Basketball Recap: Manteno's Luck Changes for the Better on Thursday

Manteno won the last time they faced Wilmington, and Maddie Gesky did her part to make sure it happened again. The Manteno Panthers came out on top against the Wilmington Wildcats by a score of 49-37 on Thursday thanks in part to Gesky, who dropped a double-double on 20 points and 19 boards. What's more, she also racked up five steals, the most she's had since back in February of 2024.

Wilmington's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Sami Liaromatis, who went 8 of 19 en route to 21 points in addition to seven rebounds and four steals, and Nina Egizio, who posted six points and three steals. That was a full 56.8% of Wilmington's points, marking the fourth time in a row she's earned more than a third of the team's points.

With the win, Manteno broke their three-game losing streak and moved their record to 17-4. As for Wilmington, the loss snapped their winning streak at eight games and leaves them with a 17-5 record.

Manteno wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next matchup, a 48-29 victory against Reed-Custer on the 27th. Wilmington has also already played their next contest (against Herscher), but no score has been uploaded at the time of writing.