Local Report: Little League title games on tap

Del Sur Mortgage, the Napa National Little League baseball champion in the Minor A Division, will take an 18-0 record into Saturday’s city championship game against Napa American champion Carl’s Auto Body (9-7-2) at Garfield Park’s Volunteer Field.

Other city title matchups set for 1 p.m. Saturday at Garfield Park will be Rasmusen Painting against Fire in the Major Division on Baumgartner Field, and Ranch Markets against Snap-On Tools in the Minor B Division on Cardwell Field.

Rasmusen Painting’s players are Cole Capitani, Ethan Castelazo, Carson Hall, Christoph Horton, Cameron Jordan, Jaxon Oden, Eleazid Rojas, Robert Ruiz, Connor Smith, Jacob Umali, Austin Whitehead and Elliott Zuidema. The manager is Billy Smith and the coaches are Jason Hall, Billy Whitehead and Mark Castelazo.

Fire’s players are Jacob DeGraw, Carter Haven, Kiamo Huerta, Jesse Hunt, Nathan Materne, Mason Medina, Justice Penterman, Justin Ray, John Ruiz Jr., Harley Sanders, Vincent Santiago and Dylan Snider. The manager is Jacob Ray and the coaches are Dale Snider, William Santiago and Brian Penterman.

Del Sur Mortgage’s players are Dominic Goss, Charlie Keller, Jaden Washington, J.D. Lopez, Bruno Freschi, Brandon Guiducci, Finn Salese, Jacob Rosentiel, Henry La Liberte, Dario Freschi, Jose Soriano and Mason Chavoen. The manager is Bob Freschi and the coaches are Chris Salese, Josh Goss and Jim Keller.

Carl’s Auto Body’s players are Aiden Erickson, Connor Gongora, Bailey Huss, Andrew Jobe, Liam Joy, James Niedhoefer, Jake Newman, Jeffrey Page Jr., Logan Rogers, Jay Ruiz, Charlie Vaziri and Joseph Willis. The manager is Ben Gongora and the coaches are Kory Erickson and Jeff Page.

Snap On Tools’ players are Hunter Horvath, Bo Lode, Francisco Mares, Angel Moreno, Jake Perez, Blake Porter, Braden Schuh, Jack Thomas, Julio Vega, Jacob Weaver, Hunter Weis and Kayen West. The manager is Steve Porter and the coaches are Dale Pinkney and Kelly Lode.

Ranch Markets’ players are Joy Bradbury, David Cruz Jr., Hayden Due, Eli Ewig, Alessio Fantucci, Cameron Gerien, Brett Holman, Nathan Jewell, Jack Keller, Griffin Messenger, Chase Padowan, Alex Stevens and Niko Tavakoli. The manager is Chris Padowan and the coaches are Bill Bradbury, J Scott Gerien, Kian Tavakoli and Chris Holman.

Playing consolation games at 10 a.m. will be Police against Reliable Refrigeration in the Major Division, Wyman Property Management against Dub’s Sports in the Minor A Division, and Shanahan Construction against Fazerrati’s Pizza in the Minor B Division.

Police’s players are Lucas Brandon, Chase Briskovich, Jack Davidson, Dylan Karis, Carson McCaffrey, Samuel Neal, Nathaniel, Perry, Noah Piersig, AJ Schreiner, Christian Smith, Dylan Tate and Cameron Taylor. The manager is Cam Neal and the coach is Rob Brandon.

Reliable Refrigeration’s players are Louie Canepa, Peyten Czekalewski, Charlie Feaver, Thomas Foster, Samiel Gomez, Zach Guck, eric Gutierrez, Calvin Johnson, Spencer Marks, Kaleb Matulich, Nathan Schwarze and Jack Sheehan. The manager is Spencer Czekalewski and the coaches are Garrett Roualdes, Dan Schwarze and Raymond Guck.

Wyman’s players are Reese de Lorimier, Owen Hardwick, Riley Love, Rowan Love, Mason Meyer, Gus Mundy, Zack Simi, Samuel Smith, Collin Taylor, Ty Tharp, Charlie Wenzel and Grayson Wyman. The manager is Brian Mundy and the coaches are Alex Simi, Todd Wenzel and Michael Smith.

Dub’s Sports’ players are Tyler Bradford, John Bullock, David Capra, Dylan Chatham, Carson Degarmo, Grayson Frye, Trace Madigan, Zachary Murrell, Ted Simpkins, Kane Williams, Jaden Wright and Nolan Wright. The manager is Joe Madigan and the coaches are Jeremy Bullock, Eric Bradford, Josh Degarmo, Jason Chatham and Kyle Ferreira.

