Latest news with #Tumilty
Daily Record
3 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Record
Ex-Hamilton Accies star looks to next chapter after relegation causes exit
Reghan Tumilty is on the lookout for a new club after two-and-a-half seasons at Accies Reghan Tumilty admits it was difficult to leave Hamilton Accies, but he's got to do what's best for him and his family. The defender announced his departure after two-and-a-half seasons on social media, and Tumilty's looking for his next chapter after a holiday in Portugal. Hamilton would have ended last season seventh in the Championship but for a 15-point deduction for off-field offences, and Tumilty has made the decision to move on. But he thanked boss John Rankin for rescuing him from a miserable spell at Hartlepool United in 2023 Tumilty said: 'It was bad the way it ended, really, sad, really. Us as players, we felt like we did the best we could, that was all we could really do. 'It was about being professional and finishing it, and whatever happens happens. 'It was frustrating to be relegated, but we did our jobs. We had to be professional about it and do our side. 'We were hopeful that we would get some points back [in an appeal], but we got zero and there was no hope in the end. 'We had to be professional and I think we proved that in the last game against Falkirk. 'I know we got beat in the end, but we put on a good show, considering the amount that was going on in the background, and we were trying to play at the same time. 'I'm proud of my team-mates, to be fair.' Tumilty added: 'It's not ideal but it's good for me now to move on and start somewhere else. 'There have been ups and downs, and I have enjoyed it. 'I do thank them a lot for bringing me in, the manager bringing me in, because it was at a point where I was hating football, so it made me like it again. 'Winning the SPFL Trust Trophy was a good moment, there have been a few 1-0, Tumilty games in the last couple of seasons, and those are my favourite ones.' Tumilty doesn't have a club lined up, but hopes he can find a new one ahead of next season. He said: 'I don't know what comes next, I'm just enjoying my holiday, I'm heading to Portugal. 'It has been good to switch off and enjoy my holidays, because you don't get it very often. 'You get this month a year, but your friends and family are at work, so you're just kind of hanging about. 'It will be good to get away and not really think about it. 'Hopefully I won't be short of offers. 'I've played a lot of games, so it's getting to that stage where hopefully something comes and it's the right fit, because I have things to pay for these days, I have bills to pay for.'
Chicago Tribune
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
With Green Bay recruit Bella Brozek, Naperville Central makes ‘good things happen.' A lot of goals. A lot of wins.
Naperville Central senior forward Bella Brozek has proved throughout her three-year varsity career that she can roll with the changes. Now the Green Bay recruit and the Redhawks are just plain rolling. With senior forward Callie Tumilty on the team for the first time, Brozek isn't its leading scorer anymore, but the goals and wins are piling up. 'I definitely think she's adapting,' Naperville Central senior midfielder Rebecca Ruggiero said. 'Being able to play with Callie is a huge help.' As a sophomore, Brozek was a varsity rookie trying to find her place. She was known mostly for her speed and also for running track during the soccer season. Then Brozek was the area's breakout star as a junior, recording a team-high 14 goals and a team-high 10 assists as Naperville Central won its first sectional title in 29 years. Brozek is still producing at a high rate this season, contributing seven goals and seven assists. But she's no longer the top scoring threat. Tumilty, an Ohio State recruit, has taken over that role and the spotlight that goes with it. She leads the Redhawks (13-1-1), who have won seven games in a row, with 15 goals and 12 assists. Brozek, who no longer runs track, doesn't mind. She and Tumilty give Naperville Central perhaps the best pair of wingers in the state, with senior forward Emma Russell operating in between them. 'It's a help because it's both of us, and then we have a strong center forward, Emma, and our subs can fill in without missing a beat,' Brozek said. 'So I think being able to bump it off of each other is really helpful because when forwards find forwards, that's when good things happen.' Plenty of good things are happening for the Redhawks, who are averaging four goals per game and have outscored their opponents 61-5. Brozek, whose play has been key, has multiple strengths. 'Definitely her speed is probably the main one and also her work ethic,' Ruggiero said. 'She does a really good job of recovering balls if she loses it and just working hard to track back her mark. She does a really good job of that.' Naperville Central coach Troy Adams said that latter trait stood out during a 2-0 win over previously unbeaten Barrington in the Naperville Invitational semifinals at Memorial Stadium on Friday. 'The thing that I've been most impressed with is her defensive work rate as far as learning when to come back and double to win balls,' Adams said. 'Today was especially important. She understood that hey, come back, win the ball and now we can go forward. 'That's in addition to the fact that she is the most unselfish player, to the point that sometimes you're like, 'Bella, you're a forward. You're allowed to shoot too.'' Brozek displayed her unselfishness against Barrington when she beat a defender into the box on a counterattack. Instead of shooting, she passed to sophomore midfielder Nicole Sacek, who scored on a 15-yard shot. 'I think for both of us, it just shows our hard work — Bella fighting to keep the ball, especially when she had a defender on her,' Sacek said. 'It led to me, and that's how the goals happen on our team, because everyone works. That's just how it is.' Adams said Brozek is optimally exploiting defenses better than she did in the past. With so many attack-minded players in the lineup, the Redhawks are creating scoring chances at a high rate. That sometimes leads to situations akin to a basketball player passing up a good shot to give a teammate a great shot. 'We use the term balance a lot,' Adams said. 'There's a balance between when do I play a ball across and when do I shoot it myself. Bella's done a really good job of balancing when do I shoot and when do I pass.' Brozek just wants to win. The Redhawks do that a lot, and she thinks she knows why. 'We just have a lot to offer,' Brozek said. 'We're very diverse. Pretty much everyone on our team can play a different position. Everyone is willing to work hard, everyone is willing to fight for each other, and that's how people win.'
