Danie Kelso’s story is not all that much different than thousands of other athletes.

She has had coaches who coached her, coaches who inspired her, coaches who pushed her, coaches who motivated her, coaches who encouraged her and coaches who helped put her on the path to success.

The roles of many of her coaches spilled over into various categories.

The recent St. Joseph-Ogden graduate has committed to Millikin University, in Decatur, to continue her track and field career.

The decision, however, didn’t fulfill a lifelong dream.

“I got a few letters from a couple different colleges approaching me about running, but I was never very interested,” Kelso said. “By about January of my senior year, I knew that this was something I wanted to do.”

Kelso had a star-studded running career, which started before she reached high school. She ran on a state runner-up relay while in junior high and was part of a state championship relay team in high school.

The constant throughout her running career is the contributions from those who were called, ‘Coach.’

“In middle school cross-country, Coach (Corey) Plotner and McD (John McDannald), had a huge impact on me as a runner,” Kelso said. “They pushed the team to be the best we could and to keep going when it gets hard, but to also have fun while doing it.”

Kelso ran cross-country through her freshman year at SJ-O, when she decided to focus her attention on being a sprinter in track.

“Even after I decided to no longer continue running cross-country, I took these life lessons with me to track and life in general,” Kelso said. “Cross-country helped me build up my character.

“The middle school track coaches were Mr. (Grant) Risley and Mr. (Zach) Steele. My passion for track started while being coached by them and they set the foundation for the rest of my running career.”

Kelso’s high school coaches picked up where her predecessors left off.

“Going into high school, my coaches consisted of Mr. (Jason) Retz, Ms. (Kelly) Steffen and Matt Umbarger,” Kelso said. “These coaches pushed me to be the best athlete that I could possibly be and helped me see my potential.

“Throughout all of high school, I felt very cared about and loved by the coaching staff and I wouldn’t be the runner I am today without their support.”

The impact of each coach was tremendous, Kelso said, but one person in particular played a recurring key role.

“Ms. Steffen had the greatest impact on me, as a runner and as a person,” Kelso said. “She has been a role model for me and I am so grateful to have had her as a coach and a teacher.”

Despite Kelso’s contributions to the Spartans’ program, continuing to run after high school was not a long-time goal.

“I actually did not have the plan of running after high school,” Kelso said. “I have always been more focused on starting my path to being a nurse more than anything.”

What changed, she said, was discovering a place where she felt right at home.

“My recruitment process was pretty simple, in all honesty,” Kelso said. “On my visit to Millikin, I met a few coaches and some of the teammates and I loved the environment. It almost reminded me of SJ-O.

“I was convinced pretty quickly after meeting everyone there and I started envisioning myself on the team as a sprinter. After visiting the Millikin track team, I was set on continuing my running career.”

Competing in college became more of a priority for Kelso after her senior season was cut short before it began due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I am heartbroken by the way my last high school track season ended, but this taught me to never take anything for granted,” Kelso said. “I didn’t know that when I crossed the finish line (as a junior) it would be my last time. That’s why it’s so important to give all you have, every chance you have.

“Track has shaped my character in many ways and I have learned some hard and good lessons from this sport. Everything I’ve achieved has been through hard work and sacrifice. I’ll carry on these lessons in life.”

Kelso’s last high school race on an outdoor track was the one that enabled her to gather a state championship medal.

She ran the leadoff leg for the 800-meter relay and was followed by Atleigh Hamilton, Hailey Birt and Maclayne Taylor. Anchor runner Taylor was the lone senior on the foursome, which was timed in 1 minute, 44.81 seconds.

In all, Kelso earned two state medals during high school track. In junior high, she ran on the second-place 1,600-meter relay as a seventh-grader.

Kelso said Millikin met all of her needs as she looks to the future.

“I picked Millikin because of their great nursing program,” she said. “It is also very close to home. Being able to come back and see my family is very important to me.

