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[MARCH 15, 2002]   The preliminary rounds of the Country Insurance Three-Point Showdown as well as the Slam-Dunk Contest took place last night at Peoria’s Carver Arena. Sixty-four competitors from all across Illinois participated in each contest.

The Railer boys basketball team was well represented, as juniors Cliff Carnahan and BrockWerner advanced through regional and sectional shootouts in the 3-point competition. In a great effort by both players, Carnahan and Werner each shot the 3-ball through the hoop eight times.

Unfortunately, four other statewide Class AA players had three more each, for a total of 11 treys. Of the four shooters to advance, only one, Mount Zion’s Matt Yelovich, was from the downstate area. Brett McAllister from Barrington, Steve Prorok from Arlington Heights (Hersey) and Brian Harks of St. Charles (North) rounded out the field of four for Saturday’s finals at 1 p.m. at Carver Arena.

Springfield Lanphier’s 6-6 senior, Andre Iguodala, advanced to the finals of the Slam-Dunk Contest, which will be at 3 p.m. on Saturday at Carver Arena.

Congratulations to both Cliff and Brock for advancing to the state competition! GO RAILERS!

[Rick Hobler]

[MARCH 15, 2002]   The Lincoln College baseball team has returned from its southern spring trip without a win; however, coach Tony Thomas said, "We made some strides during the trip, but we couldn’t come up with any key hits and it appeared that our opponents were able to get the big hits."

"Our pitching was pretty solid but our hitters are way behind. Of course all of the teams we played had already played 15-20 games, so they had a huge advantage on us."

The Lynx lost a pair of games to Jefferson Davis, the top-ranked junior college team, 8-2 and 13-0. Anthony Hoffert took the loss in the first game, and Jonathon Cave was the loser in the second game.

Faulkner State defeated the Lynx 5-3 and 5-0, while Rend Lake posted a 7-0 victory. Matt Whetstone took the loss in the first game against Faulker State, and Chris Phillips was the loser in the second game. Matt Carnahan suffered the loss against Rend Lake.

Lincoln College will open its home season Tuesday against John Wood with a twin bill against John Wood at 1 p.m.

[Bill Martinie,
Lincoln College sports information director]

[MARCH 13, 2002]   Northland College scored in each of the first three innings and then held on to defeat Lincoln College 6-4 in softball at Cocoa Beach, Fla., on Tuesday.  The loss drops Lincoln to 1-2 for the spring trip.

Lincoln failed to score until the top of the seventh, when they pushed across four runs but came up short.  Heather Dobey, Jen Polhemus and Monica Perone each had a pair of hits for Lincoln College, with Dobey driving in a pair of runs.  Crystal Wilkey, who was 1-4, had the only other RBI for the Lady Lynx.

Audra May suffered the loss for coach Jen Ciaccio, giving up two earned runs in six innings.

Lincoln College plays Toronto at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday and will play Thomas Moore at 5 p.m. Wednesday.

Lincoln College        000 000 4 — 4-8-5

Northland College   123 000 x — 6-11-0

[Bill Martinie,
Lincoln College sports information director]

[MARCH 13, 2002]   PARK RIDGE — The Big Ten Conference announced Tuesday that the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship First and Second Round games to be played at the United Center in Chicago on March 15 and 17 are officially sold out.

The Big Ten is hosting the first two rounds of the NCAA championship for the second time. The conference also produced a sellout in 1998 at the same facility.

The general public can still watch the participating teams for free on Thursday during the open practice session at the United Center. Parking will be free of charge that day, and the eight participating teams will practice between noon and 9 p.m. Below is a schedule of those practice times.

Noon-12:50 p.m., Creighton

1-1:50 p.m., San Diego State

2:10-3 p.m., Florida

3:10-4 p.m., Illinois

5-5:50 p.m., Texas Tech

6-6:50 p.m., Georgia

7:10-8 p.m., Southern Illinois

8:10-9 p.m., Murray State

[Big Ten Conference]

[MARCH 12, 2002]   Lincoln College finished second in the national swimming tournament in both the men and women divisions this past weekend.  Indian River Community College won both the men and women divisions. Indian River compiled 779 points on the women’s side, with Lincoln second at 278.   Indian River had a total of 692 points for the men, with Lincoln coming in at 438.

