Matt Schuckman, Sports Editor
NORMAL, Ill. — It took nearly all of the two-and-a-half hours the Quincy Notre Dame girls basketball team had between Class 2A state tournament games Thursday to come to grips with the fact the Raiders weren’t coming home as champions. Once the Raiders accepted that reality, they finished an incredible two-year run the most fitting…
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NAPERVILLE, Ill. — The six-pack of championships is…important. Avery Keck and Annie Eaton made sure of it. Eaton, a freshman forward on the Quincy Notre Dame girls soccer team, collected a throw-in, turned to the middle of the field and fed a picture-perfect pass to Keck moving up from the center of the field. Keck’s…
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NORMAL, Ill. — Abbey Schreacke stood at the free-throw line without any of her Quincy Notre Dame teammates filling the lane. They were too busy celebrating along the sideline. Schreacke’s two free throws with four seconds put a cap on an epic 35-point performance and finished off a 63-56 victory over Winnebago on Saturday afternoon…
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QUINCY — The end result of Graham Spraker’s first appearance out of the Buffalo Bisons’ bullpen made the decision to elevate him to the Toronto Blue Jays’ Triple-A franchise look like a headsy move. The right-hander’s final stat line from Wednesday’s 5-0 victory over the Rochester Red Wings: Two innings, two hits, no runs, three…
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QUINCY — Near the midpoint of this summer’s Ban Johnson League collegiate wood-bat schedule, the coach of the Kansas City Knights revealed to his players the details for an end-of-the-year all-star game. The top 36 hitters in the final league statistics would be invited to play in the showcase game at Kauffman Stadium, home of…
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PITTSBURGH — After dropping four strokes in a four-hole stretch, Alex McCulla turned to his caddie, Tyler Bertram, as they walked to the tee box of a nearly 500-yard par-4 and gave Oakmont Country Club a well-deserved salute. “I told him this is when you take your hat off to the golf course,” McCulla said.…
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PITTSBURGH — A “Tin Cup” moment led to the only visible eyesore on Alex McCulla’s scorecard Monday. Yet, it was the hole prior to catching a gust of wind that left him more disgusted. The Quincy golfer fired an even-par 70 in the opening round of the 121st U.S. Amateur at Longue Vue Club and…
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QUINCY — High temperatures and humidity which meteorologists turn into the better-take-note-of-these heat indexes greeted high school athletes for the official start of the fall sports season. Don’t think for a moment that turned into an excuse to take a play off or slug through a drill. Quincy Notre Dame football coach Jack Cornell drove…
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CANTON, Mo. — The most unsettling part of attempting to play collegiate sports during the coronavirus pandemic had to be the daily unknowns. Pat Atwell knows that all too well. With the Heart of America Athletic Conference choosing to proceed with fall sports as planned in 2020, the Culver-Stockton College athletic director tried to keep…
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QUINCY — Alex McCulla braced himself for sarcastic blowback from his father. Mike McCulla delivered on cue. In preparation to play in the 121st U.S. Amateur, which begins Monday at two courses near Pittsburgh, the younger McCulla decided to add two clubs to his bag — a 3-wood and a 5-wood — to help him…
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QUINCY — In the brief amount of time Conner McLaughlin has been involved with the burgeoning Quincy University sprint football program, he’s answered a string of questions from those who have never heard of the sport. Is it 8-on-8? Is it 5-on-5? Is it flag football? Is it played in the spring? McLaughlin answers each…
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QUINCY — Brad Hoyt thrives on chasing championship moments. The John Wood Community College men’s basketball coach places such a high priority on that concept his players use the “championships are cool” mantra whenever they discuss expectations and goals. The other JWCC coaches are embracing the idea, too. It’s why Hoyt, who also serves as…
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QUINCY — Josh Rabe’s wardrobe is different. His daily routine is, too. After the Quincy University baseball team was eliminated from the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional on May 29, Rabe made his transition from coaching to administration. On June 1, he officially moved into his role as the Quincy University athletic director, having spent…
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QUINCY — When Alexandria Meyers discusses competing in her first kids triathlon roughly eight years ago and says her father, Glenn, “threw me into it,” let it be known he didn’t actually throw her into Moorman Lake. He threw her into a sport that has become her passion. Meyers was just 9 years old when…
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HANNIBAL, Mo. — Aneyas Williams understands what comes with his first FBS scholarship offer. “I definitely know I have a target on my back,” the Hannibal football team’s sophomore all-purpose back said. He also understands what he has to do now, too. “Work two times as hard as everybody else,” Williams said. Monday evening, two…
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Muddy River Sports Editor Matt Schuckman talks about what is going into the new website as we reach closer to the August 16 launch.
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SOUTH YARMOUTH, Mass. — The moment required subtlety and restraint. Will Conerly understood that. As Harwich Mariners second baseman Hal Hughes rounded the bases after hitting a solo home run, Conerly allowed his play-by-play voice to fade and the television audience to soak in the picture. Mickey Tettleton, the former major league catcher and analyst…
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QUINCY — Cooper Dinkheller is astute enough at 13 years old to understand professional baseball is a business and a majority of decisions are based on revenue and cost above loyalty and trust. The reality of that hit home Friday. And it hurt. In less than 24 hours, the Cubs’ front office traded away the…
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QUINCY — The Quincy University football program broke out of the rut of being picked to finish sixth in the Great Lakes Valley Conference preseason poll. However, sixth looks a lot better than where the Hawks ended up. QU is tabbed to finish last in the eight-team GLVC, according to the vote of the league’s…
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QUINCY — The evolution of the Quincy Shootout as one of the premier prep basketball showcases in the Midwest continued Thursday night. Two players who participated in the inaugural event at Quincy High School’s Blue Devil Gym in 2018 were selected in the NBA Draft. Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, who starred for Bishop Miege of Shawnee Mission,…
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QUINCY — Troy Potts offered Grant Hyer the opportunity to avoid regret. The former Quincy Notre Dame two-sport standout didn’t hesitate seizing it. Potts, a graduate assistant coach with the Quincy University men’s basketball program, invited Hyer to an informal tryout at Pepsi Arena in June. After showcasing his skills in a series of pickup…
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QUINCY — The depth of Chuck Gruber’s resume grabbed Brad Hoyt’s attention. The veteran softball coach’s personality kept the John Wood Community College athletic director intrigued. Hoyt announced Thursday he hired Gruber to become the Trail Blazers’ new softball coach. Gruber replaces Andy Gronewold, who resigned following the spring season. “His personality is a great…
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