Geneva hands Lincoln-Way East 1st loss
After Geneva's 65-55 victory over Lincoln-Way East Saturday at the 22nd annual McDonald's Shootout at Willowbrook High School, Griffins coach Jim Martin had a question for a couple reporters who normally ask the questions.
"Do they do that all the time?" Martin asked about Geneva.
The that would be the Vikings' pressing, running and playing at a pace where you think there must be a 10-second shot clock.
And the answer is yes.
Geneva (16-3) left quite an impression on previously unbeaten Lincoln-Way East (13-1), racing to leads of 16-3 in the first quarter and 34-12 in the second quarter before the Vikings suffered a major scare when Marquette-bound senior Ashley Santos left with an injury.
In those first 13 minutes before the Santos injury, the Griffins had no answer for Geneva's press and transition offense. Santos had 5 of Geneva's 13 steals in the first half while Rachel Hinchman and Michaela Loebel each had 3 swipes.
The Vikings played with a chip on their shoulder, eager to prove they belong with the state's best after three losses at the Benet/Naperville North Holiday Tournament.
"We did not want them to be undefeated after tonight," Geneva junior Sami Pawlak said. "We just came out harder than we normally do. We picked up the pace at the beginning. We started playing more fast-paced. We pressed harder to make them play with the ball more uncomfortably, make them speed up."
The strategy worked. While Lincoln-Way East hit just 1 of 12 shots from the field in the first quarter, seven different Geneva players made field goals as the Vikings built an 18-5 lead after one. That included a pair of baskets off the bench by Stevie Fanale converting in transition, and a putback from Kelly Gordon just before the first-quarter buzzer.
Geneva led by double figures the rest of the game except for a brief moment late in the fourth quarter with the outcome long decided.
"They kind of jumped us early," Martin said. "They play real good team defense. They trap pretty well and help one another. Their transition was just go.
"I think the big thing is they just got out and ran. We really didn't have them scouted. They are a good ballclub, well coached. When Santos went down they still played together as a team and did a nice job."
That injury came with 2:41 left in the first half. Santos was retreating on defense with the Griffins coming down on a 3-on-2 break when her right leg gave out. Santos immediately went down to the ground sobbing. Geneva coach Sarah Meadows was joined on the court by the Vikings trainer and Santos' parents.
Santos eventually was helped off the court by her father. After trainers did a few tests on her right knee, Santos remained on the bench for the second half with an ice pack on her knee. While Santos is going to get another opinion, Meadows didn't believe the injury was to her ACL or MCL and is hoping her star will be back soon.
Lincoln-Way East chipped away at Geneva's 40-23 halftime lead to 47-37 going to the fourth quarter.
A key stretch came in the opening minute of the fourth quarter when Fanale drained the only 3-pointer for either team followed by a layup from Loebel to build Geneva's lead back to 52-37. The Vikings led by as much as 58-40 until the Griffins capitalized on some missed free throws Geneva finished 10 of 21 to make the final score closer than the game actually was.
Nearly all the damage for Lincoln-Way East came from two college-bound players. Taylor Johnson (Loyola) led with 23 points and Catilin McMahon (St. Xavier) added 21 to combine for 44 of their team's 55 points.
"Our two big guns stepped up but our role players struggled against their pressure," Martin said. "Give them (Geneva) all the credit in the world."
Geneva countered with a balanced attack. Pawlak led the way with 19 points and 15 rebounds. Loebel added 15 points and 5 steals, Hinchman also had 5 steals and 10 points, Santos scored 8 points with 5 steals in her limited time and Fanale provided a spark off the bench with 7 points.
"Sami played phenomenal," Meadows said. "That is exactly what we needed. Stevie, she did great. She fills her role so well."
It was the Vikings' second win in their three appearances the past three years at this prestigious shootout. Santos said Geneva enjoyed a rare chance to play as an underdog Saturday.
"At the beginning of the season we knew what that (being undefeated like LW-East) felt like until we got our first losses," Santos said. "Coming to this game we knew they were a really good team but they were higher up on the pedestal than we were. We were the underdogs and we took advantage of it. We came out hard and played to our strengths and played up-tempo."