Benet, Carmel, Joliet Catholic, Marian Catholic, Marist, Marmion, Nazareth and St. Viator are joining the GCAC. All of those high schools except Marmion, which will be going coed for the first time that academic year, are members of the East Suburban Catholic Conference.

Benet, Carmel, Joliet Catholic, Marian, Marist, Nazareth, Notre Dame, St. Patrick and St. Viator will be joining the Catholic League. All of those schools also are from the ESCC. Notre Dame and St. Patrick are all-boys schools.

Thomas Schergen, the principal of De La Salle and executive representative of the GCAC and Catholic League, welcomed the development.

“Both leagues are extremely competitive,” Schergen said. “With the addition of these tradition-rich East Suburban Catholic institutions, we have set our respective conferences on a continued path of success and continue to strengthen these premier Catholic athletic organizations.

“We look forward to having these new members under the Chicago Catholic League and Girls Catholic Athletic Conference banners, both athletically and academically.”

Founded in 1975, the ESCC began with Carmel, Holy Cross, Marist, Notre Dame, St. Joseph, St. Patrick and St. Viator. Between 1982 and 2014, Joliet Catholic, Benet, Marian Catholic and Marian Central Catholic entered the mix. Fenwick, Bishop McNamara and Providence joined the ESCC with girls teams before leaving for the GCAC.

Since 1974, the ESCC have won 96 team state championships and 91 individual state titles.

The addition of the ESCC schools and Marmion will boost the GCAC to 24 teams. The Catholic League will expand to 26. The Catholic League was started in 1912. The GCAC was established in 1974.

Dan Tully, principal at Notre Dame and chairman of the board of the ESCC, also was excited about the move.

“The ESCC’s legacy of academic and athletic success, as well as our standards for competitive excellence, align closely with the heritage of the Chicago Catholic League and Girls Catholic Athletic Conference,” Tully said. “Bringing our schools together will expand competitive opportunities based on geography and parity while also maintaining long-standing rivalries for the benefit of our communities, teams and student-athletes.

“As faith-based institutions, we strive to offer a comprehensive educational experience, along with high-quality co-curricular programming. The ESCC’s history of achievement dovetails with the rich traditions of the CCL and GCAC and we look forward to furthering our partnership.”

Homeowners’ bills grew by a total of about 7% over that span as a result of the shift, according to the latest report from the Cook County treasurer’s office, the first to calculate how much shifting burdens have cost on property tax bills. Those increases fell more on lower-income Black and Latino taxpayers, the report found.

The report does not draw conclusions about whether those appeals were correct, but does show “that the county’s assessment appeal system works far more to the advantage of business property owners than homeowners, and at the same time favors wealthier white homeowners over lower-income minority homeowners.”

It looked at the impact of appeals at the county assessor’s office and the three-member Board of Review during the 2021 and 2023 tax years. Though those years corresponded with much of the pandemic, its conclusions echoed similar findings from a Chicago Tribune and ProPublica investigation in 2017 about appeals’ impact on assessments.

Properties are reassessed every three years. Every year, owners have two chances to knock down their assessments via appeals before the value is finalized: once at the assessor, next at the Board of Review. If they’re dissatisfied with those results, they can take their case to the Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board or to circuit court.

Owners of businesses have historically been far more likely to appeal. In the span of the study, nearly 64% of commercial building owners appealed, representing more than $100 billion in value. More than 46% of all businesses were “serial” filers, appealing every year, according to the report.

Business appeals “were particularly successful” in the period of the study, the report found, lowering “their taxes through appeals by a total of 12.5%,” or about $3.3 billion.

Owners that didn’t appeal wound up paying for it: Any reduction in assessed value for one property owner shifts the burden onto others. Successful appeals for valuable commercial buildings have a much bigger impact and shift millions in tax burden onto homeowners and other businesses.

While overall 27% of homeowners appealed, the study found “wide variations” in which homeowners filed their own appeals. Just 3.4% of homeowners in West Englewood, a majority-Black and low-income neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side, disputed their assessment during 2021 city cycle, while nearly all Loop homeowners — 96% — did so. That could be because assessments dropped in Englewood and went up in the Loop that year as Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi rejiggered the office’s methodology.

In the suburbs, just 22% of south suburban homeowners appealed during that reassessment year, compared with 60% of those in the north suburbs. Homeowners and businesses in lower-income areas were “hit the hardest,” the study found.

“Homeowners in those neighborhoods were less likely to appeal, less likely to win and, when they did win, received lower overall dollar reductions in their homes’ assessed values,” the report said. Appeals led to bills increasing by about 5% for homeowners “in high-income areas and about 10% in low-income areas, most of which had predominantly minority populations.”

The assessor’s office said a major reason for appeal rate disparities by neighborhood could be that median bills in wealthier neighborhoods are much higher.

In some Chicago neighborhoods, the treasurer highlighted particularly sharp hikes where residents could least afford it. The South Deering neighborhood, which is majority Black and has a median household income below $35,000, saw overall tax bills go up 24.3% following appeals during the 2021 Chicago cycle. So did the majority-Latino Gage Park neighborhood, where median household income is about $50,000. It saw bills go up by 23% that year after appeals.

But while all property owners have the right to appeal, Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas said the answer isn’t necessarily for everyone to do so. Rather, the assessor’s office and Board of Review need to get on the same page about their data and methodologies so owners trust the assessments in the first place and so reductions for businesses aren’t as dramatic, she said.

Both offices pledged to do just that in December, after a county report concluded decades of communication failures had helped fuel gaps in how each office approached assessments. That study, commissioned by Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, found suburban businesses were assessed too low compared with their actual sale prices and that appeals to the Board of Review made assessments less accurate. It also found Kaegi initially assessed Chicago commercial properties too high in 2021.

But the political reality of reaching consensus is thorny. Board of Review Commissioner Samantha Steele and two board employees with ties to Commissioner Larry Rogers Jr. are running to replace Kaegi in the March primary. Steele and Rogers, meanwhile, are also rivals.

“These two offices are in a war zone, and if they don’t stop their war zone, this is going to go on,” Pappas said. “Can we get to the middle to get to a solution that doesn’t hurt people?”

Assessments for commercial buildings have been a hot button issue since Kaegi took office. The previous Tribune investigation found high-end downtown businesses had been under-assessed. For thousands of those properties, the investigation found, their assessment did not change “even by a single dollar,” while for others, their assessments were “so riddled with errors that they created deep inequities.”

Kaegi pledged to fix those issues. The first commercial assessments he mailed were 82.5% higher in the north suburbs in 2019, 55.6% higher in the south suburbs the following year, and up 76.5% in Chicago in 2021. Business owners, believing Kaegi overcorrected, filed appeals, and the county’s Board of Review, which disagreed with Kaegi’s methodology, often granted reductions.

Kaegi’s office, in a statement, said the latest report backs up its long-held contention that “outsized reductions” granted by the Board of Review to big commercial appellants are what is driving the shift.

“By comparison, the tax bill changes due to differences in residential appeal rates are relatively minor. We don’t believe the problem of property tax unfairness is solved by pitting homeowners against each other, distracting us from the much more consequential inequities at play,” the statement continued, noting that independent analyses found Kaegi’s assessments are more accurate than past years.

