O’Fallon Girls Capture 53-42 Win Over Edwardsville, Panthers' Christopher Posts Phenomenal Effort

EDWARDSVILLE – Josie Christopher's 18-point outburst in the first half set the tone for the game against Edwardsville's girls on Thursday night, Feb. 5, 2026. O'Fallon defeated Edwardsville 53-42 in the Southwestern Conference contest at Lucco-Jackson gym.

Christopher completed the game with 24 points.

The Tigers played hard and competed well throughout the game, but in the end, Christopher’s performance was hard to overcome. But it was a battle all the way.

“They played a phenomenal game,” said Edwardsville head coach Kaylie Gudka. “I thought we came out really strong, did really good things. We kind of went a little lax there for a little bit, got a little comfortable, and after that first quarter, the spiral of the first quarter, we really kicked it in.

"That second quarter, third quarter, fourth quarter, we did not give up, we held strong. I cannot give the girls enough credit for their energy and their effort throughout that game. There were ups and downs, calls, runs, just so many crazy things thrown at them, and nothing was too big for them. However, just getting that whole early on in that game, it was just tough to come out of. But I still have to give credit to the girls for truly trying and giving us effort.”

Christopher’s outburst at the beginning of the game was incredible, Gudka said.

“Absolutely,” Gudka said. “When you know she’s someone who averages 20 points a game, you know you’ve got to lock her down. We did a really good job in the second half, we held her to six points.

"Unfortunately, she had 18 in the first half,” she said with a smile. “So, big, big difference in half to half. Kami Gieseking came in, Mia (Semith) did a good job, switching off constantly on different people, but I do have to give a lot of credit to Kami Gieseking for coming in and stepping up, and putting a stop to her to start us in that second half.”

The IHSA Class 4A playoffs are right down the road, and it was announced on Thursday Edwardsville was seeded fifth in their regional, which will be held at Lucco-Jackson Gym, and the postseason is something Gudka is looking ahead to.

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“Absolutely,” Gudka said with another smile. “I love postseason, it’s a fresh start. It’s new energy, it’s exciting, and the best part is we get to host it. We’re ready to go, let’s go.”

It was Semith and Journey Anderson who scored first to give the Tigers a quick 4-0 lead, but McCottrell came right back to make it 4-2, and Christopher hit two baskets, then followed up with back-to-back threes from distance to give O’Fallon the lead at 12-4. Both McCottrell and Christopehr scored again, and Sasha Kelley scored to give the Panthers an 18-8 lead after the first quarter.

In the second period. Christopher and Kelley hit back-to-back threes to open the lead to 24-8, with a basket from Kennedy Gieseking cutting the lead down to 24-10. Christopher sank another three, and McCottrell scored again to give O’Fallon a 29-15 advantage at the interval.

Zerjal hit a three-pointer to open the second half for O’Fallon, and a steal and score by Christopher gave the Panthers a 35-15 lead. Anderson and Kennedy Gieseking scored, and a pair of free throws by Semith cut the lead down to 35-21, and another basket by Semith further cut O’Fallon’s edge to 35-23, but the Panthers fought back and got the score to 38-26 at three-quarter time.

In the final quarter, the Tigers kept coming at O’Fallon, but the Panthers kept Edwardsville at arm’s length at the right times, with a three-point play by Symone Bynum giving the Panthers a 51-35 lead. Anderson scored before the end, and a basket at the buzzer by Laila Roundtree made the final 53-42 for O’Fallon.

Christopher led the Panthers with her 24 points, while Kayla Kalmer and McCottrell both had seven points each, Kelley had five points, both Bynum and Zerjal hit for four points, and Jocelyn Mitchell had two points. Anderson, Gabby Cook, and Semith all led the Tigers with 11 points apiece, while Kennedy Gieseking hit for seven points, and Roundtree scored two points.

O’Fallon in now 18-9 on the season, and concludes its regular season hosting Pleasant Plains Saturday at 2 p.m., then plays at Highland next Wednesday, and finishes up against Belleville West at home next Thursday, both games starting at 7:30 p.m.

Edwardsville is now 11-13, and finishes up starting Saturday afternoon with a home tilt against Breese Central at 1:30 p.m., then is at Collinsville on Tuesday, and winds up with a home game against Granite City next Thursday, both games starting at 7:30 p.m.

Dan Brannan also contributed to this story.

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