Girls basketball: Scouting the postseason in the Fox Valley

Class 4A Rockford Guilford sectionalRegional hosts: Elgin, Hononegah, Grant, Huntley.

Elgin regionalPairings: Monday - Game 1) Larkin vs. Elgin, 7 p.m. Tuesday - Game 2) Dundee-Crown vs. Winner Game 1, 6 p.m.; Game 3) Streamwood vs. Jacobs, 7:30 p.m. Thursday - Championship, 7 p.m.

Outlook: The regional at Chesbrough Field House would appear to be a wide open affair. Dundee-Crown (15-15) is the No. 1 seed and the Chargers have played well lately but took a step back Friday night when they couldn't build on an 11-point third-quarter lead and lost to Grayslake North. Nevertheless second-year D-C coach Sarah Miller is hoping her team can use that setback as a learning experience for the postseason. "We have a great opportunity in front of us," Miller said. "Hopefully we'll seize the opportunity and walk out with our heads held high. We have to play more consistent and show more leadership." D-C, which hasn't won a regional title since 2003, had won 4 straight and 5 of 6 prior to the loss on Friday. "Our defense has really picked it up and we've made smarter decisions on offense," Miller said. "We've been playing better as a unit." The Chargers have been led by senior guard Creighton Fed (14.0 ppg, 4.0 apg) and senior post Jesiana Laboy (10.0 ppg, 11.0 rpg). Junior Melissa Barker has 37 3-pointers and senior Lauren Lococo averages 7 rebounds per game.

No. 2 seed Streamwood may be the hottest team in this field having won 3 of its last 4 while playing Upstate Eight River runner-up St. Charles East tough in the loss. The continued improvement of sophomore post Jenejiah Williams (11.2 ppg, 12.0 rpg) and solid senior leadership from guards Kiana Jeremiah (13.0 ppg, 4.0 apg) and Cayla Hawkins has helped the Sabres (10-17) steadily improve as well as the play of several freshmen.

"We're playing better," said Sabres' coach George Rosner. "The freshmen are growing up, Jenejiah is growing up a ton and the seniors are asserting their leadership. We went through some up and down times and we just kept telling the girls we have to improve and we can if everybody works hard. All of a sudden Kiana and Cayla picked it up and Jenejiah has become a force.

"It's a very open regional. Somebody's gonna play well and win it and we hope we're that team. We understand the first game will be tough and we're looking forward to it."

That first game will be against No. 3 seed Jacobs (11-15), which has won 3 of its last 4 games. Carly Sidor (8.9 ppg), Jessica Powell (8.9 ppg) and Jennifer Barnec (8.7 ppg) have led the Golden Eagles' offense.

Monday's opening game pits No. 4 seed Larkin (6-22) against No. 5 Elgin (4-21) for the fourth time this season. Larkin has won the previous three meetings by an average of over 20 points per game. The Royals' leading scorers all season have been sophomore Marlee Kyles (17.9 ppg) and sophomore Quixmia Washington (14.3 ppg).

Huntley regionalPairings: Monday - Game 1) DeKalb vs. Rockford Jefferson, 7 p.m. Tuesday - Game 2) Huntley vs. Winner Game 1, 6 p.m.; Game 3) Belvidere North vs. Rockford East, 7:30 p.m. Thursday - Championship, 7 p.m.

Outlook: Huntley (24-4) is on a 16-game winning streak and the heavy favorite to win its third straight regional title.

"We're excited to have the opportunity to host the regional and contend for the title," said Huntley coach Steve Raethz. "We've been stressing that we have to play with a heightened sense of urgency. Everybody's 0-0 now and we understand that with one game the season can be over."

The two-time Fox Valley Conference Valley Division champions have been carried all season by 6-2 junior standout Ali Andrews (20.8 ppg), who recently became the program's all-time leading scorer and enters the postseason with 1,684 career points. The Illinois recruit, an 88 percent free-throw shooter, also averages 8.2 rebounds per game and has 22 3-pointers. Junior point guard Kayla Barreto (10 ppg) has 43 3-pointers and runs an efficient offense while the Raiders also get valuable contributions from sophomore Morgan Clausen and junior Paige Renkosik.

"I'm really proud of our kids for what they've accomplished in the regular season," Raethz said. "We're on a really positive stretch with 16 wins in a row and 20 of our last 21. The level of competition we've played, I think is going to pay us dividends in the postseason."

