Deep field in store for the Colmone
The Fieldcrest Knights are on a hot streak when it comes to the Colmone Classic at Hall High School. They’ve won three straight championships and 11 in 19 years.
While the Red Devils will do their best to keep the Knights out of the championship, Hall coach Mike Filippini said they are plenty of teams to worry about this year.
“I think it’s the best field of teams we have had since I’ve been here for 12 years. No easy games on any nights. A lot of very good teams and a lot of different styles as well,” Filippini said.
“Mendota is huge and phyiscal, St. Bede has a ton of experience, BV is very deep and athletic, Fieldcrest has won the tourney for ever and probably has the best player in the tournament Brady Sanders, Plano is the most atletic team in the tourney and we score over 60 points a game and play up tempo. Should be extremely competitive for the fans that come out to watch it.”
The defending champ Knights (3-0) will play out of the Red Pool along with the host Hall Red Devils (2-6), Sherrard and Plano (2-2). The White Pool will be comprised of St. Bede (4-2), Stark County (2-1), Mendota (5-1) and Bureau Valley (5-3). Records do not reflect Friday’s results.
All eight of last year’s teams have returned to this year’s tournament.
Monday’s openers will pit St. Bede vs. Bureau Valley at 5 p.m., Stark County vs. Mendota at 6:30 p.m. and Hall vs. Sherrard at 8 p.m.
Fieldcrest will enter the fray at 5 p.m. Tuesday vs. Sherrard followed by Mendota vs. St. Bede at 6:30 p.m. and Hall vs. Plano at 8 p.m.
On Wednesday, Fieldcrest meets Plano at 5 p.m., Mendota faces Bureau Valley at 6:30 p.m. and St. Bede and Stark County tangle at 8 p.m.
Pool play concludes Friday, with Stark County playing Bureau Valley at 5 p.m. Sherrard vs. Plano at 6:30 p.m. and Hall vs. Fieldcrest at 8 p.m.
Finals will start at 3 p.m. Dec. 15, with the seventh-place contest followed by the fifth-place game at 4:30 p.m., third-place at 6 p.m. and the championship at 7:30 p.m.
The Knights beat St. Bede 60-54 in overtime a year ago.
• Lady Bruin Classic: Mendota drew the top seed for the Lady Bruin Christmas Classic which will be held Dec. 22-29 at the Academy, featuring the Lady Bruins (4-6), Princeton (2-7) and LaMoille/Ohio (0-9). The Lady Trojans improved to 6-2 with Thursday’s win at Princeton.
Other top four seeds are Kewanee (5-5), St. Bede (4-7) and Fieldcrest (5-4), Rounding out the field are Seneca (3-4), Eureka (2-5), IVC (2-5) and Henry-Senachwine (2-6).
Eureka beat St. Bede 57-51 in last year’s title game
• Seeding for the Plano Christmas Classic will take place Thursday. The Mendota and Princeton boys will return. Belvidere is the defending champion.
Other tournament sites include boys — Marseilles (LaMoille/Ohio, St. Bede), Erie (Bureau Valley) and Princeville (DePue); girls — Erie (Bureau Valley) and Prophetstown (Hall).
