Lady Griffins take Litchfield Regional; Knights, Bulldogs fall short in finals
By Ray Popkess
Week one of the IHSA Girls’ Basketball postseason has been completed and only one neighboring school has moved on to their Sectional tournament.
Father McGivney Lady Griffins
The Father McGivney Lady Griffins took on Litchfield and Hillsboro last week in the North Mac-hosted Regional.
In game one against the Panthers, Zoe Oller led the way scoring 16 points while hauling in eight rebounds and collecting three steals and two blocks. The Griffins overcame a Litchfield comeback in overtime, outscoring them 10-4 in the extra period.
In the Regional Final against Hillsboro, Oller again led Father McGivney in scoring with 14 points, shot 40% from behind the arc and pickpocketed four steals. Ellie Willenberg also lit up the stat sheet with her 13 points, six steals and four rebounds.
Head Coach Jeff Oller picked up his 200th win in the process of conquering the Regional in his 10th season as the program’s coach.
With the win, the Lady Griffins improved to 27-6 and could be on a collision course for a Gateway Metro Conference Sectional Championship game.
The Lady Griffins took on Carlinville on Tuesday, Feb. 24 in the Sectional Semifinals, with the winner advancing to the championship to either face Alton (Marquette) or Pleasant Plains on Thursday, Feb. 26 at 6 p.m. for a spot in the Class AA Elite Eight.
Triad Lady Knights
The Lady Knights made it twice in a row when they beat the Mascoutah Indians on their opening round matchup of the Carbondale Regional.
Triad dominated every facet of the game, getting at least some amount of points from 10 different scorers.
Juliette Duff led the way with eight, hauling in six rebounds and two steals, while dishing out two assists.
Erica Boyce and Lexi Metcalf each had six points, while Metcalf pulled in two more rebounds than Boyce with eight total.
Game two against the host school spelled the end of the season for the Lady Knights. Triad couldn’t buy a bucket for cheap, as they made four out of 21 three point attempts. By a 39-29 final score, a lid on the basket was what did them in.
Triad finishes their 2025-2026 season with a 19-12 season record, and a 7-3 conference record good enough to earn them a third place finish in the final Mississippi Valley Conference standings.
They’ll lose five seniors on their roster, as freshman Duff and sophomore Addy Gentemann get set to take over the reins next year.
Highland Lady Bulldogs
The Highland squad took on Springfield in their opening round matchup, picking up a victory by a final score of 51-45.
Jordan Bircher put up 15 points to lead all scorers and also snatched up seven rebounds, five steals and two assists to round out her game.
Sophie Schroeder secured a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds, tacking on three assists and a steal.
Game two pitted the Bulldogs against the Chatham (Glenwood) Titans, a game that Highland dropped 49-37.
Bircher was responsible for scoring 21 of Highland’s 37 points. However, much like Triad in their Regional Final, the Lady Bulldogs did not shoot well from beyond the three point line, sinking three of 20 attempts.
The Lady Bulldogs finished their season with a 19-14 overall record and were crowned the final MVC Champions with a 9-1 league record.
They’ll lose some senior production in Bircher and Schroeder, but can still make a run in the South Seven next year given their roster depth.