Rogers, the chairman of the three-member Board of Review, said the assessor’s “flawed valuations” are to blame. “The buck starts and stops with Fritz Kaegi.”

Pappas’ study suggests if the two offices standardized their data, they might grant smaller business breaks and reduce the massive shifts from the appeals process. The two previously promised to work together, and she said she hoped the report would help “nudge” them to collaborate.

Until then, the report said low-income homeowners should also be given tools to help appeal their assessments. Kaegi’s office, the statement said, participated in more than 200 outreach events for homeowners to help with appeals and exemptions last year.

All teams crave senior leadership, especially younger teams. It becomes a bit tougher, though, when that responsibility falls on the shoulders of just one senior — as in the Warriors’ case.

But for Wiertelak, this spring has been a revelation.

“Being the one who takes on that leadership responsibility has been kind of crazy,” she said. “All of these girls are like younger sisters to me and I’m very protective of them. I want them to do well.”

Wiertelak continued to lead the way Saturday morning, throwing a one-hitter and driving in three runs for host Waubonsie Valley in a 15-0 victory in four innings over Joliet Central in Aurora.

Sophomore outfielder Dezirae Kelly stepped up with a two-run triple and added four RBIs for Waubonsie (7-11). Wiertelak struck out three, walked one and also went 3-for-3 at the plate.

Pitching and hitting? Wiertelak believes one feeds the other.

“Everything goes hand to hand,” she said. “Hitting in the fourth spot, I know once the first two or three batters get on that I can get them moving.

“The same with pitching. I just work on hitting my corners and let my defense do the work.”

Kelly, meanwhile, finished 2-for-3 and scored three runs. She’s one of five sophomore starters for the Warriors. Giavanna Pyle, who had a two-run single, is one of two freshmen starters.

Sophomore shortstop Aislee Morgan pointed out the impact Wiertelak has made.

“Sammy’s just an amazing person, a great player and fantastic leader,” Morgan said. “She has a great personality. She’s funny, sarcastic, and she has a great connection with the rest of the team.”

A four-year varsity player, Wieterlak never imagined she would be the sole representative of her senior class.

“We started with a decent amount my freshman year and then they just all decided they wanted to focus on other sports they were more competitive or comfortable with,” she said.

“My first three years were a big learning experience for gaining that leadership role. We always had at least three seniors. I have to step up now being the only one.”

Waubonsie coach Valerie Wood said Wiertelak’s combination of experience, savvy and two-way talent is a connective thread that bonds the different players.

“She never seems to be rattled out there,” Wood said. “Things could be going horribly wrong and she just has a cool, calm and collected attitude.

“They could be hitting off of her or our team could be making tons of errors, but she never gets frustrated. I think the younger girls see that and it helps them get through the inning.”

Along with older sister Caroline, now a sophomore at Illinois State, Wiertelak took up dance and played T-ball growing up. Caroline stuck with dance, but Samantha stayed with softball.

At the start of her freshman year, Wiertelak then threw a curve of sorts.

“I started bowling, which I’d never really done before,” she said. “Now I have four bowling balls and I go all the time. I’m very competitive with everything I do.”

She’s also a free thinker who loves adventure, something Wiertelak developing in the summer.

“I love exploring,” she said. “Any time I go somewhere for travel ball and we get done a day early, I love going to a nearby zoo. I just love experiencing when I have those free days.”

Being Waubonsie’s only senior is far from a burden as well. Wiertelak enjoys leading the way.

“My greatest thrill is knowing I had the chance to come here and not only play for the school, but play for all the girls who either graduated before me or are going to graduate after me,” she said.

“I can create a safe space for them and I can do anything for them.”

Patrick Z. McGavin is a freelancer for The Beacon-News.

Ritchie, a highly touted sophomore right-hander, stands 6-foot-3 and already possesses a fastball that can hit 90 mph. Genke, a former minor league pitcher, knows he has a unique talent on his hands.

“For such a young kid, really good baseball mind, competitor,” Genke said of Ritchie. “Obviously, he’s been blessed with a strong right arm.

“He’s an exciting young player and he’s an even better human being. When you put those two things together, that’s pretty special.”

Ritchie took another big step forward Saturday in a 3-0 DuKane Conference win over crosstown rival St. Charles East. He worked six shutout innings, hitting his pitch count of 90 with a strikeout to end the sixth.

Ritchie struck out 10 while scattering four hits and two walks for St. Charles North (9-6, 5-2). Josh Kobylinski came on in the seventh to nail down the save.

Keaton Reinke chipped in with two hits, including a double, two runs and two stolen bases for the North Stars. Ben Auer, Ty Heimbuch and Nolan Macholz each tallied RBI singles. James Feigleson had two hits for St. Charles East (10-10, 6-4).

Ritchie kept his eye on the Saints’ lineup while playing third base Friday in the series opener at Northwestern Medicine Field in Geneva. Showing his maturity, he started putting together a scouting report in his head for Saturday’s game.

“All night, I was at third studying their hitters and seeing what was going to get them,” Ritchie said. “I just wanted to work quickly and get ahead.”

That’s an area of his game that Genke confirmed is still evolving — dictating the pace of the game.

It wasn’t a problem at all Saturday, however.

“Sometimes he gets slowed down a little bit, so we’ve been working with him on that,” Genke said. “He was in control the entire game, so I’m very proud of him and happy for him.”

Genke also calls pitches for Ritchie, who is all ears. Genke focused on the fastball and curveball the first couple times through the order before having Ritchie mix in change-ups later in the game.

“I’ve never questioned anything he’s called,” Ritchie said. “I’ve developed my change-up. The last time through the order, I had another weapon to get them with, another pitch for them to see.”

Reinke led off the bottom of the first inning with a walk, stole second and scored on Auer’s RBI single. Ritchie made that lead hold up in a pitcher’s duel with St. Charles East’s Nathan Moline before the North Stars tacked on two insurance runs in the sixth.

“That’s a game where you have to tip your cap to their pitcher,” St. Charles East coach Derek Sutor said. “He seemed to get stronger as the game went on. Our guys didn’t adjust at the plate.

“He owned the mound. He stayed calm. The stage didn’t faze him.”

Sutor was impressed with how Moline went toe-to-toe with Ritchie.

“That’s kind of the thing he’s done all season for us,” Sutor said. “He’s a guy who’s turning into somebody that we’re going to count on down the stretch.”

In terms of demeanor and arm talent, Genke likens Ritchie to former ace Josh Caccia. Ritchie has more size and more velocity but Genke would still like him to adopt some of Caccia’s traits as he moves along.

“I’m hoping it develops more into Caccia,” Genke said. “He was a pitcher — he wasn’t a thrower. Matt’s starting to graduate from being that thrower to being a pitcher and being able to command three pitches and command the mound.

“He’s going to be a fun kid to watch the next few years.”

Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.

Email Daily Southtown results to southtownsports@gmail.com, Beacon-News, Courier-News and Naperville Sun results to tribwestsports@gmail.com and News-Sun results to newssunsports@gmail.com.