“They have a small campus (about 2,000 students) and this is also very appealing to me. Millikin’s track team was really just the icing on the cake. I’m thankful to find a school with the major I need and great athletics.”

As she conducted her college search, Kelso had a single-minded purpose.

“All of my college searching was surrounded by the school’s nursing program,” she said. “I didn’t really look into track programs or communicate with other schools about running.

“After deciding to attend Millikin University when I was accepted into their nursing program, running track practically just fell into my lap.”

There was a mutual interest.

“The first coach that really reached out to me and pursued me was Andrew Craycraft, the director of Millikin Track and Field,” Kelso said.

Kelso’s ultimate life goal, she said is “working as a registered nurse in either labor and delivery or in the NICU.”

She was involved in a multitude of activities as a youngster, including softball and cheerleading, before finding a favorite sport with sprinting.

“Once running came into the picture, I focused on that more than anything,” Kelso said.

Coaches helped to foster her love for running.

“I started to focus on track mostly because of my passion that grew for sprinting throughout the years,” Kelso said. “I just wanted to be the best that I possibly could. I loved the feeling after a good race, nothing beats it.

“The appeal of track and field was the team environment and the satisfaction of seeing your times drop from meet to meet. Once I first started running track in middle school, it became first on my list of priorities.”

She didn’t consider herself a natural.

“It took me a while to see the talent and potential that I have,” Kelso said. “I used to always think of myself as the ‘underdog’ or just a few steps behind my teammates, but as I made it into high school, the coaches really lifted me up and they believed in me.”

The coaches showed their support, not just with words, but also by actions.

“They trusted me with a lot, especially my freshman year when they decided to have me lead the 4×4 relay at state prelims,” Kelso said. “There was a lot of pressure placed on me by going out of the blocks and starting a relay at state.

“By doing this, my confidence was boosted. Not every freshman gets a chance to run at state, but the coaches believed in me and this made me believe in myself.”

Kelso didn’t get the opportunity to run in the state finals as a freshman, but she knew nonetheless that she could compete on the state’s largest stage.

Her teammates knew it, too, voting her as the team’s Spartan Award winner as a ninth-grader.

After stepping away from the track for a couple months this spring during the pandemic, Kelso has resumed her workouts.

“Once the track season was officially over, I decided to take a break and focus on the end of the school year and let my body rest for a while,” she said. “Once June started, I began to get back into shape.

“Ms. Steffen creates workouts for me to do on the track, and I’ve also been running some distance as well to build up some endurance.”

Throughout the years, Kelso has learned the value of hitting the weights.

“Lifting was a big part of my growth as a sprinter,” she said. “I gained so much strength and speed from lifting in the weight room. I also built up my confidence in the process.

“Lifting was my favorite part of practices at times. I am proud of the gains I made by lifting and I wouldn’t be the sprinter I am without strength training.”

Kelso hit a squat max of 230 pounds, but added, “I was shooting for much higher during my senior year. It is disappointing to not have been able to see what more I could have done.

Now that she has signed a letter of intent with Millikin University, Kelso has four more years to continue seeing what she can do.

The post Danie Kelso to continue track and field career at Millikin University first appeared on SJO Daily.

fred@mahometnews.com

Area high schools are in the process of preparing their athletes to return to competition.

The IHSA permitted limited participation last week, allowing districts to conduct conditioning, agility and strength training exercises in small groups.

Oakwood chose to wait until this week in order to get its plan in place.

“We are taking a cautious approach for right now,” Oakwood football coach Al Craig said. “We are making sure all the ducks are in a row before we start.

“We have been meeting with the athletes once a week on Zoom and going over things we would have normally gone over. It has gone well.”

Craig fears the repercussions of doing too much too soon.

“I am just concerned with health and safety,” he said. “I don’t ever want our student-athletes or coaches in danger.

 “I’m also worried that too much at the beginning gets everything closed down again, then we lose August. We don’t want that. Nobody wants that.”

