Girls basketball: Breaking down the IHSA state tournament semifinals

The IHSA three-day girls state basketball kicks off on Thursday with the start of the Class 1A/2A tournament. This year’s four-class system marks the third year of the new format, which features the losers of each semifinal game playing in the third-place game later that evening.

The 2024 3A/4A state tourney will have new state title winners in each class after O’Fallon, which beat Benet in the 4A final last season, lost to Alton in a sectional semifinal.

In the 3A tourney, defending champion Nazareth is seeking its first 4A title, so that opens the door up for a new champion. The Roadrunners defeated Lincoln 63-52 last season to win the program’s first state championship. Two teams – Lincoln and Loyola – are looking to finish the season with undefeated records.

Let’s take a glance at each of the 3A/4A state semifinals for local teams.

Class 3A: Glenwood (27-7) vs. Hinsdale South (26-10), Friday, 9:30 a.m.

This should be an intriguing matchup between two teams with a combined one state trip among them. The Hornets, who dropped a 48-47 quarterfinal defeat to Fremd in their last state trip in 1977, rolled through the playoffs following two tough defeats to end the regular season. The Hornets have relied on a stingy defense to make their run to state, holding all five playoff opponents to under 34 points.

The Hornets are a young team, with guard Mia Lavorato, the daughter of former Maine South legendary coach Tony Lavorato, and Amerie Flowers are the lone seniors on the roster. Flowers, a Benedictine recruit, is averaging 15.3 points and 12.4 rebounds per game, while Lavorato is averaging 12.2 points, 4.5 assists and 3.3 rebounds to go with a team-high 44 3-pointers. Sophomore Maeve Savage is averaging 8.5 points and 6.0 boards.

“Amerie Flowers is what I feel arguably is the best post player, most dominant post player in the entire state,” Hinsdale South coach Scott Tanaka said. “She’s worked for four years nonstop on her craft and now helped lead us to the state tournament. She’s dominant in every way manageable…Mia is our leader and glue. When her and Amerie were freshmen, we won just two games. They just stuck with it together.”

Glenwood, coached by Alyssa Riley, turned its season around after suffering a three-game losing streak in early January. Losses to highly ranked Alton, Lincoln and Civic Memorial spurred the Titans in the second half of the season, losing just twice in their last 16 games to reach the state tournament for the first time in program history. The Titans have a diverse lineup, with four players averaging more than five points. Alexis Neumann leads the team in scoring, averaging 11.8 points per game.

Class 3A: Montini (29-7) vs. Lincoln (36-0), Friday, 11:15 a.m.

Montini coach Shannon Spanos has guided the state powerhouse back to the state tournament for the first time since 2020, the final season for veteran coach Jason Nichols. Under Nichols, the Broncos were a regular visitor to the state tournament, appearing 10 times in a 13-year span, including winning four championships.

Spanos, in her fourth year coaching her alma mater, brings her team back to the state tournament looking to hand Lincoln its first defeat of the season. Senior guard Victoria Matulevicius is the top scorer, averaging 16.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.3 assists. Deerfield transfer Nikki Kerstein, a junior guard, is averaging 14.9 points and 5.9 assists and senior Alyssa Epps is averaging 8.2 points.

Spanos said the six seniors have been motivated since losing to Deerfield in the supersectionals last season.

“The senior class I have has been playing together for years,” Spanos said. “They’ve had a lot of success, even in junior high, and been successful in a lot of sports. They’ve been with each so long and really brought the young ones with them and put them on their back. That leadership you can’t teach that.”

Lincoln is also motivated to atone for last season’s 11-point title-game loss to Nazareth. The Railsplitters are led by Colorado State recruit Kloe Froebe. The 5-foot-9 senior guard is averaging 28.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game to go with 79 3-pointers. Lincoln has lost one game in the last two seasons, aiming to become the first unbeaten state champion since Maine West in Class 4A in 2018.

