Providence Fans Celebrate Volleyball Win on Nautical Night

Now that the basketball season is over and the weather is turning for the better, one would expect that those fun for some and obnoxious for others  fan sections would hibernate, at least until football season next fall.

Apparently, Providence Celtics fans do not lie dormant.

With Route 30 rival Lincoln-Way Central is town on Wednesday, the Celtics fans celebrated Nautical Night with students clad in shorts, bad 80s beach shirts and flip-flops. Several even paid homage to Gilligan’s Island and were clad in sailor’s hats. There were no sightings of Captain Stubing, cruise director Julie McCoy or Gopher. What’s more is the fans were loud throughout a three-game thriller that the Celtics rallied and won.

Providence edged Lincoln-Way Central 24-26, 25-21, 25-23.

“It was a great game and our fans really helped us a lot. They were really going crazy,” Providence’s Karl Schramm said. “When you lose the first game, it’s always tough to win two in a row, especially against a good team like Central, so we knew we were due for a big battle.”

Schramm finished with 27 assists, Marty Ross had 14 kills and Brendan Duffner chipped in with 9 kills.

“When we come to Providence, we know their fan base is huge and is going to be in our ears,” Lincoln-Way Central’s Sean Blackwood said. “We just try to stay focused and play our game.”

The Celtics fans had “Construction Night” earlier this season. They’ll host Lincoln-Way East next Wednesday night. No word yet on the theme.

Fahrforth Helps L-Way West Edge L-Way Central

The Lincoln-Way West softball team improved to 3-1 on the young season with a nailbiting 1-0 win over crosstown rival Lincoln-Way Central on Thursday in a Southwest Suburban crossover.

Meg Fahrforth improved to 2-0 on the year, going the distance. She worked around three errors, walking only two and surrendering just a pair of hits.

The Warriors scored the only run they needed when Lauren Wojdyla was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the second inning.

Celtics Beat Teams, But Not The Weather

The Providence baseball season is off to a weird and wonderful start. The Celtics won their first three games but then had their next three postponed due to wintry conditions.

The Celtics were expected to finally return to action on April 1, and that’s no joke. They are playing in the WJOL Invitational this weekend. The Celtics last played on March 23, when they beat Lemont 6-1.

Tough Week for Warriors Girls Water Polo

The Lincoln-Way West girls water polo team had a difficult week, getting blasted by Homewood-Flossmoor 20-1 on Tuesday and then falling to Lincoln-Way East 11-7 on Thursday.

Lauren Majewski had the Warriors lone goal on Tuesday and all seven of the team’s scores on Thursday. Becca Beeson had 14 saves against the Griffins.

Knights Drop Decisions to LW East, Providence

The Lincoln-Way Central boys volleyball team lost to Lincoln-Way East 25-22, 25-15 last Saturday in the third-place match of the Gold Flight of the Marist Invite. Then, the Knights dropped a tough one to Providence on Wednesday. The Knights won the first game 26-24, but dropped the next two, 25-21 and 25-23. They had gone ahead 18-14 in the deciding game, but the Celtics rallied past them

“We thought we had a lot of momentum but then we stopped playing to our abilities,” Lincoln-Way Central’s Sean Blackwood said. “The last three games we’ve lost, but we’re making strides and playing closer to our abilities.”

The Knights will play in the Wheaton Warrenville South tournament this weekend.

“We’re really making great progress,” Lincoln-Way Central coach Joann Holverson said. “(Against Providence), we had four players with seven kills and a fifth one with five kills, so we’re getting a nice, balanced offensive attack. If we continue to do that, we’ll do well.”

Extra Points

Providence freshman Lauren Rasmussen shined during Wednesday’s 1-0 girls soccer victory against Mother McAuley. Rasmussen received a great deal of playing time with senior Brittany Ostrowski out with an injury.

"She was given a bigger opportunity to step in and show what she's got," Providence coach Dan Potempa said. "She showed she can cut it at the varsity level."

* The Lincoln-Way co-op boys gymnastics team posted a season high score of 159.9 on Tuesday against Andrew/District 230 co-op. The score was the highest in the state this season.

* Providence is hosting its “Night at the Races” fundraiser on Saturday, April 16, at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $40, which includes admission, program, two-hour buffet and three hours of beverages. Proceeds go to the baseball program. Contact Ester Houlihan at (815) 717-3143 for tickets or additional information.

* The Lincoln-Way Central softball team will play in the Jacobs quadrangular on Saturday. The Knights opened the season with the bats on fire in a 16-1 win against Providence on Tuesday but then they couldn’t do much at all on Thursday in a 1-0 loss to Lincoln-Way West. With three games scheduled this weekend, the Knights' hitters will have plenty of chances to see live pitching.