Kit Girls Rule Rivalry Despite Drops

Ava Bellis, Evanston’s new starting quarterback, and the Wildkit corps of flag football receivers aren’t always on the same page yet.

But when they get there . . . well, the rest of the state of Illinois should take notice of this warning.

Plagued by dropped passes --- and some that were off target --- Bellis still threw four touchdown passes and Evanston’s defense didn’t allow rival New Trier to cross the 50-yard line even once in a 25-0 blanking of the Trevians Wednesday night at Lazier Field.

It’s the third straight year that the Kits have defeated the Trevians. Evanston improved to 6-1 overall and 2-1 in Central Suburban League play, while New Trier fell to 3-4 and 1-2, respectively.

The strong-armed sophomore pitched TD passes to Emma Reese (24 yards) and KyNia Hunt (38 yards) in the first half, then put the contest out of reach of the offensively challenged Trevs by conducting a brilliant drive to open the second half, when she completed 10-of-11 passing attempts that climaxed with 1-yard completion to Brielle Rosemond to boost the score to 19-0.

Bellis also hooked up with Hunt for a second score, the play covering 14 yards, with 7:22 left in the contest.

Overall, Bellis was 19-of-39 passing for 226 yards and was intercepted twice. She only went 5-for-17 in the first half, however, and she recognizes that the offense is still a work in progress while the quarterback and the receivers get to know each other better.

But when they’re good --- they’re very, very good.

“Sometimes they don’t know where I’m going to throw it, because I’m new, and they have to adjust. There were some big plays we could’ve gotten tonight, but we didn’t,” Bellis acknowledged. “And sometimes I don’t put them in good position to make plays.

“In the second half we knew we had to capitalize on those chances. Coach (Carlton Rosemond) told me at halftime to just lock in and keep throwing it to the right spot, and we’ll be good. We had some great catches and I was able to read the defense better and hit them in their windows. We just have to keep working on connecting more.”

Rosemond pointed out after the win that Bellis ranks among the top QBs in the state in the yards passing category and that the best is yet to come in the passing attack.

“Right now I think the issue is 50-50,” the coach said. “Some of it is that Ava is still learning the mechanics of how to play quarterback, and what throws to make. And our receivers have to adjust, catch the ball first and THEN move and run. That’s the learning curve we have right now.

“The receivers have to realize that Ava can launch the ball 30 or 40 yards (most flag quarterbacks don’t have her arm strength) and that she can throw them open. On that first drive of the second half she really made some masterful throws. The stats say she’s one of the tops in passing yards in the state, and I can’t say enough about that kid. I’m happy she’s on our team.”

Bellis picked New Trier’s defense apart in a rivalry that is still in its early stages. ETHS fielded a team a year before their neighbors to the north and New Trier is still playing catch-up in the sport.

And the seeds for a real rivalry still haven’t sprouted yet because, unlike other sports, players on both sides haven’t grown up competing against each other in flag prior to high school.

Bellis only recognized one player on the New Trier roster and that’s because they’ve played basketball against each other.

“I think it’s always a big deal to beat New Trier,” Bellis added. “It’s been such a long rivalry in the other sports.”

“I always treat it like a rivalry,” Rosemond noted. “When you have the Evanston Wildkits against the New Trier Trevians, that’s synonymous with battling in high school sports. Every game we’ve played against them has definitely been a game. Two years ago they had us on the ropes until KyNia (Hunt) turned the game around with a pick six.”

Evanston’s defense, meanwhile, got back on track after hitting a low point in last Saturday’s doubleheader against Maine South and Lincoln-Way East. Interceptions by Reese and Ella Martin, plus a strong pass rush, limited New Trier quarterbacks Kathleen Ellis and Lila Byrne to a combined 16-of-32 passing for a measly 73 yards.

New Trier’s longest plays from scrimmage were a 9-yard run by Ellis and a 14-yard pass completion from Byrne to Tessa Bonder.

“That wasn’t us last Saturday,” said Rosemond regarding the ETHS defense. “Tonight we were really dialed into fixing what we didn’t do right Saturday. Our defense just didn’t hold up in those games.

“Tonight we gave New Trier a lot of different looks and a lot of the credit goes to our pass rushers, who made their quarterbacks rush their throws. We worked on a couple of areas in practice and on staying disciplined.

“Our goal is pretty much to make sure all areas of our defense are shored up so it’s a dogfight to get past our defense.”