Marshawn Cocroft's shot near the end of regulation extended Kaneland's season for four more minutes Friday in a Class 3A semifinal against. His 3-pointer at the buzzer of overtime couldn't duplicate the feat as the Knights fell 49-48 to Deerfield.

Can Huntley run the table in the FVC once again? Will Woodstock defend its KRC regular season title? With the 2026 girls soccer season approaching, here are five storylines to watch in McHenry County.

Eastland’s impressive run back to the Class 1A state semifinals came to an end after a 61-43 loss to Lawrenceville in Thursday's third-place game. The Cougars still took home back-to-back state trophies for the first time as a program.

Oswego East boys basketball coach Ryan Velasquez, who posted a 198-71 record with three regional championships and one sectional title over nine seasons, has resigned as head coach. "This was a family decision."

Lincoln-Way West boys water polo falls to Metea Valley in Thursday's Herald-News sports roundup.

Manteno's softball season began with two different innings of double-digit runs in Thursday's Daily Journal roundup.

Johnsburg senior Jayce Schmitt and Woodstock junior Max Beard were named co-Kishwaukee River Conference Player of the Year. Check out the full All-KRC boys basketball team here, as selected by coaches.

Eastland was unable to settle in against Chicago Marshall's speed and athleticism in a 66-38 loss in Thursday's Class 1A state semifinal matchup. The Cougars will play Lawrenceville for third place later tonight.

Ethan MacDermot arrived in Illinois from Australia just nine months ago to chase his basketball dreamd. Now the 6-foot-3 Benet guard and the defending Class 4A champion Redwings are playing in a Class 4A state semifinal Friday against three-time defending champion DePaul Prep.

Hunter Stepanich was on York's state volleyball team as a sophomore and was a tight end for the state runner-up football as a junior. Now the 6-foot-9 senior, a Princeton football/volleyball recruit, and York's basketball team are at state for the first time since 1967.

Before the prep baseball season begins Monday, check out some notable names from the Daily Journal area to keep an eye on.

Check out preview capsules for the Daily Journal area's softball teams for the 2026 season.

We take a look at each team the Class 3A State Final field, their projected starters, state final history and more.

The Kaneland boys basketball team is heading to the Class 3A State Tournament, taking with it a 35-0 record and a high-powered offense that was, at least for Connor Kimme's 3-point shot, quite literally raised in a barn.

Here is the 2025-26 Record Newspapers all-area girls basketball team.

Oswego East senior and Illinois Wesleyan commit Aubrey Lamberti, who this season became the program's all-time leading scorer and averaged 16.7 points and 7.5 rebounds as a senior, is the Record Newspapers Player of the Year for the second straight season.

Top senior players from the Fox Valley Conference and Kishwaukee River Conference will compete in the 2026 McHenry County Boys Soccer All-Star Game on May 8. Check out the full rosters here.

Here is the 2025-2026 Suburban Life All-Area girls basketball team.

Nazareth senior and BYU commit Stella Sakalas, who led the Roadrunners to the Class 4A state championship and will graduate as the program's second-highest career scorer and all-time winningest player, is the Suburban Life Player of the Year.

Kaneland junior Angelina Gochis, who went 31-2 and became the fifth girls wrestler to win three state titles, is the Kane County Chronicle Girls Wrestler of the Year.

Minooka's 4x800-meter relay team ran the second-best indoor time in school history in Tuesday's Herald-News Roundup

Sandwich junior Cooper Corder, who won the Class 1A 150-pound state championship to cap a 43-1 season, is the Record Newspapers Boys Wrestler of the Year.

Here is the 2025-26 All-Kishwaukee River Conference girls wrestling team, as voted on by KRC coaches.

Here is the 2025-26 All-Kishwaukee River Conference boys wrestling team, as voted on by KRC coaches.

York secured its first supersectional title Monday, outlasting St. Ignatius in an overtime thriller 58-56 at the Class 4A University of Illinois-Chicago Supersectional at Capital One Arena.

