FREEDOM, WI- The Freedom Irish are hoping to continue their storybook season deep into the State Tournament this year.
A banner at Freedom High School showing a State Runner-up season in 2008 remains the newest banner for Girls Basketball in the Fieldhouse. That season, Coach Mike Vander Loop was just fairly new in his tenure as Girls Basketball Coach in Freedom and was able to bring the Irish back in 2019. A quick exit that year continues to be on his mind as he and the girls have another chance to make up for it this year.
The Irish are 23-1 on the season with their only loss coming near the end of the season to Mosinee 61-57, after starting the season 22-0.
Coach Mike Vander Loop on the Irish defense.
“That was a tough loss and we talked right away about learning from it and turning a loss into a positive,” Vander Loop said “They got refocused and I was happy with the way the girls responded.
Freedom has found their success on defense this season. “We are really tight-knit and we really play together. Our defense is very good and I think that stems from our team chemistry,” said Senior Megan Alexander, who remembers being a Freshman on the bench when Freedom was last at State in 2019. “I’m looking forward to playing hopefully two more games for my high school career and go out with a bang.”
Despite being the number one ranked team at the end of the season, the Irish was given the number two seed with the computer rankings. “We were not surprised when the seeding came out, Waupun is a really good team and we really did not know where we would fall, but at this point, everyone is a good team so we are going to have to play well no matter who we play.”
The seeding set up a match-up with third-seeded St. Croix Falls. “They have a good ball-handler, a kid that can shoot and kid to the basket and they have a good inside presence,” Vander Loop said. “They have an athletic sophomore who makes things happen and they are a strong team.”
That Sophomore is Kelsey Cooper, who is averaging 15.5 points a game for the Saints. Coach Angie Maternowsky has a young team with one senior, one junior and three sophomores leading the way. The Saints recently got over a hump, making it to the State Tournament after three straight years in the Sectional Finals. This is their first trip to State in school history.
“Going into the season, I knew we were young, and right after the halfway point we came together.”
Coach Maternowski says some injuries midway through the season helped the team come together and improve.
St. Croix Falls is hard to scout since they seem to have multiple girls that can lead the way in scoring any given game. They are led by Junior Brianna McCurdy with 16.4 points a game.
The Irish have high expectations for their tournament run. “I’m super excited but a little nervous,” Megan Alexander said. She added that these girls set their sights high. “It is a goal and we knew this year that we had a really good shot to make it this far, so we are very happy with the outcome, but everything is earned.”
Freedom has a deep bench and ten players who all get plenty of playing time each game. “We have a good balance with a 10 player roster and we have confidence in all of them. This year we have shot better from the floor, especially from behind the three-point line,” Vander Loop said. “We predicate everything on our defense. We look to control the tempo and get out front and force some turnovers.”
The focus for Vander Loop is still one game at a time, but he says when you get to this level, you need to keep the big picture in mind. “We want them to have fun and get the experience, but at the same time, we worked hard to get here so we would like to see the reward.” He said with that in mind, it is still a 100 percent focus on Thursday only. “In the back of your mind, you are thinking about what it takes to get to the State Tournament and you want to make the most of it, but we are just thinking about Thursday right now.”
Sadie Jarmolowicz leads the Irish in scoring (16.1 points), assists (146), and steals (89). She was second in the State in three-point shooting in Division 3, shooting 45% from behind the arc.
Vander Loop says the 2019 State team was really good but said this team is stronger on defense, better shooters as a team and more experienced. “We have some long, lanky athletes this year to help with our play. This team has multiple strong defensive players and when you have that, you feel pretty good, because it makes up for a night that you may be off a little offensively. Our offensive efficiency is a little stronger with this team and we have more experience this year.”
Coach Mike Vander Loop compares the 2019 State Team to the 2022 State Team
St. Croix Falls also has a lot of respect for Freedom, but Coach Maternowski says they have played well against similar competition this year.
“They are taller than we are, but we are excited because we have seen challenges like this before and our girls tend to step up.”
Vander Loop said he is happy the tournament is back at the Resch Center.
Coach Mike Vander Loop on his Team
Coach Vander Loop on St. Croix Falls
Listen to what St. Croix Falls Coach Angie Maternowski has to say about her team.
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