Girls Basketball: Zosia Wrobel, Geneva start strong, finish fast against Wheaton Warrenville South

WHEATON – Zosia Wrobel was truly a one-person wrecking crew in the fourth quarter Tuesday night in Wheaton.

The 6-foot-1 junior scored every single Geneva point in leading the Vikings to a comfortable 62-41 DuKane Conference girls basketball win over Wheaton Warrenville South.

Wrobel drained all four of her 3-pointers in scoring 14 of her game-high 25 points in the fourth quarter in the latest Geneva victory.

Lily Huntzinger, the leader for WW South with 14 points, gave the home team its lone lead of the night with a first-quarter 3-pointer.

The Vikings (9-2, 7-2) responded with a 20-point unanswered blitz to seize command of the game.

“They couldn’t guard the post,” Wrobel said of the decisive period that saw the Vikings take a 30-11 lead. “The key was getting the ball in the post.”

“Turnovers,” WW South coach Rob Kroehnke said of the decisive stretch. “We have talked about it. It’s the little things that are meaningful.”

The Tigers (7-5, 4-5) missed the front ends of two bonus free throws in the quarter, which ended with Geneva holding a 34-20 advantage at the break.

Geneva coach Sarah Meadows could not have scripted a better start to the third quarter.

Wrobel fired a gorgeous backdoor pass to Leah Palmer for an uncontested layup.

“That’s the first look we have to have,” said Cassidy Arni, who along with Palmer scored 12 points to augment the game-high Wrobel total. “We did a good job of pressing them.”

“We got that play tonight,” Meadows said of the opening third-quarter possession.

The Vikings have a legacy few girls programs in the area can match. Back-to-back state championships breed high expectations.

“You have to prove yourself each year,” Wrobel said. “It’s nice to play for Meadows.”

Leading 16-11 after the first quarter, the Vikings’ second-quarter run ended when Huntzinger drained a 3-pointer with two minutes and 42 seconds remaining until halftime.

“We got extra points on that run,” Leah Palmer said.

Kate Palmer converted a 3-point play following the eye-opening pass Wrobel delivered to Leah Palmer to open the second-half scoring.

WW South never came closer than 17 points the remainder of the game. Wrobel single-handedly outscored the Tigers in the fourth quarter.

An off-guard who also plays small forward, Wrobel connected on all four of her 3-point attempts in the last quarter.

Emma Showman scored nine points for the Tigers.

Leah Palmer and Kelly McCloughan added four points for Geneva.