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Tee ball

Tee ball rosters at Lincoln Park District

[JUNE 6, 2001] 

Aaron Becker

Dane Eimer

Steven Frederick

Austin Horchem

Joshua Horchem

Brent Hunsley

Austin Jones

Meghan Kurtz

Kyle Mitchell

Joseph Andrew Olden

Taylor Alyse Olden

Jason Sheley

Colton Amberg

Alex Bender

Ashlynn Glick

Seth Graue

Tayler Heidbreder

Chanse Hoagland

Luke Koning

Natalee Larson

Jacob Roy

Jamaal Scott

Ryan Sloan

Harrison Splain

Cody Bennett

Brian Cade

Brianna Carroll

Brady Coppinger

Caleb Coppinger

Austin Goodman

Marissa Greer

Chelsea Jones

Hannah Jones

Brandon Klemm

Mathew Langdon

Adam Papirnik

Dustin Paulus

Team 4 — Cardinals

Austin Brooks

Grant Cooper

Brady Curry

Hank Freed

Kyle Jones

Colby Leith

Henry Nettles

Tyler Skelton

Alyssa Stephenson

Elaine Tiffany

Sam Tiffany

Wesley White

The Yankees and Braves will practice Monday (June 11) and Wednesday (June 13) at 9 a.m. The Devil Rays and Cardinals will practice Monday (June 11) and Wednesday (June 13) at 10 a.m. All games and practices will be on the girls ball diamond. In case of rain team will meet on the indoor tennis courts. Schedules will be passed out at the first practice.

[to top of second column in this section]

Bowen Casper

Stephen Combs

Ryan Hedrick

Clayton Irwin

Blake Lengacher

Mason Madigan

Austin Moore

Bryant Moore

Mason Newman

Abriana Ellegood

Cody Heidbreder

Kyle Klockenga

Stephen Kutz

Kelsey Shanle

A.J. Shoemaker

Dillon Smith

Alexandra Turner

Hunter Wieber

Christian Arteman

Austin Brummett

Maxwell Cook

Triston Cooper

Victoria Fitzpatrick

Shelbi Frye

Jarrod Grover

Michelle Paulus

Clint Robison

Robbie Beard

Edward Bowlby

Cole Boice

Justin Broom

Dalton Brown

Forrest Dunston

Ryan Fisher

Wyatt Phillis

Will Podbelsek

The Brewers and White Sox will practice Tuesday (June 12) and Thursday (June 14) at 9 a.m. The Pirates and Cubs will practice Tuesday (June 12) and Thursday (June 14) at 10 a.m. All games and practices will be on the girls ball diamond. In case of rain teams will meet on the indoor tennis courts. Schedules will be passed out at the first practice.

High school softball

Olympia’s softball team takes 2^nd at state

[JUNE 4, 2001] 

Class A state tournament at East Peoria Eastside Centre

Olympia vs. Casey-Westfield

The last two consecutive years Casey-Westfield has bumped Olympia from the state championship competition. Not this year though. The Spartans were already in the playoffs, and the girls knew they could tackle this longtime foe.

Despite the rain and pressure for a state championship with batters on base, Jessie Shay kept her game, continuing her shutout pitching run for the Spartans and leading them to a 1-0 win. Shay was assisted by her defense comrade Alicia Flessner as catcher.

Shay had no runs, two walks and one strikeout in the championship game.

Mindy Bachman had two base hits, and Tricia Gaither is credited with batting in the game’s only run, made by Megan Gale in the top of the seventh.

Score by innings

Olympia               000 000 1 – 1-8-1

Casey-Westfield   000 000 0 – 0-8-0

This game slated Olympia to play Nashville for a first- or second-place state title and Casey-Westfield to play Orion for third and fourth place.

[to top of second column in this article]

Olympia vs. Nashville

Olympia’s Lady Stags softball team came home carrying their first state championship trophy Saturday evening. Having beaten two-year champion Casey-Westfield earlier in the day, the Lady Stags lost to Nashville 0-3.

Amy Harre from Nashville pitched, with Tessa Schmale and Boatright catching. Jessie Shay and Alicia Flessner took the field as the Lady Spartans’ pitcher-catcher duo.

Harre had seven innings, five hits, no runs, two walks and two strikeouts.

Shay had seven innings, eight hits, three runs, three earned runs, no walks and no strikeouts.

Olympia hitting stars for the game were Elizabeth Sunday, with a double in the first inning, and Mindy Bachman, who made two base hits.

Score by innings

Olympia      000 000 0 – 0-5-2

Nashville     000 201 0 – 3-8-1

Nashville ended the season 41-2. Olympia ended 34-8-1.

