Take a team that was 1-8 in conference, starts four sophomores and wound up the regular season with 11 losses.
What does that add up to? If you’re Bishop McNamara, a berth in the quarterfinals of the Class A state finals this weekend.
The conference record can be explained this way: The Fightin’ Irish had their hands full in the East Suburban Catholic, arguably the toughest group of teams in the state with Class AA powers Fenwick, Benet, Marian Catholic, Carmel and Joliet Catholic among the obstacles.
“It’s such a quality conference,” said McNamara coach Jeff Bennett, whose team is making its first appearance in the Elite Eight when they take on Carthage at 1:45 p.m. Friday at Normal’s Redbird Arena.
As Bennett said, his team is going “to face a man-to-man defense from a Carthage team that denies the ball.” But he also pointed out that “It’s not Heidloff, it’s not Eckhart, it’s not Quigley and it’s not Lacey” that the Irish are facing.
That was a reference to the some of the top players in the state–Fenwick’s Kristin Heidloff, Carmel’s Jenny Eckhart, Joliet Catholic’s Allie Quigley and Marian Catholic’s Lauren Lacey–his girls have seen on a regular basis in compiling a 19-11 record.
Sophomore Jennifer Juergens, a 5-foot-9-inch forward, leads McNamara in scoring with a 16.0 average.
Claire Schmidt, the team’s tallest starter at 6 feet, is also a sophomore and averaging 11.1 points and a team-best 7.3 rebounds.
The other starters include Taylor Bennett, the coach’s daughter who averages 8.6 points, Kate Welsh and junior Marche Gibbs. There are no seniors on Bennett’s roster.
“This is just a group of kids who like to play the game,” said Bennett, a former men’s assistant coach at Kankakee Community College. “It feels like it belongs.”
McNamara finds itself in one of the most intriguing Class A fields in recent years.
The quarterfinals open with Hampshire (28-3), third in the state last season, facing Riverton (29-4) and Bradley recruit Devyn Flanagan at noon. Led by double-digit scorers Nicole Watzlawick (18.6), Jackie Heine (16.5) and Amanda Walker (10.9), Hampshire is making its third consecutive appearance Downstate.
Illiana Christian (21-10), which thumped defending champ Hope by 16 points in the sectional final, meets Carrollton (31-3) at 6: 30 p.m.
Erica Bruxvoort, a 6-1 senior who will play volleyball at Bethel College in Indiana, leads the Vikings in scoring (15.2) and rebounding (10.5). Carrollton won state titles in 2001 and 2002 behind the play of Amber Shelton–currently a senior at Edwardsville.
Kassie Drew, who has scored more than 3,000 career points, leads Anna-Jonesboro (30-5) against unbeaten Decatur St. Teresa (30-0) at 8:15 p.m.
The semifinals are at 11 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. Saturday with the championship game scheduled for 8:15 p.m. that night.
