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JHS ready to meet MC in 'biggame' McHenry's Terry Harth isn't just taking a leisurely run: he's in the midst of a fourth-place finish in a triangular meet at Veterans Acres Thursday. MCHS netters get back on track, 5-0 By Chris Juzwik Plaindealer sports editor JOHNSBURG - Friday night's Johnsburg-Marian Central football game is important. Or is that putting it too lightly? "It's critical. It's a big game for both of us," said Johnsburg coach Mike Roberts. The reason for the high import placed upon this seemingly ordinary Northwest Suburban Conference matchup, to be held in Woodstock, is that both squads come into the duel with 1-0 league marks after drop­ ping a pair of non-conference games. "The reason it's so critical for us," Roberts said, "is that Round Lake looks to be tough as nails, and we have them next week for home­ coming. It would give us a real boost to go into homecoming with a 2-0 record in the conference. "We're both sitting in good shape," the first-year JHS coach said of his squad and the Hurri­ canes. "The conference looks to be up for grabs this year, and our kids are really starting to believe in themselves. That's important." Johnsburg's two losses came at the hands of two teams that have a combined 6-0 record on the year. JHS blanked Wauconda last week, 12-0. "But we're not looking back," Roberts stressed. "We're looking forward. We have tremendous, even matchups with Marian all the way around. I think three touchdowns will win it. But two might not win it." Roberts said the Skyhawks must stop the offense power of a young By Plaindealer sports staff ROUND LAKE - McHenry's ten­ nis team took out its collective frus­ trations on hapless Round Lake Thursday, posting a 5-0 non-confer­ ence triumph. "It was pretty easy," said MCHS coach Gary Gray. "It was a chance for us to work on some things." The Warriors, now 6-1 on the sea­ son, had lost their first match of the season Wednesday at Woodstock. Senior Melissa Rhode topped Lou­ is Schaefer, 6-4,6-1, at No. 1 singles. At No. 2, junior Beth Dimopoulus pummelled Carrie Cowley, 6-2,6-1. Junior Mary Sieverin outlasted Angie Meeks, 6-7 (7-5), 6-3,7-5 at No. 3 singles. * Seniors Michelle Landis and Me- lanie Smith blasted Karen Martin and Lori Villa, 6-0,6-0. Junior Katie Prust and senior Sue O'Halleran also won by scores of 6-0, 6-0, over Julie Fusco and Bobbie Gonzalez at No. 2. "I told Michelle and Melanie that we felt they had to win 0 and 0," Gray said. "They're having some problems, and we decided we're go­ ing to face it head on. They went out and really played aggressive. "When they attack, they're an above average tennis team. When they sit back and look around, ; they're just one of the gang. "They're both aware of that fact now. We can start sharpening our sills, getting this thing into over­ drive," Gray said. "Becky Marsh (the Warriors' usu­ al No. 3 singles player) was ill to­ day, but Mary Sieverin came in and did a nice job. She's very depend­ able, always working hard. She won't beat herself. It's nice to see her get a chance to play." McHenry will travel southwest for the rugged Batavia Invitational Saturday. "You've got to play good teams, it can only help you," Gray said. "It doesn't do any good to play the Little Sisters of the Poor. You need a prop­ er mix, you need to play people who will tax you." Thursday, McHenry did the taxing. JHS spikers put it together, whip Rams By Plaindealer sports staff" JOHNSBURG -- Things are on the mend for Sharal Johnson and the Johnsburg volleyball team. To wit: two straight, convincing wins over Northwest Suburban Con­ ference opponents, the latest a 15-5, 154 thrashing of Grayslake Thurs­ day night. "I don't know if I would say it was easy," Johnson said. "But we really put it together tonight. We're not making as many mental errors as we were." The mental errors were coming fast and furious as late as a week ago, when the Skyhawks were in the throes of a three-match losing string. But since then, things have changed. "Our passing was really, really good," Johnson said. "That's why we were able to attack as much as we did. It was more of a controlled volleyball game than we've played in a while." The Skyhawks were led by senior Laura Oeffling, who had 11 points in the first game, three for aces, and led the squad in kills with five. Arlet Mann and Jill Jurik each served five points in the second game, and Patty Butler added three kills in the match. Johnson also cited the exceptional blocking of senior Vicki DuBeau. "Marengo is the only team in the conference we haven't seen yet," Johnson said. "But at this point, I would say that we're capable of win­ ning the conference, definitely. No doubt about it. And the girls know it too." Johnsburg, now 4-2 in the NWSC, 4-3 overall, will play a non-confer- ence affair at Harvard Monday. Grid Picks Sam Natrop Chris Juzwik 8-2 last week 8-2 last week 19-11 overall 19-11 overall Woodstock Woodstock Central McHenry South South Riv.