Ramiro Palmer of Lincoln became a three-time national champion and the Lynx broke five team records on both the men’s and the women’s sides.

Palmer won the 100-yard breaststroke in a team record time of 56.53 and was named an all-American.  He also won in the 200 breaststroke, in a team record time of 2:04.40, and was named an all-American.  His third championship came in the 200 yard IM in a time of 1:54.33, his third all-American honor.

Men

Other Lynx swimmers who placed for the men included:

50-yard freestyle — 2. Joe Krysak, 1:43.06, all-American; 6. Scott Sampson, 1:46.38, all-American; 11. Jonathan Gentry, 1:51.2.

500 freestyle — 3. Joe Krysak, 4:41.31, team record, all-American; 5. Scott Sampson, 4:46.52, all-American; 9. Ryan Poss, 4:57.23, all-American; 11. Bryan Sherman, 4:58.58; 12. Jonathan Gentry, 5:07.19.

1,650 freestyle — 2. Joe Krysak, 16:31.09, team record, all-American; 3. Scott Sampson, 16:52.82, all-American; 5. Bryan Sherman, 17:29.88, all-American; 7. Jonathan Gentry, 17:55.01, all-American.

100 backstroke — 3. Jason Hierman, 54.15, all-American; 6. Ryan Poss, 56.30, all-American; 10. Doug Zimmer, 59.24.

200 backstroke — 2. Jason Hierman, 1:57.74, all-American; 6. Ryan Poss, 2:04.44, all-American; 9. Doug Zimmer, 2:06.95, all-American.

100 breaststroke — 1. Ramiro Palmar, 56.53, team record, all-American; 4. Zach Welch, 59.22, all-American; 7. James Brooks, 1:03.06, all-American.

200 breaststroke —1. Ramiro Palmer, 2:04.40, team record, all-American; 3. Zach Welch, 2:10.83, all-American; 6. James Brooks, 2:17.88, all-American.

100 butterfly — 6. Zach Welch, 52.88, all-American; 9. Brandon Davidson, 55.68, all-American.

200 butterfly — 7. Ronald Kestner, 2:05.14, all-American; 12. Brandon Davidson, 2:18.28.

200 IM — 1. Ramiro Palmar, 1:54.33, all-American; 7. Ronald Kestner, 2:00.93, all-American; 8. Jason Hierman, 2:02.57, all-American.

400 IM — 2. Ronald Kestner, 4:17.81, all-American; 6. James Brooks, 4:29.05, all-American; 9. Bryan Sherman, 4:37.99.

1-meter diving — 6. Sean Calhoun, 819.10, all-American.

3-meter diving — 3. Sean Calhoun, 883.45, all-American.

200-yard freestyle relay — 4. Lincoln (Palmar, Sampson, Kestner, Krysak), all-American.

400 relay — 2. Lincoln (Poss, Zimmer, Welch, Hierman), 3:12.96, all-American.

800 freestyle relay — 2. Lincoln (Kestner, Palmar, Sampson, Krysak), 7:06.71, all-American.

200 medley relay — 2. Lincoln (Hierman, Welch, Davidson, Sampson), 1:38.63, all-American.

400 medley relay — 2. Lincoln (Hierman, Palmar, Welch, Krysak), 3:31.49, all-American.

[to top of second column in this article]

Women

Results for the Lincoln College women were:

500-yard freestyle — 6. Katie Robison, 25.96, all-American; 7. Erin Nelson, 25.39, all-American.

50 freestyle — 6. Katie Robison, 25.71, all-American; 8. Erin Nelson, 26.07, all-American; 15. Bonnie DiFoggio, 28.26.

100 freestyle — 8. Erin Nelson, 56.89, all-American.

200 freestyle — 5. Katie Robison, 2:01.09, all-American.

500 freestyle — 4. Leslie Seago, 5:22.53, all-American; 5. Rachel Willenborg, 5:23.64, all-American; 6. Angela Couch, 5:27.22, all-American.

1,650 freestyle — 2. Leslie Seago, 18:40.04, all-American; 3. Angela Couch, 18:54.11, all-American; 11. Megan Conlon, 21:21.27, all-American.

