Ms. Basketball of Illinois 1997 | Carlyle’s Courtney Smith
It's 20 minutes after Carlyle beat Warsaw in the state's Class A girls basketball semifinals at Normal back on March 1. Warsaw coach Jerry Jerome, still digesting the 81-53 loss,...
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Ms. Basketball of Illinois 1998 | Taylorville’s Allison Curtin
Here's some refreshing news from Downstate Illinois. Allison Curtin can't hit the broad side of a barn with a basketball. In fact, she can't hit the slim side of a...
Ms. Basketball of Illinois 1999 | Nokomis’ Molly McDowell
TO: Marketing. RE: A television advertising campaign, based on a girls high school basketball player, for a large fast-food chain. THE SCENE: Inside a Dairy Queen restaurant in a small...
Ms. Basketball of Illinois 2001 | Marshall’s Cappie Pondexter
There have been many great girls high school basketball players in Illinois--but only one Cappie. Though she stands a modest 5 feet 9 inches, Marshall's Cappie Pondexter has found a...
Ms. Basketball of Illinois 2003 | Naperville Central’s Candace Parker
A year ago, Naperville Central girls basketball coach Andy Nussbaum went on his school's public-address system to make this announcement: "Congratulations to Candace Parker. She's decided to forgo the rest...
Ms. Basketball of Illinois 2004 | Naperville Central’s Candace Parker: 3 times the charm
David the bus driver is like a lot of people. He knew about girls high school basketball, he'd heard about Candace Parker. But Dave never had watched her play. "You...
Ms. Basketball of Illinois 2006 | Belleville Althoff’s Theresa Lisch
Rusty Lisch believes he knows where his younger daughter, Theresa, developed her competitive edge. It was in the family's driveway in Belleville, Ill. The former Notre Dame and NFL quarterback--he...
Ms. Basketball of Illinois 2007 | Olney East Richland’s Brittany Johnson
She was born almost 18 years ago in Ft. Myers, Fla., to a woman with a crack cocaine addiction. Weighing only 1 1/2 pounds at birth, Brittany Johnson struggled to...
State finals bits: Whitley ‘proud’ of Geneva’s run
Taylor Whitley knew she and her Geneva teammates had something to prove entering the final weekend of girls basketball. The Vikings headed into Friday's semifinal against Young with a 32-0...
GodBold carries Commandos to top-3 finish
Adrienne GodBold is well aware of the work ethic preached by Marshall coach Dorothy Gaters and gave a convincing demonstration of it Saturday at Redbird Arena. The 5-foot-10-inch senior brought...