Shanahan’s players are Beatrice Balbuena, Brody Bloomer, Theo Engering-Ward, Sahan Khaira, Ari Massey, Josh McCall, Gabriel Reyes, Finnegan Shanahan, Jack Shea, Stevano Snider and Alexander Winske. The manager is Conor Massey and the coaches are Gabe Reyes and Alex Winske.

The Fazerrati’s players are Hudson Anderson, Ryder Cantrell, Sawyer Carmichael, Charlie Crump, Andrew Douglas, Hunter Griffin, Everett Kincaid, Mac Leamer, Nathan Oliver, Mason Rozalski, Lucas van de Pol and Jordan Washington. The manager is Albert Washington and the coaches are Tyler Anderson, Steve Crump, Tom Oliver and Richard Rozalski.

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Napa Valley Baseball Club

The Napa 19’s went 3-1 in the recent Memorial Weekend Tournament at Woodland High.

On May 28, Napa opened with a 10-5 win over West Sacramento.

Going 3 for 4 to lead the team at the plate were leadoff hitter Jaksen Wilson, who also walked and scored twice, and No. 9 hitter Felipe Gonzalez. Ross Henderson was 2 for 2 with a double, three runs and two walks, and Tyler Rustice went 2 for 3 with a walk and run.

Also with hits were Juan Carlos Lopez-Rios (1 for 5, run), Jason Brandow (1 for 3, double, two runs, walk), Luke Lipanovich (1 for 3, hit by pitch, run) and Jacob Ray (1 for 3, walk).

Daniel Gonzalez pitched first two innings, allowing three runs on five hits, a walk and a strikeout. Nick Akey pitched the next four, yielding one run on a hit, walk and strikeout, and Felipe Gonzalez pitched the last inning, giving up one run and two hits, and hitting a batter and striking out two.

In the first of two games on May 29, Napa scored three runs in the second to take the lead for good in a six-inning 8-2 win over Haggin-Grant of Sacramento. Rustice and Lipanovich combined to strike out eight and allow only two baserunners in five shutout relief innings.

Ray was 4 for 4 with three RBIs and three runs, Nick Akey 3 for 3 with two RBIs, a sacrifice fly and two runs, and Jake Rasmusen 3 for 4 with an RBI, run and stolen base to lead the way. Wilson was 2 for 4 with a run, walk and stolen base, and Justin Harp went 2 for 2 with a run. Also hitting were Lopez-Rios (1 for 4, run), Henderson (1 for 2, walk), Lipanovich (1 for 3, walk, two stolen bases) and Rustice (1 for 1, walk).

That afternoon, Napa fell 8-3 to an experienced Merced squad. Rustice (1 for 3, two RBIs, run) hit a two-run homer in in the sixth to pull Napa within 4-3, but Merced answered with four runs in the seventh on a triple, double, single and two walks.

Also with hits were Lopez-Rios (2 for 3, run), Max Phipps (1 for 2, walk, run), Wilson (1 for 4, RBI), Brandow (1 for 3), Akey (1 for 3) and Harp (1 for 2, walk).

Napa finished strong with an 11-5 rout of Yuba City on May 31, breaking open a 5-4 game with six runs in the sixth.

Lipanovich was 2 for 3 with two doubles, two RBIs and a run, Ray went 2 for 4 with an RBI double, RBI single and two runs, and Rustice was 2 for 4 with a run and a two-run single in the sixth. Other hits came from Joe Canepa (1 for 2, RBI single, two runs), Wilson (1 for 5, RBI single, run), Rasmusen (1 for 4, run), Lopez-Rios (1 for 3, RBI sacrifice fly, run) and Henderson (1 for 4, RBI double, run).

Felipe Gonzalez pitched first three innings, allowing three runs on five hits, a walk and six strikeouts. Rustice pitched last four, yielding one run on five hits, two walks and four strikeouts.

Raiders beat WMU in NCAA Regionals on Saturday

The Wright State baseball team tied the school single-season record for wins Saturday afternoon, scoring in six of nine innings to defeat Western Michigan 10-3 in a NCAA Regional elimination game at Jim Patterson Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky.

The Raiders jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the first.  Matt Morrow started the game with a hit to right and Peyton Burdick drew a one-out walk.  One out later, Sean Murphy walked to load the bases and Gabe Snyder followed with a single deep behind the bag at second to drive in Morrow and Burdick.

WMU, though, answered with two of its own in the bottom of the first and it stayed that way until WSU took the lead for good with a run in the third as Burdick walked and Ryan Fucci plated him with a double down the left field line.

