Morton Grove Team First Muslim Girls Basketball Team in IESA Playing in Regional Finals TONIGHT

First Muslim Girls Basketball Team in the IESA Playing Tonight in Regional Finals

The MCC Academy Girls Varsity Basketball team of Morton Grove, IL, is the first and only hijabi Muslim girls basketball team to play in the Illinois Elementary School Association and, in this first year playing, they will be playing to the Regional Finals today. The girls won their initial regional game against Riverdale Patton this past Tuesday, November 29, 2016, and will be playing Cottage Grove Middle School this evening in Ford Heights, IL. If the MCCA girls win today's game they will qualify for the sectional competition on December 10, 2016. This is a fantastic story of courage and heart. The MCCA girls basketball team is showcasing their talent on the court while, at the same time, stomping out negative stereotypes about Muslim women. The girls wear their hijabs, full sleeves, and long pants on the court and hold their heads high while playing just as hard as their competitors. In their own unique way, these girls represent what it means to be all-American icons, individuals who are strong, focused and have a true love of sport. In today's climate where there is much mistrust and maligning of Muslims, the MCCA girls basketball team is truly helping to forge a new image of Muslims that rings familiar and relatable to the average person. They are a force of unification in our country that has seen too much divisiveness in recent times.

The girls got the news two weeks ago that they would be able to compete in the 8-1A Regionals as part of the IESA. Although the girls finished 10-4 in the Southwest Conference and took home second place, they did end up having the #1 seed in their regional bracket. MCCA waited for the outcome between the #4 and #5 seed to see who they would play on November 29th. Riverdale Patton ended up beating Joliet Union by a score of 20 - 15. This meant that MCCA would face Riverdale Patton.

Our players, coaches, athletic department staff, and school principal Mr. Habeeb Quadri all made the trip down to Ford Heights, Illinois, for the game on Tuesday, November 29, 2016. The Crescents stuck to the game plan, played tough defense, had trust in themselves, and were able to pull out a nail-biting victory with a final score of 26-25. Isma Manzoor finished the game with 17 points and her teammate Haaniya Ghiasuddin came up with 3 crucial steals and defensive stops in the last few minutes of the game to lead the Crescents to victory.

The Crescents will make a final trip to Ford Heights on December 1, 2016, to play Ford Heights Cottage Grove UGC for the regional crown.

MCC Academy is a state-recognized, parochial elementary institution, nationally accredited by AdvancEd. The curriculum of the school is aligned with standards proposed by ISBE (Illinois State Board of Education). There is great excitement among the community over the recent expansion of the school through the purchase of a second facility in Skokie, IL, located a few short miles from the flagship location in Morton Grove, IL. MCC Academy offers a highly competitive secular education curriculum for students in preschool through 8th grades with students consistently scoring on average in the 89th percentile on standardized tests of basic skills. For 25 years, MCC Academy has continued to grow its enrollment through providing a top-notch secular education complemented by contemporary coursework in Islamic studies designed to build and refine character among our students, helping them develop a beautiful Muslim-American identity and the knowledge to help them positively impact the culture in which they live.