Despite the fact his team has shot 50 percent or less from the
line in its last five contests, Rock Island girls coach Thad Hoover
is non-plussed.
“Hard physical games when you’re huffing and puffing it’s
different than shooting them in practice,” Hoover said. “They’re
going to go in at some point. We’re three months away from the part
of the season when we want to be playing our best ball.”
Over the course of that five game stretch the Rocks are
27-for-60, while going 5-0.
Shiltz: Panthers need to be more than one-person
team: Don’t get UT girls coach Justin Shiltz wrong, he
loves what senior Mikayla Fallon brings to his team. He just wishes
sometimes she wouldn’t have to do so much.
“I’ve said this a million times, we feed off her from a positive
standpoint and from a negative one,” Shiltz said. “Whether she gets
off to a good start or not, we’ve got to play better. Too many
times we rely on her to bail us out.”
The Panthers struggled to score in the first half in their
conference matchup at Rocky, netting only 11 points in the opening
two quarters. But as Fallon warmed up in the second half, so did UT
as she scored 14 of the team’s 18 points.
Western Big Six girls game to be played in Panther
Den: Tonight’s Western Big Six sophomore and varsity games
between Rock Island Alleman and United Township will be played in
the Panther Den as opposed the girls gym where the games are
typically played.
Fans should enter the hallways from the main parking lot on the
west side of the school. These doors will open at 4:45 pm. No
admittance from the main doors located off of the Avenue of the
Cities will be allowed.
Fotos off to good start: United Township coach
Lambros Fotos is off to a 6-3 start in his first year at the helm
of his alma mater. The Panthers have beaten Morton, Geneseo,
Sterling, Plainfield South, Normal West, and Pekin while falling to
North Scott, Clinton and Normal Community.
Keppy misses meet, will return this
weekend: Riverdale wrestler Mitch Keppy missed action last
weekend after he fell ill with a bout of flu. Rams coach Lance
Sherman said his senior 285-pounder is fine and will compete in the
Riverdale invitational Saturday.
McGhee ranked No. 18: Rock Island’s BJ McGhee
was ranked No. 18 nationally by Intermat at 120 pounds. McGhee
finished third at the Illinois state tournament at 103 pounds last
season.
Venegas picks up a four-spot: United Township
senior Gilbert Venegas picked up four wins on Saturday, two by pin.
Venegas, wrestling at 152 pounds led the Panthers to a 3-1 record
on the day.