Wright State extended the lead to 5-2 with two more in the fourth.  After a John Brodner walk, a Zach Weatherford bunt hit and Morrow moving both runners into scoring position with another bunt, Mitch Roman delivered a two-run double to right center.

JD Orr made it 7-2 with a two-run single in the fifth and the margin grew to 9-2 an inning later as Burdick singled in Morrow and later scored on a Murphy triple to right center.

The Raiders rounded out their scoring in the seventh on an Orr double followed by a Brodner hit to right.

Robby Sexton (7-3) was in control after allowing the two runs in the first, giving up just a run on three hits and a walk over his final 5.2 innings of work, retiring 15 straight batters in one stretch.  Logan Blair closed out the game with 2.1 shutout innings.

With the victory, Wright State (45-16) tied the 1989 squad, which finished 45-12 in the program’s second season in Division I, for the most single-season wins in school history.

Offensively, Morrow, Roman, Fucci, Murphy, Orr and Brodner each had two hits with Burdick scoring three times and Morrow twice.  Roman, Snyder and Orr each drove in two.

Wright State will face Ohio State in another elimination contest on Sunday at noon.  Should the Raiders win that one, they would face Louisville later Sunday at 4:00.

Tuesday's prep results

BASEBALL

Edgewood 4, Wyoming 1

W–Reckart (1-0); L–Harper (0-1). Leaders: E–Schmidt 2 RBI; Rose RBI. Records: E 4-2, W 0-8.

Fairfield 1, Oak Hills 0

W–Lange (2-0); L–Hubert (0-1, 8 Ks); Sv–Barker (1). Leaders: F–Mathis 2-3; Selvie RBI. OH–Wetterich 3-4. Records: F 6-3, OH 4-4.

Fayetteville-Perry 10, Whiteoak 0 (five innings)

W–Crone (2-1, 11 Ks); L–Burns. Leaders: FP–Crone 2-4, 2 2B, 2 RBI; Iles 2-4, 2 RBI; Wolfer 2-2, RBI; Dowers 2 RBI.

Harrison 8, Talawanda 2

W–Miller (2-0, 9 Ks); L–Damuth (0-2). Leaders: H–Hogue 3-4; James 2B, 3 RBI; Watson 2B. T–Morgan 2B. Records: H 6-1, T 4-4.

Lakota East 5, Princeton 4

W–Sherman (3-1); L–Boyle (1-4); Sv–Lepper (4). Leaders: LE–Lepper 2B; Jaeger 2-2; Szybowski 2-3, 3 RBI; W. Owens 2-3, 2B. Records: LE 8-2, P 3-5.

Lakota West 11, Middletown 2

W–Muha (2-0); L–Caudill. Leaders: LW–Mosley 2B; Moyer 2-3, 2 2B, 2 RBI; Wullenweber 2-4; Harrison 2-3, 2 RBI. M–Patterson 2B. Record: LW 6-3.

Milford 13, Anderson 6

W–Baugh (1-0); L–Pursinger (0-1); Sv–Ruehlman (1). Leaders: M–Hall 2-4, 2B, HR, 3 RBI; Kirk 2-4, 2B; Hunter 2-4, 2B. A–Z. Williams 2B. Records: M 7-0, A 2-4.

Riverview East 26, Hillcrest 9 (five innings)

W–Thomasson (2-0); L–Garcie. Leaders: RE–Brown 3-3, 3 2B; Howe 2-3; Cummins 2 2B. H–Shelton 2B. Records: RE 3-2, H 0-4.

Ross 1, Lawrenceburg 0

W–House (3-1); L–Bradley; Sv–Houlihan (1). Leaders: R–McKee 3-3, HR (3). Records: R 8-3, L 4-1.

Springboro 4, Miamisburg 1

W–Pagliarini (2-1); L–Johnson (2-1); Sv–Bourke (2). Leaders: Sp–Brickner 2-2, RBI; Bourke 2 RBI. M–Reeser RBI.

SOFTBALL

Badin 10, Preble Shawnee 0 (six innings)

W–Ray (7-0); L–Woodard. Leaders: B–Schmitt 2-4; Curtner 2-4, 4 RBI; Broerman 2-4, 2 2B, RBI; Ray 2B, RBI; Sander 2-3, RBI. Records: B 10-1, PS 0-3.

Deer Park 7, Madeira 2

W–Shepherd; L–Hyatt. Leaders: DP–Kramer 2-3, 2B, 2 RBI; Shepherd 2 RBI; Mapes 3B. Records: DP 4-2, M 1-4.

Harrison 4, Talawanda 2

W–Wisman (3-2); L–Scott. Leaders: H–Milesky HR; Gorham HR, 3 RBI. T–Heineman 3-3, 2B, 3B; Baker HR. Records: H 4-3, T 2-2.