St. Joseph-Ogden and Villa Grove/Heritage began the process of restarting workouts last week.

Throughout the area, slow steps are the norm.

“Right now, they are student-athletes who we haven’t seen for multiple weeks,” SJ-O football coach Shawn Skinner said. “We are working on getting them in shape.

“Their core, legs and lungs are what we want to ensure are getting ready as we progress at this time.”

SJ-O athletes are at the school in shifts, taking advantage of the weight room.

“We have eight groups and those groups have six to eight kids,” Skinner said. “We have some groups going at 7 a.m., another set at 11 a.m. and another round at 5 p.m.

“Prior to working out, we have to check the kids in with a series of questions and we record their temperatures. We will do that every time we work out, at least during this stage of our return-to-play plan.

“We have essentially created small weight rooms outside on and around our track and sports fields. The workouts incorporate speed improvement, flexibility, strength and conditioning.”

The workout takes about an hour and the athletes remain with the same group every day. Sixty-five Spartan football prospects, from freshmen through seniors, worked out last week.

Skinner said his program is not far behind where he originally expected to be by mid-June.

“Our summer plan was to always be in the weight room three days a week, so from that standpoint we are moving forward with that plan,” Skinner said. “We have lost only about two weeks of summer workouts, so we are trying to stay positive from that standpoint.”

He said the school’s staff is doing everything possible to not put anyone at risk.

“Obviously we want everyone to be as safe and healthy as can be,” Skinner said, “so we’re being cognizant of spacing and what we touch; wiping down and cleaning equipment after every athlete uses that.

“For the athletes, we want to avoid over-taxing them early. Some of them have been working out at home, but several of them have not. It’s not a race to get back in shape in one week.

“This will be a process and we have to ensure we avoid injuries, especially soft tissue injuries, as that could linger all season.”

Unless athletes were working out on their own, most had been away from regimented practices for more than 80 days. Skinner didn’t know what level of conditioning and fitness to expect from his returnees.

“I was really concerned with what shape we would be in,” he said. “Honestly, it’s better than I thought. It’s not good, but it’s not bad either.”

Villa Grove/Heritage football coach Heath Wilson has about 50 potential football players working out.

“At this point, I am just excited,” Wilson said. “Excited to get to start working with the players and coaches.

“A lot of our players are out of shape due to the stay-at-home order, so it’s time to do the work and get ready for the season.”

The staff at VG/Heritage is adhering to recommendations.

“First and foremost, we are making sure we understand and implement the guidelines appropriately,” Wilson said. “The safety of these athletes is very important. We have worked quickly to survey our players, break them into groups and get them in the weight room. 

“With seven coaches, we are able to divide and conquer. We have six groups that are working out three days a week. During this phase, we are focused on lifting and conditioning.”

The emphasis is not the same for coaches in cross-country and soccer as it is in football.

“The great thing about our sport, although it’s better to be together, it can be done solo,” SJ-O cross-country coach Jason Retz said. “Every athlete has the same ability to improve.

“We are simply going to control what we can control and enjoy each day as it comes.”

Retz expects a turnout between 40 and 50, including both the boys’ and girls’ programs.

“We meet once a week and have four groups right now,” Retz said. “They already have their own schedules they are working off, so we get together and they get it done.”

Bill DeJarnette is returning to the SJ-O soccer program he helped to implement. He has about 15 potential players thus far and they are divided into two groups.

“We plan to continue to add (groups) as we expand our recruitment,” DeJarnette said. “The workouts will vary within cycles.

“Cycle examples are Plyo, Long Slow, Intervals, fast twitch, strength and visualization, with constant evaluation of strengths and weaknesses so we can tune the workouts to address issues as needed.”

Conditioning is generally not an activity that teen-agers look forward to. This month could be an exception.

