Fort Madison, IA- The Holy Trinity Catholic boys’ basketball team has enjoyed a renaissance after eight consecutive seasons of 0.500 basketball or worse, as the Crusaders have gone a collective 38-11 the last two years and knocked on the door of a state tournament appearance in both seasons.

A big reason for that is Luke Hellige, who signed his National Letter of Intent at his Senior Awards Ceremony on Tuesday afternoon to continue his basketball career at Cornell College.

The Crusaders had a complete turn of fortune in Hellige’s junior season, going from 9 wins the year previous to a 19-6 record, which included a 10-4 conference record against the SEISC-South division.

The year culminated into a thrilling 70-66 victory for Holy Trinity Catholic over North Mahaska to claim the District Championship. Hellige produced his usual stat line of 24 points, knocking down three three-pointers, collecting eight rebounds, and notching three steals.

However, that game was not his most dominant showing of the season. A road game against Highland on February 6^th gets that honor. The then-junior broke the single-game record for points when he cashed in for 45 points on 18 of 27 shooting, while gathering a double-double with 12 rebounds.

Entering his senior season having already reset the career scoring record at Holy Trinity Catholic, Hellige continued his reign over southeast Iowa as he averaged a career high 26.6 points per game to go along with his 8.2 rebounds.

The Crusaders’ last five wins displayed the senior’s long-range skill as he knocked down 30 threes on 59% shooting, including games where he scored 42 and 43 points, respectively, on a combined 18 of 25 shooting from three-point land.

Hellige finished his career with 1,792 points, 706 rebounds, and 238 three-pointers made to finish as the all-time leader in each of those categories. Additionally, he was named to the All-Substate team three times, two 1^st Team All-State nods, and invited to the 2025 Pizza Ranch All-Star Games.

Cornell College is coming off a winning season with a 15-10 record overall and a 9-7 record in the Midwest Conference, which was not good enough for the fourth and final spot in the conference tournament.

Prep Boys’ Golf- The conditions on the golf course across the state of Iowa on Monday were not optimal for personal bests, but they were the conditions shuffled out to the teams and individuals that were looking to advance to the boys’ State Golf Meet.

For Hillcrest Academy and Central Lee, it was not enough to send them back home empty handed even if by the smallest of margins.

Heritage Oaks

Wapello had the opportunity to host the District Meet for Class 1A, but it was North Linn that owned the course with a team score of 335 followed by Easton Valley with a card of 344. Liam Schrock’s first place score of 75 lifted Hillcrest Academy to the final state berth spot with a team score of 346.

Rowan Miller aided the Ravens with a 4^th place score of 79 with the next member of the team finishing in 40^th place with a 95 as Lawson Schrock’s 97 was the final score added to their total.

Winfield-Mt. Union was one spot away from sending one member of the team to the state meet, but it just proved to be one of those seasons for the Wolves as the team finished in 5^th place with a 357. Max Edwards shot an 82, which was the third-best individual score for a non-qualifying player. Cody Milks finished with a 91 followed directly by Justin Knipfer with a 92.

The hosts shot a 383, placing them in 10^th place, with Holy Trinity Catholic finishing right behind in 11^th place with a score of 391. Wyatt Marlette gave Wapello a 17^th place score of 87 with Kaleb Grimm shooting a 90.

Luke Hellige was the top finisher for the Crusaders with a 36^th place score of 94. Also contributing to the team score was Blake Mohrfeld’s 97, Brock Scheetz and Max Kruse each shot a 100.

Danville sent two individuals, including a freshman, to the District Meet. Junior Alex Holtkamp collected a 105 for 69^th place, while Graylon Walker took home 79^th place with a 115.

Bos Landen Golf Course

Pella Christian was the host of the Class 2A District Meet and finished on top of the leaderboard with a 319 as the podium featured only Eagles with Eliot Menninga taking home the medal with a 76.

PCM finished in 2^nd place with a 343, but the 3^rd place and final spot to advance to the state meet ended in a three-way tie between Tipton, Beckman Catholic, and Central Lee. The Hawks were led by Mylan Lowenberg’s 8^th place score of 84, while Caleb Larson and Carson Morrison finished within the top 20 with scores of 87 and 88, respectively. Bo Herdrich was the final score to go towards the team total with a 92.

However, the tiebreaker came down to each team’s fifth golfer and who turned in the lowest score. That privilege went to sophomore Carter Jones of Central Lee as he shot a 94, the 29^th best score on the course.

This punched Central Lee’s ticket to the State Golf Meet for the first time since 2018.

Mediapolis was led by Jonathan Ford’s 88, which tied for 16^th place individually. Brock Spears’ 89 and Kohen Stotlar’s and Max Griffin’s 92 added up to a team score of 361, which gave the Bulldogs 9^th place.

Pin Oak Pub & Links

Washington was aiming for their third consecutive trip to the State Golf Meet as a team, but a tough field sent the Demons home with a 6^th place score of 342, 15 strokes away from third place West Liberty’s final score.

Nevertheless, a Demon will be attending the State Meet as Drew Conrad turned in the 3^rd best score on the course of a 79. Washington then had a three-person log jam from 21^st to 23^rd place with Rajan Roth, Carson Brown, and Cole Vetter turning in scores of 87, 88, and 88, respectively.

Up Next

The Class 1A State Golf Meet will take place at South Hills Golf Course in Waterloo. Class 2A will also travel up to Waterloo but to the Gates Park Golf Course. Lastly, Pheasant Ridge Golf Course will house the Class 3A State Golf Meet. All meets will start Tuesday, May 27^th, and finish up on Wednesday, May 28^th.

