St. Edward dumps Timothy Christian
With the centerpieces of last year's Class 2A third place state team, Maddie Spagnola and Katie Castoro, having graduated St. Edward girls basketball coach Michelle Dawson knew there would be an adjustment period at the start of this season. So when the Green Wave lost their first 3 games Dawson wasn't too concerned. The last 2 games have shown why.
The Green Wave (2-3) continued to find their groove on Tuesday defeating Timothy Christian 61-40 at home for their second straight win
Yssa Sto. Domingo led the way with 18 points for St. Edward.
"I know our record (1-3) at the Hinsdale (South) tournament didn't show it, but I was actually very pleased with the way we played," Dawson said. "I could feel each game we were figuring it out and the pieces were coming together. We are starting to elevate our game. I like the way we are playing unselfish and making the extra pass. I feel we are in a good place right now."
Sto. Domingo got the offense kick-started for the Green Wave as she scored the first 5 points of the game on a transition layup and a 3-pointer. She went on to score 13 points in the first half as the Green Wave built a 35-13 lead by halftime.
"I think we learned a lot from our mistakes at the Hinsdale tournament," Sto. Domingo said. "We know to win we have to work as a team. These last 2 games the ball movement has been much better. It starts with the first pass and it ends with an open shot. I just tried to do my part. Their defenders were giving me space and I saw some openings to either shoot or attack the basket."
Sto. Domingo had four 3-pointers and 3 layups in the game.
"She is a real leader," Dawson said. "The rest of the team feeds off her energy. It's just a pleasure to coach all these kids because they have a hard working mentality and want to get better."
The Green Wave's defense played a pivotal role in their success as they forced 17 turnovers in the first half and 24 in the game.
"I was telling my assistants after one of the breaks that I would hate to have to bring the ball up the court against our defense," said Dawson. 'We have the type of players and the depth to constantly put pressure on the ball. Tonight we were able to capitalize on that by forcing a lot of turnovers and turning them into points.
Hailey Niehaus added 10 points for the Green Wave.
Timothy Christian (1-3) never got closer than 17 points in the second half. Emily DeBoer led the Trojans in scoring with 12 points.