Galesburg High School
GHS girls soccer posts another shutout victory
The Galesburg girls soccer team moved back into familiar territory May 2 with a 7-0 nonconference victory over Peoria Manual at CBI Bank & Trust Stadium.
The win ended a five-match winless streak but continued an interesting trend for the Silver Streaks. All eight of Galesburg’s wins, along with its lone tie, have been shutouts. Four of those wins have come by 7-0 scores.
It also was the first home victory of the season for the Streaks, who improved to 8-6-1.
Haleigh Jezek-Irle scored three goals for Galesburg. Valeria Chavez, Emmanuella Matumona, Grace Hansen and Leirah Harrison also scored.
Assistant coach Hannah Bergland, filling in for head coach Jessica Jones, said the Streaks benefited from an early goal that helped settle the team after its recent offensive struggles.
“They finally got out of their heads,” Bergland said. “That first goal really brought up their spirits.”
Bergland said Galesburg’s defense controlled the match, holding Manual without a shot on goal.
“Defense held their own today,” Bergland said. “Whenever it got down there, we got it right back. Our triangles were working.”
The Streaks also showed progress in the offensive areas Jones had emphasized in practice, including passing, communication and positioning.
“The girls stayed composed,” Bergland said. “They communicated, stayed in their positions and did what we needed.”
Harrison said the Streaks have been working to start faster instead of waiting until the second half to find their rhythm.
“We started connecting more and more,” Harrison said. “We’re trying to come out in the first half.”
Harrison said the Streaks still need to improve their passing connections, but the win could help the team regain confidence entering the final stretch of the regular season.
“I feel like this game will definitely bring us up for the following games,” Harrison said. “We have Moline and Alleman next week.”
Galesburg has a pair of potential milestones within reach. Jezek-Irle has 20 goals and needs five more to break the team scoring record. The Streaks have 54 goals for the season and need six to break the team record of 59.
The Streaks play at Moline at 6 p.m. May 5, then travel to Alleman for a 6 p.m. game May 7. Galesburg hosts Canton at 11 a.m. May 9. The Alleman and Canton games were rescheduled from earlier this season because of weather.
Galesburg girls win 4×400 relay at Metamora Mach Speed and Flight Night
Galesburg’s girls track and field team turned in several strong relay and field-event performances May 1 at the Metamora Mach Speed and Flight Night, an invitational-style meet at Metamora High School that did not appear to include published team scores.
Top finishes
- 4×400 relay (1st): Ella Herchenroder, Grace Herchenroder, Taylor Herchenroder, Lily Furrow — 4:08.42
- 4×200 relay (2nd): Ella Herchenroder, Rachelle McCellan, Taylor Herchenroder, Ava Marty — 1:45.91
Grace Herchenroder placed third in the 300 hurdles in 48.56 seconds. Keerah Cooper was ninth in 50.90. Grace Herchenroder also tied for sixth in the high jump at 1.50 meters, a season best.
Furrow led Galesburg in the horizontal jumps, placing second in the triple jump at 10.45 meters and fourth in the long jump at 4.94 meters, a personal best. Ella Herchenroder was 12th in the long jump at 4.67 meters, and Macey Huft was 22nd at 4.44. McCellan placed 12th in the triple jump at 9.44, while Molly Tomeo was 23rd at 9.02.
Sprints
- Taylor Herchenroder: 9th, 100 (13.03)
- Grace Herchenroder: 25th (13.41)
- Kaliyah Randolph: 30th (13.77, PB)
200 meters
- McCellan: 12th (27.44)
- Randolph: 32nd (29.29, PB)
- Cooper: 34th (29.42)
Galesburg also placed fifth in the 4×100 relay (52.61) and sixth in the sprint medley relay (2:01.37).
The Streaks have one more regular-season meet before the postseason. The girls team will be at the Moline Last Chance event at 4:30 p.m. May 4. The Western Big 6 Conference meet is at 4 p.m. May 7 in Geneseo.
Galesburg boys place fourth at Sterling Night Relays
Galesburg’s boys track and field team used strong relay performances and several top-five field-event finishes to place fourth May 1 at the Sterling Night Relays.
The Silver Streaks scored 58 points in the varsity division. East Moline United won with 108 points, followed by Sterling (66) and Dixon (63).
Galesburg also placed second in the frosh/soph standings with 24 points, finishing two points behind East Moline United.
Varsity relays
- 4×400 (2nd): Nwagbo, Phillips, Watson, Schleich — 3:27.05
- 4×200 (2nd): Schleich, Phillips, Nwagbo, McCellan — 1:30.10
- 4×100 (3rd): Schleich, Phillips, Watson, McCellan — 43.35
Frosh/soph highlights
- 4×200 (1st): Anderton, Smith, Banda, Johnson — 1:34.95
- 4×100 (2nd): 45.54
- Sprint medley (3rd): 3:54.83
Antwon Walker placed third in the high jump (1.92 meters). Rahkim McCellan placed third in the triple jump (12.77) and fifth in the long jump (6.11).
