CSE opens floor with 3-point barrage, exacts revenge on Mater Dei with victory

BREESE, Ill. — How do you combat a 6-foot-6 presence looming in the middle of the lane who is 8 inches taller than anyone else on the court?

Bury enough 3-pointers to make her wingspan inconsequential.

That’s exactly what the Central-Southeastern girls basketball team did Saturday afternoon.

The Panthers made six 3-pointers in the first half in building a seven-point lead over Breese Mater Dei and steadily extended the lead to double digits in a 55-46 victory at Fred Rakers Court. It avenged CSE’s first loss of the season, a 19-point setback to Mater Dei in the championship game of the Pana Thanksgiving Tournament.

In the first game, the Knights’ Alyssa Koerkenmeier, the 6-foot-6 forward who is headed to Saint Louis University, finished with 12 points, five rebounds and five blocked shots. This time, Koerkenmeier had just eight points and two blocked shots.

Meanwhile, the Knights had no answer for Lauren Miller, the Panthers’ SIU-Edwardsville bound forward.

Miller scored CSE’s first seven points and twice scored from the block in the first half when Amanda Stephens tossed lob passes from the high post over a defender choosing to front Miller. To start the second half, Miller scored CSE’s first six points to push the advantage to 13 points.

She finished with a game-high 24 points. Freshman guard Lexi Niekamp scored 12 points and senior guard Karly Peters added 11 points as CSE (16-2) won its eighth consecutive game. Dixie Ottenschneider led Mater Dei (12-5) with 13 points.

CSE’s first post-Christmas is the start of a four-game stretch against highly rated competition. Tuesday, the Panthers are scheduled to play host to Quincy Notre Dame, ranked sixth in Class 3A. Next Saturday, CSE travels to the Lanark Eastland Shootout and will face Galena, which is receiving votes in the Class 1A state poll, and Pecatonica, which is ranked eighth in Class 1A.

Photo gallery courtesy Mike Pritchard