Dec. 16, 2012

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — Michael Bower says, “It was always a dream” to swim for Eastern Illinois University.

Bower is now a senior. He has been a member of the EIU men’s swimming team the last four years, and he realizes that dream is about over.

“It’s kind of weird knowing that I only have two more months of swimming for a school left,” says Bower, a 2009 Charleston High School graduate.

Nov. 28, 2012

By Erik Hall

SEATTLE — Anyone that opens a Kindle Fire on Christmas morning and begins to successfully download apps should thank Chris McGilliard for helping them enjoy their new gift.

McGilliard is a 2000 Charleston High School graduate, and he recently completed his seventh year as a software engineer at Amazon.

“I’ve worked on four different teams, so I’ve actually gotten to see what it’s like on a lot of different spaces over these seven years now,” McGilliard said last week in a phone interview with the JG-TC.

Nov. 25, 2012

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — Every team wants to win it all.

Every coach wants to help their team get to the top.

At the high school and junior high level, that quest is for a state championship.

And it never hurts having a coach that has already been to the top.

That is why Randy Harpster is glad to add four-time state champion Matt Feldhake to his coaching staff for this year’s Charleston Middle School eighth grade boys’ basketball season.

“He’s a winner. He’s a proven winner, and you can’t teach that,” says Harpster, the CMS eighth grade boys’ basketball head coach. “He’s already done it. When you’ve been there and you’ve done that, it’s definitely a big help. That’s all he’s known is how to win.”

Oct. 28, 2012

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — How do you remember the Charleston careers of great Trojan athletes Rex Morgan, Jon Buckellew, Stan Royer, Derrick Landrus, Sara Fisher and Curt Hinds?

Do you remember seeing them in person, reading about them in the paper … or do you remember hearing their names and accomplishments during a radio broadcast on WEIC-AM 1270?

Charleston Trojan sports were a fixture at 1270 on the AM dial for close to 40 years. A long list of men broadcast those games to the Trojan faithful that could not be there in person — and even sometimes a transistor radio was at the game helping fans follow along from the stands.

But that ended in December 2003 when Charleston sports relocated to WEIU-FM 88.9.

Now, they are back.

Oct. 22, 2012

By Erik Hall

Carlton Fisk, Reggie Jackson, Mark McGwire, Chris Carpenter.

Those are some of the great players Tony La Russa provides insight about in his new book “One Last Strike: Fifty Years in Baseball, Ten and a Half Games Back, and One Final Championship Season.”

La Russa’s book was released in September, and it has been a valuable story to read during the Cardinals’ run through the 2012 Major League Baseball playoffs. There are insights on current Cardinals players Carpenter, Yadier Molina, Kyle Lohse, Allen Craig and many others.

Oct. 7, 2012

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — It was Day 7 of their family vacation this summer.

A friend of a friend was letting the McGill family stay at their house in London.

The first six days of the trip had gone well so far, but it became surreal for Elliott McGill, the Eastern Illinois University head swimming coach, when he came down for breakfast Sunday morning.

“Walking into the kitchen at the house we were staying at and sitting on the table was Tyler’s gold medal. In my memory, that might stand out the longest,” Elliott said.

Sept. 23, 2012

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — Erin Howarth saw a gap could form.

The third-year Eastern Illinois head cross country coach did what any good runner would do at that point.

She took strides to prevent the gap from occurring.

Howarth had nine women returning with at least four years experience of college running, and she had nine women joining the EIU team for the first time this fall. She knew a divide could happen, so she took steps to prevent factions on the team.

Her solution was creating a mentor program.

Aug. 26, 2012

By Erik Hall

CHICAGO — Gumdrops, watermelons, hippos and gorillas.

Those are the things Charleston graduate Zack Stranz helps kids learn about in the Chicago area.

Stranz is not a biologist, a zoologist or Willy Wonka.

He coaches soccer. Stranz is a program coordinator for Lil’ Kickers, and he runs the company’s site at Bradley Place in Chicago.

“It’s always cool to still be around soccer,” says Stranz, who graduated from CHS in 2001. “It definitely wasn’t my intentions, but it worked out in its way and it’s great.”

Aug. 5, 2012

By Erik Hall

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — Xander Steele may have been the person least surprised by Ashton Eaton’s world record earlier this summer.

Eaton broke the decathlon world record when he scored 9,039 points at the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials on June 23.

Attentively following Eaton’s world-record pursuit was the Steele family in Cedar Falls, Iowa, especially Xander and his dad Dan, an EIU Hall of Fame track athlete.

