Senior forward Lainey Gussman has always been known as Yorkville’s grittiest player.
Without worrying about her scoring output whatsoever, the 5-foot-10 Gussman gladly fills the stat sheet with rebounds, assists, steals and even charges taken for the Foxes.
Lately, however, she has flipped the offensive switch.
“It’s definitely something I’ve had to focus on more,” Gussman said. “Defense has always been my strong suit, so kind of switching it to having more of an offensive mentality is definitely something that I’ve been working and focusing on through the four years I’ve been playing.”
That focused showed Thursday night.
Gussman set a new career high for scoring a minute into the second half and pushed that total to 26 points for host Yorkville in a 63-59 Southwest Prairie Conference victory over Oswego East.
A sizzling Gussman shot 9 of 13 for the Foxes (5-3, 3-1), who rallied from a 10-point deficit to avenge a loss to the Wolves last season that clinched the conference championship. She also had eight rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Brooke Spychalski scored 14 points and Sydney McCabe added 11 off the bench for Yorkville. Maggie Lewandowski led Oswego East (2-6, 1-3) with 17 points. Aubrey Lamberti tallied 13 points and Desiree Merritt added 12.
There’s a very human reason why Gussman felt she struggled to assert herself on the offensive end in the past.
“I think confidence is something I’ve suffered with my whole entire career,” Gussman said. “In past years, I haven’t been as confident. I think this past summer through AAU and training, I’ve just gotten more confident and going out there, not carefree, but clearing my mind and not thinking about it too hard.
“I’m an overthinker. Thinking about it too much gets you tripped up, so just relaxing and having patience and stuff like that really helps the process.”
Yorkville coach Kim Wensits is really enjoying Gussman’s offensive surge — not just for her team, but for Gussman herself.
“I love what she’s doing because she’s truly just listening and taking to heart the things we’re talking about,” Wensits said. “She’s just saying, ‘You know what, it’s my senior year. I’m going to go all out. No one is going to stop me.’”
Gussman shot 6 of 7 in the first half, scoring 19 points, one shy of the career high she established last week against Minooka. A minute into the third quarter, her layup established a new career high, starting a 9-0 run that got Yorkville back into the game.
Oswego East forced a 43-43 tie in the third quarter, but the Wolves didn’t regain the lead.
“She does a lot of little things that don’t get noticed, kind of like Aubrey a little bit,” Oswego East coach Abe Carretto said of Gussman. “She just works hard.
“When she’s working that hard, if you’re not matching it, it’s hard to defend. If you don’t keep an eye on her, I personally think she can do that a lot. She’s like an Energizer Bunny, no doubt.”
Wensits, a Notre Dame fan, likens Gussman’s development to a famous story from Irish history.
“She’s like Rudy but more talented,” Wensits said. “She’s the kind of kid that does all the little stuff where you’re like, ‘Man, I wish kids had the kind of energy that she has.’
“Now, she’s starting to piece together the points. She’s just going out there, letting it come to her.”
Wensits knows she has a competent scorer in Spychalski already in the mix. But if Gussman can keep this up, who knows where this could take the Foxes?
“She has a phenomenal attitude,” Wensits said. “She’s working hard at it. It’s paying huge dividends for us and for her. She’s just been making great decisions. I’m very happy for her.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
