Since losing a heated game at Moline on Jan. 9, the Galesburg boys basketball team has won four consecutive games.
The stretch was capped by a Martin Luther King Day Tournament title on Jan. 17 with victories over Danville and Gary Comer Prep Academy.
The Silver Streaks rallied past Danville 53-47 in a morning game, then returned in the evening to rout Comer Prep 78-29. The night before, Galesburg rolled past Geneseo 70-39.
The winning streak improved Galesburg to 12-8 overall.
Victories over Geneseo and Sterling earlier in the week moved the Streaks to 3-4 in Western Big 6 play and into fourth place.
Much of the recent surge has been attributed to the loss at Moline, in which head coach Taylor Thiel was ejected after receiving three technical fouls.
After the Jan. 13 win over Sterling, Rahkim McCellan said the team’s intensity was forged during the Moline game.
“The way we played Moline is probably how we should play every game,” McCellan said. “We looked at this as a new opportunity after a hard-fought loss.”
Following the MLK doubleheader, Demetrius Watson also cited the Moline game as a turning point.
“We kind of took it upon ourselves to play harder and put more energy into it. It was kind of just a spark,” Watson said.
“Once our coach got kicked out, we just started fighting harder, and that transferred over into multiple games in a row.”
Thiel said he did not plan to be ejected but felt the moment called for standing up for his team.
“I hadn’t had one all year, and at that point, it was a time to get one,” Thiel said. “I was making a case and sticking up for our guys. So, I’m never saying there’s an appropriate time for it, but it ended up working out and kind of glued the guys together and they knew that I had their back and was sticking up for them. And I think it was a gel moment for us.”
All four wins came at home. The Silver Streaks travel to Kewanee for a 7 p.m. game Jan. 20, then return home to face East Peoria on Jan. 21 and Alleman on Jan. 23.
In other tournament games, Danville defeated Batavia 62-43, and Batavia defeated Comer 64-37.
The first quarter of Galesburg’s Jan. 16 game against Geneseo suggested a tight contest, as the teams traded scores and the Silver Streaks held a slim 19-18 lead after one.
Galesburg took control early in the second quarter, dominating both ends of the floor.
The Streaks opened the period on a 20-6 run and continued to build the lead, eventually triggering a running clock in the fourth quarter of a 70-39 victory.
Eden Mayala was a force offensively and defensively, scoring on drives, layups and dunks while anchoring the defense. He said he has focused on refining his game throughout the season.
“At the beginning of the season, I was trying to be someone I’m not because people were telling me, play tough, be strong, be mean,” he said. “I was trying to put on a different face. But then after a couple of bad games, (assistant coach Joey Range) talked to me and he was like, just be yourself. I’m usually a happy guy, so I went out, just played happy with a smile on my face. And yeah, I play better that way.”
Mayala scored 24 points, including two dunks — one a windmill — and added a coast-to-coast layup after grabbing a rebound.
“I’ve done that before; I used to do that,” he said. “I played junior varsity last year, and I did that a lot. But I think I need to do it more. I think I’m better at it too, better at handling the ball.”
Galesburg outscored Geneseo 23-9 in the second quarter. Jaxon Wyatt opened the period with a 3-pointer, and the Streaks never trailed again. They outscored the Maple Leafs 20-6 in the third quarter and 8-6 in the fourth.
Thiel credited improved defensive effort.
“I’ve been preaching to them all year, it starts with our defense because we have the athletes to do that,” he said. “I always told them we’re not getting ‘out-athleted.’ It’s a matter of effort and wanting to do it.
“We had a nice first quarter back-and-forth match and it was going really well. And then we made some adjustments at the quarter where we drew up what they were doing and they made the adjustments.”
Galesburg led off the MLK Tournament with a morning game against Danville that appeared to be heading in the Vikings’ direction before the Silver Streaks rallied and held on for a 53-47 win.
Tied at 13 after the first, Danville took over in the second and led 30-21 at halftime. Corey Frye scored seven points and Kindyn Mason added six to lead the Vikings.
