Timothy Christian girls basketball coach Jill Groenewold had some idea how Janna Sytsma might affect Tuesday’s Class A regional semifinal at Plano.
“Janna’s been on a roll for the last five games,” Groenewold said. “You just hope …”
You just hope she continues on that roll?
Well the 5-foot-9-inch sophomore did just that. She nailed three consecutive three-pointers in the second quarter–part of a stifling 23-2 Timothy Christian run–to lift the Trojans over St. Francis 53-45.
That victory puts Timothy Christian (22-6), a state semifinalist last season, into the sectional final Thursday against Yorkville (23-5).
Sytsma came off the bench in the first quarter as the Trojans seemed to be finding their way. After falling behind 5-2, they took a 10-5 lead at the end of the period. But the second quarter proved devastating for St. Francis.
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“She hit three threes right in a row,” said Groenewold, who shrugged her shoulders in the way Michael Jordan did during his three spree against Portland in the 1992 NBA Finals. “That’s something we’ve been missing for a while–since Jorie [Munk] last year.”
Sytsma, who finished with 14 points, helped the Trojans build a 25-7 halftime lead as St. Francis (20-10) went more than 10 minutes without a point in the first half.
Spartans coach Jeff Gerdeman called the forgettable 16 minutes “the worst we’ve played offensively all season.” He thought Timothy’s defense–a 2-3 zone fronted by Laura Hamilton and Barbie Heerdt–was the reason.
Then there was that sophomore sub.
“I guess I was on fire,” Sytsma said. “I saw them packing in their defense, so I knew I had to shoot.”
“[Sytsma] hit three three-pointers on us–you take away those nine points and we’re right there,” Gerdeman said. “We didn’t expect her to stick them like she did. She was the key.”
St. Francis was stuck with a season-ending loss despite putting on a charge in the second half to cut Timothy Christian’s lead to 42-36 with 3 minutes 12 seconds left.
But as Gerdeman observed, the first-half hole was simply too deep for.
Larae Woudstra also had 14 points for Timothy and Emily Carwell added 10. Mollie Hogan scored 14 of her game-high 17 points in the second half for the Spartans.
Alan Sutton.
Class AA sectionals
Evergreen Park: Patti Iperlaan scored 12 points and Erica Bruxvoort added 11 as Illiana Christian (18-9) rolled past St. Benedict 55-38. . . . Carrie Holst scored 24 points and Chrissy Dizon added 20 in addition to 10 assists as Latin (20-8) went on an 8-0 third-quarter run to take control in a 62-52 victory over Luther North.
Bremen: Dawn VanderMeer scored a career-high 29 points to lead Andrew (14-12) to a 45-21 victory over Crete-Monee. . . . Jezelle Evans scored 22 points, including five first-quarter three-pointers, as No. 10 Rich South (23-3) rolled past Rich Central 74-31.
Hinsdale Central: Khara Smith and Angelique Smith each scored 16 points and Claudia Wilson added 13 as No. 14 Proviso West (23-5) pounded Fenton 69-43. . . . Meghan McDonald and Heather Mansour each scored 12 points to guide No. 20 Downers Grove South to a 65-25 rout of Glenbard East. . . . Lyons (18-11) eliminated Trinity 54-38 guided by 20 points from Kristin Feeney and 10 more from Meghan Barrett.
Lockport: Karen Olson scored 12 points as No. 16 Plainfield (25-3) routed Lemont 53-18.
Maine West: Gretchen Proesel scored 11 points to lead Loyola to a 46-24 victory over Glenbrook North. . . . Natasha Williams scored 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as Niles North (19-10) tripped Evanston 42-30.
Mundelein: Barrington (22-10) defeated Zion-Benton 60-25 behind 17 points by Lindsey Richards. . . . Tiffany Tietze scored 15 points and Megan Francis added 14 as Grayslake rolled past Round Lake 67-34. Grayslake put the game away with a 19-0 run in the third quarter.
Oak Lawn: Veronica Kristie scored 12 points to lift Argo (17-8) to a 54-40 victory over Riverside-Brookfield. . . . Kaitlin Newquist scored 12 points to lift No. 8 Mother McAuley (26-3) to a 73-23 victory over Morton. . . . Heather King scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Emily Heikes added 16 points and 15 rebounds as Stagg rolled over Maria 61-39.
St. Charles East: Candace Parker scored 15 points as Naperville Central (20-7) rolled over IMSA 64-25. . . . Wheaton Warrenville South (8-21) overcame an eight-point deficit to start the fourth quarter and defeat St. Charles East 47-41. Abby Gerlesits and Hillary Samek each scored 14 points for South. Kate Herbert led St. Charles East (19-9) with 12. . . . Brittany Burger scored 11 points as Geneva eliminated Wheaton North 45-35. . . . Meghan Young scored 16 points to lead No. 11 West Chicago (26-3) to a 53-39 victory over West Aurora.
Streamwood: Mandy Mennella scored 18 points as Hoffman Estates (15-12) defeated Palatine 32-26. . . . Brittany Cotrell scored 14 points and Molly May added 13 to lift Prospect (17-10) to a 50-40 victory over Streamwood. . . . Andi Brooke scored 26 points as Schuamburg defeated Larkin 61-43. . . . Ashley Sandstead scored 18 points and Laura Becker 14 as Buffalo Grove (13-18) hung on to beat Elgin 48-40.