Basketball's the collegiate path for Fremd's Wacker
Julia Wacker's service work with the Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Palatine has taken her on missions to Louisiana, Colorado and New Jersey in recent summers.
Her collegiate work on the basketball floor will also take her out of state.
Fremd's 6-foot-2 senior forward recently committed to play basketball at Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Mich.
And basketball is also the 'working' phrase.
Not too long ago, Wacker was leaning toward softball as her college preference for sports.
She started playing both in first grade.
"I've loved both my whole life," said Wacker, who has been a straight-A student her entire time at Fremd (4.59 GPA on weighted scale). "I knew I would have to give up one, but I would be happy playing either."
It was her softball game which attracted Hillsdale College's staff last summer.
Wacker was an all-area first baseman for coach Jim Weaver's Vikings last spring. She batted .404 with 32 runs, 14 doubles, 5 homers, 22 walks and a .513 on-base percentage.
"They actually wanted me first for softball but they had a lot of numbers in that program," Wacker said. "Basketball came back with better opportunities for me.
"Overall, the school has a lot of the same values as I do and I felt it would be a real good fit academically and community-wise."
She plans to study either pre-law or biology.
"I haven't decided which one but I'm very passionate about both," said Wacker, a National Honor Society member and active volunteer in her free time. She has served the last few summers as a counselor at a ranch camp and has been very involved with service projects at her church.
Wacker became the fifth starter for Fremd's state-ranked team to have committed to a D-I or D-II basketball program.
"It's such a relief, especially with so many tough classes that I've loaded myself down with in school," she said. "It's nice to know where I'm going to call home the next four years."
Men's basketball
Winthrop senior guard Jimmy Gavin, who attended Prospect High School, was named men's basketball player of the week in the Big South Conference.
Gavin averaged 30 ppg in two road games that the Eagles split.
His week was highlighted by a 38-point performance at North Carolina State. Gavin scored 22 of his 38 points in the second half in the Eagles' 87-79 loss.
His 38 points were the third most scored at PNC Arena behind North Carolina State's T.J. Warren, who has an arena record 42 points and Davidson's Steph Curry, who scored 40 in 2008.
It was also the highest point total for an opposing player against the Wolfpack since 1979.
Gavin is tied for the sixth most points scored in a single-game in the history of the program, tying Greg Lewis' 38 points against UNC Greensboro on Dec. 21, 1999.
That is also the highest point total by an Eagle against a NCAA Division I nonconference opponent.
The week started with Gavin scoring 22 in Winthrop's 79-78 win at USC upstate. He scored 10 straight points in the second half, helping the Eagles erase a 9-point deficit in the final 14 minutes.
Women's basketball
Millikin senior Alyssa Saklak (Schaumburg) had her fourth straight double-double, scoring 19 points and pulling down 16 rebounds in a 63-57 win over Eureka
Men's track and field
The Lewis University men's track and field team checks in at No. 15 in the inaugural U.S. Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Preseason National Team Computer rankings.
Returning for Lewis is senior all-American Andre Barnes (Prospect), who finished fourth in the weight throw at the 2015 NCAA Indoor Championships. Barnes also set a NCAA Provisional last season in the 200-meter dash.
Women's tennis
Augustana junior tennis standout Lauren Goggin (Buffalo Grove) was selected as the school's female winner of the Jack Swartz Award in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin.
The Jack Swartz Award is given to one male and one female athlete at the end of each athletic season.
The only requirement is that the winners must earn a varsity letter in his/her sport and have a grade-point average of at least 3.50. The award is named after the late Jack Swartz, who served as the Commissioner of the CCIW until his death in 1998.
Goggin handled the No. 1 singles position for coach Jon Miedema's CCIW champions. She compiled a sparkling 13-5 record this past fall while consistently playing against the top players of each opponent. She finished second at No. 1 in the CCIW Tournament and took second at No. 2 doubles (13-2 mark).
Goggin earned first team all-conference honors for the third straight time in her career. She has compiled an overall record (singles & doubles combined) of 117-49 with the Vikings and ranks 16th on the school's all-time victory list. Goggin is 57-25 in her career in singles and 60-24 in doubles and with the spring season and all of her senior year in front of her she is already tied for 13th in both categories on the all-time lists.
Women's soccer
Lewis senior forward Maggie Moran (Rolling Meadows) was named to the 2015 National Soccer Coaches Association of America All-Midwest Region second team.
Moran recorded a team-high 6 goals and 7 assists for 19 points. She picked up goals in three consecutive games and helped the Flyers to a third Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament berth in four seasons.
"I'm really happy for Maggie that she was honored by the Midwest region coaches," Lewis coach Chris Koenig said in a school release. "It is great to see someone that has worked so hard get recognized with the postseason honors she has received. As a senior, teams have been scouting and playing against Maggie for several years. It is a credit to her that she was able to have the type of senior year she did even though opponents put so much focus on her."
It is Moran's first career all-region honor.
Football
Southern Illinois senior quarterback Mark Iannotti (Schaumburg) was named to the Missouri Valley Football Conference All-Academic first team. South Dakota State junior linebacker Jesse Bobbit (Palatine) was named to the second team.
• Washington (St. Louis) junior wide receiver Kevin Hammarlund (St. Viator) was named to the first team Southern Athletic Association (SAA) and University Athletic Association all-conference teams,
Hammarlund hauled in a team-high 64 catches for 957 yards and 9 touchdowns in 2015. He led both leagues in receiving yards per game (95.7), and was also first in the SAA in receptions.
Women's hockey
St. Cloud senior goalie Katie Fitzgerald (Maine West) was named the Western Collegiate Hockey Association's player of the month.
She helped St. Cloud State to a road sweep at Lindenwood, running the Huskies' winning streak to a program-record six-game winning streak.
The Huskies swept a pair of WCHA series and were a perfect 6-0-0 overall in November.
Fitzgerald led all WCHA goaltenders and tied for the NCAA lead with 6 wins while ranking second in the league for goals-against average (1.33), save percentage (. 950) and minutes (360:00). She was third for saves (152).
Fitzgerald made at least 20 saves in each game during November while she led the WCHA with 54 stops in the third period.
Baseball
Hoffman Estates will be the host school for a baseball camp on Tuesday, Dec. 29 from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the main gym.
The camp is free but donations to the Hoffman Estates High School baseball program will be accepted.
The camp is for players from the ages of eight to 14. Hoffman varsity baseball coach Todd Meador will run the camp with his assistants and players. Registration can take place by emailing tmeador@d211.org or at the door.
Mustang 3-on-3
The Rolling Meadows Athletic Booster Club is again sponsoring the 21st Annual Mustang 3-on-3 Shootout basketball tournament on Sunday, Dec 20.
The tournament is open to boys and girls from third grade through adult.
The games will be played between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. with the younger grades going earlier in the day.
All games will be played at Rolling Meadows High School and will be officiated. Concessions will be available through the Post Prom Committee. The cost is $100 per team and the deadline is Dec. 17.
Registration forms are online at rmhsboosters.com. Proceeds from this event go toward TPC's Post Prom Committee and the RMHS Athletic Boosters. Call Dave Dillon (847-525-8969) or Rick Kowalski (847-421-1258) with any questions.
• Please submit Sports Notes items to jleusch@dailyherald.com.