Washington (Il) High School: Ectasy to Sad in 24-Hours

Yesterday while looking up the results of the IHSA State Playoffs for my Route 66 vs. Lincoln Highway and US-12 vs. US-14 Showdowns, I came across the name of Washington Community High School Panthers who won their third round game and this Saturday are playing their semi-final game. Before Sunday, I wouldn't have paid any attention to the name at all. But then, Sunday was quite a day here in Illinois.

We've been to Washington once as we were playing NTN at various places, but hadn't thought about it until Sunday, and that horrible tornado.

I was looking at results from the IHSA Playoff teams, and there it was, Washington High School. They had a great season and entered the playoffs ranked #2 in the Lower Division (based on school location).

They had beaten their first round opponent, Peoria 31-21. In the second round, they rolled to a 53-12 victory over Mt. Vernon and this past Saturday, won 41-7 over one of the Route 66 teams, Normal-- University. Sadly, less than 24 hours later, the town was leveled by a 4EV tornado (5 being the worst). 

Fortunately, with all that damage, there was only one fatality. But, sadly, going from the euphoria of that great victory to what happened the next day. Just hard to fathom. Many of the football players lost their homes.

They will be playing #1 Springfield-- Sacred Heart-Griffin this Saturday. I sure know who I'll be pulling for.

Go Panthers. --RoadDog