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The Dixon baseball team took a step closer to the Big Northern title with a 5-0 win over Stillman Valley on Thursday to improve to 8-0 in league play with two conference games to go and a 1 1/2-game lead over Rockford Christian.
Gage Burdick held the Cardinals to two hits and struck out 11, walking two for the complete game victory, needing just 93 pitches.
Ryan Pitzer drove in a pair of runs. Burdick and Beau Evans also added RBIs. Evans went 2-for-3.
Warriors split with Rocks: Sterling pitched its way to a 3-2 win in the first game of a doubleheader with Rock Island, but fell 11-0 in the second.
In Game 1, Colt Adams struck out six in 6 1/3 innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits. Garrett Polson then pitched 2/3 of an inning and allowed no runs, no hits and got a strikeout.
Ryan Heffelfinger got a double for the Warriors, one of his two hits. Sterling scored two runs in the first to take a 2-1 lead, then won on a walk-off after the Rocks had tied it in the seventh.
Rock Island scored in every inning but the second in Game 2. Adams had a double, one of three Sterling hits in the game. Seven of the Rocks’ 11 runs were unearned, as Sterling committed six errors.
St. Bede 4, Erie-Prophetstown 1: The Panthers could not hold off the Bruins.
St. Bede scored a run in the first, two more in the second, and one in the fourth. The Panthers’ lone run came in the fourth.
Logan Wunderlich struck out five for Erie-Prophetstown, pitching six innings. Connor Sibley had three hits.
Eastland 3, Forreston 2: The Cougars scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth to get past the Cardinals.
Singles by Drew Burkholder and Kellen Henze opened the sixth-inning rally before a passed ball and wild pitch brought in those runs with two outs. Wyatt Baber also had a sacrifice fly in the fourth.
Burkholder struck out 12 in 5 2/3 innings, allowing one hit.
Milledgeville 11, AFC 2: The Missiles scored four in the fifth and added four more in the seventh in a win over AFC. Kieren Harris, Milledgeville’s No. 9 hitter, drove in two runs. Noah Newstrand drove in two more with a 4-for-4 day.
On the mound, Harris scattered eight hits and struck out eight in 6 2/3 innings.
Peyton Lanning pitched five innings for the Raiders and struck out nine, allowing seven runs on four hits. Carson Rueff had a pair of hits for AFC.
Amboy 15, Polo 13: The Clippers won an NUIC slugfest at home, scoring in every inning except the sixth.
Lane Boehle had three hits and three RBIs for Amboy, while Brady Jones had two hits and drove in four. Andruw Jones also had three RBIs, and Ian Eller had two hits and knocked in a run.
Brady Clark had three RBIs, and Cole Faivre drove in two runs for Polo, which scored six runs in the fifth and five in the seventh after trailing 11-2 through four innings.
SOFTBALL
Sterling swept by Rock Island: The Golden Warriors lost both ends of a Western Big 6 doubleheader, 19-11 and 17-14.
In the first game, the Golden Warriors led 11-3 heading into the sixth before the Rocks scored nine in the sixth and seven more in the seventh.
Jordyn Bryant drove in four runs for Sterling. Bryant, Riley Dittmar, Elizabeth Palumbo and Amayia Hernandez each hit home runs.
In the second game, both teams put together multiple big innings. Each team scored two in the first before the Rocks took a 5-2 lead in the second, then Sterling scored five in that frame to go up 7-5.
After the teams traded the lead again in the third and fourth innings, Rock Island scored four in the fifth to go up 12-9 before Sterling answered to take a 14-12 lead. That lead didn’t hold, as Rock Island scored a run in the sixth and four in the seventh.
Hernandez hit a pair of home runs and a double, driving in six. Matea Lira also homered and had two RBIs. Dittmar also drove in two.
Stillman Valley 12, Dixon 2, 5 inn.: The Duchesses fell at Stillman Valley.
Kierstyn Mays drove in a run. She and Sam Tourtillott had Dixon’s lone hits.
In the circle, Mays pitched 4 2/3 innings and allowed 12 runs, six of them earned, on nine hits, striking out four.
Oregon 6, Mendota 3: Oregon’s offensive output came from a pair of players in a Big Northern win over the Trojans.
Reilee Suter went 2-for-2 and was hit by a pitch, scoring three runs and picking up two steals. Bella Koertner was 3-for-3 with three runs scored, two driven in and four stolen bases.
In the circle, Mia Trampel struck out 13.
Erie-Prophetstown 5, St Bede 3: The Panthers picked up a Three Rivers road win in Peru with a three-run first inning, adding runs in the second and fifth.
