Nine Lemont student-athletes make college commitments

Nine Lemont High School student-athletes have announced their commitments to compete collegiately beginning in the 2021-22 seasons. They include baseball players Luke Guenther (Joliet Junior College), Ryan Tomaras (North Central College), Cris Villwock (College of DuPage) and Jake Wilk (Joliet Junior College); cross country/track and field athlete Niko Vallianatos (West Virginia University Institute of Technology); football player Evan Mutterer (Carthage College); gymnast/track and field athlete Megan Hunt (University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh); swimmer Joey Kibbon (St. Cloud State University); and volleyball player Paige Connolly (Albion College).

Paige Connolly – Career Highlights

• Has earned one varsity letter playing for head coach Chris Zogata
• Is expected to serve as the starting setter this spring
• Made her varsity debut as a junior in 2019, appearing in 75 games
• Tabbed with the team’s “Best Server” award after landing a team-high 57 service aces and averaging a team-best 0.76 aces per game
• Also led the team in ace percentage (19.1 percent) and was second on the squad in serve percentage (87.6 percent) and service points (148)
• Added 12 kills, 25 digs and 17 assists
• Lemont finished 30-8, which included a perfect 13-0 record in South Suburban Conference play, and won its first IHSA Regional title since 2012
• Plays club volleyball for 1st Alliance, and currently is part of its 18 Red squad
• High Honor Roll and National Honor Society student
• Will play for head coach Kristin Slamer-de St. Aubin at Albion College, an NCAA Division III institution that is located in Albion, Mich., and is a member of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association. Slamer-de St. Aubin is the winningest coach in school history; the Brits posted a 16-11 record in their most recent full season in 2019.

Albion College Women's Volleyball

Luke Guenther - Career Highlights

• Ready for his first varsity season playing for head coach Brian Storako after the 2020 campaign was cancelled
• Lefthanded pitcher who is expected to log many innings as one of the team’s top pitchers
• Plays travel baseball for Lincoln-Way Xposure, and has been part of many tourney champion squads
• Has won better than 80 percent of his decisions in travel baseball, spanning more than 50 appearances
• High Honor Roll student
• Will play for head coach Gregg Braun at Joliet Junior College, which is located in Joliet, Ill., and is a member of the North Central Community College Conference. Braun guided the Wolves to a 6-8 mark in an abbreviated debut season in 2020. 

Joliet Junior College Baseball

Megan Hunt – Career Highlights

• Accomplished gymnast who also heads into her second varsity track and field season under head coach Tim Plotke
• Has achieved “Level 10” status as a gymnast for three years, which is the highest level in the USA Gymnastics Junior Olympics Program
• Member of the Aspire Gymnastics Academy
• Earned a runner-up finish in the floor exercise with a career-best score of 9.375 at the 2020 Excalibur Cup
• Posted a career-best all-around score of 37.200 while winning the all-around at the Aspire Classic in December 2020
• Also was the beam champion at that event with a score of 9.500
• Other career-best marks include 9.675 on the vault and 9.100 on the uneven bars
• Quickly became a team leader in a shortened debut season in track and field as a junior in 2020
• Posted a career-best effort of 17’2” in the long jump, which is just two inches shy of the school record
• Also competed in the 200 meter dash, as well as the 4x200 meter and 4x400 meter relays
• High Honor Roll and National Honor Society student
• Will compete in gymnastics for head coach Lauren Karnitz at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, an NCAA Division III institution that is located in Oshkosh, Wis., and is a member of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Karnitz is a two-time National Association of Collegiate Gymnastics Coaches “Coach of the Year” who guided the Titans to a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Division III Championship Meet in 2019, as well as their first WIAC title in nearly 25 years in 2020.
• Will compete in track and field for head coach Justin Kinseth, a fourth-year coach who helped the Titans to top 30 finishes in both the NCAA Division III Indoor and Outdoor Championships in 2019

University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Gymnastics
University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Women's Track and Field

Joey Kibbon – Career Highlights

• In the midst of his fourth varsity season, including his second under head coach Josh Dunn
• Served as a team captain as both a junior and senior
• Three-time conference champion in the 200 free (2018, 2019, 2020) and a two-time conference champion in the 500 free (2019, 2020)
• Holds individual school records in the 200 freestyle (1:44.92) and 500 freestyle (4:47.57)
• Also part of school-record relay teams in the 200 medley, 200 freestyle and 400 freestyle
• Sparked Lemont to its first-ever South Suburban Conference Blue Division title as a junior in 2020, winning the 200 free and 500 free and competing as part of the 200 and 400 free relay squads
• Was part of the 200 free relay squad in 2020 that became Lemont’s first-ever IHSA State Finals relay qualifier
• Earned team MVP honors as a sophomore in 2019
• Competes as a club swimmer for FMC Aquatics
• Placed eighth in the 1650 freestyle at the Illinois Swimming Senior Championships in 2020
• Was eighth in the men’s 3K at the 2018 Illinois State Open Water Championship
• High Honor Roll student
• Will swim for head coach Jeff Hegle at St. Cloud State University, an NCAA Division II institution that is located in St. Cloud, Minn., and is an affiliate member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in men’s swimming. Hegle is in his 20th season heading the Huskies, and guided his squad to a fourth-place finish in the GLIAC in 2020.

