The college basketball career of Le’lani Harris is coming to an end in a few months.
Harris, a 5-foot-10 senior guard and Marist product, will graduate from St. Francis in Joliet with a bachelor’s degree in marketing. But there’s still more business for her to take care of this winter.
“I’m excited to end my career here,” she said. “There’s no place else I would rather be.”
Before she puts on the cap and gown and enters the business world, Harris and her teammates want the undefeated Saints to make a deep run in the NAIA Tournament.
St. Francis (16-0) was ranked No. 17 in the nation in the Nov. 26 poll by the NAIA’s coaches. The Dec. 17 poll wasn’t released and the next poll is scheduled for Jan. 14.
Since the last poll, the Saints won 10 straight games and scored 100 or more points three times, including Saturday’s 119-33 win over Mount Mary and a 103-44 win on Dec. 28 over East-West.
Harris, who leads the team in scoring by averaging 15.4 points, is happy with the red-hot Saints.
“We worked so hard during the summer and during the season and it’s really nice to see it come to fruition for us,” she said. “We liked what we’ve done so far and we need to keep it going.
“I knew we had it in us. Last year didn’t end like we wanted it to, and we all had a chip on our shoulder.”
Last season, the Saints finished 25-8 but lost to Dordt 73-48 in the second round of the NAIA Tournament. Dordt went on to win four more games to claim the national championship.
Harris, an Oak Lawn native, actually missed a chunk of her sophomore season with a knee injury but has returned with a consistent vengeance, also averaging 15 points a game as a junior.
She delivered a 34-point performance on Dec. 17 in a 91-65 win over Clarke.
“Le’lani has been a great leader for us,” St. Francis coach John McGinty said. “She does a really good job of holding players accountable for us.
“She’s battling that thing every day with her knee to rehab that thing. But she’s back to playing at a high level and I’m happy that she is seeing that ball go through the net.”
The roster and coaching staff for the Saints have plenty of Southland talent.
The roster features Taylor Schergen (De La Salle), Alainna Poisson (Marian Catholic), Laurelei Thormeyer (Providence) and Mia Kennelly (Oak Lawn).
McGinty was an assistant boys coach at St. Laurence. USF assistants Jimmy Copenhaver (Providence), Janae Poisson (Marian) and Hanna Swiatek (Mother McAuley) are also on board.
Kennelly and Harris also have an interesting backstory. Before high school, the two had some fun battles, with Kennelly going to grade school at St. Gerald and Harris at Queen of Martyrs.
“There was always a good turnout when we played,” Harris said. “Whenever we played them, we had to shut Mia down. That was hard to do and it still is.”
After Harris’ injury and Kennelly missing the 2024-25 season with a hip injury, they are both finally getting a lot of time on the court together.
“We mesh pretty well,” Kennelly said of Harris. “Coming back and being able to play with Le’lani and the other seniors is great and our record is amazing.”
And who knew that the two rivals from grade school would grow up and help build a national college powerhouse?
“Lani is one of the best teammates I’ve ever played with,” Kennelly said. “She’s always picking us up in practice. If my confidence is low, she’s always picking me up.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.