Underdog Rosary keeps surprising postseason run alive
Records can be deceiving.
Despite owning a 13-17 record, Rosary's girls basketball team is rewriting its record book this season.
For the first time in school history, the Royals find themselves a win away from a sectional championship after hanging on for a 55-50 victory over Woodstock (19-12) in Monday night's Hampshire Class 3A sectional semifinals.
"Earlier in the season when we were going through a rough time, my assistant coach (Don Rasich) asked them, 'how do you want this season to end? Do you want to be known as Rosary's worst team in history?'" said Rosary coach Jessie Terrell.
"Now we've just proved that they're Rosary's best team in history. It might not be record-wise, but it's not where you start, it's where you end. This is something that can never be taken away from them."
On a night where temperatures dipped into the single digits, senior guard Quincy Kellett helped jump-start the Royals.
Scoring in a variety of ways, Kellett poured in 13 first-quarter points as the Royals grabbed a 16-10 lead. In addition to her 3-point play off a hard drive to the basket, Kellett connected on a pair of 3-pointers - the second one giving Rosary a 16-6 lead with 1:46 left in the period.
"Quincy is that kind of player and same with Megan (Conlin)," said Terrell. "They're either on or off but they're never going to stop coming at you. She knows the game well enough that when she's on, she needs to continue to score for her team and when she's off, she looks to be a distributor."
Kellett tallied 17 of her game-high 22 points in the opening half as the Royals built a 27-18 advantage.
"It's fun when you have games like that," said Kellett.
"The start is always important for us because we're a team that lives and dies with confidence," said Terrell.
Senior forward Adrienne Winkel, who limited Woodstock leading scorer Selena Juarez (10 points) to just 1 field goal - a 3-pointer with 2:34 remaining - scored all 6 of her points in the third quarter while sophomore teammate Mary Kate Bakala added 4 free throws as Rosary carried a 39-29 lead into the fourth quarter.
Conlin scored 9 of her 13 points in the final period as the Royals withstood one final push from the Blue Streaks, who could get no closer than 5.
"We talked about it at halftime," Terrell said of limiting Woodstock's runs. "We had to withstand their pressure and stay within ourselves."
Taylor Drozdowski added 8 points for the Royals, who will face Rockford Lutheran (a 46-30 win over Sycamore) in Thursday's sectional title clash.
"We're the underdogs so there's no pressure on us at all," said Kellett. "We're just going out there and having fun."
"I can't explain how all of the chips are falling into place for us," said Terrell. "It has been a rocky season but we're all coming together nicely now."
Gabriella Scolio led Woodstock with 14 points while Brecken Overly added 11 points and 12 rebounds.