May 3, 2026 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

Ingram shines, but SJO football still seeking first win

Six wins are needed to automatically qualify a high school football team into the playoffs in Illinois.

For St. Joseph-Ogden High School, the Spartans will need to win out in order to make sure they’re in the playoffs this season.

SJO has started with an 0-3 record against fellow Illini Prairie Conference foes following a 34-28 home loss to Prairie Central last Friday night at Dick Duval Field, a 33-8 loss at Unity on Sept. 3 and a 43-8 home loss to Monticello on Aug. 27 at Dick Duval Field.

The Spartans will try to end their three-game skid when they host Chillicothe IVC (0-3) at 7 p.m. in an Illini Prairie game.

Evan Ingram thrived for SJO in its close loss to Prairie Central (2-1) that saw the Spartans trail 6-0 at the end of the first quarter, 20-14 at halftime and 27-22 to start the fourth quarter.

Ingram completed 15 of 23 passes for 203 yards and three touchdowns. Keaton Nolan hauled in seven receptions for 87 yards and two touchdowns, while Griffin Roesch had three catches for 81 yards and a touchdown. Coby Miller and Ingram each rushed for 26 yards.

SJO’s first two losses of the season happened against teams that are currently ranked in the top five of the latest Class 3A Associated Press statewide poll. And the Spartans kept it close early before Unity and Monticello both pulled away.

SJO led Unity 8-6 at the end of the first quarter before the Rockets went ahead 13-8 at halftime. The score remained that way until Unity scored 20 points in the fourth quarter to prevail 33-8.

Miller rushed for a team-high 60 yards on 18 carries and scored SJO’s lone touchdown, with Nolan adding 45 rushing yards on 12 carries. Ingram completed 5 of 14 passes for 32 yards, with Nolan (two catches for 14 yards), Roesch (two catches for 11 yards) and Ethan Vanilew (one catch for seven yards) hauling in passes. Alex Funk and Miller each finished with eight tackles to lead SJO’s defense.

In the season-opening loss to Monticello, SJO led the Sages 8-0 at the end of the first quarter following a touchdown run by Isaiah Moore. Monticello, however, rallied to take a 15-8 lead into halftime and increased it to 36-8 by the start of the fourth quarter.

Six wins are needed to automatically qualify a high school football team into the playoffs in Illinois.

For St. Joseph-Ogden High School, the Spartans will need to win out in order to make sure they’re in the playoffs this season.

SJO has started with an 0-3 record against fellow Illini Prairie Conference foes following a 34-28 home loss to Prairie Central last Friday night at Dick Duval Field, a 33-8 loss at Unity on Sept. 3 and a 43-8 home loss to Monticello on Aug. 27 at Dick Duval Field.

The Spartans will try to end their three-game skid when they host Chillicothe IVC (0-3) at 7 p.m. in an Illini Prairie game.

Evan Ingram thrived for SJO in its close loss to Prairie Central (2-1) that saw the Spartans trail 6-0 at the end of the first quarter, 20-14 at halftime and 27-22 to start the fourth quarter.

Ingram completed 15 of 23 passes for 203 yards and three touchdowns. Keaton Nolan hauled in seven receptions for 87 yards and two touchdowns, while Griffin Roesch had three catches for 81 yards and a touchdown. Coby Miller and Ingram each rushed for 26 yards.

SJO’s first two losses of the season happened against teams that are currently ranked in the top five of the latest Class 3A Associated Press statewide poll. And the Spartans kept it close early before Unity and Monticello both pulled away.

SJO led Unity 8-6 at the end of the first quarter before the Rockets went ahead 13-8 at halftime. The score remained that way until Unity scored 20 points in the fourth quarter to prevail 33-8.

Miller rushed for a team-high 60 yards on 18 carries and scored SJO’s lone touchdown, with Nolan adding 45 rushing yards on 12 carries. Ingram completed 5 of 14 passes for 32 yards, with Nolan (two catches for 14 yards), Roesch (two catches for 11 yards) and Ethan Vanilew (one catch for seven yards) hauling in passes. Alex Funk and Miller each finished with eight tackles to lead SJO’s defense.

