South Elgin nips West Aurora
It didn't come nearly as easy as the 27-point blowout just last Saturday, but for the second time in less than a week South Elgin's girls basketball team knocked off Upstate Eight Conference Valley Division rival West Aurora on Friday. The Storm had to rally late to pull out the 48-47 win at home.
Mackenzie Kelleher scored 14 points to lead the Storm.
South Elgin trailed throughout and by as much as 10 points until there was 1:08 left in the game when Delaney Kelleher converted on a 3-point play to finally give South Elgin the lead 47-45.
"We knew they were coming in with a score to settle," South Elgin coach Dan Mandernack said. "We talked about needing to come out and play with a sense of urgency, but we didn't. Eventually we were able to pull it together and grind it out. I'm proud of the way the girls hung in there."
The Storm (16-9, 9-4) trailed 29-22 at halftime, but managed to pull to within 36-35 by the end of the third quarter. Mackenzie Kelleher scored 8 points in the third quarter all coming in the post.
"They came out and threw the first punch and we weren't ready," Mackenzie Kelleher said. "In that second half we finally started running some of our set plays and getting into our offense. I know I didn't want to lose and just started getting more aggressive."
The Storm had eight chances to take the lead in the fourth quarter before Delaney Kelleher finally scored the go-ahead bucket on a transition layup off a steal by Kennedy Wells.
"It was exciting to finally get the lead," Delaney Kelleher said. "Kennedy got that play started with a great play on defense. The defense is what did it for us tonight."
The Storm forced 8 turnovers in the fourth quarter.
"The kids just refused to lose," Mandernack said. "Our defense really made the difference in the fourth quarter. We put Kennedy in there. She is a stalwart and our defensive specialist. She can make a lot of things happen. We were able to create a lot of turnovers off of our traps."
Taylor Ford hit four 3-pointers to add 12 points for the Storm.
Carley Frauenholf had 14 points to lead the Blackhawks (6-16, 3-7) in scoring.
"I think our inexperience showed at the end of the game," West coach Connie Siljendahl said. "We have two freshmen on the floor most of the time and no seniors on the team and we just haven't been in this position before. This will be an excellent growing experience for them."