McNamara’s comeback bid denied by Mt. Carmel in Class 2A supers

TOLONO ‐ The 13-point deficit was much higher than the two one-possession games at the half the Bishop McNamara girls basketball team faced in last week’s IHSA Class 2A Herscher Regional, but as the fourth quarter of Monday’s IHSA Class 2A Tolono Unity Super-Sectional got going, it looked as if the Fightin' Irish were going to see another monumental second half lead them to victory.

But just moments after trimming what had been an 18-point second-quarter deficit to as close as six points early in the fourth, the Fightin' Irish saw the Golden Aces end the game on a 16-3 run, handing McNamara a 61-42 season-ending loss.

The Fightin' Irish saw their season end with a 27-8 record while the Golden Aces (30-4) are headed to state for the first time in program history.

“A lot of people didn’t expect us to be here, but every year I’ve believed,” McNamara head coach Khadaizha Sanders said. “I believe in the work we put in, I believe in our kids. We fell short today, but we have a lot to be proud of and a lot to hold our head up about.”

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Bishop McNamara's Trinity Davis shoots a 3-pointer during McNamara's IHSA Class 2A Tolono Unity Super-Sectional against Mt. Carmel Monday, March 3, 2025. (Shaw Media/Mason Schweizer)

The Golden Aces' game-ending run was a fitting end to a game full of them. Mt. Carmel sandwiched runs of eight and seven straight points around a 6-0 McNamara run to lead 15-6 after the first quarter.

That 7-0 run grew to 16-0 by the time the Irish got on the board in the second quarter on Trinitee Thompson’s basket three minutes into the frame to make it a 24-8 affair, with the Golden Aces taking a 30-17 lead into the break.

After outscoring their opponents by a combined 84-25 margin in the second halves of their two sectional games last week, the Fightin' Irish knew they were still right in the thick of it at the break, and the Golden Aces knew it too.

But just as the Irish clawed back to within two possessions on Trinity Davis' 3-pointer 35 seconds into the fourth to make it 45-39, Mt. Carmel got its groove back.

The Golden Aces quickly got a basket from Maycee Randall and a pair of free throws from Riley Hershey to get back to a double-digit lead, and they also retained possession after Hershey was fouled on a box-out attempt following her second free throw.

Out of a timeout with 5:41 on the clock, McNamara was assessed a technical foul for taking the court with six players. Hershey hit another from the charity stripe as a result before Randall converted an old-fashioned three-point play that gave the Golden Aces a quick 8-0 spurt in response to Davis' triple.

Davis, who finished with a game-high 26 points, was fouled on another 3-point attempt and hit all three free throws with 4:06 left to make it 53-42, but those would end up being the last points the Irish would score, with Mt. Carmel scoring the game’s final eight points.

Randall paced Mt. Carmel with 21 points, joined in double figures by Hershey (18 points) and Madi Stevens (12). Led by that trio, Mt. Carmel head coach Matt McCarty said his team played a battle-tested schedule that included several tournaments and championship games that prepared them to take on a McNamara team that had been unbeatable down the stretch lately.

“We’re not gonna back down from anybody, and I think all those led up to this moment,” McCarty said of the team’s experiences this year. “We just kept fighting and fighting. They threw great punches at us, but we were able to rock with it and keep going.”

Following Davis' 26 points was Thompson’s eight points. Jaide Burse and Leigha Brown had four points apiece. Davis and Brown saw their three-year McNamara varsity career ends with the loss, as did Lydia Nugent and Ella Langellier, the latter of whom suffered a knee injury late in the season. Analeah Ramirez rejoined the program for her senior year this winter after sitting out her sophomore and junior years, giving Sanders a five-deep class that, in the immediate aftermath of the loss, seemed almost impossible to say goodbye to.

“This group means a lot to me,” Sanders said. “We’ve been through so much... Watching them grow as players and as young ladies, it’s been the ultimate appreciation for them and happiness to see them grow and flourish. I’m gonna miss them so much.”