The momentum shifted in the third quarter, when Galesburg outscored Danville 22-4. Mayala led the surge with 10 points, while Jaxon Wyatt and Keigen Crummer added four apiece and Tobi Kivunina scored two.
Crummer, Wyatt and Cesaire Bile scored to open the half as Galesburg cut the deficit to 30-27. Mayala’s basket put the Streaks ahead 33-32, and the lead grew to 43-34 by the end of the third.
Danville closed to 53-47 late in the fourth quarter but got no closer.
Mayala scored 25 points to lead Galesburg. Crummer had 10, Bile scored eight, Wyatt added four, and Kivunina, Watson and McCellan scored two apiece.
“We were down nine at the half,” Thiel said. “We went in and made some adjustments. We basically shut them down the second half. We came out in the press and got the lead back. And then we just managed the game from there and we’re able to hang on to that six-point win.”
From the opening minutes of Galesburg’s MLK Tournament finale against Gary Comer Prep, the only question was the margin of victory.
The answer was 49 points.
The Silver Streaks jumped out to a 25-8 first-quarter lead and continued to widen the gap in a 78-29 win. Galesburg reached 50 points by the end of the third quarter.
Watson said the Streaks entered the game focused on execution.
“This was really a game for us to just work on our skills, practice and work as a team, build up that winning streak right now,” he said. “We have a winning streak of four and it was really just trying to not get injured but get the win.”
Watson said his role is to provide energy rather than scoring.
“I know my teammates, and you know, they’ll do the scoring, and I’ll do the hard working on the floor and doing everything else,” he said. “If I see the ball, I kind of want it. So, I just go for it and worry about the risk later.”
Thiel praised the team’s response after playing Friday night and returning for a Saturday doubleheader.
He said the schedule may have contributed to a slow start against Danville and expected a sloppy game against Comer Prep.
Thiel singled out several performances during the week.
“Eden had a great week — Eden Mayala — he had back-to-back 20-plus point games,” he said. “Tonight, of course, he was pressing a little bit, but he was on limited time because the score is what it was. But he had an extraordinary week.
“Demetrius Watson, diving on the floor. He’s kind of our energy guy. Whenever you see him do that, you see our bench going crazy. So, he brings that energy. Tobi Kivunina, keeping his defensive efforts up. It’s been a great week for him.”
Scoring was balanced, with four Streaks reaching double figures. Cesaire Bile scored 18 points, Mayala had 12, and Kivunina and McCellan added 11 each. Day’Vion Jones and Jaxon Wyatt scored six apiece, Keigen Crummer had five, Leslie Kelley scored four, Derrick Curtis had three and Malakai Casillas had two.
The Galesburg girls basketball team saw its 13-game winning streak come to an end Jan. 17 with a 64-32 loss to Loyola Academy in a matchup of two highly ranked teams at Wilmette.
Galesburg, ranked No. 3 in Class 3A, fell to 19-2 on the season. Loyola Academy, the No. 3 team in Class 4A, extended its winning streak to 11 games and improved to 20-2.
The Ramblers took control early, scoring the game’s first 12 points and building a 17-6 lead after the first quarter.
The Silver Streaks battled back to cut the deficit to 24-16 at halftime but were unable to get any closer.
Loyola dominated the second half, outscoring Galesburg 40-16.
Defensive pressure by the Ramblers proved decisive, as Galesburg was held without a 3-point basket and committed nearly 20 turnovers.
The Silver Streaks will look to bounce back at 7 p.m. Jan. 22 when they host Sterling at John Thiel Gym. Sterling was the only team to defeat GHS prior to the loss to Loyola. Galesburg heads to Morton for a 1:30 p.m. game Jan. 24.
Galesburg High School captured the team title at the Grayhound Invitational on Jan. 17 in Burlington, Iowa, finishing with 325 points to edge City High and Pekin Community in the 11-event boys meet.
The Silver Streaks picked up two event victories, opening with a win in the 100-yard backstroke as Cole Furrow touched first in 59.35 seconds. Galesburg closed the meet by winning the 400-yard freestyle relay in 3:31.70 behind Brayden McGuire, Nolan Good, Mahmoud Shehata and Furrow.