“We are excited to be back together, even if only for conditioning,” Villa Grove coach Jeanine Block said. “The girls are excited to see one another and are anxious for the next phase.”

Oakwood volleyball coach Lynn Anderson said the starting point is to make clear that the guidelines in place must be followed.

“My main concern is getting the players to understand we have regulations we have to follow,” Anderson said. “That is foreign to them, in a sense, especially with the sport.”

Block said she tries to keep things fresh and not repeat the same routine.

“Kids get bored without sport-specific activities,” Block said. “We are doing our best to make the workouts ‘competitive,’ but these girls are anxious to play volleyball.”

The unexpected break, which was mandated by the COVID-19 pandemic, took away from the ongoing changes around the SJ-O facilities.

“Prior to the virus shutting everything down, we were having a very good offseason,” Skinner said. “We had really built up some momentum in our weight room.

“Casey Hug, our athletic trainer, has assisted us in changing our strength and conditioning program and you could really see the kids’ bodies starting to change.”

A booster support group was helping to implement other additions and improvements,

“Our SJO Fan Club had purchased new equipment and Mr. Hug had updated our weight room,” Skinner said. “If we had returned from Spring Break, it would have been an entirely new facility for our kids.

“I can’t wait to get to use it in the manner we really want to soon. We hope that happens in early July as we enter the next stage in the return-to-play.”

The coaches have mixed feelings about what is in store in the weeks and months ahead.

“We will plan and work with the assumption that the fall season is a go,” DeJarnette said. “Even if not, there are no downsides to working together as a team every opportunity you get.”

Added Retz: “The opportunity to help student-athletes grow will continue to happen regardless of what the season looks like.

“Our goal is to help make better people. That will happen regardless if we get to race against other schools or not.”

Craig sees many issues that need to be resolved before games can again take place. He isn’t convinced that everything can fall into place.

“I would love to say I’m really confident, but I’m not,” Craig said. “I would say I’m somewhere between pessimist and optimist.

“I just need to see the logistics of games and locker room usage before I can become really confident.”

Block said now is the time to plan for the possibilities of what a new-normal may look like.

“I can see us playing, with precautions and possibly no fans,” she said. “We are looking at options to live stream games in case the parents/fans are not allowed to attend games.”

Anderson, too, wonders what athletic competition will look like once the games resume.

“My concern is whether we can just relax and play eventually,” Anderson said. “If we have to wear masks, wipe down balls, not touch each other, etc.

“Where is the consistency of just playing, when we have to worry with everything else? Hopefully, it won’t come to that. How confident about whether we have a season or not depends on the day and who I listen to.”

Skinner said this is a time of many questions, but few answers.

“Obviously, the threat of the virus is going to remain and it’s not going to change anytime soon,” he said. “What do we do if one of our players or coaches gets it? What will that look like? Also, how do we advance the workouts in the best/safest way; safe from a physical and spacial standpoint, but also an emotional and mental standpoint?

“These are real concerns that we need to be aware of and observe. We have a tendency as Midwesterners to have a blue color, tough-it-out, mentality. I think that we need to really reflect on that.

“If you’re feeling sick, if you have a sore throat, cough, etc., then maybe stay home a day or two. That goes against our mentality, but maybe we need to take a step back and realize it’s OK to miss a day of work, school, practice, if that means in the long run you’re healthier for it.”

He realizes that is easier said than done.

“That would require a huge change in our perception, and I am probably as guilty of this attitude as anyone,” Skinner said. “But it may be time to acknowledge we can take better care of ourselves and in the process take better care of those around us.”

Like others, Skinner knows it’s merely speculation as to whether there will be a season and – if so – when it would start and how it will look different from previous years.

“What we know is that at this time there is a strong desire and intention for there to be a return to school in August and with that a fall-sport season,” he said. “I’m working with that in mind.

“That’s all I can do at this point. If/when that changes, we will adjust.”

Retz said in one respect this year will be like all others:  There will be a need to deal with the unexpected.