Grant regionalPairings: Monday - Game 1) McHenry vs. Grant, 6 p.m. Game 2) Cary-Grove vs. Crystal Lake Central, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday - Game 3) Crystal Lake South vs. Winner Game 1, 6 p.m. Game 4) Prairie Ridge vs. Winner Game 2, 7:30 p.m. Friday - Championship, 7 p.m.

Outlook: This regional could be a three-team race. Top-seeded CL South (20-8) is coming off a 51-43 overtime win over No. 2 Prairie Ridge in Friday's FVC crossover, but No. 3 Cary-Grove (11-15) welcomed back senior Ohio University recruit Katie Barker (12.1 ppg) Friday and her presence puts the Trojans into the mix for the title here.

The Gators are led by junior Chanel Fanter (17.1 ppg) and seniors Kiana Clark and Hailee Massie.

Hononegah regionalOutlook: The host Indians are the top seed in this regional made up of all NIC-10 teams. Rockford Auburn is the No. 2 seed and Rockford Boylan No. 3.

Advancement: The regional winners from Elgin and Hononegah meet in the first sectional semifinal at Guilford on Monday, Feb. 23 with the Huntley and Grant regional winners facing each other the next night. The Guilford sectional title game is Feb. 26 with the winner advancing to the Hoffman Estates supersectional to meet the Palatine sectional champ.

Class 4A Geneva sectionalRegional hosts: Wheaton North, St. Charles North, Lake Park, Addison Trail.

Wheaton North regionalPairings: Monday - Game 1) Willowbrook vs. Hoffman Estates, 7 p.m. Tuesday - Game 2) York vs. Winner Game 1, 6 p.m. Game 3) - Bartlett vs. Wheaton North, 7:30 p.m. Thursday - Championship, 7 p.m.

Outlook: Bartlett has the unenviable task of taking on the host school in this regional, so Hawks' coach Denise Sarna says the fact her team is the No. 6 seed and the Falcons (14-11) are No. 11 only means Bartlett will wear the white jerseys.

"We've seen Wheaton North play and they have a lot of talent on their team," said Sarna, whose team is 18-9. "This time of year everyone is 0-0 and seeds don't really mean anything."

The Hawks have won with defense this season, allowing just 42 points per game. Offensively, junior Kaitlin Brohan (14.6 ppg, 7.0 rpg) has led the way with junior Kelly Harris averaging 9.1 points and 5.3 rebounds.

"We've been playing with a lot of different lineups and hopefully we can get some consistency and get back to our winning ways," said Sarna, whose team is 2-2 in its last four games including a 57-49 loss at South Elgin on Thursday. "Sometimes you can learn from a loss and hopefully it will motivate us."

Addison Trail regionalPairings: Monday - Game 1) Elk Grove vs. Addison Trail, 7 p.m. Tuesday - Game 2) Conant vs. Winner Game 1, 6 p.m. Game 2 - South Elgin vs. Batavia (14-15), 7:30 p.m. Thursday - Championship, 7 p.m.

Outlook: South Elgin (18-9) comes into the postseason having won 7 straight, most of them after losing starters Nadia Yang and Bridgette Williams to injuries. The Storm posted a 57-49 win over Bartlett on Thursday, validating their season by tying the school record for wins in a regular season.

"That will only help us going into the postseason," said first-year coach Dan Mandernack, whose team is the No. 8 seed. "We're peaking at the right time and finding ways to win without Bridgette and Nadia. The kids are excited. We've watched Batavia play and they have Hannah Frazier, who has scored over 1,00 points, and like us they stress defense."

The South Elgin-Batavia winner gets the task of taking on the No. 1 seed, Conant, in the regional final.

Other regionalsNo. 4 seed St. Charles East and No. 5 St. Charles North appear to be on a collision course to meet in the final at North, while at Lake Park, No. 2 seed Geneva is likely to meet either No. 7 Schaumburg or No. 10 WW South in the final.

Advancement: The regional winners from Addison Trail and St. Charles North meet in the Feb. 23 sectional semifinal, with the Lake Park an Wheaton North winners playing on Feb. 24. The Geneva sectional champion plays the Glenbrook South sectional champ in the Conant supersectional.

Class 3A Hampshire sectionalRegional hosts: Rochelle, Sycamore, Rosary, Marian Central

Sycamore regionalPairings: Monday - Game 1) St. Edward vs. Kaneland, 6 p.m. Game 2) Hampshire vs. Genoa-Kingston (12-14), 7:30 p.m. Wednesday - Game 3) Burlington Central vs. Winner Game 1, 6 p.m. Game 4) Sycamore vs. Winner Game 2, 7:30 p.m. Friday - Championship, 7 p.m.

