Twins announce for NIU

MONTICELLO – Juniors Kaitlyn and Kristyn Barrett have committed to continuing their softball careers at Northern Illinois. They will enroll at the DeKalb school in August 2011 and are both projected as outfielders.

Through 31 games this spring for Monticello, Kaitlyn Barrett is the team's leading hitter (.510 average) and also the leader in stolen bases (27).

Kristyn Barrett ranks third among the Sages in batting (.382), second in stolen bases (20) and first in runs scored (41). Both players have walked more times than they've struck out.

Spartan headed to Arkansas

ST. JOSEPH – Junior outfielder Stephanie Canfield recently accepted a scholarship offer from the University of Arkansas to continue her softball career. She also visited or had interest from Georgia, Illinois and Washington, among others. Arkansas is coached by Mike Larabee, a former Illini assistant coach.

Through 30 games for the 27-3 Spartans, Canfield is batting .598 (second on the team) and has driven 21 of her 76 hits for extra bases. She has a team-high 49 stolen bases and has struck out four times in 134 plate appearances.

Canfield is the second SJ-O underclassman to accept a Division I scholarship offer this spring. Last month, junior infielder Hannah Bowen orally committed to Oklahoma State.

Last weekend, Bowen shattered the all-time state record for RBI in a single season. She has 89. The previous IHSA record was 80, set in 1988.

New home run king at M-S

MAHOMET – Current Mahomet-Seymour baseball coach Nic DiFilippo set the school's single-season baseball record for home runs when he swatted 13 in 1999. He watched last week as his mark went by the wayside.

Senior Brannon Kwiatkowski – the area's leading power hitter – hammered his 14th in a semifinal contest of the Corn Belt Conference tournament in Normal. M-S placed second in the tournament but won the league's regular season title. A .463 hitter for the season, Kwiatkowski is also the area leader in RBI with 50.

Illini Swish wins title

The Champaign-Urbana-based Illini Swish traveling girls' basketball team won the U.S. Junior Nationals Gateway Challenge earlier this month in St. Louis.

The team consists of current high school freshmen or sophomores: Jamie Blue, Urbana Uni High; Destani Burton, Urbana; Kelsey Easton, Williamsville; Cheyenne Hedrington, Champaign Central; Jerica Hawkins, Decatur Lutheran; Emma Hoyer, Urbana Uni High; Marshaya Sangster, Decatur Eisenhower; Sidney Sturdivant, Decatur MacArthur; and Nicole Weaver, Mount Zion.

Blue made the Gateway Challenge all-star team. The squad is coached by Jeff Blue.

G-RF schedules benefit

GEORGETOWN – The rescheduled Strikeout for Cancer game for Georgetown-Ridge Farm's softball team will be at 4:30 p.m. Thursday against visiting Schlarman. The Buffaloes and Hilltoppers were rained out April 7.

This is the second year the school has participated in the fundraiser. Players will wear pink for the game, and money raised from collections that day will be combined with funds already raised by the squad members.

Seeber on U.S. team

CHAMPAIGN – Centennial graduate Layton Seeber, who played basketball the past two seasons at Mattoon's Lake Land College, will be part of a 12-player team representing the United States this summer in the Deaf World Games in Poland.

M-S athlete selects college

MAHOMET – Senior Elizabeth Langley committed to Lincoln Christian College, where she intends to play soccer. A midfielder, she is a four-year varsity letter winner for the Bulldogs. Through 11 matches this season, M-S' defense is allowing little more than one goal per match.

Langley plans to major in intercultural studies and the teaching of English to speakers of other languages (TESOL).

M-S is seeded third in the Centennial Regional and will open May 18 against No. 2 Central.