The Pantagraph Bloomington, IL

Former Isu Ad Ghormley Dies at Age 65

The man who oversaw the merger of Illinois State's men's and women's athletic departments, Dan Ghormley, died at age 65 Wednesday in his Cape Cod home at Hyannis, Mass. Ghormley served as ISU athletic director from 1982 to 1985.

Three From Area Make Top 10 Poll

Three Pantagraph area high school basketball teams cracked the top 10 in their respective classes in the Associated Press state polls released Monday. The Central Catholic boys (15-1) are ranked second in Class 2A while the Saint girls (15-2) are No. 3. Delavan's boys (12-2) are ranked seventh in Class 1A.

Slow Start Turns Into Loss for Eureka College Women

EUREKA - The Eureka College women's basketball team got off to a slow start, trailing 35-20 at the half, and couldn't recover in a 66- 58 loss to Robert Morris College of Springfield. The game was originally scheduled for December 1, 2007, but was postponed due to weather conditions. Nicole Fisher and Brittany Gardner scored 18 points apiece to lead the Red Devils (1-9) while Brandi Payne added 10 points and 10 rebounds.

No. 3 Central Catholic Girls Survive

In a game where defense ruled, Central Catholic High School's No. 3-state ranked girls basketball team committed 30 turnovers and forced 30 in a 62-57 triumph over Prairie Central at Bloomington Monday. The Saints improved to 15-2 overall and 5-1 in the Corn Belt Conference while the Hawks fell to 12-5 and 3-3.

Nittany Lions Spend Time in Land of Lincoln

A perfect road trip didn't have a perfect ending for Penn State basketball coach Ed DeChellis. The Nittany Lions did open Big Ten play with wins at Northwestern and Illinois, staying nearly a week in the Land of Lincoln before returning home following Sunday's win over the Fighting Illini.

Isu's Cirone Named Valley Player of Week

NORMAL - Illinois State guard Kristi Cirone was named Missouri Valley Conference player of the week on Monday following a three- game stretch where she averaged 20 points and six assists. Cirone scored more points over those three games than any Redbird this season. She averaged 24 points and 6.5 assists per game in the two Valley contests for the best start to Valley play in her career. She leads the conference in scoring and assists after the opening weekend.

Illini Get Commitment From Ex-Star's Brother

CHAMPAIGN - The brother of former Illini great Luther Head has said that he will be following in his brother's footsteps. Crandall Head, a 6-foot-3 sophomore guard at Rich South, gave coach Bruce Weber his verbal commitment after attending Illinois' 68- 64 loss to Penn State.

Redbird Essentials

Redbird essentials Northern Iowa vs. Illinois State

Panthersseek Rolereversal

NORMAL - Northern Iowa coach Ben Jacobson isn't surprised the Missouri Valley Conference standings look like they're turned upside down. "The last few seasons we've had a lot of good teams but Southern Illinois, Creighton and Wichita (State), some of the more household names around the country, were leading the pack," said Jacobson.