Redbirds win Consolation Championship at the EHT defeating Massac Co.
Franklin County triple-header again tonight in Sesser
by Steve Dunford
Just like last night, the three games in the evening session of the Sesser-Valier holiday tournament involve Franklin County Schools.
Just to catch you up on action from today; West Frankfort beat Hamilton County 50-46 this morning at the Eldorado Holiday Tournament. They play Union County KY in the Consolation Semi- Finals at 4:45
The Benton Rangers beat Trenton-Weslin this morning 62-30 at the Duster Thomas Hoops Classic in Pinckneyville. They take on the Olney Tigers at 8:30 tonight in the auxiliary gym.
Sesser-Valier High School- Southern Illinoisan file photo
Johnston City blew out Zeigler-Royalton this afternoon 74-37 at Sesser Valier. Brendan Whiting led the Tornadoes with 20. Steven Anderson added eight.
You are caught up on everything from everywhere else, now here is the previews of tonight’s games from Sesser-Valier
CHRISTOPHER (4-4) vs CHESTER (8-2)
Last night the Bearcats knocked off a decent New Athens team 65-
35. Kaelab Pedigo exploded again with 27 with six threes. Bradely Young was involved in the offense more as he had 18. Jared Curry added nine.
Chester pulled out a 77-76 Overtime win against Century.
The keys to the game for the Bearcats
- Pedigo is going to have to be hot from the outside, you can throw Curry in there as well.
- They are going to have to continue getting Bradley Young involved in the offense.
- They are going to have to keep even with Chester on the boards.
- Stay out of Foul Trouble
This is a game the lack of depth of the Bearcats might hurt them.
The physicality of Weir down in the post will give Christopher some issues. Savion Smith burned the Bearcats up at Randolph County last season, and the slashing and dribble drive penetration will give them problems tonight.
I am going with the Yellow Jackets by four. I just have a gut feeling Christopher will be in deep foul trouble in this one.
THOMPSONVILLE (3-5) vs GALATIA (3-6)
This is the first of three for sure and possibly five match-ups between these to teams.
With Thompsonville playing a little McLeansboro ball last night, as well as Steeleville playing cat and mouse last night trying to bring T’ville out of their zone, the first half looked like a football score at halftime last night.
Here are the keys to the game for T’ville tonight
- They are going to have to keep it in the 50’s
- They have to get more involved in the offense other than Payne, Kessler and Fitch, who led with 15 on the night
- They have to keep out of foul trouble as well
- I believe if you get the ball into Athoney Darge, you can get Galatia in foul trouble.
After a good start, the Tigers stunk it up the last two times out,
SI Dollar Saver Photo
coming into the tournament. From keeping my ear to the ground the Bearcats looked awful last night
The fourth quarter the Tigers put up against a quality opponent in Steeleville, is just what this young ball club needed.
You can throw the record books out when these two get together. I am going with the Tigers by five.
SESSER-VALIER (3-6) vs STEELEVILLE (7-3)
It sounds like the Red Devils were firing on all eight cylinders coming in to the tourney after playing a brutal schedule.
In the 77-31 win over Galatia, it was a very balanced attack for the Devils, as Charlie Farmer had 15 points on the night with Tyler Winchester, Preston Launius, and Jamie Lance adding 10 on the night. Twelve scored for S-V on the night.
The keys for the Devils tonight are the following:
- Keep playing the way you have at late
- Keep the balanced attack
- Keep Gross from exploding. There are three our four Devils that could do a good job on him.
Both teams will play a lot of players. This is a game that will be decided in the last thirty seconds tonight. I am giving Sesser-Valier the edge being at home. They will pull it out tonight by a point.
Redbirds outlast Foxes-Play Union Co KY at 4:45 this afternoon
ELDORADO- The West Frankfort Redbirds won in the breakfast special at the Eldorado Holiday Tournament defeating the Hamilton County Foxes 50-46 this morning. Noah Allen led WF with 22. Austin Glodich chipped in 13.
They will Play the Union County KY Braves at 4:45 p.m., this afternoon. The Braves are out of Morganfield, which is just a few miles across the river from Shawneetown.
The Braves are led by sharp shooting guard Elex Dunford (no relation) and post player Marqualio King. Noah Allen will shut Dunford down. If King does not get the Redbirds in foul trouble, they should advance to the consolation championship tomorrow. I am going with the Redbirds by five.
