Sophomore guard Maya Pereda was feeling a little low after Waubonsie Valley’s game on Tuesday.
Pereda had attempted just two shots and went scoreless against Bolingbrook in the Class 4A sectional semifinals.
“She had some confidence issues,” Waubonsie Valley coach Brett Love said. “She don’t like when she’s not doing things the right way.
“I just told her that she’s got to let the game come to her, don’t worry about the mistakes. She is one of our X factors. When she gets it going, she can make big shots and contribute in other areas.”
Love was confident Pereda would bounce back. So, too, was star junior guard Danyella Mporokoso.
“Last night, I texted her,” Mporokoso said. “I said I know she’s going to show up when we need her.”
The encouragement buoyed Pereda’s spirits.
“After the game, I asked my coach, ‘What can I be doing better?’” Pereda said. “He just straight up told me it’s a confidence issue. If I’m not scoring, focus on the defensive end and get stops.
“Danyella has so much confidence in me, and it helps me so much to be a better player. My team, they believe in me as much as I believe in myself, and it’s great just to have that team support.”
The 5-foot-7 Pereda played a great supporting role on Thursday. She scored a career-high 12 points, including two tie-breaking baskets in the fourth quarter, and added four rebounds and three assists as the second-seeded Warriors edged the top-seeded Benet 66-61 to win the Bolingbrook Sectional title.
“She was a big part of it,” Mporokoso said. “She stepped up when we needed it and hit some important shots — and then also some important passes too.”
Mporokoso led all players with 22 points and 13 rebounds for Waubonsie Valley (31-1), which advances to play Alton (32-2) in the Illinois Wesleyan Supersectional in Bloomington at 7 p.m. Monday. Junior guard Arie Garcia-Evans had 13 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals, and junior guard Maya Cobb added 12 points.
The Warriors needed every bit of that production because Benet (29-3) roared back from a 23-6 deficit behind junior guard Bridget Rifenburg, who scored 13 of her team-high 16 points in the second half, including a pair of game-tying layups.
But Pereda answered both times, hitting a jumper to break a 48-48 tie and then taking a kick-out from Mporokoso and knocking down a 3-pointer for a 53-50 lead with 4:14 left in the fourth quarter.
“I was just hoping I would get my shot off and straighten up,” Pereda said. “I was relaxing because I knew there were still parts of the game left.
“We work a lot on making that shot possible, get a nice rhythm, and I just decided to take it. It went in.”
As Mporokoso felt it would.
“Oh, yeah,” Mporokoso said. “I felt that come off. I’m like, ‘That’s a good pass,’ and I know she can hit it.”
That’s not all Pereda did. With the Warriors up 55-52, Pereda drew a charging foul on Rifenburg, who seconds later fouled out with 1:26 left. Mporokoso then hit two free throws.
“She was standing in the right place at the right time,” Love said of Pereda. “We always talk about helping early, stepping up in the gaps, and she took a chance and was able to get it.”
Pereda was floored but bounced up quickly.
“It didn’t hurt that bad,” she said. “That was a great adrenaline rush. To get that charge felt great, and at that point, the momentum shifted, and it was just straight on for us.”
Pereda was also in the right spot when she rebounded Benet senior guard Aria Mazza’s missed 3-point try that would have tied the game with 8.9 seconds left. Mporokoso then made two free throws to clinch it as Waubonsie Valley beat the Redwings in the sectional final for the second straight season.
“I told them I’m disappointed for them, I’m not disappointed in them,” Benet coach Joe Kilbride said. “They fought and really battled to get back in the game and give themselves a chance.
“It stings. They’ve been working for a year to get back here, and I liked our chances.”
But Mporokoso liked the Warriors’ chances, too, and knew Pereda would be ready to help in any way possible.
“She brings a lot of IQ,” Mporokoso said. “She watches so much film. She really learns the game, and then she shares that with everyone. If she sees something, she tells everyone else, and we get to learn from her.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter.
