Sports

State runner-up

Published by admin on Tue, 03/14/2023 - 4:38pm

The Coal City Middle School wrestling team had six of 14 state qualifiers place on Friday and Saturday during the IESA Class 1A state finals held in DeKalb, IL.

Seventh grader Jake Munsterman (75) and eighth graders Owen Petersen (95) and Cooper Morris (100) were crowned state champions.

Placing second for the Warriors was sixth grader Ryder Gill (65) while Brody D’Orazio (167), eighth grade, won the third place medal and Brantley Brooks (70) finished sixth.

Coalers ‘destine for greatness’ are state champs

Published by admin on Tue, 02/28/2023 - 4:55pm

Eleven times Coal City’s wrestling team advanced to the IHSA Dual Team State tournament without placing first.

That changed on Saturday when Coal City edged Yorkville Christian, 32-31, to claim the state championship in Bloomington.

Yorkville Christian, the defending 1A champions, upset the Coalers in the Seneca Regional at year ago. This time the stars aligned for Coal City in a back-and-fourth contest that ended with the Coalers entering the final match with a 7-point lead and able to default and still win.

Winning culture lures James to North Central

Published by admin on Tue, 02/21/2023 - 5:27pm

All-State running back Colin James is leaving one winning program for another.
James, who led Wilmington in rushing with 1,480 yards and 22 touchdowns, recently signed a letter of intent to attend North Central College in Naperville, looking for spot on the defending Division III National Championship football team.
The Wildcat senior considered other schools like Monmouth, St. Francis and Roosevelt but North Central had something he felt on his first visit.

Comets giving Coach Porter a final run

Published by admin on Tue, 02/21/2023 - 5:23pm

The Coalers needed a miracle Saturday while playing at Reed-Custer for the opening round of the regional.
And they almost got it, coming back from a 15-point deficit to close within five before the Comets held on to win it 70-61.
“Survive and advance, it’s that time of year,” said Reed-Custer coach Mark Porter. “That's what you want to do and we were able to do that. We played extremely well offensively, especially in the second quarter. We attacked the basket how we wanted to and gave ourselves a nice lead.”

Coalers the top pick for return to state

Published by admin on Tue, 02/21/2023 - 5:18pm

The outcome of Tuesday night’s dual team sectional championship was unknown as of press time, but we’re betting that the Coal City wrestling team won and will advance to state.
The Coalers were to face Chicago Hope Academy in the Wilmington sectional, a team that didn’t advance anyone to the state individual tournament while Coal City had 14 qualifiers.

First round state bodes well for 11 of 21 area wrestlers

Published by admin on Thu, 02/16/2023 - 6:55pm

Eleven area wrestlers won during the first round of the IHSA Class 1A finals.

Coal City had eight of 14 state qualifiers win their preliminary match on Thursday, advancing to the quarterfinals on Friday. Winning were Brody Widlowski (113), Aiden Kenney (120), Jake Piatak (132), Buddy Widlowski (138), Mataeo Blessing (145), Derek Carlson (170), Braiden Young (182) and Joey Breneman (195).

Coalers an elite group of state qualifiers

Published by admin on Tue, 02/14/2023 - 4:54pm

The IHSA state wrestling tournament features 16 qualifiers in each of 14 weight classes. What’s remarkable is Coal City will have a wrestler in each weight level when the Class 1A event begins on Thursday in Champaign, IL

It was a great day to be a Coaler Saturday during the sectional when all 14 qualified, a school record. Their previous best was 11 in 2020 and 2017.

They simply dominated the field with six sectional champions, four second place finishes, two in third place and two fourths.

Coaler matmen on the verge of greatness

Published by admin on Tue, 01/31/2023 - 4:57pm

The Coal City wrestling team is on the verge of greatness as all the stars are lined up as they head into Saturday’s regional at Reed-Custer.

The Coalers are ranked No. 1 in the state in Class 1A and have a roster featuring 12 state-ranked wrestlers and a dozen more underclassmen who are just waiting for the chance to prove their worth.

The Coalers finished their regular season on Thursday when they hosted Plainfield East on the auditorium stage for Senior Night. They won it easily, 69-6, tying a school record for most wins in a season at 39-2.

Coalers hit a three-game slid

Published by admin on Tue, 01/31/2023 - 4:56pm

The Coal City boys basketball team had a rough week, winning one of four games played.
On Saturday they lost 63-58 to St. Anne despite having three players scoring in double figures. The Coalers trailed 36-23 at the half but rallied to tie it 43-43 entering the final quarter. The Cardinals made their free-throws count during a 20-14 fourth period to win ˆt.

Coalers, Comets to battle for ICE title Thursday

Published by admin on Tue, 01/17/2023 - 5:17pm

It will be a clash of titans on Thursday when Coal City travels to Reed-Custer to likely decide who will be the Illinois Central Eight Conference wrestling champions.

Both teams are undefeated in the ICE and have full rosters to boot.

The Coalers are 37-2 overall and are formidable, having won the 60-team Abe’s Rumble dual team challenge in Springfield, IL last month and claiming the esteemed Princeton Invite Tournament Jan. 7, with enough individual wins for first by a 57-point margin.