Burlington Central, St. Charles North advance to Class 4A sectional final

Practice prepared Burlington Central only to a point. Leading up to their sectional semifinal matchup, the Rockets blared crowd noise from loudspeakers, but even the simulation couldn’t compare to the reality they saw Tuesday night on their home court. “I’m not used to this many people coming to our games,” junior Niyati Kasireddy said. “It was a lot. It was stressful in the beginning.” Before a packed student section and more fans in the bleachers, Burlington Central trailed early to St. Charles East before rallying to win in straight sets, 27-25, 25-16, to advance to the Burlington Central Class 4A Sectional Final. The Rockets are now 30-7 in their first season in the new classification after advancing to the sectional finals last year in 3A. “We’re really proud that we’re doing so well so soon,” coach Julia Smagacz said. The Rockets initially struggled to place their hits in bounds and trailed 7-2 in the first set. They cut it to 11-10 after an ace from Lexi Pineda. Freshman Lani Ak