As St. Laurence battled a tough schedule through the first half of the month, senior Ciyah Thomas did her best to be as steady as possible at point guard.
It was no easy thing for Thomas.
After all, she was a transfer and new to the program, and a couple key players were out of the lineup with injuries.
But she tried to keep it business as usual.
Helping host St. Laurence to a 58-34 victory over Latin on Jan. 10 at the Barry Shaw Memorial Shootout, Thomas contributed 17 points, four rebounds, four steals, two assists and a block.
“It’s been a rollercoaster,” Thomas said. “I just want to be a leader and point guard on and off the court. I do my best to try and communicate and inspire the team to work hard. I’m big on defense. That’s my top priority, so I try to get my teammates on the same page.”
Senior Sara Burzycki (12 points, five rebounds, three steals, two assists) and junior Aaliyah Flores (eight points, five rebounds, four steals) also starred for the Vikings (9-8).
Thomas, a 5-10 guard, played for two years at Bolingbrook and then at Hammond Central (Ind.) as a junior before transferring to St. Laurence.
Coach Claire Austin loves the all-around ability Thomas has brought to the team, especially her impressive first step.
“It’s not the quickest first step. It’s the biggest first step,” Austin said. “She covers ground. We haven’t had a point guard that can handle like that and get past people as easy as she does. Ciyah likes to dribble but she’s been able to dish it off, see the team and evaluate the court.”
As Thomas has settled in, St. Laurence has dealt with a couple key injuries. Mix in that nasty schedule, including holiday tournaments at Naperville Central and Montini. But Thomas said the Vikings keep on battling.
“We had a tough schedule against good teams in the beginning,” Thomas said. “It definitely helped us grow in areas we needed to fix. That’s good for now and into the playoffs. We want a strong team for the end (of the year).”
St. Laurence led Latin 23-15 in the second quarter when Thomas took over, scoring 10 straight points as part of a 25-0 run that stretched into the third quarter.
No matter who’s on the court, Thomas said the Vikings just keep on playing and focus on themselves.
“It’s no pressure. I’m just having fun,” Thomas said. “When one player comes back, another goes out. Everyone’s playing hard. Sara is especially going hard. She gets me going all of our games, points, rebounding, steals. She gets the team working.”
Austin likes the team’s potential, especially as the Vikings move up to Class 4A for the state playoffs.
“We are in a really good place,” Austin said. “It was a struggle at first against some really good teams. A lot of people might underestimate us in the playoffs. We’ve always been in that spot.”
The game kicked off St. Laurence’s Barry Shaw Memorial Shootout with four boys games following.