Hook repeats as player of the year
Wheaton junior Jordan Hook (Wheaton Warrenville South) was named the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin tennis player of the year for the second straight year, and she was named an all-conference selection for the third time.
Hook, who posted a 14-0 record this fall and has a career record of 71-3, leads a group of five players from the Thunder received all-conference honors. Wheaton registered an 8-0 overall record and a 6-0 CCIW record for the fall season.
Seniors Shannon Hale and Brooke Parrish joined Hook on the All-CCIW first team, while junior Brittney Dunn and sophomore Kayli Edwards earned second-team all-conference honors.
Coach Jane Nelson was also recognized as the CCIW Coach of the Year.
Football: The Wheaton football team is ranked fifth in this week's D3Football.com Top 25 poll. The Thunder is 7-0 on the season and is tied for the CCIW lead with Illinois Wesleyan at 4-0. Wheaton will visit Elmhurst at 1 p.m. Saturday.
Women's soccer: The Thunder women's soccer team used a goal by freshman Brittany Bergh at 1:50 in the second overtime to earn a 3-2 victory at the University of Chicago last Saturday.
The top-ranked Thunder improved to 17-0-0 and its 35-match winning streak is the second-longest in the history of Division III women's soccer.
Elmhurst: Freshman forward Jon Brehm turned in a record-setting performance for the men's soccer team (12-3-1, 4-1) last week. On Saturday, Brehm became the first player in the four-year history of the Bluejays' program to score 4 goals in a game. Brehm accomplished the feat in Elmhurst's 6-0 win over Manchester (Ind.).
In that game, Brehm also set a single-season Elmhurst record by scoring his 14th goal of the season, surpassing the previous mark of 12. Earlier in the year, Brehm earned CCIW player of the week honors after he tied the single-game record for goals in a game with 3 and set a single-game record for points with 8.
"Jon Brehm has an overwhelming passion to play every game," said Elmhurst coach Dave Di Tomasso. "It shows by his creativity and attention to detail. He's natural goal-scorer. We look forward for him to continue his stellar performances this year and for years to come."
This season Brehm leads the team in goals with 14 and total points with 35. He's 1 point shy of tying Elmhurst's single-season total-points record.
The Bluejays will be aiming to clinch a share of the CCIW title this week with games against North Park on Wednesday and Wheaton on Friday.
Bowling: The Elmhurst women's bowling team kicked off its season last Saturday with a 3-1 performance against Calumet College-St. Joseph. Freshman Sarah Bell set a school record with a 702 series, rolling a 245-233-224. Bell was instrumental in the Bluejays' 949-948 Game 3, rolling three consecutive strikes to give Elmhurst the win.
In the Bluejays 1038-1031 first-game win Bell was the high scorer and was joined on the plus side of 200 by Becky Wright, 234, Michelle Cree (Willowbrook), 204 and Katie Gilman, 202. Freshman Sarah Paul (Naperville Central) made her varsity debut with a 202 average in two games.
Benedictine: After a 1-4 start, the women's soccer team has gotten on track and is unbeaten in its last eight matches.
The Eagles (8-4-1, 6-3) have moved up to fourth place in the 13-team Northern Athletics Conference standings and they're competing for a spot in the league's postseason tournament.
Last Saturday, the Eagles came back from a 3-1 deficit to defeat Marian College 4-3, behind 2 goals by Laura Omsberg (Glenbard East). Kimyenna Abron, who shares the team-lead with Omsberg at 9 goals apiece, scored the winning goal for the Eagles.
Football: The Eagles football team has embarked on a streak of its own, winning its last three games.
Last Saturday, Benedictine (4-4) topped Eureka 21-6 and once again, it was the Eagles' defense that ruled the day, holding the Red Devils to just 120 yards of total offense.
Senior defensive back Anthony Borsellino (Montini) led the defense with 9 tackles, while junior defensive back Matt Kunz and linebacker Devin Montgomery added 6 apiece.
Sophomore tailback Ryan Schwartz carried the ball 33 times for 198 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
North Central: The school has announced it will field a women's lacrosse team for the 2008-09 academic year, becoming the first NCAA Division III school in Illinois to sponsor a varsity team.
North Central now sponsors 22 collegiate sports, 11 for the men and 11 for the women.
"Interest in lacrosse is exploding across the Midwest, and North Central is pleased to offer lacrosse for women who are accomplished student-athletes," said Laurie Hamen, vice president for enrollment management athletics and student affairs.
Heading the new program will be current women's soccer coach Jenni Kapanen, who was a member of the inaugural women's lacrosse team at Franklin Pierce University in New Hampshire.
"I've had a vision of starting a lacrosse program for a long time," Kapanen said. "It's thrilling to be able to make it a reality and for North Central to be the first school in Illinois with a varsity team. The initial feedback and level of interest in the community has been extremely positive and empowering."
Kapanen has already begun recruiting and setting up the schedule for 2008-09.