Panthers rally past Royals
Oswego set to play Geneva in title game
GENEVA -- The girls basketball squads at Oswego and Rosary have gotten quite used to each other in the past couple of years.
Two years ago, Rosary handed the Panthers two losses, including the season-ender in the playoffs. Last year, Oswego returned the favor, knocking the Royals out of the postseason. Friday at the Geneva Tournament, the two unbeaten teams got at it again and Oswego needed two comebacks to rally for a 53-49 win.
Championship: Oswego vs. Geneva, 2:30 p.m.
The Panthers advance to face Geneva, a 45-32 winner over St. Charles North in the other semifinal, today at 2:30 for the tournament title. Rosary will face the North Stars in the third-place game at 1 p.m.
Rosary led 33-25 early in the third quarter and 49-46 with 1:30 left, but the Panthers managed to rally for the win.
"Coach always tells us when we get down to stay focused, stay positive and focus on our defense," Oswego senior Samiya Wright said. "We feed off of each other. We have fun playing against them. They're good competition."
A 14-0 run, keyed by a pair of Alexis McClain 3-pointers, gave Oswego (5-0) a 39-33 lead in the third, erasing an eight-point Rosary (4-1) advantage. But slowly, behind senior Jordan Rettig's seven points in the run, the Royals managed to grab a 49-46 lead late in the fourth after a pair of Lane Richmond free throws. Rettig led the Royals with 19 points and 11 assists.
"To our kids' credit, they made their run and we came back and took the lead," Rosary coach Dave Beebe said. "I'm not disrespecting Oswego, but we handed the game back to them. I don't know how many more opportunities we could have. I told the kids to use this as a learning experience."
Those would be the last points Rosary would score, however. The Panthers took the lead for good when Brittany Collier stole a pass and laid it in for a 50-49 lead. Rosary threw the ensuing inbounds pass away and Paige Harmon (team-high 17 points) hit a free throw and Collier hit a pair from the line to put the game away.
"We felt like we just couldn't get any rhythm offensively (in the first half)," Oswego coach Chad Pohlmann said. "We were executing the game plan, we just couldn't get anything going. That's what we talked about at halftime, staying with it, keep doing what they've been doing their whole careers. It was just a great team effort. It was a good win."
It wasn't a vintage Geneva performance in the Vikings' win over North, but they had little problem dispatching the North Stars (2-1). North was without starter Jenna Bell due to illness and four-year starting point guard Kiley Hackbarth fought through foul trouble all day, which hampered North's effort.
That helped the Vikings fight through a sluggish performance that was keyed by 20 points from senior Kat Yelle. Yelle scored eight straight points to give Geneva (3-0) a quick 10-4 lead in the first, and the Vikings never looked back. They broke the game open with a 16-2 run that stretched deep into the second quarter and helped stake Geneva to a 28-13 lead at the break.
"It was a weird tempo of a game," Geneva coach Gina Nolan said. "I can't really put my finger on what it was. We just seemed a little out of sorts, a little flat. Credit St. Charles North. Their defense contributed to it."
The Vikings are unbeaten in the young season, but still trying to replace the scoring of graduated all-time leading scorer Taylor Whitley. Yelle was the lone scorer in double figures Friday, but Lauren Wicinski added 13 rebounds to help keep the Vikings up all day.
"Taylor and I worked very well together, so I miss that," Yelle said. "Everyone has been stepping up. It's not just one person scoring. We need everyone to step up. We're doing pretty well right now, actually, just a little sloppy today."
