The girls’ basketball team finished a strong regular season, going FINAL RECORD.  They are now in the playoffs, with their next game tonight against Mundelein.

            “The season went very well.  We had a bit of a rough patch during the mid part of our season because we transitioned into a new offense,” Sarah Stefaniu, junior, said.  “Once we got that down, we really got into a groove and figuring out what works.”

Practice was vital to developing this new offense, and the girls worked hard to focus on their strengths and improve weaknesses, according to Stefaniu.  Over the summer they attended a team camp in North Carolina to jumpstart the season.

“We focused on what we needed to execute and we really found out the roles of everyone on the team,” Stefaniu said.

They continued to work on the new offense at practice.  They also studied film to identify their strengths and weaknesses, which they then improved during practice.

“[At practice] we focus on details,” Katherine Anderson, senior, said. “We do every drill hard.”

One of the team’s weaknesses was their lack of height, according to Stefaniu.  However, they were able to adjust their game plan.

“We knew we weren’t going to be that big of a team so we tried getting easy transition points right off the bat,” Stefaniu said.  “What we didn’t have in height we made up with speed.”

            While practicing helped the team develop skills, immense leadership helped develop the desire to win.  This year there were eight seniors on the team to lead the team with their experience.

            According to Stefaniu, having a large amount of seniors helped the younger girls who were new to the team.  Also, many of the girls were driven to play even harder.

            “We know it’s our last season, so we play every game like it’s our last,” Anderson said.  “I know this is the last time I’ll get to play in an organized league, so I’m fully dedicated.”

            This immense dedication has paid off, as Anderson says the team is “winning a lot more” than previous years.  Their biggest win of the season came on January 30, when a buzzer-beater shot helped the Bears beat Stevenson after multiple losses to them.

            “We wanted to beat them all year, especially since they’ve beat us the past eight times,” Anderson said.  “It gave us a lot of momentum, especially since we’ll probably have to play them in the regional finals.”

            The huge win came at the final leg of the season, giving the girls momentum going into the playoffs, which begin Tuesday, February 14, at home against Mundelein.