Girls Basketball: Bolingbrook tops Neuqua Valley for sectional crown
By Phil Brozynski For Sun-Times Media February 21, 2013 10:44PM
Bolingbrook's Destiny Harris and Kristen Moore cheer on their teammates in the closing seconds of the Raiders' sectional championship victory over Neuqua Valley. | Donnell Collins~For Sun-Times Media
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Updated: March 23, 2013 6:24AM
Make it nine in a row.
Kennedy Cattenhead scored 21 points and Kristin Moore added 14 points and eight rebounds as No. 2 Bolingbrook advanced to the supersectional for the ninth time in as many years with a 56-38 victory over Neuqua Valley on Thursday in the Class 4A Oswego Sectional.
Bolingbrook (24-5) will face Young (27-4) at 7:30 p.m. Monday in the Class 4A Hinsdale Central Supersectional.
Cattenhead, a 5-foot-10 senior headed to Illinois, is one of the few holdovers from last year’s team that lost to Young in a four-overtime supersectional classic. She is determined to avoid a repeat
“I’m real excited (about playing Young),” she said. “We can’t miss going down twice in a row. Coach (Anthony) Smith is a person who says you always have to go out with heart, and I feel that last year we went out with a lot of heart and a lot of talent.
“But talent doesn’t always win games, and we have a lot of talent now, but we also work harder than anybody else. I feel like we can go get it done.”
Bolingbrook got it done Thursday night with an 11-0 second-quarter run fueled by a Destiny Harris three-pointer and baskets by Lexi Smith and Cattenhead. The run extended a 14-13 lead to 25-13, and Neuqua Valley (27-4) never got closer than five points the rest of the way.
“It’s a different feeling this year,” Smith said. “This is work. Before we had some talent, some pretty good talent. These kids have really stepped up to the plate and they’re getting better.
‘‘These kids are becoming All-Area kids and All-State kids right before our eyes.”
Amarah Coleman added nine points for Bolingbrook, which shot 19-of-25 from the free-throw line. Neuqua Valley was a frigid 5-of-14.
Freshman Myia Starks led the Wildcats with eight points. Malia Smith and Najee Smith each had seven.
‘‘You have a certain character, a personality about a team,” Neuqua Valley coach Mike Williams said. “They’ve been downstate. They play hard, they play aggressive. That’s just their style. Some things are going to happen. You’re not going to get the calls.
“But they did a lot of things that took us out of the game.”