McGuire added a pair of top-three finishes, taking second in the 200-yard individual medley (2:04.96) and third in the 100 freestyle (50.94). Brady Jackson placed third in both the 200 freestyle (2:00.92) and the 500 freestyle (5:39.47), while Samuel Puerta finished third in the 100 breaststroke (1:08.80).
Mahmoud Shehata contributed a third-place finish in the 50 freestyle (24.33), and Galesburg’s A relay team placed fourth in the 200 freestyle relay.
Galesburg also placed sixth with its B squad in the 400-yard freestyle relay to help secure the overall title.
City High finished second with 313 points, followed by Pekin Community (309) and Muscatine (299).
GHS results, Grayhound Invitational
200-yard freestyle
3rd — Brady Jackson, 2:00.92
4th — Samuel Puerta, 2:01.18
200-yard individual medley
2nd — Brayden McGuire, 2:04.96
5th — Nolan Good, 2:23.79
50-yard freestyle
3rd — Mahmoud Shehata, 24.33
4th — Cole Furrow, 24.41
100-yard butterfly
6th — Mahmoud Shehata, 1:03.83
7th — Brody McGuire, 1:07.66
100-yard freestyle
3rd — Brayden McGuire, 50.94
7th — Mohamed Shehata, 57.46
500-yard freestyle
3rd — Brady Jackson, 5:39.47
5th — Nolan Good, 5:53.82
200-yard freestyle relay
4th — GHS A, 1:40.30
(Samuel Puerta, Mohamed Shehata, Brody McGuire, Brady Jackson)
100-yard backstroke
1st — Cole Furrow, 59.35
12th — Charles Anderton, 1:17.09
100-yard breaststroke
3rd — Samuel Puerta, 1:08.80
8th — Mohamed Shehata, 1:13.49
400-yard freestyle relay
1st — GHS A, 3:31.70
(Brayden McGuire, Nolan Good, Mahmoud Shehata, Cole Furrow)
6th — GHS B, 3:48.58
(Brady Jackson, Brody McGuire, Mohamed Shehata, Samuel Puerta)
Team results
A dominant first-half run carried the Sandburg men’s basketball team to a 90-76 Arrowhead Conference victory over Illinois Valley on Jan. 15, giving the Chargers their fourth win in the past five games.
Leading 26-21 with six minutes remaining in the first half, Sandburg (10-7, 1-1) used a 17-0 run to pull away. James Blackwell sparked the surge with a layup off a steal, and Lewis Siegfried, Keauntrey Barnes and Matt Bockman each connected on a 3-pointer during the stretch.
The run was capped when Barnes recorded a block that led to a Rylan Carton alley-oop layup off an assist from Bockman, pushing the lead to 43-21 with 3:04 left before halftime.
Barnes led four Chargers in double figures with 19 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 6-for-8 from the field. The sophomore from Farmington recorded his third double-double of the season.
Carton finished with 16 points on 7-for-12 shooting. Bockman added 14 points, including 11 in the first half.
Freshman Ashton Grieves scored 11 points on 3-for-6 shooting and went 4-for-6 at the free-throw line. It was his first double-figure scoring game since Nov. 18 at Lincoln Land. Grieves missed five games in December due to injury and logged his most extensive playing time since returning.
The Sandburg women’s basketball team remained undefeated in Arrowhead Conference play with a 69-50 victory over Illinois Valley on Thursday night.
The Chargers (13-6, 3-0) won their fourth straight game and seventh in the past eight, closing the first quarter with a 17-0 run and scoring the first five points of the second to open a 25-5 advantage.
Freshman Hailey Redding led all scorers with 20 points, marking her fourth 20-point performance in the past five games. She shot 7-for-18 from the field and made three 3-pointers.
Paige Huffman scored 12 points off the bench on 4-for-11 shooting from beyond the arc. The sophomore matched her season high in scoring and pulled down a season-best seven rebounds.
Antonia Kisler added 10 points, seven rebounds and six assists, while fellow sophomore Tiera Hall recorded a team-high 11 rebounds along with six points, four assists and six steals.