Class 4A: Waubonsie Valley (32-3), vs. Nazareth (31-3), Friday, 2 p.m.

The Roadrunners, who beat Waubonsie 59-35 in a regular season finale, should have an advantage due to their vast state experience compared to the Warriors, who are making their first state trip since 1999. Nazareth loaded up its schedule to prepare for the jump to Class 4A, with its lone losses to Downers Grove North, Marian Catholic and IMG Academy. The Roadrunners have won 21 straight games, including impressive playoffs wins over Lyons, Kenwood and Homewood-Flossmoor.

Nazareth finished second in 3A in 2018 and 2022, while taking third in 2019. The Roadrunners have a balanced, deep and veteran lineup, relying on their toughness and defense to overwhelm opponents. Boston College soccer recruit Amalia Dray is averaging 12.5 points, Olivia Austin, a three-sport star and Dartmouth commit, is averaging 11.7 points and 6.4 rebounds and Ohio recruit Danielle Scully is averaging 6.8 points and 5.3 boards. All three are four-year varsity players, as is senior guard Mary Bridget Wilson.

“With this new group coming in, they have pretty much picked off where my first group has left off,” said Nazareth coach Eddie Stritzel, in his eighth year. “It’s been a consistent run and the girls are excited to get down to Illinois State. The last two years, not counting this year, we pretty much had the same starting lineup. We brought all of our group back except Grace Carstensen. Our schedule is really tough. When we went to Tampa, they put us in the top bracket of a monster tournament. I thought that gave us confidence we could play with anybody, not only in Illinois, but nationally.”

The Warriors can attack in a number of ways, led by super sophomore point guard Danyella Mporokoso, senior standout Hannah Laub and emerging sophomore Arianna Garcia. The 5-7 Mporokoso is a player to watch, averaging 19.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists along with hitting 73 3s. Laub is a tough cover due to her ability to attack with either hand. Her shooting – a team-high 82 3-pointers – and Garcia’s passing sparked a 55-53 supersectional victory over Alton, which captured the Morton College Christmas Tournament championship.

“We learned a lot throughout this season,” Waubonsie Valley coach Brett Love said. “We didn’t have a lot of tough games, but we did have games we did lost, we learned lessons from. We got rattled against St. Charles East. We learned in that situation to keep our composure. We used that throughout the season…Danyella took a backseat role last year shooting about nine shots per game, but this year she took over and made it her own…We don’t have any posts, so we try and do the best we can. Danyella’s composure and leadership skills have improved. She draws a lot of double teams.”

Class 4A: Loyola (36-0) vs. Fremd (29-6), Friday, 5 p.m.

The Ramblers have to be the favorite to win the 4A tournament, mainly because of their undefeated record against a rugged schedule and No.1 ranking. The Ramblers easily dispatched a strong and veteran-laden Libertyville team on the Wildcats’ home floor in the supersectional, relying on a suffocating pressure defense, led by superstar junior point guard Aubrey Galvan. The 5-7 Galvan, a transfer from Deerfield, is one of the top players in the country with several offers from Power Five schools. Galvan is averaging 16.5 points and 3.4 assists per game. Senior guard Paige Engels, a Cornell recruit, is the glue of the team, averaging 14.3 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists.

Fremd is looking for some revenge after losing 48-46 to Loyola on Dec. 12. Junior guard Ella Todd is one of the top players in the state, averaging 16.0 points per game to go with 43 3-pointers The Utah recruit is a capable of taking over a game with her shooting and driving. Senior center Brynn Eshoo, a Portland recruit, can play inside and outside. Junior guard Coco Urlacher is capable of filling up the stat sheet. A tough-as-nails player, Urlacher is averaging 10.5 points and 6.5 boards. Junior guard Ellie Thompson is a dangerous player with her ability to shoot the ball, leading the Vikings with 48 3s.

Under coach Dave Yates, the Vikings are making their fifth state semifinal appearance since 2015, including winning the state title in 2020.