbana Uni-High, Urbana High School or St. Joseph-Ogden, please send us your box scores, statistical leaders for each game, and other info via email to sports@oursentinel.com or editor@oursentinel.com.
With family, teammates and friends taking in the moment, Oakwood basketball player Addie Wright signs her National Letter of Intent to continue her basketball career with the Hawks of Quincy University.
Photo provided
Oakwood -- Addie Wright signed her NLI on Monday to continue athletic career at Quincy University. The 6-foot-0 post player for Oakwood is averaging 10 points per game in the first ten contests of her final prep season. She finished the 2021-22 season with an average of 14 points and nine rebounds per game.
The daughter of Greg and Staci Wright, Addie plans to study biology or psychology.
"Addie is a hard worker with a strong presence around the rim. We are excited to add her steady and tough skillset to our program," said second-year head coach Kaci Bailey.
Wright's 3.2 steals per game and blocking ability have bouyed the Oakwood progam with a 5-5 record this season. She has scored 107 points and collected 99 rebounds with a little more than two months left in the season.
The future 2023 grad and 2022 VVC First Team member plays summer ball with the Indiana Elite Havoc, an AAU club team. She also ran cross country in the fall the Comets.
Wright and the Comets host Hoopeston Area tomorrow evening and then play two consecutive road games starting with St.Thomas More followed by a trip to nearby Westville.
St. Joseph-Ogden pulled away in the fourth quarter against Oakwood in their second Toyota of Danville to pull out a 62-57 win on Wednesday.
Ty Pence led SJO's scoring effort with 34 points and 5-for-7 free throw shooting. Senior Evan Ingram also notched another double-digit performance adding another 16 to help the team improve to a 3-0 record.
Oakwood's Josh Young finished the game with a team-high 23 points and Dalton Hobick buried 19 for the Comets.
Box Score
Final: St. Joseph-Ogden 62 - Oakwood 57
St. Joseph-Ogden --
Taylor 4-0-4, Smith 4-0-4, Trimble 3-1-4, Pence 29-5-34, Ingram 11-5-16.
Oakwood --
Treos 5-0-5, Ruch 2-0-2, Powell 6-2-8, Young 20-3-23, Hobick 16-3-19.
Oakwood - This Friday, the Oakwood High School football field will have a new name. The athletic program will christen the field with its new name, "Marty McFarland Field" before the Comets kick off their week seven game against visiting Hoopeston-Armstrong.
The dedication ceremony will take place at 6:30p with the unveiling of the sign and former Oakwood football head coach Marty McFarland receiving a commemorative plaque.
Coach Mac, who will be presented a plaque by Oakwood Superintendent Larry Maynard and Oakwood School Board President Randy Smith, started his teaching and football coaching career at Oakwood High School in 1970. He later went on to coach girls track (1980-1992), during which he won five straight conference titles, and he was an assistant wrestling coach from 1978-1985.
During his 23-year career guiding the OHS football program, McFarland won 126 games, four conference championship titles, and led the Comets to nine IHSA playoffs appearances. He is also the only coach of the school's football program to reach the state quarterfinals. A 1998 Illinois High School Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame inductee, he was selected as an assistant coach for the annual East/West All-Star football game during his final season with the Comets.
With the scored tied at 40-all and just four seconds left in regular time, Payton Vallee hit a game winning free throw to give the St. Joseph-Ogden girls basketball team a one point victory over their host Oakwood on Saturday.
Trailing 13-6 after one quarter against the Comets, the Spartans roared back scoring 18 points in the second frame courtesy of 10 unanswered points.
Ella Armstrong's five points along with four from Taylor Wells and a total of nine from the combined efforts of Ashlyn Lannert, Katie Cramer, Taylor Barnes, Abby Behrens and Vallee, erased the early game deficit to put SJO up, 24-23.
Both teams produced an identical number of points in third and fourth quarters of their non-conference matchup.
In the last quarter, the Spartans never trailed on the scoreboard. The Comets tied the contest three times and did not allowed SJO more than a three point advantage in the final eight minutes.
Katelyn Young's final free throw opened the door wide for a possible overtime win for the Comets. Vallee, who finished with just two points, slammed that door shut when she hit the second of her two free throws - and the most important one of the night - with little time on the clock for Oakwood to respond.
Young, who hit eight of her 11 free throws, led the Comets with a game-high 22 points. Aaliyah Denius added another 11 in Oakwood's second loss of the season. The Comets are now 7-2 heading into their next game against Westville on Monday.
While Vallee's clutch shot won the game, the Spartans' win would not have been possible if wasn't for Armstrong's varsity career-high 13 points.
In her best outing playing for the maroon and Columbia blue, the sophomore was 2-for-2 from the free throw line and hit a trey in each of the last two quarters of the game.
Behrens finished with seven points for SJO and teammate Barnes, a senior, contributed six first half points to round out St. Joseph-Ogden's top three scorers on Saturday.
The Spartans, now at 7-1 for the season, are back on the bus Monday where they hope to pick up win number eight at Mahomet-Seymour in another early season non-conference game.
The Bulldogs, who are 4-3 heading into contest with the Spartans, already have one loss against a Illini Prairie team. Prairie Central, powered by senior Elly Haberkorn's 21 points, prevailed in the 48-40 opening loss for Mahomet-Seymour.
Box Score
St. Joseph-Ogden
6
18
6
11
- 41
Oakwood
13
10
6
11
- 40
Scoring
St. Joseph-Ogden: Ashlyn Lannert 2, Payton Jacob 4, Taylor Wells 5, Katie Cramer 2, Abby Behrens 7, Taylor Barnes 6, Payton Vallee 2 and Ella Armstrong 13.
Oakwood: Katelyn Young 22, Ashlynn Pinnick 2, Addie Wright 3, Aubrey Wells 2 and Aaliyah Denius 11.
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