The St. Joseph-Ogden boys’ soccer team is two wins away from reaching the Class 1A state
tournament, while the Spartans’ volleyball team aims to win its first regional title since 2022 on
Thursday night. Here is a recap of what has happened recently with SJO sports:
In boys’ soccer
Acosta, Stevens lead the way
St. Joseph-Ogden will try to achieve something on Friday night it has never done in program history.
Win a sectional title.
The Spartans are in this position after defeating Athens/Greenview/Illini Central 2-1 on Tuesday
night in a Class 1A sectional semifinal match in Rochester. SJO (17-6-2) has won five straight
matches and will now square off against host Rochester (8-12-3) at 5 p.m. on Friday in a
sectional championship match.
If SJO can knock off the host Rockets, it advances to this upcoming Monday night’s 6:30 p.m.
super-sectional match in Chillicothe against either Coal City (14-7) or Manteno (16-6). Those
two teams meet at 4:30 p.m. on Friday in a sectional championship match in Manteno.
On Tuesday night, SJO never trailed against the Warriors (17-6-2), taking a 1-0 lead only two
minutes into the match from a goal by senior Yadi Acosta. The score remained that way until
halftime before the Spartans increased their lead to 2-0 off a goal by sophomore Lucas Stevens
just 10 minutes into the second half, with Acosta providing the assist.
Athens/Greenview/Illini Central cut its deficit to 2-1 roughly seven minutes later, and the
Spartans held on despite losing junior goalie Hunter Cler to a red card midway through the
second half.
If SJO is able to rattle off two more wins, the Spartans would advance to the 1A state
tournament that begins next Thursday night with state semifinal matches at Rockford Guilford
High School.
In volleyball
Wheatley, Smith spark Spartans
St. Joseph-Ogden did not start out well during its Class 2A regional semifinal match against Unity on Tuesday night.
But the Spartans sure finished well. And as a result, SJO will vie for a regional championship on Thursday night.
The Spartans rallied to defeat the rival Rockets 17-25, 25-22, 25-18, sending SJO (20-14) into a match with Westville (31-4) at 6 p.m. on Thursday at Bismarck-Henning/Rossville-Alvin High School.
Juniors Raegan Wheatley and Vivian Smith helped lead the offensive charge against the Rockets, with Wheatley delivering a team-high 10 kills and Smith complementing Wheatley by supplying eight kills. Senior Emerson Williams added six kills, while seniors Hadley McDonald and Addi Stevens each had three kills. Juniors Lyla Patton (two kills), Ava Alexander (one kill) and Megan Kearney (one kill) also chipped in offensively.
Senior Alivia Learned and Kearney directed the Spartans’ offense, with Learned distributing 16 assists and Kearney handing out 15 assists. Williams and Alexander each served two aces, with Alexander sparking the defensive efforts with a team-high 17 digs. McDonald (12 digs) and Williams (10 digs) also contributed.
If SJO can knock off Westville on Thursday night, the Spartans will advance to the Pontiac Sectional and will face either Eureka (29-6) or Prairie Central (23-11) at 7 p.m. next Tuesday in a sectional semifinal match.
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