-sd
Rangers/Redbirds getting ready to tip it up soon
by Steve Dunford
The WF Redbirds have the breakfast special at the Eldorado Holiday tournament this morning as they will be tipping it up at 8:30 against the Hamilton County Foxes soon. If the internet connection is restored at Duff-Kingston gym, the game will be video streamed on foxesfans.net.
Duster Thomas gymnasium (Picture from the website Hidden Gyms)
The Benton Rangers open action today at the Duster Thomas Hoops classic as they face Trenton-Wesclin this morning at 10:30 in Thomas gym, and play the Olney Tigers this evening.
Benton Coach Ron Winemiller has this to say about both match-ups; “I think Wesclin is one of the best teams we have played all year. They are long athletic and can all really shoot the ball. I am worried about their ability to take us to the post and cause us problems with their length.”
“Olney is very well coached. They aren’t as good as they have been in the past but they will cause us some problems with Miller and Lambeard.”
I will do my best to keep you updated about all Holiday Tournament action on franklincounty-news.com
52nd annual Eldorado Holiday Tournament tips off this morning
Steve Dunford- franklincounty-news.com
I love this tournament, even though I have not been in years. The only thing comparable to the atmosphere when the semi-final games are played, is a sectional final in Southern Illinois.
Eldorado’s Duff-Kingston Gymnasium
This can be a field where anything can happen this year. It has the potential to be one of the most evenly matched tournaments in a long time. FoxesFans.net and areasports.net is going to live video stream the games.
I want to give a big shout out to WEBQ radio for doing an outstanding job on the tournament preview last week. I picked up a lot of information on teams that I am not familiar with.
The Herrin Tigers are back in the tournament this year after leaving to go to Carbondale for a few years; flip flopping with Meridian. Galatia and Vienna traded places, with the Bearcats going to Sesser-Valier. Newcomer to the tournament and the Black Diamond East as well Edwards County took Webster County KY’s place.
WEST FRANKFORT REDBIRDS
Unseeded
Record: 2-4
Coach: Kevin Toney
Enrollment and Class: 546 (2A)
Conference: Southern Illinois River to River-Ohio Division
Games against opponents in the field: (0-2)
Lost to Harrisburg at home 53-42
Lost at Eldorado 60-48
Even when Kevin Toney took his sabbatical from coaching, he could be spotted across gyms in Southern Illinois with a clipboard and a yellow legal pad in his hand. I asked him how many teams that he has scouted in the field of the EHT. He said fourteen; he did not get a look at Union County KY or NCOE yet. I told him that he could pull up film on the Fighting Cardinals from Thompsonville’s YouTube site. I bet he drug something up on Union County by now.
When he scouts a team he says he tries to look out for someone that is similar to the Redbrids and plays man to man.
For those outside of Franklin County that will be reading this, especially teams out of the GEC, I am going to familiarize you with WF.
Noah Allen, a 5′ 8″ guard is a slasher to the basket and can shoot the three. Coach Toney has said on several occasions he has a heart bigger than Max Morris gym.
Austin Glodich, a 6′ 6″ senior, mainly plays on the perimeter. He likes that 22 ft jumper from the wing. He can go in and post up on you as well.
The other two spots in the lineup is 5′ 11″ sophomore Kyle Hammers and. The fifth starter can be a cast of characters, according to the match-up.
The Redbirds play at 1:30 this afternoon. The game should be video streamed on areasports.net and foxesfans.net.
HERRIN TIGERS
Seed: #1
Record: 5-2
Coach: Mike Mooneyham
Enrollment and class: 766 (3A)
Conference: Southern Illinois River to River-Ohio division
No common opponents in field-
The Herrin Starting five has a trio of 6′ 4″ seniors, DJ Spell and the Downen twins, Ty and Jake. They are both outstanding athletes and leapers. All three were mainstays on the Tigers outstanding football team last fall.
The guard tandem of Dalton Bush and Bronson Nessler can shoot the lights out. If teams pack it in to deal with Herrin’s size, this duo could bust someone out of a zone in a hurry.
It will be interesting to see how some teams match-up with the Tigers, especially in the later rounds.
FAIRFIELD MULES
Seed: #2
Coach: Scott McElravy
Enrollment and class: 423 (2A)
Conference: Black Diamond East
Games against opponents in the field (4-0)
Won at Eldorado 41-40
Beat NCOE at home 86-78
Won at Hamilton County 42-41
Beat Edwards County at home 56-50
As you see from the scores above, coach McElravy says the mules have lived a charmed life in the last few games.