SUNDAY’S RESULTS

LOCAL COLLEGES

SOFTBALL

Benedictine 2-7, Aurora University 1-4

Lake Forest College 2-6, Monmouth 0-1

Game 1 Lake Forest College: Riley Stiles CG, 3 H, 0 ER.

Game 2 Lake Forest College (25-14-1, 14-2 Midwest): Kyla Chevalier 2-for-3, double, 2 runs. Emmie Nyen solo HR.

SATURDAY’S RESULTS

HIGH SCHOOLS

BASEBALL

Argo 16, Hubbard 0 (4 innings)

Aurora Central Catholic 10, Leo 0 (5 innings)

ACC (11-10, 2-4 CCL White): Luke Torrence CG, H, 10 Ks. Brodie Curry 2-for-3, double, run, 2 RBIs.

Bartlett 3, Riverside-Brookfield 2

Bartlett (11-13-1, 8-4 Upstate Eight): Josh Colaizzi CG, ER, 12 Ks. Alex Bihun 2 RBIs; GW RBI in bottom 7th.

Beecher 5, St. Anne 1

Benet 6-8, Carmel 5-3

Game 1 Benet: Quinn Rooney GW sac fly in bottom 7th.

Game 2 Benet (15-7, 7-3 ESCC): Luke Wildes 3-run HR.

Brother Rice 13, St.Rita 0 (5 innings)

Chicago Christian 7, Marian Central Catholic 4

Chicago Christian (15-8, 6-3 Chicagoland Christian): Micah Buikema 2-for-3, double, 2 RBIs. Rafe Slager 2 runs.

Deerfield 6, Crystal Lake Central 5

Deerfield (11-12): Easton Newman 2 runs, RBI, 2 stolen bases.

Fremd 10, Warren 9 (8 innings)

Warren (14-8): Mason Durst double, 3 RBIs. Braxton Goodfellow 2 RBIs.

Geneva 4, Batavia 3

Geneva (18-6, 8-3 DuKane): Nick Price 2-for-3, run, 2 RBIs. Noah Hallahan 2-for-4, run, RBI.

Jacobs 2, Lake Zurich 1

Joliet Catholic 6-15, St. Patrick 2-2

JCA (12-11, 6-2 ESCC): Keegan Farnaus combined 3-for-4, 4 runs, 6 RBIs.

Joliet West 2, Lockport 0

Kaneland 15-6, Lisle 0-0

Game 1 Kaneland: Aidan Whildin 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

Game 2 Kaneland (17-5): Kayden Johnson 2 RBIs.

Lake Central (Ind.) 8, Lincoln-Way Central 6

Libertyville 1, Highland Park 0

Libertyville (21-2): Ryan Wilberding 2-for-3, run.

Lincoln-Way East 7, Oswego East 3

Lincoln-Way East (19-4): Colin Bettenhausen 5 IP, 2 H. Charlie Cosich 3 runs.

Marist 8, St. Viator 0

Marist (13-8, 6-2 ESCC): Tommy Hosty 5 IP, 0 H. John McAuliffe 2 RBIs. Matt Molesky 2 RBIs.

Marmion 10, Fenwick 9

Marmion (14-9-1, 5-1 CCL White): Trajan Storto-Featherson 2-for-2, double, 2 runs, 3 RBIs. Kevin Schultz 2-for-5, double, HR, 3 RBIs. Scored 4 runs in top 7th.

Metea Valley 9, Taft 2

Metea (10-14): Caleb Allen CG, 9 Ks. Ethan Singer run, 2 RBIs. Tyler Gluting 2-for-3, 2 runs.

Montini 14, De La Salle 3 (5 innings)

Naperville Central 6, Prospect 3

Neuqua Valley 10, Crete-Monee 0 (5 innings)

Neuqua (9-10-1): Kiet Truong 4 IP, 0 H, 11 Ks; 2-for-3, run, RBI.

Oak Forest 15, Bradley-Bourbonnais 2

Providence 8, Mount Carmel 5

Providence (16-7, 4-1 CCL Blue): Blake Jenner 2-run HR. Declan Kane 2-run HR.

Mount Carmel (14-8, 3-2): Kolin Adams 2-for-3, HR, 3 RBIs.

Rolling Meadows 2, Dundee-Crown 0

St. Charles North 3, St. Charles East 0

St. Laurence 3, Loyola 0

St. Laurence (20-3, 6-0 CCL Blue): Sam Chin 6 IP, H.

Shepard 5, Bremen 2

Shepard (10-8-2, 6-4-1 SSC Red): David Nelligan 4 IP, 8 Ks. T.J. Georgis 2-run single.

South Elgin 2, Stevenson 1

South Elgin (12-9): Connor Lund double, RBI. Justin Pold double, run.

Stagg 4, Reavis 3 (10 innings)

Stagg: William Houston 5 IP, 0 R. Jasper Willis scored GW run in bottom 10th.

Tinley Park 20, Simeon 0 (5 innings)

Waubonsie Valley 8, Glenbard East 4

Waubonsie (12-9): Josh Hung 2-for-3, double, run, 2 RBIs. Connor Beren 3-for-4, 2 runs, RBI.

West Aurora 12, Bolingbrook 0 (5 innings)

West Aurora (18-4): Zach Toma 2-for-4, 3 RBIs. Henry Hinkle 3-for-3, 2 RBIs.

Yorkville Christian 5, Westminster Christian 1

Yorkville Christian (13-7): Nolan Hooper 6 IP, 0 ER, 13 Ks.

Zion-Benton 7, Vernon Hills 5

Zion-Benton (6-16): Brayden Duran 2-for-4, 2 runs, 2 RBIs. Sam Villareal 2 runs.

COAL CITY INVITATIONAL

Burlington Central 10, Coal City 1

Burlington Central (13-10): Sam Maglares 3-for-4, doble, 2 runs, 2 RBIs. Jake Johnson 2-for-5, 3 RBIs.

Tolono Unity 5, Burlington Central 0

SANDWICH INVITATIONAL

Mahomet-Seymour 11, Sandwich 6

Wheaton Academy 15, Sandwich 2

BOYS VOLLEYBALL

LINCOLN-WAY EAST INVITATIONAL

Glenbard West d. Lincoln-Way East 24-26, 25-8, 25-20, championship

Downers Grove North d. Brother Rice 25-21, 25-19, third

Cathedral (Ind.) d. Lincoln-Way Central 15-25, 26-24, 15-13, fifth

GIRLS SOCCER

Bartlett 2, Elgin 0

Burlington Central 3, Belvidere North 1

Burlington Central (6-9): Elsa Carlson goal, assist. Annie Magan goal, assist.

Jacobs 2, Larkin 1

Joliet West 2, Sandburg 1

Lemont 3, Oak Forest 0

South Elgin 1, Hampshire 0

South Elgin (9-7-2): Lucy Tomasi goal.

Timothy Christian 2, Argo 0

Tinley Park 4, Bremen 2

Wheaton Warrenville South 7, East Aurora 0

TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS (Iowa)

Batavia 1, Normal Community 0

Arrowhead (Wis.) 2, Metea Valley 1 (SO)

Metea (11-2): Lily Senese goal in regulation.

