Guerrero to Lincoln Land to play basketball
by Mark Jurgena
Class of 2024 Collinsville High School graduate Ella Guerrero will return to the basketball court this coming winter for Lincoln Land Community College in Springfield.
She leaves Collinsville after starting all four of her years at the varsity level.
She broke both the single season and career records for made three-pointers during her time on the court at Fletcher Gym.
Guerrero broke the career three-point record on Feb. 3 at Fletcher Gym against Father McGivney and finished with 177 for her career.
Three nights later she set the single season record against O’Fallon in Collinsville and finished her senior season with 65 made threes.
She had a career high 21 points as a sophomore against Jerseyville and followed that with a 20 point effort against Belleville East. Four times in the last two seasons she has scored 19 points in a contest.
“I think the biggest thing with Ella is that I remember her as a little kid coming to camps and her doing what you want to see your athletes do,” said Collinsville girls basketball coach Colin Moore. “Then her freshman year was my first year as head coach. It was ironic but good to know you had someone you could toss in the lineup and know she could handle herself.
“As a senior I saw her become a leader that I never imagined was something she would do because she was so quiet. To watch her come out of her shell her senior year and be the leader we needed to get our program going in the right direction was fun to watch.”
In college she is joining a strong LLCC program that went 28-8 last season. They won the NJCAA Division II Region XXIV championship to qualify for the national tourney where they finished with a 1-2 record.
“Me and her have talked, everybody knows she can shoot the ball and that she understands what to do on the court,” began Moore. “When we went to watch them play her exact words were, ‘man I’m going to have to learn to play faster.’ That’s something she understands she’s going to have to work on.
“But with her ability to shoot and her understanding of the game I’m sure she will find a way to be successful.”
