Wauconda salutes Weber with a 'W'

What promised to be an emotional night at Wauconda got ratcheted up even more during pregame warm-ups.

Executing the perfect kind of teamwork that would make Tom Weber flash his infectious smile, Wauconda's girls basketball players stood at center court and took off their warm-up tops, unveiling special T-shirts they had made up for their North Suburban Prairie Division game against Round Lake. The front of the shirts featured a picture of Weber holding his little pride and joy, granddaughter Shelby, who's 2.

Shelby's mom is Wauconda head coach Jaime Dennis.

"We wanted to surprise her," Bulldogs senior forward Jessie Wood said of her coach. "She started crying."

Jaime Dennis is the daughter of Tom, who passed away suddenly last spring. Tom Weber was one of Wauconda's finest citizens, highly involved in District 118 and more highly involved in his family. He was a regular at Wauconda games, especially when his daughter's team was playing.

"He would always come to the game with a huge smile on his face," said Wood, who's in her fourth season on varsity. "He would cheer us on no matter if we were down by a million or up by a lot. He would always have great support for us. He would always come up to us and talk to us after the game. He would say, 'Great job out there' and wish us luck for the next game. He was always there for his daughter."

Tom Weber would have enjoyed Saturday night, and not just because Wauconda won 49-35 behind 6-foot-3 Katie Rossetti's 13 points, 6 rebounds and 2 steals. Besides the game, the night's festivities included a gift basket that was raffled off and fundraiser sponsored by Lindy's Landing restaurant in Wauconda.

"Tom Weber Sr. Tribute Night" was all about raising money for the Tom Weber Sr. Memorial Scholarship fund.

"We wanted to put all of our heart out there on the court for our coach," said Rossetti, a sophomore who played on varsity last season. "We were all affected by (Mr. Weber). It was sad but happy because we were able to do a memorial in a way for him, and it was something he loved. If he were here, he would love all the people coming out to enjoy a game, because that's what he was all about. It was school and athletics."

Wood credited senior teammate Jackie Lung for designing the T-shirts. Assistant coach Dave Schmitz even wore one on the bench.

"Very touching," Dennis said. "Obviously it means a lot to me. When the girls do something like that, I know he made a difference in other people's lives too. They cared enough to do something. They did that on their own dime. It was their own idea."

Before Wauconda's band performed the national anthem, longtime Wauconda PA announcer Carl Price got choked up reading a prepared statement about Tom Weber. The Bulldogs then went out and, despite playing with heavy hearts, bolted to a 20-4 lead by first quarter's end.

"I was surprised that it was as emotional for them because this has all been about me, selfishly, and hopefully getting a little more closure," Dennis said. "I heard sobs next to me when the paragraph was read at the beginning. They care about me. Which is nice. And I care about them."

Corrina Vaughan had 9 points and 3 steals for Wauconda (7-8, 2-5), which was up 34-13 at halftime and 46-24 after three quarters. For Round Lake (4-13, 0-8), Raven Nicoline tossed in a game-high 15 points, while Amparo Vargas grabbed 7 rebounds.

But the game seemed like an afterthought. The memory of Tom Weber and the new scholarship named in honor of him was first and foremost.

"I miss him at our games," Wood said.

"We really wanted to do this for him," Rossetti said. "I remember the first game I played here. He came up to me and said, 'I know you're going to do great things here. I love watching you play.' It really touched me when he said that."

That was Tom Weber.