St. Charles East's Rosenfeldt joins 1,000 club in win over Larkin

It was a fitting end to a memorable night for St. Charles East's Sara Rosenfeldt.

The 6-foot junior forward, who surpassed the 1,000-point career mark late in the first quarter, hit a buzzer-beating, right-handed runner in the lane to propel the Saints (14-4, 5-1) to a hard-fought 61-59 girls basketball overtime victory over Larkin (7-8, 1-3) Thursday night in St. Charles.

Rosenfeldt actually inbounded the ball under the Saints' basket during the final possession with 5.1 seconds remaining.

Ashley DiOrio (9 points, 8 rebounds) received the inbounds pass and quickly got the ball to senior guard Samantha Munroe (9 assists), who found Rosenfeldt cutting to the basket for the game-winner.

"I was struggling in the first half and in the second half to make layups so I knew I needed to finish," said Rosenfeldt, who finished with 20 points and a game-high 18 rebounds. "Sam (Munroe) made a terrific pass.

"We knew we wanted to finish the game out because we weren't playing as well as we should have."

Part of the reason for that was the scintillating performance turned in by Larkin senior guard Marlee Kyles.

Needing 41 points to become the Royals' all-time leading scorer (boys and girls), Kyles poured in a game-high 38 points with an array of shots, highlighted by a step-back 3-pointer during the closing seconds of the third quarter that put Larkin on top 37-35.

"You've got to give Kyles credit because we were throwing everything at her and she was doing a great job," said Saints coach Lori Drumtra. "Those were a hard-earned 38 (points). She's a pretty impressive player."

It appeared the Saints might win the Upstate Eight Conference River Division game in regulation, following a 3-point basket by Nicole Jordan (14 points, 6 rebounds) that gave the home team a 53-49 lead with 1:41 left.

However, the Royals fought back to force overtime thanks to a pair of free throws and layup from senior Layla Wisser (4 points, 12 rebounds).

Another 3-pointer from Jordan extended the Saints' lead to 59-53 with 3 minutes left in the extra session but once again, the Royals responded.

Back-to-back buckets from freshman Brianna Young (8 points) and Kyles' catch-and-shoot basket off an inbounds feed from Haley Bohne tied the game at 59-59 with 1:41 remaining.

"It's a new year and obviously we became a lot better team (tonight)," said Larkin coach Steve Knapp. "The physicality came out tonight. We haven't been physical all year with teams and I honestly think this is the best game we've played all year - hands down."

Rosenfeldt joined the 1,000-point club on an offensive rebound putback with 1:07 left in the opening quarter.

"It's a great achievement," said Rosenfeldt. "Coming in freshman year, I wanted to make varsity and try to get it (1,000 points) by my junior year because I'd like to be the leading scorer at (St. Charles) East.

"Getting the win helps even more. I'd rather get the win."

"I liked their execution and poise at the end," said Drumtra. "We'll take it."

Marissa Urso added 13 points for the Saints.