Coal City Courant

Coal City track teams return rosters full of veterans

Published by admin on Tue, 03/13/2018 - 5:54pm

    The Coal City varsity boys and girls track teams  return plenty of talent for the 2018 season.
    Dale Koepnick is head coach, assisted by Amanda Malsky and Francis Loughran.
    The coaching staff is looking forward to a season of new benchmarks from athletes.
Boys team
    The Coalers will start their season with a full roster, which should make them competitive against any team in or out of the conference.
    The roster is loaded with returning athletes, in addition to 16 incoming freshmen.

Lady Coaler soccer boasts full roster for new year

Published by admin on Tue, 03/13/2018 - 5:53pm

    The Coal City varsity girls soccer team will be out to improve on last year’s benchmarks, as they return a solid roster of veterans for their 2018 season.
    The Lady Coalers finished last year with a record of 4-10-1 overall (2-7 conference), as they fell in the opening round of Regional against Joliet Catholic Academy for the second year in a row.
    This year, however, is all about fresh starts, as Coal City brings back a line-up of talented individuals, while also welcoming first-year varsity girls coach Todd Painter.

Lady Coalers bring back talented roster for new season

Published by admin on Tue, 03/13/2018 - 5:52pm

    With lots of experience in the line-up, the Coal City varsity softball team is looking forward to returning to the diamond for the 2018 season.
    The Lady Coalers had a stellar season in 2017, earning the conference title with an I-8 record of 12-3. They fell in the second round of Regional action to Providence, finishing with an overall record of 14-16.
    This season looks like it will be another solid year for the team as they return several starting players.

Coalers will return with a loaded roster

Published by admin on Tue, 03/06/2018 - 6:54pm

    Coal City baseball has long been a powerhouse and don’t expect that to change even with a new coach.
    Greg Wills takes over for long-time coach Jerry McDowell, but he is no stranger to the program, serving 23 years as assistant varsity coach.
    Wills has also helped coach Coal City football for 18 years, was the JV baseball coach for the past 11 years, and was the sixth grade baseball coach last season.

Coaler matmen finish third at state

Published by admin on Tue, 02/27/2018 - 6:47pm

    Four years, three state trophies.
    That’s an impressive run for the Coal City wrestling program that proved Saturday they are a powerhouse within IHSA class 1A.
    The Coalers brought home the third place state trophy after competing in the Dual Team finals in Bloomington.
    It was a team victory that early in the season Coal City coach Mark Masters didn’t think could happen.

Coalers earn comeback victory in first round of Regional

Published by admin on Tue, 02/27/2018 - 6:41pm

    The Coal City varsity boys basketball team rallied over Bishop McNamara Monday night to keep their playoff hopes alive.
    The Coalers faced a 14-point deficit by the end of the first quarter (22-8), but battled back, especially in the second and fourth quarters, to claim a 70-68 victory.
    Coal City cut the Irish’s lead in half by halftime, going on a seven-point run to trail 34-27 heading into the final two frames.
    The Coaler offense was led by Austin Pullara with a season-high 29 points and 12 rebounds.

Coalers third in state

Published by admin on Sun, 02/25/2018 - 10:51am

For the third time in four years the Coal City wrestling team has brought home a state trophy from the Class 1A dual meet held Saturday in Bloomington.

The Coalers upended Althoff Catholic from Bellevile 36-34 to claim third place, meaning the Coalers will add the state trophy beside a second place in 2016 and a third in 2015..

Toughest round for Coalers likely will be in the semifinals

Published by admin on Thu, 02/22/2018 - 1:25pm

    What are the odds that Coal City wrestlers will bring home a state trophy Saturday?
    Pretty good considering they’ve made it to the Final Four two of the past three years, their most recent appearance in 2016 when they finished second.
    The team to beat is Aurora Christian, the No.1 ranked team in the state, but before Coal City will get the chance they’ll have to beat El Paso-Gridley in the first round

Coal City wrestling heading back to dual team state

Published by admin on Wed, 02/21/2018 - 11:02am

It came down to Brendan Nevin's match at the 220 mark, as Coal City picked up a 40-29 win over Clinton during the Gibson City Sectional Tuesday night to advance to state.

The Coalers built a 34-17 lead heading into the 195 weight class, thanks to wins from Evan Rivera (major), Connor Huston (TF), Brandon Strnad(major), Alex Friddle (fall), Trevor McIntire (fall), Ryan Wasielewski (fall) and Daniel Jezik (dec.).

Coalers add three state wrestlers to the list

Published by admin on Tue, 02/20/2018 - 6:05pm

    Three out of four, we’ll take it!
    Coal City sent four wrestlers to the IHSA state wrestling finals on Thursday and returned homes Saturday with three medals, including Connor Huston (106) with sixth and a pair of seconds from Alex Friddle (120) and Daniel Jezik (160).
    Ryan Wasielewski (145) was just one victory away from earning a medal.
    “I thought we competed probably the best we have all year long,” said Coaler coach Mark Masters. “Ryan had to wrestle a kid that is super tough in the blood round. He wins that one, he is an all-stater.”