100 backstroke — 8. Erin Nelson, 1:06.22, all-American..

200 backstroke — 4. Katie Robison, 2:15.08, team record; all-American.

200 breaststroke — 8. Jill Doxsie, 2:43.99, team record, all-American.

100 butterfly — 4. Leslie Seago, 1:01.21, all-American; 6. Rachel Willenborg, 1:02.60, all-American; 10. Jill Doxsie, 1:05.88, all-American.

200 IM — 12. Jill Doxsie, 2:27.02, all-American.

400 IM — 4. Angela Couch, 5:02.93, all-American; 5. Liz Wilson, 5:29.21, all-American.

200 freestyle relay — 3. Lincoln (DiFoggio, Wilson, Doxsie, Nelson), 1:48.37, all-American.

400 freestyle relay — 2. Lincoln (Willenborg, Couch, Robison, Seago), 3:46.59, all-American.

800 freestyle relay — 2. Lincoln (Willenborg, Robison, Seago, Couch), 8:14.58, team record, all-American.

200 medley relay — 3. Lincoln (Willenborg, Robison, Seago, Nelson), 1:57.02, team record, all-American.

400 medley relay — 3. Lincoln (Willenborg, Robison, Seago, Couch), 4:15.06, team record, all-American.

[Bill Martinie,
Lincoln College sports information director]

[MARCH 12, 2002]   Lincoln College opened its softball season Monday afternoon in Cocoa Beach, Fla., against Delta and came away with an impressive 9-1 victory behind the strong pitching of Audra May. The Lady Lynx later played Iowa Central and lost 9-3.

May hurled seven innings, allowing five hits while striking out four.  The run she gave up was unearned. Crystal Wilkey and Marie Burash had a pair of hits each to lead the Lady Lynx to victory. Wilkey scored three times, while Baurash had an RBI and stole a pair of bases. Jess Wilcoxen had a hit, scored a pair of runs and drove in one run, while Monica Perone made her one hit good for two RBIs.

In the second game, Iowa Central built an 8-0 lead before Lincoln scored three times in the sixth inning. Jen Polhemus suffered the loss, giving up five earned runs while going the distance. Heather Dobey had a pair of hits and an RBI, while Alicia Burgess contributed two hits and an RBI with a double.  Crystal Wilkey had the other Lincoln hit.

Lincoln College (1-1) will play Northland Tuesday in Florida.

[Bill Martinie,
Lincoln College sports information director]

[MARCH 12, 2002]   Game times have been announced for the first and second rounds of the Division I men’s basketball bracket. They include the following:

Friday, March 15

11:30 a.m. — Creighton-Florida

Thirty minutes after conclusion of Florida-Creighton game — San Diego State-Illinois

6:50 p.m. — Southern Illinois-Texas Tech

Twenty minutes after conclusion of Southern Illinois-Texas Tech game — Murray State-Georgia

Sunday, March 17

1:20 p.m. — Creighton-Florida winner vs. San Diego State-Illinois winner

Thirty minutes after conclusion of the 1:20 p.m. game — Southern Illinois-Texas Tech winner vs. Murray State-Georgia winner

[Big Ten Conference]

[Click here to see a chart of the Division I men’s basketball bracket.]

[MARCH 11, 2002]   Illinois Central College ended the Lincoln College season with a 72-63 victory over the Lynx in the Region 24 championship game Saturday night.   The Lynx complete the season with a 24-9 record, the fourth straight 20-win season for coach B.J. McCullum.

Illinois Central led at halftime, 25-22, as Lincoln managed to hit only eight of 32 field goal attempts, for 25 percent.   The winners made 11 of 29 first-half shots, for nearly 38 percent. Although Lincoln improved to 40 percent in the second half, Illinois Central also improved, finishing at a 54 percent clip in the second 20-minute period.

Amir Major led the Lynx with 21 points while Steve Turner and Derick Hollyfield both contributed 12 points. Geoff Richards led the winners with 15 points while David Roos added 14. Turner pulled down 10 rebounds for the Lynx.

