St. Charles East owns boards, 68-54 win at Wheaton Warrenville South

WHEATON – In order to like your chances against St. Charles East this season, teams had better limit the Saints’ chances on the offensive end of the court.

Wheaton Warrenville South couldn’t do so, and the Tigers fell prey to a Saints team that stayed perfect in DuKane Conference action with a road win Thursday.

St. Charles East dominated the boards, particularly on the offensive glass, and knocked off the host Tigers 68-54. Several second- and third-chance baskets powered the Saints to their 16th win in 20 games and their seventh in as many league outings.

“We have been working on that, just crashing the boards on offense. I feel like that’s one of our strengths now,” Saints senior Sofia O’Sullivan said. “And we’ve been playing really good defense lately so I’m really proud of us.”

Wheaton Warrenville South (12-9, 4-3) knocked down four 3-pointers in the opening quarter and 10 on the night, but it was far from enough as the Saints owned a 17-4 margin on the offensive glass and converted that dominance into basket after basket down low.

“We try every single game to have keys to win the game, and tonight’s key was to own the boards,” St. Charles East coach Katie Claussner said. “We did that, specifically on the offensive end, just making sure we were getting two, three chances, and hopefully by the third one the layup would go in or something [would go in].

“When we get second chance boards, it really encourages our teammates, because they really want to go and crash the boards next time. It’s really helpful.”

O’Sullivan, a first-year starter, has been on a tear of late. Thursday was more of the same, as the senior had 20 points, seven rebounds and added a trio of steals and blocked shots in the win.

“The last month she has really come out of her shell,” she said of the 5-foot-11 Claussner. “She’s been rebounding, getting points, just being an overall great player.”

Freshman Brooklyn Schilb continues to grow on the court. The 6-footer had 12 points and five offensive rebounds in the win over the Tigers, while Corinne Reed added 10 points and eight rebounds.

“We’ve been playing really well as a team lately, and I feel like our chemistry on and off the court has gotten really strong as well,” O’Sullivan added. “We’ve been working on our championship mentality, just staying in the game and giving it our all every single possession. I feel like we’re doing that, which is nice.”

The Saints' strong effort overshadowed a career night for Tigers senior Shea Carver, who finished with 27 points in the contest, including four of the team’s 10 3s on the night.

Wheaton Warrenville South was missing two starters but trailed just 18-14 after one quarter after Carver and Abby Keighron each sank a pair of 3s early on.

But in the end, the Saints were just too big and too tough on the boards.

“They’re No. 1 in our conference, so we knew we had to come out ready to score and everyone had to be a part tonight,” said Carver, who will play at St. Francis University next season. “A big thing we talked about was boxing out, but as you saw, they’re pretty good at that too, and they’re long. Those second chances were obviously one of the biggest parts of the game … but once again, they’re long and tough.

“It’s not like we didn’t fight. We always do a good job of fighting for each other.”

WW South coach Kasey Gassensmith could only tip her cap to the Saints on this night.

“They’re great. They’re a strong team, and I think four of their five starters are taller than us. They’re great at grabbing boards, but we struggled boxing them out and pushing them back,” she said. “They are a phenomenal team. They run the court really well — credit to them.”

Girls basketball: St. Charles East stays unbeaten in DuKane Conference with win over Wheaton Warrenville South