Girls basketball: Scouting Rosary
Rosary’s three-year streak of 20-win seasons came to an end last year but not before the Royals showed a glimpse of promising days to come.
Coach Dave Beebe turned to an entirely new lineup in 2010-11 and the growing pains to start the year weren’t surprising. Rosary got off to a 5-14 start.
But the Royals kept working and clicked in the second half of the season. They rattled off seven wins in eight games — only state champion Montini beat them in that stretch — before losing to Aurora Central in a 49-45 barnburner in the Class 3A IMSA regional championship game. They ended with a 12-15 record, 6-4 in the Suburban Christian Conference for third place.
As the 2011-12 season gets going, the Royals again have shoes to fill including three graduated starters Brenda Rocha, Rachel Rivera and Breann Maryanski, the later a center who led the area in rebounding while nearly averaging a double-double.
Rosary once again enters this season relying on its share of youngsters.
“Only three seniors will be on the roster this season,” Beebe said. “The team is young and learning a new system. Success will be based on how fast they pick up the system and how fast they gel as a team.”
Beebe will be looking to a pair of returning starters to steady the team. Senior point guard Courtney Bila is in her third year on the varsity. Junior wing Madison Richmond also is entering her third year on varsity.
Those two will give the Royals good ball-handling and aggressive defense. Rosary also brings back three juniors — forward Karly Tate, guard Taylor Gibson and guard Mary Wentworth — and two seniors — center Maddie Kombrink and guard Emmy Popovich.
Wentworth figures to be one of the players the Royals look to for scoring while Kombrink is a welcome sight after injuries cost her much of her junior season.
Beebe also welcomes a pair of sophomores to the mix with guards Rachel Choice and Sydney Zaragoza.
Beebe, entering his 12th season as coach, has a first-year assistant, a name very familiar to Rosary fans. Elyse Vanbogaert, a four-time Daily Herald All-Area selection who scored 1,466 career points from 2003 to 2006, will join the staff.