Unity Junior High students earn academic high honors

Unity Junior High School announced the names of the students who achieved high honor roll status during the fourth quarter. Congratulations to all the students who earned the requisite grade point to qualify for honor roll recognition during this period. Honor Roll students that did not qualify for high honors can be found here.

6th Grade High Honor Roll

Madelyn JoAnn Bear
William Terrance Bieser
Jace Boyett
Rachel Elaine Sharples Brooks
Connor John Chesnut
Brielle Mun-Yee Chin
Madisen Diane Coy
Dominic Dees
Finley Douglas
Reid William Edwards
Jackson Carter Elam
Ashlyn Elizabeth Estes
Shirley Arianna Garcier
Liam Thomas Grussing
Aubrey Lou Hartman
Asher Jett
Pyper Rayne Jones
Zaylee Elaine Kohlenberg
Elijiah Cole Lambert
Avalee Susan Little
Landon Robert Little
Lucas James Michels
Logan Alexander Nasser
Peyton Elizabeth Neighbors
Charlotte Rose Ocasio
Zachary David Ruhter
Mallory Mya Schmid
Brody Lee Skibbe
Blake Robert Stierwalt
Giselle Ann Thomas
Jase William Kenneth Wierman
Conor William Zumbahlen

7th Grade High Honor Roll

Ashlyn Nicole Alt
Landon Robert Alt
Maylie Rose Bates
Nora Kristina Blanchard
Brailey Marie Cain
Viola Ayame Carman
Raeann Loucille Cozad
Lydia Grace Crowe
Kylee Paulette Cunningham
Elizabeth Irene Davidson
Bronson Edwin Davis
Savannah Jo Drewes
Quentin Xavier Dykeman
Collin Daniel Eckstein
Beau Richard Eisenmenger
Tinsley Layne Elliott
Alarik Byrum Ellison
Cooper Alexander Fairbanks
Nadia Grace Fairbanks
Hayden Marie Gabbard
Evelyn Anne Gould
Libbey Marlene Ethel Griffin
Jessica Marie Hamilton
Harper Quinn Harris
Dylan Paul Holladay
Mason James Holladay
Aaron Joseph Hood
Gabriel Heinrich Jahnel
Allie Rose Kamradt
Molly Kathryn Lydia Kleiss
John Isaac "Isaac" Leaman
Adeliah June Little
Adelyn Jolene Maxwell
Graham Charles Moore
Ashley Ann Mumm
Nicole Nava Palomares
Caylynn Josie Parker
Raelyn Marie Prosser
Jordan William Pruitt
Avery Elizabeth Remole
Matias Alberto Rios Toro
Camdon Levi Schmid
Layla Marie Scott
Drake Alan Siuts
Colby Aaron Weaver
Lucy Jeane Weaver
William Ross Wetherell
Kadence Ryleigh Wiese
Alexis LeAnn Wolken
Alivia RaeLyn Wolken
Brendan Kurtis Zerrusen

8th Grade High Honor Roll

Kelsey Marie Adcock
Kenny Wayne Adcock
Lilly Annabelle Bailes
Brooklyn Blair Bates
Ty Craig Benedict
Ethan Earl Bent
Elizabeth Joanne Berkey
Katherine Elaine Berkey
Konnor Lewis Bletscher
Sylvia Lola Cahill
Kale Boden Cowan
Trevor Daniel Coy
Alec Joseph Daly
McKenzie Lynn Deakin
Emma Nicole Denney
Giulietta DiBello
Steven Gambill
Amelia Marie Good
Hayden Bradley Grussing
Aubrie Paige Gumm
Jordan Elizabeth Hamilton
Kynedy Ashlynn Hoel
Alivia Krall
Cora Dee Leonard
Adeline Marie Marinelli
Lilly Madelyn Meharry
Tatum Faith Meharry
Baeden Edward Millsap-Moore
Lillian Calen Mohr
Holden William ONeill
Marley Rae Parks
Carolina Maria Pagaduan Popovics
Luc Sandor Marcelo Popovics
Makaylin Pugh
Maya Alexis Rawdin
Bella Rose Robbins
Skylar Grace Savona
Sophia Isabella Schuckman
Jaylan Serczyk
Austin David Shafer
Vivian Rosalie Shunk
Dylan Robert Stierwalt
Jack Christopher Terven
Nicholas James Thomas
Hayley Olivia Thompson
Cassandra Pearl Thweatt
Quentin Stephen Webber

Bryson Matthew Williams
Lucas Neal Williams
Olivia Lynn Wilson
Ethan Matthew Wishall
Ashton Jace Wolf
Adam Scott Wolken

Area football players to play in all-star football game June 21

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Record-setting Taylor, power back Boyd-Meents headline Shrine Game rosters.

