Photo Gallery | SJO baseball wins first game of the season

Coby Miller pounds the ball out of the park on this swing in front of nearly 80 high school baseball fans during St. Joseph-Ogden home baseball opener against Champaign Centennial. His 3-run homer in the bottom of the first inning was both answer and notice to the Chargers' solo shot minutes earlier. The Spartans went on to defeat the visiting Big 12 school 9-5 on Monday.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Hayden Brazelton takes a pitch on the hip while batting for the Spartans. Brazelton, a junior, tallied one hit in his two trips to the plate and scored two of SJO nine runs.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Crayton Burnett reaches back to unload a pitch against the Chargers. The future University of Illinois player picked up the win after giving up three hits and striking out 10 batters in his four-inning 2021 season debut.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Four Spartan baseball fans enjoy a beautiful spring day behind the fence in center field while watching their team take care of business against Centennial.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Ty Pence waits for a throw from the catcher to try and put out a Centennial base runner. Offensively, the sophomore basketball standout tallied 2 RBI on 2 hits for the Spartans.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Hayden Brazelton slides into second on a steal attempt. The junior, who was hit by a pitch earlier in the game, had the team's only double.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

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Spartans bump heads with Sabers

St. Joseph-Ogden's senior Logan Ingram goes up for a header during the soccer team's home game against St. Thomas More. The Spartans fell 4-0 in their last home game of the season. The SJO soccer season wraps up this week after road trips to Bloomington and the season finale at Rantoul on Friday. See more photos from this game later this week.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Spartans softball team opens season with a win

Players from the St. Joseph-Ogden softball team welcome first base player Alyssa Acton to home plate after her two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth inning during their season opener on Randy Wolken Field against visiting Centennial on Wednesday. SJO produced 13 hits on the day for the first win of the season to beat the Chargers, 14-7. More game photos coming soon.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

Miller rips first home run of the season

With SJO down 1-2 in the first inning, Coby Miller watches his ball go high and deep toward centerfield on his first trip to the plate in almost two years. Nearly 80 baseball fans watched the ball sail over the fence for his 3-run homer in St. Joseph-Ogden's season opener against Centennial. After the dust had settled at the Glenn Fisher Sports Complex, Miller finished the day with 2 runs and 4 rbi, includin on one hit. The Spartans defeated the visiting Chargers 9-5 in non-conference baseball action at home on Monday. More photos from this game coming soon.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

SJO volleyball falls in close battle

Payton Vallee takes a swing at a set during St. Joseph-Ogden's home volleyball game against St. Thomas More. The Spartans fell 2-0 to visiting Sabers.

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

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St. Joseph, IL -- SJO junior Kennedi Burnett had 13 kills and teammate Payton Vallee added another 10, but it was not enough to rally past visiting St. Thomas More on Monday.

The St. Joseph-Ogden volleyball team led 10-7 in the first set before the Sabers chipped away at the lead with three unanswered points to knot the contest at 10-all. Both sides battled with cautious fury keeping any chance for a definitive momentum swing to favor either team until STM tallied another three-point run to go up 18-14.

The deficit against the seasoned St. Thomas More line-up was too much to make up leading the Spartan to fall in a close, but frustrating 25-22 finish.

In set two, the Spartans trailed 5-2 early on but fought back feverishly to tie the score at 7s. From there SJO took control of the set building a five-point lead and carrying it for the next eight scores.

At 18-13, Lady Luck step in and a huge shift in momentum favored the Sabers as they rallied back to tie the game at 20-all. St. Joseph-Ogden would muster just two more points to their opponent's five losing the second set by three also at 25-22.

With just five matches left in the pandemic shortened season to play over the next 10 days, the two-set loss doesn't tarnish the Spartans' impressive 12-3 season so far.

Hannah Fox led the Spartans with 16 digs while Burnett and Vallee, a senior, chipped in nine and six more, respectively.

Rebecca Steinbach was credited with 22 assists along 10 digs of her own.

Rockets roll past Spartans in homecoming game

271-pound running back Lane Innes rumbles past a couple of SJO defenders on his way to his a third quarter touchdown for Unity. The Rockets defeated visiting St. Joseph-Ogden in their 2021 homecoming game, 48-16. Unity improves to 3-0 on the season and will enjoy home field advantage next Friday against Mahomet-Seymour. Miles to the northeast, SJO (1-3) will host Bloomington Central Catholic in their final home game of the season. See photos from this game here...

Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks