Bishop McNamara fell 77-70 against Tolono Unity in the IHSA Class 2A Pontiac Supersectional on Monday, March 9, 2026.

As the prep softball season begins Monday, here are five storylines from the Daily Journal area to keep an eye on.

Bishop McNamara roared to a comeback 69-56 overtime victory against Yorkville Christian in the IHSA Class 2A Seneca Sectional championship on Friday, March 6, 2026. See photos from the game.

Bishop McNamara pulled off an improbable comeback win in Friday's IHSA Class 2A Seneca Sectional championship against Yorkville Christian, outscoring the Mustangs 37-10 down the stretch to erase a 14-point deficit and win 69-56 in overtime.

Kankakee, which entered the postseason as the top-ranked team in Class 3A, was shocked by Morton in Friday's Class 3A Ottawa Sectional championship.

Kankakee suffered a heartbreaking 61-48 loss to Morton in the IHSA Class 3A Ottawa Sectional championship on Friday, March 6, 2026.

With a pair of 2,000-point scorers in Addison Lucht and Dierks Neukomm, and a pair of 1,000-point scorers in Lauryn Hamrick and Seth Walder, the Cissna Park basketball class of 2026 made their way into school record books.

This spring, we at Friday Night Drive will start looking ahead to the fall with players we are keeping our eye on. Who are some of the top players to watch in 2026? We will start with the quarterbacks.

Kankakee erased a late 10-point deficit to beat East Peoria 59-53 in Wednesday's IHSA Class 3A Ottawa Sectional semifinal, advancing to the championship game against Morton on Friday.