Lakota East 11, Hamilton 1 (five innings)

W–Towe (5-0, 10 Ks); L–Whistle (2-1). Leaders: LE–Messer 3-4, 2 2B, RBI; Haverland 3-4, 3 RBI; Kates 3-4, RBI; Stolitca 2B, RBI. H–Wolf 2-3, 2B, RBI; Pradio 2-3, 2B; Hudson 2-2. Records: LE 6-0, H 6-3.

Lebanon 10, Fairborn 0 (five innings)

W–Ellis (2-0); L–Rice (0-3). Leaders: Le–Hutchinson 2-2, 2 2B, 2 RBI; Reed 2-3; Ellis 3B; Frank 2-3. Records: L 3-2, F 0-4.

McAuley 10,

Clermont Northeastern 0 (six innings)

W–Brunst (4-1, 8 Ks); L–Schwieiger. Leaders: M–Lawson 3-4, 3B; McAdoo 3-4, 2B, 5 RBI; Thies 2B; Gabriel 2B; Bonno 2B.

Milford 11, Loveland 0 (six innings)

W–Thompson (6-1); L–Prifti (5-3). Leaders: M–Reynolds 2-4; Rheude 3B, 3 RBI; Seitz 2-3; Edwards 2-3, 3 RBI. Records: M 6-2, L 5-3.

Mount Notre Dame 6, Ursuline 1

W–Zeuch (6-0); L–Aiello (1-2). Leaders: MND–Ripperger 2-3; Nelson 4-4, 3B, RBI; Schmidt 2-4, RBI; Theis 2-3, 2B, 2 RBI; Hofmann 2B, RBI. U–Young 2-4; Elliott 2-3, RBI; Mehrle 2B; Schulte 2B; Glover 2B.

New Miami 8, Seven Hills 3

W–Robinette; L–McDonald. Leaders: NM–Johnson 2-4; Burr 3-4, HR; Glanay 2-4. Records: NM 3-1, SH 0-5.

Oak Hills 8, Lakota West 4

W–McCarthy; L–Brankamp. Leaders: OH–Gahan 2-4, 4 RBI; Hudepohl. LW–Cummin 2-3; Westly 2-3.

Williamsburg 5, Goshen 0

W–Smith (5-0, 15 Ks). Leaders: Wil–Clark 3-4, 2B, HR; Wagers 2-3, 2 2B; Pidwell 2-2; Kirschner HR. Records: W 7-0, G 5-2.

BOYS’ TENNIS

Alter 3, Badin 2

Connaughton (B) d. Faessler 6-0, 6-0; White (A) d. Grime 6-2, 6-2; Papania (B) d. Kader 4-4, retired. Pilati-Ruffalo (A) d. Kloenne-Kloenne 6-1, 6-1; Duchak-Fadell (A) d. Steins-Retherford 6-1, 6-1. Records: A 2-1, B 1-2.

Batavia 5, Goshen 0

Sickles d. Hazenfield 6-0, 6-2; L. Herron d. Jeandrevin 6-0, 6-0; Gibbs d. Velagic 6-2, 6-1. Bauer-C. Paulin d. Espinosa-Wells 6-1, 6-2; J. Herron-J. Paulin d. Dato-Haas 6-3, 6-0. Records: B 3-2, G 1-4.

Edgewood 5, Little Miami 0

Fisette d. Liceago 6-1, 6-0; Winter d. Lempner 6-3, 6-2; Moore d. Raybon 6-1, 6-2. Thornsberry-Alarcon d. Corbin-Williams 6-0, 6-0; Tegenkamp-Hamey d. York-Stacey 6-0, 6-1. Records: E 4-0, LM 2-2.

Elder 5, La Salle 0

Wauligman d. Orth 6-1, 6-0; Dilonardo d. Lawson 6-0, 6-0; Hurley d. Turner 6-0, 6-3. Meade-Steimle d. Bogenschutz-Lampe 6-1, 6-3; Cole-Reiring d. Barry-Bellman 6-1, 6-0. Records: E 5-1, L 0-1.

Fenwick 5, Winton Woods 0

Page d. Voateng 6-1, 6-0; Ulland d. Perkins 6-1, 6-1; Fenwick by forfeit. Payne-Colley d. Price-Eljadair 6-0, 6-0; Erhart-Krug d. Post-Allen 6-0, 6-0. Records: F 4-0, WW 0-4.

