Girls basketball: Five storylines to watch across the Kane County area this postseason

Illinois high school basketball has entered its most exciting month of the season. Girls basketball playoffs start next week, with the boys beginning the following week.

Here are postseason storylines to watch for Kane County girls basketball area teams.

Can St. Charles East keep making history in the postseason?

It’s been a season to remember for St. Charles East.

The Saints breezed through DuKane Conference play, winning their first conference title in program history, while also recording just the third undefeated slate in conference history. They also were given the top seed in the St. Charles East sectional for the first time ever.

The question now for the Saints is if they can keep adding to their legacy.

The pieces are all their for the Saints to make a run. Not only are the Saints filled with both veterans like seniors Corrine Reed and Sofia O’Sullivan and new talent like freshman Brooklyn Schilb, but the Saints are also undefeated (17-0) against the other teams in the sectional.

The Saints have only made it to one supersectional since officially becoming St. Charles East back in 2000, making it that far in 2022 before falling to Bollingbrook.

Can Aurora Central Catholic add to its best season ever?

Aurora Central Catholic has been a program that’s been on the rise over the past few seasons.

And the 2024-25 season is no exception.

The Chargers are currently tied with the 2022-23 team for the most wins in program history with a 26-4 record, which was highlighted by an 11-game winning streak in the middle of it, and sit at No. 10 in the Class 2A Associated Press poll. Senior Riley Cwinski has also rewritten the history books, becoming the only player in school history to surpass 2,000 career points in the team’s final regular season game.

But can they keep the pace up?

The Chargers, who sit as a No. 3 seed in a subsectional of the Class 2A Rock Falls sectional, will face the winner of No. 7 Marian Central Catholic and No. 12 Rosary in the regional semifinals.

Should they clear that hurdle and become the winningest team in program history, the Chargers would then likely face Byron on their home court in the regional finals. The Tigers, who sit at 29-2 on the season, are currently ranked fourth in the AP rankings.

Will Kaneland grab another regional title?

Kaneland is coming off a big year after winning the Interstate 8 for their first conference title in 20 years. Now the Knights look for back-to-back regional titles for the first time since the 1988-89 and 1989-90 seasons, according to IHSA archives.

The Knights will face either Harvard or Woodstock North in the regional semifinals. With a win, the top-seeded Knights will then face either No. 4 Crystal Lake Central or No. 5 Woodstock for the regional title.

The Knights are powered by Kendra Brown, who reached the 1,500-point mark for her career earlier in February and is the program’s career leader in 3-pointers made.

The reliable 3-point-shooting has also helped the Knights become winners of their last eight contests before the postseason.

A potential early rivalry renewal

Batavia and Geneva are no strangers when it comes to playing each other in the postseason, with the two rivals facing off five times in the playoffs over the past decade.

And this season, they have a chance to square off in the Geneva regional finals for the first time since the 2019-2020 season.

But for this outcome to happen, a couple of things need to happen, especially for the Vikings. Geneva will face York in the regional semifinal. Along with being the lower-seeded team, 10th to seventh, the Vikings also lost to the Dukes 53-41 back in January.

On the other side of the rivalry, it’s a bit of an easier road for Batavia. The second-seeded Bulldogs will face the winner of Glenbard North and Elk Grove in the regional semifinals for a chance to win their fourth straight regional title.

Can a Kane County area team make a run to the last Saturday of the season?

Since 2010, only one team from the Kane County area has made it to the Final Four teams. That team has been Geneva, who’s made it four times, including winning it all in both 2017 and 2018.

While the Vikings, who finished the season with their first sub-.500 record since the 2004-05 season, aren’t in the best position to make it back to the Final Four, there’s more than a few teams besides the aforementioned teams that look poised to make a run.

Batavia has a chance to make another deep run after winning its first-ever sectional title a season ago. The Bulldogs are also a senior-laden group led by Hallie Crane and Kaidyn King.

On the other end of that spectrum is St. Charles North, who sits as the No. 3 seed in the Class 4A St. Charles East sectional. The North Stars only have one senior on their roster, but are filled to the brim with young talent like junior Sydney Johnson and sophomores Bronwyn How and Lelanie Posada. St. Charles North was also the only DuKane Conference opponent to push St. Charles East to the brink, with the Saints needing a 12-point comeback to pull out a win back on Jan. 31.