3A Champions Bring the Trophy Home!
Barb Dawson • March 20, 2025
Congratulations to our Girls Basketball State Champions!

Montini Catholic Girls Varsity Basketball celebrated their 5th IHSA State Championship (March 8th) with their classmates on Wednesday, March 12th at a 'celebration rally' held in their honor. The 2025 Montini Broncos came out extremely strong this season while facing tough opponents and having one of the most difficult schedules in the state according to Coach Shannon (Herold) Spanos '99 - starting their season competing in the Willowbrook Thanksgiving Tournament and celebrating a 3rd Place finish in the GCAC Conference. The team recognized three All-Conference selections, seniors Peyton Farrell, Lily Spanos and Nikki Kerstein.
In their road to the final four, the girls continued their command by winning the Regional title for the 21st year in a row by defeating Elmwood Park. They went on to win the Sectional title, defeating Trinity High School and Depaul Prep and grabbed the Super sectional game by six points against Grayslake Central. Montini then headed to Illinois State to participate in the 3A State Finals at Red Bird Arena, capturing the IHSA State championship trophy with a win over St. Ignatius and triumphantly ending their season 27-10 . . . and with a 3A State Championship trophy!
At the rally, fans were treated to a 'State Championship Game recap video' and Coach Spanos recognized each team member, thanking them, their parents and Montini fans for a historic season.
Most Notable Individual Accolades of the 24/25 Season:
The IBCA recognized Nikki Kerstein (IBCA All-State 1 st Team)
Peyton Farrell (IBCA All-State 2 nd Team and Lily Spanos (IBCA All-State Honorable Mention)
Nikki Kerstein reached 2,195 career point this season (1st in program history).
Nikki was nominated for Gatorade Player of the Year and Ms. Illinois Basketball
Academic Accolade: The varsity rostered players have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale.
Image above
- Front row: Kaelyn Zumdahl '28 (Plainfield), Audrey Kinney '25 (Glen Ellyn), Natalie Gartlan '25 (Downers Grove), Nikki Kerstein '25 (Naperville), Lily Spanos '25 (Glen Ellyn), Juliana Neustadt '26 (Lombard), Miley Brunski '26 (Wheaton); Second row: Peggy Pacelli '28 (Downers Grove), Anne Paciga '28 (Villa Park), Ava Lombardi '26 (Lisle), Cedona Barrett '27 (Woodridge), Brooke D'Amico '27 (Lombard), Sophia Maquet '27 (Downers Grove), Lauren Mellish '26 (Downers Grove) and Peyton Farrell '25 (Downers Grove)
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New friends were made and high school anxieties calmed on Thursday, 12th at Montini Catholic High School's First Step Social welcoming their Class of 2029. Montini Catholic's First Step Social is the first opportunity for Montini's newest freshmen to begin building class spirit and to get to know their fellow classmates and future friends. The informal event, facilitated by the school's Admissions team, included several small group games, led by members of Montini's Peer Ministry Team, intended to break the ice and get freshmen excited about their high school years. Parents were also invited to attend and gathered in a separate location in order to meet up with current parent ambassadors, ask questions and gain more insight in preparation for the next four years. Students and parents were treated to burgers and hotdogs via Tailgate Caterers in Lombard. "It was very exciting to have so many new Broncos and their parents on Montini Catholic's campus for our First Step Social," said Admissions Coordinator Sara McGady. "The goal of this event is to provide our new freshmen with a sense of familiarity when they walk through our doors again in August. We also wanted to give our new parents a chance to ask questions and meet fellow parents as they start their new journey as high school parents."