“Each year brings different challenges and it will be fun to take these on one day at a time,” Retz said. “Distance running takes time.

“We’ll deal with any bump in the road there may be, but those bumps only help us learn and grow.”

The key word, Wilson said, is optimism.

“I have to stay positive and say there will be a season,” Wilson said. “I can’t imagine a fall without football.”

If the green light is given for competition, Anderson knows one fact for certain.

“We will be ready to play,” she said. “All athletes just want to get started, which might be a positive out of this whole deal.

“They will not take for granted anymore that things just always happen how they want it to. They know their lives can change that quickly now.”

The post High school athletes return for team workouts with coronavirus guidelines in place first appeared on SJO Daily.

The past met the present on Saturday for the St. Joseph-Ogden girls’ cross-country team.

A legacy of success added another chapter at Peoria’s Detweiler Park in the annual state meet.

The Spartans placed seventh in the 26-school field, marking the 13th year in a row that the school finished among the top 10 teams at state in Class 1A.

“One reason for the consistency is the consistency in their training,” SJ-O coach Jason Retz said. “We’ve done a lot of the same things over the years.

“When kids enjoy doing it, that’s the biggest part.”

Seniors led the way on Saturday for the Spartans. Jillian Plotner finished 43rd in the 215-runner field. Her 3-mile time was 18 minutes, 34.59 seconds.

Teammate Hannah Rajlich was next, clocking a 19:03.99.

Overall, the top six SJ-O runners finished the course within a minute of each other.

“We’ve been focused on that kind of split,” Retz said.

The next four SJ-O runners were sophomores: Ava Knap (71st in 19:04.54), Ashlyn Lannert (73rd in 190.9), Malorie Sarnecki (75th 19:28.50) and Addie Allen (77th in 19:34.24).

“They stepped up and performed,” Retz said. “Four of the seven ran lifetime bests and two others were within a few seconds (of personal bests).”

Allen, Knap, Lannert and Sarnecki were the Spartans who posted career-best times. Plotner was near her all-time best and Rajlich was close to her best-ever time at Detweiller.

The team’s seventh state runner was senior Ally Monk, who ended 95th in 19:59.07. Her placing meant that the entire Spartans’ lineup completed the course among the upper half of the field.

“You want to finish on top, but you want to get the most out of your group,” Retz said. “We’ve made huge gains forward from last year.”

Winnebago claimed team honors, with a total of 63 points.

Following the state championship team were runner-up Monticello (144 points), Unity (third place with 147 points), Normal University High (fourth with 154 points), Rock Falls (fifth with 186 points), Eureka (sixth with 225 points) and SJ-O (seventh with 267 points).

In the final runnerspace.com Class 1A state poll, SJ-O’s girls were ranked sixth.

SJ-O’s team placements during its 13-year state streak:

YEAR PLACE
2019 Seventh
2018 Fifth
2017 Second
2016 First
2015 Third
2014 First
2013 Sixth
2012 Tenth
2011 Seventh
2010 Third
2009 Ninth
2008 Fifth
2007 Fourth

St. Joseph-Ogden Boys’ cross-country

There will be no bragging rights for individual supremacy between the SJ-O boys’ and girls’ cross-country programs.

Junior Brandon Mattsey was the Spartans’ leader in Saturday’s Class 1A state meet at Peoria’s Detweiler Park.

He placed 43rd, matching the top performance of the school’s first finisher in the girls’ state race. Mattsey’s 3-mile time was 15 minutes, 48.78 seconds.

“It was fun to watch him compete,” SJ-O coach Jason Retz said. “He put himself in position.  Halfway through, he was in the top 25.”

Mattsey moved into the 19th spot for the fastest-ever SJ-O times at Detweiller.

In all, the first five Spartan finishers had a split of 1 minute, 21 seconds.

“We performed well and it was enjoyable to watch the character of the kids on the course,” Retz added.

