LaTulip courting success at Illinois
Illinois junior basketball walk-on Mike LaTulip, who usually plays a few minutes when games are decided, has seen extended minutes in the Illini's last two contests.
The former Prospect standout tied his career high with 7 points against Coppin State, then collected 9 points in eight minutes during a 107-66 win against Austin Peay at State Farm Center.
"I'm happy for him because that kid, he competes every day," Illinois coach John Groce said on the Champaign News-Gazette website. "He's gotten better; he's improved a lot over the (three) years.
"He understands what we're about and embodies a lot of those qualities, and anything that happens to him is well-earned in a positive way. He's a ridiculous worker, tough kid, and I love those two things about him."
College football
Mark Weisman walked on to the University of Iowa's football team.
Once there, he never stopped running.
The senior running back is now part of an elite group.
A Stevenson High School product from Buffalo Grove, Weisman is one of 10 semifinalists for the 2014 Burlsworth Trophy, presented annually to the most outstanding football player in America who began his career as a walk-on.
Three finalists are expected to be announced Tuesday and the award will be presented Monday, Dec. 8.
The 6-foot, 240-pound Weisman has led the Hawkeyes in rushing in each of the past two seasons and is Iowa's leading rusher through 11 games this year.
In the Hawkeyes' first 10 games, he rushed for 720 yards on 182 attempts, scoring 14 touchdowns.
The 14 touchdowns rank fifth-best in a single-season at Iowa.
In three seasons, he has become just the third player in Iowa history to record 30 rushing touchdowns.
He ranks fourth in career rushing attempts, eighth in rushing yards, and 12th in career scoring (186 points). Weisman is one of eight Hawkeye running backs to rush for over 2,200 yards and score more than 20 touchdowns.
Weisman also excels in the classroom, as he was previously named to the 2014 Capital One District 6 Academic All-America first team. He holds a 3.32 grade-point average and is majoring in health and human physiology.
Weisman earned academic All-Big Ten recognition in 2012 and 2013 and is a three-time honoree on the Iowa dean's list.
The Burlsworth Award is named in honor of former Arkansas player Brandon Burlsworth. After earning All-America honors in 1998, Burlsworth was the 63rd selection in the 1999 NFL Draft before being tragically killed in a car accident 11 days after the draft.
• Augustana junior quarterback Sam Frasco (Prospect) and sophomore linebacker Jack Asquini (Buffalo Grove) were named to the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin all-conference second team.
Frasco, who was named the conference's 'Offensive Player of the Week' after a season-ending 59-6 win over Millikin, finished the year with 1,892 yards of total offense in nine games, an average of 210.2 per contest. He rushed for 704 yards on 142 carries (5.0 yards per attempt) and completed 105 of 188 passes for 1,188 yards.
Asquini led Augustana with 94 tackles this season. His 61 solo and 33 assisted stops were each team highs as well. He finished fourth in the CCIW with an average of 9.4 tackles per game. He had 5.5 tackles for loss and team bests of two fumbles forced and two fumble recoveries.
• North Central College junior and Brandon Kibby (Schaumburg) played in all ten games at backup cornerback and on special teams. He returned an interception 86 yards for a touchdown in the Oct. 18 game against Carthage. The Cardinals finished the season 8-2 and 15th in the Division III rankings.
• North Central College junior Richard Zirngibl (Buffalo Grove) played in all ten games at strong safety and led the team in pass break-ups, recording seven. He was also ranked fourth on the team in tackles, making 44.
Women's swimming
Lake Forest College diver Christina Pekar (Prospect) was named the Midwest Conference women's swimming and diving Performer of the Week after qualifying for the NCAA regional meet.
Pekar swept the diving events and qualified for the NCAA Regional Meet on Saturday in Lake Forest's 150-81 victory over visiting Augustana College. She tallied 276.95 points off the 1-meter board and posted a score of 297.50 in the 3-meter competition.
