Local News
Football | Marist rides Jake Ritter’s 4 TD passes to win over Morgan Park
Marist quarterback Jake Ritter threw four touchdown passes as the host RedHawks prevailed, 29-26, over the Mustangs on opening night. Ritter threw scoring passes to Stephen Brown (24 yards), John McAuliffe (15 yards), Brendan Doran (13 yards) and Brendan Curran (4 yards).
Football | St. Laurence scores fast and furiously in opening night win over Noble
St. Laurence, the Class 4A runner-up in 2023, began the new campaign with a convincing victory 72-8 victory over Noble in Burbank. The Vikings scored touchdowns on their first four plays and led 50-0 after one quarter. St. Laurence quarterback Chase Kwiatkowski, a transfer from Lake Station (Indiana) tallied on a 12-yard run and threw…
Football | Late TD pass lifts Nazareth over Kankakee on opening night
A balanced ground game and the play of Logan Malachuk led Nazareth to a comeback victory over a familiar foe on opening night of the 2024 season. Malachuk threw for 359 yards and two touchdowns, including a redemptive game-winning score with 3:46 to play, and the Roadrunners topped Kankakee, 37-30, in a non-conference matchup in…
Orland puts annexation on hold; appoints interim clerk
Annexations of three areas of Orland Park will likely become a reality, but there will be some time for residents to soak things in and to ask questions. The village board voted on Aug. 19 to postpone annexing the 1455-14567 S. 82nd Avenue area, the Silver Lake Drive property and the Silver Lake Dells area.…
Worth Park District rejects Homerding Park bids
The Worth Park District Board of Park Commissioners voted during their Aug. 15 meeting to unanimously reject the bids received for the Homerding Park Improvements Project. “As a board, we felt this was the best direction at this time,” said Mike McElroy, president of the park board. “We could have moved forward with the project,…
Two-time defending state champ Mount Carmel falls to Hun School in season-opener
Adversity is no stranger to Mount Carmel. An Illinois record 15 state championships, including Class 7A titles each of the past two seasons, were not attained without overcoming obstacles. The Caravan’s 2024 season-opener, however, presented a different kind of challenge as they hosted an East Coast prep school that featured players old enough to be…
2024 Football Preview | Lyons has high hopes after agonizing end to last season
CONFERENCE: West Suburban Silver HEAD COACH: Jon Beutjer 2023 RECORD: 7-4 (lost 17-14 loss to York in the second round of the Class 8A playoffs) OUTLOOK: A last-second field goal in their second-round playoff game against York prevented the Lions from advancing to the Class 8A quarterfinals. A team with 14 returning starters is determined…
2024 High School Football Preview | Brother Rice will have tough road to hoe
CONFERENCE: Chicago Catholic League/East Suburban Catholic Conference Blue HEAD COACH: Casey Quedenfeld 2023 RECORD: 5-5 2024 OUTLOOK: No one said it was going to be easy. The Crusaders will play defending Class 8A champion Loyola and defending Class 7A champion Mount Carmel as well as a contest against Class 4A runner-up St. Laurence. There are…
2024 Football Preview | Stuart Ross closing in on Saint Xavier all-time passing mark
CONFERENCE: Mid-States Football Association Midwest League HEAD COACH: Mike Feminis 2023 RECORD: 8-4 OUTLOOK: If the conference coaches are correct, the battle for supremacy in the Mid-States Football Association Midwest League is wide open. Marian was voted the preseason top team with 21 points and three first-place votes, while Saint Xavier was second with 20…
2024 Football Preview | Mt. Carmel aims to make it four state titles in five seasons
CONFERENCE: Chicago Catholic League/East Suburban Catholic Conference Blue HEAD COACH: Jordan Lynch (won class 7A state championship) 2023 RECORD: 13-1 2024 OUTLOOK: Mount Carmel is looking for a 16th state championship, which would be its third consecutive title and fourth in five seasons. The Caravan and Joliet Catholic are tied for the most state titles…
2024 Football Preview | St. Rita looks to build on Prep Bowl title
CONFERENCE: Chicago Catholic League/East Suburban Catholic Conference Green HEAD COACH: Martin Hopkins 2023 RECORD: 8-5 (lost in first round of Class 7A playoffs; won Prep Bowl) OUTLOOK: While 2023 wasn’t looking all that special for a Mustangs team that lost in the first round of the Class 7A playoffs, they went wild in the Catholic…
2024 Football Preview | Nazareth aiming for third straight state title
CONFERENCE: Chicago Catholic League/East Suburban Catholic Conference Green HEAD COACH: Tim Racki 2023 RECORD: 9-5 2024 OUTLOOK: After two years of making IHSA history with less-than-sparkling regular-season records and spectacular postseason runs that resulted in Class 5A state championships, veteran coach Tim Racki is ready to tighten things up the first nine games of the…
2024 Football Preview | Marist looks to right ship under new coach Mike Fitzgerald after rare losing season
CONFERENCE: Chicago Catholic League/East Suburban Catholic Conference Orange HEAD COACH: Mike Fitzgerald 2023 RECORD: 4-5 OUTLOOK: The RedHawks have plenty of experience on both sides of the ball to try to make everyone to forget about last year’s rare losing record. Defensive linemen Brad Fitzgibbon (Iowa) and Achilles Anderson (Harvard) have made verbal commitments to…
