Young coach Corry Irvin didn’t mince words when describing last year’s 63-39 state semifinal blowout at the hands of Marian Catholic.
“We were horrible,” she said.
The No. 1 Dolphins (30-3) will get a chance to avenge that drubbing when they face defending state champion Marian Catholic (27-4) in a Class 4A semifinal at Redbird Arena Friday at 8:15 p.m. The game will follow the 6:30 p.m. semifinal between Rolling Meadows (28-4) and Geneva (26-5).
Young 6-5 senior Khaalia Hillsman certainly hasn’t forgotten that game a year ago in which the Dolphins shot just 26 percent from the field and 36 percent from the free-throw line while being outrebounded 43-33.
Hillsman had just four points and five rebounds in that contest.
“I’m really trying to avenge last year,” she said after an 18-point, 14-rebound, four-block effort in Monday’s 57-39 supersectional win over Neuqua Valley. “I feel like last year we didn’t do what we were capable of doing. With a new team this year, I’m really excited to face who were going to face Friday.”
Hillsman and Young aren’t the only team looking for a little payback this weekend. Montini, which will compete in Class 4A next year after the IHSA Board of Directors approved a change in the way non-boundaried schools are classified, hopes to avoid a second straight semifinal exit.
“This team is really, really good,” Montini coach Jason Nichols said. “That was proven at Christmas when we beat Fremd, Marian Catholic and Rolling Meadows on three consecutive nights. If our mindset is right and we’re playing well, I think we’re easily the No. 1 team in the state.
“But,” he added, “that’s why you got to go play the games.”
Here’s a look at Friday’s semifinals:
Class 3A
Burlington Central (27-4) vs. Montini (32-2), 12:15 p.m.
Burlington Central is making its first appearance in the state finals, but it’s not likely to be the Rockets’ last. Burlington Central boasts a bevy of young talent led by 6-foot sophomore Samantha Pryor, 5-8 sophomore guard Shelby Holt and 6-foot junior Alison Colby. The Rockets are facing a playoff-veteran team led by a pair of four-year players – 6-1 Kateri Stone and 6-2 Kelly Karlis – and featuring a deep and talented bench. “Burlington Central is a nice young team that’s going to be hungry and eager to knock us off,” Nichols warned.
Joliet Catholic (27-2) vs. Quincy Notre Dame (29-3), 2 p.m.
Maybe it’s not the same team that won the Class 3A state title last year – 6-2 Jordan Frerichs and Kassidy Gengenbacher have both moved on – but there’s still enough talent at Quincy Notre Dame to make a serious bid for a fourth straight state title. The leaders of this year’s group are 5-11 senior Mary Beth Hugenberg and 5-10 senior Kristen Gengenbacher, who get a lot of help from 5-9 senior Cassidy Foley and her younger sister, freshman McKenzie Foley. Joliet Catholic has not been downstate since 1985. Quincy Notre Dame hasn’t missed since 2009.
Class 4A
Geneva (26-5) vs. Rolling Meadows (28-4), 6:30 p.m.
Is there a hotter team around than Geneva? The Vikings have won 14 in a row and recently got Michaela Loebel back off the DL. Grace Loberg has been a revelation for the Vikings. Since coming up to the varsity, the 6-2 freshman has averaged 14 points and eight rebounds per game. But the Vikings are facing a team that has a little bit of incentive after losing in the final seconds of the 2013 state title game. “We’ve used that game as motivation,” Rolling Meadows’ Jackie Kemph said.
Whitney Young (30-3) vs. Marian Catholic (27-4), 8:15 p.m.
Like Geneva, Marian Catholic is riding a 14-game winning streak heading into the state finals. The Spartans have not lost since a 60-33 thumping at the hands of Incarnate Word (St. Louis, Mo.) back on Jan. 11, although they needed a little late heroics to turn back Oak Lawn in overtime in the sectional finals. Teniya Page and Ashton Millender have carried the offensive load for first-year coach Dan Murray. Hillsman, Taylor Brame and Tanita Allen were on the floor for Young during last year’s semifinal whooping. Will Kiki Lewis be the difference?
