Lady Cougars are Nationals Bound

Jeremy Jacob, Harbinger

March 15, 2016

For the first time in five years and three years, respectively, coach Karrie Redeker and the Illinois Central College women’s basketball team qualified for nationals after defeating Parkland in the Region 24 final on March 6.

“It feels amazing to be going to nationals,” Redeker said following their triumph.  “As the season progressed, we knew our team had the potential to get there.  It was just a matter of coming together at the right time.  It’s a credit to our kids that they believed and trusted each other to sacrifice the ‘me’ for ‘we’.”

Egos can act as a hindrance to a team usually leading to disarray in the locker room.  Throughout the whole season, Redeker’s squad hasn’t displayed the slightest hint of disorder.  Influence from a regional coach of the year is a key factor, but the Cougars strength from the first to the twelfth player is also noteworthy.

“We had a very good team last year, but this year’s team has more depth which has been a major key to our success,” Redeker said.  “We have used the phrase ‘Army of 12’ to describe our team because each of them has been important day in and day out.”

When a team possesses an ‘Army of 12’, trusting each other becomes paramount.  This is particularly true on the defensive end of the floor.  

“The key to our defense is old-fashioned hard work,” she said.  “Our kids thrive on getting deflections, blocking shots, getting steals, and taking charges. Having great athletes doesn’t hurt either.”

Hard work paid off for the Cougars as they finished as the 29th-best defense in Division II only allowing 52.8 points per game while finishing in the top ten in every major defensive category.  On 22 different occasions, the Cougars managed to limit their opponent to under 60 points.  Their astute focus on the small aspects of defense didn’t appear out of nowhere as they themselves encountered some adversity.  

“We started our ‘play hard chart’ after losing the two games in Florida on Nov.19-20,” she said.  “The teams we played there pressed us from end line to end line and we looked at our team and realized we could also do that.   The chart allows us to focus on trying to do the little things that lead to winning instead of just trying to win.”

Among the areas typically covered in this unofficial record of data are guard rebounds, charges taken and putbacks.  About every Cougar made it on the chart.  The same can be said for the official statistics.

ICC finished the season averaging 20 assists per game which is second-best in Division II.  They went 19-1 in the 20 games that they recorded at least 20 of them.  Ten of the twelve players on the roster averaged at least one assist per game.  

This generosity led to 11 of the 12 players on the roster averaging better than a field goal per game including four over 10 points (Destiny Ramsey, Jemia Carpenter, Emma Heisler and Hayley Reneau).  

All of them, except for Reneau, earned the distinction of first team all-region.  Heisler added to her successful first season by being named the regional freshman of the year while Carpenter concluded her final regular season as a Cougar by being named the regional player of the year.

“Jemia has matured as a person and basketball player more than any kid I’ve ever coached,” Redeker said.  “And to see her do the things she did this weekend and has done this season is incredibly rewarding.”

When all of the tasks and characteristics of this ‘Army of 12’ are factored in to the equation, the product is a 29-4 team that advanced to nationals.  Along the way, the Cougars had six games where they scored 100 points and three games where they won by 70 which eclipsed the total of such games in the past three seasons combined.

“Having started in August, this has been a long season but we are thrilled to be able to play for two more weeks,” Redeker said.  “We will talk to our team about balancing all the hype and excitement of ‘going to nationals’ while still staying focused and hungry in preparing to win a national championship.”

Redeker still has one more lesson to instill into her players: seize the day.

“The next two weeks are like basketball Christmas; full of excitement and preparation that will go fast,” she said.  “When it’s basketball time we will be all business, but we are going to enjoy every step of this journey and make great memories along the way and see what this team can do.”

First-round action for the 2015-2016 NJCAA Division II National Championship tournament begins March 15 in Overland Park, Kan.  The second-seeded Cougars are scheduled to take on the 15th-seeded Union County Owls (24-6).