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Illini Inquirer

In fall 2025, I was offered an internship with Illini Inquirer, a 247Sports and CBS Sports affiliate. The experience has allowed me to build on the skills I developed as a beat writer for SB Nation and pushed me out of my comfort zone by requiring me to cover a wide range of sports—some of which I wasn’t very familiar with. It has also helped me refine my abilities as both a writer and a reporter. As a writer, I aim to make every story as engaging as possible. As a reporter, I challenge myself to ask thoughtful, informed questions at every opportunity. Throughout the year, I cover football, women’s soccer, volleyball and several other sports as the year unfolds.

Illinois Football

247Sports •

Illini OLB Daniel Brown thankful to return to field after injury issues: 'They've helped me make me who I am'

CHAMPAIGN — When Daniel Brown first grazed the halls of the Smith Center in the spring of 2024, he expected there to be a moment where it all clicked. Fifteen months later,  he's still waiting for that moment, which has been derailed by injury, testing Brown's fervor for the game of football to the max.

An unfortunate series of injuries has marred Brown's tenure at Illinois. He came into the program with a lot to prove, and while he's been impactful when healthy, he's barely seen the field due...
247Sports •

Inside the emergence of Illini RB Ca'Lil Valentine: 'We think he's going to be a special player for us'

CHAMPAIGN — "You are the thinker that thinks the thoughts to make your dreams come true."

That's the message Ca'Lil Valentine wears behind his purple pendant that reflects the image of his grandmother on its front side, outlined by a golden chain. It's a message passed down through four generations; it's what Valentine's great-grandmother first told his grandmother.

The running back wears it everywhere, all the time, including the moment he bursts through a Duke corner, besting him in a should...
247Sports •

How Justin Bowick is looking to build off impactful Illini debut: 'I just have to keep getting better'

CHAMPAIGN — As he shook off a Western Illinois cornerback with ease on a whip route, Justin Bowick caught a short pass from Luke Altmyer and jogged into Memorial Stadium's south end zone for his first touchdown as an Illini. Instantly, he blacked out, lifting his arms towards the crowd to put an exclamation point on the first quarter of his Illini debut.

It was hard to miss the towering 6-foot-4 wide receiver in the Illini's 52-3 season-opening win over Western Illinois, hauling in three recept...
247Sports •

FamILLy gathering: Illini 'believe in DNA' with five sets of brothers on 2025 team

CHAMPAIGN — Nothing ignites the competitive spirit quite like competing against or alongside a sibling.

As kids, it's common for siblings to play on the same Pee Wee football team, long before the days of high school varsity, and for some of the less fortunate, junior varsity cuts.

In Champaign, brotherly bonds can be found throughout the Illinois roster.

This season, Illinois has five sets of brothers on the roster: Josh Kreutz and James Kreutz, Xavier Scott and Xanai Scott, Torrie Cox Jr. a...
247Sports •

How NIU transfer Ethan Hampton has braced for Illini backup QB role: 'He's really tuned in mentally'

CHAMPAIGN — Ethan Hampton had led Northern Illinois to one of its highest highs in 2024. He had spent four seasons in DeKalb, his last of which culminated in a historic upset over Notre Dame, and later gave way to a bowl game win over Fresno State.

More than 11 months after the upset of the year against the College Football Playoff runner-up, Hampton is preparing to suit up for one more season of college football — only this time as a backup to one of the top Big Ten quarterbacks, Illinois seni...

Illinois Soccer

247Sports •

Janet Rayfield reflects on Katie Hultin elevating Illini soccer: 'I knew that they were in a good place'

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Janet Rayfield sat on a video call, behind her floated crisp fall leaves from tall trees as she lingered amid the mountains where she now calls home. A proper return to a place she once fell in love with, a crazed childhood obsession that has now spilled into her life all these years later.

Except today — surrounded by nature and all — Rayfield carries the battle scars of more than two decades of coaching Illinois soccer, the memories of every thrilling, joyous, tragic...
247Sports •

'A total soccer junkie': How Sarah Foley fell for the sport, became a star behind Illini soccer's upward push

The ball rolled on its way out of bounds, but before it could ever get there, she flew in, like a gazelle. The momentum was so maniacal that she incidentally knocked a defender to the ground. Then suddenly, two more defenders appeared, she faked them out and extended the ball to her left, turning her hips to hit a shot into the net to send Demirjian Park into a frenzy.

A goal that would end up making the Sports Center Top 10.

Nothing was going to stop Sarah Foley from scoring what ended up bei...
247Sports •

'I think it's all coming together': Behind Illini soccer's Year One turnaround under Katie Hultin

CHAMPAIGN — A switch flipped. Timely goals. Mistakes minimized. A palpable sense of energy.

It's led to smiles on the Illinois side of the pitch after almost every game at Demirjian Park this season. First-year head coach Katie Hultin is proud of the progress her program has made and continues to make.

After all, it culminated in Illinois soccer's best start to a season. Ever.

