Glenbard West can't post win vs. Red Devils
Glenbard West used its height to its advantage in the first half of Friday's West Suburban Silver girls basketball showdown against Hinsdale Central. The Hilltoppers lobbed the ball into the paint to 5-foot-11 forward Kathryn Lux and 5-10 forward Abbie Hastings and they were able to finish.
While Lux and Hastings helped keep visiting Glenbard West in the game, it wasn't nearly enough to counter the outstanding play of Red Devils junior Toni Kokenis and senior Madison Whitley, who powered Hinsdale Central to a 53-35 victory in Hinsdale.
Kokenis poured in a game-high 24 points and was one assist and rebound away from recording a triple-double. Whitley tallied 17 points as Hinsdale Central clinched the conference title with the win, improving its overall record to 23-2 and 9-0 in the Silver.
Glenbard West coach Mike Hofland felt his team gave up too many second-chance points and that had a big impact on the outcome. Some costly mistakes such as 2 turnovers in the final 30 seconds of the second quarter hurt them too.
To their credit, though, the Hilltoppers (16-7, 6-3) hung tough, especially in the first half. Lux scored 6 of her team-high 9 points and Hastings chipped in 4 points in the first two quarters. They trailed 26-18 at halftime as Kokenis dropped in 14 points for the hosts.
"She is such a calming force when the ball is in her hands," Hofland said of Kokenis. "One of our goals was to try to limit her touches."
Hinsdale Central coach Morgan Kasperek was impressed with Glenbard West's defensive prowess.
"Glenbard West is a very good team," Kasperek said. "They play great defense and flustered us in the first half. "
The Red Devils pulled away in the third quarter by pretty much stopping the Hilltoppers from getting the ball inside. They cranked up their offense too, outscoring Glenbard West 19-4 in that eight-minute period.
"The whole team went hard to the glass," Kasparek said.
Kasperek was pleased with the play of junior Lauren Franke who came off the bench to score 5 points in the second half.
For the Hilltoppers, Hofland thought Lux played a good game and that sophomore Bridget Flanagan played well defensively. Junior guard Abbey White also chipped in 8 points for Glenbard West.