Stillman Valley and Byron to meet again for a sectional championship
ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO/WQRF) — There are 16 girls' high school basketball teams in Illinois still playing in Class 2A. It's no surprise around the Rockford area that two of those teams are Byron and Stillman Valley. The Lady Tigers and the Cardinals are set to meet Thursday night in the championship game of the Rock Falls Sectional.This rivalry is one of the best in the Stateline, and it probably has never been better than it is right now. These two programs have probably never been this good at the same time.Both teams have star players who can take over games, but they also have excellent talent around those stars.Stillman Valley is 31-1. The Cardinals' one loss was to Byron.Byron is 32-2. One of its losses was to Stillman. The other was to Dixon, a team that's still alive in Class 3A.This will be the third meeting this season between these two teams. The first was December 28 in the championship game of Dixon's KSB Holiday Tournament. Stillman Valley won that battle 45-40. Byron jumped out to a 10-0 lead, but the Cardinals dominated the boards to turn the game around. Freshman Lillian Green had 17 rebounds.The second game was in front of a packed house in Byron on February 6. It was a tight one all the way. Byron held on for a 42-38 win. Macy Groharing and Malia Morton each scored 18 points for Byron. Stillman got a great 19-point effort from sophomore post player Dailene Wade.Stillman's Taylor Davidson and Green were held to six points each by Byron's great zone defense.So far in in tournament play, Stillman Valley has defeated Marengo, Winnebago, and Port Byron Riverdale all by 16 points or more.Byron blew out Johnsburg, then cruised past a very good Aurora Central Catholic team, and then Tuesday night in the sectional semifinal, the Lady Tigers broke away from a tie game in the third quarter to beat always strong Rock Island Alleman by 15 points.So, the stage is set for Thursday night in Rock Falls. It's Stillman Valley-Byron part III, and the stakes will be high. Tip-off will be at 6 p.m.
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