Top Sports Stories of 2020 in the Suburban Life area

This was a year like no other in high school sports.

The year 2020 in athletics always will be defined as much by what did not happen on the field as the activity between the lines. The COVID-19 pandemic finished some seasons prematurely, canceled other seasons altogether and left others in limbo, putting high school athletes on the sidelines playing a waiting game as sports took a back seat to public health.

Even in a year such as this one, there were many outstanding performances to celebrate. Some took place before COVID-19 became a regular part of our vocabulary, and others came during three months this fall in an unusual, but in many cases, successful albeit truncated season.

Let’s take a look at some of the top sports stories of the year in the Suburban Life coverage area.

• Montini wrestling wins 16th state title in dominating fashion

Montini’s wrestling program enjoyed as dominating a season as possible, continuing its extraordinary run of success.

The Broncos went 24-0 in dual meets, became the first program in Class 3A history to qualify wrestlers for state at all 14 weight classes, and had five individual state champions – Trevor Swier, Josh LaBarbera, Joe Fernau, Dylan Ragusin and Joe Roberts.

A week later, Montini defeated Mount Carmel 37-9 to win its third straight Class 3A state championship. Despite being without head coach Israel Martinez in Bloomington, the Broncos won their 16th state championship in wrestling, and eighth team title in 10 years.

“It leaves a precedent in the program for the highest standard in Illinois,” Swier said.

In June, Mike Benefiel, a four-time state champion at Montini, was named the Broncos’ new head coach after six seasons as an assistant to Martinez.

• Another state trophy for Montini girls basketball – and the end of an era

Montini’s girls basketball team, starting four sophomores, took third place at the Class 3A state tournament in March. The group led by Sophie Sullivan, Tatiana Thomas and Taylor Charles lost to Simeon in the state semifinals, but bounced back to make 10 3-pointers in the third-place game against Springfield Lanphier.

It was Montini’s 10th state trophy since 2008.

With 13 of its 15 players being underclassmen, Montini’s run at the time looked like the start of something big. It turned out, though, that in a sense it was the end of an era.

In May, Montini coach Jason Nichols announced he was leaving the program after 17 seasons to become the head women’s basketball coach at Morton College.

Nichols’ Montini teams won 15 sectionals, with 14 straight titles from 2005-2018, and four state championships.

“Girls high school basketball will look different without him,” Geneva coach Sarah Meadows said. “His record is unbelievable.”

• Memorable seasons for Hinsdale South, Timothy Christian boys basketball cut short by COVID-19

Memorable boys basketball seasons at Hinsdale South and Timothy Christian ended all too early because of the pandemic.

At Hinsdale South, a team with four senior starters won a school-record 30 games, more than double the total from the previous season, and reached a sectional semifinal.

Timothy Christian, meanwhile, advanced to the state basketball finals for the first time in 40 years.

The ends to their seasons marked the beginning to the effects of the pandemic on high school sports.

On March 12, the IHSA announced that all state playoff games would be canceled. Timothy Christian was scheduled to play Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin the next day in a Class 2A state semifinal in Peoria.

Hinsdale South and Benet were slated to play in a Class 3A sectional semifinal March 12, but they learned their game – and season – were canceled right before tipoff.

The video and picture of Hinsdale South senior guard Billy Durkin sitting alone at center court went viral, and led off Scott Van Pelt’s SportsCenter edition on ESPN honoring Senior Night.

“We had a chance to go far,” said Durkin, one of four senior starters. “It hurts knowing what we could’ve done. Losing is part of the game. You can come to terms with a loss, if you gave everything you had. We had no closure to the season. It’s hard to digest.”

• Friday Night Lights go dark in Illinois in fall

The impact of the pandemic and restrictions put in place to prevent the spread of the virus was felt throughout the year in high school athletics.

In April, the IHSA canceled state tournaments for all spring sports, and eventually those seasons were completely washed out. Because of the decision, track fans were deprived the opportunity of seeing 11-time state champion Katelynne Hart of Glenbard West run one final time at state.

In July, the IHSA announced a major structural change to its sports calendar, moving football, girls volleyball and boys soccer to the “spring” of 2021, starting March 5. With football being played in 37 other states, several players from Illinois – most notably, Nazareth star quarterback and Michigan recruit J.J. McCarthy – moved out of Illinois to get the opportunity to compete in the fall. Rallies were held in Chicago and Springfield in support of a return to high school sports in Illinois.

The uncertainty of high school sports in Illinois does not appear close to an end. Gov. JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health have called for basketball to be moved to the spring, and all winter sports are on hold at least until January.

• A different kind of fall season for cross country, golf, tennis and swimming

It was a different kind of fall season for the sports that did compete – golf, cross country, girls tennis and girls swimming.

No state tournaments or large invitationals. Limited spectators. Masks, social distancing and other COVID-19 protocols.

Athletes made the most of their opportunity to compete, though.

On the golf course, Glenbard West junior John Wild was a sectional medalist for the second straight year, leading the Hilltoppers to their second straight sectional championship. Sarah Thornton led the Hinsdale Central girls team to a sectional title. In tennis, Glenbard West, Hinsdale Central and Timothy Christian all won sectional titles. Hinsdale Central, led by Villanova recruit Lainey Quinones, won a sectional title in swimming.

In cross country, Evan Cummins and Downers Grove North won conference, regional and sectional titles. The York girls team won its first sectional title since 2009, and Benet’s girls team won a showdown of the state’s top two teams to beat Latin to win a sectional championship a year after winning sate.