St. Cloud State University Men's Swimming

Evan Mutterer – Career Highlights

• Heads into his second varsity season playing for head coach Bret Kooi
• Expected to serve as a team leader and as a starter at strong safety this spring
• Made his varsity debut as a junior in 2019
• Made a combined eight tackles (five solo) as a reserve in the secondary and on special teams
• Lemont finished with an 8-3 record, was the South Suburban Conference Blue Division runner-up, and advanced to the second round of the IHSA Class 6A Playoffs
• Also was a member of the boys’ track and field team as a junior in 2020
• Plays 7 on 7 football with TNT
• High Honor Roll student
• Will play for head coach Dustin Hass at Carthage College, an NCAA Division III institution that is located in Kenosha, Wis., and is a member of the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin. Hass enters his third campaign as Carthage’s head coach, and has guided his squad to 4-5 CCIW records in each of his first two seasons.

Carthage College Football

Ryan Tomaras – Career Highlights

• Ready for his first varsity season playing for head coach Brian Storako after the 2020 campaign was cancelled
• Is expected to serve both as a starting pitcher and as a third baseman
• Plays travel baseball for Team Easton, which finished Summer 2020 ranked sixth in Illinois and 13th in the Midwest according to Perfect Game
• Cited to the 2020 World Wood Bat Association Kernels Foundation Championship All-Tournament Team
• Tossed a no-hitter in July 2020
• High Honor Roll and National Honor Society student
• Will play for head coach Ed Mathey at North Central College, an NCAA Division III institution that is located in Naperville, Ill., and is a member of the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin. From 2015-19, Mathey led the Cardinals to five straight CCIW titles and four NCAA appearances, including a trip to the NCAA Division III College World Series in 2017.

North Central College Baseball

Niko Vallianatos – Career Highlights

• Has earned four varsity cross country letters for head coach Jon DeGuzman and two varsity track and field letters for head coach Dennis Kennedy
• Served as a cross country team captain as both a junior and senior
• Finished first four times as a senior in 2020 and helped Lemont win a modified South Suburban Conference title
• Was sixth individually and earned all-regional accolades as Lemont won the IHSA Regional crown
• Posted a career-best 3-mile time of 16:03 in a home meet against Oak Lawn
• Was 13th individually at the SSC Meet as a junior in 2019, as Lemont posted a runner-up finish in the SSC Blue
• Helped Lemont to a fourth-place finish in IHSA Regional competition by finishing 27th individually
• Earned all-conference honors as a sophomore in 2018 by placing ninth individually, helping Lemont to the SSC Blue title
• Was 13th in IHSA Regional competition in 2018, as Lemont placed fourth to advance to the IHSA Sectional 
• Served as Lemont’s top performer in the 3200 meter run as both a freshman and sophomore
• Placed seventh in the 3200 meter run at the 2018 SSC Blue Meet as a freshman, and sixth in the same event as a sophomore at the 2019 SSC Blue Meet
• Established a personal best in the 3200 meter run (10:41.73) at the 2019 IHSA Class 3A Sectional
• High Honor Roll student
• Will compete for head coach Jeremy Bloom at West Virginia University Institute of Technology, an NAIA institution that is located in Beckley, W.Va., and is a member of the River States Conference. Bloom is a two-time conference coach of the year who guided the Golden Bears to their third straight cross country league title in 2020.

West Virginia University Institute of Technology Men's Cross Country

Cris Villwock - Career Highlights

• Has worked hard in the offseason to put himself in position to contribute for head coach Brian Storako
• Lefthanded pitcher who is mostly likely to see time as a reliever
• Plays travel baseball for Team Easton, which finished Summer 2020 ranked sixth in Illinois and 13th in the Midwest according to Perfect Game
• Cited to the 2020 World Wood Bat Association Kernels Foundation Championship All-Tournament Team
• High Honor Roll student
• Will play for head coach Bobby Wilson at College of DuPage, which is located in Glen Ellyn, Ill., and is a member of the North Central Community College Conference. Wilson led the Chapparals to a 27-18-1 record in his first season in 2019, and a 6-3 mark in an abbreviated 2020 campaign. 

College of DuPage Baseball

Jake Wilk - Career Highlights

• Ready for his first varsity season playing for head coach Brian Storako after the 2020 campaign was cancelled
• Lefthanded hitting outfielder who can alter games on the base paths
• Righthanded pitcher who is expected to serve as a reliever
• Plays travel baseball for Cangelosi Sparks, and currently is rostered on its 2021 White Team 17U
• Batted .333 and led the team with seven stolen bases, 18 runs scored and a .556 on-base percentage during Fall 2020, while also compiling a 0.00 ERA and striking out 10
• Led his team in batting average (.350), on-base percentage (.490) and slugging percentage (.425) in Summer 2020
• Cited to all-tournament teams at the 2020 World Wood Bat Association 17U North Championship and the 2020 Perfect Game 17U Battle for the Midwest
• Helped Cangelosi Sparks to a third-place finish at the 2019 Perfect Game Invitational National Tournament
• Rushed for 198 yards and three touchdowns in his first varsity football season as a junior in 2019
• Honor Roll student
• Will play for head coach Gregg Braun at Joliet Junior College, which is located in Joliet, Ill., and is a member of the North Central Community College Conference. Braun guided the Wolves to a 6-8 mark in an abbreviated debut season in 2020. 

Joliet Junior College Baseball