High School Track

The State Track and Field meet is scheduled to start on Thursday, May 22nd, and run through Saturday, May 24th. KILJ will be keeping track of 16 local teams, providing updates and results throughout the three-day event. For a full list of our local state qualifiers, follow this link: Full List of State Qualifiers

High School Tennis

The Fairfield boys’ team will square off against Pella tomorrow, May 21st, on the road with the winner advancing to the state tournament. 

The Fairfield girls’ team will take on Central DeWitt in the Regional semifinals today at Coe College.

High School Golf

Wapello’s Heritage Oaks Golf and Country Club hosted one of the Class 1A District meets yesterday and Hillcrest Academy snuck their way into a state berth with a 3rd place finish of 346 behind Easton Valley and North Linn. Liam Schrock was the medalist for the course, shooting a 75 for the Ravens. Winfield-Mt. Union took 5th place with a team score of 357 as Max Edwards finished in 6th place, carding an 82 and just one spot outside qualifying as an individual. Wapello finished in 10th place, followed by Holy Trinity Catholic in 11th place. Wapello was led by Wyatt Marlette’s 17th place score of 87, while Luke Hellige took 36th place with a 94 for the Crusaders. Danville’s Alex Holtkamp claimed 69th place with a 105, while Graylon Walker grabbed 79th place with a score of 115. 

The Class 1A state golf meet will take place at South Hills Golf Course in Waterloo on Tuesday, May 27th, and Wednesday, May 28th.

The boys’ Class 2A District Meet at Bos Landen Golf Resort in Pella provided some adversity and a dramatic finish for Central Lee but the Hawks were able to advance to the State Tournament for the first time since 2018. Central Lee managed to shoot a 351, which pinned them against Tipton and Beckman Catholic on who would get that last team spot for the state meet. Carter Jones’ 94 was the tiebreaker as he possessed the lowest score amongst the fifth golfers for each team, punching the ticket for the Hawks. Mylan Lowenberg carded an 84 to lead the way for Central Lee. The Class 2A state meet is scheduled for Tuesday through Wednesday at Gates Park Golf Course in Waterloo.

Washington’s hope of attending the Class 3A state meet as a team for the third consecutive season was dashed yesterday after the Demons finished outside the top three with a team score of 342. Nevertheless, Drew Conrad’s card of 79 gave him one of the top-two scores of the course for a non-qualifying team member and a berth to the Class 3A state meet. Conrad will tee off on Tuesday at Pheasant Ridge Golf Course in Cedar Falls.

The girls’ Region 5 final will take place at Little Bear Country Club in Midland tomorrow, May 21st, with Wapello, Columbus, and New London competing as teams and Elizabeth Griffin of Holy Trinity Catholic and Kellee Milks of Winfield-Mt. Union participating as individuals.

The Mt. Pleasant and Fairfield girls’ teams will compete in the Class 3A Regional tomorrow at Edmundson Golf Course. 

High School Soccer

The Central Lee girls’ team was eliminated by Fairfield last night in the first round of the Class 1A Region 3 bracket in a 4-1 final, as Emma Metcalf netted two of the goals for the Trojans. Fairfield will now travel to Assumption tomorrow, May 21st, at 7 pm. 

The Wapello girls’ team had their matchup against Mid-Prairie last night postponed due to storms. The game will resume tonight at 5 pm in the first half with the score tied at 0. 

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team had their matchup against Ottumwa canceled last night due to weather. The Panthers will host the winner between Mid-Prairie and Wapello tomorrow at 5:30 pm. 

The WACO boys’ team will take on Danville on the road in the Class 1A Substate 5 first round at 7 pm tonight.

The Central Lee boys team will take on Sigourney Keota tonight at 7 pm at home with the winner advancing to play Mediapolis.

The Wapello boys’ team will take on Central DeWitt on the road tonight at 7 pm in the Class 2A Substate 5 bracket.

The #6 Burlington Notre Dame boys’ team earned a bye and will host either Assumption or Solon at 7 pm on May 27th.  

The Fairfield boys’ team will compete against Centerville in the Class 2A Substate 6 opening round at 7 pm at home tonight. Mt. Pleasant awaits the winner.

The Mediapolis girls’ team will face off against Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union tomorrow, May 21st, at 7 pm at home for postseason play.

The Burlington Notre Dame girls’ team will start their postseason journey on Friday, May 23rd, on the road against Clear Creek Amana at 7 pm.

High School Baseball

West Burlington enjoyed their home opener last night as the Falcons demolished Wapello 15-0. The West Burlington offense clubbed three home runs, including one off the bat of Brock Thuleen as he collected three RBIs and seven strikeouts to go along with his win on the mound. 

West Burlington will stay at home for their matchup against Hillcrest Academy on Friday, May 23rd, at 5:30 pm.

Wapello will tangle with BGM tomorrow, May 21st, at 5:30 pm on the road.

Mediapolis had their contest last night against Cardinal canceled. The Bulldogs will look to start the season tonight against Fort Madison on the road at 7 pm.

Central Lee versus Burlington has been canceled for tonight. 

Fairfield will face off against Oskaloosa tonight at 7 pm on the road. 

Mt. Pleasant will make the trip to Grinnell tomorrow at 7:30 pm.

This Day in Sports History

1920 – Policemen raid the Cubs’ bleachers and arrest 47 fans for gambling. 

1930 – University of California dedicates $1,500 to research on prevention and cure of athlete’s foot.

1988 – Philadelphia Phillies’ Mike Schmidt hits his 535th home run, moving into 8th place all-time.