Eric Duthie is going out big during his senior year, just like most high school seniors would like to. Duthie, one of the Hubs three main starters this year, is proving he has what it takes to lead this team this year.

Duthie is in his first full year as a varsity starting pitcher for the Hubs, but it’s dedication and leadership that’s most impressive.

“Last year I didn’t really get a lot of opportunity to pitch because we had other guys in that role,” Duthie said. “But (this year) has felt great.”

Duthie added a curve ball to his repertoire this year and it seems to be helping.

“I’m hitting my spot and working on my off speed pitches,” he said.

He actually led the Hubs to their very first win on the season earlier in April. While that may be his only win on the season, his work on the mound has been better than the number show.

He also brings experience with him, even though it wasn’t at the varsity level. He was the sophomore pitcher of the year two years ago and has spent the majority of his childhood learning to pitch.

“Growing up I just loved pitchin,” he added.

Duthie said he’s excited for the rest of the season and hopes the Hubs can be contenders through the playoff season.

Thanks to our sponsors Lincoln State Bank, Abraham’s Bar & Grill, Liquor N’ Wine and Wills Chiropractic.

More Focus Athlete photos can be found on our website at www.lifeworksimaging.com

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Morgan Miller is no stranger to the limelight when it comes to dancing. The Hubs junior just finished her second year as co-captain of the Poms team and led the team to one of its most successful years to date.

“I felt like I helped the team a lot this year,” she said. “We made it to state for the first year, too.”

Miller said most of her leadership comes in the form of simply encouraging the other girls on the team and leading by example.

“I try to tell them not to give up and just keep everything going,” she said.

Miller is the natural leader mostly because she probably brings the majority of experience. She started dancing at three years old and started dancing competitively in fourth grade. She’s gone through a few different dance schools or groups as she’s progressed over the years, but next year will probably be the biggest decision of her dance career. IHSA has included Poms into its classification of sanctioned high school sports, meaning that she will not be able to compete in both IHSA and her current dance group in Dixon.

“I’m still trying to decide,” she said.

Miller said she’s torn because she loves competing at the high school level, but also doesn’t want to let her private instructor down. Many private dance studios will be losing high school girls because of the same rules.

“(My private instructor) is going to be losing a lot more than just me,” she said.

Whatever Miller decides, there’s no doubt she’ll be giving it her all for the her senior year because it’s something she’s passionate about.

“I just love it,” she said.

Thanks to our sponsors Lincoln State Bank, Abraham’s Bar & Grill, Liquor N’ Wine and Wills Chiropractic.

More Focus Athlete photos can be found on our website at www.lifeworksimaging.com

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If Abby Gould’s end-of-season leadership is anything close to what the Hubs have in store next season, they’re going to be in pretty good shape. Gould, the sophomore forward finished the 2011 season on high note by scoring a career-high 10 points vs. Dixon and coupled that with a dynamic defensive display, keeping the Dukes go-to player scoreless.

“I just knew it was the end of the season and I wanted to go out big,” she said.

This is Gould’s first year playing at the varsity level, but she’s certainly proving that she’s ready when her junior year starts.

She admits the first part of her year was played rather timidly. Chalk it up to inexperience or intimidation, but whatever it was, it’s gone.

“You can’t play timid,” she said. It’s something her coaches kept telling her all season and it finally broke through at the end.

Gould says her goal for next year is to continue with the success the Lady Hubs had this season, but to improve where she can.

For one, she’ll be doing a lot more shooting all year in the future. She started this season with three to four points per game, but she’d like to see more games like the Dixon playoff game.

Gould said basketball has always kind of come easy to her, but it hasn’t been until recently that she’s really put concentration into her game and it seems to be paying off.

“I just got more focused,” she added.

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Team leaders come in all sorts of shapes, sizes and attitudes. This year, the Hubs leader came in the form of a quiet lanky senior named Derek White. It’s not by accident either.  White has taken different roles on and off the court this year with the Hubs basketball team, but his most important role of leader came at the behest of his coaches and his dad.

“As a younger player, I had my times when I wasn’t much of a leader, but this year my dad and I wanted me to be more of a role model to the younger guys,” he said.

His coaches had the same plan for him. White said that head football coach Kevin Crandall talked to him at the beginning of the football season about stepping up and it had a pretty big impact on him.

“He told me I had a lot going for me this year and wanted me to step up,” he said.

While many would slough the conversation off, White took it to heart and has done everything expected of him.

He might not have the most points in a game, but that doesn’t bother him. He’s not concerned with his points. The only thing he’s concerned about is the ‘W’ at the end of the day and making sure the rest of the team follows his lead.