Daxton Eastburg was fourth in the shot put (14.80 meters).
The Streaks close the regular season May 8 at the McCormick ABC Invite in Geneseo.
Galesburg boys tennis takes fifth at Moline Invitational
Galesburg scored six points and finished fifth May 2 at the Moline Invitational.
Pleasant Valley won the team title with 12 points, followed by Moline (9).
Doubles
- No. 1: Mohamed Shehata/Carter Bohm — 2 wins after opening loss
- No. 2: Mahmoud Shehata/Carson Stecher — 2 wins
Singles
- Charlie Hayden: 1-2 at No. 1
- Timothy Tudengjiacuo: win over teammate, loss to Geneseo
The Streaks host Alleman at 4 p.m. May 4 and Newman Central Catholic at 4:30 p.m. May 6.
Galesburg baseball drops nonconference games to Dunlap, Washington
Galesburg’s baseball team dropped a pair of nonconference home games, falling to Dunlap 10-2 on May 1 and Washington 4-0 on May 2.
The losses left the Silver Streaks at 7-17 overall and 4-6 in Western Big 6 Conference play.
Dunlap broke open the May 1 game with a six-run second inning.
Galesburg hitting vs. Dunlap
- Noah Nalley: HR, RBI
- Will Kimmitt: 2-for-2
- Grady Hickey: RBI
Galesburg drew seven walks but left 10 runners on base.
Nicolas Ojeda took the loss, allowing seven runs (five earned) on eight hits in four innings.
Washington limited Galesburg to two hits in Saturday’s game.
Galesburg hitting vs. Washington
- Grady Hickey: 1 hit
- Easton Pickrel: 1 hit, stolen base
Hayden Ralston allowed four runs, only one earned, on five hits in six innings, with eight strikeouts.
Washington improved to 17-7 with its ninth straight road win.
The Streaks host Rock Island on May 4 and travel there May 6.
Carl Sandburg College
Sandburg baseball closes season with weekend losses
The Carl Sandburg College baseball team closed its season over the weekend with five losses, falling twice to Prairie State, once to Oakton and twice to Morton.
The Chargers finished 13-35-1 and fell short of qualifying for the Region 4 tournament.
Sandburg opened the weekend May 1 by dropping a home doubleheader to Prairie State, 6-2 and 17-2. The Chargers then lost 11-10 in nine innings May 2 at Oakton before ending the season May 3 with 11-0 and 11-1 losses at Morton.
In the opener against Prairie State, Sandburg trailed 6-0 before scoring twice in the seventh. Chuck Hathaway doubled with one out, and Nathan Hill followed with a two-run homer to right field for the Chargers’ only runs.
Clayton Cawley kept Sandburg in the game, allowing one hit and three walks in 5 1/3 innings. The Metamora right-hander struck out four.
In the second game against Prairie State, Sandburg briefly led 2-1 after scoring twice in the first inning. Damien Snell reached on an error and moved to third on Hathaway’s double. Hill then singled to left with two outs, scoring both runners.
Prairie State Game 2 highlights
- Nathan Hill: 2-for-3, 2 RBIs
- Carter Ramsey: 2-for-3
Sandburg nearly broke through May 2 at Oakton, rallying several times before falling 11-10 in nine innings.
The Chargers scored four two-out runs in the second to take a 4-3 lead. Hill scored from second on a wild throw after Ramsey’s infield single, and an Oakton error allowed Burke Miller to score. Snell followed with a two-run double to center.
After falling behind 10-6, Sandburg scored three runs in the sixth. Hathaway drove in two runs with a one-out single to center, and Hill added an RBI triple to bring the Chargers within one.
Sandburg tied it in the ninth after Snell tripled to right with one out and Jameson Dickerson singled to left. Oakton answered in the bottom of the inning, using a hit batter and wild pitch to set up a walk-off single.
Oakton game leaders
- Damien Snell: 3-for-6, double, triple, 3 RBIs (home run shy of cycle)
- Burke Miller: 4-for-5, 2 runs, RBI, stolen base
- Jameson Dickerson: 2-for-5, walk, run, RBI
- Colton Allen: 2-for-5, walk, run
Morton swept Sandburg on May 3, winning both games in five innings.
In the finale, Hill doubled to center to start the second inning and moved to third on a passed ball. Miller brought him home with a sacrifice fly to right, giving Sandburg a 1-0 lead before Morton pulled away.
Knox College
Several Knox track athletes post personal bests at Monmouth
The Knox College track and field team posted several personal-best performances May 2 at the Fighting Scot Invitational in Monmouth.
Lance Miller led the Prairie Fire by winning the men’s 800-meter run in 1:56.57.
