Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Bradley recruit Ka'Darryl Bell to have right hand examined today.
No Ka’Darryl Bell? No problem. Playing without its injured star guard, the Oak Park-River Forest High School boys basketball team used a big second half to beat visiting York 57-40 in the West Suburban Conference Silver Division Tuesday night. The Huskies (5-1, 2-0) led 24-23 at intermission, then outscored the visitors 33-17 in the second half. “The second-half performance was phenomenal,” OPRF coach Matt Maloney said. York (3-3, 0-2) held a 36-35 edge late in the third quarter when OPRF seized control. The Huskies took off on an 11-0 run, which included an alley-oop dunk by Gabe Levin off a pass by Jakari Cammon. “It was a perfect pass,” said Levin. Levin scored 12 of his 18 points in the second half. “Gabe kind of put us on his back in …
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Undefeated Huskies rout Downers Grove North 52-34, retire Iman Shumpert's No. 32.
On Iman Shumpert Night, the Oak Park-River Forest High School boys basketball team showed the guest of honor it can play some defense. The Huskies held Downers Grove North scoreless in the first quarter en route to a 52-34 victory in a West Suburban Conference Silver Division opener Friday night in Oak Park. OPRF retired Shumpert’s No. 32 jersey in a halftime ceremony. The former all-stater and Georgia Tech star was drafted by the New York Knicks in the first round of the 2011 NBA Draft. He wore his high school letterman’s jacket and watched the first half from the front row. “We tried to make it a special night for him as well as for the community,” OPRRF coach Matt Maloney said. “That was something that was weighing on our mind. We …
Saturday, October 8, 2011
OPRF falls to Hinsdale Central 34-29 in Oak Park.
You didn’t have to look at the scoreboard to see how the Oak Park-River Forest High School football team fared Friday night. The tears in the eyes of many players at the end of the game told the story. In another heartbreaking loss, the Huskies saw a terrific comeback in the second half wiped out late first by a Hinsdale Central touchdown and then by a lost fumble. The result was a 34-29 loss to the Red Devils in an eventful West Suburban Conference Silver Division game in Oak Park. It was the fourth loss in a row for the Huskies (2-5, 1-4). The last two have been the toughest. A week earlier, they lost to Lyons Township on a 52-yard field goal on the final play of the game. This time, they came back from a 28-14 halftime deficit to claim …
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Glenbard West routs OPRF 41-6 Saturday afternoon.
As the teams shook hands after the game, Oak Park-River Forest High School's John Hoerster continued to coach one of his players on the field following a 41-6 loss to visiting Glenbard West Saturday afternoon. The West Suburban Conference Silver Division mismatch served as a reminder of how much room the OPRF program has to improve. “[Glenbard West] coach [Chad] Hetlet has done a really good job of getting those kids to be believers,” said Hoerster, who’s in his first year at the helm. “You know, they’re drinking the Kool-Aid over there. They show up on the field and they believe they’re going to win, and that’s what we’re really working on here.” “We’re going to watch the film and what we’re going to take out of it is try to figure out …
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Brennan Van Spankeren seals victory with fourth quarter interception.
When a big victory for the Oak Park-River Forest High School football team felt like it might be slipping away in the fourth quarter, Brennan Van Spankeren grabbed it. The senior linebacker intercepted a pass to ensure the night had a happy ending for the Huskies, who pulled off a 21-7 triumph over Downers Grove North in a West Suburban Conference Silver Division opener Friday in Oak Park. OPRF (2-1, 1-0) had only one win against Downers Grove North (1-2, 0-1) in the previous 18 years, Van Spankeren said. “They’re the big bullies and we’ve always been the (bullied),” he said. “We finally hit them in the mouth.” Downers Grove North closed within 13-7 on quarterback Riley McGinnis’ five-yard touchdown run in the final minute of the third …
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Glenbard North defeats Huskies 40-20 in season opener.
John Hoerster waited a long time to become a head coach. He’s going to have to wait at least one more week for his first victory. Glenbard North spoiled Hoerster’s debut as Oak Park and River Forest’s football coach, beating the visiting Huskies 40-20 Friday night at Weber Field in Carol Stream. Related: OPRF vs. Glenbard North photo gallery The host showed why it started the season ranked No. 13 by the Chicago Tribune and No. 18 by the Chicago Sun-Times. The Panthers held a 6-0 lead after the first quarter before stretching their advantage to 26-0 by halftime. “They’re good,” said Hoerster, who spent the past 10 seasons as an assistant coach at Mt. Carmel. “They just have that tradition and they show up expecting to win. We’ve got to get …
