Three weeks of fun starts in Oswego

No matter what, there will be a new champion at this year's Oswego Holiday Classic.

That's because the girls basketball team that won the 8-team tournament last year, St. Charles North, has moved on to Dundee-Crown's tournament.

Three local teams still remain -- Geneva, Batavia and Rosary -- and will all play each other because these teams, along with Minooka, are all in the same bracket.

"It's a very, very competitive bracket," Rosary coach Dave Beebe said. "There won't be a lack of good competition in that bracket. All the games will be good, but we are looking forward to the challenge."

The other bracket features Oswego, Glenbard East, Yorkville and St. Charles North's replacement, Plainfield Central's JV team.

The games begin Saturday with the final day of play taking place a week later.

Geneva, which placed second last year in the tournament, plays Minooka at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, followed by Rosary against Batavia at 3 p.m.

All three local teams will be coming off exhausting Friday nights in conference action.

Western Sun Conference rivals Geneva and Batavia take each other on for the first time this season. Both teams enter the regular season contest with unblemished records.

The Vikings and the Bulldogs will then play each other again a week later in tournament play.

"It will be tough to play (Geneva) twice in 7 days," Batavia coach Tim DeBruycker said. "There's not a lot of changes in either team."

Rosary will be coming off a game against Suburban Catholic Conference opponent Montini, one of the best teams in the state.

On Monday, all three local teams return back to action, as Geneva plays Rosary at 5:30 p.m., followed by Batavia against Minooka at 7 p.m.

This will be the first time Geneva will take on Rosary since the Royals ended the Vikings' season in the regional final last year.

"It will be competitive, absolutely," Geneva coach Gina Nolan said. "We expect a battle with Batavia and Rosary as well."

Rosary, Geneva and Batavia resume tournament play Friday, as the Royals battle Minooka at 6:15 p.m., followed by the Bulldogs and Vikings at 7:45 p.m.

The championship game takes place Sat., Dec. 22 at 6 p.m. The third place game is at 4:30 p.m., fifth place is at 3 p.m. and seventh place begins the day at 1:30 p.m.

Geneva is led by Taylor Whitley (16.3 points, 4.6 steals, 3.8 assists a game), Nicole Gregory (9.0 points per game), Lauren Wicinski (8.3 points, 7.9 rebounds a game), Emily Hinchman (6.6 points, 2.7 assists per game) and Olivia Laster (5.5 points per game).

Rosary, which finished third in the tournament last year after beating Oswego, is paced by Faith Jones (11.2 points, 2.4 steals, 4.5 rebounds a game), Victoria Alvarez (8.8 points, 6.6 assists, 5.2 rebounds, 4.2 steals per game), Jordan Rettig (9.9 points, 6 rebounds a game) and Katie Petrando (4.8 points, 7.1 rebounds a game).

Batavia, which placed fifth last year, is led by Natalie Tarter (18 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.7 steals a game), Kara Lydon (7.4 points, 2.3 assists per game), Sara Fruendt (6.6 points, 3.0 assists per game) and Tracy Ferguson (5.0 points, 6.5 rebounds per game).

Here's a look at the rest of the girls basketball teams, and where they are headed this year:

Oswego East Holiday Classic Tournament: Apparently, a lot of the fun for most of the girls teams in the area is taking place in Oswego.

Three more local teams, Aurora Central Catholic, Aurora Christian and Kaneland are headed to Oswego for Oswego East's tournament, which takes place Dec. 26 through Dec. 29.

Sixteen teams are in this tournament. Driscoll was given the No. 1 seed, followed by Plainfield Central, Oak Park-River Forest and Lemont.

Other teams in the tournament include South Elgin, West Chicago, Sandwich, Larkin and the California-based Sunny Hills.

The first day of play is on a schedule, and depending on what happens that first day, teams fall in a winner's or loser's bracket.

ACC kicks off tournament play against Plainfield Central at 9 a.m. on Dec. 26.

"We are in a good pool," first-year ACC coach Fay Griffin said. "We are going to compete competitively. There are a lot of good teams in this tournament. We are looking forward to it."

This is the first year Aurora Christian is in this tournament. The Eagles spent the previous 6 years at Kirkland-Hiawatha's tournament, which is no longer taking place.