Ryan Lautzenhiser placed sixth in the men’s 200-meter dash in 22.55 seconds. Lautzenhiser also teamed with Leland Tran, Kneko Vasquez and Deangelo Willis to place second in the men’s 4×100-meter relay.
On the women’s side, Elsie Conwell improved her No. 5 program mark in the 3,000-meter steeplechase by 16 seconds, finishing third in 12:30.31.
Stephanie Nelson improved her No. 9 program mark in the shot put with an outdoor-best throw of 10.67 meters. Nelson also placed third in the hammer throw and seventh in both the shot put and discus.
Elle Haddon added a third-place finish in the javelin.
The Prairie Fire compete May 8 at the Midwest Conference meet at Cornell.
Ripon ends Knox baseball season with series sweep
The Knox College baseball team closed its season with three losses at Ripon over the weekend, dropping a May 2 doubleheader before falling in a high-scoring regular-season finale May 3.
Ripon swept the May 2 games 6-2 and 16-6 before outlasting Knox 21-18 on May 3. The Prairie Fire finished the season 6-34 overall and 3-18 in the Midwest Conference.
Anthony Soliz gave Knox a strong start in Saturday’s opener, holding Ripon scoreless through five innings. The Red Hawks broke through with two runs in the sixth and added four more in the seventh to take control.
Knox scored in the eighth when Nicholas Nitti drove in Andrew Garrett, then added a run in the ninth when Garrett brought home Thomas Wilmot. Wilmot finished with two hits.
Knox started quickly in the second game, taking a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Nitti led off with a single and Hayden Derlein followed with a hit. Jacob Halseth’s sacrifice fly scored Nitti, and Wilmot added a sacrifice fly to bring home Derlein.
Ripon responded with five runs in the second and added another in the fourth.
Knox cut the deficit to 6-4 in the fifth when Halseth and Aidan McMurtrie singled and Buckie Zamora was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Clayton Rice followed with a two-run double, scoring Halseth and McMurtrie.
The Red Hawks pulled away with four runs in the sixth and two in the seventh.
Knox scored twice in the eighth after Derlein, Halseth and Wilmot walked to load the bases. McMurtrie singled to score Derlein and Halseth, but Ripon answered with four runs in the bottom of the inning to end the game by the 10-run rule.
Game 2 leaders
- Jacob Halseth: 3 hits, 2 runs
- Aidan McMurtrie: 2 hits, 2 RBIs
- Clayton Rice: 2 hits, 2 RBIs
Sunday’s finale turned into Knox’s biggest offensive game of the season. The Prairie Fire scored a season-high 18 runs but could not hold off Ripon in a 21-18 loss.
Knox trailed 4-0 after the first inning before scoring two runs in the second and seven in the third to take a 9-4 lead.
Ripon answered with three runs in the bottom of the third, but the Prairie Fire erupted for nine runs in the fourth to build an 18-7 advantage.
Ripon then shut out Knox the rest of the way. The Red Hawks scored one run in the fourth, one in the fifth and 11 in the sixth to move ahead 20-18. Ripon added another run in the eighth.
Seven Knox players finished with at least one hit and one RBI, and nine Prairie Fire players scored at least one run.
Finale leaders
- Nicholas Nitti: 4 RBIs, 2 runs
- Hayden Derlein: 3 hits, 2 runs, 2 RBIs
- Thomas Wilmot: 2 hits, 2 runs, 3 RBIs
- Andrew Garrett: 2 hits, 2 runs, 3 RBIs
- Parker Engel: 3 hits, 4 runs, 2 RBIs
- Owen Shannon: 3 hits, 2 RBIs
Knox softball ends season with losses to Ripon
The Knox College softball team ended its season at home May 2 with a pair of losses to Ripon.
Ripon defeated the Prairie Fire 8-2 and 7-1, dropping Knox to 8-30. The eight wins were the program’s most since 2023.
Knox and Ripon played tight games before late scoring helped the Red Hawks pull away.
In the opener, Ripon broke the game open with a four-run seventh inning.
Knox trailed 3-0 entering the fourth. Maddie Hicks walked, Taylor Goudschaal singled and Kara Burwell drove in Hicks for Knox’s first run. Goudschaal then scored from third as Burwell was thrown out stealing, cutting the deficit to 3-2.
That was as close as Knox would get. Ripon added a run before its four-run seventh inning closed out the win.
In the second game, the Prairie Fire trailed 3-0 in the third before scoring their lone run.
With one out, Chelsea McKee and Hicks walked back-to-back. Goudschaal reached on an error, and Burwell singled home McKee for her second RBI of the day.
Ripon scored two runs in the fourth and two more in the seventh, and Knox could not close the gap.
The doubleheader also served as Senior Day for Taylor Goudschaal, Maddie Hicks and Kylie Thomson.