Indian Hill 5, Wyoming 0

Warstler d. Murray 6-2, 7-5; Pregel d. Arenas 6-0, 6-1; Colohan d. Kelly 6-2, 6-2. Bhandari-Lima d. Klein-Berhman 6-3, 3-6, 1-0 (6); Guzman-Pisati d. Sfyrs-Morley 6-3, 6-3.

Lakota East 4, Colerain 1

Laskey (C) d. Holder 6-3, 6-1; Sacha d. Nickel 6-0, 6-0; Hoke d. Rioux 6-0, 6-0. Simolyansky-Spaulding d. Jeffreys-Koenig 6-0, 6-1; Hall-Sutter d. Nickel-Snyder 6-0, 6-0.

Madeira 5, Finneytown 0

Palmer d. Steimle 6-3, 2-6, 6-2; Pape d. Keith 6-2, 6-4; Baldan d. Giffin 7-5, 7-5. Kane-Aaron d. Gordon-Rice 6-4, 6-0; Muenz-Dougherty d. Giffin-Hammond 6-3, 3-6, 7-5. Records: M 2-1, F 0-3.

Norwood 5, Clermont Northeastern 0

Arriaza d. Smith 6-3, 7-6 (7-4); English d. Berning 6-0, 7-5; Lamping d. Werring 6-1, 6-3. Noonchester-L. Zimmerman d. Hannon-Beebe 6-0, 6-1; Giesman-J. Zimmerman d. Werring-Brinson 6-1, 6-0. Records: N 1-3, CNE 0-5.

St. Xavier 5, Moeller 0

Niehaus d. Peter 6-1, 6-1; Tanveer d. Berky 6-2, 6-3; Schuelteis d. Hoelker 6-0, 6-1. Bostick-DeCurtins d. Tepe-Keyser 6-0, 6-4; Aronoff-Pham d. Cashman-Worthoff 4-6, 6-1, 6-3. Records: SX 6-0, M 2-1.

Summit Country Day 3, Seven Hills 2

Spandauer (SCD) d. Williams 6-4, 4-6, 10-3; Casanas (SCD) d. Stavsky 6-4, 6-4; Hochwalt (SCD) d. Maxyuan 6-1, 6-0. Sun-Smith (SH) d. Shaw-Hajjar 6-0, 6-1; Sorscher-Shiin (SH) d. Kerr-Beardslee 6-2, 6-1. Records: SCD 1-2, SH 2-2.

Sycamore 3, Mason 2

Taylor (S) d. Komatineni 6-2, 6-2; Stern (S) d. MacKenzie 6-3, 6-3; Srinath (M) d. Zhang 7-5, 6-2. Reid-Singuri (M) d. Liou-Karev 7-5, 6-2; D’Sousa-Qi (S) d. Yu-Viswanathan 6-4, 6-2.

Sycamore “B” 4, Walnut Hills 1

Vaz (WH) d. Sehar 6-3, 6-4; Dasgupta (Sy) d. Musser 7-5, 6-0; Wade (Sy) d. Manchinela 6-1, 6-0. Murali-Wittenbaum (Sy) d. Hussey-Mullin 6-2, 6-2; Bolger-Nagendra (Sy) d. Burchette-Mullaney 6-0, 6-4.

Talawanda 3, Northwest 2

Wentzel (T) d. Carter 6-4, 6-4; Pitts (T) d. T. Cao 6-0, 5-7, 6-3; Patterson (T) d. D. Cao 6-0, 6-1. Johnson-Eam (N) d. Wespiser-Kelly 4-6, 7-5, 6-2; Chhim-Girts (N) d. Ward-Kelly 6-4, 4-6, 6-2. Records: T 3-0, N 2-1.

Turpin 4, Loveland 1

Wendel (T) d. Rubikas 6-0, 6-0; Novakovic (T) d. Distler 6-0, 6-0; Caruso (T) d. B. Hogan 6-3, 6-0. Muscatello-Lambert (T) d. Lutz-Richmond 6-2, 6-3; C. Hogan-Huether (L) d. Grossman-Alvaro 6-4, 7-5.

BOYS’ VOLLEYBALL

Carroll (5-3) d. McNicholas 25-12, 25-18, 25-16

Mason (4-1) d. Princeton 25-16, 25-17, 25-17

Oak Hills (3-3) d. Middletown (4-3) 25-18, 25-12, 29-27

St. Xavier (3-0) d. Centerville 25-17, 23-25, 25-17, 25-20

College roundup: Wisconsin shuts down No. 2 Maryland

Wisconsin shut down No. 2 Maryland in the decisive first half and held on for a 70-57 victory Saturday night, ending the Terrapins' 27-game home winning streak and knocking them out of a tie atop the Big Ten standings.

