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Delavan-Darien's Cesarz on first team

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Photo by Dan Lassiter

Delavan-Darien star Alana Cesarz was named to the first team All State for basketball.

DELAVAN — Alana Cesarz had one goal going into the 2009-10 basketball season.

The Delavan-Darien High School junior wanted to raise her game a notch.

Mission accomplished!

Cesarz was named Tuesday to The Associated Press All-State first team.

The 6-foot-2 Cesarz, who set the season scoring record at Delavan-Darien this year, became the first player in program history to be selected to the AP first team. She was all-state honorable mention a year ago.

“I think more than anything, all the work I put in during the off-season paid off,” Cesarz said of her all-state selection. “I really concentrated on becoming a better player by working on all parts of my game.

“But I’m not satisfied. After I play in a big tournament in April, I’m going to get right back to working on what I think I need to get better. It starts with my outside game and my ball-handling.”

Cesarz, the Player of the Year in the Southern Lakes Conference the past two seasons, finished with 519 points this season for the Comets’ 20-5 team. She scored in double figures every game, topped by 30 points against Lake Geneva Badger, while breaking Sally Jansen’s school record, which was set in 1984-85.

Cesarz also holds the school career record with 316 free throws made, including a record 150 this season.

Delavan-Darien coach Keiya Square said Cesarz’s selection to the first team is deserving, but somewhat unexpected.

“From our end, we know what type of player she is,” Square said. “But from a statewide standpoint, and the fact that we haven’t made it out of the regional tournament the last two years, you never know how much recognition she’s getting outside our immediate area.

“As well as Alana played last year, she took her game to another level this year. Whatever we asked her to do, whether it was rebound, score, run the floor, she did it. And a lot of times, that came with teams trying to frustrate her by putting two or three players on her.”

Cesarz finished with a 20.8 per-game scoring average this season, along with 9.3 rebounds per game.

With the immediate attention gained by receiving all-state recognition, Cesarz knows that the college suitors will start lining up for her services.

“I’ve kind of narrowed my list down to a top 10, and I’d like to have a decision made before my senior year (of basketball) starts, but I’m in no hurry,” Cesarz said. “We’ll just see what happens.”