Streaks Scrapbook- 2000 Streaks by Tom Loewy

Tom Loewy covered sports in Galesburg, and then did feature stories. He wrote and wrote and wrote. He would cover the Galesburg girls basketball and then it seemed every area basketball game too. 

He was from Peoria, where he went to Richwoods High School. Then he went to Beloit College. He was lured to Galesburg by work at Knox College by Harley Knosher. 

Tom was not a good sportswriter, he was a great sportswriter. The characteristics that made him great were:

1- He was thorough. I can picture Tom in a Beloit English class having a professor telling him,”Just get one more source.”

2- He realized that although he was covering a basketball game, the story was not about basketball, it was about the people playing basketball.

3- While he is a great writer, he is an even better listener. He let the “people playing the game” tell him the story.

4- He was curious. He always had one more question. He wanted to make sure he understood what the person was saying. 

From the 2000 girls basketball season, here are some samples of his writing. 

Super Rematch- This is a story Tom wrote in preview for the DeKalb Super-Sectional game vs. Harlem. 

GHS Overcomes Harlem- This is an example of his report on a game. It is the story of the Streaks win over Harlem in the Super-Sectional.

And The Envelope Please- In this feature, he looked back on the 2000 season thru the Super-Sectional to pick out his “top 10 moments.”

All In The Family- At the State Tourney, Tom relays conversations with a variety of former players who share their experiences and feelings going to watch the Streaks at State.

Notes- “Senior Numbers”- He regular put together “notes” that would not fit in his stories but he thought were important. In this case he showed the impact of the 2000 seniors before their “Senior Night.”

Notes- “Regional Achievement”- He relays the Streaks’ streak in comparison to other teams in Illinois history.

Notes- “Another Streak”- A look at the Streaks sectional streak.

Notes- “Mother Knows Best”- Tom shares a conversation between Amy Massey and her three year old son, Allen during the Sectional game when things did not look good.

Notes- “Determined Buyer”- He shares the story of one Streaks fan’s effort to get tickets for State.