They say that all things come in the threes, and perhaps no one is more aware of it than Leena Panos.
Senior Forward is one of the Big Three of Lincoln-way Central, as well as with Senior Guard Gosen Geharke and Gianna Amadio. He united to win his third direct conference championship.
And then on Friday night, the knights won their third consecutive regional title.
“Our lucky number of three,” Panos later said with a wide smile. “In the beginning of the season, we called it the power of three. We just keep walking with that number three.
“We found nine girls in our team, so we are divided by three with three people.”
How about another key about three? The 36-33 win on the stag in the class 4A Andrew Regional Championship game of Lincoln-Vay Central was the third of the knights this season.
Junior Forward Brooke Bachold led Lincoln-Vay Central (19–11) with nine points, consisting of three 3-pointers in the second half. Geharke and Sofomore Guard Brooke Katzman each had seven in each.
Senior Guard Lizzie Elsworth scored 12 points and made three 3-pointers for Stag (19–13). Junior Forward Shannon Arile and Senior Guard Ameli Sanchez added six points.
The 6-Foot Panos scored four points and six rebounds for the knights, which will play the Jolit West Sectional semi-finals against Homewood-FloSmur (21-7) at 6 pm on Tuesday evening.
But compared to data, there was a lot in his game on Friday night.
“He is just the glue that keeps us together,” said Lincoln-way coach Dave Campanil. “She was one of those seniors who actually played a major role in her Sophomore year on that regional.
“In all the season he put us together and said strongly,” Hey, we are good. ” That is the voice of the cause. ,
Lincoln-Vay Central’s Gianna Amadio, Leena Panos and Greesen Geharke, left to right, celebrate the stag after defeating the stag in the Class 4A Andrew Regional Championship Game at Tinley Park on Friday, on 16 February, 2024. (Greg vaus / daily southtown).
Panos also fought at least a bottom of the entire night with the Arle, as well as to prevent ultra-speedy players such as Sanchez and Senior Guard Nicole Hobart from running lanes or baseline.
Then, the last point of Panos’s night, the second of two free throw with only 5.6 seconds, gave the knights-you guess-a three-point benefits that they would not sacrifice.
According to the teammates, coaches and parents of the team, who met after the game in a festive atmosphere.
This is also what you expect from a senior with leadership skills that he has honored with Amadio and Geharke over the last few years. And this was a major impact on players like bachold.
“She has been a great leader for our team,” Bachold said about Panos. “She is our number 1 leader, number 1 contributor, number 1 in the team. She is always encouraging people when we are all below.”
Meanwhile, Katzman confirmed that he had learned a lot from Panos this season. Such as?
“Just never giving, honestly,” said Katzman. “She is always insisting, and if she makes a mistake, she keeps ignoring it and moving forward.”
Panos, who is staring at the end of its high school career, will not like three and four more games, which means that the CEFCU is generally a state final visit to the Arena.
It does not matter when things end, however, she has decided not to play in college, although she wants to attend the intramural or club. A part of it was an ACL tear in the sectional semi -finals as a sophomore knocked on its junior season and influenced the recruitment.
Deciding to play was a difficult decision, especially since he started basketball in Kalwadi.
“It was very difficult,” he said. “I want to be a physician, so I know it will be a hard work. But not to play with your best friends, it’s going to be a difficult transition.”
Greg is a freelance reporter for Daily Southtown.