The 2025-26 girls basketball season was a banner one for Manteno.

The Panthers went 27-7, setting a program record for wins in a season, while reaching the sectional championship game for the second time in team history.

Leading the charge was junior center Maddie Gesky, who set several school records of her own, earned her second career IBCA All-State honor, and has now been named the 2025-26 Daily Journal Girls Basketball Player of the Year.

She is now the program’s single-season record holder for points (507), rebounds (417) and blocks (87) while also becoming the all-time leader in all three categories with 1,235 points, 1,136 rebounds and 210 blocks and counting.

Gesky, who has also helped the team to two regional titles and two Illinois Central Eight Conference titles, said that being able to check off so many individual and team milestones in one season was a great experience.

“It was definitely a really good way to end it for our seniors,” she said. “It was definitely a fun season, my favorite season.”

Gesky started playing intramural basketball in second grade, and helped lead the Panthers to the IESA State Finals in her first two seasons of organized basketball in seventh and eighth grade.

After getting a taste of basketball success early on, Gesky hit the ground running once her high school career started.

She led the team with 12.5 points and 11.8 rebounds per game as a freshman while the Panthers secured their first regional title since 1991.

In her sophomore season, the Panthers won their first conference title since 1990 as she averaged 11.7 points and 12.2 rebounds per game and earned IBCA Class 2A All-State Special Mention honors.

She set career highs in basically every category this season and was named to the Class 2A All-State Third Team.

Rebounding is an area Gesky said she takes particular pride in, and it shows.

She posted 20 double-doubles on the season and had 20 rebounds, nine of which were offensive, in the IHSA Class 2A Pontiac Sectional Championship against Pontiac.

Especially in a game like that, which unfortunately for the Panthers ended in a 46-44 loss, Gesky knows her willingness and ability to control the boards are vital for the team.

“Anybody can go on a run, and anybody can get points, but rebounding shows more determination,” she said. “I’m more proud of 1,000 rebounds than 1,000 points. With rebounds, you’re getting each individual one where with points you can get two, three at a time.”

Head coach Bethany Stritar said Gesky’s mindset when it comes to rebounding is just an extension of the competitiveness she plays with every time she takes to the court.

“She’s just a beast,“ Stritar said. ”She’s going to do whatever it takes to win a basketball game. Her leadership skills have grown tremendously, too, even as a junior. I know we were senior-heavy, but that didn’t stop her from stepping up and saying something that needed to be said.

“She’s just a competitor through and through, and I think that comes a lot from her family.”

Gesky’s older brothers, Jeremy and Josh, were standout offensive linemen for the Panthers, with Jeremy going on to play four years at Olivet Nazarene and Josh just finishing his career at Illinois.

Her dad, Joel, played offensive line at Nebraska, while her mom, Dawn, has long been the top supporter of her competitive family.

Gesky said that the competitive environment she grew up in still fuels her to this day.

“I’m always trying to one-up my brothers, and everything has always been a competition with us,” she said. “I think that’s what makes me so competitive and want to be good. Like for some of the records for me, it was just about beating my brothers and being better than they were in high school.”

Gesky is also a star volleyball player for the Panthers, coming off a season in which she helped the team win a regional title, became the program’s all-time blocks leader and earned an IVCA Class 2A Second-Team All-State spot.

While playing two sports at such a high level can be demanding at times, Gesky said she’s ready to get back to work as a senior.

“I’m busy, and there’s not a lot of sleep, but it’s fun,” she said. “When I’m not playing, I’m bored, so I’m always trying to find more to do.

“...That’s just what makes high school fun, I think. It’s the sports.”