I remember from last year, guard Macklyn Snyder is a player. He has a good running mate in Brant McGill. Kolten Dagg and Jaden Lewis is handing a lot of the scoring load for the Mules also.
ELDORADO EAGLES
Seed #3
Record: 10-1
Coach: Josh Bradley
Enrollment and class: 332 (2A)
Games against opponents in the playing field (6-1)
Beat Carrier Mills 43-41 at the Vienna Classic
Beat Vienna 68-38 at the Vienna Classic
Beat Hamilton County 62-50 at Home
Beat Carrier Mills 77-50
Lost to Fairfield 41-40 at home
Beat West Frankfort 62-48 at home
Beat Gallatin County 47-44 at home
For the Eagles, Partridge, Attebury, Meridith and Traxler have logged a lot of varsity minutes over the last couple of seasons. The Eagles will have one of the bigger front lines of anyone in the tournament.
Coach Bradley set a goal at the start of the season to get to the semi finals in the tournament. One thing that is perplexing to him about this team is, when they can score from the field, they can not hit free throws and vise versa. He wants to run and gun more.
HARRISBURG BULLDOGS
Seed: #4
Record: 2-4
Coach: Randy Smithpeters
Enrollment and class: 557 (2)
Conference: Southern Illinois River-to-River Ohio
Opponents played in the field: (1-1)
Beat West Frankfort on the road 53-42
Lost to Massac at Home 65-61
First of all congratulations to Coach Smithpeters, for being elected to the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
One thing that is mentioned about the Bulldogs is the loss of point guard Blake Drue to a football injury. Coach Randy Smithpeters says there is a lot of roles that are shuffled and Drue’s injury really hurts their depth. He mentioned the players have looked to him for leadership since junior high.
The Bulldogs still have Isaiah Salusbury on thier roster, in my view is one of the most exciting players in Southern Illinois. Jordan Gould is a jack of all trades player for Harrisburg Noah Ferrell is a big outside threat. Austin Hefner, and Jordan Bartock will see a lot of time this week for the bulldogs.
If the Bulldogs make it to the championship, Coach Smithpeters says they can not look past Hamilton County and realize they will have four tough games.
CARMI-WHITE COUNTY
Seed #5
Record: 7-1
Coach: Kevin Wolff
Enrollment and class: 366 (2A)
Conference: Black Diamond East
Games against opponents in the field: (2-0)
Won at home against NCOE 76-63
Beat Hamilton County on the road 55-37
The Bulldogs won their first tournament in nearly two decades as they won the DuQuoin tip-off classic right after Thanksgiving.
C-W-C has been led by guard Matt Rice and post player Jake Simon. Justice Stubblefield, Travis Black, and Bryce Norcott
Coach Wolff says he is pleased with the balance of the club. He said the 13 point loss to Benton was a measuring stick to see where they were at, and thought they played well.
EDWARDS COUNTY LIONS
Seed: #6
Record: 7-1
Coach : Russ Grelach
Enrollment: 282 (1A)
Conference: Black Diamond East
Games against teams in the field:
Beat Gallatin County at Grayville Tournament 68-50
Beat Hamilton County at home 52-44
Anything that I have heard about Edwards County is that 6′ 6″ Nathan Schmitmer is a special player. Their two other main players is Cade Schnicker and Bobby Brake.
Coach Gerlach says the Lions go about eight deep.
MASSAC COUNTY PATRIOTS
Seed: #7
Record: 2-2
Coach: Joe Hosman
Enrollment and class: 588 (3A)
Games against teams in the tournament: (2-0)
Beat Anna-Jonesboro at home 53-41
Beat Harrisburg on the road 65-61
Congratulations Coach Hosman on your 700th win!
Last year’s tournament MVP, J.T Weber did not go out for, basketball as well as Noah Farmer. Both of them signed letters of intent to play baseball for the SIU Salukis.
Darius Roundtree and big man in the middle Isaiah Thomson is back for a good nucleus left.
Coach Hosman basically said, we are not very good, not very deep, and going to play a lot of zone. I have heard this before and he ends up winning 20 games.