Outlook: Top-seeded Burlington Central begins its quest for another deep postseason run in one of the toughest Class 3A regionals in the state.

"It's a loaded regional and we'll have to be playing our best right away," said Rockets' coach Mark Smith, whose 24-3 team has won 10 straight since losing to Divine Savior of Milwaukee at the McDonald's Shootout, including a stunning 51-37 upset of defending state champion Montini, which was then the top-ranked team in Class 3A.

"We're happy with our seed but once the playoffs start it's anybody's game and there's no easy road. You just have to stay focused and determined."

Led all season by a starting five that includes seniors Alison Colby (7.9 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 980 career points) and Aly DeTamble (6.0 ppg) along with juniors Shelby Holt (11.2 ppg, 54 3-pointers), Sam Pryor (13.2 ppg, 44 3-pointers, 6.5 rpg, over 1,000 career points) and Kayla Ross (10.2 ppg, 3.2 spg), the Rockets will need their postseason experience to combat each opponent in the postseason trail. That will start with either St. Edward (18-9) or Kaneland (19-9) and with a win, the Rockets, ranked No. 2 in Class 3A, will likely meet No. 2 seed Sycamore (24-2) or No. 3 Hampshire (20-8). Sycamore defeated Hampshire 41-29 on Jan. 13 at Hampshire but the Whip-Purs, led by junior Emma Benoit (14.3 ppg, 8.2 ppg) went on a 9-game winning streak after that until losing to Huntley 53-37 Friday.

"We talk about going 1-0 and we're focused on nothing but Wednesday night," said Smith, whose team finished fourth at state last year after reaching the Elite Eight in 2013. "We're all rested and healthy and you can tell at practice they're ready to start playing. Maybe teams look at us differently but I sense we have the confidence that we've done it before and we're excited to get it going again."

St. Edward, which lost to BC in the regional finals last year, has the ability to upset the apple cart if the Green Wave can get past Kaneland. The Wave is led by 6-3 senior Cece Rapp (17.5 ppg, 11.3 rpg).

Sycamore, like Burlington Central, has not lost to a Class 3A team this season. The Spartans, who lost to BC in the sectional semifinals last year, are led by 1,000-point scorer Bailey Gilbert and 6-1 DeKalb transfer Madelyne Johnson.

Other regionalsRockford Lutheran is the top seed at Rochelle, Aurora Central Catholic is No. 1 at Rosary and Woodstock is the top team at Marian Central.

Advancement: The Marian Central and Rosary regional winners meet in the Feb. 23 sectional semifinal with the winners from Sycamore and Rochelle facing each other the next night. The Hampshire sectional winner plays the LaSalle-Peru sectional winner in the Lewis University supersectional.

Class 1A Harvest Christian sectionalPairings: Tuesday - Game 1) Harvest Christian vs. Alden-Hebron, 6 p.m. Game 2 - Chicago Hope Academy vs. Luther North, 7:30 p.m. Thursday - Championship, 7 p.m.

Outlook: Harvest Christian comes into its first sectional competition brimming with confidence, as the Lions (23-6) should, considering they play a Northeast Athletic Conference foe who they beat 59-40 and 70-39 during the regular season.

"Hinckley-Big Rock was a big hurdle for us so we're breathing a little sigh of relief," said Harvest coach Rich DeTamble of his team's regional final win. "To clear that hurdle against a team that has been so dominant in the past was big. The girls are excited and enthusiastic."

The Lions have been led offensively by the 1-2 punch of junior Paulina Castro (20.6 ppg, 110 3-pointers) and senior Kylee Knox (15.8 ppg, 60 3-pointers, 1,505 career points). Castro brings the experience of being on two straight state teams at Montini, an invaluable asset for a team that is in a sectional for the first time.

"We're in uncharted waters and we just need to take each step as it comes," said DeTamble. "We know Alden so well so there's a lot of comfort there. We know what they bring to the table and we can react to what offenses and defenses they run but we're definitely not looking past them."

The Green Giants (16-10) got past host Christian Liberty 34-32 to win their first regional title since the 1990s.

Advancement: The Harvest Christian sectional winner advances to the Lewis University supersectional on Monday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. to play the Gilman Iroquois West sectional winner.