Montini Catholic was proud to honor fifteen special seniors on May 16th at the Lasallian college preparatory high school's Celebration of Excellence Awards ceremony. The group represents what Montini Catholic endearingly defines as their graduating "Legacy Students" - students of alumni parents who also graduated from Montini Catholic. This year fifty-two 52 total students of alumni are carrying on their parents' legacies at Montini Catholic, a number that represents close to 10% of Montini's total student body. Each year senior legacy students are called up on stage to receive a special stole to be worn at graduation. Alumni parents are also invited to take a special portrait with their senior as a keepsake on graduation day. "We are always honored when our alumni return as Montini parents to continue our Bronco legacy," said Alumni Relations Officer William Dawes '13. "When you are at Montini Catholic, you are family, which is one of the main reasons parents choose Montini. An education at Montini is a unique experience and we love to see our legacy grow with each passing year." Montini Catholic's 2024-25 Legacy Seniors (alumni parent(s) under students' names): Katelyn (Kat) Bell ‘25 Jackson Bell ‘27 Patrick Bell ‘96 Peter Considine ‘25 Michael Considine ‘86 Annalee DeFeo ‘25 Laura (LaMontagna) DeFeo ’93 & Michael DeFeo ‘93 Nolan Ferris ‘25 Shannon (O’Connor) Ferris ‘93 James Fitzpatrick ‘25 Michael Fitzpatrick ‘88 Zoe Gangas ‘25 Nick Gangas ‘81 Sean Hubeny ‘25 Katie (Doll) Hubeny ’96 & James Hubeny ‘96 Nick Irion ‘25 and Vince Irion ‘25 Dave Irion ‘88 Vincent Knudtson ‘25 Lia (Badalamenti) Knudtson ‘89 Jamie Loftus ‘25 Christina (Connelly) Loftus ‘86 Margaret Nielsen ‘25 Maureen (O’Neill) Nielsen ‘87 Ava Sebben ‘25 Patricia (Gary) Sebben ‘90 Lily Spanos ‘25 Shannon (Herold) Spanos ‘99 Collins Whitfield ‘25 Katherine (Janko) Whitfield ‘00 Collins Whitfield ‘00 Image above: Front l to r: Lily Spanos, Ava Sebben, Margaret Nielsen, Jamie Loftus, Sean Hubeny, Zoe Gangas, Nolan Ferris, Annalee DeFeo and Kat Bell; Back row l to r: Collins Whitfield, Vincent Knudtson, Vince Irion, Nick Irion, Jimmy Fitzpatrick and Peter Considine;

Montini Catholic congratulates senior Julia Gergen on being this year's recipient of the Jean Diane Colletti Memorial Scholarship. The scholarship is one of several that have been named and endowed by Montini Catholic alumni, parents and friends in order to provide financial assistance to graduates pursuing higher learning in college. The award was announced at the Lasallian college preparatory high school's annual Academic Awards Banquet (May 1st) this spring by Dr. Vince Colletti DDS '05 (son of Jean Diane Colletti) Julia was honored again on May 16th at Montini's Celebration of Excellence Award ceremony in front of the entire student body. Julia has been a very academically accomplished student throughout their four years at Montini Catholic. In May she received the President's Award for Academic Excellence, she is an Illinois State Scholar and a College Board Advanced Placement Scholar. Julia was also a member of Mu Alpha Theta Math Honor Society, Tri-M Music Honor Society as well as Montini's National Honor Society where she served as Secretary her senior year. She enjoyed her time as a member of Montini's Math Team, and celebrated their 6th Place State finish this year. Julia also valued her experience gained from serving her fellow students as a Peer Minister through Montini's Campus Ministry program. Athletically, Julia was a valued member of Montini's Track & Field Team and celebrated securing school records her junior year in the 4x100m and 4x200m races. "Julia has been an outstanding student," said Principal Chris Tiritilli. "Her academic and athletic career here at Montini has been quite extensive and impressive. She is never seen without a smile on her face, she has been a role model to her fellow students. She truly deserves this recognition and we know she will do great things at Notre Dame!" Julia, a St. Pius X Parish School alum, and a member of St. Pius X Parish. She plans on majoring in Biological Sciences on a Pre-Med Track at the University of Notre Dame in the fall. Above: Julia Gergen '25 and Dr. Vince Colletti DDS '05 at Montini Catholic's Academic Awards Night on May 1st.