Brudos & Pitsoulakis Take 1st At GHS F/S Invite, Geneseo White 2nd Overall

Final Standings
Moline 29
Geneseo White 22
Dunlap Maroon 17
Geneseo Green 11
Sterling Navy 9
Dunlap Gold 9
Sterling Gold 4
Unattached 4
Geneseo Gray 2

#1 Singles
Round 1: DG-Sameera Joshi defeated GGreen-Ashlynn Damewood 8-1
Round 1: GWhite-Annabelle Betcher defeated SG-Sammie Potthoff 8-2
Round 1: DM-Snigdha Chennagowni defeated GGray-Macey Rosholm 8-1
Consolation: SB-Mary Kirchoff defeated GGreen-Damewood 6-2
Consolation: SG-Sammie Potthoff defeated GGray-Rosholm 6-3
7th Place: GGreen-Damewood defeated GGray-Rosholm 6-0

#2 Singles
Round 1: GGreen-Jasmine Foss defeated SB-Arche Quinivista 9-7
Round 1: MM-Daisy Beckwith defeated GWhite-Natalie Reisner 9-7
Consolation: GWhite-Reisner defeated SG-Star Pease 6-1
5th Place: GWhite-Reisner defeated SB-Quinivista 6-2
Semifinals: DG-Alishba Asim defeated GGreen-Foss 8-2
3rd Place: DM-Olivia Curtis defeated GGreen-Foss 8-5

#1 Doubles
Round 1: GWhite-Jaylee Brudos/Anastasia Pitsoulakis Bye
Round 1: DM-Yah/Shah defeated GGray-Hazel Harris/Hayley Rubitsky 8-1
Round 1: GGreen-Eleanor Bertelsen/Lillian Roodhouse defeated SG-Fagerman/Wells 8-1
Consolation: GGray-Harris/Rubitsky defeated SG-Fagerman/Wells 6-0
5th Place: UA-Patel/Rippy defeated GGray-Harris/Rubitsky 6-0
Semifinals: GWhite-Brudos/Pitsoulakis defeated MM-Greenlee/Nagubandi 8-3
Championship: GWhite-Brudos/Pitsoulakis defeated DM-Yah/Shah 8-6

#2 Doubles
Round 1: GWhite-Alexandra Bagby/Maddison Rakestraw defeated DG-Bhamidpati/Dhupaf 8-6
Round 1: SB-Olivas/Thompson defeated GGreen-AvaLynn Westfall/Evelyn Dahl 9-7
Consolation: GGreen-Westfall/Dahl 9-7 Bye
5th Place: DG-DG-Bhamidpati/Dhupaf defeated GGreen-Westfall/Dahl 6-2
Semfinals: MM-Burke/VanVooren defeated GWhite-Bagby/Rakestraw 8-1
3rd Place: GWhite-Bagby/Rakestraw defeated SB-Olivas/Thompson 8-4

BRAKEdown - Leafs Make a Subtle Move Forward

By Keith Brake
Geneseo Current

Coach Matt Furlong said he has been looking forward to the Sterling game since he signed on with Geneseo.

“They're very well-coached,” he said, at least three times during our post-game interview.

“They ran a defensive scheme against us we haven't seen, Furlong said. “We made some adjustments, then we started to move.”

But, it took a while, during which time Sterling built a 13-0 halftime lead.

Sterling won, 13-6. I'm sure you're aware that means something positive was happening on Geneseo's side of the ball in the second half.

A long run set up a short touchdown run for Sterling's first quarter score, but the Golden Warriors missed the PAT kick. Which didn't turn out to be important, but it could have been.

The Warriors completed at least a half-dozen bubble screens out to the boundaries. They didn't lead to much in and of themselves, but they might have helped to set up Sterling's second quarter score.

That was an 82-yard bomb down the sideline. Quarterback Drew Nettleton caught the Leafs in single coverage and dropped a dime on Kaedon Phillips, his top receiver.

That made it 13-0 with 6:33 left in the half.

After that, an ever-so-subtle change settled in.

The Leafs started getting positive yardage – first down runs on zone plays - from fullback Kolten Schmoll-Burton. But, the Leafs weren't able to string those kinds of gains together the rest of the half.

Note that the Leafs outscored Sterling 6-0 the rest of the game.

“There's a learning curve that comes with our offense,” Furlong said.

Leaf quarterback Jackson McAvoy had a Sterling surge roll over him on attempted option plays.

“As a blocker, that makes you start thinking,” Furlong said. “Then, you tend to come off the ball high which slows you down. We have to learn to stay locked in,” he said.

Geneseo didn't complete a pass through three quarters.

On fourth-and-12 from Sterling's 42, quarterback Jackson McAvoy ran play action and found Kye Weinzierl open in the left flat.

“Kye made a nice catch and made a good run after it,” Furlong said.

The play set up a short run by Schmoll-Burton for Geneseo's touchdown, which made it 13-6 with 3:12 left in the game. The Golden Warriors blocked the PAT kick, and scoring was complete.

Big lesson learned: “Make quicker in-game adjustments on the field, based on what the opponent is doing,” said Geneseo's coach.

