ANDOVER TOWNSHIP — Geneva girls basketball coach Nancy Barbo has been insisting to her guards that their time would come.
With two post players that stand at least 6-feet and a third that stands at 5-10, those guards were basically to be facilitators for the offense. For 22 games, their job was to be smart with the basketball and ultimately pass the ball inside. On occasion, they had to make a shot.
But that all changed against Kenston on Saturday in the Division II district championship game.
“I kept telling them, ‘Your time is coming. They are going to take away our posts, and when they do, it’s your time.’ ”
Those guards responded in a big way, leading the Eagles to a 42-29 win over the Bombers and the first regional berth in program history.
“We really needed that from them,” Barbo said. “They were really focused. They were smart with the ball and more patient than they’ve ever been.”
In telling her guards — Jillian Nazor, Courtney Thompson, Carly Cash, Audra Puckrin and Suelen Gutierrez — that they would get their chance, Barbo was constantly preparing them to be ready for it.
“They were going to take Taylor (Webb) and Natalie (Stanley) away,” Cash said. “Coach Barbo knew that would happen. She told us to go out and be ready to shoot.”
“(Coach Barbo) said the guards would have to step up,” Thompson said. “At the start, we were going to have to hit some shots and maybe help to free up Taylor and Natalie.”
“Coach said they’d be trying to take away Taylor, to take the open shot if we have it.”
Barbo wanted her guards to be shooters, but be smart about doing it.
“We talked about reversing the ball a couple of times,” Barbo said. “The forwards would be smothered. When it was the guards’ time (to shoot), they had to start taking them. They’re capable of taking them.”
Those opportunities came early. And the guards didn’t hesitate to step in and take the shots. Thompson hit a 19-footer and Nazor followed on the next possession with a 3-pointer from the corner and the Eagles led, 7-4, with 5:44 to play in the opening period.
In the second period, Nazor threw up an underhand “did-you-see-that?!” shot with two people defending her in the lane and scored. Cash then connected on a trey and made a pair of free throws to start an 8-0 Eagles’ run to end the half and give the Eagles a 17-11 advantage.
Cash opened the third period scoring with a bucket and Webb followed with a bucket to give Geneva a 10-point advantage, 21-11, with 6:24 to play in the quarter.
Following a Kenston free throw, Thompson extended that lead to 12, with a 3-pointer from the corner.
“I’m really impressed,” Webb said. “Coach emphasized before the game that they were going to pressure me and Nat and if the guards were open, they needed to shoot. They’re a very important part of the equation. Coach said to look to us (inside), but they had to knock down a few.”
Nazor put a dagger in the Bombers’ hearts with a 3-pointer from the corner to give the Eagles a 35-19 lead with 5:46 to play in the game.
The guards combined for 21 points. Nazor tallied eight, Cash seven and Thompson six.
“It was just the adrenaline of being here,” Nazor said. “Coach told us to look at the fans, look at how the entire community was behind us.”
And in front of an entire community, a trio of players helped the Eagles soar to new heights.
Ettinger is a sports writer for the Star Beacon. Reach him at bettinger@starbeacon.com.
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