Now It Can Be Said of Ex-Sandburg Softball Stars: Two Cheered for Each Other During Big Ten Play

Earlier this week, Patch reported the story of and best friends who parted ways to play collegiate softball at different schools, one at Illinois, the other at Indiana.

Despite the rivalry between the two Big Ten schools, when Sara Olson and Ashley Conrad played each other, they still wished each other the best of luck, even if they did not always admit as much to their Illini or Hoosier teammates.

Conrad shared her feelings.

"Although it definitely is a rivalry between the two schools, I don't ever think it was between Sara (Olson) and me," she said. "Yes, we wanted our teams to win, but we always wanted each other to do well and got excited for one another when we did.

"I remember a game my freshmen year (2008) when we were up big-time on them in Bloomington and Sara's older sister, Anna, came up with bases loaded and hit a grand slam. Sara came up a couple batters later and hit the game-winning home run.

"Even though my team lost, I couldn't be mad about it because my friend just did (something) awesome. When she came up in that situation, I remember being in the outfield and saying to myself, 'This is going to be the game right here because of how good a hitter she is.' Even though it was a rivalry, we always wanted to see each other do well."

Beverly Bandits in National Tournament

Speaking of Sara Olson, she was spending the week coaching the Beverly Bandits 18-under softball team in the Premier Fastpitch Softball National Championships in Huntington Beach, Cali. The 18-under Bandits are based in Orland Park and led by Sara's younger sister, Lora. The Bandits went to a semifinal match in their bracket, where they lost to the SoCal A's 5-1.

'Fore' the Golfers

Up for some golf this weekend? features a unique style of golf on Saturdays, or break out the flying disks and head to a number of area .

Wrestling in Orland Park

Professional wrestling off the stages of Wrestlemania, Impact Wrestling, or one of the other countless TV shows out there is an underground sport. Sam Maguire's in Orland Park was the site for one of the first matches in the new "Wildeside Professional Wrestling," and June 17 .

Wednesday’s More Than Spaghetti Day

The first official day of practice for fall high school athletics is Wednesday, Aug. 10. Although football gets the most attention, all other sports have the opportunity to practice and most will do so, as well as host tryouts.

New Concussion Sign-Off Form

Beginning this fall season, athletes will need to have a signed concussion form on file at their school. This is a new procedure that was part of the Concussion Bill.