Another Mazur is headed for Georgia Southern

Jess Mazur always wanted to go to college somewhere south.

Or, more specifically anywhere warmer than the Midwest.

Thanks to her softball skills, Mazur will get her wish. Not only that, she is headed to familiar territory.

Mazur has signed a letter of intent to play at Georgia Southern, where her sister Michelle played the last four seasons.

"Having been able to see a little bit of what life at Georgia Southern was like through my older sister was definitely something that made me interested to look more into the school," Mazur said. "Already having developed some relationships with existing team members along with the great new coaching staff that has been brought in, everything seemed to come together at the right time."

Her time at Fremd as a pitcher, outfielder and hitter has been quite impressive and she still has one spring left.

Mazur is on her way to breaking every major power record in program history.

While hitting third, fourth and fifth last spring, Mazur saw her batting average climb nearly 70 points over the final month of last season when she hit over .550. She finished at .488 (. 940 slugging) with 14 doubles and 8 homers.

She has 18 homers for her career, three behind all-time Fremd leader Megan Hubbard.

"Her power numbers speak for themselves," said Fremd coach Josh Teschner after last spring.

When speaking to the coaching staff at Georgia Southern, Mazur was quickly convinced that Kim Dean and her staff were exactly the type of coaches she wanted.

"The players were also very welcoming for me which made it very clear I found my home away from home," said Mazur, who plans to study biology and pre-vet.

Michelle has always been a big role model for Jess.

"I wanted to be just like her growing up," Jess said. "As time went on I figured myself out as a student/athlete and had many people supporting my decision to train and compete to play in college."

There have been many people who have inspired Mazur and she is grateful for all.

"It starts with my family and how much they support me," Jess said. "My great teammates and coaches in all my sports along the way have always inspired me to train and compete to be the best teammate I could be."

Mazur feels blessed to have been able to work with 'amazing local and national level instructors/coaches' on all aspects of her game.

"There are too many to list but each of has taught me how to train and compete physically and mentally while never forgetting how to be a great teammate," she added. "It's really moving to think back and understand how many people have touched me and help me develop as a person and an athlete."

Mazur is looking forward to her final prep season this spring.

"I'm beyond excited for this spring season and for next fall," Mazur said. " I've been blessed with the ability to play this sport and I'm planning on leaving all I have on the field wherever I'm playing."

Remembering Ron

Ron Cregier, the late IBCA hall of fame basketball coach and longtime Fremd business department chairman, was recognized with a moment of silence in between Friday's Palatine/Fremd boys and girls basketball doubleheader at Fremd High School. It was also announced that the season-ending freshman boys basketball tournament at Fremd will be renamed the 'Ron Cregier Memorial Basketball Tournament' beginning in 2018.

IBCA Class of 2018

Three former athletes from the Mid-Suburban League will be inducted into the Class of 2018 IBCA Hall of Fame.

The trio includes Hersey girls basketball coach Mary Fendley (standout three-sport athlete at Rolling Meadows), former Barrington girls basketball guard Lindsay Richards and former Prospect/Arlington boys basketball standout forward Todd Wolfe.

Women's swimming

Carthage sophomore Becca Rutkowski (Fremd) was selected as swimmer of the week in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin. She won a pair of events while helping the Lady Reds win the A3 Carthage Classic.

Rutkowski finished first in the 50-yard freestyle (24.18) and the 100 freestyle (52.52); both were lifetime bests. She also placed second in the 200 freestyle in 1:56.72 and was part of the second place 400 medley relay (4:00.62) and the winning 400 freestyle relay (3:36.23).

Women's bowling

Former Hoffman Estates bowling standout Natalie Cortese has been nominated for a spot in the Valparaiso University Hall of Fame after a standout collegiate career.

Women's basketball

Alabama-Birmingham junior guard Deanna Kuzmanic (Wheeling) scored 16 points on 6-for-12 shooting and matched a team-high with 4 assists as the Blazers (7-2) fell to visiting Memphis 64-62. Kuzmanic has scored 15 or more points in three games this season.

• Cornell College (IA) senior Diamond Boyd (Elk Grove) scored 15 points to reach 999 for her career in an 86-59 Midwest Conference victory over Grinnell. Boyd also had a game-high 4 steals in only 24 minutes.

• Carthage sophomore Maggie Berigan (Hersey) had 6 points and 9 rebounds in the Lady Reds' 74-67 victory over Augustana.

Senior Morgan Harris (Hersey) handed out 5 assists as the Lady Reds won their first College of Illinois and Wisconsin game to improve to 5-3 and 1-2. She contributed a season-high 14 rebounds with 8 assists and 6 points in the Lady Reds' 81-77 overtime loss to visiting North Central College.

• Illinois State sophomore Megan Talbot (Barrington) scored 13 points in the Redbirds' 65-56 win over Eastern Michigan on the Doug Collins Court at Redbird Arena. It was the second game in a row that Talbot reached double digits.

• Duke redshirt sophomore Haley Gorecki (Fremd) continued her impressive season, starting her first game of the year and second of her career with a career-high 20 points in a 101-30 victory over Winthrop in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Gorecki went 7-for-11 from the field, 5-of-7 from behind the arc and handed out 4 assists.

No. 14 Duke (8-2) cleared the 100-point mark for the first time since Nov. 15, 2016 against Longwood and the eighth time under the direction of head coach Joanne McCallie.

Men's swimming

Augustana sophomore Adam Smith (Palatine) took third (2:07.05) in the 200 individual medley against visiting Carthage, which won the meet 150.5-107.5. Augustana sophomore Ben Peinsipp (St. Viator) was part of the 200 free relay team (1:31.96) which took second.

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