Vitto Brown scored a career-high 21 points, Bronson Koenig had 16 and Nigel Hayes added 14 for the Badgers (16-9, 8-4), who have won seven straight.

ADVERTISING

After using a 28-5 run to go up 35-19, Wisconsin let the lead dwindle to six points with 10:48 remaining before pushing back. A 3-pointer by Koenig and a layup by Brown made it 53-41, and the Terrapins never threatened again.

Rasheed Sulaimon scored 17 for Maryland (22-4, 10-3), which went 20 for 50 from the field and 12 for 22 at the foul line.

Michigan 61, No. 18 Purdue 56: Zak Irvin scored 22 points, and Michigan scored the game's final 11 points to beat No. 18 Purdue 61-56 on Saturday.

The Wolverines (19-7, 9-4 Big Ten) overcame an awful stretch of shooting in the second half, rallying late behind Irvin and Derrick Walton. Irvin's jumper from near the free throw line put Michigan up 57-56 with just over a minute remaining, and it was Purdue (20-6, 8-5) that suddenly couldn't score down the stretch.

Caleb Swanigan missed from inside for the Boilermakers, and after Michigan's Mark Donnal missed a 3-point attempt, Purdue's Ryan Cline missed a 3 of his own.

Walton's two free throws with 15.8 seconds remaining made it 59-56, and with the Boilermakers trying for a quick two points, Vince Edwards missed.

Oral Roberts 72, Western Illinois 66: Obi Emegano and Albert Owens combined for 47 points to lead Oral Roberts to a 72-66 win over Western Illinois on Saturday night.

Emegano made all 12 free throw attempts to total 26 points and Owens matched his career-high with 21 points and five blocks. Kris Martin added 11 points for Oral Roberts (13-14, 5-8 Summit) which has won two straight after losing five consecutive games.

Oral Roberts never trailed and was up 56-51 with 6:55 left.

Jalen Chapman scored five points and J.C. Fuller added a jumper to pull Western Illinois to within two, 60-58, with 4:32 remaining.

Emegano made two free throws and Owens slammed home a dunk to extend the lead to 64-56 with 3:54 left and Emegano and Owens made eight free throws down the stretch to hold off the Leathernecks.

Garret Covington hit five 3s and scored 22 points for Western Illinois (9-14, 2-10).

SIU-Edwardsville 72, Eastern Illinois 64: Burak Eslik scored 29 points and made all 12 of his free throws to lead Southern Illinois-Edwardsville over Eastern Illinois 72-64 on Saturday night to end a six-game skid.

Grant Fiorentinos scored 14 points and Michael Chandler blocked three shots for the Cougars (5-20, 2-11 Ohio Valley Conference), who outrebounded the Panthers 46-25 and shot 41.5 percent from the field.

Trailing by 10 at halftime, Luke Piotrowski hit a free throw to pull the Panthers within a point, 34-33, early in the second half, but the Cougars replied with an 11-2 run capped by Eslik's back-to-back 3s for a 45-35 lead.

Cornell Johnston's free throw pulled the Panthers within 61-57 with 1:22 left, but Eslik made a layup and sank eight free throws down the stretch to help seal the win.

Trae Anderson scored 29 points on 10-of-21 shooting for Eastern Illinois (11-15, 7-6).

Nebraska 70, Penn State 54: Andrew White III had career highs with 35 points and six 3-pointers, and Nebraska heldPenn State to two field goals over 17 ½ minutes in a 70-54 victory on Saturday.

The Cornhuskers (14-12, 6-7 Big Ten) turned a close game into a rout with a 39-7 run. Penn State (12-13, 3-9) was just 2 of 16 in the stretch while Nebraska pulled away and shot over 46 percent for the game.

The Huskers had lost four of their previous five games and were playing their second straight game without Shavon Shields, who continues to recover from a concussion sustained a week ago.

Brandon Taylor had 14 points to lead the Nittany Lions.

White finished 11 of 17 from the field, including 6 of 10 on 3s. The Kansas transfer's previous high of 30 points came Dec. 5 against Abilene Christian. Michael Jacobson added 10 points for the Huskers.

Northern Illinois 80, Akron 79: Aaric Armstead scored 21 points, including the game-winning free throws with 1.7 seconds left, and Northern Illinois edged Akron 80-79 on Saturday.

Isaiah Johnson's two free throws with 15 seconds left put the Zips ahead but they couldn't corral the rebound when Travon Baker missed a 3-point attempt with seven seconds left.

Josh Williams hit a 3-pointer and the Zips made 3 of 4 free throws to take a 77-75 lead with just under a minute left. Armstread put the Huskies back on top with a 3-point play with 37 seconds remaining.