ANNA-JONESBORO WILDCATS
Seed: #8
Record: 4-7
Coach: Mike Chamness
Enrollment and Class: 520 Class 2A
Conference: Southern Illinois River to River-Mississippi Division
Games against teams in the tournament:
Lost to Massac County on the road 53-41
Beat Hardin County 58-42 at the Goreville Tournament
Beat Hamilton County 60-36 at the Goreville Tournament
The first thing Mike Chamness said on the interview with WEBQ was I hope that we are more of a morning team than Union County KY. They are playing the breakfast opener as we speak. They loser gets to play the midnight special at 10p.m. tonight.
From watching them at Goreville, the Wildcats were a perimeter focused team with Jake Parr, Sheldon McGrath, and occasionally Jacob Zimmerman. It is a rebuilding year for the Wildcats as graduation hit them heavily last year.
UNION COUNTY KY BRAVES
Record: 2-5 
Coach: Shane Smith
Enrollment: 620, Region 2, District 6
Thier two main players is Elex Dunford and Marqualio King. The school is located just a few miles east of Shawneetown.
Vienna Eagles
Record: 8-1
Coach: Cory Waters
Enrollment: 332 (2A)
Conference: Black Diamond West
Opponents Played in field:
Beat Carrier Mills 63-56 at own tournament
Lost to Eldorado 68-38 in own tournament
The Eagles are one of the surprise teams in Southern Illinois, as they were supposed to be a mediocre ball club.
Seeing the most time for the Eagles will be Ben Daine, Lucas Stricklin, Gabe Snell, John Breedon, and Brandon Casey.
Hamilton County Foxes
Record: 2-7
Coach: Jeremy Varner
Enrollment and class: 333 (2A)
Conference: Black Diamond East
Opponents in field: (1-5)
Beat Hardin County 73-67 at Goreville
Lost to Anna-Jonesboro 60-36 at Goreville
Lost at Eldorado 62-50
Lost to Carmi at home 55-37
Lost to Fairfield at home 42-41
Lost at Edwards County 52-44
The main core of the Foxes has saw a lot of playing time since their Sophmore year. They are led by Oakley Dial a four year starter. The other starters are Austin Potter, Noah Rapp, Ethan Rapp,and Jake Whipple. Matt Rubenacher will see a lot of time.
Coach Jeremy Varner is happy with the Foxes right now and says they are where they need to be. He says he will play a lot of people.
GALLATIN COUNTY HAWKS
Record: 6-2
Coach: Doug Miller
Enrollment and class: 188 (1A)
Conference: Greater Egyptian
Common opponents in field: (1-2)
Lost to Edwards County 68-50 at Grayville
Lost to Eldorado 47-44 in OT
Beat Carrier Mills 68-53 at home
The Hawks have one of the better guards in Southern Illinois in Seth Ramsey. Sophmores Audie Gobel and Robbie Prince are the two other main cogs in the Gallatin County Wheel.
The Hawks mainly play man to man, but they can play a wicked zone too. They can either run or play half court ball and adjust to the opponents.
NORRIS CITY-OMAHA-ENFIELD FIGHTING CARDINALS
Record: 3-6
Coach: Evan Wylie
Enrollment and classification: 197 (1A)
Conference: Greater Egyptian
Opponents in the field: (1-2)
Lost at Carmi-White County 76-63
Lost at Fairfield 86-78
Beat Hardin County 82-69
The Cardinals are led by Matt Long who is averaging 27 a game. Cooper Wells a 6′ 4″ senior can post up or hit the three. Trenton Verble is their third leading scorer.
NCOE plays a style of ball that no team in Southern Illinois tries to play. Coach Wylie says their goal is to shoot 80 shots a game and 40 of them be three pointers. They have a ferocious 3/4 court press.
HARDIN COUNTY COUGARS
Record: 2-6
Coach: Rodney Lane
Enrollment and class: 175 (1A)
Conference: Greater Egyptian
Common Opponets in the field
Lost to AJ 58-42 at Goreville
Lost to Anna-Jonesboro 58-42 at Goreville
Won at home against Carrier Mills 65-60
Lost on the road at NCOE 83-69
The cougars are led by 1,000 point scorer Tyler Winters. Cameron Shaw is his running mate in the back court and he can hit the three. Inside they have a very physical 6′ 3″ Craig Hudson. They also have Jamison Hicks who 6′ 6″.