Chicago Tribune
02-05-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Naperville Central's Emma Russell makes connections on the field. More important are ones she makes off it.
Naperville Central's Emma Russell finds joy in helping others, so much so that she has decided to make a career of it. The senior forward plans to major in psychology at Arkansas. 'I just really liked the class when I took it, and a lot of my friends have told me I'm the group therapist,' Russell said. 'I'm the one that kind of helps with people's issues, so I think it would be nice to carry that into my future.' Russell, who will not play college soccer, said her interest in psychology is a fairly recent development. 'When I decided that I wasn't going to play soccer, I needed to figure out what to do,' she said. 'After I took the class, it really stuck with me. I think the brain is super interesting, everything that goes on in it.' Psychology isn't merely academic for Russell, who is using what she has learned and applying it to her game. 'It just helps me keep my calm,' she said. 'I do get in my head a lot, but it's easy to kind of get out of it when I start thinking, 'Take deep breaths and realize it's just a game and it's fun.' 'I'm out here for fun. I'm not playing in college, so I'm just going out for my last hurrah, and this is my favorite team. We all connect with each other.' That's true in different ways. Ohio State-bound senior forward Callie Tumilty, who is playing high school soccer for the first time, said Russell is warm and accepting. 'Being such a strong returning varsity player, she's definitely helped a lot of us through being comfortable, especially including the freshmen and even including me in things because I'm obviously newer to the team,' Tumilty said. 'She's very good at making everyone feel welcome, but also on the field keeping us structured, especially helping us out with the front line.' Russell has six goals and three assists this season for the Redhawks, who beat Lincoln-Way East 4-1 in the Naperville Invitational quarterfinals at Memorial Stadium on Thursday. Russell assisted on the first goal of the game, squeezing a perfect pass up the middle to Tumilty, who got a step on a defender and scored on a 20-yard shot to give the Redhawks (12-1-1) the early edge. 'That was awesome,' Tumilty said. 'She's very good at picking out who to play and just threading that needle.' While most center forwards focus first on shooting, Russell likes to post up and pass the ball, often to Tumilty. 'I know that she's one of our fastest players, and she's really good at 1v1, so I saw that little gap that she had,' Russell said. 'I was scared that it was going to close, so I just wanted to slip it through the middle.' Russell often is in the middle of things, as she was when sophomore midfielder Nicole Sacek gave the Redhawks a 2-0 lead against the Griffins (10-3-1). 'Part of it was Emma keeping that ball alive, throwing her body and not letting the defender get a clean service out,' Naperville Central coach Troy Adams said. 'That's what Emma does, and that determination is probably one of the best things about her as a player.' Russell's efforts off the field are just as important. She has thought about becoming a school psychologist or opening a clinic. 'It would be fun to come back because I understand the issues of high school and the stress,' she said. Social media, Russell noted, causes much of that stress. 'Because of Instagram and TikTok, I think a lot of teenage girls just compare themselves to other people, and that puts bad thoughts in your head,' Russell said. 'People just stay on their phone all day, so it's draining, and they don't go outside. 'It's such a different generation. Like my parents don't understand it. When they hear about problems, they're like, 'Why do you care?' and it's just hard.' Russell hopes to be part of the solution one day. She's optimistic too. 'I think once people get out of high school, it will click, and they'll realize that high school is just drama and nothing that happens here matters,' she said. 'The memories matter, but the drama you're going to forget about the second you leave.' Russell plans to make some incredible memories before she leaves. 'After last year when we lost in the supersectionals, the first thing we said was we're not doing this again,' she said. 'Ever since that game, it's just been in our heads that we're going to win state. 'I believe in it. We're one of the best teams in the state, and I think that we've shown it.'
