High School Track and Field
The Central Lee, Danville, New London, and West Burlington boys’ teams will head to Central College tomorrow, March 20th, for an indoor meet.
The Mt. Pleasant, West Burlington, Mediapolis, and Danville girls’ teams will travel to Central College for an indoor meet on Saturday, March 21st.
Columbus will host their Early Bird Invitational on Monday, March 23rd, with Central Lee, Van Buren County, and Winfield-Mt. Union also competing.
High School Basketball
Talent from all over the state will be heading to Dallas Center-Grimes High School for the 2026 Pizza Ranch All-Star Games on Saturday, March 28th, with seven local players and two coaches making the trip for the southeast Iowa squad.
On the girls’ side, the Southeast Iowa Super Conference (SEISC) will be represented by Mediapolis’ Grace Holsteen and Madison Kellogg of Winfield-Mt. Union. Holsteen was named SEISC-South Player of the Year, while Kellogg battled through injury to lead her team with 14.9 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Joining Kellogg will be her Wolves head coach Mendy McCreight.
Joining the pair will be Kendra Boatman of Keokuk and Mylee Stiefel of Burlington. The two have both taken home Conference Player of the Year awards during their high school careers.
On the boys’ side, Washington’s Collin Stark will be patrolling the sideline with three local players running the court. Burlington Notre Dame’s Shay Stephens, the SEISC-South Player of the Year, will be flanked by two-time Southeast Conference Player of the Year in Keokuk’s Jaxon Clark and All-Substate talent Max Griffin of Mediapolis. Clark and Stephens have each tabbed at least one season double-double, which is scoring at least 500 points and securing 250 rebounds.
Southeastern Community College
The baseball team will start their three-game road series against Ellsworth Community College on Saturday, March 21st, with a doubleheader.
The softball team split their doubleheader with Dyersburg State Community College yesterday, winning game one 5-3 in extra innings but losing game two 7-5. Logan Kelley tabbed five hits, including a home run, and two RBIs between the two games. The Blackhawks will stay on the road today for a doubleheader against Volunteer State Community College.
College Wrestling
Southern Illinois University of Edwardsville’s #27 Marcel Lopez will be gearing up to take on #6 Drake Ayala of Iowa for the 133-pound weight class in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Division I wrestling championships today. The New London native collected an 18-4 record for the season.
March Madness
The KILJ bracket challenge, sponsored by The Press Box, is officially underway with over 50 brackets submitted with the top three set to receive prizes.
The first round is set to begin today and continue into tomorrow, March 20th.
Standings will be updated at the conclusion of the first two rounds, the Elite 8, Final Four, and the championship game.
College Basketball
The Iowa women’s team will be the #2-seed and will clash with #15 FDU on Saturday, March 21st, at 3 pm. Ava Heiden took home AP All-American Honorable Mention honors yesterday. She led all power four players in points per game improvement over the last two seasons.
The Iowa State women’s team claimed the #8 seed and will play #9 Syracuse on Saturday at 4:30 pm.
The Iowa State men’s team will be the #2-seed in the Midwest Region as they will take on #15 Tennessee State tomorrow, March 20th, at 1:50 pm. Joshua Jefferson earned Second Team All-American honors by the NABC and USBWA to complete the All-American circuit yesterday. The senior has scored in double figures in all 34 games this year, the third-most in school history.
The Iowa men’s team will look to pull off the upset as the #9-seed for the South Region with a first round matchup against #8 Clemson tomorrow at 5:50 pm. Bennett Stirtz claimed USBWA All-America Honorable Mention yesterday. The Hawkeye has produced the seventh most points in program history for a season.
This Day in Sports History
1966 – Underdog Texas Western College defeats Kentucky, 72-65, in the NCAA men’s college basketball championship—the first NCAA title for an all-Black starting five.
1972 – First AIAW Women’s Basketball Tournament, Immaculata beats West Chester State 52-48 in Normal, Illinois.
1984 – Two-time Cy Young Award winner Denny McLain is indicted on charges of drug trafficking, embezzlement and racketeering; 25 year sentence later quashed.