Girls basketball: Geneva fends off St. Charles East to keep league record spotless

ST. CHARLES – It may have been a bit unconventional, but Geneva’s girls basketball team did what it had to Jan. 6 in St. Charles.

Behind a barrage of 3-point baskets, the Vikings (12-5, 6-0) kept their unbeaten DuKane Conference record intact with a hard-fought 58-49 victory over host St. Charles East (12-6, 3-3).

Senior guard/forward Leah Palmer led the Vikings with 26 points, including five of the team’s 13 3-point baskets. Junior guard Peri Sweeney added 13 points. Senior guard Caroline Madden chipped in with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

“Leah always shows up and plays solid for us,” Vikings coach Sarah Meadows said. “Peri hit some big threes as well. We’ll take it because [St. Charles East] is a tough team. They’re physical and apply a lot of pressure.”

Geneva never trailed but was unable to distance itself from the Saints until the final minute.

St. Charles East forged a pair of ties in the first half at 16-16 on a Corinne Reed layup and again at 19-19 on a free throw from Alyse Price (six points, seven rebounds).

The Vikings ended the half with a late surge that included Palmer’s deep 3-pointer from the top of the key and her buzzer-beating, right-handed baseline shot that made it 27-22.

Madden, Palmer and Sweeney drained 3-pointers early in the third quarter as the Vikings grabbed a double-digit lead at 36-25. Sweeney finished with four 3-pointers.

Once again, the Saints answered. Price’s three-point play and sophomore Addie Schilb’s layup cut the deficit to 36-32 late in the third quarter.

“They had two nice pushes,” Meadows said of the Saints. “We were right there to open it up and they fought back.”

Led by senior guard Alexis Maridis (team-high 15 points), the Saints made it a one-possession game at 47-44 with 2:30 remaining.

Geneva countered with sophomore Keira McCann’s cold-blooded 3-pointer from the corner to extend the margin to 50-44 with 1:32 left. Madden iced it with four consecutive free throws. Hope Leler added a blocked shot down the stretch.

“Keira hit that huge shot from the corner. She didn’t hesitate either,” said Meadows, whose team finished with only two two-point baskets while connecting on 15 of 18 free-throw attempts.

“I liked their fight. Hope [Leler] is undersized and she’s getting tips and rebounds. The effort out of her was a huge difference-maker inside.”

Senior guard Lexi DiOrio added 11 points for the Saints. Schilb and Reed chipped in with eight and seven points, respectively.

“Keira’s 3-pointer was the dagger,” Saints coach Katie Claussner said. “We still had a chance, but too many turnovers and not enough stops off their second-chance boards. Offensively, we can score on anyone on any given night. Defensively, we’ve got to get those big-time stops. A lot of their shots came off second-chance rebounds. We must box out if we want to win big games like this.”

It was a reunion of sorts between the head coaches. Claussner served as the Vikings’ sophomore coach last season.

“I respect Geneva and Sarah’s program. They always find a way to fight and a way to win,” Claussner said. “That’s from her. That’s what I learned when I was there last year.

“We’re building something here – brick by brick. We’re getting there.”