[LDN]

Legion JV baseball

Lincoln Legion JV plays weekend games in Rochester

[JUNE 4, 2001]  After struggling to score runs Saturday, the Lincoln Cobras American Legion Post 263 junior varsity put up 11 runs Sunday against Rochester to post an 11-2 victory.  The victory gives Lincoln a 3-2 record entering a Wednesday night doubleheader against Olympia at the Lincoln Rec Center at 6 p.m.

Saturday, Lincoln dropped the first game to Rochester 5-3 and was beaten by Petersburg 5-2 in the second game. Lincoln left 22 base runners in the doubleheader.   Lincoln was able to collect 15 hits in the twin bill, but they were unable to come up with the big hit.

Matt Brayfield earned the pitching victory for Lincoln Sunday with seven strikeouts and three walks in four innings. Trent Kavelman hurled the final inning of the game, which was halted by the eight-run rule after five innings.  Brayfield, Bryce Cunningham and Jason Williams all had two hits, including a double each. Brayfield had a pair of RBIs, Cunningham had three RBIs, and Williams had one RBI.  Chris Matson also had a pair of hits, both singles, and drove in a run. Collecting one hit each were Mitch Sheley, Miles Musick and Bobby Ward.

Saturday against Rochester, Blaen Fletcher took the loss for Lincoln as Rochester pushed across two runs in the bottom of the sixth to break a 3-3 tie.  Leading Lincoln at the plate was Williams, with two hits and a run scored.  Fletcher had one hit and two RBIs, while Sheley, Cunningham, Musick and Jason Bednarko each collected one hit.

In the Petersburg game, Chris Gosda suffered the loss.  Bobby Ward collected three hits and drove in the two Lincoln runs in the bottom of the seventh inning.  Collecting two hits each were John Peters and Jason Williams, one a double.  Cunningham had the only other Lincoln hit.

[to top of second column in this article]

Sunday game

Lincoln Cobras     501 05 –11-11-0

Rochester             020 00 –  2-7-3

Brayfield (W), Kavelman (5) & Peters; Wellbaum, Berecz (4) & Klicking.

Lincoln Cobras     020 100 0 – 3-7-1

Rochester             012 002 x – 5-9-0

Fletcher (L), & Bednarko; Gideon (W) & Jeffers.

Petersburg            020 100 2 – 5-7-1

Lincoln Cobras     000 000 2 – 2-8-2

Bultman (W) & Heubner; Gosda (L), Cunningham (7) & Peters.

[Bill Martinie]

Olympia bringing home their first
state tourney softball trophy

[JUNE 2, 2001]

Class A state tournament at Eastside Centre

Olympia vs. Johnston City

Jessie Shay (26 wins, 5 losses) kept her streak of scoreless wins going one game out from the state title. With catcher Alicia Flessner, the two led the team's defense to a 3-0 win over Johnston City in a game that was moved up two hours to 5:30 p.m. to avoid the ensuing storm headed for Peoria.

Tricia Gaither and Rebecca Alberts each made double base hits. Alberts starred in the day driving in two runners on base with her double in the second inning for the first points of the game. Nicole Prager stacked the deck with one more run brought in by Gaither off her hit in the fifth inning.

Score by innings

Olympia           020 010 0 -- 3-5-1

Johnston City   000 000 0 -- 0-2-2

Olympia's record is now 33-7-1. The Lady Spartans go up against long-standing rival Casey-Westfield (35-1) in state semifinals at noon on Saturday. That team has knocked them out at quarterfinals the last two years. Olympia girls summer team beat them in a game this last summer, though.

Good luck, Lady Spartans!

Hockey

Local youths bring home championship hockey trophy

[JUNE 1, 2001]  Seven-year-old Haylen Sampson and 6-year-old Dylan Miller, both Lincolnites, traveled with their team, the Springfield Kings, this past Sunday for the Mite A Division of the Chicago Cup Showdown in Bensonville. The team won the championship by beating a team from Littleton, Colo. They brought home a big trophy for the showcase at the Nelson Center in Springfield.

[APRIL 27, 2001]  This week's LDN Sports Talk takes on a different look than ever before. Since I couldn't get the LDN powers-to-be to send me out to Colorado Springs to do this interview, Race and I struggled together by e-mailing. I spent a Saturday coming up with a list of 20 to 25 questions and finally just told him to answer them when he could. He did that while going to class, studying for a test, practicing and, I think, writing a paper. It is very easy for a sports writer like me to have nothing but admiration for young men like Race Steinfort. I'm glad people like him are protecting Payne at night while he sleeps (or keeps his parents up). I hope you loyal LDN fans will enjoy Race's written response to my list of questions as much as I did! On behalf of the LDN, thank you, Race. We all wish you nothing but the best!