When the team needs a big man in the paint, he’ll do it, but when they need him hitting jumpers from the corner, he’s got it on lock.

“I’m just glad I can play different positions and help the team out however I can,” he said.

White will be facing off against Rochelle rival Kaneland tonight in the rubber match of the year. Home court advantage seems to have been the difference in their matchups and that bodes well for the Hubs who will host the regional championship tonight.

White says he’s hopeful for tonight’s game, but is mostly just proud of what the team’s done all year long.

“Hopefully we make it all the way, but our goal was always to win a regional championship.”

Thanks to our sponsors Lincoln State Bank, Abraham’s Bar & Grill, Liquor N’ Wine and Wills Chiropractic.

More Focus Athlete photos can be found on our website at www.lifeworksimaging.com

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Will Widick is always there to lend a helping hand to his teammates. The stats prove it. Widick, captain of the Rochelle Hubs varsity basketball team is averaging four points per game this year as well as four rebounds per game. But the real story is his team-leading 66 assists. Pair that with 14 steals on the season and you’ve got a recipe for one of the Hubs best all around players.

Widick is the nuts and bolts of the Hubs team. While players like Grant Prusator and  Matt Rosenwinkel are draining threes from the arc, Widick is the guy dishing it up to them.

“I’d rather have 15 assists and zero points that score 15 in a game,” Widick said.

It’s a cue he took from his childhood days of playing on teams with his friends.

“I’ve just always tried my hardest to help my team out,” he said.

Widick has progressively become a better player over the years because of the multiple threats he has. Four points per game may not sound like the greatest stat, but teams are always in danger of him going off if he decides too.

He’s worked hard on his shot over the past year, working with former head coach Zick and continuing his work with Assistant Coach Jared Johnson over the past year.

“Last year I had one of the ugliest shots on the team, but (all the coaches) helped me out a lot,” he added.

Widick is helping his team to another great year. The team set a goal of 20 wins at the beginning of the year and they seem determined to finish what they started. It won’t come easy though. The team is 16-7 with five games left in the season, but Widick feels the team has what it takes.

“I love this team and I wouldn’t want to play with anyone else,” he added.

Thanks to our sponsors Lincoln State Bank, Abraham’s Bar & Grill, Liquor N’ Wine and Wills Chiropractic.

More Focus Athlete photos can be found on our website at www.lifeworksimaging.com

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Jamie Wyatt may not be the Rochelle Lady Hub flashiest player. She may not be the MVP and she may never set a record with the team. And she’s just fine with that.

While many athletes seek that penultimate moment of glory when you sink a winning shot as the buzzer expires or the gripping rush of solidifying your spot in fandom history, Wyatt prefers to be a team player.

It’s kind of expected to be like that when you’re team captain too and that’s why Wyatt is leading the Lady Hubs to another successful season.

She embodies what it means to be team captain and has no remorse about the way she plays or leads.

“I just try to go in their and do the little things,” she said.

On any given night, she’s hustling up the court, hitting three-point shots, moving in for mid ranges, sending assists and most importantly, she’s out there talking to her teammates.

“I’m always out there talking,” she said. “But I think my teammates appreciate it.”

Wyatt said her style of play started as a freshman when Coach Gleisner taught her to play as a team leader and those lesson carried over until now.

With two weeks left in the regular season and the team looking down the stretch to meeting Dixon in the regional tournament, Wyatt said she’s just concentrating on making the most of it and soaking up those last few weeks of her high school career.

“It’s my senior year and I’m just working as hard as I can and get as much out of the season,” she said.

Thanks to our sponsors Lincoln State Bank, Abraham’s Bar & Grill, Liquor N’ Wine and Wills Chiropractic.

More Focus Athlete photos can be found on our website at www.lifeworksimaging.com

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Holly Brown has been working hard over the past couple of years to get her bowling game where she’d like it, and she’s just about there.

Brown, one of 12 female bowlers for the Rochelle Hubs this season, is the anchor of the varsity team. She’s already had one 600 series and has a high game of 255 in the LaSalle tournament, but she’s not completely satisfied with the season yet.

“I’d really like to get another 600 series,” she said.

Brown credits most of her success to getting a new ball, which has upped her average a little this year, and simply following the lessons of her coach Joey Johanning and former Senior PBA Champ Mike Pullin, who has been helping the team periodically this year.

“Joey taught me how to throw the ball better and slow down,” she said. “Mike’s helped me focus on bending my knees and my footwork.”

