ROXANA - Marquette Catholic set an early pace and never trailed on the way to a 44-32 win over Gillespie to claim the Class 2A Roxana Regional title on Thursday night, Feb. 19, 2026.
Marquette Catholic head coach Whitney Sykes said the Explorers established control in the opening quarter and relied on ball security down the stretch to close out the championship.
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“I felt like we set the tone early and put some good points up in the first quarter that put them in a bit of a hole,” Sykes said. “We were a little slow in the third, but finished that quarter really strong. At that point, we knew if we just took care of the ball, we would be fine. Laila Davis had a great game and hit several big shots. We know the next game will be extremely difficult, but we will be as prepared as possible.”
Marquette led 17-9 after one quarter and 24-16 at halftime. The Explorers outscored Gillespie 16-15 in the third quarter before finishing off the 12-point victory, 44-32.
Laila Davis scored 14 points for Marquette Catholic, and Allie Weiner added 13. Delaney Ortmann had 9 points, and Caylee Rhodes scored 6 for the Explorers.
Amari Vickrey led Gillespie with 17 points, the highest total by either team.