[Bill Martinie,
Lincoln College sports information director]

Lincoln College (63) — James Roberson 3-9-0-0-7; Josh Clark 0-2-2-2-2; Mike Fowler 0-1-0-2-0; Steve Turner 6-13-0-0-12; Andrew Kehr 1-8-0-0-3; Mike Sams 3-10-0-0-6; Amir Major 7-14-4-6-21; Derik Hollyfield 4-13-3-3-12; Loyd Bowen 0-2-0-0-0.  Totals 24-72-9-13-63.  Three-point goals: Roberson, Kehr, Major 3, Hollyfield.

Illinois Central (72) — Zack Meiss 0-1-0-0-0; Donald Slach 1-5-0-0-3; Greg Flowers 1-1-0-0-2; Dane Ainsworth 1-2-1-2-3; Geoff Richards 4-6-6-6-15; Grant Uftring 0-0-2-2-2; Saul Woods 1-3-1-2-3; Cedric Miles 3-11-2-4-8; David Roos 4-6-4-6-14; Ben Silver 4-7-1-2-9; Reuben Statam 4-10-1-2-9.  Totals 25-55-18-26-72.  Three-point goals: Slach, Richards, Roos 2.

[MARCH 11, 2002]   Lincoln College opened the baseball season at Alabama Southern Sunday and dropped both ends of a doubleheader. Alabama Southern won the first game 16-2 and took the nightcap 6-1. Alabama Southern is now 16-5 for the season.  Lincoln plays against Faulkner State on Monday.

Anthony Hoffert suffered the loss in the first game, giving up 10 runs, five earned, on seven hits in 2 2/3 innings.  Charlie Deakin hurled the final 1 1/3 innings, giving up six runs and four hits while striking out two and walking two.  Tim May had a pair of hits for Lincoln and Jeff Harris had the other Lynx hit.

In the second game, Kyle Eastman suffered the loss, with 4 1/3 innings, five hits, six runs, five earned, one walk and four strikeouts.  Jeff King hurled the final 1 2/3 innings, giving up two hits while striking out two and walking one.  Jeff Harris had two hits in three trips to lead the Lynx.  He also scored the lone run and stole a base.

[Bill Martinie,
Lincoln College sports information director]

[MARCH 9, 2002]  Contrary to popular belief, the excellent Lincoln Railers boys basketball season is not over. In fact, it continues on to the state championships in Peoria next weekend. Unfortunately for Railer players, coaches and fans, this trip is not for the entire team. Fortunately, the Railer green and red will be proudly displayed.

Last night, at the Prairie Capital Convention Center, before a large crowd, including many LCHS fans, two Railers, Brock Werner and Cliff Carnahan advanced in the IHSA Three-Point Shootout and now move on to the state tournament in Peoria. The shootout was just prior to the sectional final game between Lanphier and Mount Zion.

Brock Warner, a 6-3 junior sharpshooter, knocked down 10 treys to advance to Peoria. Only one other shooter had more completed shots.  LCHS junior Cliff Carnahan took a little tougher route to the finals. He was tied with two other shooters at the end of the initial shootout. Carnahan then won a tie-breaking shoot-off by knocking down eight 3s to move on to the Peoria. LCHS was the only team at the Springfield Sectional Complex to have two players move on to the state finals.

According to the IHSA schedule of events, Werner and Carnahan will begin their quest to win the 11th annual Class AA Country Insurance and Financial Services Three-Point Showdown competition on Thursday, March 14, at 5 p.m. at Carver Arena in Peoria.  

CONGRATULATIONS to these two Railer players and good luck in Peoria next week. GO RAILERS!

[Rick Hobler]

[MARCH 9, 2002]   Lincoln College improved to 24-8 with a 68-58 victory over Lewis & Clark in the Region 24 men’s basketball tournament at Lebanon Friday. Leading the way for the Lynx was James Roberson with 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the floor and three of four at the foul line.

Joining Roberson in double figures were Amir Major with 15 and Mike Sams with 10. Sams also pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds. The Lynx dominated the board at a 46-31 clip. Lincoln shot 47 percent while the Lewis & Clark squad shot 33 percent. Conference Freshman of the Year Anthony Weeden led the losers with 31 points.

