First loss of the season for SJO girls

St. Joseph-Ogden's Taylor Barnes dribbles the ball into the paint during her team's home opener against Paris. The Spartans (4-1) suffered their first loss of the season with their 65-46 non-conference loss to the Lady Tigers. Barnes led the SJO scoring effort with nine points. Ashlyn Lannert, Payton Jacob and Alyssa Hamilton each contributed six points apiece. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Photo look: Volleyball places third at state

Eight days ago, the St. Joseph-Ogden volleyball team defeated Rockford Lutheran after three sets 25-11, 25-20, 25-23 to place third at this year's Class 2A state tournament. Below are ten memorable photographs from more the 500 (not all of them as awesome as these moments as these) from the Spartans' final match of the season on Saturday, November 16.

SJO played 41 matches this season and won 36 of them. Their last four were grueling, emotional three-setters. Their season began with a marathon opening match and loss to eventual state champions St. Teresa, and ended with a three-set, 129-point match against the Lady Crusaders at Redbird Arena.

Emily Bigger and Lacey Kaiser go up for a block on a kill attempt by Rockford Lutheran's Kylie Wilhelmi in the first set. Kaiser was credited with a pair of blocks, seven digs and four kills in the match. Bigger contributed five digs and had 29 of the team's 32 assists. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Kenly Taylor celebrates a point for the Spartans during the first set. Her nine digs along with her defensive efforts in the back row were crucial in SJO ending their season with a victory. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Payton Vallee tips the ball over a Rockford Lutheran blocker. Vallee, a junior, finished the match with four kills and three digs. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

With teammate Payton Vallee looking on and Lacey Kaiser ready to dig a possible block, senior Katelyn Berry takes a huge swing at the ball in set two against the Lady Crusaders. Berry chalked up six kills and six digs in the Spartans' win. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Stretching out as far as can go, Lacey Kaiser dives for a tipped ball in the second set. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Spartans Lindsey Aden and Kennedi Burnett share a smile after Burnett's kill puts SJO up 13-7 in the final set. Burnett, a sophomore, delivered at team-high 14 kills. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

After winning the final set to take the match, two games to one, members of the SJO volleyball team led by seniors Jenna Albrecht and Katelyn Berry sing the school fight song with the student fan section. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Senior Jenna Albrecht flashes a huge smile as she waves to family members and SJO fans at Redbird Arena after receiving her bronze medal during the Class 2A awards ceremony. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

(Left to right) Lacey Kaiser, Lindsey Aden and Jenna Albrecht along with the rest of the volleyball team celebrate with the schools newest piece of state hardware. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Linda Berry photographs her daughter Katelyn and other members of the Spartan volleyball team with the school's third place trophy during the awards ceremony at the IHSA Volleyball State Finals. (PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Oyster stuffing for Thanksgiving, it's not too popular around here

Stuffing, infused with turkey drippings and a healthy dose of butter, is one of my favorite Thanksgiving dishes.

My grams would make two batches for our family dinner, one batched baked inside the turkey and the other on one of the burners of her gas stove. Ripping up pieces of toasted bread and leaving out overnight, even as she aged, was her preferred method of preparation. If it was in a box, can or package, it wasn't good enough for my grandmother and especially so for the family's Thanksgiving meals.

Occasionally observing the holiday at the homes of others many years ago, a few families made their dressing/stuffing with oysters.

Curious as to how popular this variation was with our readers, I created a poll a little more than a week ago asking, "Do you put oysters in your stuffing?"

Six days and 171 votes later, we learned that 86% of those who responded said "no" to adding chunks of the shellfish when they make their version of the holiday dish.

The majority of the stuffing I've tried - my grandmother's included - were made with traditional ingredients such as onions, celery, spices, butter, broth, and bread. For the record, I'm not a fan of oyster stuffing/dressing or recipes that use mushrooms. However, the thought of using dried fruit and nuts, cranberries or bits of bacon does sound delicious.

Do you have a unique, delicious recipe you would like to share? We would love to hear it and share it with our readers. Email us at editor@oursentinel.com and we may feature it in The Sentinel next week.

Spartans Tipoff champs after OT win over PBL

They did it. For the third consecutive year, the St. Joseph-Ogden girls basketball team has brought home the Lady Falcon/Bunnies Tipoff Classic title.

They did it after defeating Paxton-Buckley-Loda 45-43 in their first overtime game of the season.

They did it with scoring contributions from eight different members of the team, not one reaching double-digits on Friday.

Senior Katie Cramer led the Spartans' offense with nine points. Alyssa Hamilton totaled two threes and a bucket in overtime to finish with eight points. Taylor Barnes, who sank six of her ten free throw attempts, and Ashlyn Lannert chipped in six points apiece.

Tied at the end of regulation time at 38-all, Lannert, Hamilton and Payton Vallee scored two points each in the final period. Barnes hit one of her two free throws during the OT session to help the Spartans outscore the Panthers seven to five.

Lannert, a sophomore, and Cramer also received all-tournament team recognition.

