Chicagoland Invitational Showcase: Upperclassmen Evals

This past weekend I traveled out to Benet Academy for this seasons Part 2 of the Chicagoland Invitational Showcase. The event once again featured several of the best teams and players in the state and produced many great games and moments. Here are some Seniors and Juniors that played well in the games I was able to watch:

Geneva Junior Lindsay Blackmore was very impressive once again. The 6’2’’ athlete is a terrific all-around player that can create openings for herself down low and step outside to knock down threes. She had 17 points against Nazareth.

Anne Stritzel was dominant once again in Naz’s win over Geneva. The 5’11’’ Senior was very explosive and nearly unstoppable when driving to the bucket. Stritzel is a strong finisher at the rim and possesses a great shot from outside. She finished with 25 points in the victory.

Senior Tara Hastings was a lot of fun to watch as Lincoln Way West took down Trinity. The 5’4’’ Guard plays ferocious defense at the top of the 2-3 zone and runs the floor very well. She, too, has a nice shot from long range and scored a game high 24 points in West’s win.

Hastings’ Junior teammate, Taylor Gugliuzza, is another great piece to the Lincoln Way West lineup. Gugliuzza is a 5’7’’ PG that contains all the tools. She is an excellent ball handler that sees the court well and can finish strong at the rim, or pull-up from deep. Gugliuzza dropped 20 points against Trinity and was named the MVP for her team.

Senior Celia Satter was absolutely on fire from deep against Simeon. The 6’0’’ athlete has great speed and size to create openings so that her teammates can get her the ball. She scored a game high 25 points in Loyola Academy’s loss.

I really liked the way that St. Ignatius Junior Paige Gross played in a victory over Barrington. Gross, a 5’10’’ Junior, runs the floor very well in transition, finds openings in the half court sets, and finishes very strong at the rim.

Taylor Thompson from Barrington was very impressive against St. Ignatius. The 5’11’’ Junior has great rebounding and put-back abilities but can also handle the ball well and knock down shots from the outside. Thompson finished with 10 points for Barrington.

I also really enjoyed watching Tyler Mayne from Evanston as they took on Madison Memorial from Wisconsin. Mayne, a 5’7’’ Junior, has the quickness to get in the lane and make a good decision to go up strong or find an open teammate. Plus shooter.

Emily Klaczek from Fremd continues to be one of the best all-around PGs in the area. The 5’10’’ Junior has the ability to score from anywhere, but really showed good court vision in a win against Fenwick. Klaczek is a terrific leader on the court day in and day out.

Benet has a number of talented Upperclassmen, but the two that stood out this weekend were Juniors Brooke Schramek and Kendall Holmes. Schramek, a 6’1’’ Forward, can handle the ball well and is very strong in the lane. She can guard multiple positions and plays with good technique. Holmes, a 5’11’’ Guard, can score from multiple areas on offense and move down low on defense to guard post players with her strength.