Rock Falls, Sterling boys basketball earn tournament wins: SVM area roundup for Wednesday, Dec. 27

Boys basketball

Rock Falls 64, Fieldcrest 51: At the State Farm Classic, the Rockets built a 21-13 first-quarter lead and cruised past the Knights on Wednesday.

Devin Tanton-DeJesus led the way for Rock Falls, scoring 12 of his game-high 21 points in the first quarter. Gavin Sands was the closer for the Rockets, scoring 11 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter. Kuitim Heald added nine points in the winning effort.

Sterling 63, Rochester 57: At the Taylorville Holiday Tournament, the Golden Warriors edged the Rockets in a Day 1 game, led by a 20-point, eight-rebound performance from Andre Klaver.

Also for Sterling, Lucas Austin tallied 15 points, seven rebounds and two blocks; Carter Chance totaled 13 points on 5-for-5 shooting from the field; and Nico Battaglia added seven points and five rebounds.

Newman 61, Forreston 41: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament in Erie, the Comets built a 32-20 halftime lead and rolled past the Cardinals.

Newman was led by Lucas Simpson with 21 points, George Jungerman with 14 points, Evan Bushman with nine points and Sam Francque with eight points.

Kendall Erdmann paced Forreston with 21 points, while Brendan Greenfield added nine points.

Riverdale 76, Forreston 47: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament, the Cardinals played the Rams to within 22-20 in the first quarter but were outscored by double digits in the middle quarters.

Brendan Greenfield paced Forreston with 15 points, while Erdmann added 13 points.

Evan Verbeckmoes led the Rams with 23 points.

Beecher 76, Morrison 59: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament, the Mustangs fell into a 27-8 first-quarter hole and couldn’t dig their way out.

Morrison was led by Dawson Hepner with 10 points, DaeShaun McQueen with nine points, and Carson Strating and Chase Newman with eight points each.

Erie-Prophetstown 40, Fulton 37: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament, the Panthers rallied from a 13-6 first-quarter deficit to top the short-handed Steamers.

Erie-Prophetstown was led by Jeremiah Kochevar with 16 points and Connor Keegan with eight points.

Braeden Brennan paced Fulton with 12 points, and Brady Read added eight points.

Belvidere North 52, Eastland 44: At the Chuck Dayton Holiday Tournament in DeKalb, the Blue Thunder held off the Cougars with a 25-20 second-half run.

Parker Krogman led Eastland with 17 points, Peyton Spears scored 16 points, and Adam Awender added seven points.

Girls basketball

Newman 54, Somonauk 24: The Comets rolled again at the Amboy Holiday Tournament, leading 29-10 at halftime on the way to their fourth straight win.

Jess Johns had 21 points and 12 rebounds, Helen Papoccia scored 11 points, and Brooklyn Smith hit three 3-pointers and finished with nine points, five rebounds and four steals for Newman (9-9). Lauryn Francque added eight points, Elaina Allen had five points, six steals, three rebounds and three assists, and Lucy Oetting chipped in 10 rebounds, four assists and four steals for the Comets.

Morrison 43, Orion 32: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament, the Fillies outscored the Chargers 21-13 in the second half to seal the morning-game win.

Morrison was led by Camryn Veltrop with 16 points, Avery White with 14 points and Kaylee Pruis with six points.

Lena-Winslow 45, Morrison 39: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament, the Panthers rallied from a 22-13 halftime deficit to win the nightcap against the Fillies.

Veltrop paced Morrison with 18 points and Jordan Eads added 11 points.

Bureau Valley goes 1-1 at Warkins: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament, Bureau Valley beat Stark County 56-36 and lost 75-59 to Monmouth-Roseville.

Against the Rebels, Taylor Neuhalfen led the Storm with 19 points, while Kate Salisbury scored 14 points, and Lynzie Cady added six rebounds.

Against the Titans, Neuhalfen scored 15 points, and Salisbury supplied 13 points and six rebounds.

Erie-Prophetstown 65, Fulton 35: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament, the Panthers raced to a 21-7 first-quarter lead in a 30-point win over the Steamers.

Erie-Prophetstown was led by Sydney Schwartz with 17 points, Kennedy Buck with 13 points, and Lauren Abbott and Hannah Huisman with 11 points each.

Zoe Kunau paced Fulton with 10 points, while Haley Smither added eight points.

Mercer County 50, Erie-Prophetstown 47: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament, Buck scored 18 points and Schwartz poured in 12 points as the Panthers fell to the Golden Eagles.

Mercer County 55, Fulton 12: At the Cliff Warkins Memorial Tournament, Haley Smither scored a team-high five points as the Steamers dropped the nightcap against the Golden Eagles.

Byron 59, Eastland 41: At the Dixon KSB Holiday Tournament, the Cougars lost to the Tigers in an opening-round matchup.

Eastland was led by Trixie Carroll with 12 points, nine rebounds and three assists; Olivia Klinefelter with 10 points and 11 rebounds; and Lily Mullen with six points, four assists and three steals.

Wrestling

Rock Falls goes 3-2 at Sandwich Duals Invite: At Sandwich, Rock Falls beat Mendota 69-6, lost to Peotone 34-33, beat St. Bede 44-24, lost to Sandwich 45-29 and beat St. Viator 45-36.

Josiah Tarbill (120 pounds) and Logan Thome (132) each finished 5-0 on the day; Tarbill received one win by forfeit, and Thome earned contested wins in all five matches. Adan Oquendo (138) and Logan Williamson (144) each went 4-1, wrestling all five matches. Trail Stonitsch (157) went 2-1 in contested matches for the Rockets.

Boys bowling

Oswego East Mid-State Tournament: At Landmark Lanes in Peoria, Oregon placed sixth (5,949 pins) and Dixon placed seventh (5,806) at the 18-team event.

Cody Geil led the Dukes with a 1,363 series and 260 high game, placing second overall. David Laird chipped in a 1,147 (41st) and Wyatt Miller added a 1,103 (51st) for Dixon.

Matthew Stahl took seventh (1,295) to lead the Hawks, while Brady Davis finished 10th (1,282), RJ Keene nabbed 25th (1,230) and Gavvin Surmo came in 40th (1,151).

Girls bowling

Sterling wins Geneseo Holiday Invite: At Geneseo, Sterling won the team title with 4,674 pins, beating second-place Ottawa by a margin of 72. The Golden Warriors held an 18-pin lead after four games, then fell behind Ottawa in Game 5 before rallying to the win.

Sterling freshman Sarah Doughty led all bowlers with a 1,135 series and 225 high game, while Olivia Barton finished second overall with a 1,033. Also contributing six-game series for the Golden Warriors were Loralei Michels (883) and Hailey Conderman (881). Kara Garcia chipped in a 452 four-game series, and Phinley Wright added a 290 two-game series for Sterling.