Girls basketball / Northwest roundup
Fremd's girls basketball team will go into next week's Charger Classic at Dundee-Crown High School on a sweet note.
The Vikings were tuned in sharply for their second game of the Sweet Sixteen tournament and came away with a 46-42 triumph over Chicago-area power Marist (9-3).
Megan Gray scored 13 points and grabbed 8 rebounds for Fremd (11-2), which led 22-20 at the break.
The 6-foot-1 senior forward produced a pair of 3-point plays which helped get the Vikings ignited in the first quarter when they took a 15-12 lead.
“And Megan did a real nice job on their athletic 6-foot-1 center,” said Fremd coach Dave Yates, whose team is 2-0 in the Sweet Sixteen with its with its first win over Sandburg two weeks ago.
Megan Horn, who missed the Vikings' first three games this season with an ankle injury, came off the bench and scored 7 big points.
“Megan stepped up and played some huge minutes for us,” Yates said. “It hasn't been easy for her coming back from rolling her ankle the day before our first game. It takes a while but she was the most productive she has been all season.”
Yates also credited guards Ashley McConnell and Bridget Kubis for sharing defensive duties on Marist sophomore standout JeTaun Rouse, who scored a game-high 14 points. “This was a definitely a team victory,” Yates said.
Barrington 61, Niles West 53: Niles West junior star Jewel Loyd rang up a 33-point performance in the opening game of the Chicagoland Holiday Classic.
But Barrington's Abby Kirchoff was quite impressive herself.
The Fillies guard tossed home 22 points, including 10 straight late in the third quarter which helped Barrington keep its advantage over the Wolves.
“It was one of Abby's best games all season,” said Barrington coach Babbi Barreiro. “She really stayed composed and made some nice drives to the basket.”
Kirchoff scored 17 points in the second half.
Other top scorers for the Fillies were junior Nicole Collins and senior Shelby Whigham, who each scored 15 points. Collins, Kirchoff and Sarah Mass all hit a 3-pointer.
Collins and Brooke Chandor each pulled down grabbed 8 rebounds.
“Nicole Collins played well on both sides of the floor,” Barreiro said. “Shelby had a nice game inside. It was really a nice effort by the whole team.
“Brooke (Chandor) worked hard the whole game on Jewell Loyd. I didn't think we did a terrible job on her. Brooke didn't make things easy for her. She made her fight for everything she got. She (Loyd) is just a special player. And Niles West is a nice team.”
The Fillies (8-4) will host Proviso East in Barrington today at 1:30 p.m. for a second-round pool play contest.
St. Viator 50, Elmwood Park 36: The host Lions (5-7) got off and rolling in their own Snowflake tourney as juniors Lauren Rooney (13 points, 12 rebounds) and Katie Calmeyn (12 points, 5 assists) helped lead the way.
“Kim McAvoy (senior forward) did a great job on the defensive end of the floor,” added Lions coach Paul Bjerkness. “We asked her to play real tough defense on their best player and Kim stood up to the challenge and did a great job.”
Juniors Katie Gavin and Morgan Hess each chipped in 6 points for Viator, which faces Northside Prep in the second round of pool play today at 7:30 p.m.
“The scoring was pretty balanced throughout the game,” Bjerkness added. “It was a good all-around effort and a good way to start out the tournament. Hopefully, we can build off this game.”
Leyden 51, Fenton 39: Senior guards Moira Quinlan (15 points) and Zashi Vasquez (12) led Leyden in their first-round game of the St. Viator Snowflake Classic. The Eagles will meet Guerin Prep at 6 p.m. today.
Rockford Auburn 44, Rolling Meadows 29: Ann Marie Lynch, Jennifer Vliet and Morgan Keller were top scorers for the Mustangs (9-4) with 6 points apiece in the third-round game of then Mundelein tourney.
“I can't explain it,” said Mustangs coach Todd Hatfield. “This is my worse loss in my three years as coach here. We started the game with three straight turnovers on our first three possessions. Talk about having got go back to basics.”
The Mustangs will wrap up play in the tourney against Mundelein at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday.
Wheeling 53, Niles North 43: Wheeling (3-11) got its first win in the Warren tournament as junior Leah Malsom (13 points) and senior Kayla Jordan (9) were top scorers.
Warren 49, Palatine 31: Warren (5-8, 2-1 in tourney games) outscored Palatine 15-0 in the third quarter to secure a comfortable 33-21 lead in the Blue Devils own tourney.
Warren, which does not have a senior on its roster, outrebounded Palatine 7-1 in the third period.
Palatine (also 5-8 and 2-1) went up 8-4 on a put-back by junior forward Katelyn Mayer (team-high 8 points). But Warren's Taylor Cotey and Amanda Barger (5 points, 5 assists), celebrating her 17th birthday Tuesday, each connected for 3-pointers in the final 2:04 of the first quarter.
The Pirates held the hosts to 8 points in the second quarter.
Palatine scored its first point in the second half when junior reserve guard Laura Schweikert (7 points) hit a free throw at 6:52 of the fourth quarter.
“Huge disappointment,” Pirates coach Leslie Schock said. “Warren came out and played with a purpose in the second half; we did not. I was hoping we'd play the entire game like we did in the first half.”
Palatine's Katie Scovic (5 points) and Lauren Radtke (4 points) each came down with 4 rebounds.
“Palatine plays in such a tough, competitive league (MSL), and the league's teams are all well-coached,” said Warren coach John Stanczykiewicz. “They all play physical basketball, and most have decent shooters. We had concerns before today's game.”
— Bill McLean