Chicago Tribune
12-03-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Ohio State recruit Callie Tumilty is ready for her high school soccer debut. So is Naperville Central.
Naperville Central senior Callie Tumilty's high school soccer debut is coming a year later than planned. The Ohio State recruit intended to suit up for the Redhawks last season after she played club soccer during her freshman and sophomore years. But Tumilty suffered a torn ACL during a club tournament in Michigan in October 2023, an injury that ended her basketball career. 'The knee feels great,' she said. 'I have no issues with it. I almost feel stronger coming back because my injury really taught me adversity and to really work for what I was given. 'I've not really taken advantage of what my opportunities have been, so that really taught to me to work for what was given to me.' Tumilty worked out with the Redhawks last spring while she recovered from her surgery, doing only noncontact work. She could only watch as Naperville Central made a surprise run to the Class 3A supersectional, and that whetted her appetite even more. 'Honestly, I have fallen in love with the sport more than I was earlier,' Tumilty said. 'I'm not taking anything for granted, and I've developed a closer relationship with my past teammates and upcoming teammates because they've really helped me push through it for sure.' Tumilty returned to action in February and played four games with her club team before joining the Redhawks. She said Ohio State's coaches allowed her to play high school soccer this season, although with conditions. She will leave for Ohio State in June. 'They are restricting me on a couple of things with the high school because I'm coming back from that injury and prepping for their season,' Tumilty said. 'I'm kind of limited a little bit because the amount of games that we play during the high school season is a lot different from what my club looks like.' Tumilty will be on a minutes restriction and is unlikely to play full games, but that actually might be a good thing for the Redhawks. 'I don't see the restrictions being an issue,' Naperville Central coach Troy Adams said. 'One of the biggest challenges is getting everybody the minutes they deserve, so they will probably be the same she'd play any way.' Tumilty is a welcome addition to a team that returns 13 players, including nine starters. Naperville Central junior goalkeeper Erin Hackett, who scored her 1,000th career point during this past basketball season, is looking forward to having Tumilty on the field. 'She's going to bring a lot to the team, especially on the offensive end,' Hackett said. 'I think she will score most of the time and help with the ball movement out there, getting other girls the ball, getting them better chances.' Tumilty joins an already potent attack that includes seniors Bella Brozek and Rebecca Ruggiero, junior Malia Shen and sophomore Emerson Burke. If Tumilty plays outside opposite Brozek, a Green Bay commit, the Redhawks will have a dangerous pair of speedy and efficient wingers. 'I consider myself a pretty quick player, but I also know a lot of quick players, so I don't think I stand out too much in that realm,' Tumilty said. 'But my strength is really my technical ability on the ball. 'I love 1v1s, and right now I'm really working on hitting our other offensive players on the crosses. I feel like I'm a big impact going down the wings. I'm super competitive.' Hackett saw that competitiveness firsthand when she and Tumilty played varsity basketball during the 2022-23 season. Now Hackett is getting a look at it on the soccer field. 'I've never played soccer with her,' Hackett said. 'When we were younger, we would always play against each other. We were never on the same team. 'She's really energetic and kind of in their face. If they have the ball, she really wants to win it so that we can keep the ball in their half.' Adams said Tumilty has fit in nicely. 'Callie is really good about asking questions and trying to figure out what are we looking to do,' Adams said. 'Anytime somebody is joining in with a lot of returning players, there is a learning piece to how does everybody else work and what is this team looking to do. 'Good players can make adjustments, and she'll be a great piece to add in.' Tumilty wants the Redhawks to keep up their momentum from last season, when they won their first sectional title since 1995. She's not picky about how they utilize her talents. 'I'll probably play up top, it's looking like,' Tumilty said. 'I'm kind of here for anything, especially that I'm joining the team a little late. 'I don't really care where I play. I've never played high school soccer before, obviously, so I'm just looking to help support the team and hopefully finish with that final goal of that state championship.'