Marin Maric had 17 points and 11 rebounds for Northern Illinois (17-8, 6-6 Mid-American), which had 15 offensive rebounds and a 41-34 rebounding advantage. The Huskies had lost five straight.

Williams hit 6 of 9 behind the arc and scored 22 points for the Zips (20-5, 9-3), which had won seven straight, and Johnson had 16 points.

Southern Illinois 75, Drake 60: Anthony Beane scored 31 points and Southern Illinois pulled away midway through the first half and cruised to a 75-60 victory over Drake on Saturday.

Beane made three 3-pointers, was 12 of 20 from the floor, and surpassed the 30-point mark for the sixth time this season. Bola Olaniyan added 12 points for Southern Illinois (20-7, 9-5 Missouri Valley), which shot 51 percent from the field and has won back-to-back games since snapping a four-game skid.

Kale Abrahamson had 15 points to lead Drake (6-20, 1-13).

Armon Fletcher made a 3-pointer to spark a 15-2 run, and Southern Illinois led 23-14 midway through the first half and built a 37-27 halftime lead. Beane scored 12 of the Salukis' 19 points to open the second half, and Southern Illinois led 56-45 with 10 minutes left and led by double-digits the rest of the way.

Illinois-Chicago 79, Northern Kentucky 77: Dikembe Dixson scored 21 points, Tai Odiase added 12 with a career-high nine blocks, including a game-saving block with one second to play, and Illinois-Chicago rallied to beat Northern Kentucky 79-77 on Saturday.

Trailing 37-33 at halftime, the Flames tied it at 56 on Dixson's 3-pointer, then scored 11 unanswered points to lead 71-66 on Michael Kolawole's free throw with 4:01 left.

Northern Kentucky's Cole Murray hit a 3 to pull the Norse within 78-75, then Drew McDonald's layup with 27 seconds to go made it a one-point game, 78-77.

The Flames' Lance Whitaker made one of two free throws and the Norse called a timeout with 11 seconds left to set up a final play, but Odiase blocked McDonald's layup attempt with one second left and grabbed the rebound.

Gabe Snider hit four 3-pointers and Najeal Young added 10 points for the Flames (5-19, 3-10 Horizon).

Tyler White led the Norse (9-16, 5-9) with 21. 

Ohio State 79, Rutgers 69: Keita Bates-Diop tied a career-high with 24 points and had a career-high 14 rebounds asOhio State defeated Rutgers, 79-69 on Saturday.

Jae'Sean Tate added 22 points on 9-for-11 shooting and 13 rebounds for the Buckeyes (16-10, 8-5 Big Ten), marking the sixth time this season they have had two players with double-doubles. Kam Williams added 19 for OSU, which kept its flickering NCAA hopes alive with a second straight victory.

Corey Sanders had 23 points for the Scarlet Knights (6-19, 0-12), who have lost 26 straight regular-season Big Ten games and 27 including the conference tournament. Mike Williams added 13 and D.J. Foreman had 10.

Ohio State opened two 16-point leads, the second at 52-36. Rutgers scored nine straight to get within seven, but could get no closer the remainder of the game.

The first half featured runs by each team, with Bates-Diop's 14 points helping OSU to a 35-26 lead.

New Mexico State 69, Chicago State 55: Pascal Siakam scored 24 points on 10-for-12 shooting, hauled in eight rebounds and blocked five shots as New Mexico State defeated Chicago State 69-55 on Saturday.

Chicago State led 14-6 early with the help of a 3-point play by Trayvon Palmer and a Fred Sims Jr. 3. But Siakam scored nine-straight, capping a 19-7 run that gave New Mexico State (18-8, 9-1 Western Athletic Conference) the lead for good.

Leading 30-21 at the half, the Aggies continued to separate, outscoring the Cougars 15-9. Siakam had a dunk and a 3 with 10:33 remaining to extend the lead to 52-33.

Ian Baker scored 16 points and Jonathan Wilkins added 10 for the Aggies as they shot 25 for 44 from the field (56.8 percent).

Palmer led Chicago State (4-23, 0-10) with 13 points and Sims finished with 11. The Cougars shot 16 for 48 from the field (33.3 percent).

Flames honor seniors in final home game of season

Two UIC seniors donned the home white uniform for the final time Sunday as the Flames played their final home game of the regular season. 

The Flames honored Gabe Snider and Jake Wiegand during the game versus Oakland at the UIC Pavilion. The seniors joined the program in the 2012-13 season and have played in a combined 193 games in UIC uniforms. 

The home slate is finished, but the regular season is not over. The Flames visit Green Bay Friday, then compete in the regular-season finale Sunday in Milwaukee. 

