GLEN CARBON – In its next-to-last game of the regular season, the Father McGivney girls’ basketball team started to build some momentum for the postseason.
Led by a game-high 23 points from freshman Anna McKee, the host Griffins cruised to a 47-16 victory over O’Fallon First Baptist Academy on Monday night.
FHCMS, in its second varsity season, improved to 10-13.
First Baptist Academy dropped to 4-6.
“We’ve made a lot of progress this season,” said McKee, who had five 3-pointers. “We’ve gotten a lot better at talking with each other and playing as hard as we can. Whenever I miss my shots, my teammates keep me up.”
The Griffins finish the regular season at 7:30 p.m. Thursday with a home game against Staunton. They are the No. 6 seed in the Class 1A Metro-East Lutheran Regional and will play fourth-seeded MELHS in a semifinal game at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 6.
On the way to a 7-17 record last season, FMCHS posted a 40-29 win over First Baptist Academy. This time, the Griffins were dominant from the start.
A pair of free throws by sophomore Madison Webb gave the Griffins a 9-0 lead with 6:33 remaining in the first quarter.
FMCHS finished the quarter with a 16-0 lead, capped by a 3-point play from Webb.
First Baptist Academy, meanwhile, committed 13 turnovers in the first quarter, including eight in the first five minutes.
When the Eagles did shoot the ball, they were 0 of 5 from the field.
Father McGivney would have had a much bigger lead if it hadn’t experienced a cold shooting snap of its own. At one point in the first quarter, the Griffins missed 10 shots in a row.
“I don’t know how many 3-pointers we took in a row, but we need to get inside and try to get it to Madison or our post players,” FMCHS coach Jeff Oller said.
First Baptist Academy got its first point on a free throw with 7:13 remaining in the second quarter, making the score 16-1.
The Eagles didn’t get a basket from the field until 1:30 remained in the quarter, cutting Father McGivney’s lead to 22-6.
A rebound basket by Webb made the score 26-6 at halftime.
McKee, who had 10 points in the first half, started to heat up early in the second half. She scored the first seven points in the third quarter, pushing the Griffins’ lead to 34-6 with 6:10 remaining.
Webb, with 12 points, was the only other Father McGivney player in double figures.
Nine of the 10 varsity players for FMCHS scored at least one point.