Local Fare: Just like at Lake Park, Rogers piling up points at DePaul
A scoring machine during her high school days at Lake Park, Darrione Rogers found the perfect college home to continue her career.
As a sophomore at DePaul this season, Rogers is a starting guard on a Blue Demons team that entered Saturday's play ranked No. 1 in NCAA Division I women's basketball scoring at 88.4 points per game.
Rogers - a two-time All State selection at Lake Park - averages over 10 points per game and is one of the Big East's top 3-point shooters this year.
"It's been extremely fun," Rogers said. "We have a lot of talent on this team and coach Doug Bruno does an amazing job of giving us the greenest green light that there is in college ball. It's just a blessing to be able to go out there and put that many points up on the board."
One of Rogers' fondest memories from high school was leading the Lancers to a 26-10 record and trip downstate her senior season.
Winning has always been No. 1 on the priority list, and joining a DePaul program that received 18 straight NCAA tournament invites under Bruno was another major attraction.
The Blue Demons slipped a bit in 2020-21, going 14-8 and settling for a WNIT bid. After losing to Marquette 105-85 Saturday in the Big East quarterfinals, DePaul (22-10) has to sweat out a bid to get back to the NCAAs.
"It's very important for us," Rogers said. "We remind ourselves every day of what we're fighting for, and that's to get back into the NCAA tournament. We have to prove to not only ourselves but the entire world that we are among the top teams in the country and we're capable of going out there and being on the big stage."
Rogers was held to 2 points in Saturday's loss to the Golden Eagles. Antwainette Walker, a former star at St. Francis High School, came off the bench for Marquette and had 6 points and 4 rebounds.
After starting her collegiate career at Arkansas-Little Rock, Walker transferred to Marquette and has been a key contributor in her second season with the Golden Eagles.
In addition to Rogers and Walker, here are some other former area prep standouts that are faring well in college:
Angela Dugalic
It was a tough season for the former Maine West High School star and her new school, UCLA.
Limited to 9 games due to a knee injury, Dugalic averaged 5.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game for the Bruins (14-12), who lost to Oregon in the Pac-12 quarterfinals Thursday night.
A two-time All State pick at Maine West and a force on the Warriors' 2018-19 Class 4A state championship team that went 35-0, Dugalic began her collegiate career at Oregon and the 6-foot-4 forward averaged 3.4 points and 4 rebounds while playing all 24 games for the Ducks before transferring to UCLA.
Greta Kampschroeder
The Gatorade Illinois girls basketball Player of the Year last season, Kampschroeder also took her game to the Pac-12 and had a strong freshman season for the Beavers.
Starting 25 of OSU's 27 games, the Naperville North High School product averaged 5.6 points and 2.6 rebounds a game. Kampschroeder was selected as Maui Classic MVP after scoring 29 points in two games.
Brooke Schramek
The Benet Academy graduate just completed her second season at Wisconsin and showed impressive growth. Breaking into the Badgers' starting lineup, Schramek averaged 8.2 points and 4.1 rebounds a game.
A guard, she scored a career-high 20 points vs. Nebraska on Feb. 23.
Myia Clark
The leading scorer in school history when she graduated from St. Viator, Clark played her first three collegiate seasons at St. Louis University before transferring to Evansville.
The senior guard is the Purple Aces' third-leading scorer (12.1 points per game) and second-leading rebounder (4.6).
Rachel Kent
After playing her first two seasons at St. Louis U., the former Maine West star transferred to IUPUI (Indians University-Purdue University Indianapolis) and has helped the Jaguars (22-4) move to first place in the Horizon League.
A starting guard, Kent ranks third on IUPUI in scoring (10.7 ppg).
Mia Lakstigala
Graduating from Naperville Central as the school's No. 2 all-time scorer behind Candace Parker, Lakstigala averaged 10.9 points per game at Penn this season and was the Quakers' third-leading scorer.
Alisa Fallon
The senior guard is Army's top scorer (12.2 ppg) and earned All Patriot League second-team honors. Fallon prepped at Maine West High School.
Carie Weinman/Caitlin Morrison
One of the top players in Glenbrook South H.S. history, Weinman is Valparaiso's second-leading scorer (11.5) this season.
Morrison, a prep teammate, ranks sixth in scoring for Valparaiso at 5.3 ppg.