Kruckman comes up big for North Central
Former Libertyville basketball standout Nicole Kruckman, who helped the Wildcats to an undefeated regular season four years ago under coach Kathie Swanson, enjoyed her finest game in the collegiate ranks last week.
The 6-foot junior center connected on 11 of her 14 shots for a game-high 22 points and she grabbed a season-high 14 rebounds in the Vikings' 95-90 loss to North Central in a College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin contest.
North Central is enjoying its winningest season since the 1983-84 team finished 26-4. The Cardinals are tied for first place in the conference.
Kruckman, who was a four-year varsity letter winner at Libertyville, is averaging 7.4 points and 5 rebounds this season. She is also a member of the North Park softball team and she is studying nursing.
• Olivia Mayer (Libertyville) led Augustana with 18 points in a loss to Millikin. Mayer leads the Vikings with 81 assists and is tied for the team lead with 22 steals.
Augustana senior guard Valerie VanRoeyen (Libertyville) is averaging 10.3 points and is the team leader in 3-point (. 353) and free throw (. 816) percentages.
• Concordia-Chicago's Morgan Jahnke (Grant) turned in a great all-around effort of 16 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals in a 95-89 homecourt victory over Alverno College in Milwaukee.
Men's track
Lewis University junior Isaac Jean-Paul (Warren), a 2014 Indoor all-American, is No. 1 in the country with a high jump leap of 2.16m (7 feet, 1 inch).
"He has continued to improve each week," said Lewis head men's track and field coach Dana Schwarting of Jean-Paul, who was named the Great Lakes Valley Conference Indoor Field Athlete of the Week for the third time this season and second in as many weeks.
Jean-Paul also had a runner-up finish of 6.87m (22-6½) in the long jump at the NAIA vs. NCAA Challenge, hosted by Olivet Nazarene. Those performances helped the Flyers to a third-place team finish.
"Isaac had another great meet in the high jump," Schwarting said. "He took three attempts at 2.23m, which was a height that qualified for the 2014 USA Outdoor Nationals.
"We know he will make the national meet so now we are setting him up for even bigger meets. His work ethic is second to none and it shows every week."
Men's basketball
Augustana junior center Brandon Motzel (Carmel) has blocked a team-best 24 shots for the Vikings.
Barrington Hall of Fame
This Saturday night, the latest additions to the Barrington Coaches Hall of Fame will be in the spotlight at the Broncos boys basketball game.
At halftime of the 6 p.m. game against Huntley, the induction of the class of 2015 will be held.
The newest members are Timothy Dunn (coached football and wrestling), Dr. Tom Leonard (principal and superintendent) and Lorraine Pahlke (athletic transportation).
They will be honored with a short ceremony. Each will receive a duplicate of the plaque that will be permanently displayed in the trophy case area.
A short reception will be held in the wrestling gym beginning at 5 p.m. for the inductees, their families, and current Hall of Famers.
Here is a closer look at the newest Hall of Famers:
Tim Dunn: Dunn joined the faculty at Barrington High School in January of 1987 after working at Hoffman Estates High School. He started in the Fall of 1988 and joined the football coaching staff where he continued to coach until 2007.
In the winter of 1988, Dunn joined the wrestling staff following the retirement of Hall of Fame coach Alex Kristine,
Dunn was named the head wrestling coach in 1998 and served form nine years, twice being named Mid-Suburban League 'Coach of the Year'. His 2006 team won the MSL championship and his 2006 and 2007 teams were regional champions.
Dunn, head of the social studies department, retired in 2007 but has remained on the wrestling staff as an assistant coach.
He feels his most significant contribution to the athletic program is his hiring of eighth different head coaches to teaching positions in the social studies department.
Dr. Tom Leonard: Leonard's contributions to Barrington High School are endless. He had a major impact on the athletic program at Barrington High School in the 13 years he served as principal and superintendent of District 220. He was instrumental in the building of the Barrington Community Stadium, considered by many to be the finest high school stadium in the Chicago area. Barrington High School has won 50 IHSA state trophies in the school's history with 29 of them coming under Leonard's leadership. During his tenure as principal, the Barrington athletic program won the Daily Herald Paddock Cup and Paddock Trophy for excellence in Mid-Suburban League girls and boys athletics four consecutive years. Prior to that, no school had ever won both awards in the same year. Leonard is proudest of the fact that he hired quality educators as coaches. Twenty-one of the 28 head coaches currently at Barrington were hired during Leonard's tenure in District 220. His valuable contributions and loyal support to the athletic program will continue to be felt for years to come.
Lorraine Pahlke: Lorraine is being inducted into the Coaches' Hall of Fame under the category of Friends of Athletics. More specifically though for her contributions to athletics in the area of athletic department transportation. Lorraine is a true ambassador for Barrington athletics, the high school, the District and the community. Her husband, Al, was a life-long resident and student in the Barrington community. Lorraine came to Barrington following her marriage to Al in 1949. Their Barrington Transportation Company has provided transportation to Barrington student-athletes since 1957. Lorraine says she is proudest of their daily operations and the fact that they have continued to safely transport students to and from school and events for the past 67 years. Not only has she supported the athletic program with high quality transportation service, but she is also the mother-in-law and grandmother of two current Barrington coaches.
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