Oak Parkers Michael Koenig and Lilly Miller won all their distance events at the State Long Track Speed Skating Championship held in Glen Ellyn.
Koenig, a sixth grader at Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School, won all three distance events in the Midget Boys (11-12 year olds) Division.
Miller, a third grader at Mann Elementary School, won all three distance events in the Pee-Wee Girls (7-8) Division.
Strikers win tourney
The Strikers U11 Orange boys team won the Chicago Sportzone Holiday Classic Tournament. The team only allowed seven goals over four games and scored 24 against their opponents.
Ethan Gilman led the Strikers with nine goals total in the tournament. Max Klevgard had five, while David Senk added four and William Malysa three. Eric Tynekebov, Emmett Donnelly Power and Sam Klevgard each scored a goal apiece during the tournament.
Guzman moves to No. 1
Oak Park pugilist Samantha Guzman was awarded a No. 1 ranking in her weight class by USA Boxing.
An alternate on the women’s USA National Team, Guzman has competed in four national championships over the last two years and has consistently placed first or second in every tournament. In her four-year boxing career, the OPRF High School graduate has won a total of six championships and currently has a record of 16-4.
In what may be her last year of amateur boxing, she is currently preparing for the U.S. Championships. The national tournament will be taking place in Denver, Colo., the second week of June.
Special Olympics team headed to state
Two OPRF High School Special Olympics basketball teams qualified for the state championships.
Twenty five students participate in the high school’s Special Olympics basketball program, 10 on varsity and 15 on junior varsity.
The varsity team finished first in Division 4 at the district tournament, while the junior varsity took first in Division 1. Both teams will travel to Normal for the state tournament in mid-March.
Varsity players include Andrew Bacalao, Kyle Hedlund, Joseph Hines, Georgia Hunter, Garrison Lyons, Patrick Milburn, Charlie O’Connor, Geno Pitts, Clinton Plaxico and Terrance Plaxico.
The junior varsity team consists of Scott Birkentall, Nicky Bishop, Billy Canavan, Sara Christensen, Ian Elsen, Jackie Finn, Eliza Grahnke, Karina Leonard, Patrick McCarthy, Claire Puiszis, Rachael Rice, Richard Rogers, Alex Stevic, Bradford Stewart and Dana Wax.
Gymnasts place well at tourneys
Gymnasts from the Oak Park Gymnastics Center finished favorable at numerous tournaments recently.
The Level 5 boys team placed eighth at the Windy City Invitational. Tyler Heggan led the group by placing fourth in the floor exercises (14.9), fourth on the high bar (14.5), eighth on the parallel bars (14.2) and 12th on the pommel (13.8). Nicolas Shaw took fifth on the vault with a 14.6 and sixth on the high bar (14.2). Tanner Iske finished eighth in the floor exercises (14.4).
The Level 6 girls team recently competed at the Big Chill Meet. Lena Schaller took first on the bars in the 13-14 age group. In the 7-11 age group, Beth Luther took fourth on the bars, first on beam, and fourth in the all-around.
Smith earns honor
Trinity High School graduate, Marché Smith, currently a sophomore guard for the Concordia University Chicago women’s basketball team, was recently named the Northern Athletics Conference Student-Athlete of the Week.
Smith’s honor comes on the heels of setting a new Concordia single-game scoring record with 42 points in the Cougars’ Jan. 15 game at Benedictine University. The 5-foot-7 guard also set a record for her 15 field goals in the contest, and her .750 three-point field goal percentage tied a 1994 team record.
Smith followed her record-breaking effort with a 27-point game on Jan. 17 at Marian University. She scored 81 points in Concordia’s three games for the week and ranks second in the conference in scoring with a 21.0 average.
Concordia hosting baseball camp
Concordia University Chicago will host its annual Cougar Kids Winter Baseball Camp for boys and girls ages 7 and up during January and February. The camps are being held at Geiseman Gymnasium on the campus of Concordia, 7400 W. Augusta St. in River Forest.
Session two will take place on Feb. 13 and 20. Campers between the ages of 7-9 will attend from 7 to 8:15 p.m., and ages 10 and up will attend from 8:30 to 9:45 p.m.
Registrants will choose between pitching and hitting as their skills’ emphasis. The pitching camp will be under the direction of 10th-year Cougar head coach Spiro Lempesis and Jim Paduch, former Concordia pitcher and 2003 12th-round draft choice of the Cincinnati Reds. The hitting camp will be led by current Cougar hitting coach Adam Smith, a two-time all-conference and all-regional infielder for Carthage College.
The cost for one two-week session is $80, but campers may register for both sessions and pay just $140 (a $20 discount). For further questions, please contact Lempesis at 708- 209-3125.
-Compiled by Brad Spencer