Deerfield denied St. Francis a spot in the Class 3A state semifinals and clinched the first supersectional championship in school history with a 51-36 victory Monday night at NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates.

Once again, Eastland’s tenacious defense got the job done. The Cougars made one final defensive stand to beat Tremont 47-45 in Monday’s Class 1A Supersectional at Western Illinois University to advance to state for the second straight year.

Johnsburg's best boys basketball season since 2003 ended with a 75-41 loss to Peoria Manual in the Class 2A Sterling Supersectional on Monday night.

Benet senior guard Jayden Wright's floor game was masterful with 16 points and eight assists, and the Redwings shook off Rockford Auburn's fast start for a 69-42 win in the Class 4A NIU Supersectional to return to state – and a showdown with DePaul Prep Friday.

Alex McKie scored 27 points in a sectional semifinal against La Salle-Peru. Ernie Colombe and Kaneland saw that and made sure he didn't repeat it, holding the Morton star scoreless. The Knights beat the Potters 49-47 in the Class 3A NIU Supersectional to earn a trip to state.

2025-2026 was Indian Creek's best boys basketball season since 2019-2020. It ended the same way that 2019-2020 did as well, with the Timberwolves falling in the supersectional round.

The winningest season in Bishop McNamara boys basketball history came to a gut-wrenching end Monday with a 77-70 loss to Tolono Unity in the Class 2A Pontiac Supersectional.

Johnsburg season ends with loss to Peoria Manual in boys IHSA Class 2A Supersectional basketball game on Monday, Mar. 9, 2026, at Sterling High School in Sterling.

After overcoming a pair of two-run deficits earlier in the game, Wilmington took an 8-7 opening-day loss to Homewood-Flossmoor in walk-off fashion Monday.

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

Jeffrey Hassan's late layup broke a tie and gave Kaneland a 49-47 win over Morton in the Class 3A NIU Supersectional on Monday in DeKalb. The Knights earned a trip to the state tournament.

Jacobs travels to Marengo for a nonconference softball game on Monday, March 9, 2026, at Marengo High School.

The Three Rivers Athletic Conference released its all-conference boys and girls basketball teams, with multiple area athletes recognized through voting by the head coaches.

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.

A schedule of high school sporting events in the Ottawa/Streator/Seneca area for the coming week.

Sophia Towne scored 17 points and hit four of Nazareth's eight threes, the Roadrunners blew open the game with a 16-0 run and beat Loyola in a matchup of the state's top two teams 55-23 in the Class 4A final for Nazareth's second state championship in the largest-ever 4A margin.

Byron couldn't overcome a cold shooting day and couldn't recover from slow starts to the second and third quarters, losing to Breese Central 44-28 in the Class 2A state championship game at Illinois State's CEFCU Arena. It's Byron's fifth state trophy.

Connor Kimme scored half of Kaneland's first-half points, then drew a key charge that turned the momentum in the Knights' 51-41 win over Crystal Lake South on Friday in the Class 3A Woodstock North Sectional championship game.

Stillman Valley High School senior Cale Kleinschmidt has earned a spot on the IHSA All-State Academic Team as an honorable mention. Less than 100 student athletes in the state are selected for the award.

The Eastland Cougars faced the Pecatonica Indians in Friday’s Class 1A Orion Sectional final at Orion High School on March 6, 2026. Eastland won the game 48-41.

The Indian Creek boys basketball team used a late third-quarter surge to take the lead, then survived a potential game-winning 3-pointer by Marquette at the final horn to claim a thrilling 46-44 victory the Class 1A Amboy Sectional championship game Friday.

Crystal Lake South's boys basketball team stayed with undefeated Kaneland all night but fell short 51-41 in the championship game of the Class 3A Woodstock North Sectional on Friday.

Hunter Stepanich made a game-winning three-point play with 5.4 seconds remaining to help York secure its first sectional title since 1982 with a 37-36 win over Glenbard East.

St. Francis overcame a halftime deficit to beat Wheaton Academy 69-62 to win the Class 3A Hinsdale Sectional on Friday.