The Red Raiders' contest with Rockford Boylan went down to the wire, but the visiting Titans rallied for a 46-42 victory Nov. 14.

Sophomore Mia Garlin led the way for Huntley with 10 points, including two three-pointers, while forwards senior Yasmine Morsy and junior Paula Strzelecki tallied eight points each. Huntley led by eight points with five minutes left but led by 22 points by Lily Esparza, Boylan Catholic closed on a 14-2 run.

MCC players gained All-Region and All-Skyway Conference honors. Issy Nick, Valle Leggett, and Lilli Leggett were named to the first team All Region Team. Nick was picked for first team all conference and Valle Leggett and Alexis Schwartz were second team all conference.

Breunig reflected on his long dedication to the sport, which began as a youngster, in a recent survey.

Describe your years in youth soccer and club teams.

Breunig: "I started playing soccer when I was 5-years-old. I started out playing park district rec soccer, (where Gavin Eagan's dad was my coach).

Nielsen gained both Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association All-State honors and was named to the All-Fox Valley Conference team. The Red Raiders finished 16-6-1, won their Class 3A regional tournament and shared the Fox Valley Conference championship.

In survey answers, Nielsen complimented several youth development coaches since his early days.

Describe your years in youth soccer, club teams, etc.

Go Huntley encourages residents to walk 30 minutes each day for a healthy lifestyle. Northwestern Medicine Foundation is the main sponsor of the Go Huntley campaign.

Participants on the Thursday walk received a Go Huntley t-shirt. Officials said they are working on a date and location indoors for December.

The park district is looking for a group of individuals who are passionate about health and walking to volunteer and lead our new community health program called Go Huntley.

Huntley American Legion Post 673 Commander Pat Conley gave remarks, and flags were presented and retired.

"Veterans Day was originally called Armistice Day because the armistice was signed to end World War I, on the 11th day, of the 11th month, at the 11th hour in 1918," Conley said. "It's an honor to speak at Veterans Day.

Huntley head girls basketball coach Steve Raethz is optimistic heading into the 2023-24 campaign with a mix of new and returning varsity players. The season opener is at 7 p.m. Nov. 14 against Boylan Catholic, part of the Dundee-Crown Thanksgiving tournament.

Returning varsity players are junior guard Anna Campanelli; junior guard Ava McFadden; senior guard Cassidy Serpe and senior forward Isabella Boskey.

“We are very excited for the season to begin,” Raethz said.

Setter Laura Boberg selected University of Wisconsin-Platteville, while Morgan Jones opted for the University of Missouri;  Avery Gonzalez will attend University of Illinois-Springfield and Lizzy Williams will play volleyball at Carroll University in Waukesha, Wis.

Jones, Watson and Williams were named to the All-Fox Valley Conference team as selected by the league's head coaches.

From left to right: Alex Simios, baseball, University of Wisconsin-Platteville; Estela Tafur, cheerleading, Morehead State; Avery Gonzalez, volleyball, University of Illinois-Springfield; Morgan Jones, volleyball, University of Missouri; Lizzy Williams, volleyball, Carroll College; Laura Boberg, volleyball, University of Wisconsin, Platteville; Malachi Paplanus, baseball, Wright State University; Louis Siriano, baseball, McHenry County College and Kyle Larson, baseball, College of Lake County.

Zack Garifo, a wide receiver and safety, enjoyed his responsibility of leading the Red Raiders onto the field for warm-ups as he carried the “H” flag against Niles West for a Class 8A playoff game Oct. 27. The Red Raiders won 26-14 but lost in the second round to St. Ignatius College Prep, 35-23, on Nov. 3.

“The 'H' flag means a lot to us,” Garifo said.

St. Ignatius College Prep, seeded 24th, achieved its second straight playoff upset with a 35-23 win over the eighth-seed Red Raiders in the Class 8A second round game in Chicago on Nov. 3.

The Red Raiders ended the season at 9-2, but battled to the final buzzer. HHS scored its final points on a Braylon Bower 20-yard touchdown pass to senior Jacob Witt with three minutes left.

Back on the traveling squad are juniors Austin Tenglin, Matthew Fishman, Joseph Humphrey, Landen Conforti, Matt Hoglind and Nick Gaspari. Freshman Noah Waters is also a part of the traveling competition group.

Fourth-year head coach Jacob Wagner summed up the early season work.

“Our turnout was great,” Wagner said. “We currently have 32 total boys signed up for bowling with 17 freshmen, seven sophomores, and eight juniors.

Huntley alumna Emily Willis described her team as ready for the post-season. McHenry County College advanced in the Region IV tournament with the first round win Nov. 1 as they swept Illinois Valley, 25-23, 25-21, 25-15.

“We are super motivated and had amazing practices,” Willis said.

Willis contributed six kills and 11 digs against Illinois Valley.

The team's bid for a fourth straight sectional championship, which ended at its home court Oct. 30, may not have come to pass, but the resiliency is something the Red Raiders will take from a 2-1 upset at the hands of Gurnee Warren. The sectional's top seeded Red Raiders  fell in a tough 22-25, 25-15, 20-25 loss to the second seed Blue Devils.

The final chapter of the 31-7 Huntley season included recovery from a previous injury, but also new injuries.

“I'll miss all of it,” Zuzzio, who finished 35th, said.

Zuzzio recently answered questions about their cross country career.

Describe your initial years of cross country.

Zuzzio: “When I first joined cross country I thought of it as a way to condition myself for baseball. I still enjoyed running, especially coming from a state championship team in eighth grade, but it was never my main focus.”

The Red Raiders girls, earned a third place and IHSA State Meet spot at the Class 3A Sectional Meet Oct. 28 at Lake Park's campus course in Roselle. The girls squad moves on as a team to the IHSA State Cross Country Meet Nov. 4 at Detweiller Park in Peoria. Freshman Haley Rahman led the girls effort with a 21st place time of 18:21.1.

The final seconds were ticking down as Huntley had a football victory formation. The celebration of the Red Raiders' 26-14 Class 8A playoff win had begun, with a chant of “start the buses” on Oct. 28.

Led by three touchdowns and 146 yards rushing from Haiden Janke and a key punt block, Huntley overcame Niles West to gain an achievement that has been three years in the making.

Huntley, the sectional's top seed, improved to 31-6 record as it beat Dundee-Crown, 25-12, 25-13 on Oct. 26. Huntley will face second-seed Warren Township, at the home sectional semifinal Oct. 30. Warren, seeded second for the sectional, won the Jacobs regional over the home team, 2-1, to advance.

A steady effort led the Red Raiders to the successful night at Rockford East.

Allison contributed a sixth place finish at regional. She recently answered questions about her cross country career.

Describe your initial years of cross country.

Allison: “I loved cross country when I started and I still love it. I joined cross country because my mom used to sign me up for fun obstacle course races when I was younger.

Huntley senior Hudson Nielsen scored the team's lone goal, on a second half penalty kick. He finished with 18 goals on the season and 43 total points.

“Every game has been for my teammates,” Nielsen said. “I love every single one of them. It feels good to score a goal for the team in my last game.”

The Red Raiders (30-6 record) will try for a seventh straight regional championship against Dundee-Crown at Rockford East on Oct. 26. Williams, who has been on the varsity team for four seasons, recently answered survey questions about her career.

Describe your initial years in volleyball.

Williams: “I started playing volleyball when I was around 5 or 6-years old.