Ava Marty won the 200 meters and was part of two winning sprint relays as Galesburg qualified five entries for the IHSA Class 2A girls state track and field meet.
Galesburg finished second in the 18-team sectional with 78 points. Geneseo won the team title with 123 points, followed by Galesburg, Morris with 74, Sterling with 68 and Ottawa with 59.5.
Marty, a sophomore, won the 200 in a season-best 25.60 seconds to qualify for state. She also ran on the winning 4×100 and 4×200 relays.
The 4×100 relay team of Ella Herchenroder, Taylor Herchenroder, Rachelle McCellan and Marty won in 50.43 seconds. The 4×200 relay team of Ella Herchenroder, Taylor Herchenroder, Marty and McCellan won in 1:45.20.
Galesburg also won the 4×400 relay, with Ella Herchenroder, Grace Herchenroder, Taylor Herchenroder and Lily Furrow finishing in 4:09.17.
Furrow added an individual state berth in the triple jump, placing fourth with a season-best jump of 10.78 meters.
The Silver Streaks had several other top-six finishes. McCellan was third in the 200 in 26.60 seconds, Taylor Herchenroder was third in the 100 in a personal-best 12.68, Grace Herchenroder was fourth in the 300 hurdles in 48.82, Furrow was fifth in the 300 hurdles in 49.46 and sixth in the long jump at 5.11 meters, and Grae Boone was sixth in the 3,200 in 13:22.13.
Galesburg’s 4×800 relay team of Keerah Cooper, Rebekah Descalzo, Izzy Kennedy and Camdyn Miller placed eighth in 11:32.47.
In the field events, Nyla Jordan was eighth in the shot put at 10.07 meters; Macie Jordan was 12th in the shot put with a personal-best 9.43 meters and 19th in the discus at 23.79 meters; Molly Tomeo was 11th in the discus at 26.35 meters; Grace Herchenroder was 10th in the high jump at 1.44 meters; and Ella Herchenroder was 10th in the long jump at 4.78 meters.
The Class 2A state finals are scheduled for May 21-23 at Eastern Illinois University.
Sophomore Antwon Walker won the high jump to lead Galesburg at the Western Big 6 Boys Conference Championships in Moline on May 14.
Walker cleared a personal-best 2.04 meters to win the event for the Silver Streaks, who finished seventh as a team with 37 points. East Moline United won the conference title with 237 points, followed by Moline with 116 and Sterling with 99.
Galesburg had strong finishes in the relays. The Silver Streaks placed second in the 4×400 relay, with Richard “Reed” Schleich, Kevin Phillips, Demetrius Watson and Weston Anderton finishing in 3:27.28. Galesburg was third in the 4×200 relay, with Schleich, Anderton, Praise Nwagbo and Rahkim McCellan finishing in 1:30.70.
Daxton Eastburg added a third-place finish in the shot put, recording a throw of 15.58 meters. Cale Johnson was 11th with a personal-best 13.63 meters, and Landon Petty placed 15th at 13.17 meters.
Schleich also placed seventh in the 100 meters with a personal-best 11.28 seconds. Corey McGee was 21st in a personal-best 11.84, and Chadrack Bizau was 22nd in 11.87.
In other individual events for Galesburg, Demetrius Watson placed ninth in the 300 hurdles in 43.11 seconds, Rahkim McCellan was seventh in the triple jump at 12.63 meters, and Johnson took eighth in the discus at 41.97 meters.
The Silver Streaks’ 4×800 relay team of Xaiden Seaton, Charles Anderton, Silas Descalzo and Franklin Hilligoss finished seventh in 8:57.51. Galesburg’s 4×100 relay was disqualified.
The GHS boys track team will compete next in the IHSA Class 2A Sectional, which Galesburg will host at 4 p.m. May 21 at CBI Bank & Trust Stadium.
Caden Riley struck out 12 in six shutout innings, and Galesburg scored four runs in the third inning May 13 to beat Sterling 6-2 in a Western Big 6 Conference baseball game.
The win was the second straight for the Silver Streaks, who improved to 12-18 overall and 8-6 in the conference. Sterling fell to 10-17.
Riley allowed three hits, walked two and hit one batter while throwing 106 pitches. He left after six innings with Galesburg leading 6-0.
“What was really working for me was getting my fastball ahead in counts,” Riley said. “Once I got my fastball set, my off-speed, my changeup, my curveball really played off that real well.”
