Lincoln-Way East’s Sophia Nanney got her introduction to basketball when her grandfather, Dan Waitekus, would play H-O-R-S-E in the driveway with her when she was in third grade.
She said she learned a lot. And she would beat him. Sort of.
“He let me win,” she said. “But I still won, though.”
Nanney, a senior forward, and her teammates were looking for another win Thursday night while facing one of the hottest defensive teams in the SouthWest Suburban Conference in Lockport.
The Porters, however, were not going to be as charitable to her as grandpa was. They were ready to make it tough on the Griffins.
Still, Nanney managed to fight her way through all of the roadblocks Lockport put up on defense to score 14 points in leading Lincoln-Way East to a 32-30 victory over the host Porters.
Nanney was the only player in double figures for the Griffins (17-9, 6-5), but Kennedy Johnson tallied 12 rebounds and Mia Limpin scored what turned out to be the game-winning basket with 47 seconds left that gave Lincoln-Way East a 31-30 lead.
Lucy Hynes and Alaina Peetz scored seven points apiece in defeat for Lockport (21-4, 10-2). Peetz added 11 rebounds.
In Lockport’s three previous games — all conference victories — the Porters held Bradley-Bourbonnais to 24 points, Lincoln-Way West to 28 points and Lincoln-Way Central to 26.
The Griffins, who were missing sophomore point guard Emerson Nilsson due to a leg injury, needed someone to step up against Lockport and Nanney met the challenge.
“Sophia has had an up-and-down season and has had some phenomenal games,” Lincoln-Way East coach Jim Nair said. “She was out for a while with a concussion so that slowed her down a little bit.
“She slowly worked her way back into the lineup, and we are better when Sophia is on the floor making plays for us.”
Like most of Lincoln-Way East’s roster, Nanney spent a lot of time on the bench last season for a senior-dominant team but she’s showing what she can do this winter.
“She didn’t get a lot of minutes last year, so it’s great to see her step up,” Nair said. “None of them saw much time. But they learned from a very good group, and they are not afraid of anybody. We came in here feeling confident that we would come out with a ‘W.’’’
“We all had a lot of fire in our bellies,” Nanney said.
Limpin also showed confidence when she took the jumper that put the Griffins ahead for good.
“I saw my defender under the basket, and I read it and popped out, and luckily my teammates got me the ball and I shot it,” Limpin said. “It was a good shot, thank God.”
Even though the Griffins have nine losses, they have some recent quality road wins over Homewood-Flossmoor and Lockport and played Huntley (22-0) tight in a 50-42 loss on Jan. 18.
“We’re really bringing the energy,” Nanney said. “The team is really cohesive. There is not any separation at all.”
“Throughout the season, we’ve learned to play better together as a team,” Limpin said. “It’s definitely showing in our recent games. We’re all playing together well.”
This will be Nanney’s final year of competitive basketball. She’s planning to major in chemical engineering in college with a long-term goal of being a doctor.
She’s proficient in two areas that could help get here there.
“Math and science just come to me,” she said. “It happened at a young age. I like how easy it comes to me. Chemistry interests me.
“I can read a book in English (class), and it’s not going to be the same feeling.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.