Viator prevails against Jacobs
St. Viator opened its girls basketball season exactly the way it wanted to.
The Lions got Jacobs star Markie Rahn in foul trouble early, took a 12-6 first-quarter lead and never trailed again, winning their opening game of the Dundee-Crown Thanksgiving Tournament 33-26 over Jacobs.
"It was big for us," St. Viator coach Paul Bjerkness said. "They jumped out to a 4-0 lead, but after that we were able to stabilize them. It was good for us to come out with intensity."
Stabilizing Jacobs meant getting Rahn out of the game.
Rahn (4 points, 4 steals), one of only two seniors on the Golden Eagles' roster, picked up her second foul just two minutes, five seconds into the game. Jacobs then watched St. Viator (1-0) turn a 4-0 deficit into a 12-2 run to close out the quarter.
"That hurt us," Jacobs coach Ed Haugens said of Rahn's foul trouble. "She's a sound offensive player."
Led by 7 points from Jenny Muench, St. Viator stormed back.
Tori Callero (3 points, 3 assists, 3 steals) broke a 4-4 tie after splitting a pair of free throws with 2:51 remaining in the first quarter. The senior extended the lead to 7-5 after picking off a pass in the Jacobs backcourt and taking it in for the score. Muench nailed a 3-pointer less than a minute later to put St. Viator up 10-4.
"It was a good relief," Muench said of the scoring run. "Everybody calmed down. Confidence was huge. Everyone played unselfish."
Jacobs pulled within 29-26 with 4:38 remaining in the game, but could never close the gap. Keri Bultman (6 points) pulled the Golden Eagles within one possession when she connected on a jumper midway through the fourth period, but St. Viator's defense prevented the Golden Eagles from scoring the rest of the way.
Jacobs missed its final 5 shots.
St. Viator point guard Kelly Hendricks scored the next basket when she made it 31-26 with 1:41 left to play. The junior then stole the ball, ran down the court, drew a foul and sank both free throws to extend the lead to 33-26.
Jacobs won the rebounding battle 28-21, with sophomore Hailey Cnota (11 rebounds, 2 blocks) finishing with 8 in the first half. Sophomore Maria Tamburia and senior Stephanie Lemy added 6 points apiece for Jacobs.
McHenry 39, Fremd 37: A 3-point play by Kaitlin Halsread (19 points) with 40 seconds left wiped out a 1-point Fremd (0-2) lead in its opener of the Dundee-Crown tournament.
Fremd had a 4-point lead midway through the fourth quarter and missed a shot to force overtime. Taylor Glassman had 13 points and a 3-pointer and Lauren Zaworski added 6 points.