Senior Eric Poe was the team’s No.  2 runner, posting a time of 16:27.75.

The remainder of the team’s lineup consisted of underclassmen.

Sophomore Charlie Mabry was 119th in 16:40.19, sophomore Elijah Mock was 149th in 17:02.54, sophomore Luke Stegall was 159th in 17:09.99, junior Logan Wolfersberger was 175th in 17:28.50 and junior Lukas Hutcherson was 184th in 17:46.59.

All seven of SJ-O’s competitors ran quicker times than they did the previous week at sectionals.

Monticello won the team crown, totaling 115 points.

SJ-O, which was ranked 25th in the final runnerspace.com state poll, took 18th with 421 points.

With so many underclassmen gaining experience in 2019, Retz is excited about the future.

“It will be a lot of fun to watch them a year from now,” Retz said. “This could be a very special group if they keep their focus.

“We have guys ready to step in and a good group of eighth-graders that we hope can help fill the six, seven and eight spots.”

The post Legacy of consistency and hard work keeps Spartan Runners successful first appeared on SJO Daily.

The tradition continues with the St. Joseph-Ogden girls’ cross-country program.

By placing third in Saturday’s Effingham St. Anthony Class 1A Sectional, SJ-O advanced its entire girls’ team to state for the 13th consecutive year and for the 25th time in school history.

They did it by sticking together. The split between the team’s top five runners was 41 seconds. The gap between the second and fifth runners was seven seconds.

“They draw strength from one another on a daily basis,” SJ-O coach Jason Retz said.

In a field of 136 competitors, all seven of the Spartans’ sectional entries finished in the top one-third.  The five scoring runners were all among the top 27.

It didn’t start out that way.

“We got cut off early (starting from an outside position) and after 400 meters, it may have looked like we were out of it,” Retz said.

The schedule prepared the team for that type of challenge.

“No one panicked,” Retz said. “Some of the races we were in this year were big fields, with more than 60 schools.”

The Spartans worked their way back towards the front.

“We kept picking people off,” Retz said.

Senior Jillian Plotner was the team leader, placing 11th overall after completing the 3-mile course in 19 minutes, 33.75 seconds.

The next group of Spartans were closely bunched.

Sophomore Ashlyn Lannert was 23rd in 19:57.69, senior Hannah Rajlich was 24th in 19:58.97, sophomore Ava Knap was 25th in 19:59.21 and sophomore Malorie Sarnecki was 27th in 20:04.79.

“They kept their composure,” Retz said. “That’s one reason we try to race as many big meets as we can. If you get to the back of the field, you work your way back up.”

The other SJ-O sectional runners were sophomore Addie Allen (36th in 20:23.21) and senior Ally Monk (40th in 20:38.27).

In the final runnerspace.com Class 1A state poll, SJ-O’s girls were ranked sixth.

Two of the teams ranked ahead of them were also in front of them at the sectional. Meet champion Monticello (53 points) is ranked first in 1A and sectional runner-up Unity (66 points) is ranked fourth.

SJ-O finished third with 110 points, just in front of St. Thomas More (116 points). Fifth-place Urbana Uni High (132 points) also qualified its team for state, which will be Saturday, Nov. 9, at Detweiler Park, in Peoria.

The girls’ Class 1A race will start at 9 a.m.

Retz believes his team could be part of history while seeking its fifth state trophy in the past five seasons.

“We are on track to have five (runners) under 19 minutes,” he said. “No team has ever lost state with five under 19 minutes.

“This is the fastest team year (state-wide) that I have been a part of in seven years at St.  Joe. It’s a very competitive year.

‘We may do that (five under 19 minutes) and be sixth, seventh or eighth.”

The potential is there for more, however.

“If we move the pack forward, we could be top five and, on a great day, we could be top three,” Retz said. “Anything in the top eight would be a huge accomplishment.”

