Addie Schilb sinks clutch free throws again, sends St. Charles East past Prospect

ELMHURST – Pressure. What pressure?

Just eight months ago, St. Charles East junior Addie Schilb made two free throws with 3.6 seconds left to help get the Saints to overtime in their Class 4A regional championship win over Wheaton North.

On Thursday night in the third round of the 13th annual York tournament, the 5-foot-7 Schilb went to the free-throw line again — this time with 3.3 seconds left in the game and the score tied at 51.

“I just made sure not to rush myself,” she said. “I knew I had to make them, take my time and be calm. I think it’s fun. I like the responsibility it brings. It’s nice to be needed and nice to know my coaches trust me in that position.”

A well-deserved trust as Schilb (11 points) sank both shots and the Saints pulled out a 53-51 win over Prospect, which had a pass intercepted by Addie’s 6-foot freshman sister Brooklyn in the final second to seal the verdict.

“That was a great win,” said a smiling second-year Saints coach Katie Claussner, whose team is 2-1 in the tourney and will play for third place at 5:30 p.m. Friday vs Glenbrook South (2-1). “I love when it comes down to the wire and we pull it out.”

The Saints (2-1) pulled it out despite losing a pair of starters who had fouled out: Akron pledge Corinne Reed (team-high 19 points, 4 3-pointers) with 1:34 and her senior classmate Alyse Price midway through the final quarter.

“Prospect (1-2) is a really good team,” Claussner added. “They’re very lengthy and very quick. And we turned the ball over a little too much. We’ve got to clean that up if we want to win big games. But I was very proud of us as a team, especially when two of our starters fouled out and we were able to stay in it and come together mentally.”

Price had the responsibility of defending Prospect junior standout Alli Linke, who had a game-high 21 points.

“Then when she fouled out, Brooklyn (Schilb, who had 10 points) started guarding her,” Claussner said. “Addie and Brooklyn are a dynamic sister duo.”

A driving layin and a 3-pointer by Reed gave the Saints a 9-3 lead with 4:14 left in the first quarter. But Prospect came back to grab a 10-9 lead when Linke blocked a shot, raced down court and took an entry pass from Neve Pomis to convert a 3-point play .

Libby McDonoiugh’s rebound and 10-foot turnaround got Prospect to within 14-13 before Ella Daly tossed home a 3-pointer from the corner to give the Knights a 16-14 lead after one quarter.

A 3-point play by Addie Schilb and a 3-pointer by senior Sofia O’Sullivan, a recent DePauw commit, lifted St. Charles East to a 20-16 advantage with 6:04 left in the second quarter. The Knights reclaimed the lead on Zoe Black’s 3-pointer.

Gina Falls’ 3-pointer made it 27-23 but Reed hit a 3-pointer with 26 seconds left and a coast-to-coast layup with 0.4 seconds left to give the Saints a 28-27 lead at intermission.

A fastbreak layup by Addie Schilb made it 33-29 and Addie’s layup off a shovel pass from Reed put the Saints up 40-36 in the third quarter.

Prospect tied it with 6:34 left in the fourth quarter with a rebound and 6-foot turnaround layin by Linke followed later by her 2 free throws to make it 40-40.

The Saints built the lead to 47-41 with 5:44 left, thanks to a 3-pointer by Reed.

Prospect got to within 50-49 on a layup by Black off a rebound and assist from Linke.

Addie Schilb’s free throw made it 51-49 with 1:07 left before Prospect tied it at 51 on a pair of free throws from Black with 24 seconds left.

Moments later, the ball went to Addie Schilb near midcourt and with about six seconds she began her drive to the basket when she was fouled.

“I was kind of looking for a foul,” Addie Schilb said. “But I was also going to the basket knowing I had to play through the contact.”

“We trust her wholeheartedly on the court,” Claussen said. “And she came through.”

Falls added 12 points for Prospect while Black added 9.

“In close games vs. a good team you can’t miss 10 free throws in the fourth quarter,” said Prospect coach Matt Weber who is without two key players in senior Sadie Splinter (out three weeks with an ankle injury) and senior Riley Carroll (returning hopefully from a torn ACL in January).

“I’m proud of the girls. At this time of the season it’s all about learning how to win against good teams and learning about your own team and how you can get better.

“I thought the girls kept fighting the whole game. St. Charles is a good program. They kept battling. It was a fun game. These are the kind of games you want to play at this time of the season. We just have to do a better job of executing late when there is the most pressure because there are going to be a lot of games like this one this season.”

The Knights will play Butler College Prep (Chicago) at 7 p.m. for fifth place.

https://www.dailyherald.com/20241121/girls-basketball/girls-basketball-schilb-sinks-clutch-free-throws-again-lifts-st-charles-east-over-prospect/