The 2025-26 Herald Cup: No. 1 St. Francis

Editor’s note: Now that the 2025-26 high school sports year is over, it’s time to announce the top schools in the Herald Cup standings. We devised a points system based on team state finishes to measure which of the 80-plus high schools from the Daily Herald circulation area had the best athletic year. We’re announcing the top five small schools this week, one per day, starting with No. 5 Monday through No. 1 today. The top five large schools will be revealed next week.

It was a very good year for St. Francis athletics.

St. Francis returned to the Herald Cup top five in the No. 1 spot, leading the small schools with 109 points in the 2025-26 Herald Cup. Headlined with a Class 5A title in football, the Spartans also won a sectional title in boys basketball and two regional titles in softball and girls volleyball. They also finished third in girls soccer and seventh in girls track and field.

How they got there

The Spartans football highlighted the school’s athletic year. Despite finishing the regular season with a 42-16 loss to Nazareth Academy, they cruised past opponents like Morgan Park, Prairie Ridge, King College Prep and Belvidere North en route to the state championship game. Despite trailing 21-14 before the second half, St. Francis bounced back and took its first lead in the final quarter, capitalizing on the late-game momentum for the win at 39-35.

Not just football, St. Francis boys basketball also experienced a breakout season. The Spartans upset top-seeded Joliet 58-54 for the regional title. After moving past Lemont 52-44 in the sectional semifinals, St. Francis faced a greater challenge from Wheaton Academy in the sectional final. The Spartans turned the first-half deficit into a 69-62 overtime win for their fourth sectional title in program history.

Who made it happen

In the state final, quarterback Brock Phillip led the Spartans with a team-high five touchdowns and 144 rushing yards. He also threw for 226 yards and one touchdown. Phillip stepped up in the fourth quarter and scored a touchdown to trim the lead to 28-26. He then scored again, running for a 1-yard touchdown for the Spartans' first lead.

When the Spartans boys basketball trailed the Warriors 31-23 at halftime, their seniors rallied. Tanner Hozian, who finished 14 points with seven free throws made, and Nathan Silagi, who nailed a massive 3-pointer and forced a crucial steal in overtime, lifted St. Francis to the title win. Junior center Ben Whorlow also took over the second half, leading the way with a game-high 15 points.

Key stats

Quarterback Brock Phillip led the team in both passing (30) and rushing touchdowns (16) this season. Senior wide receiver Dari Millivojevic led with 15 receiving touchdowns.

The boys basketball team entered the postseason with a 12-14 record before they secured the sectional title.

Junior forward Lorraine Surina led the girls soccer with 21 goals this season, becoming the major offensive power for the Spartans' third-place finish at state.

Key facts

By beating Providence 38-35 in the football state final, the Spartans won their first state championship since 2008, their second state title in program history.

Boys basketball won the sectional for the first time since 2022, marking its fourth sectional title in program history — three of them won by coach Erin Dwyer.

Under girls soccer coach Jim Winslow, the Spartans made it to their state tournament for the first time since 2018. It was also St. Francis’ fourth state appearances, with the previous three times being led by Winslow.

They said it

“It was incredible, to be honest with you,” quarterback Brock Phillip said after the Spartans won the football state championship. “Couldn’t be more happy with my team. The line did amazing, got together in the second half. We knew what we were supposed to do and we got the job done.”

“If you would have told me we would be here in December, I would have thought you were nuts,” said Spartans boys basketball coach Erin Dwyer, who led the team to a 69-62 overtime win over Wheaton Academy in the Class 3A sectional final.