Lincoln College (68) — James Roberson 8-11-3-4-21; Josh Clark 0-1-0-0-0; Mike Fowler 2-5-0-0-4; Steve Turner 1-8-1-3-3; Andrew Kehr 2-6-1-2-6; Mike Sams 5-8-0-0-10; Amir Major 6-10-1-4-15; Derik Hollyfield 2-6-4-4-9. Totals: 26-55-10-16-68. Three-point goals: Roberson 2, Kehr, Major 2, Hollyfield.

Lewis & Clark (58) — Anthony Weeden 11-25-2-2-31; Ryan Kennedy 3-7-0-0-6; Zack May 1-6-0-0-2; Glenn Brown 0-2-0-0-0; Brent Segree 1-5-0-0-2; Richard Wellings 1-2-2-2-5; Aaron Edwards 3-11-3-4-10; Corey Thompson 0-4-0-1-0; Sheu Allibalogun 1-2-0-0-2. Totals: 21-64-7-9-58. Three-point goals: Weeden 7, Wellings, Edwards.

[Bill Martinie,
Lincoln College sports information director]

[MARCH 9, 2002]   If revenge is an actual motivating factor in the game of college basketball, then the University of Minnesota men’s basketball team should have been ready to play Friday night in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals.

It was Illinois, remember, that scored the final 10 points of their previous game Sunday against the Gophers to grab a share of the conference title and put Minnesota’s NCAA tourney hopes in serious jeopardy.  Many so-called experts thought Minnesota would storm out to a lead and cruise to victory.  Nothing could have been further from the truth.

[Photos by Tom Seggelke]

Illinois started the game well, running out to a 20-9 lead.  Led by 11 quick Cory Bradford points (including three 3-pointers) and five from Lincoln’s Brain Cook, Illinois looked to be in good shape against the Gophers.  The only down side to the early run was the foul problems Illinois developed, getting called for three quick fouls and five in the first eight-plus minutes of action.  Minnesota went six minutes without scoring, allowing Illinois to explode to a comfortable lead.  When Damir Krupalija nailed a three-pointer in his first action since Feb. 3, Conseco Fieldhouse was up for grabs and the Illini had a 19-point lead at 28-9.

Illinois went into the half with a 10-point advantage, 46-36, largely because of the seven 3-point baskets the Illini made in the first half, including four by senior Cory Bradford.  Playing as if it could be his final conference game ever, Bradford sparked the Illini first-half effort with 18 points.  Looking to extend their eight-game winning streak, Illinois dominated a first half of action that saw a total of 23 fouls called on both teams.  Illinois’ two leading scorers, Brian Cook and Frank Williams, combined for just seven points, but it did not hurt the Illini, as eight different players scored for the orange and blue.  Illinois shot a sizzling 61 percent in the first half from the field and made seven of 12 3-point baskets.

[to top of second column in this article]

Illinois had two major points of emphasis after Minnesota soared for 23 offensive rebounds and forced Illinois into 20 turnovers.  This time, however, Minnesota had just three offensive rebounds in the first half, but Illinois still committed 10 turnovers in the opening 20 minutes.

The second half began very sloppy for both teams, as they traded turnovers and missed shots for the first five minutes.  Krupalija scored two quick buckets underneath the basket and Sean Harrington nailed a 3 to give Illinois a 54-41 lead at the first media timeout.  Illinois led all the way for the entire second half and did a great job handling the Minnesota pressure without much trouble.

Both Cook and Archibald fouled out late and the Archibald received two fouls in the same sequence.  Referee Tom Rucker, officiating his last conference game ever this weekend, called Arch for an intentional foul moments after missing Lucas Johnson getting an elbow to the neck.  Rucker then gave Archibald a technical foul for an ill-advised comment.  It didn’t matter, however, as Illinois rolled to a 92-76 victory.

Bradford finished the game with 25 points and Sean Harrington chipped in 16.  Cook added 13, and Krupalija and Archibald each scored 11 for the victors.  The Illini shot 62 percent for the game and made 13 of 23 3-point shots.  Illinois also knocked down 23 of 31 free throws, while out-rebounding the Gophers 34-24 and allowing just seven offensive rebounds.

