Girls Basketball: Bolingbrook rolls by Lincoln-Way Central

Updated: January 19, 2012 9:47PM

Are four heads better than one?

Bolingbrook hopes that if they are not better, they are at least as good.

Junior Kennedy Cattenhead and seniors DeLacy Anderson, Keiera Ray and Allie Hill rotate in the backcourt for the No. 2 Raiders, who are seeking their fourth consecutive state title, but first without Tennessee freshman Ariel Massengale.

They all bring something different to the table, said Bolingbrook assistant coach Janee (Graham) Day, who knows a little about the guard position after roaming the backcourt for Bolingbrook during the early 2000s.

“You’re not going to have another Ariel Massengale, you’re not going to have another Brittney Thomas,” Day said. “Everyone’s different. Everyone brings a different strength to the court, regardless of whether they’re a point guard or a two guard.

“That’s what we look forward to,” the assistant coach added. “You just have to be able to capitalize on what you can bring to the floor.”

The contributions of Bolingbrook’s guards in Thursday’s 84-12 victory over visiting Lincoln-Way Central could fill up a stat book. But Cattenhead, the heir apparent at point guard, led the way with nine points, four assists, three steals and three rebounds.

“She has a good maturity for a junior,” Graham said. “You look forward to those things because a lot of times you get the young mentality and they’re not doing the things we need them to do. I think she’s doing a real good job of working on what we need her to work on and still being a leader.

“You have a team with eight seniors and you’re a junior, you have a tendency to feel like you’re silenced,” Graham added. “I think she takes it all in stride and she understands her role on the team. We need her to be a floor general. You need a coach on the floor and you expect your point guard to do that.

“Of course, we have expectations for Morgan (Tuck) as the leadership role, but you still need your point guard to do something,” the coach added. “I think she’s understands that and I think she’s doing quite nicely.”

Cattenhead said she learned a lot from watching Massengale during her first two years at Bolingbrook.

“Ariel made it look so easy,” Cattenhead said. “But I knew it would be tough. She was just a great player all around. She teaches you a lot. It’s a hard position to work at because you have to control the team and get your players the passes and everything. It’s a hard job. I just have to push through.”

Cattenhead has no misconceptions about her progress as a player. Although the Raiders frequently light up the scoreboard, the program’s success has always been predicated on defense.

“I think I have to work on my on-ball defense, guarding the other team’s point guard,” Cattenhead said. “It’s getting to the crunch of the season. We’re going to start playing way better teams. I have to work on my defense, handling the ball, attacking the gaps and getting the ball to everybody else.”

Bolingbrook (15-1, 7-0 in the Southwest Suburban Conference Blue) got the ball frequently to Tuck on Thursday. The 6-foot-2 senior finished with 35 points to go along with 11 rebounds, four steals and three assists.

Nia Moore added 10 points, Cha-Cha Williams added eight points and Hill had six points and five assists.

But Bolingbrook came out a little flat and scored just 13 points in the first quarter.

“We had a lot of missed layups,” Graham said. “It’s finals week for them, so their minds aren’t always where we need them to be. I think they realize we’re coming to the end of the season and it’s really time to pick things up, understand what we’re trying to do and what we need to work on.”

Rachel Post had four points and Veronica Baldermann added three points for Lincoln-Way Central (10-9, 2-5).

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