Bartlett can't overcome a slow start

Waubonsie Valley scored early and scored often en route to a 56-34 Upstate Eight Conference girls basketball victory over Bartlett on the Hawks home court.

Helping the Warriors to a 15-6 first quarter lead was a defensive scheme that Waubonsie has been using since opening day -- the full-court press.

Early pressure led to a 6-0 run which started with a basket from Rachel Bostick (9 points). A quick steal found Jessica Morice alone on a breakaway to make it 4-0, and the pressure kept coming. After a forced turnover, Danielle Brown (6 points) put up her first points of the night to make it 6-0 Warriors.

Bartlett solved the puzzle soon enough, as Jackie Golevicz hit an open shot from underneath with 5:25 left to play in the first quarter to break the Warrior run making it 6-2.

The Hawks would score just one more time before the conclusion of the first when junior guard Alexa Tovella collected a steal which led to a layup at the buzzer.

Waubonsie Valley (6-0, 1-0) dominated second quarter action going on an 8-0 run behind solid defense and a balanced offensive attack. With scoring from seven different players, the Warriors outscored Bartlett 20-4 in the second quarter.

"I was happy with our first group's defensive efforts," said Waubonsie Valley coach Kris Kalivas. "They did a great job mixing up the defense, and a very nice job on the boards.

"We have a very balanced scoring attack."

Emily Collins led the team in rebounds pulling down 8 while recording 8 points.

Bartlett (0-6, 0-1) found life in the second half which led to 8 unanswered points early.

Following two consecutive Waubonsie steals by Morice (4 points), the Hawks' Becca Cronin (9 points) got things started with a quick drive for 2 points to make it 40-14.

Bartlett recorded 2 steals of its own leading to baskets by Cronin and Tovella, who led the Hawks' offense with 11 points.

"Both Sam (Salinas) and Becca are doing a better job of attacking the basket," said Bartlett coach Denise Sarna. "We are making progress, and I am always happy with the kid's efforts.

"We did a much better job in team defense tonight too."

The run cut the lead to 42-20 as the Hawks more than doubled their entire first half offensive efforts, scoring 12-points in the third quarter.

The final quarter rendered fairly even play with the exception of a 6-0 Bartlett run with 3:19 left in the game.

Brittany Upshaw came off the bench to lead all scorers with 12 points for Waubonsie Valley, seven of which came in the fourth quarter. Erin Decker (8 points) contributed.

"We didn't play with enough intensity, but we did capitalize on some nice runs," Kalivas said. "Defensively, we need to clean some things up. We had too many fouls."

Christina Carlson led the Hawks on the boards with 6 rebounds off the bench.

"Christina is an inside post player for us who is starting to get an idea of how physical this game can be," Sarna said. "She showed some great improvements.

"Waubonsie is a very good, experienced team with a lot of weapons."

South Elgin 54, McHenry 53: Down 18-4 early, South Elgin (3-4) slowly caught up to McHenry and won the game on 2 free throws by Genevieve Johnson with one second left on the clock. Johnson and Cortney Kumerow collected 12 points each to lead the Storm.

Walther Lutheran 63, Westminster Christian 19: The Warriors (0-4, 0-1) suffered a tough Private School League loss to Walther Lutheran. Leading Westminster was Beth Kautz with 6 points. Rachel Doby added 5 points for Westminster. Walther Lutheran made nine 3-pointers in the game.