Mater Dei downs Byron in Class 2A championship game to claim first-ever state crown

Mater Dei sophomore Alyssa Koerkenmeier is a load for any opposing team to handle in the paint, and the Byron Tigers found that out firsthand Saturday afternoon.

Koerkenmeier, the Knights unstoppable inside threat, dominated on the baseline, and guards Julia Korte and Amelia Beer handled the outside scoring as Mater Dei caught fire with a 32-point second half and rolled to a 62-46 win against Byron in the IHSA Class 2A championship game at CEFCU Arena (formerly Redbird Arena) on the campus of Illinois State University.

Mater Dei (27-7) —which last appeared in the state tournament as a quarterfinalist in 1991 —claimed its first championship in school history with the win.

It was a superb finish to a challenging season for the Knights and first-year head coach Craig Zurliene, who gave the ultimate credit to his club for handling whatever Byron threw at them.

“Our game plan was to .... we knew they were going to come at us with a trapping 1-3-1 (defense), and we had to go and attack from the middle versus the sides. And once we got to that point, we wanted to drive it past the free throw line, and the strength of the offense was above the free throw line, and the girls did an excellent job of executing the game plan,” Zurlienne said.

“I feel like when I get the ball (down there) I want to score,” Koerkenmeier said. “Being in this arena and playing in this game is a very cool experience, and there was so much energy that I want to go straight to the basket.”

Zurlienne lauded Koerkenmeier’s dominant performance in the championship game as well as her improved growth during the season.

“She’s maturing both physically and mentally at an exponential rate, and it’s showing (on the floor),” Zurliene said.

A solid first quarter keyed by Koerkenmeier’s inside scoring gave the Knights a 16-8 lead after the opening stanza. Koerkenmeier finished the day with 23 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 blocked shots for her first career triple-double, playing at times down low like she was alone there.

Mater Dei was up nine late in the second quarter on a Koerkenmeier bucket, but back-to-back threes by Ella Grnstrom and Brynn Green pulled the Tigers within 30-24 to end the first half.

At that point, Byron was positioned to challenge the Knights in the second half.

“We thought we might have had the momentum there cutting it to six before the half and thought we might have figured a few things out,” Byron coach Eric Yerly said.

Knights slam the door

Beer and Korte, however, got their shots going in the third quarter as Mater Dei stretched its lead to 41-31 on Beer’s short baseline jumper with 3:34 left in the third quarter. Beer scored 13 points, and Korte — who struggled in the semifinal over Quincy Notre Dame with just two points — added 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting.

An 8-2 closing Mater Dei run capped by Alexis Kampwerth’s bucket left the Tigers knowing there would be no championship celebration for them.

“Give them credit, they came right back and started the second half, and I think they got the first bucket and went back up 10 and when you’re down 10, and you’re scrambling to go it’s tough. And with two and a half minutes to go and it’s a 10 point game I thought we had a chance, but they’re so good defensively that when you start to make a run that they fall back on their defense,” Yerly said.

Fitting end for Mater Dei seniors

Finishing their careers as state champions was a perfect way to go out for seniors such as forward Madison Eversgerd, Korte, Kampwerth, Cora Meyer, and Carissa Litteken. All five seniors were on the floor for the game’s final minute.

“The five of us have been through so much since freshman year, and to have all five us on the floor (at the end) as state champs is like really cool,” Evergerd said.

Macy Goharing led Byron (34-3) with 14 points, while Ava Kulgen and Karyn Nielskis added 12 and 10 points, respectively.

This story was originally published March 4, 2023 at 5:06 PM.