Routt Catholic wins fourth straight sectional title, heads to super-sectional

Routt Catholic kept Morgan County in the postseason spotlight with an 8-5 win over Monmouth United in the IHSA Class 1A Camp Point Sectional title game, giving the Rockets their fourth straight sectional championship. Left-hander Brady Turner set the tone with 14 strikeouts and one walk as Routt built an 8-1 lead before holding off a late Monmouth rally.

The victory pushed Routt to 24-12 and sent the Rockets on to the super-sectional against Nokomis at Lincoln Land Community College’s Claude Kracik Field in Springfield, where a trip to the state finals was on the line. For Jacksonville-area baseball followers, the result meant a local program stayed alive deep into June and continued to carry the county’s name into the state bracket.

Turner’s outing gave Routt the edge it needed early, and the Rockets’ offense backed him with enough run support to make the sectional final manageable until Monmouth United made things uncomfortable late. Even with the rally, Routt did what championship teams do in this stage of the season: it built a cushion, absorbed pressure and found a way to finish.

The same roundup showed how strong the wider west-central Illinois sports picture remained around Morgan County. Pleasant Plains fell 3-0 to Father McGivney in the Class 1A girls soccer state championship match, but the Cardinals still finished 26-1-2, the second-best record in school history and the highest finish the program has ever reached. Their arrival home drew a fire department escort, a reminder of how tightly small towns follow postseason runs and how quickly those teams become part of a community’s identity.

North Greene also added to the day’s state-level results when Owen Schutz and Porter Dossett placed second at the IHSA Class 1A State Bass Fishing Tournament with a two-day total of 29 pounds, 15 ounces, finishing just behind Teutopolis. Together, the performances underscored that the region’s schools are still producing championship-caliber results across multiple sports, with Routt’s run now offering Morgan County fans the clearest immediate reason to keep watching.