Elgin knocks off Larkin again

The Elgin girls basketball team tasted victory Monday for the first time in 20 games, and it was an oddly familiar taste at that.

No. 4 seed Elgin (2-26) ended the season of its crosstown rival, No. 5 Larkin (0-27), by defeating the Royals for the second time this season, 52-23, in the play-in game of the Class 4A Cary-Grove regional. The Maroons will face No. 1 Cary-Grove in a semifinal today at 6 p.m.

"It actually feels, like, unreal right now," said Elgin senior guard Brandi Hernandez, who led all scorers with 14 points.

Elgin's last victory was against Larkin on Dec. 3, 50-31.

"It feels great, it's ridiculous, even though it was against the same team," said Elgin senior Evelyn Boje, who scored all 7 of her points in the first half. "We try so hard. We always come out at halftime like, 'C'mon, let's do this.' Then it falls apart and teams end up beating us by a lot and it's not much fun.

"But we're trying. I don't want to say we're a bad team, but we have flaws and teams always find a way to pick at that. It's been frustrating, but tonight felt great."

The Royals actually led the game 6-5 after a sluggish first quarter that saw Larkin commit 13 turnovers to 10 for Elgin.

But Elgin owned the second quarter. Behind 12 points from Hernandez, the Maroons outscored Larkin 20-4 in the period to take control, including a 14-0 run that was capped by a three-point play from senior center Danielle Lawry (10

points) for a 19-6 lead with 3:33 left in the first half.

"We pushed the ball up the court and played really good defense," Lawry said. "It felt good to win."

The Royals were unable to handle Elgin's press. They turned the ball over 22 times in the first half en route to a total of 35.

"We wanted to get back to where we pushed the ball up and down the floor," Elgin coach Dr. Nick Bumbales said. "We thought that was a big key against Larkin."

Elgin put the game out of reach with a 9-2 run to open the third quarter, fueled by 3 baskets and 7 points from Lawry. Her free throw midway through the period put the Maroons ahead 34-12.

The Royals took the floor with only eight available players due to injuries or team reasons. Junior center Stacie Beaver competed gingerly in the 3-point contest before the game but did not play due to injury.

After a difficult season, Larkin is looking forward to better days on the horizon.

"I think as a team it was a rebuilding year with a lot of underclassmen, so it can only get better for next year," Larkin sophomore guard Maggie Hofmann said. "In the next two years I think we'll improve immensely. Hopefully, we'll have a lot more talent coming up next year and the year after and be a much better team."