After a hiccup with the weather in January, the Manteno Wall of Fame ceremony took place on Feb. 6, and Christian Davis and Patrick Mellin were added.
Davis graduated in 2016 and was an All-State soccer player in 2015 when he scored 57 goals.
“I was fortunate enough to be his soccer coach his senior year,” Panthers athletic director Justin Emerson said. “His accomplishments stand out above the rest. He holds so many records here at the high school. His name is at the top of the leaderboard for six different categories.
“He was, without a doubt, the best goal scorer this school has ever seen. He was the best goal scorer that our conference has ever seen.”
Emerson said that Davis was a good technician on the field who also possessed great athleticism and was a leader.
“As a coach, I could always count on him to lead by example and do the right thing,” Emerson said of Davis. “No matter if it was a practice or a game, he was always out there giving it his all and lifting his teammates around him.”
Mellin coached boys golf and guided the team to a fourth-place finish in the state in Class A in 2005. Now he’s the boys basketball announcer at home games.
“What a guy,” Emerson said. “He cares deeply about the kids here and the school community that we have here.
“He’s been here since the ’90s and has done a lot of things for the school.”
That includes being the voice at the basketball games.
“You can count on him every single game,” Emerson said. “It’s rare that he missed a game. He doesn’t just show up and read, he’s always talking to the coaches about the game plan and is extremely invested in it.”
Former volleyball coach Cheryl Davis was scheduled to be inducted but could not make it for the rescheduled date and will be inducted in 2027.
Seeds announced
Manteno’s girls basketball team earned a top sub-sectional seed in the Class 2A Pontiac Sectional.
Beecher drew the seventh seed in the 10-team sub-sectional while Peotone was eighth.
In Class 1A, Illinois Lutheran is seeded eighth in the 10-team sub-sectional at the Fenger Sectional, while Grant Park was seeded ninth in the 12-team sub-sectional at Iroquois West.
In Class 3A, Crete-Monee is the seventh seed in the 17-team Hillcrest Sectional and will host a regional.
Blue Devils win a pair
Peotone boys basketball pushed its winning streak to four games by beating Coal City 59-54 in overtime on Feb. 3 and beating Wilmington 62-46 on Feb. 6.
Tyler Walker scored 24 against Wilmington and Alex Chenoweth had 19 for the Blue Devils (13-10, 7-4 ICE), who outscored the Wildcats 25-6 in the third quarter.
Chenoweth was 5-of-6 from the foul line in OT against Coal City and scored 24 points. Walker scored 14, while Ethan McNeill (nine points, nine rebounds) just missed a double-double.
Panthers eye league crown
Manteno girls basketball moved close to the ICE title by knocking off Coal City 45-32 on Feb. 5.
Maddie Gesky had a double-double of 18 points and 13 rebounds for the Panthers (23-4, 11-1), while Emily Horath had 10 points, seven rebounds, six steals and three assists.
Reed-Custer handed Manteno its first league loss, 45-42 on Feb. 2. Gesky (16 points, 11 rebounds, six blocks) and Horath (nine points, 13 rebounds, five steals) led the Panthers.
Bobcats tie for second
Beecher and Central tied for second in the River Valley at 13-3 after the Bobcats went 3-0 last week. The Bobcats (17-11 overall) beat Momence 53-22 on Feb. 3, Grant Park 48-28 on Feb. 4 and Illinois Lutheran 64-9 on Feb. 5.
Gianna Bonomo had 14 points and Caitlin O’Neil 11 vs. Illinois Lutheran, while Allie Johnson and Aubrey Tiltges both scored 11 against Momence.