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ST. JOSEPH - Two of central Illinois’ top high school football talents and other members from the Illini Prairie Conference will join an elite group of players from across the state for one final game in their prep careers.

Coy Taylor of St. Joseph-Ogden and Robert Boyd-Meents of Paxton-Buckley-Loda will take the field June 21 at Tucci Stadium in Bloomington for the 51st Annual Illinois High School Shrine Game. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m., with pregame ceremonies beginning at 10 a.m. Tickets are $10 and available at the gate.

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Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

RIGHT: Coy Taylor looks for running room on punt return for SJO during their home game against Paxton-Buckley-Loda. Taylor made five catches for 72 yards and rushed for 102 more on Senior Night. LEFT: PBL's Robert Boyd-Meents runs the ball against the Spartans on the same night. Boyd-Meents averaged 5.1 yards per carry and finished the game with 70 all-purpose yards against a stout Spartan defense.

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This all-star event, sponsored by the Illinois Coaches Association and the Shriners of Illinois, benefits Shriners Hospitals for Children, with all proceeds supporting pediatric specialty care. Last year’s game raised nearly $13,000 for the cause.

Taylor, who will continue his football career at DuPage College, leaves behind a record-setting legacy. The 5-foot-11, 170-pound receiver holds the IHSA all-time career receptions record with 259 catches, surpassing the previous mark held by Marist’s Nic Weishar. Taylor also ranks fourth in state history in career receiving yards with 3,658 and became only the second receiver in Illinois history to post three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons. His senior year included 83 catches for 1,045 yards, highlighted by a postseason performance in which he had seven receptions against Unity in his final game.

Boyd-Meents, meanwhile, anchored PBL’s offense for three seasons. The 5-foot-11, 210-pound running back amassed 4,020 total yards over 31 varsity games, averaging 129 yards per contest. In addition to his ground attack, he hauled in 39 receptions for 747 yards, helping the Panthers reach the playoffs each of the last three seasons.

The Blue Team will feature both Taylor and Boyd-Meents alongside Milford’s Caleb Clutteur, an 8-man football tight end. They’ll be guided by one of their own: St. Joseph-Ogden head coach Shawn Skinner, who joins the Blue Team coaching staff.

Skinner brings a resume full of recent success. He led the Spartans to a 10-1 finish in 2024, including a perfect 8-0 record in Illini Prairie Conference play. Over the past three seasons, Skinner’s teams have gone 25-5 and made deep playoff runs, including a narrow second-round postseason loss last fall to Roxana. In an interesting twist, Skinner will coach alongside Roxana head coach Wade Devries, whose team ended SJO’s 2023 season with a last-minute defensive stand on a 2-point conversion attempt.

The Red Team will also include a solid contingent of area athletes:

• George Rouse, QB, Champaign Central
• Carter Foran, WR, Monticello
• Mason High, NT, Monticello
• Evan Parish, ILB, Bismarck-Henning-Rossville-Alvin
• Matt Suaava, OL (G), Paxton-Buckley-Loda
• Ryker Grauer, ILB, Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley
• Matt Allen, DE, Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley

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Photo: Sentinel/Clark Brooks

Monticello's Carter Foran takes a handoff from quarterback Ike Young (left) during their semifinal game against Unity. He will be joined at the All-Star game with teammate Mason High. The two seniors saw action in the Class 3A championship game against Montini after defeating the Rockets last November.

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Now in its fifth decade, the Shrine Game continues to celebrate Illinois’ football tradition while raising awareness and support for young patients. This year’s banquet speaker will be Jared Williamson, newly appointed head coach at Illinois Wesleyan University, and a former Shrine Game MVP in his home state of Alaska.

Full rosters and game-day information are available online at IL HS Shrine Game.