Bartlett holds Kay Yow Day Saturday
The Bartlett girls basketball program will prove again today that there's more to life than just the games the kids play.
The Hawks will host their second annual Kay Yow Cancer Fund extravaganza this afternoon when they entertain Neuqua Valley in a 12:30 p.m. Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division game. The sophomore contest starts at 11 a.m.
There will be various events throughout the day, including the sale of T-shirts, pink poms and balloons, as well as scarves donated by Joe Cotton Ford. Cancer survivors will be honored at halftime. All proceeds of the short, balloon and scarf sales will go to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund as well as other proceeds from activities during the day.
Yow was the former North Carolina State women's basketball coach who passed away in January 2009 after a battle with breast cancer.
After her 1987 breast cancer diagnosis, Yow became active in raising awareness as well as money to battle the disease. In 2007, the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund was instituted by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association and the V Foundation for Cancer Research, of which she served on the board of directors.
Bartlett coach Denise Sarna said last year's initial fundraiser raised $4,000 for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund and through the efforts of the sixth and seventh grade feeder teams, which held a free-throw shooting contest recently, there's already $1,000 in this year's fund.
“It's a fantastic cause and we appreciate all the support,” Sarna said. “We're hoping for another good day with it (today).”
While fans are encouraged to wear pink, showing support for breast cancer survivors and research, there will also be a little blue in the building as the Chicago Sky of the WNBA has chosen today as its day to honor the Bartlett program for being chosen its team of the week earlier this season.
The Sky, which sponsors basketball.dailyherald.com, will have several of its staff in attendance including its mascot, Sky Guy. The Sky Experience also includes in-game entertainment and Sky giveaways. A special ticket package will be made available to Bartlett High School students, parents and faculty that will include a donation from the Sky to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.
“They asked to be part of the pink game and it's nice to be honored by them and have them come to our school,” Sarna said. “We're looking forward to a very meaningful day.”
On the court, the game is a key one in the UEC Valley race. Bartlett (19-1 overall) currently leads the division at 6-0, while Neuqua (14-3) is a step behind at 5-1.
BC-Hampshire Round 1: Also on the docket today is the first game of the season between Hampshire and Burlington Central, a 5:45 p.m. tipoff as part of Burlington's Pack the Place night. On paper, Hampshire (15-2, 5-0) would appear to have the upper hand in the Big Northern East battle, but BC coach Stephanie Smith says her team can compete with the Whip-Purs if the Rockets take care of the basketball.
“We're focusing on Burlington Central, not Hampshire,” said Smith, a Hampshire graduate now in her second year as the Rockets' head coach. “They're a great team with a great record but it will come down to our guards taking care of the basketball and making wise decisions with the basketball.” The Rockets have also been getting more scoring lately from junior guard Jessica Laird. Smith also said a key to the game will be the Rockets' post tandem of Alli Settanni and Brenda Thasavong playing strong.
“We've been working on a few different things,” said Smith, whose team is 9-10 overall and 3-1 in the East. “It all comes down to heart and wanting it. It's our court and our Pack the Place night. The girls should want it. We're very excited.”
But Hampshire's coach will miss it: Hampshire coach Ed Haugens, in his first year at the helm of the Whip-Purs, will miss tonight's game after being ejected from the Whips' 56-47 loss to Class 2A power Rockford Lutheran Thursday night. Haugens was whistled for back-to-back technical fouls late in the first half and by IHSA rules must sit out his team's next game. It's a fate Burlington Central coach Stephanie Smith also had to endure when she couldn't coach her team against Harvard last weekend after being whistled for two technicals and ejected from the Rockets' 52-49 double overtime win at North Boone.
And in his place: Taking over for Hampshire coach Ed Haugens tonight will be former Dundee-Crown coach and IBCA Hall of Famer Joe Komaromy. The retired Komaromy, who spent the last two years as an assistant at Crystal Lake South, joined Haugens this year when Haugens moved from Jacobs to Hampshire.
Mattini gets 400th: Former St. Edward coach Ken Mattini registered his 400th career win earlier this week when his Pecatonica team defeated Stockton 39-37. In Mattini's first year at Pecatonica, his team was 5-11 through Thursday's games.
Payne to Eastern Illinois: Katlyn Payne, who played her freshman season at St. Edward before transferring to Fenwick, has left Florida Gulf Coast University and is now at Eastern Illinois University. Payne, a 5-foot-11 forward, didn't play a game for Gulf Coast and enrolled at Eastern to start the second semester earlier this week. She will be eligible to play for the Panthers following final exams in the fall and will have 3 ½ years of eligibility left.
“We are thrilled to be able to add Katlyn to our Panther family,” said EIU coach Brady Sallee on the university's website. “Katlyn is a player we followed from her freshman year and desperately wanted out of high school.”
Payne graduated from Bishop Verot High School in Fort Myers, Fla., where she was named the 2010 Southwest Florida Association of Basketball Coaches Miss Basketball. She averaged 24.1 points and 7.2 rebounds her senior year and was chosen the Fort Myers News Press Player of the Year.
According to published reports in the Naples (Fla.) Daily News, Payne left Florida Gulf Coast for “personal reasons”.
jradtke@dailyherald.com