Illinois moves into a semifinal matchup against Ohio State at 3 p.m. today.  The game is televised by CBS and can be seen locally on WCIA-TV.

[Jeff Mayfield]

[MARCH 9, 2002]   If you think a regular-season college basketball game is over-hyped and is just pure craziness, it is nothing compared to what has become an annual rite of spring: the Big Ten tournament. 

Yes, the Big Ten, like almost every other conference, succumbed to including a tourney before selection Sunday.  And if you think that they made that decision for any reason other than the money, you probably aren’t into sports very much.  The greed in big-time college and professional sports is surpassed only by the egos of the people making the decisions.

But despite all the problems with big-time sports, none of which are going to be solved by this column, the Big Ten tourney is an event you might want to put on your family’s calendar.  And yes, we know that ticket and food prices can add up.  That hasn’t stopped a lot of Big Ten faithful from virtually every state represented by the conference.  Several kids and families have been working all the angles.  We know personally of a local police officer who got to take his son to three games for free.  Other people traded one session for another.  The opportunities are out there, if you’re willing to work.

And what do you get for your efforts?  A fun-filled foray through the four-day tourney that is like a trip to a three-ring circus.  The fun never stops.  Whether the tourney’s in Chicago or in Indy like this year, there is so much for a family to do, even if you don’t like basketball or don’t want to spend much money.  There are museums, great zoos, nice parks and scenic attractions.  There are plays, operas and symphonies for those who prefer the fine arts, and if you’re a people-watcher, you can live off an event like this for weeks.

[to top of second column in this article]

But, if you’re a college basketball lover, it just may not get any better than this!  You get to see all 11 teams play in a four-day span with just great excitement and intensity.  You get to see the conference champions and those whose lost seasons can be reclaimed in just one magical weekend.  You see the Big Ten’s best players as well as those who were good enough to make All-American.  You get to watch some of the best coaches in America and some of the country’s zaniest fans, not to mention the broadcasters and the "other" media types.

The weather has been spectacular and allows for a lot of people movement.  Ticket movement is brisk.  Those who are upset are disappointed and leave.  Those who win, survive for another day and are sometimes more relieved than they are exuberant.

Whether the good guys win or not is not important.  What is important is that we use everything we can possibly learn to make a deep NCAA tournament run!  That’s why we’re here, bringing you loyal LDN fans the inside scoop of this crazy event.  OK, OK. We like the atmosphere and the environment as most any other fan does.  But someone has to deliver the news to you.  Who else but us?

[LDN sports staff]

[MARCH 4, 2002]   While I enjoyed growing up in Southern California and skateboarding and hittin’ the beach with my buddies out there, it doesn’t even compare with March Madness!

And, yes, they have great basketball out there. In fact, some of the all-time great hoopsters and current Hall of Famers hail from that region. It’s just that the weather is so nice there most of the time, that nobody cares about going indoors to watch anything, much less basketball.

On the other hand, here in the Midwest the world is an entirely different planet! I woke up this morning, picked Payne up out of his bed and went to turn on Clifford the Big Red Dog (what else would you be watchin’ at that time of the morning?). The weather update on the screen said that the temperature outside was 1 and that the wind chill was minus 12! Payne wanted me to flip to SportsCenter to get caught up on all the tourney results nationwide, and I gladly obliged him! What else are you gonna do in these weather conditions?

This year’s Railers have clawed, scratched, outworked, out-hustled, out-coached and outplayed their opponents en route to yet another 20-win season.

As we travel the state so many have told us what it would mean for their local high school team to have even one 20-victory campaign. So regardless how the rest of the season goes, the LDN salutes this year’s Railers! Nice going, fellas!

The Railers proved once again that what they may lack in size and athleticism, they make up for in preparation, execution and made free throws. Champaign Central is well coached and had a good game plan, but when Lincoln hits 24-of-25 free throws you’re not going to beat them.

We will go on record to say that if LCHS converts 24-of-25 charity tosses against Lanphier Tuesday night, they will walk off the court with an upset of epic proportions. It appears that no one thinks that they could ever beat this Lanphier team. And yes, it does have the potential to get ugly, but people said the same thing about the David-Goliath matchup until the blabbering bully went facedown in the dirt.