Dunlap 6, Reavis 0

Helias (Mo.) 1, Carmel 0

Middleton (Wis.) 3, Batavia 2 (SO)

St. Charles (Mo.) 2, De La Salle 1

St. Teresa’s (Wis.) 2, Kaneland 1

SOFTBALL

Batavia 6, Naperville North 5

Naperville North (5-16): Maddi Larsen 3-for-4, 2 RBIs. Sara Rossi double, 2 RBIs.

Beecher 9, Sandburg 5

Beecher (24-1): Alexa Gliva 2-for-4, 3 runs, 2 RBIs. Ava Lorenzatti 3-for-5, HR, 2 RBIs.

Sandburg (8-12): Olivia Trunk double, 2 runs.

DePaul Prep 4, De La Salle 1

Dundee-Crown 14, Elk Grove 4 (5 innings)

Dundee-Crown (8-14): Alyssa Gale 4-for-4, 2 doubles, 4 runs, 2 RBIs. Jordyn Jeffs 3-for-4, double, 2 runs, 3 RBIs.

Gardner-South Wilmington 4, Yorkville Christian 0

Harvest Christian 15, Wheeling 12

Harvest Christian (8-10): Makayla Richards 3-for-4, double, HR, 3 runs, 2 RBIs. Alyssa Burke 3-for-4, 3 runs, 2 RBIs.

Lake Zurich 12-2, Jacobs 5-7

Lake Zurich (10-12-1): Brianna Rubicz combined 5-for-8, 2 doubles, 2 runs, 4 RBIs.

Jacobs (13-13): Molly Hoch combined 4-for-7, 2 doubles, 2 runs, 6 RBIs.

Lockport 3, Naperville Central 1

Lockport (15-9): Kelcie McGraw CG, 4 H, 0 ER, 15 Ks; double, RBI.

Mother McAuley 11, Lyons 5

Niles North 16, Lake Forest 1 (4 innings)

Oswego East 10-9, Downers Grove South 9-5

Game 1 Oswego East: Danielle Stone 2-for-2, 4 RBIs.

Game 2 Oswego East (12-9): Kylie Mannis 2-for-4, 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

Stevenson 7, Taft 4

Stevenson (17-3): Aubrey Jepsen 2-for-3, double, HR, 2 runs, 3 RBIs. Sara Saiki 2-for-3, double, run, 2 RBIs.

Waubonsie Valley 15, Joliet Central 0 (4 innings)

BRADLEY-BOURBONNAIS BACKYARD BASH

Benet 8, Rock Island 3

Benet (7-12): Alaina Rosner 2-for-3, double, run, RBI.

Neuqua Valley 5, Rock Island 3

Neuqua: Ashley Pape run, 2 RBIs. Nalia Clifford 2-for-4, 2 runs.

Rock Island 6, Oak Forest 0

LIBERTYVILLE ROUND ROBIN

Lincoln-Way East 15, Libertyville 5 (5 innings)

Lincoln-Way East (19-2): Zoey Bullock triple, 4 RBIs.

Lincoln-Way East 7, Loyola 0

MARENGO INVITATIONAL

St. Charles East 13, Joliet West 12

St. Charles East (14-12): Caleigh Higgins HR, 4 RBIs. Addison Wolf 3 runs.

St. Charles East 8, Kaneland 2

St. Charles East: Wolf 3-for-3, 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

Kaneland 15, Cary-Grove 0

Kaneland (12-10): Lillyana Crawford 5 RBIs.

Huntley 7, St. Charles East 6

St. Charles East: Hayden Sujack 2-for-4, 2 HR, 4 RBIs.

LOCAL COLLEGES

BASEBALL

North Central College 3-5, North Park 2-4

NCC (23-17, 14-6 CCIW): Parker Wyatt combined 4-for-8, 2 HRs, 3 runs, 4 RBIs.

CCAC CHAMPIONSHIP

St. Xavier 6, Judson 0

St. Xavier (31-22): Jimmy Fairley 5.1 IP, 2 H. Shea Zbrozek run, RBI.

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL

NAIA CHAMPIONSHIP

The Master’s (Calif.) d. St. Xavier 28-26, 25-23, 18-25, 25-19

St. Xavier (31-1): Matt Pannala 20 kills. Vejas Cuplinskas 12 kills. Caydann Cox 11 kills, 11 digs. Cameron Daniels 43 assists.

SOFTBALL

CCAC TOURNAMENT

Championship Bracket

St. Xavier 9, St. Ambrose (Iowa) 6

St. Xavier (35-6): Taylor Becker 3-run double.

Elimination Bracket

St. Francis 4-4, Olivet Nazarene 1-10

St. Francis (20-20): Jaelynn Taylor combined 3-for-6, double, HR, 3 RBIs.

Compiled by Josh Krockey.

When it comes to the topic of immigration, students like Ashley Martinez, 18, of Aurora, know something about it first-hand.

“We read this book about someone who immigrated to the United States when he was 9, and for me this was something about not just connecting with the book but with my dad who immigrated when he was 4 years old,” Martinez said Saturday morning as students from East Aurora High School waited in Wilder Park in Aurora for the walk to Elgin to begin. “Taking this walk today is kind of like symbolically walking in both my dad and the author’s shoes.”

Shane and Sarah Gillespie, a married couple who teach at East Aurora High School, each teach sections of a course known as Survivor Literature, organized the walk to offer students the chance to experience what an author of one of the books they read in the class went through as an immigrant himself years ago.

Shane Gillespie explained that this spring, students read “Solito” by author Javier Zamora, who actually came to the school late last month and spoke to the students about his own experiences while coming to the United States.

Gillespie, who also is the coach of the boys’ and girls’ cross-country and boys track teams, said there are about 110 students enrolled in the four sections of Survivor Literature and that about 40 of them as well as more than a handful of faculty members were making the walk from Wilder Park to a place in Elgin that was over 20 miles away.

“The Survivor course has units on survivor situations like the Holocaust, Sept. 11th, things like that,” Gillespie said. “This year, one of our units was on immigration and we read ‘Solito’ and the kids really connected with it and we built this service project. We created this walk as a sort of put ourselves in Javier’s shoes sort of thing and raise some awareness for this topic that’s important to these kids.”

The book itself tells the story of Zamora as a 9-year-old who travelled to get to America.

“I was a big fan of the book. I loved how it was written. It was easy for me to read and it was very captivating,” Martinez said. “Meeting the author was really exciting. You forget they’re like normal people, so meeting him was refreshing in a way and hearing about his experience and post journey was exciting.”:

The destination for the walk on Saturday was Centro de Informacion located 23 miles away at 1885 Lin Lor Lane in Elgin.

“The Centro offers services for immigrants and that sort of thing. We did a similar project in 2018 and this is sort of modeled after that,” Gillespie said of the walk which began at 8 a.m. “We’ll have transportation back but we’re hoping to get up in Elgin sometime around 4 or 5 p.m.”

He said “one of the things that we tell the kids is that hopefully they learn some English stuff in our classes but also learn something about themselves too.”

“I think that’s what you get here – you build empathy, you build leadership skills – you build those things that are hopefully going to be useful through the end of their lives,” he said.

