DUNLAP, Ill. – You might say it was a difficult week this past week for local sports — or, more specifically, those who followed and loved their student athletes.
Drew Fehr and Dylan Bazzell — Prairie Central athletes — died in an accident in Colorado.
Then, days later, after the most valiant of fights with cancer — Dunlap’s Tessa Sutton passed at the age of just 17, days after being transferred into hospice care.
“She motivates me every single day,” said Gleason, a teammate, to 25 Sports prior to Tessa Sutton’s passing. “Every time…I’m doing something hard, you just think about her — biggest motivation factor. We’re so proud of her. One of the strongest people I know of, for sure. Super proud.”
Sutton was stricken with cancer while a Freshman — and while she was just beginning to make a name for herself on the Varsity level Dunlap soccer team.
“We’ve said we’re a family, and it’s because of her. She’s brought us together,” said Peter Cenek, Dunlap soccer coach, to 25 Sports, prior to Tessa Sutton’s passing. “What she’s going through has helped the girls realize every time they step foot on the field is an opportunity. She’s a teacher. I’m extremely proud of her.”
Tessa Sutton’s impact was felt far and wide, with competing teams from Peoria and throughout Central Illinois honoring her. The Murray Baker Bridge spent some time this past week lit in purple for her.
And, even Peoria County Sheriffs Department vehicles had been outfitted with purple ribbons for her.
It’s, perhaps, her coaches and teammates, though, who loved Tessa Sutton the most, to say nothing of her family.