Morton girls basketball loses in Class 3A state semifinal, finishes third
NORMAL — All Maggie Hobson could do is watch.
The Morton senior was supposed to be out there with her teammates in Redbird Arena. She was a four-year member of the Potters, starting the last three seasons and averaging 7.3 points this year.
Instead, Hobson went up a layup in Wednesday’s practice and landed awkwardly on a foot, sending her to the hospital with a dislocated ankle. She sat on the bench with crutches as top-ranked LaGrange Park Nazareth Academy cruised to a 55-24 win over Morton in a Class 3A state semifinal Friday afternoon.
The Potters rebounded later that night to take third-place, beating Bethalto Civic Memorial, 55-41, for the program's eighth state trophy.
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“It wasn’t like I had a month or a couple weeks to realize that I wasn’t going to get to play," Hobson said. "It was the last day (of practice). It’s just frustrating to have played that whole season and not to get to finish it out here.
“(My teammates) have helped me out a lot. They know it’s a tough position to be in. … I’m grateful to have them.”
With the 5-foot-7 guard missing from the lineup, Morton was in command following a dynamic first quarter from Katie Krupa. The 6-foot-1 forward scored 10 of her team-high 13 points including a 4-for-4 effort from the free throw line.
Paige Griffin’s 3-pointer from the left quarter with 11 seconds left in the opening frame sent the Potters into the second quarter with a 13-12 lead.
“I think we all came in pretty hard,” Krupa said. “We were really hyped up, really excited for this game. I thought that they didn’t necessarily key in on me in the first quarter as much.
“Maybe they weren’t scouting that as much, but they made adjustments and their adjustments worked.”
Those second-quarter changes from Nazareth included getting Gracie Carstensen into the offense and it worked. She went 0-for-2 from 3-point land in the first eight minutes. But her second quarter was an entirely different story. The 6-foot junior hit five 3-pointers in a row in a span of exactly three minutes — from the 6:51 mark to 3:51 — giving the Roadrunners a 27-13 advantage.
Most of those triples came from way beyond the arc, a few, in fact, were NBA range.
“It was kind of almost a surprise to me,” said Carstensen, who finished with a game-high 18 points, hitting six 3s. “It’s weird shooting in that gym and I was like, ‘Oh, they’re all falling in.’ ”
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“She stretches out the floor so much for you,” Nazareth coach Ed Stritzel added, “even if she’s not shooting, the defense has to put so much emphasis on her.”
From there, the Roadrunners, who led 32-16 at halftime, clamped down on defense, giving up eight second-half points. Morton shot 26.9 percent (7-for-26) for the game and turned the ball over 19 times.
Morton managed just two points off turnovers, while Nazareth scored 23.
“Today, we didn’t have our best,” Morton coach Bob Becker said. “… We weren’t as focused on the scout or the little details as we have been this postseason.
“The big one for us is you need to have unwavering belief and confidence in yourself. For whatever reason, maybe the moment was too big.”
Olivia Austin and Amailia Dray each scored 10 points for Nazareth, which hit 10-of-22 3-pointers and shot 47.7 percent (21-of-44). Morton won the rebounding battle, 24-22, but scored just four second-chance points.
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Morton starting guards Tatym Lamprecht and Ellie VanMeenen each a 3-pointer, combining for six points on 2-for-6 shooting.
Morton rebounds for third place
NORMAL — Katie Krupa scored 23 points and Tatym Lamprecht added 19 as the Potters pulled away from Bethalto Civic Memorial for a 55-41 win in the Class 3A third-place game on Friday night at Redbird Arena.
After trailing 15-4 in the first quarter, the seventh-ranked Potters (29-6) scored 22 second-quarter points for a 29-27 lead into halftime. Krupa scored nine with Lamprecht and Isabella Hutchinson each scoring five as Morton shot 60 percent in the frame.
Morton's defense allowed Civic Memorial (32-6) to just four fourth-quarter points, while turning them over 15 times.
The Potters controlled the glass, 31-19, and shot 63 percent (5-for-8) from 3-point land led by a 4-of-7 effort by Lamprecht. Krupa finished her high school career with seven assists and four rebounds.
Olivia Durbin scored 13 points to pace the Eagles, who shot just 36 percent (15-for-42) in the game.
Adam Duvall is a Journal Star sports reporter. Email him at aduvall@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @AdamDuvall.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: IHSA girls basketball: Morton lose in Class 3A state semis to Nazareth