Mackenzie Bruns led the PBL (2-2) scoring effort with a game-high 17 points and was 7-for7 from the free throw line. Brooke Walder helped out with eight points.

Mirroring last year's state final run, SJO's record improved to 4-0 on the season. The Spartans will host their first home game of the season on Tuesday evening with a non-conference match against Paris.

Box Score

St. Joseph-Ogden	9	13	9	7	7	- 45
Paxton-Buckley-Loda	10	10	10	8	5	- 43

Scoring

St. Joseph-Ogden: Ashlyn Lannert 6, Payton Jacob 7, Taylor Wells 5, Katie Cramer 9, Abby Behrens 2, Taylor Barnes 6, Alyssa Hamilton 8 and Payton Vallee 2.

Paxton-Buckley-Loda: Brooke Walder 8, Baylee Cosgrove 3, Lorena Arnett 5, Mackenzie Bruns 17, Kirra Lantz 3 and Makenna Ecker 7.

SJO girls advance to Lady Falcon/Bunnies Tipoff Classic title game

Tonight, St. Joseph-Ogden girls basketball team will play for their first tournament championship trophy of the season.

The shot at the Lady Falcon/Bunnies Tipoff Classic title comes on the heels of a fourth quarter surge by the Spartans. Clawing past Villa Grove/Heritage's offensive duo of Aliya Holloman (20 points) and Kyleigh Block (17 points), SJO secured their third win of the season, 46-43.

On the wrong end of a 19-15 score at the half, the Spartans dug in and drained five three-pointers in the third quarter. The Blue Devils countered with 16 points of their own, eight courtesy of Block, six from Holloman and a bucket from Samantha Campbell.

Holding VG-H to just eight points in final quarter, SJO matched that number and then added a few more.

Katie Cramer, still hot from three-point range, hit two more shots and drilled a pair of free throws. The senior finished the night with 14 points and was 2-for-2 from the line.

With the help of a clutch free throw from Payton Vallee, Taylor Barnes' third three-pointer of the game and a bucket from Payton Jacob, the Spartans prevailed improving to 3-0 on the season.

In all, St. Joseph-Ogden tallied a total of ten three-point shots from Jacob (1), Barnes (3), Cramer (4) and sophomore Abby Behrens with two.

You will want to saddle up early to help pack the gym tonight for what will surely be a barnburner at Fisher. The championship game, scheduled to start at 7pm, pits the Spartans against Paxton-Buckley-Loda, who knocked off tournament co-hosts GCMS 56-38 to reach the final.

A three-peat in the making, the Spartans have won the tournament the title past two seasons. The Panthers have the offense to keep that from happening tonight.

PBL had three players with double-digit scoring against the Lady Falcons. Mackenzie Bruns delivered 13 points, Hannah Schwarz added 12 and Baylee Cosgrove's hit 10 to lead the Panthers' offensive scoring.

Box Score

Team 1	5	10	15	16	- 46
Team 2	2	17	16	8	- 43

Scoring

St. Joseph-Ogden: Ashlyn Lannert 3, Payton Jacob 7, Katie Cramer 14, Abby Behrens 6, Taylor Barnes 13 and Payton Vallee 3.

Villa Grove-Heritage: Kyleigh Block 17, Samantha Campbell 2, Aliya Holloman 20 and Jordyn Ray 4.

30 players receive SJO varsity football letters

Nineteen seniors earned varsity football letters this fall. Six juniors, four sophomores and one freshmen player were also recognized for their contributions during the 2019 season.

Brayden Weaver received this year's Most-Valuable-Player award.

Weaver appeared in varsity games during his football career with the Spartans. During that time he carried the ball 94 times for 540 yards. His longest run was a 52 yard jaunt in SJO's 38-14 win over Unity.

Brayden carries the ball for the Spartans during their home game against Bloomington Central Catholic. This year's MVP, the senior ran for 104 yards against the Saints. On defense he was credited with three tackles in the 18-7 conference win. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks

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Suffering a season-ending injury in the eight game of the season, his offensive stats boast 266 yards on 49 carries and four touchdowns.

A two-way player, Weaver was credited with 76 tackles, 49 of which were solo, at middle linebacker this season. He was also awarded the program's Defensive Award.

Drew Coursey and Jordan Kelly shared the team's Most-Improved-Player award.

Wearing #2 this season, Kelly, a 5-foot-10 wide receiver and strong safety, finished his only season of varsity football with 18 tackles and one interception.

Jordan Kelly, one of this year's two Most-Improved-Players, runs a pass route against visiting St. Thomas More. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Coursey, who earned his stripes in his first season of varsity football this year, led SJO in sacks with three. The outside linebacker had 26 stops, including four solo tackles and seven total in the Spartans' 33-13 road loss to the Hawks of Prairie Central.

The Special Teams Award went to senior Payton Cain. Like Coursey and Kelly, this was his first and only varsity football season. The senior returned 16 kickoffs. Averaging 31.1 yards per return, he amassed 498 yards this season.

