Ranallo leads St. Edward past Hinckley-Big Rock
by Tim Sieck For Sun-Times Media February 2, 2012 10:06PM
St. Edward's Madeline Kerr tries to steal the ball from Hinckley-Big Rock's Katie Hollis on Thursday in Elgin. | Karen Naess ~ For Sun-Times Media
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Updated: April 3, 2012 10:14AM
In a meeting between two teams which have high postseason aspirations, St. Edward defeated visiting Hinckley-Big Rock 44-33 in nonconference action Thursday night in Elgin.
St. Edward (19-7) said goodbye to six seniors, but it was junior Rena Ranallo who provided the biggest spark for the Green Wave. Ranallo scored 19 points off the bench and shot 86 percent from the field.
“I fed off the loud energy of the crowd,” said Ranallo. “I was happy to provide some offense off the bench, and help our team get a victory.”
St. Edward got off to a very slow start to the game thanks to a combination of the H-BR (20-6) defense and some nerves on senior night.
“We were way too excited at the start of the game and it showed in our play,” said senior Maddie Kerr. “Our defense helped us in getting the victory tonight.”
The key to the victory for the Wave was its defensive effort in the third quarter. St. Edward allowed Hinckley-Big Rock to score only two points in the period.
“We started out the game a little out of sync, but our defense picked up in the second half,” said St. Edward coach Michelle Russell. “This was a definite team win and everyone contributed.”
Royals coach Greg Burks was pleased with his team’s effort in defeat.
“I was encouraged by our effort tonight against a really good St. Edward team,” said Burks. “We put ourselves in too big a hole to overcome, but we kept fighting. If there is a tougher gym to play in I sure haven’t seen it.”
Kerr added 11 points for the Wave. Hinckley-Big Rock was led by Katie Hollis, who scored 19 points and added 12 rebounds.
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