
Photo by Aidan McGuire
Freshman Larisa Milenkovski goes for a shot in Wednesday’s game against Lake County.
By Kirsten Duffy, JRN 111 Student
Focusing on the old-fashioned fundamentals of defense, passing, and rebounding led the Cyclones women’s basketball team to an easy 63-47 victory Wednesday at home over College of Lake County.
Coach Nariman Jaber says she values players who bring a passion for fundamentals.
“Heart and hustle I would say are the two main things that we look for,” she said. “We want them to play hard and just have heart for the game and show that they love the sport and when you do that, you show more hustle on the court.”
The Cyclones had 10 steals. Although their shooting percentage was only 30.6 percent, they had 50 rebounds and won the game by grabbing rebounds and defense.
Sophomore Kelsey Kelley scored 18 points for the team and sophomore Kirsten Kamholz added 12 points. Katchie Savic, sophomore, scored 11 points with 8 assists.
Savic says she is proud of how her team plays together: “I felt most proud of myself at the Kankakee game cause we all played as like a team together and I worked on my passing and we had a good game. I think I had a good game as well.”
Kamholz believes teamwork is a driving force for the team’s success. She is also satisfied with her own performance.
“I felt most proud of myself at our away game against McHenry, we played really well as a team,” she said. “We dominated. I had a double-double, you know, can’t complain about that–20 points, 10 rebounds. We all played really well together and got the win.”
In the second half, the score got close and at one point, Moraine’s lead was cut to 37-35.
Lancer player Danielle Hayes in the fourth period committed her fifth total foul, leading to the Cyclones’ continued strong rebounding performance. Savic made her first free throw shot but missed the second. Bashirah Muhammad got the rebound and missed the shot, and Kamholz recovered and made the basket.
Moraine went into the fourth quarter leading by only 9, leaving the game within reach for the Lancers.
The Lancers were predictable, throwing into the paint and having power forward Nicolette Kouvellis shoot over and over, while the Cyclones stuck to their fundamentals.

Photo by Aidan McGuire
Cyclones surround a Lancer player in an attempt to contest a mid-range jump shot.
Although the Cyclones focus on the little things, they still have fun on the court.
Kamholz says she brings her silliness to the team: “I’d say I brought points to the team, scoring and then some goofiness. Like having a good time and making people laugh.”
Savic agreed, smiling: “Definitely that! You see her flop over there in the corner.”
She says she brings leadership to the team and encourages fellow players to go out and do their best.
“I’m good at talking to my teammates,” she said. “Some of them lose confidence, so I’m good at like making sure that they know they can shoot the ball and knock it down easily. So I’m just there making sure they’re in the game, focused and ready to play.”
She says she has seen progress in her game: “I’ve improved my shooting and my three-point shot. I’ve been working on it and learned to leave my hand up when I shoot.”
Kamholz says she has improved on her rebounding and focusing on the basic fundamentals: “I didn’t do a lot of that my freshman year and now I’m getting to the basket, getting more boards, and boxing out definitely has improved this year.”
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