By Drake Skleba
For the Bugle
The Benet Academy Redwings (27-4) “Road to Peoria”, continued in a stop in Lombard, on Friday night. In the 2018 Glenbard East Class 4A Sectional Championship Game, before an over-flow crowd, the Redwings, led Willowbrook 46-36 after three quarters.
In Tuesday night’s 47-41 victory over Bartlett (17-13) Benet hung on, after almost blowing a 16-point fourth-quarter lead.
“We had some problems with Bartlett’s pressure in the fourth quarter,” Benet Academy head coach Gene Heidkamp said, after the Redwings 47-41 win over Bartlett on Tuesday. “We will clean that up on Wednesday and Thursday and be ready for Willowbrook, on Friday.
Indeed.
The Redwings were more than ready and buried the Warriors, outscoring them 21-4, in the final stanza. The vaunted Redwing defense, turned-over the befuddled Warriors, seven times in the quarter and rolled to a 67-40 sectional championship victory.
The Redwings were led by their 6-foot-4 junior Will Engels who had a double-double, with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
Senior Jake Petrovic, for the third game in a row, started the Redwing scoring in the game, with a long-range three pointer. Jake would stuff the stat sheet with 17 points, six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Senior David Buh, was tough-as-nails inside, scoring 14 points.
“After almost blowing a 16-point lead on Tuesday, we put special emphasis on having a great, fourth quarter,” Buh said. “And we went out and did just that. It’s great to be sectional champions. We look forward to Tuesday at NIU.”
Six-foot, 8-inch sophomore Colin Crothers, scored 11 points, hauled down five rebounds and had two blocked shots.
Redwing senior point guard Ben Cooney, had an excellent game bringing up the ball against the Warriors’ full-court pressure defense. The always-steady Ben, scored two points, handed out three assists, three rebounds and picked up his usual three steals.
“I have a role with this team and I try to do everything I can do, to help us win,” the always-steady Ben Cooney said. “It feels great to be sectional champions.”
After Petrovic’s three, to open the game, the “dynamic duo” of Engels and Buh, would score four points each, to give the Redwings a 15-9 lead after one quarter.
With 6:39 left in the half, Petrovic would bury-back-to-back three’s and the Redwings led 21-9.
Willowbrook (26-6) would rally behind their leading scorer, St. Cloud State-bound, Ethan Chuemer (17 points, three rebounds) and reserve Scott Tumilty, (6 points, two three’s), to close to within 30-26 at halftime.
The Warriors would close to within 30-28 with 6:20 left in the third quarter.
The old play of the game was next.
Petrovic would bury his fourth three-pointer dagger, from the left corner, for a 33-28 Redwing lead and setting-off an avalanche.
“It feels really nice to be sectional champions,” Petrovic said. “Our defense was outstanding, turned the game around and really took Willowbrook out of its offense. Our offense was outstanding tonight, as well. We were at NIU, when I was a sophomore. It is real cool place and we can’t wait to play there on Tuesday.
From that point on the Redwings would outscore the Warriors 34-12. Game over.
Engels would score nine of his game-high 19 points in the third quarter. And add four more in the fourth quarter.
“Its an amazing feeling to do this with our amazing seniors,” Engels said. “I love this team and it feels great to be sectional champions. We were in a dog-fight at halftime and then we took over the game. This year I wanted to help the team with scoring, rebounding, anything I could do to help us win. It has really worked out well for me.”
Crothers, would have another outstanding fourth quarter, picking up five of his 11 points in Redwing avalanche of a fourth quarter.
Up next on Tuesday, at Northern Illinois University, will be the Royals of Elgin Larkin.
Larkin (23-8) knocked off Rockford Jefferson 60-55 in the Class 4A Jacobs Sectional Championship on Friday.
“I thought we played very well in the fourth quarter,” Benet Academy head coach Gene Heidkamp said. “We learned a lot from Tuesday. That is the main key for our team, is how well we defend. From the second quarter on we were outstanding.”
“Eighteen in a row. Undefeated in 2018. Class 4A Glenbard East Sectional Champions sounds really nice. It shows how much this team has come together. Jeff, David and Will were all clicking tonight. When that happens we are a fun team to watch.”
We will start preparing for Larkin, later tonight.” Heidkamp added