Mount Carmel’s Grant Best goes in for a layup during the first quarter of the IHSA Class 3A state championship game against DePaul Prep. The Rams defeated the Caravan, 49-41. Photo by Xavier Sanchez
Boys Basketball | DePaul Prep holds off Mount Carmel for Class 3A title
By Xavier Sanchez
Correspondent
Competing for and winning state championships are not new for Mount Carmel.
Except in basketball.
The Caravan football and wrestling teams have already won state titles this school year — the second consecutive championship for the former and the second in three seasons for the latter — but the basketball program’s last appearance in a state championship game prior to this season came in 1985, when they edged Springfield Lanphier in the IHSA Class AA title game.
This season’s team fell just short of replicating that level of success, falling to Chicago Catholic League Blue rival DePaul Prep, 49-41, in the Class 3A state championship game in Champaign on March 9.
The Rams jumped out to an early 9-0 lead and never trailed, but the Caravan were within three points late in the fourth quarter.
Mount Carmel senior Angelo Ciaravino finished with a game-high 24 points along with three rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks in the loss.
“There was no doubt in my mind — win, lose or draw, that was how he was going to finish his career,” Caravan coach Phil Segroves said of Ciaravino.
Segroves referred to his players as “warriors” during the postgame press conference, noting his team competed to the final horn.
One of those warriors was Lee Marks.
Marks sustained a fractured elbow on Feb. 6 and missed seven games. The senior shooting guard returned for the Caravan’s state semifinal matchup against Mt. Zion on March 8 and scored eight points off the bench. He played 23 minutes in the state final, finisheing with four points, four rebounds and an assist in defeat.
“He worked incredibly hard in physical therapy — extremely hard,” Segroves said of Marks. “I credit our trainer, Joe Qualter.”
DePaul set the tone early, with Rams guard Makai Kvamme scored eight of his 18 points in the first quarter. Mount Carmel did not get on the scoreboard until nearly halfway through the first quarter on a field goal from Grant Best.
The Caravan shot 28.7 percent in the second quarter while DePaul, which employed a stalling tactic on offense, went 4-of-8 from the field. The Rams’ shooting combined with their extended possessions caused trouble for Mount Carmel, and DePaul led 24-12 at the half.
The Caravan outscored the Rams 11-5 in the third quarter, holding DePaul to a single field goal. Northwestern commit Angelo Ciaravino made a 3-pointer with 45 seconds left that cut the Rams lead to 29-23, which was the score heading into the fourth quarter.
Ciaravino notched another triple with 6:35 to go in the game to reduce the deficit to five. The Northwestern commit scored nine points in the fourth quarter.
Later in the quarter, Mount Carmel sophomore Noah Mister hit a 3 of his own pulling the Caravan within three points with 1:45 to play. That would be the closest they would get, with dePaul hitting 10 free throws without a miss over the final 92 seconds.
Mister finished with seven points.
“He’s learning more and more each day in regard to how we play Mount Carmel basketball, and he could possibly go down as one of the top point guards to play at Mount Carmel,” Segroves said of Mister.
DePaul’s Rob Walls scored 10 points. PJ Chambers and Jaylan McElroy had eight points apiece for the Rams.
Segroves likes the direction Mount Carmel is headed.
“We are getting a lot more interest in young men that are looking for a great Catholic education, but also play basketball,” he said. “The juniors and the one sophomore at this table have an unbelievably bright future.”
Ciaravino is excited for the future of the program he helped build into a state title contender.
“We keep getting great, high-quality students and basketball players,” Ciaravino said. “Guys are starting to want to come and build that basketball tradition at Mount Carmel and it is really starting to get there, and I feel it keeps getting better and better every year.”
