Red Raiders retake lead in FVC race

HUNTLEY — Huntley’s girls basketball team showed Fox Valley Conference challengers it is very much still the team to beat.

The Red Raiders bounced back from seeing their long 37-game league win streak end at the hands of Cary-Grove, 50-17, back on Jan. 19, with three wins. Huntley defeated Hampshire, 53-23 Jan. 24 and Jacobs, 48-16 Jan. 26 then Crystal Lake Central, 47-33, Jan. 29. The FVC race was tied briefly between Hampshire and Huntley at 9-1, but the Red Raiders (18-6) have pulled ahead of Hampshire.

“In the Hampshire game, the kids did an outstanding job of responding after a tough loss to Cary-Grove. We had a lot of different players step up in many ways,” Red Raiders coach Steve Raethz said.

One of those players who did well against Hampshire was junior Ava McFadden, who tallied a career high 14 points, all in the second half. Junior Paula Strzelecki contributed a double double of 13 points and 13 rebounds.

“We just had a tough loss to C-G, and we had a lot of energy,” Strzelecki said.

Strzelecki made rebounds a priority this season.

“I work on boxing out and getting rebounds,” she said.

Of her shot, she said the mid-range is where she shoots the best. I’ve developed a lot of my skills through the years because I love to play the sport,” Strzelecki said.

McFadden agreed that the energy was on a high level against Hampshire. She assisted by making four three-pointers in her second half barrage.

“The energy was good and we had great communication, and the bench was into it,” McFadden said. “My teammates set me up good with good passes – just everyone looking for the open shot.”

Jacobs game

Anna Campanelli led the way with 21 points on the strength of four three-pointers as the Red Raiders cruised to the win Jan 26. Madison Diaz added seven points.

CLC game

Campanelli and McFadden led the way totaling 31 points, 18 and 13, respectively, in the 47-33 win.

“It was a physical game. I thought we did a good job against their zone for three quarters,” Raethz said.

Senior night

Huntley Class of 2024 members will play their final home game, Feb. 2 against Burlington Central. They are Kylie Lucas, Cassidy Serpe, Yasmine Morsy, Mia Garlin and Liz Johnson.