School nurse Kara Patrick was asked to attend in case any issues developed along the way.

“It’s good to experience something unique like this. It’s for a good cause,” Patrick said of the walk.

Kate Hala, who teaches French at the high school, said she was a big fan of the Gillespie couple “who have run this program before with the English department and it’s a wonderful experience.”

“I got the opportunity to do something with them before when an author came and it’s very impactful for the students to see someone outside of the classroom,” she said. “Educationally this is a very experiential thing. You can immerse yourself in it in a very different way, and it connects with the students in a different way.”

Student Sinclair Zackery, 17, of Aurora, said the book “Solito” was impactful to read.

“I think it brought into reality what so many have to go through because of the country that we live in,” Zackery said. “People should not have to put their lives at stake just to live a better life. I was honored that the author chose to come and share his story with us.

“As far as this walk, it’s nothing compared to what these other people have gone through but at the end I hope I’ll have a little more understanding of what they were forced to go through,” Sinclair added. “This experience and this class are definitely in my top three things I’ve experienced over my four years at East Aurora.”

David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.

Even though the measure failed in Bensenville, at least 163 communities around the state have recently enacted local grocery taxes.

Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill last year repealing the state’s 1% grocery tax, saying it hit poorer families harder. But the bill also allowed municipalities, which depend on the revenue, to implement their own tax. Bensenville put the proposal on the ballot to get voters’ input, but local officials are not required to do so. In many municipalities, local governing bodies are casting the deciding vote.

The political hot potato promises to create a patchwork of taxes and has already led to finger-pointing between local and state officials. The debate over local grocery taxes also comes at a time when many consumers are worried about rising food prices.

“I don’t like it, but I guess I kind of understand it,” Jane Kramer, 73, said of the tax as she shopped for groceries in west suburban Batavia. “Yes, I’m disappointed about it, but that’s our lives.”

Other shoppers don’t think a 1% grocery tax is a big deal.

Ken Mate, 66, buys his groceries in bulk, and said he relies on two-for-one deals and sales to keep his food costs low.

“I don’t think it’s gonna hurt anybody’s bottom line here,” Mate said while shopping in Batavia, “because nobody’ll notice it.”

Notice it or not, the tax generates an estimated $400 million annually, according to Pritzker’s office. All the money collected from the state grocery tax is passed on to local municipalities, where it is spent on basic services like police, firefighters, snow plowing and garbage pickup.

The state suspended the grocery tax for fiscal year 2022 to help fight rising inflation, but municipal leaders say losing the stream of revenue permanently forces them to consider cutting services, raising sales or property taxes, or implementing a local grocery tax. If they approve a local grocery tax by Oct. 1, it would take effect on Jan. 1, 2026, when the state tax expires.

Pritzker called the statewide grocery tax “embarrassing” because it hurts poorer people the most by taking a bigger bite out of their income, though low-income recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, do not pay the tax. While the governor takes credit for cutting the tax, local leaders say it leaves them with hard choices.

“Unfortunately, the governor threw it to the municipalities,” Algonquin Mayor Debby Sosine said. Her northwest suburban village, which receives $2 million annually in state grocery tax proceeds and uses it to pave and repair roads, has already approved its own tax.

Sosine was one of the mayors who warned last year, as the Pritzker proposal was being debated, that loss of the tax would hurt them immensely.

Chicago officials have yet to decide whether to impose their own tax. The state grocery tax generates an estimated $60 million to $80 million for the city, said Ald. Pat Dowell, chair of the Committee on Finance. “It’s a not insignificant amount of money,” she said.

Whether the city will impose its own grocery tax will be decided in upcoming budget hearings across the city.

“People should be involved in the budget process,” Dowell said. “Residents should come out and speak their mind and talk to their aldermen.”

Illinois residents already pay the highest combined state and local taxes in the nation, at more than $13,000 annually, according to a recent report by WalletHub. Food prices rose 3% in the past year as of March, and the federal government forecasts them to rise another 3.5% this year.

Cook County also has a 1.25% grocery tax to fund the Regional Transportation Authority.

More than a dozen suburbs in the Chicago area have already adopted local grocery taxes, including Barrington, Berwyn, Buffalo Grove, Carol Stream, Cicero, Des Plaines, Lake Forest, Lake Zurich, Lombard, Oak Lawn, Orland Park, Palatine, Schaumburg, Tinley Park and Wheaton. Officials in other suburbs, including Naperville, Batavia and Oswego, are considering doing so.

The state grocery tax generates about $6.5 million annually for Naperville, where the City Council is expected to take up the issue in May or June.

“We will be looking at both expenditure reductions as well as potential revenue sources over the next couple of months,” City Manager Douglas Krieger said.

The south suburbs, which collectively receive more than $20 million in funding from the state grocery tax, will be hit particularly hard, South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association Executive Director Kristi DeLaurentiis said.

Many towns in the south suburbs have little commercial base.

Some areas also are food deserts, with no grocery stores to tax. To remedy the lack of fresh food, some municipalities have pledged part of their state grocery tax revenues to attract grocery stores, and are contractually obligated to come up with the money whether the state provides it or not.

“Many of our communities are significantly distressed, and don’t have a lot of economic activity,” she said. “The grocery tax revenue is very important to communities that have less commercial activity,” she said. “So many of them are evaluating, do we need to go to the taxpayer? The grocery tax is likely far easier than additional property taxes.”

In west suburban Batavia, City Administrator Laura Newman said the loss of the state tax will mean a reduction of about $1.2 million in revenue annually.

The City Council took preliminary action to approve a local grocery tax, but not before criticizing the state’s decision.

“It was just a motion to make somebody look good, is what this was,” Mayor Jeffery Schielke said, deeming the decision a political move from Pritzker.

Ald. Abby Beck called a grocery tax “regressive” and said it would “hurt our most vulnerable citizens the most,” suggesting Batavia reduce its version of the tax below 1% in the future and compensate with other funding sources, like property taxes.

Passing its own tax would allow Batavia more local control, Ald. Kevin Malone said.

“It’s kind of a big stinker that this got put on our lap,” he said.

Downstate cities like Carbondale, Danville and Peoria also have approved their own grocery taxes.

“If local governments believe it is necessary to tax milk, bread, eggs, etc. to fund local services/local government, then they should be responsible and accountable for that decision to local taxpayers,” Illinois Department of Revenue spokeswoman Maura Kownacki told the Tribune. “The state should not be imposing a regressive, statewide sales tax on groceries especially during a time when inflation is hitting the pocketbooks of Illinois families.”

The notion of being just a thrower or being an actual pitcher is a comparison often thrown around in the game. Go ahead and count Enger in the latter category as a pitcher.

“I don’t throw that hard,” Enger said. “I get people out. That’s what makes me successful.”

The senior left-hander continued his recent success as a starter Friday, throwing a complete-game gem for the host Bulldogs in a 6-1 DuKane Conference win over archrival Geneva.

Enger, who didn’t receive a start on the mound until last Saturday, struck out three and allowed seven hits and two walks for Batavia (7-14-1, 4-6). He pumped strikes into the strike zone.

