Bolingbrook Patch's Top 10 Sports Stories of 2011

If you're a sports fan and a resident of , there was plenty to be proud of this year. 

Here are our top 10 sports stories of the year:

1. 

The Bolingbrook football team is used to overcoming adversity.

After being picked to lose to Loyola Academy in the 8A state finals while  was a late scratch, the Raiders also lost five turnovers on a rainy Saturday.

Those obstacles could not stand in Bolingbrook’s way as it defeated the Ramblers 21-17 to claim the school’s first-ever football state championship.

“This is something that we’ve been working for a long time at Bolingbrook High School,” Bolingbrook coach John Ivlow said. “I still got three guys from that 1993 staff who wanted to get one more chance to win before they retire. There are also many other people still involved in the program who share in this as much as us.”

2. 

The Bolingbrook Lady Raiders walked into Redbird Arena holding roses and walked out hoisting their third straight IHSA Class 4A championship trophy.

Morgan Tuck took the lead role for Bolingbrook in the 71-42 championship clincher against Zion-Benton. The junior forward poured in a game-high 36 points and snatched seven boards as well en route to a 29-point win that clinched the team its third consecutive state title.

The Lady Raiders (29-2) led wire-to-wire, jumping out to a double-digit lead early as they so often did during their early run in the postseason. The 10-2 spurt to start the game was just the beginning for Bolingbrook. Head coach Tony Smith's team poured in 21 points in the first period en route to taking a commanding 14-point lead.

3. 

It's been a good year for  Lady Raiders standouts Ariel Massengale and Morgan Tuck.

In November both signed letters of intent to play for two of the top NCAA women's basketball programs in the nation— and . 

The dynamic duo helped the Lady Raiders cruise to a  before helping the team win its . 

After the season, Massengale was .

Just consider their most recent accomplishment—helping the U.S. U19 women's national team to a world championship over the weekend—the icing on their otherwise very large cake. 

Both Massengale and Tuck played vital roles in the United States' run to a second-straight FIBA world championship in Chile on Sunday.

The U.S. defeated Spain 69-46 in the final. Earlier in the weekend, the USA squad dispatchedFrance 70-64 and romped past Brazil 82-66 to qualify for the title game.

Massengale scored 10 points against Spain, including two three-pointers, and added seven assists. 

Tuck, one of the youngest players on the team, scored five points against France and added a basket against Spain.

Both local stars played key roles on last year’s U17 world champion U.S.squad.

In all, Massengale finished the tournament with a team-high 39 assists while averaging 7.2 points per game. Massengale was also a defensive anchor, snatching 39 defensive rebounds.

Tuck, meanwhile, averaged 3.5 points per game in limited minutes.

4.

Two  students played key roles in the USA Hockey Illinois high school junior varsity spring championship posted earlier this month by the Lemont Trojans.

Junior Jason Florcyk was in goal for the combined squad that includes players from Lemont, Downers Grove North and Bolingbrook high schools, while sophomore Eric Svejda played center for the team which also won the regular season title with a perfect 8-0-1 mark.

Florcyk, who gave up just two goals while making 58 saves in the playoffs, stopped several breakaways in the 3-1 championship victory over Neuqua Valley.

Svejda accounted for three goals and five assists during the playoffs and was particularly outstanding as a penalty killer in the title contest.

The Trojans eliminated Lake Park 6-1 in the quarterfinals and knocked off Glenbard in the semis.

5. 

As the Lady Raiders girls basketball team looks to begin its journey for an astonishing fourth-straight state championship in the coming weeks, eight of its seniors will be doing so without the distraction of worrying about where they will be playing next season.

Eight of the team's seniors, all of which helped the team to a  in March, are expected to sign letters of intent to play for some of the nation's most accomplished NCAA women's basketball programs.

The signings are as follows:

• Allie Hill—University of Texas-Pan American
• Annaya Moore—University of Alabama-Birmingham
• Cabriana Capers—Auburn University
• ChaRosese “Cha Cha” Williams—Stetson University
• Dalacy Anderson—George Washington University
• Keiera Ray—University of Pennsylvania 
• Morgan Tuck—University of Connecticut
• Nia Moore—University of Illinois

6. 

You don't become Illinois state champions without having a few studs on your team.

And the Bolingbrook Raiders were no different this season.

Just a week removed from  first-ever state championship—a —three of its work horses were honored with first-team all-state status by the Chicago Tribune.

Bolingbrook's , and senior linebacker  and senior offensive guard  were each selected by the Tribune as best in the state.

7. 

The  Bulldogs (11-4) survived a sectional final baseball battle with defending state champ Troy Middle School 3-2 Wednesday to move on to the Illinois Elementary School Association state quarterfinals at Eastside Center in East Peoria against Summit Hill (14-3). 

Jared Lenoir drove in what turned out to be the winning run in the sixth inning. Curt Ederle walked to start the sixth. He then went from second to third. Lenoir came to the plate with the score tied at two and singled.

Jacob Nagel handled Troy Middle School's lineup, racking up six strikeouts. The Bulldogs' pitcher allowed one earned run on six hits and one walk over seven innings. The Bulldog defense behind Nagel was tremendous.

Nagel, Ivan Chavez, and Myles Sandeen all collected hits for the Bulldogs. Lenoir led the team with two hits.

8. 

With aspirations high, the Bolingbrook girls’ sectional championship kicked off without a hitch.

By the final race, four teams were within two points of one another: Downers Grove South, Hinsdale Central, Lyons Township and Bolingbrook. 

Bolingbrook High School sent two relay teams and eight individual qualifiers to next weekend’s state girls track championships.

9.

The Lady Raiders ended Montini's 23-game winning streak, shot 60 percent from the floor and played with a tempo not even most college teams see on a regular basis.

Bolingbrook junior guard Kierra Ray scored an opening-game 3-pointer and the Lady Raiders never looked back, defeating Montini 79-63 in the McDonald’s Shootout’s showcase game.

10. 

The Bolingbrook High School varsity cheerleading team has qualified for the Illinois Cheerleading Coaches Association Cheerleading Championships Feb. 11 in Springfield, school officials announced this week.

The squad qualified by winning the Bolingbrook Invitational.