Their record might not be pretty. However the Cougars have strengthened their schedule this year. For one, going to the Goreville Tournament. Coach Lane told me he did not care if he won a game there, he wants to get them ready for the post season. It is noteworthy they boarded the ferry and picked up a win over Crittendon County KY, a much larger school.
CARRIER MILLS WILDCATS
RECORD: 4-6
COACH: Keil Peebles
Enrollment: 121 (1A)
Conference: Greater Egyptian
Opponents in the tournament:
Lost to Vienna 63-56 in their tournament
Lost 43-41 to Eldorado at Vienna
Lost on the road to Hardin County 65-60
Lost on the road to Gallatin County 62-53
Lost at home to Eldorado 77-40
The three main threats for the Wildcats is Brody Walker, Justice Hill and they have a freshman point guard in Will Gibbs who is wise beyond his years.
Coach Keil Peebles mainly plays a 2-1-2 zone. He says games in the 40’s or 50’s they have more of a chance to win.
Franklin County HS Boys Basketball Preview-afternoon edition
Steve Dunford- franklincounty-news.com
West Frankfort and Carmi-White County will be tipping it up around 11:30 down at the Eldorado Holiday Tournament. Woodlawn will be playing Zeigler-Royalton around 12:30
Carrier Mills and Herrin are playing right now as we speak. It is happening like I thought it would be. With the chance of running clock, I better get this going.
Thank you all for your comments that look for what I have to say in the gym. This is my favorite part of covering HS. Sports
WEST FRANKFORT vs CARMI-WHITE COUNTY
This is an intriguing match-up to me. I can see where the Redbirds could cause the Bulldogs some match up problems.
I can easily see the defensive battle between John Rice and Noah Allen to be a dandy. I can also see a battle down low between Jake Simon and Keagan Thrash.
This is not a slam to Thrash. Simon is one of the better athletes in Southern Illinois. I believe he was the best QB, hands down, in the Black Diamond last fall. I give the
I don’t know why big Jaryd Clark was not in there on Thursday. Scotty Clinton gave coach Kevin Toney some valuable minutes down low. I believe we are going to see some more varsity minutes out of C.J. Johnson in.
Austin Glodich can definitely cause the bulldogs problems if he is facing the basket.
The Redbirds are developing a nice bench. It is a luxury that Coach Toney did not have last year.
You can not compare scores. You can say that the Bulldogs gave Benton a run for their money for three quarters. The second quarter the Rangers played against the Redbirds was unreal.
It is going to be a barn burner this afternoon. I am going with Carmi by one. I would not be one bit surprised if WF goes right in the bracket.
ZEIGLER ROYALTON vs WOODLAWN
This is not going to be a pushover to the Cardinals. Z-R plays harder than any team I ever watched.
I think Steven Anderson and Brendan Whiting match up well with Blake Wollernam and Trey Isaac.
I can see Jordan Hoppa causing the Tornadoes some match-up 
problems in the post.
I am curious whether Matt Morgan might have Z-R come out in a zone. Woodlawn does not have the shooters like last year.
I am going with the Cardinals by 14. I can see the Tornadoes giving them a good ball game.
Holiday Tournament Previews released on Christmas night
Steve’s Ramblings
Steve Dunford – franklincounty-news.com
First of all let me explain my reasoning for releasing the previews on Christmas night. I am doing this in honor of the late voice of the West Frankfort Redbrids, Bruce A. Fasol. He used to have his tournament preview on WFRX at 7 P.M. on Christmas night. I recorded a lot of audio tape of it back in the day. I will have Sesser-Valier, and Eldorado completed. Since Pinckneyville does not start until the 27th. I might need some extra time. If not on Christmas I will have that completed on the 26th.
The late long time Redbird broadcaster Bruce Fasol with his long time color man Rick Westemeyer, in Bruce’s “Bird Perch. Westemeyer is now the voice of the Redbirds.
If anyone has any info about any teams from the DTHC, please let me know. I want to keep every fan informed.
I will not be able to attend any holiday tournament this year. I am going to rely on different media sources to keep everyone informed.
The IHSA released sites and parings this week for the postseason. I will be posting them and breaking them down after the first of the year.
I had it all laid out for the county teams on this post. I looked at the meter and it was 600 words. I could not access the site for a while. It did not auto save. I guess it was the Lord’s way of saying I was one winded.