Batavia coach Alex Beckmann is glad he gave a chance to start to Enger, who worked six scoreless innings last weekend against Wheaton North. It’s provided a spark to a struggling team.

“He’s a strike thrower,” Beckmann said of Enger. “He gets all pitches over for strikes and keeps guys off-balance. That’s his game. He’s not going to try to overpower anyone.

“He’s calm, cool and collected. He fields his position well. Any time he’s on the mound, we have a chance. It’s been awesome for him to kind of emerge.”

Luke Stevenson emerged as well for Batavia, making a rare start in left field and breaking a 1-1 tie with a three-run homer in the fourth inning. Liam Darre hit his third homer in the past two games and drove in three runs. Nolan Zimberhoff added two hits.

Nelson Wendell led Geneva (17-6, 7-3) with two hits, including a double. He also scored a run.

Enger, meanwhile, had been used in a relief role before last week for the Bulldogs. When Beckmann told him he was going to start, Enger was ready.

“At the beginning of the year, I didn’t think I was really going to pitch much,” Enger said. “Then I got an opportunity and I took it. Every time I get an opportunity, I want to take advantage of it.”

Enger throws from a funky arm angle and uses a variety of pitches to keep hitters off-balance.

He said it was his change-up Friday that made a difference. Beckmann is impressed with Enger’s vanishing split-finger fastball. Enger also has a version of a knuckle-curve that baffles hitters.

“I like changing speeds a lot, not just with pitches but with me,” Enger said. “I’ll quick pitch, take more time, just mess with them any way I can.”

That approach certainly stymied Geneva. Once Batavia got the lead, the Vikings’ penchant for playing small ball was impacted and they never recovered. Geneva left nine runners on base.

“Their kid threw great,” Geneva coach Brad Wendell said of Enger. “He kept us off-balance all day.

“He has a big ballpark here and he let us hit it, and we hit it up in the air. We need to hit line drives. That’s the game sometimes.”

The game was tied 1-1 when Stevenson stunningly jumped on a pitch and launched it out to left field, setting off a huge celebration in Batavia’s dugout.

“That was awesome,” Enger said of Stevenson. “He had a rough beginning of the year, but he’s always kept his head up. To see him do that was awesome.”

It also helped Enger settle in and helped give Batavia its first back-to-back wins this season.

Enger hopes it’s the start of a special ending to the season for the Bulldogs.

“I feel like we’re a really close group,” Enger said. “We haven’t had the season we wanted, but I would say going forward I think we’re going to get a lot more wins like that.”

Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.

Email Daily Southtown results to southtownsports@gmail.com, Beacon-News, Courier-News and Naperville Sun results to tribwestsports@gmail.com and News-Sun results to newssunsports@gmail.com. 

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

HIGH SCHOOLS

BASEBALL

Batavia 6, Geneva 1

Benet 2, Naperville North 1

Bishop McNamara 2-7, Aurora Christian 1-2 (Game 1, 5 innings)

Burlington Central 7, Jacobs 5

Burlington Central (12-9, 5-7 Fox Valley): Liam Schultz HR, 2 RBIs.

Byron 4, Harvest Christian 3

Cary-Grove 4, Hampshire 3

Chicago Christian 10, Marian Central Catholic 9

Chicago Christian (14-8, 5-3 Chicagoland Christian): Josh Sedakis double, 4 RBIs.

Herscher 4, Beecher 0

Lakes 7, Lake Forest 2

Lincoln-Way West 15, Riverside-Brookfield 2 (6 innings)

Lincoln-Way West (17-5): Conor Essenburg 3 doubles, 3 runs, 4 RBIs.

Marian Catholic 6, Homewood-Flossmoor 5

Marian (10-14): Jonathan Trotter 2 doubles, 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

Oswego 2, West Aurora 1

Peotone 12, Hillcrest 2 (5 innings)

Prairie Ridge 8, Dundee-Crown 1

Richards 9, Tinley Park 8

Richards (14-5, 9-2 SSC Red): Ryan Golinski 2 runs, RBI.

Tinley (12-10, 6-6 SSC Blue): Brendan Draves double, 2 runs, 3 RBIs.

Ridgewood 19, East Aurora 0 (4 innings)

St. Charles East 3, St. Charles North 2

St. Charles East (11-9, 7-3 DuKane): Joey Arend 5.2 IP, ER, 8 Ks. James Feigleson RBI single.

Sandburg 2, Oak Forest 1 (12 innings)

Sandburg (13-8): Nick Seaman 6 IP, 0 H. Ryan Evoy GW RBI in bottom 12th.

Sandwich 5, Woodstock 0

T.F. South 10, Whiting (Ind.) 0 (5 innings)

T.F. South (5-17-1): Ryan Marnell 2 runs, 3 RBIs.

Thornton 20, Thornridge 4

Timothy Christian 10, St. Edward 3

Westminster Christian 4, Harvard 2

Westminster Christian (9-11): Brian Powers 2 RBIs.

DO IT STEVIE’S WAY CLASSIC

Lemont 8, Montini 2

Lemont (18-3-1): Shea Glotzbach 6 IP, 4 H, 0 ER; 2 RBIs.

Lockport 3, Lyons 1

Lockport (13-7): Drew Satunas double, 2 RBIs.

GIRLS SOCCER

Highland Park 6, North Shore 2

Kankakee 3, Beecher 1

Richards 1, Chicago Christian 0

ED WATSON NAPERVILLE INVITATIONAL

Semifinal

Naperville Central 2, Barrington 0

Consolation Pool

Lincoln-Way East 0, Loyola 0

Naperville North 2, Downers Grove North 0

Naperville North (8-2-5): Claire DeCook 2 goals.

Oswego 2, Downers Grove South 1

Hinsdale Central 1, St. Charles East 0

Lyons 1, Benet 0

TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS (Iowa)

Lockport 3, Peoria Richwoods 0

Metea Valley 6, Pleasant Valley (Iowa) 0

Metea (11-1): Liv Hernandez 3 goals.

Waunakee (Wis.) 5, Carmel 1

SOFTBALL

Aurora Christian 8, Lisle 5

Aurora Christian (4-10): Madi Kossakowski triple, run, 2 RBIs.

Fremd 10, Oak Forest 0

Glenbard North 12, Batavia 2 (6 innings)

Highland Park 10, Lake Forest 0 (5 innings)

Huntley 5, Kaneland 0

Naperville Central 11, West Aurora 1 (5 innings)

Naperville Central (12-9): Cali Lenz HR, 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

Reavis 5, St. Ignatius 4

Reavis (14-11): Kenzie Welsh run, RBI. Scored 3 runs in top 7th.

St. Charles East 5, Wheaton Warrenville South 3

St. Charles East (12-11, 3-4 DuKane): Addison Wolf 3-run HR.

St. Charles North 20, Geneva 12

Geneva (5-13): Kat Cerwin 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

St. Edward 9, Chicago Christian 2

St. Edward (9-9, 6-2 Chicagoland Christian): Kendall Pemberton 3 RBIs.

Sandburg 5, Lemont 4 (8 innings)

Stevenson 7, Lane 0

Stevenson (16-3): Ava Potempa 5 IP, 0 H, 11 Ks. Maahi Patel HR, 3 RBIs.

