Vernon Hills’ Spencer joins record effort at Ohio State
A familiar sight for Vernon Hills football fans used to be Evan Spencer making catches on Friday nights.
Now he’s is making them on most Saturday afternoons for Ohio State, the No 4.-ranked team in the nation.
His 8-yard TD catch in the Buckeyes’ 76-0 route of Florida A&M this past Saturday was part of a historic first half.
Buckeyes quarterback Kenny Guiton set a school record with 6 touchdown passes — all in the first half.
Spencer finished the game with 4 catches for 50 yards.
Women’s basketball
Western Michigan junior basketball player Michelle O’Brien (Stevenson) recently received the school’s 2013-14 Peter R. and Lois Peterson Ellis Scholar Athlete Award.
The award is given annually to a junior or senior WMU athlete who represents academic achievement, athletic ability and performance, leadership and conduct. For winning the award, the women’s basketball team will receive a $7,000 donation.
O’Brien is enrolled in the honors program at Western Michigan and plans to attend veterinary school.
Women’s cross country
For the second time in three weeks, University of St. Francis senior Hilary Halford (Carmel) has been selected as the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Women’s Cross Country Runner of the Week.
Halford, who also captured the distinction during the week ending Sept. 1, placed sixth among collegiate runners and seventh overall in leading USF to a second-place showing at the 26-team Calvin College Knight Invitational this past Saturday. Among the teams that the NAIA No. 9-ranked Saints outpaced was No. 7 Aquinas College.
A 2012 NAIA all-American, Halford needed just 18:13 to cover the 5-kilometer course, which featured a field of 316 runners.
Halford claimed her second CCAC weekly citation of the year and the fifth of her career.
Women’s volleyball
Behind a team-high 17 kills from St. Ambrose junior Hannah Turner (Carmel), the Queen Bees (7-3) snapped a three-match losing streak with a 3-1 win at Saint Xavier. Turner (11) also reached double digit in digs.
Women’s tennis
Augustana sophomore Aileen MacDonald (Mundelein) earned “Player of the Week” honors in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin last week for her part in a historic victory over Wheaton. MacDonald won at both singles and doubles as the Vikings defeated host Wheaton 6-3.
The win was the first for Augustana (8-0, 4-0) over the Thunder since 1997, snapping an 18-match losing streak in the process to the defending CCIW champions.
MacDonald, playing at No. 4 singles against the Thunder, picked up a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Erika Nelson. She also teamed with senior Kim Sawyer (Batavia) at No. 2 doubles for an 8-5 victory.
MacDonald has compiled a record of 6-0 at singles while playing mostly at No. 3 and 4. She and Sawyer are 5-1 in doubles while splitting time between No. 1 and 2.
MacDonald had an outstanding freshman year when she posted a record of 19-10 at numbers three and four in singles and was 19-10 in doubles while playing with Sawyer almost exclusively at number one. She has a career record of 25-10.
The Gurnee Park District
The Coed volleyball program, for those 19 years of age and up, meets on Tuesday evenings at Viking Junior High in Gurnee, starting Oct. 15.
The Ladies volleyball program for those 19 years of age & up meets on Monday evenings at the Hunt Club Park Community Center in Gurnee, starting Oct. 7.
For more information or to register for this program visit gurneeparkdistrict.com
Women’s soccer
Robert Morris senior forward Gordy Gurson of Buffalo Grove was named CCAC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time.
Gurson tallied the lone goal as Robert Morris upset NAIA No. 2-ranked Hannibal-Lagrange College (Mo.), 1-0. Earlier this season, Gurson tallied all four of the Eagles’ goals in a 4-2 victory against Bethel College (Ind.) to earn the weekly honor for the week ending on Sept. 1. Gurson was the 2011 CCAC Player of the Year.
Ÿ Southern Methodist University freshman Bari Kesner of Long Grove scored her first collegiate goal during the Mustangs’ 4-0 victory against Sam Houston State in Dallas. Kesner tallied the team’s fourth goal in the 79th minute.
Ÿ Northwestern junior Georgia Waddle of Lake Forest tallied her second goal of the season for the game-winner as the Wildcats blanked Oakland, 2-0.
Waddle’s 39th-minute goal helped Northwestern on the offensive end, while the defense posted its third straight shutout, moving to 2-0-1 during that stretch after starting the season with four losses.
Women’s volleyball
Augustana freshman Nicole Morrissey (Lake Zurich) has 47 kills this season for the Vikings, who defeated Penn and Carroll last week.
Ÿ Please email Sports Notes items to jleusch@dailyherald.com or FAX to (847) 427-1173.