June 12, 2026 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

SJO football bows out in first round of playoffs

The St. Joseph-Ogden High School football team saw its season end this past Saturday with a 54-26 loss at Williamsville in a Class 3A first-round playoff game.

The Spartans (5-5) never led in their season-ending loss, with the undefeated Bullets (10-0) jumping out to a 27-0 lead after the first quarter.

SJO managed its first touchdown in the second quarter on a 6-yard touchdown pass from junior Crayton Burnett to freshman Ty Pence, but Williamsville enjoyed a 33-6 lead at that point.
The Bullets expanded their lead to 47-6 early in the third quarter, putting a running clock in effect for the rest of the game. Pence hauled in another touchdown pass from Burnett, this one from 44 yards out, that trimmed SJO’s deficit to 47-12 midway through the third quarter.

A 15-yard touchdown run by sophomore Keaton Nolan and subsequent two-point conversion run by senior Jarrett Stevenson made it 54-20 with less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter and a 5-yard touchdown run by Stevenson with less than three minutes left accounted for the final 54-26 score.

Nolan led SJO with 91 rushing yards on 16 carries, while Stevenson finished with 51 rushing yards on 18 carries. Burnett went 8 of 17 for 111 passing yards, with Pence recording four catches for 86 yards. Senior Jaden Miller (13 yards) and sophomore Coby Miller (12 yards) also hauled in a reception.

Williamsville racked up 446 yards of total offense, with running back Grant Ripperda rushing for 128 yards on 13 carries and three touchdowns. Quarterback Conor McCormick went 8 of 13 passing for 166 yards and two touchdowns to go along with two rushing touchdowns and 79 rushing yards to add to the Bullets’ offensive success.

Banner
Related Posts

St. Joseph Pony League wins tournament championship

July 13, 2021

July 13, 2021

By Jim Cotter —-URBANA—- In baseball, as is usually the case with most other sports, finishing a season better than...

SJO girls’ basketball wins tournament title in Fisher

December 2, 2019

December 2, 2019

The St. Joseph-Ogden girls’ basketball team already has a tournament championship to its name this season, but the Spartans are...

Student-Athlete of the Month Rylee Sjuts

September 3, 2019

September 3, 2019

Every month in season coaches at St. Joseph-Ogden High School nominate athletes to be the student-athlete of the month. A...

SJO baseball adapting to strange times this spring: ‘The most difficult part is not seeing the players’

April 17, 2020

April 17, 2020

Ever since Josh Haley took control of the St. Joseph-Ogden High School baseball team, success has followed. So have solid...

Cafarelli, Kern help SJO golf start strong

August 31, 2022

August 31, 2022

The sport to begin during the fall season, the St. Joseph-Ogden High School golf team is off to a rousing...

SJO girls’ basketball wins regional title, sees season end in sectional semifinal defeat

March 5, 2024

March 5, 2024

The beginning of the season didn’t treat the St. Joseph-Ogden girls’ basketball team well.The Spartans slogged through the first month...

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....

Witruk, Ward help SJO softball win regional title; Olympia awaits in sectional semifinal

May 22, 2019

May 22, 2019

Add another regional title to the growing collection for the St. Joseph-Ogden High School softball team. The Spartans earned their...

Armstrong, Spartans start off Arteaga Era with unbeaten opening week

November 23, 2021

November 23, 2021

What a way to start the season. And the Drew Arteaga Era. The St. Joseph-Ogden High School girls’ basketball team...

IPC announces all conference teams

March 5, 2024

March 5, 2024

1 st Team: (U: means Unanimous)PLAYER NAME GRADE WEIGHT CLASSAidan Scholwin (U) (Pontiac) Senior 106Holden Brazelton (U) (SJO) Junior 132Emmitt...

Taylor reflects on SJO coaching tenure

August 16, 2021

August 16, 2021

Kevin Taylor realized he needed to make a change. But stepping aside from coaching the St. Joseph-Ogden High School girls’...

Smith, Pence and Wertz spark SJO football to first playoff win since 2015

November 5, 2022

November 5, 2022

The wait for a playoff victory from the St. Joseph-Ogden High School football team is no more. Hosting the program’s...

Orcutt named Student Athlete of the Month

January 30, 2019

January 30, 2019

St. Joseph-Ogden senior Joel Orcutt isn’t just a standout basketball player. He is also an artist. “I enjoy doing art...

Making a run: Hug, Frick and Martinie spark SJO girls’ basketball on five-game win
streak

January 30, 2023

January 30, 2023

The St. Joseph-Ogden High School girls’ basketball program has made it seem second natureat this point of going on deep...

Get to know SJO Volleyball player Chloe harper

October 31, 2022

October 31, 2022

What do you think makes the team so successful? I think the motivation and fight our team has is what...

Comments
Leave a Reply