Tinley Park 12, Mother McAuley 11

Wheaton Academy 6, Harvest Christian 2

Wheaton St. Francis 14, Aurora Central Catholic 13

ACC (18-7, 6-3 GCAC White): Sophia Delgado 2 doubles, 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

LOCAL COLLEGES

BASEBALL

Aurora University 13-3, Wabash 3-8

Lewis 8-16, Indianapolis 1-4

North Central College 5, North Park 2

CCAC TOURNAMENT

Championship Bracket

St. Xavier 7, Judson 6 (12 innings), championship

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL

NAIA SEMIFINAL

St. Xavier d. Missouri Valley (Mo.) 25-18, 25-13, 11-25, 25-20

St. Xavier (31-0): Caydann Cox 15 kills, 10 digs. Matt Pennala 15 kills. Cameron Daniels 35 assists.

SOFTBALL

CCAC TOURNAMENT

St. Xavier 8, Indiana South Bend 0

St. Ambrose (Iowa) 3, St. Francis 2

NJCAA REGION IV

DIVISION 3 TOURNAMENT

Joliet Junior College 13-6, College of DuPage 3-4

THURSDAY’S RESULTS

HIGH SCHOOLS

BASEBALL

Argo 6, T.F. South 3

Argo (9-13, 5-7 SSC Red): Valente Melero run, 2 RBIs.

Aurora Central Catholic 3, Leo 2

Beecher 5, Clifton Central 4

Brother Rice 7, St. Rita 2

Brother Rice (21-1, 5-0 CCL Blue): Jackson Natanek double, run, 2 RBIs.

Deerfield 6, Maine South 3

Evergreen Park 8, Washington 2

Evergreen (16-8): Jack Rourke HR, 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

Fenwick 8, Marmion 6

Grayslake Central 5, Antioch 0

Grayslake Central (17-5, 8-1 Northern Lake County): Nathan Fuko 5 IP, 6 Ks. Carson Woods 2 RBIs.

Grayslake North 15, Round Lake 5 (5 innings)

Jacobs 15, Huntley 10

Kaneland 12, Sycamore 2

Lemont 16, Crete-Monee 0 (4 innings)

Lincoln-Way East 4, Homewood-Flossmoor 2

Lincoln-Way East (18-4, 8-2 SWSC): Jack Bauer (W) 4 IP, H, 9 Ks.

H-F (10-13, 5-5): Arthur Stamps triple, 2 RBIs.

Lincoln-Way West 6, Bradley-Bourbonnais 3

Lincoln-Way West (16-5, 5-4 SWSC): Conor Essenburg double, HR, 2 RBIs.

Montini 9, De La Salle 0 (5 innings)

Morgan Park 13, Brooks 12

Mundelein 10, Carmel 6 (6 innings)

Mundelein (15-5-2): Caden Earing HR, 3 runs, 2 RBIs.

Naperville Central 7, DeKalb 3

Naperville North 12, Metea Valley 0 

Naperville North (10-10, 6-3 DuPage Valley): Matt Sonnenschein CG, H, 9 Ks; triple, 4 RBIs.

Niles West 4, Vernon Hills 2

Oak Forest 10, Marian Catholic 3

Oak Lawn 11, Hillcrest 0 (5 innings)

Oak Lawn (13-10, 10-3 SSC Red): Jackson Hilger double, run, 4 RBIs.

Oswego 15, Bolingbrook 6

Oswego East 7, Plainfield North 6 (8 innings)

Oswego East (9-14, 1-5 Southwest Prairie West): Devin Wheaton double, 3 runs. Niko Villacci GW single in bottom 8th.

St. Laurence 15, Loyola 0

St. Viator 4, Marist 3

Marist (12-8, 5-2 ESCC): John McAuliffe HR, 2 RBIs.

Sandwich 10, Lisle 7

Sandwich (11-11, 8-2): Braden Behringer 2 runs, 4 RBIs.

Waubonsie Valley 1, Neuqua Valley 0 (5 innings)

Wauconda 10, Grant 9

Wauconda (14-10, 7-5 Northern Lake County): Lucas Swanson double, 3 RBIs. Scored 4 runs in bottom 7th.

West Aurora 10, Elmwood Park 0 (5 innings)

West Aurora (17-3, 10-2 Upstate Eight): Mason Atkins 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

BOYS VOLLEYBALL

Benet d. Carmel 25-10, 25-9

Homewood-Flossmoor d. Andrew 25-17, 24-26, 25-22

Lincoln-Way Central d. Lincoln-Way West 25-17, 25-13

Lincoln-Way East d. Lockport 25-17, 25-13

Marian Catholic d. St. Viator 25-20, 25-21

Marist d. St. Patrick 25-18, 25-7

Marist (23-1, 5-0 ESCC): Roman Vucinic 8 kills.

Oswego d. Minooka 25-19, 25-18

Vernon Hills d. Lake Forest Academy 25-19, 25-22

GIRLS SOCCER

Aurora Central Catholic 3, Montini 2

ACC (9-5-1): Gabby Montes GW goal in final minute.

Burlington Central 5, Jacobs 1

Eisenhower 3, Reavis 1

Glenbrook North 6, Deerfield 1

Grayslake Central 2, Grant 0

Lemont 8, Evergreen Park 1

Libertyville 10, Waukegan 1

Mother McAuley 6, De La Salle 4

McAuley (7-10-1): Calli Edwards 4 goals.

Prairie Ridge 1, Dundee-Crown 0

Stevenson 6, Lake Forest 1

Vernon Hills 3, Maine West 1

Vernon Hills (5-6-2, 3-0-1 Central Suburban North): Frannie Poulos 2 goals.

Warren 3, Mundelein 0

Warren (9-3-1, 4-0 North Suburban): Addison Stanciak goal, assist.

Wauconda 5, Round Lake 0

Wauconda (7-5, 4-1 Northern Lake County): Meagan Gerle 2 goals.

ED WATSON NAPERVILLE INVITATIONAL

Quarterfinals

Naperville Central 4, Lincoln-Way East 1

Lane 1, Neuqua Valley 0

New Trier 6, St. Charles North 0

Consolation Pool

Benet 3, Downers Grove South 1

Benet (10-3-2): Natalie Grover goal.

Naperville North 2, Fenwick 1

Naperville North (7-2-5): Lucy Fitzgerald goal.

Oswego 7, Bolingbrook 0

Waubonsie Valley 1, Geneva 0

Downers Grove North 5, Oswego East 0

Lyons 3, St. Charles East 2

TOURNAMENT OF CHAMPIONS (Iowa)

Lockport 3, Normal West 0

SOFTBALL

Beecher 10, Clifton Central 0 (6 innings)

Beecher (23-1, 10-0 River Valley): Taylor Norgus CG, 3 H, 14 Ks. Ava Olson double, triple, 4 RBIs.

Burlington Central 14, Crystal Lake South 2 (5 innings)

Burlington Central (9-3 Fox Valley): Addison Beltran triple, 2 runs, 3 RBIs.

