By Kaleb Carter

Hersey junior Katy Eidle and Libertyville junior Emily Fisher were the smoothest operators on the court in a Thursday matchup of two of the top teams in the northern suburbs. Beyond the two starts, both programs are seeking to define roles for their supporting players.

Hersey came into the season with high expectations. But after a 57-46 win in the Buffalo Grove Bison Classic, played at Hersey, the Huskies look like potentially one of the top teams in the state. It’s almost hard to believe after Hersey lost perhaps the strongest senior class in program history. Last season’s Huskies, led by Eidle and now-graduated Mary Kate Fahey and Mary McGrath, finished a perfect 16-0.

With no postseason to decide a state title, perhaps only Kenwood has as solid of a claim as Hersey for the state’s top team last season.

“We’re as good as we were last year,” Eidle, a Michigan commit, said. “We’re getting better. We know what we’ve got to work on. We’ve just got to keep improving. We’ll be great. Better than last year, that’s our goal.”

After scoring a team-high 22 points and cutting through the Libertyville defense, Eidle reflected on some of the things that makes this group strong.  

“I didn’t know how we were going to play together our first game, how we were going to gel, but it was phenomenal,” Eidle said. “We all knew how fast we were and how we were going to be able to play with all guards, and we were able to defined.”

Senior Val Allen, a 5-11 post player who will be relied upon around the basket, scored 12 points in the opener. She said the group is highly supportive of one another and is quickly adapting to their roles.

“Rebounding is key for me, fulfilling last year’s issues, because we were a big rebounding team so just getting down low, rebounding the best that I can to kick it out to my guards,” Allen said. 

Junior Natalie Alesia, one of nine juniors on the varsity roster, looked comfortable against Libertyville, netting all eight of her points in the first half. Meghan Mrowicki — a Division-I soccer recruit who sat out last season to focus on her primary sport — will often be tasked with defending other teams’ best scorers. 

“She (Mrowicki) hasn’t virtually played in two years,” Hersey coach Mary Fendley said. “She’s not just a great athlete. If you can come out like that on a varsity court and guard one of the best players in the state, I’m amazed by her ability. She just couldn’t make the commitment last year because of her commitment to soccer, and now that she’s back we’re really happy.”

Fendley was also excited by the complementary nature of her varsity-inexperienced players coming off the bench, such as 5-11 junior Mackenzie Ginder and 5-7 junior Sabrina DiVito. Several Huskies who did not play in game one will also return from illness. The vast majority of players on the varsity roster are at least 5-8, giving the Huskies another edge this season. 

“We thought that we had the pieces, but until you actually get in season … you can’t (know),” Fendley said. “They’ve got to figure out how to put the pieces together, coaches and players.”