Still no stopping Geneva express
Hurry up and get your seat on the Geneva girls basketball team's bandwagon. It just departed West Chicago, next stop is Monday in Addison, and the way this team is playing unselfish up-tempo basketball, could be bound for Chicago and Normal.
Geneva rolled to its 29th straight victory Friday night, a 65-35 pasting of Proviso West in the Class 4A West Chicago regional championship game.
A large crowd made its way to West Chicago to see the Vikings, and Geneva gave its fans plenty to cheer about. The Vikings (29-0) scored the first 13 points on their way to a 24-3 lead after one quarter, putting on a clinic of crisp passing, fastbreak baskets and harassing defense.
"We didn't know what to expect (from Proviso)," senior guard Emily Hinchman said. "We just wanted to get an early lead. We are really good at doing that."
No. 9 seed Proviso West (21-11) had no answer for Geneva's 1-2-1-1 diamond press. The Panthers turned the ball over 5 times in the first three minutes. When Kelsey Augustine scored on a putback basket with 3:26 left in the first quarter, all five Geneva starters had scored and the Vikings led 15-2.
"We work really hard on defense and I just love working with the guards and up front," sophomore guard Kat Yelle said.
Geneva's three guards - Hinchman, Yelle and Indiana State-bound Taylor Whitley - combined for 9 steals and 13 assists. Whitley scored a game-high 22 points to go with 7 assists and 8 rebounds, Hinchman had 14 points and 4 steals and Yelle added 12 points and 7 rebounds.
"Just the way Emily, Kat and Taylor pass the ball to each other on the break, they impress me continuously," Geneva coach Gina Nolan said. "I love their unselfishness and how they are always looking for each other."
Up front, Lauren Wicinski had 11 points and 11 rebounds while Augustine grabbed 7 boards and 3 steals.
"It's really nice when everyone contributes," Hinchman said. "We know what our team can do when we work together."
Britney Landers led Proviso West with 16 points and 15 rebounds. The Panthers briefly cut the lead to 15 in the second quarter, but trailed by 21 at halftime and 31 after three quarters.
The win gives Geneva its fourth regional title in school history, its first since Whitley's freshman year in 2006. The Vikings will play No. 12 seed Elk Grove (16-11) at 6 p.m. Monday at Addison Trail in a sectional of surprises so far that also includes No. 18 seed York playing No. 3 Lake Park at 8 p.m. Monday.
Well, one thing isn't a surprise - the Vikings keep winning, with plenty of support behind them.
"The high school community has supported us and even people that don't have kids at the high school (were here)," Nolan said. "We've had great support. That was nice to see."