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28 | November 21, 2018 | The tinley junction sports
tinleyjunction.com
Andrew will try to repeat
banner year with new cast
TIM YONKE, Freelance Reporter
Andrew boys basketball coach David
Wilson watched his top six players
from last year’s record-setting 19-9
Thunderbolts team walk out the door
after graduating last May.
Those six accounted for 98 percent
of the minutes played last season.
Among those players was Troy Murphy,
the SouthWest Suburban Conference
Red Player of the Year, along
with all-conference selections Evan
Yerkes and Dan Gierhahn, as Andrew
won only its second conference title
in school history and first since 1990
while coming within a game from winning
a regional championship.
So why is Wilson, now in his fifth
year as head coach, optimistic about
this season? After all, it’s not a case of
the glass being half full or half empty...
it’s totally empty, when it comes to returning
experience.
“It’s exciting because it will be a
challenge if there’s ever been one,”
Wilson said. “It’s exciting for the players
because it’s an open competition.
The optimism is there because who
doesn’t like a good challenge?”
Thanks to Wilson and his staff, Andrew
boys basketball has improved
gradually.
“We had some real, real lowlights a
few years ago,” said Wilson. “We’ve
just plugged along so we didn’t have
valleys like we did five, six, seven
years ago when we were only winning
four or five games a year. What’s been
going on the last two or three years is
we have freshmen winning, sophomores
are winning, eight graders are
winning so by the time they get to us in
their sophomore, junior and senior year
we’re more like a well-oiled machine
as opposed to reinventing the wheel.”
That machine will be put to the test
this season, particularly early.
“We won’t have it figured out by the
season’s start but hopefully we will by
the Christmas tournament at York,”
Wilson said. “By then maybe we’ll
have established our identity and get on
a roll and get some conference wins.”
Nivek Wilson (front) and Ryan Fitzgerald are two players from Andrew who are
on a team with high hopes of keeping the program strong despite losing a huge
chunk of production from a 19-win season in 2017-18.
JEFF VORVA/22ND CENTURY MEDIA
Some of the players expected to play
major minutes for the T-Bolts include
senior forward Zach Mattix, senior
guard Jeffrey Daniel, junior guards
Noah O’Connor and Nivek Wilson,
who played on last year’s 13-10 sophomore
team, and sophomore point guard
Jolo Amoranto.
Mattix, a 6-2 forward, is the only returning
player who saw some time on
the court a year ago.
“We turn to Zach for everything.
He’s the glue guy. He can play all
over.” Wilson said.
Amoranto takes over as floor general.
“I put him in that position because I
know he can handle it,” he said of talented
soph. “I’m excited to see him grow
into the position. How he’s playing now
is going to be an eyelash of where his
potential is at the end of the year.”
Others on the squad hoping to contribute
are seniors David Manguerra,
Isaiah Lasisi, Deyonce Taylor, Dan
Repa, Diar Berbatovci and Aidan
Strunka plus juniors Ameer Alexander,
Alex Rohrer, Ryan Fitzgerald and Michael
Bobber.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
First impression was Taylor-made
JEFF VORVA, Sports Editor
Andrew junior Courtney
Maloney made her varsity
debut against Hillcrest on
Nov. 13 and led the Thunderbolts
with 23 points in a
66-52 victory in Tinley Park.
She had five 3-point baskets
in the win.
Nice debut.
“I was nervous, but I used
the nervousness to help me,”
she said.
Maloney also credited
trainer Kimrossi Taylor for
helping her mental game and
3-point shooting.
Andrew coach Bobby
Matz was impressed with
Maloney’s debut.
“I wasn’t surprised, but
you never know how kids
will react to varsity speed,”
he said. “Hillcrest is a fast
varsity team. She did a good
job against the pressure.”
Andrew opened the Lincoln-Way
Central Tournament
with a 40-32 loss to the
hosts on Friday, Nov. 16 as
Division I prospect Isis Fitch
had 13 points and 11 rebounds
and Maloney added
12 points on four 3-pointers.
The T-Bolts dropped a 54-
51 battle with Joliet West in
the third round on Saturday,
Nov. 17.
Good second impression
Tinley Park did not make
a great first impression in
coach Ryan Honan’s debut,
dropping a 63-32 decision
to Providence Catholic
in the Titans’ first game in
the Beecher Fall Classic on
Thursday, Nov. 15. Brooke
Davis led the squad with 11
points.
But 24 hours later, the
Titans did a complete turnaround,
knocking off Illiana
Christian 52-28. Kayla Serafini
led the team with 16
points while Davis had 12
and Emily Kleffman hauled
down 12 rebounds.
On Saturday, Nov. 17, the
Titans lost 60-52 in overtime
despite Endya Robinson’s
20 points.
Same score, different victim
TPHS had just five wins
last year, but one was a 52-
28 victory over Thornton
Fractional South on Dec.
13 to open the Oak Lawn
tournament. That’s the same
score as the Titans’ first victory
over Illiana this year.
Coming up
Andrew hosts Crete-
Monee on Monday, Nov. 26
and visits District 230 rival
Stagg Wednesday, Nov. 28.
Tinley Park has a rematch
with Illiana Christian, this
time at the Vikings’ new facility
in Dyer, Indiana, on
Tuesday, Nov. 27 and visits
Shepard on Thursday, Nov.
29.
Andrew’s Courtney Maloney made a good first impression
against Hillcrest. JEFF VORVA/22ND CENTURY MEDIA