I love talking to coaches. I talked to Marissa-Coulterville coach Scott Wine on the phone for about an hour. He filled me in on the teams in the Cahokia conference. I have had several conversations with coaches this week. I love it…
Speaking of talking basketball, I love taking to Rich Herrin over the years. I have had a lot of good conversations with him after Morthland games. I sit behind the bench so I can watch him coach and soak every minute of it.
Since it is Christmas, I have a story to tell about coach Herrin. I was talking to Norman “Doc” Melvin at Christmastime last year. He told me that Coach Herrin received his first cell phone as a Christmas gift several years ago.
There were all the numbers loaded in it. Doc receives a call from Coach Herrin after 11 P.M. on Christmas night wanting to talk basketball. He was going through his contacts calling everyone. You “gotta” love it.
I think you see why I call it ramblings. I just say random things. I have had my highest compliments on this time of post since I started writing. They used to be one long paragraph and punctuation optional. You will see more. By the way I have hit the over 400 mark again.
I want to wish everyone reading a Merry Christmas. Remember the reason for the season. A baby was born of a virgin and went to the cross, so that a rotten sinner like me could have eternal life. He died for you too. That is what the season is all about.
West Frankfort gets big road win at Goreville last night
The FCHS Redbirds boys JV and Varsity basketball teams both picked up big wins on the road at Goreville Thursday. In the varsity game, Lucas Wolfe (4) and Austin Glodich (2) hit six straight free throws in the final :30 as West Frankfort held on for a hard fought 70-68 victory. The game was very close for the first three quarters as West Frankfort led at every break 12-11, 30-29 and 44-42. The Redbirds came out on fire at the start of the 4th quarter and led by 11 points with 5:00 on the game. West Frankfort had a very balanced scoring attack with four players in double figures. Noah Allen led the way with 17 points. Kyle Hammers was close behind with 14, while Glodich scored 11 points. With most of their starters in foul trouble, West Frankfort got huge contributions off the bench from 6’3” senior Scott Clinton and the the 5”8” junior Wolfe. Clinton finished with 10 points and played good interior defense to help shut down Goreville’s talented 6’6” center Brent Glidewell who scored 8 points. Wolfe scored 8 points, including 6 huge free throws in the final quarter. HIs quickness on defense was also a big factor in the win. Keagan Thrash scored 4 points, while Brendan Russell and Andrew Sturghill added 3 and 2 points respectively. Johnson rounded out the scoring with one free throw. ….Please click to read the rest of the story from westfrankfortsports.com
Rivalry night in Franklin County
Steve Dunford-Franklin County Hoops And Gridiron
There are only two games involving county schools tonight and they are playing each other. The West Frankfort Redbirds make the short six mile trip up Route 37 to Rich Herrin Gym, to play the Benton Rangers. The Christopher Bearcats have a short eight mile trip up Route 148 to take on the Sesser-Valier Red Devils.
West Frankfort (0-1)(1-3) at Benton (1-0)(7-0)
The Rangers are off to the fast start like last year as they were undefeated going into the Duster Thomas Hoops Classic. The Redbirds has a o fer off their record in holiday tournament play as they picked up their first two wins at the Eldorado Holiday Tournament. Here is what Ranger Coach Ron Winemiller had to say about the match-up this evening. “I expect both teams to be very
prepared for what we like to do. I expect WF will try and use their size and force the ball inside. I hope our ball pressure can cause them some problems. It doesn’t matter what the records are it is Benton vs West Frankfort, so you know both teams will play with a lot of passion. “
Redbird Coach Kevin Toney had this to say about tonight. “I hope we can handle the ball against them. They make everything so difficult on both ends of the floor and it will be a challenge. But that is what every team attempts to do. We need to go into another teams gym, and put all the distractions out of our mind. We just need to play how we know we can play.”
I jot down keys to the game. I had the Redbirds size and length could give the Rangers problems, just as Coach Winemiller said. The Rangers have went nine deep with out missing a beat. West Frankfort is much deeper this year as well.
Benton’s press is ferocious. If the Redbirds struggle with it, it could be a long night. In addition they can flat out shoot the basketball. So can Noah Allen.
West Frankfort will start 6′ 6″ and 6′ 5″ in Austin Glodich and Keagan Thrash. They can bring 6′ 5″ off the bench in Bradlee Croslin. The Rangers tallest guy that has saw significant time is Parker Williams at 6′ 3″
Derek Oxford and Timmy Henson are four year starters, if you count Henson’s freshman year at Thompsonville. Austin Wills has logged a lot of varsity minutes.
