Niles North's Top 10 Sports Moments in 2010-2011

Here are Patch's Top 10 moments in Niles North athletics during the past school year.

10. Football Wins “Skokie Skirmish”: Niles North got its first victory of the year with a 24-15 win against rival Niles West. Fullback Myron Johnson ran for 143 yards on 16 carries, including a 73-yard touchdown scamper. In all, Johnson had three touchdowns on the day.

9. Dave Bacalla Has Winning Record at State Tennis Championships: The sophomore finished 4-2 in the singles division at the state championships. Bacalla lost in the third round after two wins in the main draw, but won two more matches in the consolation bracket. One of the consolation victories was a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 defeat of Glenbrook North’s Brian Levitas.

8. Girls Soccer Perseveres for CSL North Title: Despite having a losing record overall, the Vikings won their first Central Suburban League (CSL) North title since 2008 with a 4-0-1 record in the conference. Niles North tied Glenbrook North, 1-1, in their conference matchup, but the Spartans lost 2-0 to Deerfield, giving the Vikings the conference crown.

7. Andre Shaw Nails Buzzer-Beater Against Deerfield: Niles North was looking for its first conference title in more than a decade, and Andre Shaw  to give Niles North a 48-46 victory over Deerfield. It wouldn’t be the defining moment of the season though.

6. Bass Fishing Takes Home Sectional Title: Catching the only fish in the sectional, Niles North . Jeff Wu reeled in a bass weighing 1 pound, 4 ounces and advanced to the state championship.

5. Boys Track Wins 7th Straight CSL North Title: The Vikings cruised to yet another conference title, gaining a program-record 208 points. Zheng Fang won three individual titles as Niles North prepared for the sectional meet.

4. Boys Swimming Wins First Conference Title in Decades: A 129-57 win over Maine West gave the Vikings a 5-0 record and their first CSL North title since 1974. The biggest conference victory came in a 109-77 win against Glenbrook North on Niles North’s Senior Night.

3. Devonier Casey and Zheng Fang Win Sectional Titles: , winning the 400-meter run and triple jump while placing third in the 200. Zheng Fang took second in the 100-meter hurdles and won the 300 hurdles. Their championships helped Niles North to the sectional team title.

2.  Earns All-State in Gymnastics: In her final shot, Cuevas finally broke through. She took fifth in the all-around competition (37.50) and finished sixth on floor exercise (9.525) and ninth on the vault (9.0). She became the first All-State all-around gymnast in Niles North history.

1. Basketball Rallies to Win Sectional Title: Down by 14 points at halftime against Schaumburg, Niles North mounted a furious rally to . Playing relentless defense in the second half, Niles North won 53-52, holding Schaumburg to a mere 18 points after halftime.