“(Xander) always saw Ashton as a super hero,” Dan says of his 8-year-old son. “Ashton breaking a world record is exciting for him, but he always saw him that way anyways.”

Aug. 5, 2012

By Erik Hall

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — Dan Steele coached two of the best multi-event athletes in the world during his final three years at the University of Oregon.

Steele, a 1992 EIU graduate, completed his third year as Northern Iowa head track and field coach this spring.

He had a decathlete and heptathlete at Northern Iowa display some talent this year.

UNI senior Daniel Gooris finished 10th in the decathlon this spring at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.

“He’s been a real gem for us,” Steele says. “He’s one of those kids that you wish they were all like Daniel. He’s got a terrific work ethic, and he’s just a first-rate person.”

July 28, 2012

By Erik Hall

LOS ANGELES — Near the intersection of Seventh Street and Monroe Avenue in Charleston is a mural of entertainers with ties to the Coles County seat.

The mural includes 1940 Oscar winner Gregg Toland and 1959 Oscar winner Burl Ives.

One day, Meredith Wieck may need to have her portrait added to the side of the same building.

Wieck is a 2005 Charleston High School graduate, and she is three years into a promising Hollywood career.

Her office is located on the 65-acre Paramount Pictures studio lot where she works for the production company Disruption Entertainment. Wieck’s job as a creative executive/junior executive involves helping select what properties to pursue as possible movies for Disruption Entertainment to produce.

“It’s great and there’s just so many wonderful people here from all over the place, and it’s just so culturally stimulating for someone from a small town in Illinois. I love the environment,” Wieck says of Hollywood.

July 15, 2012

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — Pole vaulting in three states in eight days.

That was Chase Black’s undertaking during the week of July Fourth.

“It’s been crazy and hectic, basically. It’s been driving around,” Black says.

Black is coming off a fourth-place medal this spring for Charleston in the Class 2A IHSA State Track and Field Meet, but he is trying this summer to find ways to improve his performance for next spring when he will be a junior at CHS.

He and his dad, Bob, made trips to Lawrence, Kan., St. Louis and Champaign from July 1-8 to experience three pole vault competitions to learn and compete with some of the nation’s elite pole vaulters.

March 28, 2012

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — Eastern Illinois University provides many benefits to the area.

But good luck getting easy access to much of the campus during the day.

Parking for the majority of the campus is reserved for faculty, staff and students. A parking meter where a visitor can leave a vehicle is rare.

The lot around the Martin Luther King, Jr. University Union is exclusively parking meters, but if someone wants to exercise at Lantz Arena and the Rec Center, do research at Booth Library or visit a building on the South Quad, a meter is probably not an option.

“For right or wrong, the people who work out here expect to be able to park close to the building they work at,” said EIU police Lieutenant Jon Hatfill, who is the police officer assigned to oversee parking. “Right now, we have enough parking spaces available that they can have that convenience.”

Feb. 25, 2012

By Erik Hall

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — The house is at the end of a street tucked away in a Bloomington subdivision.

On Sunday, it doubled as the happiest place on earth.

Four 4-year-olds dressed as Belle, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and Buzz Lightyear made the Michaels’ household feel like Disney World landed in Central Illinois.

The Walt Disney explosion was a celebration as Jon and Tiffany Michaels’ quadruplets turned 4 years old on Feb. 19.

“It’s gone by really fast,” the quadruplets’ aunt Risa Thorburg says. “They’re such a blessing for all of us to have, and they’re all so healthy. I’m glad it was Tiffany and not me. I’m not sure I have the patience that Tiffany has.”

Feb. 10, 2005

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — In the team's first 20 games, only Marshall had beaten Charleston's eighth-grade boys' basketball team.

The Little Trojans would not lose a second time to the Cubs.

Charleston defeated Marshall 54-42 in Wednesday's IESA Class 8AA Sectional game. The win improves Charleston to 20-1 and advances the team to Saturday's IESA Sweet 16.

"We've accomplished a lot of our goals," said Charleston center Jamel Johnson. "We made it all the way to state because of our team defense and the team basketball that we play."

Sept. 20, 2004

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — Nearly 1,000 fans lined Eastern's pond with each cheering for their favorite runner that went by. The support was enough to propel Eastern junior Dave Carlson and sophomore Sarah Selby to a second place finishes Friday, in the men's and women's races respectively.

"Both kids who won are awful tough," said Eastern head cross country coach Geoff Masanet. "I know that our top girl and top guy are awful tough too.