Aurora Christian athletic director Don Davidson thought this would be a good tournament for the Eagles to participate in, and coach Dan Stone was OK with it.

This is a big change for the Eagles, as Kirkland-Hiawatha's tournament was played two weeks before Christmas. The competition at Oswego East is tougher and bigger than what they had in the past.

"It's going to be exciting," Stone said. "For us, playing in this tournament is a privilege."

The Eagles begin the tournament against Sunny Hills Dec. 26 at 8 p.m. They are led by Lauren Heck (19 points per game), Rachel Mertens (9.3 ppg) and Chelsea Cooper (7.9 ppg).

Kaneland drew top-seeded Driscoll at 3:30 p.m. The Knights went 2-2 last year at this tournament.

"Right now with the way we are playing, every game is a tough game," Kaneland coach Ernie Colombe said. "There are good teams there, but at the same time if we play well, we may win a few games."

Katie Hatch leads the Knights this year (8.5 ppg), followed by Brittney Hankes (8.1 ppg), Mallory Huml (5.5 ppg) and Sara Rose (4.9 ppg).

Wheaton North's Bill Neibch Falcon Classic:ŒSt. Charles East and West Aurora, once again, return to this tournament, which runs from Dec. 26 to Dec. 29.

"It's a very competitive tournament," said St. Charles East coach Lori Drumtra, whose Saints took fifth in this tournament last year. "It's close by and they do a great job."

Eight teams are ranked in this 16-team tourney, which has a winner's and loser's bracket based on the first day of play.

Schaumburg is the No. 1 seed, followed by Hinsdale Central, Waubonsie Valley, Glenbrook South, Glenbard South, Wheaton North, Elk Grove and the Blackhawks.

Other teams participating are Willowbrook, Jacobs, Lyons Township, Glenbard North, Elgin, Hersey and Downers Grove North.

St. Charles East will play Glenbrook South at 3 p.m. The Saints lost to the Titans earlier this season by 3 points in Schaumburg's Thanksgiving tournament.

"It was a great game for us," Drumtra said. "It helps we've played them. We know what we are going to get."

The Saints finished that tournament 1-4 but have won their last four games.

"We are doing OK right now," Drumtra said. "I feel great going into this tournament."

St. Charles East is led by Lexi Baltes (8.6 ppg), Tasha Lalos (7.4 ppg), Katie King (7 ppg) and Shannon Kennedy (4.6 ppg).

As for the Blackhawks, who placed sixth last year, they will play Hersey at 6 p.m. to kick off tournament play.

"I've been told Hersey is smaller than they were last year," West Aurora coach Connie Siljendahl said. "They are fast and quick. Hopefully, we'll stay with them. I think we will match up well against them."

Kyra Watson leads the Blackhawks with around 19 points a game, followed by Kiara Towles, at 10 points a game.

The 25th annual Charger Classic at Dundee Crown: This is the first year St. Charles North is in this tournament, which is considered one of the best in the state -- if not the best. It begins Dec. 26 at 10 a.m. and runs until Dec. 29.

"We were talking about getting into a new tournament," St. Charles North coach Katie Sauber said. "We were looking around and we thought, 'Why not Dundee-Crown?'

The other teams participating in this invite-only tournament are Buffalo Grove, Regina Dominican, Evanston, Mother McAuley, Resurrection, Hononegah, Maine West, Fremd, Naperville Central, New Trier, Johnsburg, Fenwick, Bartlett and Prospect.

"It's neat because a lot of these teams have been very successful," Sauber said.

St. Charles North will play Naperville Central at 4 p.m. the first day of the tournament, which has a winner's and loser's bracket. The North Stars were in Oswego's Holiday Classic last year, which they won.

"It's going to be a good game," Sauber said of playing Naperville Central. "We've never played them before, so we'll see what we are in for."

The North Stars are led by Kelsey Smith's 16.1 points and 7.4 rebounds a game, followed by Anna Conrad (9.4 points, 3 steals a game), Kiley Hackbarth (6.4 points, 2.6 steals a game) and Nika Sircher (5 points, 3.1 steals a game).