Finally, Falcon title goes to Waubonsie
Kim Connell and Waubonsie Valley can exhale now — the wait is over at Wheaton North.
“That last three and a half minutes holding the ball,” said the Waubonsie coach, “must have been the longest three and a half minutes ever.”
Connell’s top-seeded Warriors built a seemingly comfortable 9-point fourth-quarter lead in what was a defensive struggle, then held on to beat No. 2 Glenbrook South 38-35 to win the 28th Bill Neibch Falcon Holiday Classic.
The Warriors (12-1), losers in the last three championship games, won their first Wheaton North title since 1998.
“We’ve been here so many times,” said Waubonsie senior Becky Williford, who scored a team-high 12 points. “The seniors wanted to walk out of here with a win under our belt.”
Williford, who at 5-foot-3 was giving away 9 inches to her Glenbrook South defender, stood tall in crunch time.
Williford followed an Erica Jordan jumper with a pull-up jumper, then followed her own miss with an off-balance putback among Glenbrook South’s forest of 6-footers. Then she dumped off a pretty pass to Gratia Brooks for a 37-28 lead with 4:24 left.
“Sometimes Becky’s height will hurt her,” Connell said, “but she stepped up and played bigger than her size tonight.”
Williford, in her eighth game returning from a torn ACL, is still finding that extra gear — but it’s coming.
“Game by game my first step is getting quicker — it just comes from repetition,” she said. “I know it’s not going to happen overnight. This was the first time I’ve gone against a girl that much taller than me. It was a challenge.”
Glenbrook South’s Colleen McDonagh, who scored a game-high 20 points, threw a late scare into Waubonsie. McDonagh’s driving layup snapped Waubonsie’s 8-0 run, and she hit a long 3 to make it 37-33 with 2:25 left.
Waubonsie stalled to milk the clock but turned it over on three straight possessions, and two McDonagh free throws made it 37-35.
Williford split a pair of three throws with a minute left, and Rachael Ross blocked a McDonagh jumper with 13 seconds left. After Waubonsie missed a free throw McDonagh airballed a 3 in the final seconds.
Glenbrook South (13-3) also missed 6 free throws in the final quarter.
“I’m proud of my kids for battling the way they did. We just missed two many free throws,” Titans coach Steve Weissenstein said. “Waubonsie is difficult to guard because they have girls who can beat you off the dribble, and they have the big girls inside. There’s a reason they’ve only lost once.”
With Waubonsie’s physical group and Glenbrook South’s lineup of four 6-footers that surrendered a combined 89 points in its first three tournament games, points were at a premium.
Waubonsie led 7-6 after a quarter and 17-13 at halftime. A McDonagh 3-pointer gave Glenbrook South a 20-19 lead, but Waubonsie’s Tami Morice answered with her own 3. The Warriors never trailed again, but it wasn’t without a sweat.
Jordan scored 9 points, Brooks 7 and Ross 6.
“We’ve talked about moving from a good team to a great team,” Connell said. “We’re not a great team yet, but we made some steps forward forward tonight.”