Defense Never Rests As Kit Girls Rule Regional

Like most linebackers, Adaoma Udoku’s first instinct on the flag football field is usually to run right to wherever the ball is.

But the Evanston junior and her teammates had to take a more disciplined approach than usual on their way to their second consecutive Illinois High School Association regional tournament championship Thursday.

The Wildkits throttled Maine West 40-0 and advanced to the Lane Tech Sectional semifinals along with top four seeds Maine South, Lane Tech and Loyola Academy. The Wildkits, now 16-3 overall, will take on Loyola Academy (19-4), which eliminated Resurrection 13-7 in the finals of the New Trier Regional. The two neighbors will meet Monday at Lane at 6:30 p.m., with the winner advancing to Tuesday’s title game at 5 p.m.

ETHS quarterback Maggie Conforti threw 5 touchdown passes and ran for another score. But it was the performance of the defense led by Udoku that was most encouraging for head coach Carlton Rosemond as his squad turned in another impressive effort in the “second” season.

Evanston’s challenge on defense was not to overreact against a Warrior attack that featured quarterback Sofia Aldmeyer repeatedly throwing check-down passes to screeners in the backfield. The Maine West QB was limited to an average of six yards per completion --- 23-of-31 passing for 141 yards overall --- and the only time the losers got anywhere near the red zone was on their final drive of the game.

Evanston’s defense never rested.

“The biggest thing today was for us not to give up the deep ball,” Rosemond said. “And then we had to take away their screeners whenever they released. Our defense can play many different styles, and I only gave them our game plan for Maine West about an hour and a half before the game. They executed it to perfection.

“Most teams have quarterbacks that are more mobile and they don’t use the screeners as much as Maine West does. That was one of the top defensive efforts we’ve had this season, along with the Whitney Young and Fremd games. When we play that way --- and we’ve been working a ton on our flag-pulling, too --- I think we can match up with any team in the state.

“It’s a testament to all these girls who want to be the best they can possibly be. We can really go far if we stay locked in like this. It feels good to get back to this point because it’s not easy for any program to have consistent success like this. But it’s not the end, it’s just one more check mark on our bulletin board.”

“When Coach kept talking about staying with the screeners, I knew I had to stay true to that the whole game,” said Udoku after the Wildkits pitched their second straight postseason shutout. “I tried to stay disciplined because they did it every time (lobbed the ball to screeners). We just kept holding them and getting stops. I think we did a really good job on both offense and defense today.

“I do feel like this was one of my best games. The most important thing when it comes to pulling flags is the angles you take, and breaking down is important, too. Sometimes I slip up and reach instead of breaking down, but I think we’re getting better at pulling as a team.”

Udoku was credited with at least four pulls for minus yardage to keep West in uncomfortable field position all day.

“Adaoma is really one of the cornerstones of our defense,” said Rosemond. “She brings a lot of energy and intensity to our defense and she really wants to always give her best for the team. She’s such a smart player and she’s one of the best pullers we have. It’s all about being in good position for her and the way she got pulls on those screeners was impressive. She talked to me before the game and said trust me, Coach --- and I did.”

Conforti has rebounded from a sub-par performance in the team’s loss to Glenbrook South, and has found a comfort zone on offense. Thursday, after a scoreless first quarter she pitched TD passes to Brielle Rosemond (20 and 11 yards), Harper Wesenberg (5 yards), Ava Sacluti (5 yards) and Nina Ott (24 yards) while also scampering 8 yards for a score herself in the second quarter.

The Kits also benefited from “special teams” play. KyNia Hunt racked up 56 punt return yards to set up four of Evanston’s scores.