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Sports

Naperville Central Readies to Play Lady Raiders in Romeoville Sectionals

Redhawks play nationally ranked Bolingbrook in sectional semifinal tonight at 7:30 p.m.

AURORA – Knowing that the reward for winning Friday’s Class 4A East Aurora Regional championship was a date with nationally ranked Bolingbrook on Monday, Naperville Central coach Andy Nussbaum couldn’t help but make a joke.

“I told (Neuqua coach Mike Williams) on Wednesday that the loser should have to play Bolingbrook,” Nussbaum quipped.

But it is indeed his Redhawks that get a crack at the explosive Lady Raiders after . Scouting Bolingbrook, Nussbaum came away quite impressed.

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“With the exception of our 2003 and 2004 teams (both state champions), and I’m partial, this is the best high school basketball team I have ever seen,” Nussbaum said.

“They can do everything. They shoot really well. They rebound really well. About the only thing they don’t have [is a] Candace [Parker]. She was 6-foot-4. They don’t have that big of a kid. But they don’t have any weaknesses.”

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The Lady Raiders used 19-points run to take control in  against Romeoville High School.

The Lady Raiders dispatched their two opponents at the Plainfield East Regional by a total score of 181-50. Junior forward Morgan Tuck has been the dominant force on offense, racking up 54 points in the first two postseason contests.

And as if Tuck and McDonald's all-American Ariel Massengale weren't enough firepower, Bolingbrook's bench has seen a spark from Cabriana Capers, who has 19 points and 17 rebounds off the bench in the playoffs.

This season, Bolingbrook has been beating teams by an average of about 50 points per game, and the Lady Raiders’ only two losses came to teams from California, both of which are nationall ranked programs.

But the Redhawks are still looking forward to the challenge.

“We know they’re a really good team,” Central senior Emma Ondik said. “Of course, it won’t be easy to beat them, but it’s a really fun opportunity to get a chance to play them. If we do beat them that will be the big story, so that would be cool.”

Central comes in playing its best basketball of the season. Since losing to Wheaton North on Jan. 8, the Redhawks have won 14 of 15 games, including the DuPage Valley Conference title and a regional crown.

“This one is special because we did it a little more like we did in the pre-Candace days,” Nussbaum said. “We kind of struggled before Christmas and tried to find our identity. Once we got past Jan. 8, it was full steam ahead. I even thought then that we could win all the rest of them.”

Although finding a specific reason why the Redhawks are on such a great run is difficult to pinpoint, Ondik, a four-year starter at point guard, believes it was a matter of better chemistry.

“I don’t know for sure but I definitely think we’ve had some girls step up,” Ondik said. “Jamie [Cuny] has been hitting threes. Victoria [Trowbridge] has done a great job getting rebounds and me, Emma [Donahue] and Jill [D’Amico] have been playing pretty well.

"Also, we’re playing better as a team. I think that has something to do with it.”

Central will need all of that chemistry to continue to deal with the likes of Massengale and Connecticut recruit Tuck. Nussbaum even suggested a trick that interrupted Bolingbrook’s Plainfield East Regional title game Thursday.

“When the fire alarm went off, they couldn’t score any points,” Nussbaum said.

What: vs. in the IHSA Romeoville Sectionals first round.

Where: Romeoville High School

When: Tonight at 7:30 p.m.

Brian Feldt contributed to this report.

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