The Lions will still have to hit the shots and make the plays and prove that they really are the No. 2-ranked team in the state. And there is no reason to suspect that they are not that good. Some even say that they are the best team in the state and will have no problem runnin’ the table on their way to a state championship.

If they do it, we say, more power to them. Their coach Craig Patton, who is a former Lincoln coach, seems to be a nice enough guy; we would certainly wish him well IF they were to travel that road.

However, in order to travel that road they must get by the Railers first. Others have countered and said that Lincoln just saved Champaign the embarrassment of taking another shellacking from the Lions; that, on paper, these guys are one of the best teams ever in our state.

I’m sure glad that no game we’ve ever been involved in was played on paper! No one knows how a team is going to react, especially after last year when everyone was saying the exact same things. We recall that some other team went on to win the sectional title.

[to top of second column in this article]

We’re not saying that it would be easy to spring such an upset. It would take a near flawless performance. It would mean patiently breaking down one of the better presses that we’ve seen in a while. It would mean limiting the Lions to one shot per possession. It would take great overall team defense, moving feet so quickly as to not let dribble penetration take over the contest. It would mean contesting every shot and trying to force the opponents into taking off-balance, forced shots maybe quicker than they are ready to do so. It would take deliberate offensive flow, with good ball movement and excellent screens to free up the best shooters at just the right times. It would take a spectacular effort in the post both offensively and defensively. And it would take a huge coaching effort to even allow one’s self to even believe that an upset is even in the realm of possibility.

A wry smile has just come across our collective face. All the pressure in the world is on Lanphier. Everyone expects them to win and to win big… Well, maybe not everyone…

The Redbirds won a thrilling contest over Drake Saturday night when Shawn Jeppson hit a 3-point prayer as time expired, leading ISU to a win over Drake. But the dreams hit the skids Sunday when Creighton took it to ISU big in the semis. Actually it sets the stage for the MVC’s two best regular-season teams to battle it out Monday night to see who gets the NCAA automatic bid.

But what about ISU’s postseason chances? ISU’s SID, Todd Kober and I have been speculating for the last couple of weeks that ISU really is deserving of an NIT bid. IF you look at the record over the last 10 games and consider how they have overcome injuries, and then if you look at a pretty decent RPI… I guess you could say that we’d be pretty disappointed if they don’t get an invite. It could result in a very difficult game on the road, but we’ve always believed that any postseason experience is a good experience. And what it could do for next year’s team would be huge. We’re keepin’ our fingers crossed for an engraved invitation!

PLEASE join Greg Taylor and I Monday night on FIX-96.3 from 6 to 7 pm. Greg is ALREADY in Indy sending good Illini vibes all over the place in order to allow the Illini a deep tournament run. Tonight’s agenda will include high school sports, and obviously the IHSA A and AA tourneys; college sports — U of I, ISU, LC and LCC reports; Cub and Cardinal spring training updates; prize giveaways; and a whole lot more.

Call us at 648-5510 or toll free (877) 963-9669.

The Illinois Fighting Illini, winners of back-to-back Big Ten championships. On behalf of your loyal LDN staff, CONGRATULATIONS!

[Jeff Mayfield]

Announcements

[MARCH 14, 2002]  YMCA soccer will be starting soon. This program is designed for children pre-kindergarten through eighth grade.

The Y soccer program stresses fundamentals, fair play and, above all, fun. The coaches and volunteers stress cooperation over competition. Everyone plays, regardless of ability. Everybody plays, therefore everybody wins.

If your family would like to take part in this program, feel free to contact the YMCA office at 735-3915. Come be a part of building stronger kids, stronger families and a stronger community, at the Y.

[YMCA news release]

[FEB. 28, 2002]  The Lincoln Pony League will have their sign-up period for both baseball (boys) and softball (girls) over the next three weekends, beginning this Saturday, March 2, and continuing on March 9 and 16. Sign-ups will be in the lobby of the Lincoln Rec Center from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.

Anyone interested in playing ball this summer can get signed up during those times. Representatives of the Lincoln Pony League will be on hand to answer any questions and to assist with the sign-ups.

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