Downers Grove North defense stifles Hinsdale Central
Downers Grove North's defense put on a show, and the Trojans won their first regional since 2014.
The Trojans cruised to a 47-19 victory against host Hinsdale Central in a Class 4A girls basketball regional final Friday night.
It's crazy," senior guard Ellie Gross said of her first regional title. "It's awesome. I think we're all really excited, but I think we also know that we can keep going in this tournament and we're excited to keep moving forward."
If their defense continues to play like it did Friday, there's no telling how far the Trojans can go.
"We really pride ourselves on our defense," Gross said, "and today we were firing on all cylinders. It was awesome. We played together and just got a team win."
The second-seeded Trojans (27-6) held the No. 10 Red Devils (11-18) to just 8 points through the first three quarters. The Trojans forced 20 turnovers against their West Suburban Conference Silver Division rivals and allowed just 2 field goals on 21 shots in the first 24 minutes.
"You play a team a third time and you just worry there's a letup," said Trojans coach Stephan Bolt, whose team expanded on its school record for wins in a season. "I was so proud of our kids that we came out with just a tenacity and, I mean, just an urgency still to stop people.
"I'm impressed. They did a great job tonight."
Sophomore guard Ryann Wendt did a great job on the offensive end as well. She had 14 points and was the only player to score in double figures. She scored 9 in the first quarter to stake the Trojans to a 13-4 lead.
"It was huge," said Gross, who scored 9 points, matching classmate Alexis Parker. "Ryann started attacking really hard, taking some tough shots and making them. She's a great spark on offense and on defense. She played great."
"She just needs to be confident in herself," Bolt added. "I mean truly she has all the skills and tools to be that effective all the time, and she's just got to get out of the way of herself every once in a while because she's a heck of a player. She really is. She's a talented kid."
The loss disappointed the Red Devils, who had been playing well lately, including Wednesday's upset of No. 7 seed Proviso East in a regional final.
"It's tough because the last couple of weeks we had come so far and to see us regress a little bit on an opportunity like this is unfortunate," Hinsdale Central coach Karen Persinger said. "I hate that for my seniors.
"But the credit's to Downers. They played a great game, had a great, great game plan. They're a tremendous team and they seem to have had our number this season. But I'm a pretty lucky lady that I get to come down here every day and coach these young women, and I couldn't be more thankful for their efforts."
The Trojans advance to play No. 6 seed Nazareth at 7:30 p.m. Monday in a Proviso West sectional semifinal. The Trojans defeated Nazareth 34-31 on Jan. 7.