Sandburg led 41-20 at halftime and finished with 10 made 3-pointers, marking its sixth consecutive game with double-digit 3-pointers.
Sandburg travels to Sauk Valley for a 5:30 p.m. game Jan. 20.
Bria Medina climbed to second place on the program’s all-time scoring list Jan. 17 as Knox College dominated Lake Forest in an 89-53 home victory.
Medina finished with a team-high 26 points, including eight during a game-opening 15-0 run. The win improved the Prairie Fire to 6-9 overall and 5-2 in the Midwest Conference, keeping them in second place.
Knox controlled the tempo from the start, never trailing and leading for all but 13 seconds of the contest. Three other players joined Medina in double figures: Kylee Callahan scored 19, Izzy Robinson tallied 13, and Nayeli Nidez Acuna added 10. Brook Pieper contributed eight points, and 11 different players saw floor time.
The Prairie Fire defense forced 28 turnovers, converting them into 28 points. Knox limited the Foresters to 36% shooting (18-of-50) and recorded 16 steals.
The dominance extended to the interior, where Knox outscored Lake Forest 58-20 in the paint. The Prairie Fire also held a 42-35 rebounding advantage, using 13 offensive boards to generate 22 second-chance points.
Knox led 40-19 at halftime and extended the margin to as many as 41 points late in the fourth quarter. As a team, the Prairie Fire shot 46.6% from the field and 76.9% from the free-throw line.
Knox returns to action at home against Grinnell at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 21.
Despite a season-high-tying 11 3-pointers and a 24-point performance from Josh Stewart, Knox College fell to Lake Forest 105-87 at home Jan. 17.
The Prairie Fire (6-10, 2-5 Midwest Conference) remained resilient against one of the league’s top teams but could not overcome a decisive first-half surge by the Foresters.
After Lake Forest jumped to an early 10-point lead, Knox rallied to take a 27-26 lead on a Stewart basket with 8:19 remaining in the half. The Foresters answered immediately with a 28-5 run to pull ahead 54-32.
Knox cut the deficit to 15 by halftime and narrowed the gap to 60-50 early in the second half. Though the Prairie Fire later trimmed a 20-point lead down to 12, Lake Forest consistently answered to keep the game out of reach.
Stewart led the Prairie Fire with 24 points on 10-of-12 shooting, adding seven assists and six rebounds. Russell Wright scored 18 points and Carl Dortch added 10.
Knox finished the afternoon shooting 50.8% from the field and 92.3% from the free-throw line. The team’s 11 3-pointers tied a season high, while the 87 points marked its second-highest scoring output this year.
The Prairie Fire host Grinnell at 5:30 p.m. Jan. 21.
Knox College has announced plans to add women’s flag football as a new intercollegiate athletic offering.
The program will begin as a club sport in fall 2026, compete during the spring 2027 season, and is expected to transition to varsity status for the 2027-28 academic year. Start-up funding for the program has been provided by an anonymous donor, according to the college.
College officials said the phased approach is intended to allow time for program development, recruiting and infrastructure planning.
The announcement comes after a Jan. 16 NCAA vote to include women’s flag football in its Emerging Sports for Women program, which is designed to support the growth of women’s athletics nationwide.
“Adding women’s flag football aligns with Knox’s priorities around academic excellence, access, gender equity and athletics expansion,” said Vice President for Advancement and Athletic Director Justin Newell.
Knox will join Illinois College, Beloit College, Ripon College and Cornell College as Midwest Conference institutions sponsoring women’s flag football, creating opportunities for conference competition.
Women’s flag football has seen rapid growth in recent years, particularly at the high school level in Illinois, and continues to expand nationally at the collegiate level. Knox officials said early adoption of the sport may provide additional recruiting opportunities for prospective student-athletes.
“Welcoming women’s flag football into the Emerging Sports for Women program is a meaningful step toward expanding access, equity and opportunity,” said Jacqie McWilliams, commissioner of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association and chair of the NCAA Committee on Access, Opportunity and Impact.