Brown said she’s been trying especially hard this year, but mostly enjoys the sport because she gets to be with her friends and she gets to travel to the different tournaments.

Tonight is the Hubs last home match and sectionals are right around the corner. Brown said she’s going to try her hardest the rest of the season, but really just wants to enjoy the remainder of her senior year with her teammates.

Thanks to our sponsors Lincoln State Bank, Abraham’s Bar & Grill, Liquor N’ Wine and Wills Chiropractic.

More Focus Athlete photos can be found on our website at www.lifeworksimaging.com

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“The funny thing is I was just looking to stay in shape for football,” he said.

But the universe has its own funny way of doing whatever it wants. Sutton kind of surprised himself over the next few years. Winning matches from time to time, adding muscle mass and learning the techniques of the sport.

Now in his fourth and final season with RTHS, Sutton is proving to be one of the workhorses for a team who wasn’t sure what to expect for its upcoming season.

Sutton’s been a surprise to himself and the team, leading the Hubs with a 17-1 record at his 220-pound and under weight class. 13 of those wins are pins.

He’s got some tough competition to the rest of the way until sectionals and hopes to continue hanging tough, but as most people know, when you get to sectionals, it’s a bit of a crap shoot.

He’s just hoping all the lessons he’s learned over the past few years will pay off.

“I have to thank coach for coming in and helping me extra,” he said. “(He teaches) the little things that you’d normally miss.”

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Ben Shank is bucking the old cliche of sophomore slump in his second year with the RTHS Hubs bowling team. Shank, in his second year of the sport, has been making a lot of starts at varsity for the first time this year and plans on holding on to that varsity spot for the remainder of his high school career. Shank started out the season pretty average, but a lot of practice and a lot of consistency has led him to an increase of more than 20 pins on his average. He credits most of his success to just applying the lessons he’s learned from his coaches and from his dad.

“My dad always taught me to pay attention to what people said,” Shank added.

The real key to Shank’s success lies in just throwing a slightly better ball and hitting his marks. He’s not hitting the head pin nearly as much as he did in the past and it’s working wonders because he’s leaving a lot less splits. Less splits turns into more spare opportunities.

“I focus more on the mark and where to throw,” Shank said. “And it’s got me more strikes.”

Shank said he’s focusing on just improving his average for the remainder of the year. He’s somewhere around a 187 average and hopes to spike that by about 13 pins by the end of the year.

“I’d like to get a 200 average by the end of the year,” he said. “I’m just going to keep on practicing. That’s all I can really do.”

Shank recently picked up a new ball that’s having him throw harder down the lane a little too and he sees a lot of promise with it. He threw  a 275 in practice the other day, but still remains in the 230s for a high game in a match. He’s just hoping for a little bit more consistency with the ball and thinks that it should lead to a really nice game that can count for the season.

Thanks to our sponsors Lincoln State Bank, Abraham’s Bar & Grill, Liquor N’ Wine and Wills Chiropractic.

More Focus Athlete photos can be found on our website at www.lifeworksimaging.com

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Brandon Villa is nothing short of a movie cliche. Take a kid who’s never really played organized sports, throw him in a soccer jersey, start him at forward his senior year and just see what happens. Well, if you’re Villa, you end up being the leading scorer for the season. Villa led the Hubs boys soccer team with 14 goals this season and helped lead the team to a chance at the regional championship. Villa said he never got much of a chance to play much organized sports because his mom’s job had them moving fairly often during his high school career, but when he found out he was going to be in Rochelle for his entire senior year, he decided he wanted to try out.

He learned most of what he knows about soccer from doing nothing but watching players on tv try things and he just naturally picked up on the game. It’s nothing new for him. He said he’s always had the ability to watch someone do anything and then just do it himself, but soccer has been even more special for him.

“How do I do it? I just don’t know,” Villa said. “I’ve just really excelled at soccer.”

He credits a solid Hubs team with being able to spread the wealth to a lot of his scoring. By having several scoring threats on the field, it made it easier for the whole team, including himself to make big goals.

Villa said he’s been thrilled to be on the team this year and is even looking at spring sports to play, but said he won’t soon forget this season. His highlight of the year was a come-from-behind win against Kaneland where he scored two of the team’s three goals to take down one of Rochelle’s biggest rivals.

Now he’s just concentrating on his future. After only one season of playing, he’s been invited to multiple schools to try out for their soccer teams and said he has hopes of making it on at least one of them.

“I just think it’s so great you can play a sport you love and go to school at the same time,” he said.

If he impresses those coaches as much as he’s impressed everyone else this year, he’s a lock on almost any of those team.

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