Girls Basketball: Unbeaten Bartlett keeping it simple

Updated: January 23, 2012 6:36PM

The mere mention of a perfect season can be enough to give a team on such a run jitters. Bartlett’s girls basketball team, however, is handling a season without losses as if it happens all the time: The pressure is there, but the team takes it in stride.

“There’s talk about it all the time,” Bartlett coach Denise Sarna said. “People talk at school. There’s a lot of talk, but I remind the kids we need to go in each game working hard and focused and as a staff we’re working hard at practice to keep them that way.

“As the season has gone on, we work hard to define our goals. But all along they’re trusting in each other and trusting in the system.”

The goal right now for Bartlett (22-0, 8-0) is winning out in the Upstate Eight Valley. The Hawks haven’t lost a conference game since Jan. 8, 2010 against St. Charles East. They’ve won 26 straight UEC games, but their next contest not only could be the biggest challenge to the streak, but possibly the most difficult game they’ll have the rest of the regular season: a home showdown Friday with second-place Waubonsie Valley (17-2, 7-1).

Bartlett has reached a new level of dominance with 50 wins in its last 52 UEC contests. Even back in 2004-05, when they took second in the state during the Lindsay Schroeder era, the Hawks did not challenge for a perfect season this deep into the schedule.

It isn’t just that they’ve won — they’ve dominated almost every game. Only three teams this season got within 10 points or fewer against the Hawks, and no one closer than nine.

Keeping that streak rolling against the Warriors, however, might be more difficult than in the Dec. 13 meeting with Waubonsie Valley, which the Hawks won on the road 65-47. Warriors guard Becky Williford is back in control of her team now after missing much of the early season following knee surgery.

“It (Dec. 13 game) was her first real game back,” Warriors coach Kim Connell said. “She had played a couple minutes here and there in a couple other games.”

Williford could be the key to the Warriors handling Bartlett’s full-court pressure. Williford had 13 points in the first matchup, but Bartlett held top scorers Tami Morice and Rachel Ross to eight total points.

“They’re a very physical team,” Sarna said. “Their skill players have experience. We’ve been playing against a lot of the Waubonsie Valley girls since they were freshmen and have seen a lot of them now. The teams know each other well.

“Everybody knows it will be a physical game so we’ll have to work hard on defense and keep them off the boards.”

Part of the reason for the Hawks’ ability to stay unbeaten is the fact they’re simply not easy to defend.

With Haley Videckis averaging in the 20-point range all year, teams have tried to take her out with box-and-ones or other creative schemes. When they slow down the Indiana-bound star, it only has meant 6-foot senior forward/guard Kristin Conniff gets a chance to step up and shoulder the scoring load, like she did against Fremd for 32 points in the Dundee-Crown tournament semifinals. If something keeps Conniff from picking up the slack, 6-foot senior forward Lisa Palmer, 5-8 senior guard Katie Gutzwiller and 5-5 senior guard Janessa Baker have done it.

Sarna, too, has had a big part in the streak.

“One thing I continue to work on is to be a coach who does not get too emotional because emotions take you out of your focus on the game,” Sarna said. “I try not to gripe at the refs and encourage players that way.

“You can’t worry about a mistake made or call that went against you. They do a pretty good job for basketball players of focusing on their jobs.”

St. Edward seeded second

As expected, St. Edward’s four-point nonconference loss to Rockford Lutheran proved decisive when coaches in Class 2A had their seeding sessions.

The Green Wave got seeded second behind Lutheran in the North Boone Class 2A Regional, and opens tourney play Feb. 8 against the winner of the Rockford Christian (3rd seed) game with Harvard (6th seed).

Westminster Christian (14-6) is the top seed in its own Class 1A regional, which feeds into the Willows Academy Sectional. As first seed in a seven-team regional, the Warriors are the only team with a first-round bye. They face the Elgin Academy (5th seed)-Chicagoland Jewish (4th seed) winner in a Feb. 8 game. Elgin’s Harvest Christian (11-5) is the third seed and plays Feb. 7 against sixth-seeded Woodlands Academy.

Large school state tourney seeding will be finished this Wednesday.

Double trouble

There aren’t many low post players adept at using either hand, but Streamwood’s 6-foot Hannah McGlone has displayed this ability. Opponents will have a headache trying to handle her two more seasons after this one.

“I’m mainly right-handed, but I enjoy using my left more than my right,” McGlone said, after a 33-point game against Larkin. “I’ve gotten used to my left because I’ve jammed my thumb multiple times on my right. So I like my left hand.”

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