When it comes to her style of play for Lockport, sophomore guard/forward Katie Peetz is taking after her mother.
Sylvia, whose maiden name is Blakeslee, played basketball at DePaul. In 1998, legendary Blue Demons coach Doug Bruno told the Chicago Tribune that she was “our jack of all trades.”
Twenty-seven years later, Lockport coach Darien Jacobs has a similar appraisal of Peetz.
“Katie’s role is to do everything,” Jacobs said. “And she’s good at that.”
Peetz showed off that versatility Tuesday night, coming up with nine points, six rebounds and four steals for the host Porters in a 51-47 overtime victory over Lincoln-Way West in a battle between the top two teams in the SouthWest Suburban Conference.
Senior forward Alaina Peetz, Katie’s sister, led the Porters (24-4, 13-2) with 12 points and added six rebounds and five assists. Evelyn Ingram contributed 10 points, four rebounds and two steals.
Addison Way came off the bench and scored five points, including the go-ahead basket with 1:25 remaining in the OT to give the Porters a 48-46 lead. They never trailed after that.
Molly Finn led Lincoln-Way West (19-8, 11-2) with 17 points, while Ava Tisch added 10 points. Caroline Smith tallied nine points and 13 rebounds, with 10 rebounds in the first half.
Katie Peetz, meanwhile, knows her role for Lockport and completely embraces it.
“I will play any position that the coaches want me to,” she said. “Sometimes I’ll make blocked shots or sometimes I’ll shoot threes. It depends on the day.”
What part of the game does she like best?
“I like a mix,” she said. “It’s been perfect, honestly.”
Jacobs, who has a variety of talented players with various skills on his team, pointed out that some of the pressure for Peetz to perform has been spread out.
“Katie doesn’t have a lot of pressure on her shoulders because we don’t need her to come out and score in double digits,” Jacobs said. “We don’t need her to be our primary ballhandler.
“We just need her to hustle, and that’s what she does. She gets the loose balls. She gets the rebounds. She plays solid defense. That’s all you can ask from her.”
Asked and answered.
Way, a junior guard, enjoys watching Peetz go to work for the Porters.
“Katie’s shot was on and so was her rebounding,” Way said. “She is always a great player, but we needed that in this game.”
And Lockport also needed Way’s conversion of that 10-foot jump shot in OT.
“It was awesome to have that opportunity,” Way said. “I saw an opening in the lane so when I cut. I got the ball. I was nervous, but it was the best opening I might get, so I just knew to take it.”
If Lockport wins its last conference game Tuesday against Sandburg, the Porters are guaranteed at least share of the title. Since the conference was formed for the 2005-2006 season, Lockport has never won a conference title. Even more impressive, this is the first season the conference hasn’t been split up into two divisions.
Not bad for a team that ended up with a 13-19 record last season and also went winless in eight games in the SouthWest Suburban Blue.
No doubt, it’s something few people saw coming.
“It’s a ton different this year,” Peetz said. “Last year, we would have fun and play but we knew we weren’t going to be great. This year, it’s like, ‘Oh my gosh, we’re actually good.’
“We could seriously do something this year. This year is still fun. There is some pressure, but it’s good pressure. You want to have this type of pressure. I think everybody would.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
