Girls basketball: Romeoville beats Lockport for Oak Lawn Holiday Tournament championship

OAK LAWN - The Romeoville girls basketball team is playing with something to prove.

“I think they really feel like, in the area, they’re just overlooked,” Romeoville coach Devin Bates said. “They hear about all these other girls. They see the scholarships that are going out to other kids in the area. They’re like, ‘Nobody’s talking about us. Why not?’

“They came into the season with a chip on their shoulder, and you’re seeing that now. They know every game is going to be a fight and they’re ready for the challenge every night”

The Spartans were ready for Lockport’s challenge Saturday, riding a balanced effort to a 46-35 win in the Oak Lawn Holiday Tournament championship game.

“We haven’t won this tournament in years, so it feels good knowing we’re making history and this is just the first step of many more we’ve got,” senior guard Jaylen Zachery said.

Zachery was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. She hit four 3-pointers and scored 14 points to lead the Spartans (12-2).

Senior forward Laila Houseworth scored 13 points and pulled down 17 rebounds and senior guard Jadea Johnson also scored 13 points for Romeoville, which won its seventh straight game.

Laura Arstikaitis scored 12 points, Veronica Bafia contributed nine points and 10 rebounds and Lucy Hynes had eight points and eight rebounds for Lockport (6-8).

The game was tied 20-20 early in the third quarter, but the Spartans outscored the Porters 15-5 over the rest of the period to take control.

Johnson and Zachery each had five points in the quarter, with Zachery hitting a 3-pointer then scoring off a steal to stretch the lead to 35-25.

Romeoville kept its advantage in double figures for the rest of the fourth quarter.

Zachery, who poured in seven 3-pointers in the Spartans’ first game of the tournament - a win over Sandburg on Dec. 9 - was thrilled to be named the event’s MVP.

“It means a lot,” she said. “I feel like I’ve been working really hard to get where I am today. I feel confident and really happy.

“When I do hit the 3, I feel like it’s when we’re in a time crunch of they’re right behind us. I feel like I’m providing something for the team that’s really meaningful.”

Bates certainly agrees.

“Jaylen’s an amazing shooter,” he said. “I think she’s been overlooked, but I guess she’s not going to be overlooked much longer. She’s usually a very streaker shooter but she worked hard to be a more consistent shooter this year. Everybody in the state of Illinois is getting to see what she can do now.”

Houseworth has been blown away by Zachery’s play, and impressed with all her teammates.

“Jaylen Zachary is the biggest improvement I’ve ever seen in my life,” Houseworth said. “It’s amazing. I love the way she shoots. Jaeda keeps improving, Emily (Gabrelcik) is showing herself. Everyone is showing themself. We’ve become more skilled. We’re showing our ability to play, move and score.”

Houseworth also showed what she can do, owning the boards all day.

“Sometimes I struggle to score, so I try to get as many rebounds as I can to make up for it,” she said. “I was trying to get 20.”

Lockport, meanwhile, put up a strong fight but struggled to knock down shots.

“That’s been one of our Achilles’ heels this season,” Lockport coach Darien Jacobs said. “The bright side that I see as a coach is that we’re young with only two returning varsity players and we can build. I like the position that we’re in. We come in every night and we work hard and compete. That’s what we’re supposed to do.

“Then we just have to move on from competing with teams to beating teams.”

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Romeoville’s Jadea Johnson beats Lockport’s Veronica Bafia for the rebound in the Oak Lawn Holiday Tournament championship on Saturday, Dec.16th in Oak Lawn. (Gary Middendorf/gmiddendorf@shawmedia.com)