2024 Football Preview | Returning star RB Rizzs, transfer QB Kwiatkowksi have St. Laurence thinking big
CONFERENCE: Chicago Catholic League/East Suburban Catholic Conference White HEAD COACH: Adam Nissen 2023 RECORD: 10-4 (lost 59-38 to Rochester in the Class 4A state championship game) 2024 OUTLOOK: Not many people thought St. Laurence was going to be a state power last year, but the Vikings put on a show in the postseason and finished…
2024 Football Preview | Seniors Brock Sperling, Christian Flutman will lead Chicago Christian
CONFERENCE: Chicagoland Christian HEAD COACH: CJ Cesario 2023 RECORD: 5-5 OUTLOOK: Some top-notch players on offense and defense return for the Knights. Senior Brock Sperling is a sterling presence in the trenches on both offense and defense. He missed a little time last year with injuries, but still had 12 tackles for loss and five…
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In bribery trial, AT&T lobbyists detail contentious meeting with Madigan ally
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – On an afternoon in late April 2017, recently retired state Rep. Eddie Acevedo was called to a meeting in the state Capitol in Springfield. The 20-year veteran lawmaker had joined his sons’ lobbying firm and was looking for work. Meeting with a trio of lobbyists for…
A year after end of cash bail, early research shows impact less than many hoped or feared
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – One year after Illinois became the first state in the nation to eliminate the use of cash bail, the impact on the state’s criminal justice system appears to have been far less dramatic than people on either side of the debate had predicted. That, at least,…
ADM carbon sequestration project violated Safe Drinking Water Act, per EPA
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com DECATUR – Agribusiness giant ADM violated federal regulations, a federal permit and the Safe Drinking Water Act earlier this year when a monitoring well at their carbon sequestration site in Decatur leaked liquified carbon dioxide into “unauthorized zones,” according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In an August…
On witness stand, former AT&T lobbyist describes how Madigan ally got $22,500 contract
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – The day before Thanksgiving in 2016, then-AT&T Illinois president Paul La Schiazza read some news that frustrated him. It seemed that energy giant Exelon, the parent company of Chicago-based electric utility Commonwealth Edison, was going to get a big assist from Springfield that would prevent it…
Coroner’s affidavit shows as many as 800 human remains could have been misidentified
By BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois bhundsdorfer@capitolnewsillinois.com As many as 800 families across the country who patronized a Carlinville funeral home may never know if the remains on their mantles belong to their loved ones, according to an affidavit signed by Sangamon County Coroner Jim Allmon. The affidavit was filed in a lawsuit pending against…
Calculated bribe or ‘kiss up’ to Madigan? Corruption trial kicks off for former AT&T boss
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – As the federal corruption trial of former AT&T Illinois president Paul La Schiazza formally kicked off on Wednesday, prosecutors and defense attorneys painted two very different pictures of a political hire the telecom giant made in 2017. La Schiazza is accused of bribing former Illinois House…
Supreme Court hears cases pertaining to detention under the SAFE-T Act
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a pair of cases that test the authority of local courts to hold criminal suspects behind bars while they await trial. The cases come almost one year to the day after the court allowed a new law abolishing…
Supreme Court hears cases pertaining to detention under the SAFE-T Act
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a pair of cases that test the authority of local courts to hold criminal suspects behind bars while they await trial. The cases come almost one year to the day after the court allowed a new law abolishing…
Jury selection begins in trial of former AT&T Illinois boss accused of bribing Madigan
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – Jury selection is set to begin Tuesday in the trial of former AT&T Illinois president Paul La Schiazza, who federal prosecutors allege bribed once-powerful Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan in exchange for favorable legislation in Springfield. It’s the last in a series of related trials that…
East St. Louis forum to tackle persistent childhood poverty
By MOLLY PARKER Capitol News Illinois mparker@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois has the potential to eradicate childhood poverty, but it will require a concentrated, sustained effort in partnership with families and disadvantaged communities, says Tasha Green Cruzat, president of Children’s Advocates for Change, a Chicago-based nonprofit focused on childhood wellbeing. This hope drives the focus of the policy…