Galesburg coach Jerome Pickrel said Riley has been strong in recent outings.
“His last three or four starts, he’s been lights out,” Pickrel said. “My only critique of him tonight, if I’m just nitpicking, is that I want the way that he settles into a game and is almost unhittable, I want him to come out from the jump and be that way.”
The Silver Streaks broke through in the third inning with four runs, using execution in the small game and timely contact to take control. They added one run in the fifth and another in the sixth.
“We did some things with the bunt, moving some runners,” Pickrel said. “We put the ball on the ground, moving runners, that led to a big inning. And then we were able to tack on in the last couple of innings just to kind of solidify the lead.”
Galesburg finished with 10 hits and played error-free defense. Henry Ikrami went 2 for 3 with two RBIs and a stolen base. Grady Hickey was 2 for 4 with a run, Drew Hickey reached base three times and scored twice, Hayden Ralston went 2 for 3 with a double and a run, and Noah Nalley went 2 for 3 with an RBI and a run. Nicolas Ojeda drove in two runs, and Alfred Ayala added an RBI.
Riley said he has improved after putting too much pressure on himself earlier in the season.
“I feel like I’ve really settled in since the start of the year,” Riley said. “I kind of put too much on my plate. I feel like I put too much pressure on myself. … The past four or five games, I’ve just remembered to go out there and have fun like I always have. It’s really just opened up for me.”
Sterling scored both of its runs in the seventh against Nalley, who struck out two in one inning. Galesburg pitchers combined for 14 strikeouts and held Sterling to five hits.
Pickrel said the Silver Streaks are trying to finish the regular season strong after a difficult start.
“We want to end the regular season on a positive note,” Pickrel said. “We want to go undefeated the rest of our games and be heading into the postseason with a chance for these guys to get back to .500 after a pretty abysmal start. I would say it would be a pretty big accomplishment for them.”
Geneseo used a three-run third inning to take control and held off visiting Galesburg 5-3 on May 14 in a nonconference baseball game.
Galesburg tied the game with two runs in the top of the third after Geneseo scored once in the first. The Maple Leafs answered with three runs in the bottom half of the inning to move ahead 4-2. Each team added a run in the sixth.
Grady Hickey led Galesburg at the plate, going 2 for 4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored. Caden Riley and Hayden Ralston also doubled for the Silver Streaks, who finished with five hits. Alfred Ayala added a hit, scored a run and stole a base.
Geneseo finished with 10 hits and took advantage of two Galesburg errors. The Maple Leafs committed three errors.
Nicolas Ojeda took the loss for Galesburg, allowing four runs on eight hits in four innings. He struck out one and did not walk a batter. Noah Nalley pitched the final two innings, allowing one unearned run on two hits with two strikeouts and no walks.
The loss dropped Galesburg to 12-19 overall. Geneseo improved to 18-13 and has won three of its last four games.
Galesburg was scheduled to play at Kewanee at 4:30 p.m. May 15.
Galesburg girls soccer coach Jessica Jones said the Silver Streaks knew Peoria Christian would make them work.
The Chargers did just that May 14, beating Galesburg 4-1 in a nonconference match at Galesburg High School.
“We knew this was going to be one that we had to come in and battle for, and I really do think we battled the entire time,” Jones said. “We had some unfortunate things happen that brought the score from 2-1 to 4-1. But it is still all growth. This is a program where every year we’re growing a little bit more, and so I have to be happy with that.”
Peoria Christian got two goals apiece from Violet Hynek and Addy Lovell. Hynek also had an assist and converted a penalty kick. Kassidy Anderson and Isabella Merdian each added an assist for the Chargers.
Freshman Haleigh Jezek-Irle scored Galesburg’s lone goal, but it was an important personal and program milestone. The goal tied the GHS program record for goals scored in a season. In her previous game, Jezek-Irle set the program record for assists.
Senior Christina Swan said Peoria Christian’s speed and strength up top created problems for the Streaks.
“They were really good players, and they had two players on top that were really good,” Swan said. “They were really fast also. And when you would push them and try to get them off balance off the ball, they didn’t really move over. So it was kind of really hard defending them.”
Swan said the loss was disappointing, but she felt Galesburg continued to compete.
“It just sucks that we lost tonight,” Swan said. “But I think we still did really good, and we tried our best.”