Response from Race Steinfort

[click here for Part 1]

I am majoring in aeronautical engineering as well as getting my math minor. I’d like to someday go into airplane design. However, once I graduate, I will go off to Undergraduate Pilot Training (UPT) where I will be trained for approximately one year to fly jets. Following UPT, I will have a 10-year commitment to the Air Force in which I hope to fly F-15s and/or A-10s.

[Race Steinfort]

I have been swimming competitively for about 16 years now, and yes, it has prepared me for swimming here. College is a whole new game, though. Instead of swimming every event possible, I now specialize in two to three events: the 100/200 back and the 1,650 (mile) free.

As for people I should thank, there are far too many to list. I think the main contributors were a man named Fred Plesé and my parents.

Mr. Plesé has been a huge inspiration in my life. This man, through rain, dark, snow, and hail, managed to show up at 5:30 in the morning at least three times a week and get into the water to swim with my father and me. He started from barely being able to swim for five minutes to swimming for an hour-plus and getting out hardly even breathing hard, with a giant grin on his face like he had just conquered the world (or at least the pool). To this day he still swims with my father every other morning. His dedication to swimming, his job and a giant family, and more importantly, his ability to, day after day, show up at 5:30 a.m. ready to jump in a cold pool with a giant smile on his face has made me believe that no matter how cold the water is or what lies ahead, the only way to go is just smile and jump in.

[to top of second column in this section]

I also have to thank my parents for all their support and love. They were there when I needed prodding and they were there to pick me up when I fell. They’ve been there through everything, and I know for sure that I wouldn’t be who and where I am today if it weren’t for them.

The only advice I have to give is to never underestimate yourself or your abilities and never take the easy way out. Some people believe that they can’t get anywhere because they were never given an opportunity. No one is ever given an opportunity; you have to make one for yourself, whether it’s in a pool, on a court or in a classroom.

The key is to take the harder path. Sometimes it takes giving up some things such as time and freedom, but in the end, it’s just like an investment. That which you gave up will turn into something much better. For me, the time and freedom and other things that I have given up in the past have allowed me to swim Division I and attend a great college; and the freedom and regular college life that I’m giving up right now will allow me to fly a $30 million aircraft at two times the speed of sound. You cannot give up everything, but unless you make some sacrifices, you will not be able to achieve your goals.

Yes, I would recommend the Air Force Academy and I am glad I came, but I would have to add one thing. It is not for everyone. It is a different life. I already told you a little about freshman year for me. It wasn’t easy and it was rarely fun. The academy offers a great education, great friendships, and I get paid to go to school, but in return I have pledged to give my life in the defense of our nation. I owe at least five years to the Air Force after I graduate and 10 years if I become a pilot.

It is something that must be well thought through before the decision is made. But I’d have to say jumping out of airplanes and flying fighters is an excellent way to spend a summer!

[APRIL 26, 2001]  This week's LDN Sports Talk takes on a different look than ever before. Since I couldn't get the LDN powers-to-be to send me out to Colorado Springs to do this interview, Race and I struggled together by e-mailing. I spent a Saturday coming up with a list of 20 to 25 questions and finally just told him to answer them when he could. He did that while going to class, studying for a test, practicing and, I think, writing a paper. It is very easy for a sports writer like me to have nothing but admiration for young men like Race Steinfort. I'm glad people like him are protecting Payne at night while he sleeps (or keeps his parents up). I hope you loyal LDN fans will enjoy Race's written response to my list of questions as much as I did! On behalf of the LDN, thank you, Race. We all wish you nothing but the best!

Response from Race Steinfort

I’ve been at the USAF Academy for almost three years now. I am currently a Second Class Cadet (junior) and I am still happy with my decision to come, though during my Fourth Class year (freshman) I wasn’t so sure about that one.

[Marshal Haylett and Lincolnite Race Steinfort, teammates on the U.S. Air Force Academy swim team, the Falcons, pose on a crisp-looking day in the Colorado Rockies.]

The application process was a pretty lengthy one. It entailed sending in an application to both the academy and my congressmen, including my representative, the Illinois senators and the vice president. Any of those four government officials could give me a nomination to the academy. Rep. Dick Durbin gave me my nomination. The process for nomination consisted of a few questionnaires and an interview. The next step was to get accepted to the academy. This consisted of a physical fitness test, a very lengthy application with everything from medical history to police records to exactly why I wanted to attend the academy, an interview with an Air Force liaison officer, and an essay on why I wanted to come and what I wanted to do in the Air Force.

