Girls basketball: Waubonsie Valley beats Benet in OT thriller for first sectional title since 1999

OSWEGO – Lily Newton said she had nothing to lose when she got the ball in the final seconds of overtime in a tied sectional final.

She had so much to gain.

Waubonsie Valley’s 5-foot-10 junior scored on a drive from the top of the key with 2.3 seconds left in overtime. Newton’s first career game-winner sent the second-seeded Warriors past fourth-seeded Benet 63-61 in the Class 4A Oswego Sectional final.

Waubonsie, rallying from 11 points down in the second half, won only the program’s second sectional championship – and the first since the 1999 state team.

“Nice thing about being tied is we don’t have anything to lose. It doesn’t go in, we go to double overtime,” Newton said. “It felt like any other shot. When it went in, I was like ‘oh my god, this just happened.’”

Danyella Mporokoso scored 19 points, Hannah Laub 15, Arianna Garcia 11 and Newton 10 for Waubonsie (31-3), which set a school win record in advancing to Monday’s Super-Sectional at Illinois Wesleyan against Alton. Emilia Sularski scored 17 points and freshman Ava Mersinger had 11 points, seven rebounds, five steals and four assists for Benet (24-7), which was playing in its ninth straight sectional final.

Waubonsie, in making history, finally overcame a recent nemesis. Benet eliminated the Warriors in the last three postseasons, including the 2023 sectional final. And did so just three years removed from a 1-13 shortened season, what was at the time Waubonsie’s ninth consecutive season without a winning record.

“A lot of sacrifices to get to this point with family, coming in early, Danyella comes back after games and wants to shoot around so I stay late,” seventh-year Waubonsie coach Brett Love said. “It’s been a grind building this program to where where we were when I first got here to something that we can be proud of, not only us but the community and the students. And it took shape. Benet is a tough team to beat. [Coach] Joe [Kilbride] does a great job.”

Mporokoso’s driving layup with 13 seconds left in regulation forced overtime, and her driving score with 36 seconds left in the extra period tied it 61-61 after Benet’s Aria Mazza had knocked down a go-ahead jumper with 52 seconds remaining for the first basket of OT.

“We’ve been looking forward to this game all season,” Mporokoso said. “This means so much.”

After a Benet throwaway, Waubonsie got possession with 10.4 seconds left. Mporokoso dribbled it up the court, but when Newton’s defender went to double Mporokoso passed it to her teammate at the top of the key. Newton shot-faked past the rotating help defender, drove down the center of the lane and flipped a short shot up off glass.

“Danyella made the right decision at the right time,” Love said. “She read the play, read the defense, made a good pass and Lily came through at the end.”

Benet, which knocked off No. 1-ranked Bolingbrook in Tuesday’s sectional semifinal, led 28-19 at the half on the strength of Sularski’s four 3-pointers and 11 team steals defensively. Waubonsie struggled against Benet’s zone defense with nine second-quarter turnovers.

Lindsay Harzich’s 3-pointer gave Benet its biggest lead, 33-22 with 5:44 left in the third quarter. Mporokoso had missed six consecutive shots, but after Harzich’s basket she knocked down a 3-pointer, was fouled and converted the four-point play.

It lit a fire in the Warriors.

Waubonsie made nine second-half 3-pointers, Mporokoso and Laub each hitting three in the third quarter. Mporokoso’s 3-pointer tied it 35-35 with 3:46 left in the third quarter to cap a 13-2 run.

“A lot of credit to them. Boy, they made some great shots,” Kilbride said. “I thought our kids did a good job of guarding and then we got lost a little bit at times. They started screening at the top and we didn’t make the right adjustment.”

The two teams exchanged the lead seven times in a riveting fourth quarter, Benet taking its last lead of regulation at 58-56 with 34 seconds left on a Mazza 3-pointer. Mersinger, who saved the ball from going out of bounds and kicked out to Mazza, nearly stole the show until Newton’s late heroics. Benet’s 5-foot-6 freshman guard made a number of heady plays and even came down with five offensive rebounds among a forest of taller girls.

“She’s been a spark plug for us, for sure,” Kilbride said.

But Mporokoso had the answer at the other end with her only basket of the fourth quarter. Two other Waubonsie sophomores, Garcia and Maya Cobb, each made three shots during that time, Cobb her first three baskets of the game.

“That was sheer will by the girls tonight,” Love said.

Benet’s loss was only its second since Christmas for a team with just three seniors on its roster and a bright future.

“I told them I’m disappointed for you, I’m not disappointed in you. I’m incredibly proud of this group,” Kilbride said. “From beginning of the season to now, we are so much better.”