Geneva rolls without Santos
West Chicago went with a three-guard lineup for its nonconference game at Geneva Tuesday night.
Considering the Vikings' relentless pressure that was at least two guards too few.
Playing for the first time with Marquette-bound Ashley Santos (torn ACL) next to her sister Sidney on the bench, Geneva took out the frustrations of that family's rotten luck on the Wildcats.
The Vikings forced 9 turnovers in the opening quarter and 18 in the first half, leading by as many as 26 points in their 60-51 victory.
"They aren't going to quit," Geneva coach Sarah Meadows said. "I know they got sad news but they aren't going to quit. They are going to work hard every game."
No. 5 Geneva (17-3) showed it still has plenty of firepower without Santos, who injured her knee in its previous game Saturday at the McDonald's Shootout. The injury has been diagnosed as a season-ending torn ACL.
Santos spoke to the team at the walk-through before Tuesday's game. She offered cheers and high-fives to her teammates, starting with Stephanie Sharp and Kelly Sharpe singing the national anthem and continuing throughout the game.
"She is just encouraging us to keep our heads up and keep playing strong and we can still do it," said senior Rachel Hinchman. "She is always there for encouragement. That's nice even when she gets hurt she still supports us. She's still part of the team. It was just nice to hear from her."
Even without its star, Geneva showed it isn't going to stop doing what has made the program so successful. Michaela Loebel and Hinchman each had a breakaway layup in the early going for a 5-0 lead.
The Wildcats (11-8) hit back with a Claire Monroe 3 and Laura Panicali jumper to take what turned out to be their last lead at 10-9.
Geneva blitzed West Chicago with a 10-0 run in the final 2:21 of the first quarter starting with a Loebel basket and ending with a Hinchman layup set up by Kelly Gordon's steal.
Geneva had 8 steals in the first quarter and 14 in the first half as even with the three guards West Chicago had no answer for Geneva's pressure.
"I think our pressure always gets teams rattled a little bit," Hinchman said. "I think we're a good defensive team. Whenever we press like that it usually works out for us."
West Chicago coach Kim Wallner said her smaller guards had trouble with Geneva. She tried to adjust by getting her posts involved breaking the press but the Vikings kept the pressure amped up.
"They took advantage of our size a little not being able to see over it (the press)," Wallner said. "Their quickness is hard to match and simulate in practice."
When Morgan Seberger knocked down a 3 and scored on a putback to put Geneva ahead 30-12 late in the second quarter, the Vikings had scored 19 of the game's last 21 points.
Allie Tapanes and Monroe gave West Chicago a little momentum going to halftime with back-to-back 3s. Monroe opened the third quarter with a basket to bring the Wildcats within 30-20 before Geneva outscored the Wildcats 22-8 to lead 52-28 going to the fourth quarter.
Up 26 points at one point, Meadows went to her bench with Allison Wright chipping in 6 points. West Chicago only dressed nine players, and Tapanes (16 points), Monroe (11 points), Panicali (11 points) and Liz Reyes (8 points) helped the Wildcats slice 17 points off the deficit and force Meadows to get a few of her starters back in the game in the final minute.
"I knew she (Meadows) took out some of her players but I needed to get my team playing again a little bit," Wallner said. "We haven't played well since Christmas. I think I can get more out of this group than what we have been doing. The fact we were able to cut it was hopefully a little bit of a confidence boost for our kids going into Glenbard North, Wheaton North."
Hinchman's 14 points led Geneva, who shot 53.6 percent from the field (22 of 41) through three quarters.
Seberger (11 points), Loebel (10 points, 6 steals) and Sami Pawlak (10 points, 12 rebounds, 5 steals) gave Geneva four players in double figures, the type of contribution the Vikings will need now without Santos.
"I thought we looked really good the first three quarters. We worked hard. The press looked good," said Meadows, who said her coaching staff is considering calling up some underclassmen this weekend.
"We didn't change very much. Clearly Ashley you can't replace her. That's hands-down you can't. But we just said everybody has to do a little bit more. Kids were in good spirits today, Ashley was in good spirits today. That goes a long way because I think when the kids see her feeling good that is going to make them feel good."