Senior guard Grace Gambotz pounded the ball once on her palm for Mother McAuley.
That indicated the start of an inbounds play, but for reasons unknown, the Hersey defender had her back to Gambotz. She seized the opportunity, bouncing the ball off the player’s back, grabbing the ball back and converting a layup.
Just like Gambotz used to draw it up on the driveway back in the day with the big group of kids from her Palos Heights neighborhood, including sophomore guard Quinn Arundel.
“It’s something I did a lot in travel,” Gambotz said with a smile. “When they’re not facing me, I like to pull that off.”
Gambotz pulled that off and then some Saturday, producing 15 points and four rebounds in a 59-48 victory over Hersey in a Grow the Game Shootout game at Hinsdale Central.
Senior forward Morgan Feil was named player of the game for McAuley (13-5) with 18 points and seven rebounds. Arundel chipped in with 13 points.
The whole neighborhood connection is special to Gambotz, a former softball player who gave that up in high school to focus on basketball.
“Quinn lives two blocks down, and during COVID, we’d camp out in her driveway,” Gambotz said. “There were like 10 kids, and we’d play mostly all day long.
“It was pickup for fun. We’d do girls vs. boys, and usually me and Quinn would shoot by ourselves.”
The neighborhood is also important to Arundel, who said it feels like the kids there have been playing basketball together forever, honing their skills while having a great time.
“We’d do three-on-three tournaments at my house or the gym,” she said.
Gambotz, who was originally slated to go to Stagg, picked McAuley after she and senior teammate Maeve Egan shadowed former Mighty Macs star Bella Finnegan, who now plays at Indiana State.
Right away, Gambotz loved the environment at McAuley and realized she would be at home for her high school years.
That was all fine until the pandemic hit her freshman year, which left her and her friends in the driveway. When her freshman season finally started, an abbreviated six-week schedule in spring 2021, she played on the varsity but the conditions were less than ideal.
For example, consider her first varsity game, a road loss to Loyola. Parents and spectators weren’t allowed to attend, and Gambotz, Feil and Egan all had to wear masks.
“It was really weird,” Gambotz said. “It was already a big adjustment. The season was like a month or a month and a half. It feels like so long ago.”
But now Gambotz, Egan and Feil are fueling a potent attack as seniors. Gambotz is averaging 11.1 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists. On Saturday, she vaulted over the 800-point mark for her career.
Mighty Macs coach Curtis Lewis said Gambotz has a good midrange jumper. With one or two dribbles, she can shoot effectively off the glass.
Mike Seberger, founder and director at the Lady Lightning program, said Gambotz is “just a gritty player who can score at all three levels and guard other kids.”
But there’s more to Gambotz’s game. She’s also a co-captain.
“I think she’s slowly progressed as a vocal leader throughout the year, not just in games but in practice,” Lewis said. “I think the girls look up to her for guidance to step in and get us under control.”
Gambotz will enjoy her last weeks of high school basketball before moving on to Saginaw Valley State. But the neighborhood will never be far from her mind.
“It was super fun and it still is,” Gambotz said, adding that she, her two older brothers, Arundel and many others simply “chop it up in the driveway.”
Gregg Voss is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
