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Vikings roll past Glenbard South at Rachel Bach Tournament
GLEN ELLYN – It has been eight months since Geneva won its first girls basketball state championship and Stephanie Hart still has a tough time believing it happened.
![“It still hasn’t sunk in for me that we’re state champs, but we always talk about last year as having [had] a target on our backs and then this year we’re realizing that we’re going to have an even bigger one now that we’re state champs,” Hart said. “We’ve got to push the state title to the side because we have a different team and every other team has a different team.
“It’s still an awesome title, but this season we have to kind of forget about that and start over at square one.”](42868e64-ab26-4cb9-9b55-82e6a5cdecda/image-pv_web.jpg)
“It still hasn’t sunk in for me that we’re state champs, but we always talk about last year as having [had] a target on our backs and then this year we’re realizing that we’re going to have an even bigger one now that we’re state champs,” Hart said. “We’ve got to push the state title to the side because we have a different team and every other team has a different team.
“It’s still an awesome title, but this season we have to kind of forget about that and start over at square one.”
The Vikings did just that Nov. 13 as Hart scored a game-high 13 points to go with five rebounds and three steals in a season-opening 45-26 win over Glenbard South at the Rachel Bach Tournament.
Brie Borkowicz added nine points, while Madison Mallory had eight points and Maddy Yelle seven points and six boards for the Vikings, who held the Raiders scoreless for the first 5:40 and never trailed.
“I think in the beginning we were a little rough but it was our first game getting the jitters out,” Hart said. “As the game went on I think we moved the ball better. We have some rebounding things to work on but I think as time goes on we’ll get better.”
There is little doubt of that. While Geneva has to replace graduated center Grace Loberg, the Vikings for the first time have four seniors who will play in college.
The Lewis-bound Hart is joined in the backcourt by Niagara recruit Yelle and UAB signee Margaret Whitley. Mallory, the main candidate to take over for Loberg, has committed to Youngstown State.
“We’re very athletic for sure,” Geneva coach Sarah Meadows said. “We want to get some offense off our defense and probably the biggest thing that’s a difference is we’ve got to concentrate and really focus on rebounding.
“We’ve got to own the boards. We really haven’t had to do that for a few years since Grace has been here, and every kid knows that.”
In an encouraging sign, the Vikings outrebounded the taller Raiders 30-23. Glenbard South’s 6-foot-2 junior center, Maggie Bair, had 10 points, 10 rebounds and six blocks, but 6-1 Ally Daca was held to three points and five boards.
“We just have to establish that we are going to be more aggressive offensively,” Glenbard South coach Morgan Kasperek said. “We let them hold us and push us and let us throw it off our game. Those are all things we can fix.
“Geneva does a nice job. They come out with confidence and they are the defending state champs so they earned that swagger. We need to get a little bit of it.”
But the Vikings are wise enough to realize they can’t rely on one person if they are going repeat as state champs.
“I think it’s going to be a lot of a team effort thing,” Hart said. “Like everyone has to be active around the rim and box out and just do their part.”