“Ain't education a wonderful thing?” Red Skelton's Clem Kadiddlehopper character used to say.

It's the delayed gratification we're looking for..a lifetime of learning.

“Well fellas, fellas, it's the desired procedure” the late, great Geneseo coach and teacher, John McCormick, said, on a daily basis.

So now, it's homecoming, with Dolton Thornridge coming to Bob Reade Field on Friday night.

Thornridge? Think basketball, at the same time as Kewanee had a couple of state-class teams.

Since then, I've lost track of the south suburban Falcons, who are just about 100 students larger than Geneseo in enrollment.

They were 0-9 last year, but took a 3-2 record into Friday's matchup against Crete-Monee, arguably one of the state's best programs. Crete-Monee won, 67-0.

“Thornridge has some explosive athletes,” Furlong said. “They have talent enough to be a problem, when they're executing. When they're clicking they look like a good team.”

Geneseo's coach said homecoming is about as “much of a distraction as you let it be.”

You need to think of the football game as the centerpiece of homecoming, he said.

“On the whole, Sterling was our best defensive effort of the season,” Furlong said. “We executed well.”

“Overall, I am happy for the progress we're making, both on film and in practice,” Furlong said. “Our guys are seeing things, especially our younger ones.”

PLAYOFF BOUND?

At 3-3, Geneseo sits two wins away from being assured a spot in the post-season, and those extra reps in practice would be good for the program in its first year under Furlong.

That good thing is within reach.

Lady Leafs Tied For 1st After Defeating Sterling, Avenging Earlier Loss To Quincy

October 1 - GHS Gym
Lady Leafs 25-23, 25-17 Sterling
Overall Record: 16-5 (7-1 WB6)

Kills
Kailee Williams 10, Lizzie Rapps 6, Elli Barickman 5, Katie VanDeWoestyne 4

Digs
Rapps 13, Katherine Barickman 10, Ava DeSplinter 9
Kendall Ellerbrock 7

Aces
E. Barickman 1

Blocks
K. Barickman 2, Ellerbrock 2, E. Barickman 1

Assists
K. Barickman 21

Underclass Scores
Sophomores 16-25, 25-17, 25-21 Sterling
Freshmen 25-12, 25-17 Sterling

October 3 - Quincy High School
Lady Leafs 25-22, 24-26, 25-16 Quincy
Overall Record: 17-5 (8-1 WB6)

Kills
Kailee Williams 16, E. Barickman 11, Lizzie Rapps 4

Digs
Lizzie Rapps 15, Kailee Williams 10, Ava DeSplinter 7, K. Barickman 6

Aces
K. Barickman 1, E. Barickman 1, Katie VanDeWoestyne 1, Ava DeSplinter 1

Blocks
Williams 2
Ellerbrock 2

Assists
K. Barickman 33

Underclass Scores
Quincy 25-17, 17-25, 20-25 Sophomores
Quincy 20-25, 12-25 Freshmen

Top Ten Finishes Galore For GHS At Pretzels Invite

October 5 - Pretzels Invite - Highland Community College - Freeport, IL
GHS Boys Varsity Results
2nd: Dylan Gehl (15:48.30)
3rd: Jaxson Sottos (15:52.03)
28th: Graysen Carlson (17:05.67)
35th: Kaden Elmer (17:18.05)
45th: Aidan Bries (17:52.42)
48th: Christian Haney (18:05.10)
56th: Max Johnson (18:16.49)
63rd: Rylan Lambert (18:48.83)

Final Standings
Machesney Park (Harlem) 73
Winnebago 78
Rock Falls 106
Geneseo 109
East Dubuque 116
Schaumburg 146
Rockford (Boylan) 171
Rochelle 241
Stockton 278
Forreston 289
Rockford (East) 310
Savanna (West Carroll) 325
Oregon 334
Rockford (Our Lady of the Sacred Heart) 360

GHS Girls Varsity Results
 3rd: Brooklyn Smith (18:31.86)
13th: Lucille Wachtel (20:18.22)
15th: Ayla Schultz (20:30.99)
18th: Jeslen Rink (21:05.31)
22nd: Elanor DeBlieck (21:26.12)
23rd: Evelyn DeBaene (21:35.50)
37th: Bella Curcuru (23:21.15)
53rd: Rachael Roodhouse (24:47.90)

Final Standings
Rockford Boylan 27
Geneseo 67
Winnebago 69
Sycamore 131
Oregon 147
Rochelle 163
Freeport 170
Rockford (Our Lady of the Sacred Heart) 192
Lanark (Eastland) 239
Forreston 260

GHS Girls Open Results
 1st: Hannah Stone (22:42.89)
2nd: Jacey Gehl (22:52.78)
3rd: Alivia Brown (23:01.57)
4th: Stella Allison (23:08.75)
5th: Kady Fouts (23:19.00)
15th: Ella Taylor (26:13.29)
16th: Jessa Gramling (26:53.82)
21st: Kjerstin Wildemuth (30:36.33)