In the season-opening loss to Monticello, SJO led the Sages 8-0 at the end of the first quarter following a touchdown run by Isaiah Moore. Monticello, however, rallied to take a 15-8 lead into halftime and increased it to 36-8 by the start of the fourth quarter.

Nolan rushed for 79 yards on 17 carries, with Ingram picking up 78 rushing yards on just three carries and Justice Wertz adding 37 rushing yards on 12 carries. Ingram was 10 of 19 passing for 82 yards, but also threw two interceptions. Miller (five catches for 27 yards), Nolan (three catches for 16 yards) and Roesch (one catch for 28 yards) were the recipients of Ingram’s passes.

Banner
Related Posts

Groundbreaking takes place at new baseball field

April 9, 2021

April 9, 2021

A ground breaking ceremony took place this week at the new home of the Royal Giants and the St. Joseph-Ogden...

Ward, Cromwell help SJO softball end losing skid

April 24, 2019

April 24, 2019

Losing streaks are never easy to deal with. But thanks to Kaylee Ward and Ashtyn Cromwell, the four-game skid the...

Izard, Cain, Pence key SJO boys’ basketball to sixth-place finish at State Farm Holiday Classic

January 3, 2020

January 3, 2020

The small-school State Farm Holiday Classic ended on a sour note for the St. Joseph-Ogden High School boys’ basketball team....

SJO to hold summer camps

May 27, 2019

May 27, 2019

Boys Basketball Youth CampMay 29, 30, 31 8 AM-1:30 PMThe camp will be full of drills and fundamentals. The new...

Softball bonds Witruk family

April 12, 2019

April 12, 2019

For the Witruk family of St. Joseph softball is a family affair. Every member of the household has played or...

McCarty throws no-hitter, SJO baseball picks up two wins

May 6, 2019

May 6, 2019

Each time Keegan McCarty takes the mound, the St. Joseph-Ogden High School baseball team has to likes its chances of...

Five SJO softball games to watch for in 2019

March 11, 2019

March 11, 2019

This Team Time Out is sponsored by Kelso Heating and Cooling. The season opener is less than a week away...

Christie Clinic Shootout in St. Joseph still on, but SJO won’t play

January 11, 2020

January 11, 2020

The heavy rainfall that hit St. Joseph on Friday night and into Saturday morning, along with the potential for severe...

Gilliland coaching legacy strong at PVO

June 1, 2020

June 1, 2020

Coaching legacies can last decades for families. For the Gilliland family of rural Ogden, that notion has resonated for a...

Sparks plans on continuing Spartan success

March 14, 2019

March 14, 2019

Replacing a legend is not an easy task. However, when the legend is the all-time winningest softball coach in the...

Get to know… SJO Tennis Player Lily Rice

October 14, 2022

October 14, 2022

We asked SJO Tennis Player Lily Rice three questions. Here are her answers. Who is your favorite tennis player of...

SJO girls’ track and field wins eighth straight sectional title, qualifies 13 athletes for state

May 13, 2019

May 13, 2019

Winning sectional titles and sending multiple athletes to the state meet. That’s the standard the St. Joseph-Ogden High School girls’...

Smith, Wertz shine as SJO football wins homecoming game

September 26, 2022

September 26, 2022

It was a happy homecoming for the St. Joseph-Ogden football team.And with the Spartans defeating Nokomis 42-12 this past Friday...

First night game in program history in books, SJO soccer looks to continue successful start

September 11, 2023

September 11, 2023

The St. Joseph-Ogden soccer team was scheduled to play Uni High on Thursday, Aug. 24. At a normal time for...

Ward, Martlage and Immke help SJO softball get back in win column

May 5, 2021

May 5, 2021

A flurry of games is usually the norm for St. Joseph-Ogden softball.But usually, at this juncture in the calendar, the...

Comments
Leave a Reply