St. Joseph-Ogden Boys’ cross-country

After a year’s absence, SJ-O’s boys’ cross-country team is headed back to the state meet.

The Spartans, ranked 25th in the final runnerspace.com state poll, took third place in Saturday’s Effingham St. Anthony Class 1A Sectional.

The top five teams secured automatic advancement to state.

“One of the big keys was our preparation,” Spartan coach Jason Retz said. “We were ready for the course and the (wet) conditions.”

Junior Brandon Mattsey was the team-leader, clocking a 3-mile time of 16 minutes, 56.79 seconds. He finished 13th individually.

Senior Eric Poe came in 22nd in 17:16.29.

“Our third through sixth ran as a group and finished within a few seconds of each other,” Retz added.

The split between those four runners was 12 seconds.

Sophomore Charlie Mabry was 36th in 17:40.73, sophomore Elijah Mock was 42nd in 17:50.26, junior Logan Wolfersberger was 48th in 17:52.28 and sophomore Luke Stegall was 50th in 17:53.66.

In all, there were 148 participants at the sectional.

SJ-O’s other entry was junior Lukas Hutcherson (80th in 18:49.14).

With just one senior in the top seven, the program’s future is bright. Part of that future could arrive this week in the state finals at Detweiler Park, in Peoria.

The Class 1A boys’ race will be on Saturday, Nov. 2, starting at 10 a.m.

“At the beginning of the year, I thought we could be in the top 15,” Retz said. “After the last several weeks, I think they could be top 10.

“They put in a good summer and have continued to work hard.”

Last year’s near-miss served as motivation. SJ-O was within five points of advancing its team to state in 2018.

“Last year, four of our seven had never run a high school regional or sectional before,” Retz said.

There were no close calls when the points were tabulated on Saturday.

Meet champion Monticello had 42 points. Runner-up Urbana Uni High had 96. SJ-O came in third with 158 points. The other teams that moved on to state were fourth-place Unity (162 points) and fifth-place Robinson (173 points).

SJ-O teams have qualified for the boys’ state cross-country meet six of the last seven years and 22 times overall.

St. Joseph-Ogden Football

The Spartans gave up four first-quarter touchdowns on Saturday at top-ranked and unbeaten Williamsville and dropped a 54-26 Class 3A first-round decision.

Williamsville (10-0) accumulated 446 total yards, including 280 on the ground.

Crayton Burnett passed for 111 yards and two touchdowns to Ty Pence. The TD strikes were on plays of 3 and 44 yards. Burnett finished the year with 971 passing yards. Pence hauled in a team-best 19 passes and turned four into TDs.

In the season-finale, Pence totaled 86 yards on four catches. Coby Miller hauled in two receptions.

Keaton Nolan (91 yards rushing) and Jarrett Stevenson (51 yards rushing) each scored one touchdown against Williamsville. Stevenson also added a two-point conversion to raise his team-high point total to 70.

Stevenson led the team in rushing for the season with 601 yards. Nolan finished second with 364 yards on the ground.

Against Williamsville, SJ-O managed 141 rushing yards on 42 attempts.

Payton Cain intercepted a Williamsville pass, his team-leading third of the season.

For the second straight year and the third time in the past four years, the Spartans close with a 5-5 season record and a first-round playoff loss.

“Really enjoyed this group of kids and our senior class,” SJ-O coach Shawn Skinner said. “What you want is to watch kids mature into good young men.

“This group gets it. They were a great group to coach all four years and they were just enjoyable to be with. Will miss them, but can’t wait to see how successful they are as they move on.”

SJ-O has a strong underclassmen nucleus returning, including quarterback Burnett, running back Nolan, receiving leaders Pence and Brady Buss as well as members of a junior varsity squad which compiled a 6-2 season record.

“We had a very successful JV campaign, but those athletes are going to need to spend a lot of time in the weight room if we want to get our program past 5-4 and first round of the playoffs that we are currently at,” Skinner added.

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