Sports
Extra Points: Minooka Breaks Free for Milestone Victory
Indians hit 4 of 5 in the final minute to advance to Normal sectional semifinals.
DANVILLE—Free throws.
You won’t see many of them on any highlight shows, unless they determine the outcome of a game.
They were a determining factor in on Friday in the Class 3A Danville Regional championship game.
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The Indians (23-4) went 4-of-5 from the charity stripe during the final minute to pull away from the pesky Vikings and win the school’s first regional plaque in 31 years.
“This is a credit to these girls,” Minooka coach Ray Liberatore said. “We hit some clutch free throws at the end. Sara Placher really stepped up at the end there.”
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The junior guard went 4-of-4 from the line during the final minute.
“I just had to concentrate and not worry about the crowd,” Placher said.
Senior Terese Tyrell’s free throw with 9.8 seconds left gave the Indians a 51-48 lead.
Danville’s final three-point try of the night was short, touching off a celebration 31 years in the making.
“We’re so excited to win the regional this year,” Tyrell said. “After winning conference and this, we think we can keep it going.”
“This is so exciting,” senior guard/forward Stephanie Furr said. “This was one of my goals, to leave here with a regional championship. We haven’t won one in my four years here. It’s been 31 years since we’ve won one. It’s so amazing to think we did what a lot of other teams couldn’t do.”
Earlier in the quarter, junior Ashley Clemmons two free throws gave Minooka a 46-45 lead, its first since the first quarter.
“We dug really deep the last quarter because none of us want this season to end,” Furr said. “We played with a lot of heart and finished the game. We played until the final buzzer.”