Women's soccer
Illinois State's Gabbi McArtor (Palatine) was named honorable mention on the Missouri Valley Conference Scholar team.
McArtor has been part of the MVC's stingiest defense this season. It allowed only 2 goals during regular season MVC play and recorded four shutouts against conference foes.
McArtor netted 1 goal and dished out 2 assists.
• Kansas sophomore midfielder Jackie Georgoulis (Buffalo Grove) assisted the Jayhawks' lone goal but it was not enough as they fell 3-1 to Missouri.
Trailing 2-0, Georgoulis played a part in setting up a 57th-minute tally to cut the deficit to one goal. Georgoulis played in all 21 games this season and posted 3 assists as Kansas went 15-6-0.
Women's golf
Northern Iowa freshman Noreen Caporusso (Prospect) played in five golf tournaments this fall while competing in the Missouri Valley Conference.
Traveling to South Dakota, Oklahoma, Missouri and Indiana, Caporusso finished in the top 20 in two events.
She was tenth in the Creighton Classic. Her low score for the fall was a 74 in the Oral Roberts Shootout.
Women's hockey
Marian University senior forward Nina Laurie (Palatine) was named Northern Collegiate Hockey Association 'Women's Offensive Player of the Week'. She was an offensive factor in a series sweep of Finlandia University, scoring 6 points on 4 goals and 2 assists including a +7 rating to help lead the team to its first two wins of the season.
Laurie scored an unassisted goal and had an assist in a 7-4 win, then struck for her first hat trick of the season, including 1 unassisted goal.
Concordia's Veronika Metanova (Palatine) had just 1 point but it was a big one as the sophomore netted the game-winner against Lake Forest. Metanova has now recorded 6 points this season, scoring in all but one game.
Women's basketball
Millikin's Alyssa Saklak (Schaumburg) scored 18 points, making 7 of 14 shots as the Big Blue picked up its first win with an 84-73 win at home over Eureka.
Men's basketball
• North Park's Jordan Robinson (Hoffman Estates) led the Vikings with 20 points, converting 6-of-9 shots from the field against St. Norbert in the season opener.
Men's cross country
Butler junior Eric Peterson (Barrington) finished third at the Big East Conference meet leading the Bulldogs to a fourth-place finish.
Peterson then finished fifth at the Great Lakes Regional in Madison, Wi. in a personal best 1,000-meter time of 30:22, qualifying him for the national cross country championships in Terre Haute,
• Missouri junior Tyler Schneider (Conant) finished fifth while classmate Dan Roe (Buffalo Grove) was 14th at the Southeastern Conference meet at the University of Alabama, leading the Tigers to fourth place.
• Lewis sophomore Michael Leet (Prospect) finished 35th overall with a time of 32:02 at the 10K NCAA Midwest Regional Championships, hosted by Southern Indiana. The Flyers placed ninth out of 29 teams.
Women's cross country.
Illinois State junior Haley Goers (Hoffman Estates) finished 16th at the Missouri Valley Conference in a personal best 5,000-meter time of 17:43 to help the Redbirds to second place.
• Notre Dame senior Karen Lesiewicz (Schaumburg) finished 49th in the Great Lakes Regional in Madison, Wi. on Nov. 14 in a personal best 6,000-meter time of 21:11 helping Notre Dame advance to the national cross country championships.
• Illinois sophomore Hanna Winter (St. Viator) finished 38th in the Big Ten Conference meet in Iowa City, Iowa with a personal best 6,000-meter time of 21:08.
• North Central senior Nora Ferguson (Schaumburg) finished second at the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin meet. Teammate Amanda Cortese (Hersey) finished sixth as the Cardinals took first place.
On Nov. 14, Ferguson finished 16th at the Midwest Regional in a personal best 6,000-meter time of 21:53 while Cortese finished 20th in a personal best time of 22:03.
• Please email Sports Notes items to jleusch@dailyherald.com.