The Streaks entered the final stretch of the season still chasing another milestone. Jones said Galesburg had finished 10-10 in each of the previous two seasons and remained hopeful of posting a winning record this year.
Swan said the season has been one of adjustment and growth, especially after the team lost Madalyn Lardi, whom she described as a key player. Lardi had 21 goals and 47 total points when she was injured in the Streaks’ eighth game of the season. Both totals remain second in the Western Big 6 Conference behind Jezek-Irle.
“I think it was a pretty good season,” Swan said. “It really did suck losing Mady. She was a really good player. But overall, I think we did move forward from that.”
Galesburg’s remaining matches will not get easier, Jones said.
“Consistent effort, composure, and I always talk to them about grit,” Jones said. “Both opponents are very good. They’re both going to be difficult games. There’s no easy game from here on out.”
The Streaks are 10-10-1. They finish the regular season with an 11 a.m. match May 16 at Orion. The team will play Dunlap in an IHSA regional May 19 at Metamora.
Galesburg used a pair of home runs to rally in the third inning, but Rock Island answered with three straight scoring innings to beat the visiting Silver Streaks 7-4 on May 14.
Galesburg trailed 2-0 before scoring four runs in the top of the third. Hannah Barton and Taylor Lee each homered for the Silver Streaks, with both driving in two runs. Barton finished 1 for 4, while Lee went 1 for 3 with a walk.
Rock Island tied the game with two runs in the bottom of the third, then took control with two runs in the fourth and another in the fifth. The Rocks finished with 10 hits, including four doubles and a triple.
Mallory Hudnall led Rock Island, going 2 for 2 with two doubles, a run and an RBI. AJ Lincoln went 3 for 4 with two runs and an RBI, while Ella DeJonghe drove in two runs. Abby Dillard added a hit, two RBIs and a run.
Tinley James pitched a complete game for Rock Island, allowing four runs on four hits while walking seven and striking out four. Lee took the loss for Galesburg, allowing seven runs, four earned, on nine hits with five walks and three strikeouts in six innings.
Galesburg fell to 5-24. Rock Island improved to 11-17. The Silver Streaks are scheduled to host Pekin in a doubleheader at 10 a.m. May 16.
Galesburg, the No. 7 seed, will face No. 2 East Peoria in a Class 3A Streator Regional semifinal at 4:30 p.m. May 19 in Streator. The winner will face the winner of Streator vs. Metamora at 4:30 p.m. May 22 in Streator.
Arrowhead Conference coaches voted Sandburg baseball players Damien Snell and Chuck Hathaway to this year’s all-conference team after the two were the Chargers’ most productive hitters this spring.
A redshirt freshman, Snell returned strong this season after missing last year with a torn labrum. In 69 plate appearances over 15 games against Arrowhead opponents, the infielder from Galesburg led Sandburg in batting average (.377), on-base percentage (.522), slugging percentage (.811), OPS (1.333), runs (22), hits (20), doubles (six), total bases (43) and extra-base hits (12).
Snell also hit five home runs, drove in 17 runs, walked 12 times and went 7 for 8 in stolen-base attempts during conference play.
Hathaway, a freshman outfielder from Deer Creek-Mackinaw High School, led the Chargers with six home runs and 19 RBIs over 63 plate appearances in Arrowhead action.
Hathaway’s .365 batting average, .750 slugging percentage, 1.179 OPS, 19 hits, 39 total bases and eight extra-base hits ranked second on the team behind Snell. Hathaway also reached base at a .429 clip, scored 14 runs and drew eight walks in conference play.
The Knox track and field program ended its season with several standout performances at the Augustana Twilight on May 13-14.
Senior Lance Miller made his final run memorable, setting a school record in the 1,500 meters. Miller finished in 3:51.77 and placed 12th overall.
First-year runner Elsie Conwell also added her name to the school record book. Conwell capped her breakout season by running a personal best in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. She finished 18th overall in 12:05.27, the third-fastest time in program history.
Ryan Lautzenhiser also ran a personal best in his signature event, the 400 meters. Lautzenhiser placed 31st overall in 50.62 seconds.
Among the field events, Knox’s top finisher was Stephanie Nelson. Nelson finished seventh overall in the hammer throw with a best toss of 46.98 meters, less than a meter off her personal best.
Elle Haddon added another top-10 finish for Knox, placing ninth in the women’s javelin with a best throw of 33.76 meters.