Aylah Jones and Mak Glassburn each had a pair of hits. Glassburn drove in two runs.
Corrie Remley pitched seven innings and struck out five, allowing three runs (two earned) on seven hits.
Sherrard 10, Fulton 8: The Steamers fell in Three Rivers play, trailing 6-1 heading to the bottom of the third before nearly pulling off the comeback.
Fulton scored three in the third to chip away at the deficit, got closer again in the fifth, then scored a run in the bottom of the seventh to tie it 7-7 and force extra innings.
In the eighth, Sherrard scored three in the top half and Fulton managed one in the bottom of the inning.
Liz Fish, Faith Ottens, Ally Reed and Anna Jacobs all had three hits. Fish and Mariah Underwood both homered and drove in three runs. Jacobs added two RBIs.
Forreston 16, Eastland 0, 5 inn.: Scoring in every inning but the fourth, including a seven-run first, the Cardinals won in Lanark.
Neveah Houston drove in four runs, going 2-for-2. Kara Erdmann and Brooke Boettner both homered. Rylee Broshous was 3-for-4 with two RBIs.
The Cougars had little offense beyond a triple by Bailey Thede and a double by Addison Burkholder.
West Carroll 14, Warren-Stockton 13: The Thunder won a wild one on the road.
West Carroll jumped ahead 5-0 early, saw Warren-Stockton score five runs in the fourth, then answered with an eight-run fifth to take a 13-7 lead before holding on late.
Madison Magill and Madison Haynes each drove in two runs for West Carroll. Kendal Asay went 3-for-4. Haynes, Alee Schleuning and Erika Rice each had two hits.
GIRLS SOCCER
Dixon 8, Rockford Lutheran 1: Taylor Harrison scored six goals to move into second place on the Duchesses’ all-time list in a Big Northern win at Sportscore in Rockford.
Harrison, already Dixon’s all-time assists leader with 72, now has 121 career goals, behind only Lauren Chacon’s 127 in program history. Abby Goff and Paige Stees also scored for Dixon, with Goff dishing four assists and Stees adding one. Emma Evans also had an assist for the Duchesses, who trailed 1-0 in the first minute of the game before scoring four goals in each half.
Sterling 6, Rochelle 0: The Golden Warriors rolled to a shutout victory over the Hubs at Roscoe Eades Stadium.
Oregon 3, Mendota 3: The Hawks and Trojans played to a draw in the Big Northern.
Leah Watters scored twice and assisted on a goal from Eliza Easley.
WRESTLING
Rock Island 51, Sterling 26: The Golden Warriors dropped a Western Big 6 dual.
At 152 pounds, Sterling’s Drew Kested pinned Aime Iraniybutse in 3:02. Dylan Howard pinned Evan Marshall in 2:32 in the 182-pound bout. Jason Farnham pinned Eli Gustafson in 38 seconds at 285.
Sterling’s Thomas Martin picked up a major decision at 138 to beat Kyle Gah. Mauricio Garcia also scored a major at 145 over Aoci Bernard.
Comets swept at home: Newman lost a pair of duals, falling to Fulton 35-19 and Oregon 46-15.
Will Rude (138) notched a pair of first-period pins for the Comets, and Carter Rude (126/132) won by decision twice.
Brayden Porter (145) added a major decision against Fulton. Brady Grennan (120) and Cameron Dugger (170) both won by decision against Oregon.
Fulton got a pin from Kaleb Schipper at 220, a major decision from Ryan Snyder at 170, and a decision from Ethan Rash at 182 in the win over Newman.
Oregon’s contested wins against Newman came from Dalton McCammon (tech fall at 145), Andrew Herbst (tech fall at 152), Sebastian Cardenas (pin at 160) and Adam Glendenning (pin at 220).
Panthers earn split: Erie-Prophetstown beat Polo 45-36 and lost to Riverdale 46-27.
Against the Marcos, Erie-Prophetstown got wins via pin at 126 pounds from Nick Smith, 132 from Carter Jepson, 138 from Jase Grunder, 152 from Isaac Goodson, and 182 from Jacob Otten. E-P’s Logan Wheeler won by decision at 195.
Polo got wins from Braydon Altherr at 160 and Joel Ludwig at 200 by pin.
Erie-Prophetstown’s wins against the Rams came at 126, where Ryler Ballard scored a pin; at 138, where Grunder won on decision; and at 195, where Wheeler scored a pin.
Riverdale beat Polo 60-24, with the Marcos winning two contested bouts. Daniel Engel won the 285-pound match, pinning Shane O’Havor in 10 seconds. Wyatt Queckboerner pinned Iyezaha Hill in 52 seconds at 195.