Acosta, West stop Palatine

Samantha Acosta claims she was nervous for her first varsity start.

She hardly looked like it.

The Maine West sophomore guard tossed in a team-high 15 points with 3 rebounds and 2 steals Monday night as the Warriors pulled away at the end for a 44-36 victory at Palatine in each team's girls basketball season opener.

"I was so nervous at the beginning," said Acosta, who was the leading scorer for West's sophomore team a year ago. "All my teammates were telling me to calm down but I was still nervous."

The game was tense, too, until West went on a big run late in the third quarter.

A layup by Lauren Oriss put the Pirates ahead 24-23 with three minutes left in the third quarter.

But the Warriors went on a 12-0 run and did not allow Palatine a point until senior Megan Boecher hit a free throw with 4:06 left in the game.

Senior Mary Kusner (11 points, 10 rebounds) had four buckets during the 12-0 rally while classmate Colleen Vana had one and junior Shaina Yalda, making her varsity debut, had the other.

"Shaina handled the basketball well and I thought she handled herself well for her first game," said Maine West coach Derril Kipp, who notched career win No. 650.

"He's a great coach and I'm so happy to play for him," said Vana, who collected 5 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists. "He's incredible.

"We knew that Palatine played hard and aggressive. We had to stay mentally tough the whole way."

Erin Baumstark added 7 points and sophomore Ellen Coogan had a pair of steals for West.

Junior Katie MacFabe (17 points, 9 rebounds) and senior Megan Boecher (9 points, 9 rebounds), playing her first varsity game, led Palatine.

Pirates coach Ron Theberge does not expect 5-foot-9 senior Kristina Lane (illness) back until perhaps December.

"Katie MacFabe obviously did nice job," he said. "I thought Megan Boecher and Jessica Ritsche (senior guard) also played well. Obviously missing Kristina hurts but it was a great opportunity for other girls to step up."

Nikki Linares added 7 rebounds for Palatine while Sarah Iuorio had 2 steals.

Three-time all-area selection Brittany Begrowicz (ACL surgery this summer) could make her season debut Saturday for Maine West.

"Getting Brittany back will make a huge difference in what we can do," Kipp said. "With Mary (Kusner) getting in foul trouble in the first half we stopped going inside."

But Acosta hit from the outside and inside.

"She's a scorer," Kipp said. "That's what we want her to do. We want to get her open."

Prospect 48, Libertyville 43: A lot is expected this season from Prospect senior forward Megan Murray.

If Monday night's game at Libertyville is any indication, Prospect's only returning starter is up for the challenge.

Murray scored a game-high 24 points to lead the Knights to a 48-43 victory in the season opener for both teams.

"Megan Murray was fabulous," said first-year coach Martha Kelly, who recorded her first varsity victory.

Prospect leaned heavily on Murray at the start of the game. She scored 8 of Prospect's first 10 points to help stake the Knights to a 10-2 lead.

Early in the third quarter, she came through again in a big way. With Prospect leading 21-20, she scored 6 of her team's next 7 points to help the Knights open a 28-20 advantage. Twice in the second half, she rebounded a miss on a Prospect free throw and put it back for a score.

"I've always played with older girls, so it's pretty cool to play with this (group)," Murray said. "I'm excited with what I've seen so far."

Libertyville played without senior Ali Haws and junior Maka Stewart. Haws and Stewart, who figure to be key contributors, played on the Wildcats' volleyball team that placed fourth at state. They were on the bench Monday and will practice with the team this week and should be ready to go for the Wildcats' next game.

After a shaky start, Libertyville hung around the whole way. The Wildcats trailed 39-30 with 4:33 remaining in the fourth quarter, but scored 7 consecutive points to pull within 2.

Down the stretch, Prospect relied heavily on the free throw shooting of sophomore guard Lexi Glennon (5 of 7). Glennon finished with 9 points.

"We had butterflies in the beginning, but we responded and didn't get discouraged," Libertyville coach Kathie Swanson said. "If we use our basketball IQ a little better, we should be competitive with all the teams we play this season."

Libertyville's Kristy Williams contributed 10 points.

"She drove to the basket and gave us good looks on offense," Swanson said.

-- Bob Gosman

Rolling Meadows 43, Lakes 34: Liezl Aluquin scored 17 points with 4 rebounds and 2 assists as Rolling Meadows started its season with a win in the Mundelein tourney.

"She pretty much did everything for us," said Rolling Meadows coach Pat O'Connell about his 5-foot-1 senior guard. "Because we're not real big, we had to rebound by committee and I was pleased with at."

Senior Alexa Bennett (6 points), freshman Sara Shumaker and senior Emily Miller all had 4 rebounds, too, while junior Taylor Fritz (2 assists) and senior Shannon McGuire (6 points) each had 3 steals.

Evanston 45, Fremd 29:ΠSenior Tracy Nachtsheim (11 points) hit three 3-pointers for Fremd in its season opener against visiting Evanston.

Sophomore Taylor Glassman added 5 points for the Vikings.