In what has become high school basketball’s most competitive all-star game, Team Chicago and Team New York square off again April 16 in the Old Spice Red Zone Shootout at DePaul’s Athletic Center.
The event will be televised live by WLS-Ch. 7 at 12:30 p.m. and features a Chicago team with nine Division I signees along with 6-foot-8-inch, 270-pound DeAndre Thomas of Westinghouse, who is considering Illinois, Kansas, Georgetown and Florida State.
Chicago could hit New York with a lineup of Thomas, Harlan’s 7-foot Clarence Holloway (Louisville) and Hales Franciscan’s 6-4 Nate Minnoy (Purdue) up front and a backcourt of Hillcrest’s Jerel McNeal (Marquette) and either Julian’s Brandon Ewing (Wyoming) or St. Joseph’s Tony Freeman (Iowa) at the point.
The talent runs deep, with Robeson’s Jeremy Pargo (Gonzaga), Austin’s 6-9 Marquis Young (Mississippi), Proviso East’s Phillip Perry (Wisconsin), Niles West’s Sead Odzic (Southern Cal) plus Crane’s 6-5 Tyrone Kent and Rich Central’s 6-4 Jarvis Walker.
New York will be led by Pittsburgh signee Tyrell Biggs, Notre Dame recruit Kyle McAlarney and Fresno State-bound James Tchana. Tickets, at $10, are available at Ticketmaster (312-559-1212), Ticketmaster.com or the Athletic Center box office April 16.
Camping out
With the Bulls’ surprising success, the popularity of general manager John Paxson’s basketball camp is on the rise. Boys from the seventh grade to seniors in high school will gather from July 10-14 and July 17-21 at Concordia University in River Forest for instruction from NBA, college and high school coaches, with a special emphasis on shooting skills. Paxson is also offering a special father-and-son camp June 17-19 at Concordia for 4th-9th grade boys and their dads. For information, call 708-824-1174.
Early surprises
Despite the transfer of standout junior pitcher Alex Goodson to Plainfield Central, the Joliet Catholic girls softball team is off to a 5-0 start behind sophomore ace Gabby Smith and junior shortstop Samantha Quigley. Unheralded pitcher Erin Bly has helped Lincoln-Way East to a 5-0 start, and the Griffins have already beaten No. 3 Minooka. Heading the offense are Brittany Pascale and Katy Dammer. A young Riverside-Brookfield ballclub won its first four games behind 6-foot Megan Hutchens, Allison Milani and junior ace Sam Maas. Downers Grove South opened the season with a 4-2 upset of top-ranked Lockport as Denee Menzione had a home run, double and three RBIs.
Potent lineup
Lockport is loaded with softball talent, led by ace Lacey Ligmanowski, who is headed to Southern Indiana. Catcher Erin Dyer has signed with Northwestern, while outfielder Caitlin Krupinski signed with Loyola. There’s also P-OF Andrea Wabol (Toledo), while third baseman Megan Friscia will play at St. Xavier next season. Also, the Porters boast Division I recruits in Angela Findlay, Kelly Dyer, Breanne Kronberg and Stephanie Noel.
2-way star
One of the most complete players in the early spring is Queen of Peace pitcher-third baseman Theresa Boruta. In a doubleheader sweep of Reavis, Boruta went 5-for-6 with two doubles, a homer and four RBIs. Pitching in the nightcap, she struck out 15. Equally dangerous pitching or hitting is Glenbard West ace Stephanie Doyle, who has signed with Wisconsin.
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Bob Sakamoto.
Sister act
Jackie Santacaterina and freshman sister Bri of Geneva returned from vacation Thursday morning and didn’t miss a beat in helping the Vikings defeat Kaneland 5-0 in soccer Thursday. They are 4-0-1 heading into this week’s St. Charles East Invitational. Bri Santacaterina wound up assisting on a goal for her big sister.
Santacaterina had 16 goals as a sophomore as the Vikings finished 22-3-4 after falling to Wheaton South in the playoffs.
Alan Sutton.
Fast start
Returning individual state badminton champion Iliana Nikova (9-0) of Maine East has quickly won two tournament titles, Leyden and Glenbard East. Maine East (1-1) won the Leyden tournament and was third at Glenbard East, an improvement from fifth last year.
Paul Tokarz.
On the track
An intriguing scenario emerged from last weekend’s Illinois Prep Top Times Indoor Track & Field Classic.
Joliet’s Megan Thompson–last year’s IHSA Class AA runner-up in the 100-meter high hurdles–won the 55 hurdles in 8.21 seconds. But only one one-hundredth of a second behind was Seun Adigun of Homewood-Flossmoor, who won three medals at last spring’s state meet.
Nathan Baird.