Final Standings
Geneseo 15
Winnebago 40

GHS Boys Open Results
1st: Jack Kreiss (17:46.06)
2nd: Henley Bourne (17:54.63)
4th: Kael McCord (18:46.23)
7th: Greyson Claerhout (19:07.96)
9th: Alex Aleman (19:15.84)
10th: Micah Johnson (19:17.52)
11th: Jacob Taylor (19:18.70)
26th: Tyler Holtzen (20:10.18)
30th: Fritz Bolme (20:31.48)
31st: Connor Douglas (20:55.74)
34th: Connor Runty (21:19.55)
39th: Shane Bagby (21:39.27)
42nd: Patrick Versluis (21:49.28)
44th: Rylan Carlson (22:01.60)
DNF: Calvin Bell

Final Standings
Geneseo 21
Machesney Park (Harlem) 58
Schaumburg 59
Sterling 110
Durand 133
Rockford (Boylan) 172
Rockford (Jefferson) 178

VanKerrebroeck Finishes 3rd At GHS F/S Invite

October 3 - Country View GC
Final Standings
Moline 161
Geneseo 182
Rock Island 195
Alleman 205
Sterling 212
Geneseo B 231

GHS Results
t-3rd: Kellen VanKerrebroeck (42 / +6)
t-6th: Carter Dickey (44 / +8)
t-8th: Eli Palmer (46 / +10)
16th: Ian Catour (50 / +14)
t-19th: Jack Gehling (54 / +18)
23rd: Lucas Rodriguez (55 / +19)
t-26th: Tyler Gerstel (59 / +23)
t-26th: Aiden DeCap (59 / +23)
t-26th: Tyler Massingill (59 / +23)
t-31st: Raidyn Allison (63 / +27)
33rd: Grant Bjorkman (69 / +33)

Lady Leafs Sweep Rock Island

September 30 - GHS Courts
Lady Leafs 9 Rock Island 0
Singles
G-Addi Snodgrass defeated RI-Leah Kitterman 6-4, 6-3
G-Madison Reade defeated RI-Averi Vroman 6-2, 6-1
G-Kendyl Wassenhove defeated RI-Elaina Adlfinger 6-0, 6-0

Doubles
G-Addi Snodgrass/Lily Taylor defeated RI-Leah Kitterman/Averi Vroman 6-1, 6-3
G-Madison Reade/Kendyl Wassenhove defeated RI-Elaina Adlfinger/Layla Rice 6-1, 6-1
G-Annie Maxwell/Stella Smith defeated RI-Abia Ndayishimiye/Blessing Jabbah 6-1, 6-2

Leafs Take 3rd At Sterling Regional, Advance To Sectionals

October 2 - 2A Sterling Regional - Emerald Hill GC
GHS Results
1st: Bryson VanHoutte (80 / +8)
9th: Kwin Van Kerrebroeck (84 / +12)
14th: Elijah Ford (88 / +16)
18th: Grady Bernahl (91 / +19)
21st: Ashton Veloz (94 / +22)
32nd: Drew Kelly (97 / +25)

Final Standings
Dixon 336 (Advances to Sectional)
Byron 338 (Advances to Sectional)
Geneseo 343 (Advances To Sectional)
Sterling 351
Princeton 355
Rochelle 355
Rock Falls 385
Stillman Valley 409
Kewanee 421

The Leafs will compete at the 2A Maple Park Kaneland Sectional. The meet will take place on Monday October 7th at the Hughes Creek Golf Course in Elburn.

Lady Leafs Finish 5th At Galesburg Regional.....DeGrave, Roberts, & Seei Advance

October 1 - Galesburg Regional - Lake Bracken CC
GHS Results
14th: Claire DeGrave (93 / +22) Advances
15th: Keely Roberts (94 / +23) Advances
22nd: Olivia Seei (99 / +28) Advances
38th: Katy Wilson (107 / +36)
48th: Lillian Bellagamba (112 / +41)
49th: Shay Schehl (113 / +42)

DeGrave, Roberts, & Seei will compete at the 2A Normal University Sectional. The meet will take place on Monday October 7th at the Weibring Golf Club in Normal.

Final Standings
Dunlap 344
Morton 366
Pekin 374
Moline 390
Geneseo 393
Quincy 414
Rock Island 420
Washington 425
Galesburg 449
Bartonville (Limestone) 479
Jacksonville 479
Peoria (Richwoods) 324* (3 golfers)
East Peoria 339* (3 golfers)

Veloz Earns Medalist, Leafs Victorious Over Orion In Regular Season Finale

September 30 - Oakwood CC
Maple Leafs 162 Orion 185

GHS Results
1st: Ashton Veloz (38)
2nd: Bryson VanHoutte (39)
4th: Kwin VanKerrebroeck (42)
5th: Elijah Ford (43 )
6th: Drew Kelly (44)
9th: Grady Bernahl (48)

JV 176 Orion 203
t-1st: Owen Parker (43)
t-3rd: Kellen VanKerrebroeck (44)
t-3rd: Brody Clementz (44)
t-7th: Dylan Cotty (45)
9th: Matthew Johnson (49)
t-10th: Carter Dickey (52)