Geneva handles St. Charles North
Geneva's grip on the Upstate Eight Conference River Division remained tight following a stifling defensive effort Tuesday night at St. Charles North.
The Vikings held the North Stars to 35.7 percent shooting (15 of 42) and forced 20 turnovers on their way to a 57-40 victory.
The win keeps defending champion and No. 7 ranked Geneva (13-3, 5-0) on top of the conference standings while No. 14 St. Charles North fell to 11-5, 3-2.
“We knew they had good posts,” Geneva center Grace Loberg said. “We played a new defense in the second half and it really helped.”
That trapping defense pressured the North Stars into 8 turnovers in the third quarter when Geneva seized control of a tight game.
Morgan Rosencrants drove for a basket early in the quarter, bringing the North Stars within 25-23. From there, Geneva outscored the North Stars 13-4 to end the quarter up 38-27.
“We were getting good shots in the second quarter, they just weren't going in,” Geneva coach Sarah Meadows said of the Vikings' 5-point second quarter.
They certainly started going in for Loberg who scored 18 of her game-high 20 points in the second half. Loberg also grabbed 13 rebounds.
Loberg's steal and pass to Margaret Whitley on the fastbreak answered the Rosencrants basket to put Geneva up 4. Whitley then fed Loberg inside for 2 more. Stephanie Hart nailed a 17-foot jumper, Loberg made 4 straight free throws, and Loberg scored while being fouled for a 3-point play with 2 seconds left to take a commanding 11-point lead to the fourth.
Loberg opened the fourth with another basket, Whitley drained a 3-pointer and Loberg scored the next 7 Geneva points as the Vikings stretched their lead to 52-32.
“We didn't execute the game plan,” St. Charles North coach Sean Masoncup said.
Samantha Sample got the North Stars off to a good start, scoring their first 9 points on three first-quarter 3-point jumpers.
After her second triple gave the North Stars a 6-4 lead, the Vikings scored 12 straight points to build an 18-6 lead. Hart began the run with a 3-pointer, and Maddy Yelle made 2 baskets. Masoncup called time down 14-6 and the North Stars switched from zone to man-to-man.
Colleen Grady capped the surge with a pair of free throws. Grady came off the bench to grab 6 first-half rebounds, often hustling to get to either a missed shot or loose ball.
“She does a lot of things that don't show up in the stat sheet,” Meadows said. “She's also a very intelligent player.”
Hart joined Loberg in double figures with 10 points, Whitley scored 8 and Yelle and Taylor Williams both had 6.
In addition to her 20 points and 13 rebounds, Loberg also played a central role in holding the North Stars' leading scorer Claire Jakaitis to 7 points and 3 rebounds.
Sample led the North Stars with 12 points and 3 assists, and Anna Davern scored 7.