-Brkfld Riv.-Bkfld Marian Johnsburg Harvard Harvard Nebraska Nebraska Notre Dame Notre Dame Green Bay Green Ba Raiders Raiders It was the day of the 8-2 picker, almost all the way around, as three members of the Illustrious Board of Pronostica- tors hit the 80-percent win mark last week. Everybody missed Dundee-Crown's upset over Jacobs last week in a This week's games Jacobs at Woodstock Central at McHenry C.L. South at Dun.-Crown Riv.-Brookfield at Cary-Grove Johnsburg at Marian Harvard at Huntley Illinois at Nebraska Midi. State at Notre Dame N. Y. Jets at Green Bay San Francisco at L.A. Raiders Natrop: Upset specials: Raiders over San Fran and Notre Dame to oust Michigan State; Hurricanes like that taste of winning, but are running into a team that found that same taste last week. The non-conference scheduling will make the difference here; Wood­ stock in for a test similar to two weeks ago. Need to stop Scime. Period. Streaks by 14; I'm a Harvard believer. Hornet defense tough, tough, tough; Nebraska should pound Illini. Juzwik: McHenry's Warriors are making people look bad. Their coach, their moms, their dads, their family pets, and least of all, me, who picked them to win the FVC. They're losing games they shouldn't, and the ones they should lose, they lose by too many points. Friday night, things change. The Warriors will win a game they probably shouldn't, and I'll say I told you so. Ha, ha.' If not, I'll check the train station. Game of the weekend: Johnsburg- Marian. Both squads on the upswing, but the Skyhawks seem to have more weapons. They win a close one. Riverside-Brookfield pillages Cary; surprising CL South brings D-C back to reality; I like Nebraska and ND at home; Green Bay and L.A. for the same reasons. Did I say I feel lucky this week? Have I said that before? Where's the nearest Amtrak station? game that gave our prognosticators fits. This week, the board faces a tough challenge as more conference clashes dot the lineup card. Gentlemen, start your engines. .. Phil English Mark Meyer 64 last week 8-2 last week 15-15 overall 20-10 overall Woodstock Woodstock Central Central South South Cary Riv.-Brook. Johnsburg Marian Central Harvard Harvard Nebraska Illinois Mich. State Notre Dame Green Bay Green Bay SanFran Los Angeles English: I think everyone else is having a lot of fun with my bad (pronounced, ma' bad) picks. Last week, 6-4. Things are looking up. This week, I'd better play it safe. No upsets, I think. I can't wait for the Streaks to come to town, especially after they get beat up by Jacobs. Both CL teams will he winners, while I have to favor the Trojans, even if it means a possible bad record. 1 still don't even know where Huntley, Harvard, Hebron or Hampshire are, not to mention how good they are at football. As for the big guys, have to go with the Big Eight and the Pack, and the rest doesn't matter. Meyer: Jacobs coach Ron Ellett was not pleased with the Golden Eagles performance last week in a 7-6 loss to Dundee-Crown. Were the Eagles looking past the Chargers in anticipation of this week's showdown at Woodstock? Maybe. Nonetheless, Blue Streaks by 10. Central and South should up their Fo$ Valley Conference records to 2-0 while Cary-Grove has too much to handlein Riverside-Brookfield. 