One of my requirements for a college was Division I swimming, with the other being aeronautical engineering. I planned on swimming here, and there’s no doubt that it has helped me make it through here. I have been one of the top backstrokers here, placing sixth in both the 100 back and 200 back at the Mountain West Conference, with a 50.02 and a 1:50.09 respectively. My best swim at that meet was in the morning, where I finally broke 1:50 in the 200 back to go a 1:49.39, my lifetime best.

We do get to travel quite a bit. We usually alternate with teams, going to their place one year and having them here the next. The main teams we always swim against are University of Washington, BYU, Utah, UNLV and Wyoming, to name a few. We also travel during Christmas break. We usually leave shortly after Christmas to go somewhere warm like California or Florida to train day in and day out for a little over a week.

[to top of second column in this section]

The question of whether or not being intercollegiate is an advantage is a pretty tough one. Yes, it has helped me a lot, but it has also made some aspects of life more difficult. The best part of being on a team here is the camaraderie and the friendships. We have a very close team here, and all the guys on the team look out for each other like brothers.

The hardest part of the academy is the loss of freedom during freshman year. You come from a high school where you are at the top of the chain, and you walk into a place where you are worth less than the dirt on the ground. It provides quite a bit of emotional stress among other things. I seriously doubted why I came, and I wasn’t sure that I wanted to stay. Everyone was always yelling at me and nothing seemed to be good enough. There was dust inside the smoke detector, a spot on the sink and my shoes were NEVER shiny enough (just a few of the things they’d pick on). The goal was to put as much stress on us as possible to weed out the people who didn’t want to be there and teach the rest of us how to deal with stress. That was pretty much all of basic training and freshman year.

This is where swimming and the team really helped me to get away and remember that I do have friends, and mainly, I wasn’t in this alone. Going down to the pool every day also helps to get away from the academic grind.

This, however, is also where sports are not so much an advantage. We, as intercollegiates, do not have a lighter academic load than anyone else here, despite the fact that we have three to four hours of our afternoon devoted to practice. This provides for many late nights and long weekends doing homework and studying. I’m taking 22.5 hours this semester as well as swimming for three hours every afternoon. Along with this, we, as cadets, have mandatory formations, In Rank Inspections (IRIs—uniform inspections) and Additional Morning Inspections (AMIs—room inspections) which we have to prepare and clean for at least twice a week and sometimes more depending on the leadership and how we did the previous week.

Traveling with the team is another bonus, in that for a weekend or at least a day or two you get to leave the academy and get away for a while. The only problem with that is that you miss classes and usually fall behind in the process, and catching up with 22 hours is not easy! Despite the disadvantages, the friends and the break from the grind for a day or two or even just a few hours in the day make being an intercollegiate well worth it in my mind.

(To be continued)

[click here for Part 2]

Announcements

ALMH golf outing planned

[MAY 29, 2001]  Teams are filling fast for the FORE-ALMH golf outing, so don’t be left out! Get your team signed up for the outing scheduled for Friday, June 29, at the Elk’s Country Club in Lincoln. The format will again be a four-person scramble, with a shotgun start at 7:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Your $75 entry fee includes greens fee and free cart rental, plus opportunities to win prizes and awards including Hole-in-One, Top Foursomes, Longest Putt, Longest Drive and Closest to the Pin for both men and women. Also provided are a continental breakfast and buffet luncheon.

In addition to golfing, a variety of sponsorships are available including Tee, Cart and Prize Sponsorships. Appropriate recognition and benefits are provided for each sponsor.

All funds raised from the golf outing support the ALMH Care-A-Van service. The Care-A-Van is a specially equipped van, custom-built to provide non-emergency transportation for individuals who are wheelchair-bound or need transportation assistance to get to necessary appointments.

For more information on player registration or sponsorship opportunities, please call Cynthia Kelley at (217) 732-2161, Ext. 405.

[ALMH news release]

Play ball with the Lincoln Park District

From Roy Logan, program coordinator

[APRIL 26, 2001]  The phase "play ball" is echoing all around the Lincoln Park District.  Teams for boys and girls have been chosen and practices are in full swing.  Registration for men's and women's softball is currently under way.  If you have not come to the office to pick up your roster and information, you will want to do so soon.

A new league offered this summer is Co-ed Over 40.  This league is strictly for the recreational player.  The season will not last as long.  Play will be at Memorial Park on Thursday nights.

The success of Lincoln's summer baseball and softball programs is directly related to the many local businesses that support the teams financially.  In these times of rising utilities and gas prices, we urge you to support the businesses whose names appear on the team shirts.  It takes not only money but volunteers as well.  Our thanks to the many people who donate their time and talent to coaching and keeping a great game on track.

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