Illinois (12-2-1, 5-2-1 Big Ten) entered the week at No. 36 in the RPI, is ranked No. 24 in Top Drawer Soccer's lates...
247Sports •

Illini soccer notches signature B1G win over No. 18 Penn State: 'The energy was just insane'

CHAMPAIGN — The horn blew, and Illinois stormed the pitch. Smiles draped the green grass as the team embraced themselves, and kept piling on each other as they took it all in. A win so riveting that players lingered on the pitch, sulking in the euphoria.

The celebration took so long that it forced Illini head coach Katie Hultin, seemingly a bit perturbed, to demand her players line up for the postgame handshake.

Illinois had taken down No. 18 Penn State in a scintillating 4-3 win, the signatur...
247Sports •

Illini soccer readies for B1G test with two ranked foes coming to C-U: 'Pressure is a privilege'

CHAMPAIGN — Illinois soccer's first conference game against Indiana saw Illinois break the record for the best start to a season in program history (7-0-1). Despite the milestone, head coach Katie Hultin was disturbed by the result.

Indiana had effectively scouted Illinois, who play a high-tempo and pass-focused style of soccer. And they forced Illinois to play long-ball, a style Hultin admits she doesn't typically like to play.

"We were playing scared. We were playing on our heels," Hultin sa...
247Sports •

'We're just doing our job': First-year coach Katie Hultin not satisfied despite Illini soccer's hot start

CHAMPAIGN — Katie Hultin flailed her arms back and forth, directing her team to move upfield, roaring at her players from the sideline.

Despite an emphatic 6-0 victory over Valparaiso, she did not flinch. After her team tied the program record for its best start to a season at 7-0 after sweeping the nonconference slate, Hultin was at ease but far from satisfied.

Not only had Illinois accomplished a feat no other Illini soccer team had in 21 seasons, but the Illini did so with their most domina...
247Sports •

Foley's highlight goal lifts Illini soccer to 1-0 win over BC in Hultin's home opener: 'It was special'

CHAMPAIGN —  A packed crowd of 1,083 showed up at Demirjian Park on Monday night, the second-highest total for a soccer game at the four-year-old facility. And the fans were treated to a new brand of Illinois soccer during the Illini's home opener under first-year coach Katie Hultin.

The Illini came out sporting a common, but unfamiliar, aggressive and intense brand of soccer that produced a nail-biting 1-0 win over Boston College to clinch their first home win for Hultin.

A burst of speed by...

Illinois Volleyball

247Sports •

Illini volleyball looks to continue momentum with pair of home matches: 'I just see a more cohesive group'

CHAMPAIGN — It's been 22 days since Illinois volleyball has lost a game, a promising period for a team that saw little retention from last season's squad. The Illini (12-5, 7-1 Big Ten) are on a five-match winning streak, including four straight road wins, which has maneuvered them into an excellent start to conference play as they prepare for a pair of matches at Huff Hall this weekend.

What's led to this success?

A consensus is that the team immediately clicked upon arrival, successfully nav...
247Sports •

Illini volleyball notebook: Illinois embracing change and success on the road

CHAMPAIGN — Taylor de Boer singled out Kenna Phelan as the biggest trash-talker on this year's iteration of Illinois volleyball. And to the slight chagrin of a jovial Phelan, she stood slightly honored, but mostly determined to defend herself as a frivolous trash-talker, happy to point the finger at someone else.

Maybe in a different season, the claustrophobia caused by the need to string a couple of wins together would leave no air for that kind of levity. But not this season.

Illinois volley...
247Sports •

Illini volleyball notebook: Freshman Alyssa Aguayo not rattled by big early role; Illini bracing for B1G play

CHAMPAIGN — The cross-country road trip to start the season has been weathered, and Illinois volleyball is 4-3, having faced most of its non-conference opponents, including No. 2 Louisville. The team will finally play at Huff Hall this weekend as they take on their final two non-conference games against Iowa State and Eastern Illinois.

The first couple of weeks of the season served as a barometer for head coach Chris Tamas to assess how the team, and particularly the new faces in the program, w...
247Sports •

Illini volleyball notebook: Taylor de Boer battles rare disease to return to court; UI gets out 'jitters'

CHAMPAIGN – Taylor de Boer had no idea if she would ever get to play volleyball again.

In the spring of 2023, de Boer was diagnosed with Anti-Neutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody disease, otherwise known as ANCA, a rare autoimmune disease that causes inflammation in various blood vessels. De Boer, 17 at the time, had to be hospitalized and missed her entire freshman season.

Two seasons later, she's ready to put all of it behind her.

The 19-year-old was subbed into the season opener against South D...
247Sports •

2025 Illini volleyball season preview: New-look Illini squad aims to re-establish itself in post-Terry era

CHAMPAIGN — The refresh button has been hit as Illinois volleyball returns to the court on Friday with a 1 p.m. CT match against South Dakota State in Nashville with the inaugural Broadway Block Party, a six-team event hosted at Bridgestone Arena.

The Illini do so while entering a new era, without the long-time face of the program, Raina Terry, who first walked through the doors of Huff Hall five seasons ago and left with a wealth of accolades and Illinois records.

With a handful of new faces,...