It was my pleasure last week to drop by Sandburg’s girls basketball banquet.
Junior shooting star Josie Canellis and I got to talking about the difference she has made not only in basketball but also on the girls tennis program.
I was quite comfortable asking her if she realizes she’s building a tremendous legacy at Sandburg.
Josie wasn’t quite as comfortable answering. She broke into what I would describe as a nervous smile.
“That’s just crazy to even think about,” Canellis said. “I’m smiling because it’s crazy for you to even say that to me right now. I’ve never really thought about it like that.
“I still have a year to go, so I don’t really know. I hope I’m able to accomplish a lot next year and leave my mark.”
With two doubles and one individual sectional title in tennis, two trips to state as a 3-point shooter in basketball and a Queen of the Hill championship, I’ll leave it at this.
Anything Josie Canellis does as a senior will only add to her Sandburg legacy. It’s already well on its way.
So enough about that. The real reason I went to the banquet was to talk to Josie about being Queen of the Hill. I wish I could have been there to watch her win the 3-point competition during state finals weekend at Redbird Arena.
Canellis had a wonderful season for the Eagles. The 5-foot-7 guard averaged 12 points and made 82 3-pointers. That puts her second behind former Sandburg standout Anne Mullins Ricchio, who made 108 3-pointers during the 1995-96 season.
Canellis’ trip to the state finals for the 3-point contest was her second. She qualified as a freshman, but made 7 of 15 shots in the first round.
“It was kind of tough,” Canellis said. “I didn’t do too well. I think it was like a mix of nerves and depth perception.”
This time, she was ready.
“I was like, ‘All right, you’ve been here once before,'” Canellis said. “I was hoping the depth perception wasn’t too bad and my nerves wouldn’t be too bad.”
And?
“It was still nerve-wracking for sure,” Canellis said, laughing. “When I shot for Queen of the Hill, there were still a bunch of fans and students because it was in between the 1A and 2A championships.”
Among that crowd were family members along with Sandburg coach Nick Fotopoulos and his staff.
Canellis survived a double-tiebreaker to capture the Class 4A state title and advance to compete for Queen of the Hill honors with 3A champion Faith Feuerbach of Sycamore, 2A champion Xamiya Walton of Butler and 1A champion Jase Burkett of Woodlawn.
“I thought, ‘Man, she’s got a real shot to win this,'” Fotopoulos said of Canellis hitting 8 of 10 shots in the shoot-off. “When she gets rolling, her ability to shoot the 3-pointer is incredible.
“Even in our games, she can start off cold and then, bang, she gets on a hot streak. She’s a game-changer.”
Burkett and Walton each hit 10 of 15 shots before Feuerbach made 11. That left Canellis to shoot last.
There was no starting off cold.
From the first rack, Canellis made four. From the middle rack, she hit all five. From the third rack, she hit the first four before missing her final shot.
Canellis was the third Sandburg player to win Queen of the Hill, joining Lyndsey Krieger (2001) and Madeline Kish (2007). Sandburg’s Michael Gomez was King of the Hill in 2006.
“I had goose bumps watching it,” Fotopoulos said. “After the first rack, I said, ‘OK, here we go.’ When she got to 10, I was ready to stand up and they were telling me to sit down. After the 11th, I was ready to jump up.
“We went crazy when she hit the 12th one. I still have goose bumps just thinking about it.”
Fotopoulos had a smile when he talked about one more exciting chapter to come.
“Josie is already is one of the best 3-point shooters ever at Sandburg,” Fotopoulos said. “And here’s the deal, she’s a 4.9 GPA out of 5. She’s going to have the chance to go anywhere she wants to go academically.
“She’s just an all-around phenomenal athlete, a great kid, a great person. The legacy she is building is just awesome. She’s definitely leaving her mark at Sandburg.”