Throwing in the anticipated “junior five” for Benton, I have to give the edge to the Rangers by 12 tonight. The Redbirds will be ready to play in a hard fought contest.
Christopher (2-3)(0-0) at Sesser-Valier (1-0)(2-4)
This is the BDC West opener for Christopher. Sesser-Valier pulled a major upset in defeating the Chester Yellow Jackets in their only conference game of the year.
Both teams were involved barn burner losses on Tuesday night. The Bearcats lost on a buzzer beater 43-41 to the Waltonville Spartans by former Bearcat, Isaac McPhail. The Red Devils were involved in a track meet down at Johnston City Losing 88-86.
Kaleab Pedigo can shoot the rock, so can Charlie Farmer. Gabe Schimpf can fill it up in an blue and orange uniform tonight.
Going into the season, I was concerned about the Bearcats post game. Jared Curry shot up to 6’5″ and Cole Sanders transferred from Z-R over the summer.
I would be at one or the other place tonight if I could. One thing I would be curious about which Devil will guard Bradley Young. I have a feeling it will be Joshua Gunter. The Z word is not in Shane Garner or Eric Stallman’s vocabulary.
A couple advantages that S-V has over Christopher is they are deeper at the three spot whether it be Gunter, Preston Launius, or Addison Baxter. They are more physical in the post with Jamie Lance, Addison Page, and Seth Boles.
Curry has been playing the point for the Bearcats setting the offense and going in and posting up. Lukas Gunter is one of the better 1A point guards in Southern Illinois but advantage Curry in this position with the height advantage. Curry will cause match-up problems all over the floor tonight.
It is no secret the Bearcats like to run. With Shane Garner able to play 10 or 11, it would be to the Devils advantage.
If two tom cats were fighting in 18 bottoms from each town, there would be maroon and red and grey in the crowd. There would be Maroon and Orange in a cat fight between the two at the Valier Patch as well.
I have went over several scenarios in my head who will come on top in this one. I have had some with Sesser-Valier and Christopher winning on my legal pad full of scribbles.
I have been told I have instincts as a prognosticator. I am going with the Bearcats in a buzzer beater by Pedigo hitting a three. Young will have at least 15-20 tonight.
I am either the most loved or hated man in the county tonight. And old geezer like me trying to be a prognosticator does not matter much. What I have to say will go out the window at tip-off.
IHSA estabishes pitch counts for HS baseball
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors met at its regularly scheduled meeting at the IHSA office in Bloomington 
on Monday, December 12, 2016, where the Board voted to implement a pitching regulation Policy in the sport of baseball. The pitch limitations are effective immediately and will be used by IHSA member schools during the 2017 baseball season this spring.
The limitations approved by the Board closely mirror the pitching limitations jointly developed by the IHSA’s Baseball Advisory Committee and Sports Medicine Advisory Committee. The most significant change from the original recommendation is dropping the maximum number of pitches in a game from 115 pitches to 105 pitches.
Click here to see the Pitch Count Guidelines Policy.
“This was a collaborative effort that goes a long way toward making high school baseball in Illinois safer,” said IHSA Sports Medicine Advisory Committee member Dr. Preston Wolin. “I want to thank the IHSA Board, the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee, the Baseball Advisory Committee, and all the people who were indispensable in this process for their efforts.”
Dr. Wolin was a guest of the Baseball Advisory Committee at their August meeting, where he presented the recommendations of the Sports Medicine Advisory to the group.
The Board of Directors reviewed the pitching limitation recommendation in the fall and chose to present it to the IHSA membership for feedback during the Association’s annual Town Hall Meetings in November.
“Kudos to the Baseball Advisory and Sports Medicine Advisory committees for working together on behalf of student safety,” said IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson. “We believe that the NFHS and its state association membership have been leaders in this area in all sports, but ultimately, the high school season encompasses a short window. We hope that youth and travel baseball organizations will follow our lead to help protect these pitchers and their arms.”
The IHSA is developing a process for schools to submit their game-by-game pitching counts via the IHSA website, which will be presented to coaches and school personnel prior to the season. The Board confirmed that a violation of the Policy could result in forfeiture and that all violations of the Policy will be reviewed by the Executive Director on a case-by-case basis.
Courtesy of a press release from the Illinois High School Association.