In SJO's home game against Pontiac on September 27, he ran one of his two punt returns back 66 yards - a career best - and another one for 19 yards.

Towering 6-foot-4, 235 pounds, Blake Dable bagged the SJO Lineman Award.

In the five games he played on defense, Dable was credited with 15 tackles and two sacks, one against Unity and the other against Rantoul in week 2. On offense, Dable was key to opening up holes for the backfield and a solid wall protecting quarterback Crayton Burnett this season.

Sophomore Hayden Brazelton received the Scout Team Award.

Senior varsity lettermen: Ross Booker, Payton Cain, Trevon Carr, Max Chatterton, Brendan Cooperider, Drew Coursey, Blake Dable, Tristan Fuqua, Conner Hodge, Chance Izard, Jordan Kelly, Chayce Livingston, Jaden Miller, Blake Primmer, Luke Renfrew, Jarrett Stevenson, Brodie Sullivan, Brayden Weaver, and Sam Wesley.

Junior varsity lettermen: Crayton Burnett, Brady Buss, John Michael Ehmen, Zach Martinie, Xander Rieches and Max Shonkwiler.

Sophomore varsity lettermen: Coby Miller, Jett Morris, Keaton Nolan, and Ethan Vanliew.

Freshman varsity lettermen: Ty Pence

Throwback Thursday: Spartans place at 2012 Unity Invitational

St. Joseph-Ogden's Austin Upton attempts to pin Joliet Catholic's Michael Gruben during their 170-pound championship bracket semifinal at the Unity Invitational on December 15, 2012. Upton won the match by fall at 3:03 and went on to win the title for his weight class. Two months later, the senior finished the 2012-13 season with a record of 45 wins and three losses and well-deserved fourth-place state medal. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks) St. Joseph-Ogden's Jacob Bowman sticks St. Thomas More's Alexandro Griffin during their 220-pound match. Bowman defeated Griffin in the first period by fall at 1:51. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks) St. Thomas More's Collin Kelley tries to escape a hold by St. Joseph-Ogden's David Trewyn during their 126-pound match action at the 43rd installment of the Unity Invitational. Later Terwyn, who finished in 6th place, prevailed with a 15-8 victory. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks) Freshman grappler Wesley Kibler (left) tries to fight off a single-leg takedown by Peotone's Tom Ruffino during their 195-pound match. Ruffino defeated Kibler 9-5 in their semifinal bout on Saturday afternoon. Despite missing the cut for the 2013 state finals, when his prep career ended in 2016, Kibler was the proud owner of one IHSA state title (2015), a runner-up silver medal (2016) and a fourth-place state medal from his efforts his sophomore season in 2014. He finished the 2012 Unity Invite in third place. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks) SJO's Jacob Bowman shoots in on Rochester's Nick Siciliano during their 220-pound consolation quarterfinal match. Bowman, finished 6th after pinning Siciliano in the first period at 1:05. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

Wolfersberger, Sarnecki earn cross country Most-Improved recognition

Twenty-eight St. Joseph-Ogden High School student-athletes earned varsity letters in cross country this fall. With the leadership of this year's six seniors, both the girls and boys programs competed at this year's Illinois High School Association state finals in Peoria.

Senior Eric Poe races to the finish line at the 2019 IHSA state cross country meet at Detweiller Park on November 9. In addition to a varsityl letter, Poe was honored with the Rick Walden Most Consistent Award. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)

The boys squad finished in 18th place with a score of 421 points. The top five scoring runners were Brandon Mattsey, Eric Poe, Charlie Mabry, Elijah Mock and Luke Stegall.

Earlier in the day at the state finals on November 9, senior Jillian Plotner led the SJO girls' to the program's fifth consecutive top ten team performance since 2014.

Nine members of both running programs received special team recognition at the end of the season.

Brandon Mattsey and Hannah Rajlich earned Most-Valuable-Player for their respective squads. Logan Wolfersberger was named the boys' Most-Improved Player and Malorie Sarnecki earned the same recognition for her efforts on the girls' squad.

Charlie Mabry received the Tim Mies Effort Award. Addie Allen won the Ashley Wright Effort Award. Eric Poe was the recipient of the Rick Walden Most Consistent Award and the Chelsea Blaase Most Consistent Award was given to sophomores Ava Knap & Ashlyn Lannert.

This year's varsity letter winners are seniors Ally Monk, Taddy Pettit, Jillian Plotner, Eric Poe, Hannah Rajlich and Josh Sexton.

Juniors: Hanna Eastin, Lukas Hutcherson, Brandon Mattsey, and Logan Wolfersberger.

Sophomores: Addie Allen, Braden Clampitt, Sidney Davis, Kailyn Ingram, Ava Knap, Ashlyn Lannert, Charlie Mabry, Elijah Mock, Hope Rajlich, Kendra Riddle, Malorie, Sarnecki, Taryn Sexton and Luke Stegall.

Freshmen: Kaytlyn Baker, Ethan Blackburn, Mary Hinrichs, Teagan Miller and Izzy Sexton.