Local News
District 230 waits for judge’s decision on mask mandates
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Stagg and Sandburg students, parents and teachers are awaiting the decision of a Sangamon County judge to find out if there is any change in the mask mandate. District 230 was one of 145 districts in the state taken to court by parents who are against the mandate and believe…
Summit approves deal with CEDA for water assistance
Spread the loveBy Carol McGowan Help may be on the way for some Summit residents that have trouble paying their water bills. The Summit Village Board recently approved an ordinance authorizing an agreement by, and between the Community and Economic Development Association of Cook County. It’s a vendor agreement for the Low-Income Household Water Assistance…
Willow Springs hires Grace as village administrator
Spread the loveBy Steve Metsch Citing his experience in Lyons, Willow Springs Mayor Melissa Neddermeyer said Ryan Grace was the best of five finalists interviewed for the job of village administrator. Grace, 38, had been public works director in Lyons the past four years, working on a wide range of village issues and events in…
Body of missing Forest View woman found
Spread the loveBy Carol McGowan The search for 20-year-old Charisma Ehresman of Forest View is over. The body of the young woman was found Friday evening in her vehicle in Chicago’s South Austin neighborhood, on the city’s west side, which borders Oak Park. The car had apparently been there for several days. The Cook County…
Heritage Middle School cheer team takes first
Spread the loveBy Carol McGowan Congratulations are in order for the Heritage Middle School Cheer Team. The team competed for the first time on Saturday, January 15, at Old Quarry Middle School in Lemont and took first place. It was a huge accomplishment for the team and Summit School District 104 is very proud of…
Area Sports Roundup: Sandburg bowls ’em over at state; Marist cheerleaders win sectional
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Is there a state trophy coming for the Sandburg boys bowling team in the future? With this unpredictable sport, that’s hard to predict. But after a fourth-place finish in the IHSA state tournament, held Jan. 28-29 at St. Clair Bowl in O’Fallon, the needle is pointing up. The…
Intense dance performance nets Evergreen Park sixth place at state finals
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Actual competitive dancing returned to the state level this year and Evergreen Park’s dancers couldn’t be happier. The Mustangs are on the rise, and the team enjoyed its highest state finish by placing sixth in Class 1A in the IHSA state meet held Jan. 28-29 at Grossinger Motors…
GOP needs this centrist with common sense
Spread the loveBy Ray Hanania Four years ago, Sean Morrison barely won re-election over an unknown Democrat, by only 1,377 votes of 121,767 votes cast. I supported Morrison, believing his promise to be a “commonsense centrist” who would follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, Liz Gorman, and not join the radical far right. Gorman,…
Not your grandfather’s petition drive
Spread the loveBy Rich Miller I’ve been fascinated by election petition-gathering season this year because of the adjusted primary schedule, the crazy Omicron variant, and the prevailing fear of crime, not to mention the awful weather. Petition season was always during the fall. But because the primary was moved to June 28, petition circulators now…
Neighbors
Once again working through the night, lawmakers finalize $53.1 billion budget
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com After a near-derailment and an all-nighter to wrap up the General Assembly’s spring session, supermajority Democrats in the Illinois House gave final legislative approval to the state budget as the sun rose Wednesday morning. Despite holding 78 seats in the chamber, it took Democrats three tries to reach…
A security camera caught an employee beating a patient. It took 11 days for anyone to take action.
By BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois bhundsdorfer@capitolnewsillinois.com This article was produced for ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network in partnership with Capitol News Illinois. Cameras in the common areas of Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center were supposed to make the troubled southern Illinois facility safer for the approximately 200 people with developmental disabilities who live there. But…
Lawmakers move to pause – then further regulate – carbon dioxide pipeline development
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – After state regulators rebuffed several proposed carbon transport projects over the past year, lawmakers have moved to formally ban new projects until the federal government sets forth new safety rules. The technology is used to take carbon dioxide – a powerful greenhouse gas – and move…
Senate Democrats send $53.1B spending plan to House
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com Two days after the General Assembly was scheduled to adjourn its spring session, Democrats in the Illinois Senate advanced a $53.1 billion budget to the House Sunday night, where leaders expect it to pass without changes. The fiscal year 2025 spending plan, which came together over a stretch…
Prairie Band Potawatomi land deal clears Senate, will head back to House
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation is a step closer to acquiring a 1,500-acre state park in DeKalb County, much of which was once part of a reservation that was illegally seized from the tribe in the mid-19 th century. As the Senate worked through its last…
Budget negotiations will extend into next week as House leaves Springfield
By JERRY NOWICKI & HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Democrats in the General Assembly will go at least three more days past their self-imposed adjournment deadline after failing to pass a budget bill Saturday, although the spending and revenue framework were made public for the first time. “The House and Senate are…
Maternal health, abortion protection measures advance as session nears end
By ALEX ABBEDUTO Capitol News Illinois abbeduto@capitolnewsillinois.com In the final days of their spring legislative session, Democrats in the General Assembly advanced measures aimed at expanding and protecting aspects of maternal and women’s health care. If signed into law, the measures would expand insurance coverage of pregnancy and postpartum services, maintain abortion as a viable…
Health insurance changes targeting ‘utilization management,’ more will head to governor
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – A package of health insurance reform measures that Gov. JB Pritzker called for at the beginning of the legislative session will soon be headed to his desk for his signature. The Illinois House gave final approval Saturday to a pair of bills that limit the ability…
Capitol Briefs: Republicans sue over law banning legislative candidate slating
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com One week after Gov. JB Pritzker signed an elections-related measure that his fellow Democrats quickly muscled through the General Assembly, Republicans sued over the new law, alleging the majority party is blocking ballot access to would-be legislative candidates. The law , passed early this month as the legislature’s…
Illinois Supreme Court considers expectation of privacy in hospitals
By DILPREET RAJU & ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – While Cortez Turner was in a hospital room being treated for a gunshot wound to his leg in 2016, police took his clothes. Now, the Illinois Supreme Court is weighing whether that action violated Turner’s expectation of privacy under the Fourth Amendment. The…