Girls basketball: Lincoln-Way East rallies in fourth to top Lincoln-Way Central

NEW LENOX – The girls basketball coaching staffs of Lincoln-Way East and Lincoln-Way Central know each other very well. Central head coach Dave Campanile used to be an assistant at East, along with East’s current head coach Jim Nair.

So it was no surprise Thursday night that a District 210 rivalry game between the two schools at Central was a knock-down, drag-out type of affair.

After not making a field goal in the third quarter and falling behind 31-25 entering the fourth, East (19-3) outscored Central 17-5 in the fourth quarter to come away with a 42-36 victory.

Senior Lana Kerley was the driving force behind the Griffins’ comeback, scoring eight of her team-high 17 points in the final quarter. She also paced the Griffins with nine rebounds.

“I think it was a matter of us taking it personally,” Kerley said about the fourth-quarter surge. “We went out last year to them in regionals on this floor, and we didn’t want to lose to them here again.

“Coach Nair made a switch on defense to have us faceguard Gracen Gehrke, because she had a big third quarter for them. On offense they put me in the post, which I haven’t really done since I was in eighth grade.”

Kerley was able to use picks from 6-foot-6 Hayven Smith to get from one side of the lane to the other for short baskets early in the fourth quarter. With 5:10 left to play, Kerley stole a Central pass and went the length of the floor for a layup to bring her team within 36-33. At the 3:41 mark, Smith (nine points, six rebounds) put back an offensive rebound and was fouled, making the free throw to tie the game.

Both teams went a possession without a basket, and East’s Maddie Yacobozzi stole a Central pass and got it ahead to Kerley, who finished the fast break with a layup to put the Griffins ahead to stay. Makayla Kelly went 4 of 4 from the free-throw line to ice the game for the Griffins.

“We are one team of five girls, whichever girls are on the floor,” Kerley said. “It’s not just one or two players for us. Everyone contributes, and we can’t win unless everyone does their job.

“If a team is able to shut one of us down, the others are there to pick things up.”

East’s big fourth quarter put a damper on an outstanding third by Central (12-7).

The Knights trailed 20-16 at halftime but were able to hold East without a field goal in the third. Meanwhile, Gehrke (team-high 16 points) and Kiya Newson-Cole delivered an 11-0 run on two Gehrke 3-pointers and a 3-pointer and short jumper by Cole (10 points) to move out to a 31-23 lead. Lilly Dockemeyer hit a pair of free throws near the end of the quarter to cut the lead to 31-25 entering the fourth.

“This is the kind of game we expect when we play East,” Campanile said. “I tell the girls it’s a players’ game when we play them. The coaches basically cancel each other out, and it comes down to players making plays and good decisions.

“Our girls did a great job of competing, but the margin for error is very slim against a team like East. At halftime, we switched our zone offense a little bit to be able to attack the gaps. Gracen did a great job of getting in those gaps and hitting some 3-pointers. We made winning plays in the third quarter, but they made winning plays in the fourth quarter.”

Nair also pointed to the balance of his team.

“Both teams run a lot of the same stuff, so there aren’t many surprises,” he said. “The difference was Lana Kerley keeping the faith and doing what we asked her to do in the fourth quarter. And Maddie Yacobozzi did a great job on defense in the fourth. We asked her to guard Gracen Gehrke, who is one of the best shooters in the area, and she did a great job.

“Every team has to plan around Hayven. She seemed quiet tonight, but she ended with nine points and six rebounds. I was very proud of Makalya Kelly for hitting those pressure free throws in the fourth. She already has our school assist record, and she will go on to St. Xavier and be Grace’s teammate.

“It’s the type of game we expect against Central, and we were lucky enough to come out on top.”