Hoffman Estates makes sure of win over Meadows
One year after falling in its first game of the state tournament to a No. 18 seed, Hoffman Estates girls basketball team was all about focus Tuesday night in its opener of the Rolling Meadows Class 4A regional.
"We didn't want that to happen again," said senior Kelsey Lukowicz, who played for the Hawks last year when they were the No. 2 seed upset by York. "We knew we couldn't take anything for granted. We knew we had to play well."
The Hawks did, especially on defense as they posted a 35-18 victory over the tourney host Mustangs.
Next up for Hoffman (21-7) will be Proviso East (23-4) for Thursday's championship game.
"We didn't want to be one-and-done this season," said Hoffman coach Mike Nocella. "Rolling Meadows (14-18) played a scrappy game."
"We knew the Mid-Suburban East had a lot of tough teams so Meadows had seen good competition," said Hawks senior Megan Bernardoni (4 rebounds, 3 assists), who had two big 3-pointers and all 8 of her points in the second half. "And we knew they were very active on defense. So we had to come out strong."
Lukowicz and junior Precious Ogunleye had buckets for Hoffman while junior Ashley Rios and freshman Morgan Keller each had one for Hoffman in a 4-4 tie after one quarter.
The Hawks were gradually able to pull away in the second quarter, getting a 9-4 lead when junior Jada Stotts (team-high 9 points) made a steal and then handed out an assist to Mary Pettit for a layup.
Two free throws by junior Madelynn Conlin got Meadows to within 9-6 but the Hawks answered with an 8-2 run to close the half.
Stotts scored on three consecutive layups, the last coming off her own steal for a 15-6 lead. Tonya Skworch added the final bucket with an 8-foot bank shot.
Hoffman outscored the Mustangs 9-2 in the third quarter, limiting the Mustangs to 4 baskets in the first 24 minutes.
Ogunleye (5 steals, 3 rebounds) had a few thefts in the period, including one in which she swiped the ball under the Hoffman basket and put it back up for a layup and 24-11 lead.
Moments later, Hawks freshman Destinee Young (4 rebounds) got a nice pinpoint pass from Bernardoni and scored a layup for a 26-11 lead after three quarters.
"Precious was the big difference," Nocella said. "She played very good defense. She stepped up and Megan Bernardoni hit some big shots to help us ice it away in the second half."
The Mustangs were 6-for-40 from the field and received 6 points from Keller and 4 from Rios.
"You're not going to win a basketball game by shooting 6-of-40," said Mustangs coach Todd Hatfield. "We've had the defensive intensity all season."
The Mustangs gave up an average of 36 points this season, shattering last year's school record of 43.6.
"We blew last year's school record out of the water," Hatfield said. "Our two MSL wins are the most in six years and it was the first year we won a game in the state tournament in seven years. And our 14 wins are the most since 2001.
"We've had a lot of milestones but it still smarts tonight. I've just been in love with this senior class (Kelly Adair, Rene Poellinetz, Maryclare Loughery and Jackie Grummel).
"They epitomize the student athlete (all have 4.0 GPAs or better). They have been great role models for the younger kids because they have been extremely successful in academics and they play multiple sports."
Hatfield hopes his team continues to improve on this season and turns the corner.
"We had a very close group this season," he added. " That's nothing you can coach. I'm very proud of this team."