Girls basketball notes: Johnsburg keeps pace in KRC; CL Central’s Katie Svigelj returns from knee surgery

Johnsburg girls basketball coach Erin Stochl challenged her players before Tuesday’s pivotal Kishwaukee River Conference game against Woodstock North to match the physical style of play from the always tough Thunder.

The Skyhawks were up to the challenge, pulling away with a dominant second half and snatching a 48-33 win over the two-time defending conference champions while staying a game back of KRC leader Marengo in the standings.

Johnsburg edged North 37-35 when the teams met Dec. 21 in their final game at McHenry’s Northern Illinois Holiday Classic.

Entering the season, however, the Thunder have had the Skyhawks’ number with a 5-1 record in their previous six games.

Stochl said she has a lot of respect for how the Thunder play.

“We knew it was going to be a physical game, and that showed tonight,” Stochl said. “Those girls are aggressive. They’re scrappy, they’re athletic, and they’re great basketball players. They’ve always been that way.”

“We just needed to make sure our girls knew they had to match it. To bring that same aggressiveness and intensity. After seeing them the first time, we knew they were a good defensive basketball team. On offense, they’re going to attack the basket hard. We just had to be ready.”

Johnsburg senior guard Payton Toussaint, who led the Skyhawks with 21 points and four 3-pointers, said the team got together and talked about the importance of Tuesday’s game.

The Skyhawks (9-13, 3-1 KRC) feel like they have a team capable of winning their first conference title since 2017. Marengo (12-8) leads the KRC at 4-0 and defeated Johnsburg 45-34 last week. The teams meet again Jan. 31 at Marengo.

“We knew any game coming up, we had to work hard if we still wanted to win the conference, even if that means sharing with Marengo,” Toussaint said. “That’s a big goal of ours, and we need to push even harder towards that goal.”

Raiders rolling: Huntley completed a perfect first half of the Fox Valley Conference season Wednesday with a 63-32 win against Crystal Lake Central and now has won 19 consecutive conference games going back to last season.

The Red Raiders won the FVC last season with a 17-1 record – with their last conference loss Jan. 21, 2022, against Prairie Ridge.

Huntley (18-4) could challenge the program record for wins in a season, which was set in 2016 with a 30-4 mark. The Raiders have nine games left, all in the FVC, before the start of the postseason.

Svigelj back in action for Tigers: Crystal Lake Central’s Katie Svigelj recently made a return from knee surgery, scoring seven points Jan. 10 in a 55-41 win over Jacobs.

The senior forward had returned earlier this season from reconstructive knee surgery after tearing her ACL and meniscus last year but played in only a few games when she had to go back for follow-up surgery after doctors discovered a growth on the tibial plateau.

It’s been a long journey back for Svigelj, who, after her original ACL surgery, later required additional recovery time after a loose body in the knee joint was found and removed in March.

Svigelj, who also plays softball, missed her junior year on the softball field, but was able to return to her travel team in July. Crystal Lake Central girls basketball coach Derek Crabill has been taking things slow as she gets into better game shape.

Svigelj will play softball at Loras in Dubuque, Iowa, after committing in November.

The team was overjoyed to get Svigelj back.

“It’s been a long road,” Crabill said. “To say she’s been a trooper doesn’t explain it. Not only the fight she’s shown, but to take it with the grace she’s had and to be that positive influence when she’s been out ... I can’t say enough about her.”

“I can’t describe how excited the team was to know that she was dressing and getting to play.”

Trojans’ standout: Cary-Grove has struggled to a 1-5 record since the calendar flipped to January, but not for a lack of effort. Trojans coach Tony Moretti has been pleased by his team’s ability to bounce back after slow starts, even if it hasn’t resulted in many wins.

Junior forward Emily Larry has emerged as one of the team’s strongest leaders during the rough stretch, Moretti said.

“Emily means a lot to us,” Moretti said after C-G lost its FVC game last week to Crystal Lake Central 40-36. “She wasn’t having the best night shooting, but she keeps fighting and keeps going. She does a lot for us. To say how proud I am of her and what she means to the team would be a big understatement.”

Moretti also said he believes that junior guard Morgan Haslow is the best defender in the FVC.

“I don’t think there’s anyone better,” he said.

Rishling out for the year: Woodstock North coach Jay Justice confirmed junior guard Addi Rishling will miss the rest of the season after suffering a torn ACL in her team’s KRC opener against Marengo.

Rishling, one of North’s top scorers before the injury, has missed the past eight games for the Thunder, who have gone 3-5 during that stretch.

Justice said Rishling is the team’s most disruptive defender.

“We can’t replace what she does defensively for us,” Justice said. “She’s a one-of-a-kind athlete you just don’t find. The chaos she’s able to provide, we’ve had trouble replicating that since.”