The Riverside Brookfield girls basketball team’s memorable season came to an end early last week when the Bulldogs fell 74-57 to Trinity in the semifinal of their own sectional.
The Bulldogs closed out the season with an impressive 27-4 record, which includes a perfect 10-0 mark in the Suburban Prairie (East) Conference. Along with winning its fourth straight SPC title, the team also won its second straight regional championship.
But the Bulldogs struggle from the start against the Blazers. Trinity jumped off on a 9-0 run to start the game, finishing the first up 18-10.
Cousins Maggie and Katelyn McCloskey both got off to a slow start for Riverside Brookfield. At the break, Maggie, who was double-teamed for much of the contest, had nine points, while Katelyn had two. RB ‘s center, Erin Pfieffer, had three points, all from the free-throw line.
Trinity held an 11-point lead at the intermission.
The Bulldogs opened the second half with McCloskey hitting a couple of treys, but Trinity’s Monica Albano and Jackie Marzullo both retaliated with threes of their own.
The Bulldogs tried to close the gap in the fourth and got within nine with 4:30 to go, but couldn’t get any closer as the clock began to work against them. Marzullo’s three-pointer late in the quarter sealed RB’s fate.
The Bulldogs were outmanned in the paint. Trinity’s Toni Carter finished with a double-double of 22 points and 14 rebounds, while Lykendra Johnson added 19 points. Albano chipped in 16 points for the Blazers, who upset Fenwick 51-50 Thursday night for the sectional championship.
Maggie McCloskey led all players on the floor with 25 points.
“This season was more than I expected,” said the Loyola-bound McCloskey after the game. “This team really played hard. It’s sad to see it end, but looking back on the year we’ve had, it’s been a great year.”
Pfieffer finished with 13 points while Katelyn McCloskey had seven points.
“Our kids played great. I thought [they] left everything they had out on the floor,” said RB coach Larry Rocco after the game. “We were down. We dug ourselves a big hole and our kids battled back, like they always do. There is no quitting on our team. We were making that run but we couldn’t seem to catch a break.”
