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West Aurora makes easy work of Rosary

West Aurora's girls basketball team imposed its will against Rosary Wednesday night.

Relying on their superior quickness both on and off the ball, the Blackhawks (14-4) recorded 18 steals while forcing 22 turnovers during their convincing 71-34 nonconference victory over the Royals (12-8) at West Aurora's Gordon Kerkman Gymnasium.

"We've been working hard on getting in those passing lanes," said Blackhawks coach Connie Siljendahl. "I felt like we did that in the Christmas tournament (at Wheaton North). We were in the passing lanes and we kind of fell asleep for a little bit. Now we're getting back into it."

Clinging to an 11-10 lead with 2:47 left in the first quarter, the Blackhawks went on a 14-1 run to open a 25-11 advantage just 2 minutes into the second period.

Kiyanna Rodgers (10 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals) ignited the surge with a 3-pointer from the wing while Essence Rayford and Olivia Vanderwoude combined for 4 points apiece, and senior guard Skylar Doby (9 points, 4 assists) added 3 points.

Late in the second quarter, West Aurora ran off 9 consecutive points capped by a 3-pointer from Keva Tomas (8 points, 6 rebounds) and Vanderwoude's 3-point play on the way to a 34-16 halftime lead.

Junior guard Dajour Miles scored 10 of her game-high 14 points during the Blackhawks' 20-point third quarter.

Miles, who added 9 rebounds and 3 steals, recorded back-to-back steals and layups late in the period to extend the lead to 54-25.

"Fast breaks, passing lanes, steals - just trying to force them to make bad mistakes," said Miles. "That's what we do and we're comfortable doing it."

"Our goals are defense, rebounds and fast breaks because we're fast," said Siljendahl. "There's no reason why we can't get that taken care of."

The Royals certainly felt the Blackhawks' team speed.

"Their guards were very quick," said Rosary coach Phil VanBogaert. "They did a good moving the ball around and they did a good job reading where our guards were passing the ball."

Rosary, led by Sydney Drozdowski's 8 points, also missed several close-range shots in the first half.

"We needed to make those easy baskets," said VanBogaert. "We also didn't do a good job boxing out on the boards. If you don't box out, you won't stay in the game very long against a team like that."

Vanderwoude (13 points, 6 rebounds) and Rayford (10 points, 5 steals) helped the Blackhawks' lopsided 27-6 bench scoring edge.

"Essie and Olivia could start for us in a heartbeat," said Siljendahl. "They're always coming in and giving us good minutes."

West Aurora plays host to Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division rival Bartlett Friday night.

"It's going to be a big game," said Siljendahl.

Zoe Ketterman added 6 points for Rosary.

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