UIC and Oakland engaged in a back-and-forth ballgame Sunday, but the Golden Grizzlies made enough plays down the stretch to outlast the Flames, 74-63. 

The Flames fought ferociously on the defensive end and trimmed a nine-point deficit to one with 6:03 remaining on Senior Day. UIC’s Dikembe Dixson sparked an eight-point surge on the offensive end, a burst that was capped when Lane Whitaker drove the ball hard to the basket to score. The defense registered stops on 13 consecutive possessions by either forcing a turnover or an errant shot as it held Oakland completely scoreless for an impressive stretch of 5:48 during the second half. 

Martez Walker ended the drought for the Golden Grizzlies, and two trips later, Nick Daniels connected on one of his four three-point baskets to extend the lead to six with 4:18 remaining on the clock. Dixson registered two of his game-high 24 points for the Flames to make it a four-point game with 3:55 to go, 66-62, but UIC could not come any closer as the offense sputtered before falling, 74-63. 

The Flames thanked seniors Snider and Wiegand before the game, but it was three freshmen who lifted the squad on the offensive end. Dixson led all players with 24 points, and Michael Kolawole and Julian Torres netted 10 each.

Area players decide their next move

Local athletes make their pick of schools official

After offers from Division I programs around the country, Snider swimmer Gabe Swardson found his perfect fit at West Virginia.

Swardson was able to solidify his decision in ink on Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period.

“It was kind of the perfect decision,” he said of West Virginia. “I got a few offers from a lot of colleges but West Virginia, I fell in love with right away. They offered me everything I wanted with the family atmosphere and the beautiful setting in the mountain. It was just perfect.”

Swardson turned down offers from Florida State, Missouri and Iowa to become a Mountaineer.

“It’s gorgeous. I’m so overly excited. I’m kind of tingling right now,” he said, laughing.

Signing provided a sense of relief as he can now concentrate on his final high school season and defending his state championship in the 100-yard butterfly.

“It takes a lot of pressure off performing for potential colleges,” he said, “and gives me a chance of focusing on the end goal, which is state this year.

“I’m looking to repeat my state title. It’ll be a good rivalry this year. I’m looking forward to getting back into competition.”

In February’s state championships, Swardson, the fourth seed, was in third place at the halfway point and came from behind to beat top seed Ryan Huizing of Carroll in a time of 49.14 seconds.

Huizing, who qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 100-meter butterfly, is signing Nov. 19  to attend Yale.

Swardson trains with Three Rivers Aquatic Club under swim coach Chris Knoblauch and has swum with Arlington Park in the summer since he was 6.

He’s also been able to participate in national-level meets while an underclassman which helped his development.

Panthers pitcher Chase Phelps signed with IPFW and is looking forward to playing alongside his brother, Brandon, for the Mastodons.

“All my life I’ve dreamt about being a Division I athlete,” he said, “and to play with my brother for the first time was something I’ve always wanted to do.”

Other big area signings included Columbia City basketball’s Brachen Hazen signing to Central Florida.

Hazen, a 6-foot-8 205-pound forward, also received offers from Bradley, Maryland, Creighton, St. Joseph’s, Utah State, Ball State, Illinois State, IUPUI and Valparaiso.

Carroll’s Kyle Mallers signed with Ball State. Mallers also received offers from Indiana State, Evansville, Ole Miss, Toledo, Akron, Kent State and Central Michigan.

UIC Flames vs Western Illinois Leathernecks Preview and Pick

The UIC Flames head to Western Hall to take on the Western Illinois Leathernecks. The game gets underway at 8:00 pm ET on Tuesday, Nov. 17.

The Leathernecks easily got past Hannibal-LaGrange 94-57 on Sunday. Jabari Sandifer had a solid performance, putting up 13 points, three assists, and two steals for the Leathernecks. The Flames, meanwhile, are coming off a close 78-75 loss at the hands of San Francisco on Friday. Gabe Snider had a good game for UIC, posting eight points, five rebounds, and two assists.

Western Illinois, a five-point favorite, will look to capitalize at home against UIC. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is set at 143 points. The Leathernecks have started off well, going 2-0 Straight Up (SU) and 1-0 Against The Spread (ATS). The Leathernecks are an exceptional shooting team with a .543 field-goal percentage, one of the highest marks in Division I.

These two will be squaring off for the first time this season. In their previous meeting last season, UIC came out on top, moving its SU record against the Leathernecks to 2-1. On the other hand, Western Illinois holds the advantage ATS with a record of 3-0.

Predictions: SU Winner – UIC, ATS Winner – UIC, O/U – Over