By Jeff Vorva
Correspondent
A few area high school coaching vacancies have been filled, including those for Richards boys basketball and Stagg football.
Jamal Thompson takes over at Richards for Kyle Rathbun. Thompson has experience coaching at Seton, Leo and St. Rita.
Jacob O’Connor will lead Stagg football, where he takes the reins from Colt Nero after four seasons. O’Connor has served three years as a Stagg assistant coach. He was a three-sport athlete in high school at Andrew and played college football at St. Ambrose.
Stagg also named Michal Szlachta head girls soccer coach and Michael Bukas head girls swim coach.
Jacob O’Connor is the new head football coach at Stagg.
Hall of Famers
Mount Carmel football coach Jordan Lynch was inducted into the Mid-American Conference Hall of Fame for his accomplishments on the field as a quarterback at Northern Illinois.
Shepard baseball coach Frank DiFoggio was inducted into the Illinois Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame.
Summer Shootout
Oak Lawn will host a 32-team girls basketball Summer Shootout on June 7 and 8.
Schools scheduled to participate include Marist, Stagg, Shepard, Reavis, Evergreen Park, St. Laurence, De La Salle, Riverside-Brookfield and Mother McAuley.
Sports bits
• Karson Thomas, who started on Lincoln-Way East’s boys basketball team as a sophomore this season, is transferring to Marist.
- Nazareth grad and Julian Love, who plays for the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks, was the grand marshal of the LaGrange Pet Parade.
- Argo soccer standout Lesly Echavarrieta signed to play at Moraine Valley. Scarlett Tully of Chicago Christian will play softball for the Cyclones.