Girls Basketball: Naperville Central’s imposing front line too much for West Aurora

Updated: January 21, 2012 7:38PM

West Aurora faced a tall task going up against the front line Naperville Central puts on the floor.

The Blackhawks were in the game for most of the first quarter, tough, before visiting Naperville Central took control on the way to an easy 51-34 victory Saturday.

With the win the RedHawks earn an opportunity to grab a share of the lead in the DuPage Valley Conference when they host Wheaton Warrenville South on Thursday night. Naperville Central is now 14-8 overall and 8-1 in conference play, while Wheaton South is unbeaten in the DVC.

“I’ve said since mid-December that we have no margin for error if we want another shot at Wheaton South,” said Naperville Central coach Andy Nussbaum.

Victoria Trowbridge led the RedHawks with 16 points, while point guard Jill D’Amico added 12.

Trowbridge is part of an imposing front line that opponents have tried to overcome. The junior forward stands 6-feet tall and she has plenty of height around her. Teammate Jamie Cuny is also a 6-foot junior, and the front line is anchored by 6-foot-3 center Emma Donohue. The RedHawks also have 6-foot-4 Melissa Niggins and 5-10 Laura Dierking to bring in off the bench.

But it was D’Amico who was the catalyst. After dealing with heavy pressure from freshman Blackhawk guard Alexis Wiggins near the time line, D’Amico focused on pounding the ball down low. She had five assists and threw in a couple of three-pointers in the second half for good measure.

“Anyone we go to on offense can get the job done,” said D’Amico, a third-year varsity player. “We pound the ball down low and then kick it out for the three if nothing’s there. I’m looking forward to Thursday night - it’s the biggest game of the season for us.”

The game was decided in the first half. After the Blackhawks (9-10, 2-7) grabbed a 10-7 lead on a three by Wiggins (11 points), they went over eight minutes without a field goal. During Naperville Central’s 12-1 run, Trowbridge and Donahue had a pair of blocks apiece. Donahue ended the day with four blocks and Trowbridge with three, and West Aurora essentially stopped going to the basket as a result of the dominance of the Redhawk bigs.

“The last four or five games, Victoria has played really well,” said Nussbaum. “A lot of teams are concerned with Donahue, and rightly so. That gives Victoria a little more freedom to operate. As a team, we’re really starting to use all of our weapons and maximizing our potential, and I’m real pleased with where we are right now.”

Of the Blackhawks’ eight baskets in the second half, four were from long range. Sophomore Abriya Zeitz had a pair of two-pointers after the intermission and finished with 11 points.

The Redhawks shut down West Aurora’s primary offensive threat Alexis Nelson, one of only four seniors on the team. Nelson finished with four points.

“It seemed like forever that we couldn’t score in the first half,” said West Aurora coach Connie Siljendahl. “Their [West Aurora’s] size really affected us more than it did the first time. Of course, we shot the ball well from the outside the first time.”

With the way Naperville Central shuts down its opponents in the paint, good shooting from the outside becomes a necessity. But West Aurora was anything but hot, connecting on only 13-of-56 from the floor. A positive for the Blackhawks was that they out rebounding their taller opponents 27-25.

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