Neoga Set For Class 1A State Girls Basketball Tourney Today

Now Romack and her girls have won a regional, won a sectional, won a super-sectional and stand at 28-7 on the season. They also are headed to the Class 1A State Tournament this Thursday to meet Brimfield in the first game at Redbird Arena in Normal.

Not bad for a former player at Neoga. Romack played for Terri Biggs and Seth James herself.

“Let’s just say I was on the team,” laughed Romack who graduated in 1999. She went on to Lake Land College and Eastern Illinois University where she got a degree in physical education. She now teaches health and driver’s ed.

“I was an aid for four years when Terri Biggs retired and I got hired to do P.E. and also ended up in health and driver’s ed,” said Romack.

Romack took over the coaching duties of the high school squad during the 2012-13 season and her first team went 9-19. She turned that around with four straight winning seasons. Then the Indians had 12-16 and 14-16 seasons before getting back on track going even at 16-16 before getting a 16-3 record last season.

Coach Romack talked about her squad that pulled out a come-from-behind victory Monday evening at the Wayne City Super-sectional. Her team trailed Goreville by 14 points going into the final quarter and outscored the Blackcats 24-10 in the final period, winning 50-48.

“I would say the strengths of this team is their unselfishness and their toughness and grit, especially on the defensive end,” said Romack. “They don’t ever give up. They have a go-get-em attitude all the time.

“These girls can make adjustments. We can do a lot of different things defensively. They can do whatever I ask of them.

“Unselfishness is a strength but can be a weakness. Sometimes we do overpass and don’t take the open shot. We have some moments where it can take us a while to get going on the offensive end.”

Coach Romack talked about her five starters.

“Sydney Hakman, a 5-foot-4 junior, has played the most minutes this year. She is on the floor a lot. She’s not our leading scorer but one heck of a defender. She is usually smaller than the rest of the players. She’s 5-4 but plays like she’s 6-foot.

“Avery Fearday is a 5-foot-8 senior. Her leadership this year has been fantastic. We get a lot of momentum off of her. Defensively she has been a great player since she started in the program. Her big thing this year is she has improved in her passing so much. We tell the girls all of the time, if Avery has the ball, get ready for it.

“Trista Moore, a 5-foot-7 senior, is the kind of kid that is not afraid to hit a big shot. We’ve had several games we’ve been down and she’s been the one who doesn’t shy away from it. She’s willing to knock it down. She’s also one of our key defenders. She has a little bit of length at 5-7 and doesn’t mind guarding people bigger than her.

“Haylee Campbell, a 5-foot-11 sophomore, with her length and strength, has been really big for us. She gets typically the other team’s tallest player. She rebounds like no other. She stands at 5-11 but she has a 6-foot-2 wing span. When she goes up to get a rebound, she’s coming down with it.

“Sydney Richards is our leading scorer. She is leading in steals as well. Her demeanor on the floor is always calm and she’s ready to shoot. Doesn’t get rattled. She’s a very versatile player, can play anywhere. She can shoot from the perimeter and also post up. Her overall competitiveness and drive are phenomenal.”

Coach Romack talked about the other members of her team.

“Brynn Richards gives us a lot of big minutes off the bench. Allison Sampson steps in especially when Hakman makes a break. Allison Worman gives us a lot of strengths and length as well.

“We also have Karly McKinney, a junior, Natalie O’Dell, a sophomore, Gracie Eaton, a sophomore who has been hurt, and freshman Atalie Osborn.”

Coach Romack commented on some of  the tougher teams her squad has faced this season.

“We think coming into the post-season, our schedule really helped us out. We’ve played several 2A teams such as T-town, Pana and Marshall. Then we also played Effingham this year. We think our conference is pretty strong. We get to see some good teams during the regular season and tournament. We have some pretty big wins against Clinton and Tuscola who both made runs in the post-season. We were able to knock Tuscola off twice.”

Romack’s former coach Seth James is her assistant.

“Seth is the best assistant coach in the state of Illinois,” said Romack. “A lot of people don’t get the opportunity to coach with their high school coach. It’s been everything I could imagine it to be. He pours his heart into this team, program and this sport. None of us would be here and be the people we are without him.

“My five managers are my junior varsity kids. They act as managers all throughout the season. They do all the behind the scenes work. They make our job a lot easier. They are Calli Reynolds, Audrey Keep, Calisha Hansen, Kember Bryant and Macy Moran.”

What are the Indians looking for at State?

“We want to go up there with our game plan as normal,” said Romack.”It’s another game for us. That’s the way the girls see it. It’s business as usual.

“However, we’re going to enjoy the moment. This is something a lot of girls play high school basketball and never get the opportunity to do. A lot of people coach a lot of years and never get the opportunity. We’re going to enjoy every moment from the planning, to being together as a team and playing the games. Whatever happens in the end, we’ll be happy with it.”

Neoga will meet Brimfield at 10 a.m. Thursday while Serena and Galena will square off at 11:45 a.m. The losers drop into the third place contest at 7 p.m. The winners advance to the state championship game at 11 a.m. Saturday.