'Canes over the Skyhawks in a close one -- call it Marian by 4. Harvard, a 6-5 loser last week against Richmond-Burton, bounces back to bury Huntley. Illini answer critics by husking Nebraska. MC backfield, led by sophomore quarterback Jim Hartlieb and fellow classmate and halfback Tom Pars­ ley. Senior fullback Jeff Hill ram­ bled for 129 yards last Saturday in the 'Canes 26-13 win over Grayslake. Senior fullback John Kegel is questionable after suffering a deep thigh bruise against Wauconda. "But we have so many kids who can run the ball. Dan Stefka, Charlie Giovanni, Pete Pagast. This is a great opportunity for some kids at Johnsburg to show what they can do," said Roberts. "We've been low-key this week. The Friday game is going to help us. It's easy to stay pumped up for a Friday game. The kids are ready. I look for a real close game." Kickoff is at 8 p.m. Warriors seek redemption against Crystal Lake C. By Chris Juzwik Plaindealer sports editor McHENRY -- McHenry's War­ riors know what it feels like to get badly beaten. If Joe Schlender's squad has its druthers Friday night, they'll find out what it feels like to be on the other end of the score. The 0-3, 0-1 Warriors will host Crystal Lake Central (2-1, 1-0) at McCracken Field Friday night, after getting whipped by Crystal Lake South, 41-0 Saturday. "It's an awful hard thing to deal with, losing by that many points," Schlender said Thursday. "To beat Central, we have to play with inten­ sity for four quarters. We had it against South at the start, but they (the Gators) got superinflated and we got deflated after the early scores. That caused us to look like less of a football team than we real­ ly are." Schlender said the Warriors have had "two or three of the best prac­ tices since I've been here" this past week. "It's been hard-hitting and ia- tense. They really want to play a good football game against Central. We're not going to do anything real­ ly different, and I'm sure (CLC coa­ ch) Bill Mack isn't either. If we play a good football game against Cen­ tral, we can win, plain and simple," Schlender said. The Tigers are coming off a 35-7 bombing of Cary-Grove last Friday, and will play crosstown rival South next week. "McHenry is very capable of the big plays. When they went into the game against South, it was a situa­ tion where everything that could go wrong, did go wrong," Mack said. "South ended up with great field position all day, and that was a result of McHenry mistakes," he added. Mack then played McHenry a fair­ ly big compliment. "Compared to Cary, McHenry is more of a physical team," Mack WARRIORS--Page 11 Running 'Hawks""""""' Johnsburg's Jenny Baehne (front) and Lisa Nunamaker had another impressive showing Thursday in a dual meet at Grant. For details, turn to page 11. Friday, September 20,198S Warriors split with CLC, CLS MCHS runners lose heartbreaker to Tigers, rip Gators By Plaindealer sports staff CRYSTAL LAKE - About mid­ way through the varsity boys' cross­ country race at Veterans Acres Thursday, McHenry's Warriors thought they were was on the road to ' upsetting both Crystal Lake South and Crystal Lake Central. They were only half-right. * Crystal Lake Central's Eric Bai­ ley made a huge dent in the War­ riors' pack about one-half mile from the finish, and the Tigers went on to edge the Warriors, 28-29. McHenry m battered South, 23-34. ' I The Warriors are 1-1 in the FVC, g 3-1 overall. "We ran well enough to win, said McHenry coach Bill Hutchinson. "But we lost. It was by far the best we've run this year. We had a very, very good pack going. I couldn't have asked the kids for much more. I thought we had it won." Bailey came from nowhere to fin­ ish fifth overall, backing the 2-3 fin­ ish of teammates Steve Lane and Ray Levernier. "Bailey won it for them," Hutch­ inson said. "It just shows you that every man is important. We learned that you can't let people go by you in the latter part of a race." Senior Terry Harth ran what his coach calW his best race of the season, finishing fourth in 18:50. South's Pat. Roche won the race, covering the 3.1 mile layout in 18:06. "Far and away Terry's best of the year," Hutchinson said. "And J.R. (Wright) and Pat (Donahue) ran well, too." But the true heroes for McHenry on this day were junior John Chester and sophomore Jeff Zurblis, who fin­ ished seventh and eighth, respec­ tively, in 19:01 and 19:04. Wright was sixth in 18:56, while Donahue was ninth in 19:06. Chad Miller took llth in 19:10. In the girls' race, McHenry lost to Central, 19-42 and South, 18-45. Mary Schultz was the top MCHS finisher, taking fourth in 15:19. Kim Yost was next, 16th in 17:27. Emily Fornwall was the 22nd in 19:00, Colleen Holleran was 25th (21:00), Jenny Kennedy 26th (21:28) and Lori Guelzo 27th (21:53). The McHenry frosh-soph was forced to forfeit because the War­ riors were competing with just four runners. Nevertheless, Rick Pankiewicz won the race, followed by Bill Creutz, who was second. Tom Egan was fifth, while Karl Zaehler was 15th. The Warriors will continue FVC action Thursday, when they run at Dundee-Crown with Woodstock.