St. Charles East handles the pressure, pulls away from Lake Park to take regional title

VILLA PARK – Midway through the second quarter at Thursday’s Class 4A Willowbrook Regional championship, Lake Park was executing its game plan to perfection.

In their bid to upset number 1 seed St. Charles East - and avenge two earlier losses to the Saints in DuKane Conference play - the Lancers used a patient offense and tough defense to lead by three midway through the second quarter.

Then St. Charles East, who won the DuKane this season with a 14-0 record, responded.

The Saints used a 10-0 second period run to regain the lead, then fought off a determined Lancers team in the final two quarters to score a 44-22 regional title win.

“I feel like we perform a lot better when the pressure is on”, Saints coach Katie Claussner said. “We showed that in the third and fourth quarters, and finally the ball started going in the basket for us.”

Lancers coach Bobby Reibel was impressed with his squad’s effort despite the loss.

“They (St. Charles East) are a good team, but this wasn’t a 22-point game most of the way,” Reibel said. “We put a big emphasis on defending and we did that tonight, and tried to control the pace.

“Our girls were willing to do whatever it took to try and win a game.”

Eighth-seeded Lake Park led 11-8 in the second quarter of the defensive-minded contest after junior Allie Gogola sank a 3-pointer.

But St. Charles East rallied behind 6-foot freshman Brooklyn Schilb (game-high 18 points) and after a steal and layup by senior Addie Schilb, the Saints led 18-11 with 59 seconds remaining in the first half.

“We had to keep our foot on the gas,” said St. Charles East senior Sofia O’Sullivan, “come back, and play our game.”

Lake Park was able to close with 20-19 in the third quarter after a 3 by Caitlyn Mikes.

Then St. Charles East (26-6) rebounded to outscore the Lancers 25-3 the rest of the game and win going away, with O’Sullivan scoring 7 of her 9 points in the final period.

Junior Maggie Frank led Lake Park, which does not list a single senior on its roster, with 10 points. Classmate Gogola added 7 points while another junior, Alex Kiefer, came off the bench to grab a game-high 6 rebounds.

“We’re bringing them all back,” said Reibel of his youthful team, which finished the season with a 19-13 mark. “We’re excited to keep improving next year.”

St. Charles East senior Corinne Reed, who gave the Saints the lead for good with two free throws in the second quarter, said she wasn’t worried despite the early deficit.

“This whole season has been about creating our legacy and our mentality,” said Reed. “It’s all about team at the end of the day, and I think we came out and battled.”

Classmate O’Sullivan added that she was proud of her teammates, especially considering it was the third time that the Saints had faced Lake Park this year.

“That’s always tough,” added O’Sullivan. “(Each team) knows each other, and it just gets more competitive every time you play.”

https://www.dailyherald.com/20250220/girls-basketball/girls-basketball-st-charles-east-handles-pressure-lake-park-to-claim-regional-crown/