Hampshire closes on on FVC championship
Losing four starters from last season, Hampshire girls basketball coach Mike Featherly wasn't sure how his inexperienced Whip-Purs would compete in 2016-2017.
Featherly has been pleasantly surprised with the success his team has achieved this season.
The Whip-Purs inched closer to a Fox Valley Conference championship with a 36-24 win at Crystal Lake South Wednesday night.
With a home win against Cary-Grove Saturday, afternoon, the Whip-Purs will earn a share of their first FVC championship.
"We don't talk about winning the conference," said Featherly. "It is a process and every game is important. We lost four very good starters from last year and we weren't sure how good we would be. This group has bought in especially at the defensive end. This group communicates well and reads the opponents offense well. We have won games because of our defense."
The Whip-Purs (15-8, 10-3) received a great effort from senior leaders Rachel Dumoulin and Meagan Heine, who combined for 28 of Hampshire's 36 points.
Dumoulin, who connected on 10-of-11 from the free throw line, scored 18 points with 8 rebounds and 4 assists.
"We pride ourselves on closing the gaps and passing lanes on defense," said Dumoulin. "To hold a team with a good offense like South to 24 points is quite an accomplishment. We take every game as it comes and feel like we are playing well right now."
Heine, who made 4-of-4 from the charity stripe chipped in with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 2 assists.
"Our identity is our defense," said Heine. "We really pride ourselves on our defense. We do a great job of defending as a team and we communicate well. It is all about timing. With all the good players we lost from last season, I am little surprised by our success."
Crystal Lake South coach Mark Mucha was impressed with the Whip-Purs' defensive effort.
"They are really a good defensive team," said Mucha. "They are well disciplined with their assignments. We tried to speed up the game with a press but Hampshire wouldn't allow that happen."
The Gators (12-12, 8-6) trailed Hampshire 27-24 after a driving layup from Annika Sevcik with 2:23 left in the game.
Those would be the last points the Gators would score as the Whip-Purs ended the game on a 9-0 run.
Dumoulin scored 7 points, including 5-of-6 from the free throw line and Heine canned a 12-footer in the lane as the Whip-Purs posted a 12-point win.
Sevcik led the Gators with 13 points, 9 rebounds and 4 blocked shots.