Freshman Kipley hits game-winner as Buffalo Grove nips Hersey
This truly was a special K moment.
Kora Kipley, a freshman playing in the second month of her high school career, fired in a 15-foot bank shot as time expired to give Buffalo Grove a dramatic 45-44 win over visiting Hersey in a Mid-Suburban East girls basketball showdown on Friday night.
Making it even more special is that Kipley's believe-it-or-not shot gave BG (7-4, 3-0) a half-game lead in the East over Rolling Meadows (6-4, 2-0) and a one-game lead over Hersey (10-4, 2-1).
The 5-foot-7 talented rookie guard (7 points) from Cooper Middle School in Buffalo Grove had never had a game-winning shot.
"It was such a huge opportunity and moment for her," said Bison coach Steve Kolodziej, whose team led 13-7 after one quarter and trailed 24-22 at halftime. "The ball ended up in her hands and she knocks down the shot."
It was senior guard Macy Floro (9 points) who knocked down the big shot moments earlier when her step-back 3-pointer got BG to within 44-43 with 19 second left.
Kendra Lee (team-high 16 points) then rebounded a missed Hersey free throw with 14.5 seconds left and the Bison charged down court for their final winning possession.
"Kora has been working really hard in practice and she really deserved that," Floro said of the winning basket. "This win feels great. We have to stay humble and work hard now with some really good teams coming up."
Hersey (10-4, 2-1) took its biggest lead in the fourth quarter when Jordan Carlquist hit a 3-pointer and Mary Kate Fahey hit a bucket for a 38-32 lead with 6:57 left.
But Megan Fontanetta (6 points) hit her second 3-poitner to get BG to within 3 points.
Kipley's 3-pointer with 3:19 left closed the deficit 42-40 but Hersey freshman Katy Eidle hit a baseline 16-footer to make it 44-40 with 2:24 left.
"Kora is a pretty good basketball player," Kolodziej added. "She does a lot of things. She's athletic, defends well and she hit those two big shots in the final quarter."
Fahey (15 points) and Eidle (13) led Hersey.
The Huskies had 3-pointers from Jordan Carlquist and Fahey.
"We were struggling with 3-pointers (2-for-17)," said Hersey coach Mary Fendley. "But they gave them to us and even though we kind of asked them to stay away from them, we kept launching them.
"Nothing is decided in December but this does put Buffalo Grove in the driver's seat."
Sophomores Kim Stuerke (5 points) and Leah McKenna also scored for BG.
"It was certainly a battle," Kolodziej said. "It was a really good basketball game back and forth. That's (Hersey) a really good team and we were fortunate to come away with the win. That could have gone either way.
"Macy hit a big three down the stretch when we needed it and then we got lucky with missed free throws and rebound and the rest is history."
A part of history Kipley will never forget.
"We're really excited about the team effort," Kolodziej added. "We're still banged up (Alyssa Ramos out with an foot injury and Zori Angelova with a hand injury). But everyone worked really hard and did an amazing job. They executed the scouting report very well."