Whitley becomes Geneva's 1st 2,000-point scorer

Taylor Whitley caught the pass, took a couple dribbles and dropped in a short jumper from the elbow.

The suspense, if there was any, was over.

With her first basket in Wednesday's 54-32 Class 4A West Chicago regional win, Whitley became the first girls or boys basketball player in Geneva school history to surpass 2,000 career points. Whitley's 16 points Wednesday puts her at 2,015.

West Chicago coach Kim Wallner called a timeout after Whitley's score with 5:02 left in the first quarter, and Whitley was recognized by the PA announcer.

"It's exciting," Whitley said. "I'm happy I finally got it. That was awesome by their coach. Good sportsmanship. I appreciated that."

History on the cusp every time Whitley touched the ball from the opening tip, she actually dished off three assists before the score to spring Geneva to a 14-0 start.

Not surprising, said her coach.

"That just defines Taylor," Vikings coach Gina Nolan said. "She's a total team player. She's about the team winning more than her accomplishments."

Whitley said her mindset was more on getting the win Wednesday than the score. And no, she hasn't paid the milestone much thought since last Friday's win over Batavia left her at 1,999.

"Down the road I'll probably think about it more," Whitley said.

"I've been very fortunate to coach a player like her. I know they don't come along very often in a coaching career," Nolan said. "It's been a pleasure working with her for four years. We're not done - I'm not ready to see her career end."