Crystal Lake Central 8, Dundee-Crown 2

Elmwood Park 16, Streamwood 0 (4 innings)

Glenbard East 20, Elgin 2 (3 innings)

Grant 17, Round Lake 2 (4 innings)

Highland Park 2, Glenbrook North 0

Highland Park (7-5, 2-4 Central Suburban  South): Lily Freedman CG, 15 Ks.

Huntley 11, Jacobs 0 (5 innings)

Lake Park 6, St. Charles East 2 (9 innings)

Lemont 9, Andrew 7

Lemont (14-6): Jessica Pontrelli HR, 3 RBIs.

Lincoln-Way Central 8, Lockport 2

Lincoln-Way Central (18-1, 8-0 SWSC): Teagan Berkshire HR, 4 RBIs.

Lincoln-Way West 12, Homewood-Flossmoor 2 (5 innings)

Maine West 4, Vernon Hills 0

Marist 10, Downers Grove North 0 (5 innings)

Marist (21-1): Soleil Tate no-hitter, 8 Ks; 2 HRs.

Oak Lawn 15, Hillcrest 0 (4 innings)

Oswego 17, Joliet West 2 (5 innings)

Oswego (21-0, 8-0 Southwest Prairie West): Jaelynn Anthony HR, 3 runs, 4 RBIs.

Oswego East 4, Romeoville 0

Oswego East (10-9, 5-3 Southwest Prairie West): Danielle Stone double, run, 2 RBIs.

Prairie Ridge 6, Hampshire 2

Richards 8, Tinley Park 1

Richards (13-7, 9-2 SSC Red): Sarah Scott 3-run HR.

Riverside-Brookfield 19, Larkin 6 (6 innings)

Larkin (9-12, 5-6 Upstate Eight): Ali Herrick double, 2 runs, 2 RBIs.

Sandburg 9, Stagg 1

Sandwich 4, Johnsburg 2

Sandwich (8-8, 5-4 Kishwaukee River): Brooklyn Marks solo HR, 2 runs.

Wilmington 16, Crete-Monee 0 (3 innings)

Yorkville 10, Plainfield South 1

LOCAL COLLEGES

BASEBALL

CCAC TOURNAMENT

Championship Bracket

Judson 7, Olivet Nazarene 2

St. Xavier 12, St. Ambrose (Iowa) 1 (7 innings)

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL

NAIA TOURNAMENT

At Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Pool Play

St. Xavier d. Grand View (Iowa) 18-25, 25-20, 25-19, 25-23

St. Xavier (30-0): Matt Pennala 18 kills, 9 digs. Vejas Cuplinskas 14 kills. Caydann Cox 10 kills, 8 digs. Cameron Daniels 51 assists. Won pool.

SOFTBALL

GLVC TOURNAMENT

Elimination Round

Maryville (Mo.) 4, Lewis 2

Compiled by Josh Krockey.

The new details — and the emergence of a previously unknown witness at the bar where Schepers was last seen — are among the disclosures in the most recent episode of “Somebody Knows Something,” the podcast launched in January by Elgin cold case police detectives Andrew Houghton and Matt Vartanian.

They hoped the series might help them solve the April 1983 disappearance of 23-year-old missing Elgin woman, and it did.

On March 24, a daylong search of the river, done as part of the investigation and documented in the podcast, resulted in the discovery of Schepers’ car. The 1980 Toyota Celica was found buried beneath debris in about 7 feet of water northwest of the Slade Avenue Park boat launch. The human remains inside were confirmed to be Schepers’ a few days later.

“Finding Karen and her car was one big step in this investigation, but it was not the end of this case,” Vartanian said in the podcast.

“We answered the question, ‘Where is Karen?’” Houghton said. “But now we want to answer the question what happened to Karen Schepers?”

The only thing they knew for certain was she left a bar in Carpentersville sometime after midnight after having joined coworkers there on a Friday night.

Erin Waxenbaum, a forensic anthropologist from Northwestern University, was brought in to examine the skeletal and dental remains as part of the Kane County coroner’s office’s effort to confirm identity and a possible cause of death.

“All the experts agree there were no significant structural injuries, breaks, gunshot wounds, trauma or anything else suspicious on any of Karen’s remains,” Vartanian said.

However, they can’t say with 100% certainty how Schepers died, he said.

“From a medical and legal standpoint, her death has been classified as undetermined,” he said.

Schepers’ car provided some important clues about what might have happened.

A police department traffic crash reconstruction team examined the Celica and found no major dents or damage that would indicate it had been run off the road, struck a deer or encountered something that would have sent it into the water, they said.

In fact, the car was in remarkably good condition for being submerged for almost 42 years, Houghton said.

They had an Elgin Toyota master technician with 30 years’ experience take a look at it as well. The key found in the ignition was in the “on” position, meaning the car was running when it entered the river, Houghton said. The emergency brake had been pulled and was rusted in that position, the tech told them.

New information provided by one of Schepers’ coworkers also helped put the night’s events into perspective, Houghton said.

Jane worked with Schepers at First Chicago Bank in Elgin and was with her and other bank employees at the bar that night. Police had never interviewed her, and she wanted the two detectives to know what her experience had been.

“She was very, very near and dear to me,” Jane said in the podcast. “She was always friendly and kind. She was just a wonderful person.”

Jane remembers seeing her in the bar’s vestibule talking on a pay phone. She was crying, and Jane asked if she was OK. Schepers said she was upset because her boyfriend didn’t want to join her at the gathering.

Later in the evening, she remembered Schepers taking part in a hula hoop contest, and they talked in the parking lot when the bar was closing, she said.

“I could tell that she was still upset. I just said to her, ‘Karen, please be careful going home. Make sure you are safe,’” Jane said. Telling Schepers she would see her Monday, “(Karen) smiled and waved at me and said thank you.”

She watched as Schepers got into her car alone and drove away south on Route 25.

The new account painted a richer picture of what happened that night, Vartanian said.

“I have to say, this type of witness information is what we were looking for in our investigation the entire time,” he said. “Like we always say, no tip is too small. This one was certainly a big one.”

Houghton and Vartanian shared what they think happened that early morning.

Schepers left the bar alone and likely drove home on Duncan Avenue, a route she often took. They don’t believe she drank much because she wasn’t known to be a heavy drinker, and she may have been tired having gotten up early the day before, Houghton said.

Based on what they know about weather conditions that morning, it would have been cold with little illumination from the moon and the roadways were likely slick, they said. The Fox River was high because of recent heavy storms.

There are several points on Duncan Avenue, near the Interstate 90 overpass and Trout Park, where she could have gone into the water, they said. Or, she could’ve been driving along Spring Street, a gated road open to the public in the 1980s not far from where she lived.

They may never know exactly where the Celica entered the water, but it’s likely the current could have carried the car a mile or a mile and a half downstream where it became lodged in a deeper part of the river, Houghton said.

The fact the emergency brake was on when the car went into the river was an important clue, the detectives said. Suicide and foul play could be ruled out because of it, Houghton said.

Based on the totality of the circumstances, it would seem Schepers’ death “was simply a very tragic accident,” he said.

The final episode in the “Somebody Knows Something” podcast will feature Schepers’ family.

Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.