"We're sitting out our best guy. Jake (Stout) didn't even run. Dave is one of our best guys and he still manages to finish that high up is good."

Carlson led Eastern to a second place finish, 17 points behind team champion Southern Illinois-Carbondale. Eastern's women finished third as a team.

June 1, 2004

By Erik Hall

CHARLESTON, Ill. — Charleston senior Clint Coffey could not catch Erik Werden, but he moved ahead of Jon Bates during the final stretch of Saturday's 800-meter final.

Neither Werden nor Bates was on the O'Brien Stadium track during the IHSA Class AA state track and field meet Saturday. But Coffey was and he moved between the two former Charleston Trojans to run the second fastest 800-meter race by a Charleston runner.

Coffey placed 10th in the state with a time of 1 minute, 55.58 seconds Saturday.

"I would have liked to at least place top nine and gotten a medal," Coffey said Saturday. "I just couldn't do it today. I guess it's still not that bad, but I'm always hard on myself. I probably would have been hard on myself if I would have won it."

Coffey lowered his personal record time for the third consecutive race but failed to reach Werden's school record of 1:54.79 set in 2002. Coffey passed the time Bates ran during the 1988 season of 1:55.9.

Oct. 15, 2003

By Erik Hall

SAVOY — The wind blew cold making hands, feet and ears numb the entire 18 holes of Tuesday's IHSA Champaign Central Golf Sectional.

The clouds blocked the sun until well beyond 1 p.m. and splashed the 100 golfers with rain nearly every hole.

Charleston senior Tony Wochner just smiled at spectator and CHS teammate Nathan Cox before stepping up to hit each ball farther off the tee than he had done the previous hole.

"I wouldn't want to play in this weather if I didn't have to," Wochner said.

Wochner played through the weather conditions and qualified for the IHSA Golf State Finals that begin Friday. Wochner tied with several competitors that shot 83, which earned the final individual berth to state.

May 19, 2003

By Erik Hall

URBANA, Ill. — Mattoon sophomore Katie Bruehler found her performance in the high jump disappointing at Friday's Urbana Sectional Track Meet, but she made up for it when she climbed into blocks to begin the 100-meter hurdle finals.

"Her start was good and she came out of blocks there right where we want her to be and then she pulled away at the end," said Mattoon track head coach Troy Haacke about Bruehler's second place finish in the hurdles.

"She did high jump tonight and didn't make it in high jump, which she's a little disappointed for because that's her favorite. I think she's going to start to like hurdles a little bit."

Bruehler finished fourth in high jump, and will have the next week to learn to like hurdles because she will be preparing to compete in the IHSA state track and field Meet in Charleston on Friday at Eastern's O'Brien Stadium.

Joining Bruehler at the state meet will be the Mattoon 3,200-meter relay team of freshman Kasey Seaman, sophomore Shieda Langston and juniors Mallory Fellers and Ashley Bryson.

Charleston failed to have anybody qualify for state for the first time since 2000, but the Lady Trojans' three seniors helped the team to a respectable showing.

October 3, 2002

By Erik Hall

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Kevin Zawodniak was close to losing another Charleston boys' soccer record on Wednesday afternoon.

Zawodniak holds the record for most goals in a game with five, and Charleston's all-state senior Curt Hinds scored four goals in the Trojans' 5-3 win at Champaign Central yesterday.

It was the second time in just three games that Hinds has come one goal shy of the record held by the 1998 Charleston graduate. As a sophomore in 2000, Hinds broke Zawodniak's record for single season goals, a mark that Hinds would demolish in 2001 by scoring 40 goals.

"It's Curt Hinds, the kid's amazing," senior Dallas Bartz said.

Sept. 13, 2002

By Erik Hall

URBANA, Ill. —  For the first time since Halloween night 2000, the Charleston's boys' soccer team was back playing soccer at the corner of Race Street and Michigan Avenue on Urbana High School's soccer fields.

In 2000, the Trojans defeated Normal University High in penalty kicks to advance to the IHSA state quarterfinals. This year it was just a regular season game against the Urbana Tigers played on a practice field instead of under the lights on the football field.

"I wish we could have played on the same field," senior defender Jake Dively said. "It definitely brought a few memories back. It was pretty fun to be back here."

May 20, 2002

By Erik Hall

URBANA, Ill. - Nothing seemed to be able to slow the Charleston boys' track team on Saturday morning from qualifying from the Urbana Sectional to the state track meet. Not the rain delay from Friday evening, a broken wrist, an injured ankle or scarred knees.