Girls basketball: Moore, Glenbard South have plenty to celebrate
Brooklynn Moore grabbed a rebound during the third quarter not realizing its significance. It wasn’t until the next timeout shortly thereafter that Eric Daca, her coach, informed her that she had just made Glenbard South history.
During a 48-30 win over Glenbard East on Friday in Glen Ellyn, Moore joined Maggie Bair as the only other Raider to amass both 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds for the program. She was presented with two basketballs marking both milestones after the game.
“I still had my head in the game because I wanna go out here and be undefeated in conference,” Moore said. “And that's what I was really looking for tonight. And this milestone is just extra, so I'm very grateful for that.”
The Raiders (25-2, 12-0) indeed finished Upstate Eight East play with an unbeaten record, clinching their third straight conference championship.
After Moore received her goods for her individual success, she and her teammates hoisted the conference plaque and were given bright red T-shirts marking their achievement.
“We've been saying from the beginning our goal is to continue to make strides forward,” said Daca. “So we're hoping (for) that. While we enjoy the conference championship, and we'll enjoy it tonight, tomorrow we get back to work, and we start getting ready for West Aurora on Tuesday, and then, regionals is following that.”
Glenbard South led Glenbard East (16-14, 9-3) throughout, and Moore left no question about the outcome during the second quarter. That’s when she scored 12 of her game-high 21 points. The Raiders outscored the Rams in that quarter, 17-6.
Many of Moore’s points came from the Raiders’ tight defense, which often led to easy uncontested buckets, and her getting to the rim, even when faced with traffic.
Every Glenbard South starter got into the scoring column in the first quarter, but Moore was the only player on the team to reach double figures for the game. Callie Hardtke and Kaitlin Erickson came the closest to her with six points apiece.
Hardtke scored all of her points from the field. Erickson got four from the free-throw line, and all of her scoring came in the first half.
The Raiders’ bench also got in on the fun with Olivia Cernauske scoring four points in the fourth quarter.
“This group knows how to play together,” Daca said. “So to be able to keep building and keep sustaining that kind of success is a testament to those girls working hard together and continuing to improve.”
The Rams relied on leading scorer Erin Brown, who finished with 17 points. She got on the board in every quarter and was their only scorer in the third quarter, during which she scored four.
Glenbard East’s Oliva Nee scored all six of her points on two 3-pointers in the first quarter, and Teagan Murphy had five points. Bridget Crocker ended the scoring by making both shots during a trip to the free-throw line in the final minute.