Girls basketball: Huntley guard Jessie Ozzauto commits to Lehigh

Huntley’s Jessie Ozzauto had a busy – and exhilarating – couple of weeks at the end of May and start of June.

First, at the IHSA Class 3A Girls Track and Field State Meet, Ozzauto was a big part of the Red Raiders’ best finish in program history – placing fifth as a team and, individually, advancing to the state finals in two relays.

Ozzauto, along with Vicky Evtimov, Dominique Johnson and Melissa Aninagyei-Bonsu, took seventh in the 4x200 with their second-fastest time, becoming the first girls relay team at Huntley to claim a state medal.

Twelve days later, on June 2, Ozzauto had her basketball future mapped out as the dynamic, two-sport athlete announced her commitment to NCAA Division I Lehigh.

Ozzauto will join Ali Andrews, McHenry County’s all-time leading scorer (girls or boys), and Morgan Clausen as the only Raiders girls basketball players to play D-I. Andrews played four years at Illinois and Clausen two years at Brown.

“I’m just really grateful,” Ozzauto said. “It’s awesome to play at any level in college. It’s nerve-racking and it’s stressful, but it’s an awesome process. To be able to go through it with all my family and friends, coaches and teammates, it’s awesome to finally have that decision made and just get ready.”

Ozzauto, who will be a senior in the fall, was a Northwest Herald All-Area second-team pick last season after leading the Raiders to their first Fox Valley Conference title in five years. She led Huntley at 12 points a game, along with 4.3 rebounds, two assists, 1.4 steals and 1.7 steals.

Her 56 3-pointers also were most on the team and seventh most in the area.

Ozzauto was talking to a few other schools and had an offer from Lehigh’s biggest rival, Lafayette, but she struck up a good relationship with coaches at Lehigh, going back to when they came out to Huntley to see her play.

Ozzauto visited the Mountain Hawks’ campus in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the spring and had a good feeling.

Lehigh was 19-11 last season and 11-7 in the Patriot League, three games back of conference champion Holy Cross.

“It’s in Bethlehem, so it’s beautiful,” Ozzauto said. “I absolutely loved the campus. I have older brothers, and they always told me, ‘You’ll know where you want to go in your gut.’ I went to some other colleges and never felt that.

“When I stepped on campus [at Lehigh], I was like, ‘Wow.’ I just felt super comfortable and safe, and I saw myself there.”

Huntley coach Steve Raethz said Ozzauto elevated her play last season and became a scoring threat at multiple levels. Ozzauto showed a strong knack for weaving through heavy traffic in the lane and still getting off her shot.

In Huntley’s 50-36 win against Guilford in the Class 4A Jefferson Regional final, Ozzauto poured in a game-high 20 points before leaving the game after twisting her ankle and banging the ground as she drove to the basket.

“We’re really proud of her and everything she’s accomplished,” Raethz said. “She definitely earned that opportunity. She’s such a dual threat from both the perimeter and just her ability to slash and get to the basket. She’s really tough to guard because she does both so well.

“She did such a great job playing point guard, setting the tone offensively, seeing the floor and pushing the ball.”

The Raiders should once again contend for the FVC title next year.

Ozzauto will be one of four returning starters, along with seniors Sammi Campanelli and Morgan McCaughn and sophomore Anna Campanelli. Senior Mallory Winters also received considerable playing time.

“Definitely, we’ll be shooting for a regional title again, but I believe we can go a lot farther,” Ozzauto said. “I think we’re going to pick up where we left off and just keep getting better and better, especially in practice.

“We push each other, and we’re hard on each other, but it is all out of love and just trying to make everyone better.”