Waubonsie rides early run to win
Waubonsie Valley scored early and scored often en route to a 56-34 Upstate Eight Conference opening 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 that started with a basket from Rachel Bostick. 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 put up her first points of the night to make it 6-0 Warriors.
Bartlett solved the puzzle soon enough allowing Jackie Golevicz an open shot on from underneath with 5:25 left to play in the first quarter to break the Warriors' 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 efforts 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 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 with 8 while scoring 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, the Hawks' Becca Cronin got things started with a quick drive for 2-points to make it 40-14.
Bartlett recorded two 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 kids' efforts.
"We did a much better job in team defense tonight too," Sarna added.
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 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."
-- Jen LaPorte
Fenwick 66, Neuqua Valley 24:ŒIt didn't take long for it to become clear that Neuqua Valley was overmatched in its nonconference game vs. Fenwick.
The visiting Friars' first-quarter output matched the Wildcats' game total, and the 66-24 final left Neuqua Valley coach Mike Williams understandably frustrated.
"I don't know what there is to say; they're obviously much better than us," Williams said.
Fenwick (6-1) hit the court running, leaving the Wildcats looking up at a double-digit deficit before their home crowd had settled in.
"We're a team that likes to push the ball and really get the offense going," Fenwick coach Dave Power said. "We don't have a lot of players, but I'm able to rotate all of them in."
How potent is Fenwick's offense? That 66-point total represented their lowest scoring output of the season.
"The score may not reflect it, but Neuqua Valley played tough defense against us, and because of that we got a little sloppy," Power said.
Fenwick sophomore Tricia Liston scored 11 of her game-high 25 in the first quarter and was just as effective on defense, collecting 7 steals in the game.
Sparked by an aggressive effort on defense, the Wildcats made a stand in the second quarter and managed to slow the Friars down a bit.
Beth Goldberg provided a highlight for Neuqua Valley when she banked in a long 3-pointer with just under two minutes to go in the half. But too often the well-defended Wildcats were forced to settle for difficult shots that just weren't dropping, and by halftime the Fenwick lead had grown to 39-15.
Katlyn Payne, another sophomore, stepped up for the Friars as Liston saw only limited floor time in the second half. It was that 1-2 punch of Liston and Payne that helped Fenwick run away from the Wildcats (5-2) in the last two quarters.
"Liston can do it all," Power said. "And Payne is the sort of player who will get you turnovers and rebounds and can score, too."
Lost in the shuffle of a one-sided game were solid defensive efforts by Megan Rice and Katie Medrec. But this just wasn't Neuqua Valley's night.
"Fenwick is a very good team, and I want to apologize to them for not giving them a better game," Williams said. "We did not play the way that we're capable of. We're a much better team than this."
-- Henry Perez
Glenbard East 44, West Chicago 37:ŒThere were moments -- three of them to be exact -- when it appeared Glenbard East was about to put away West Chicago and embark on a blowout victory.
That the Rams put themselves in that position says a lot about the talent on Nicole Miller's squad.
But on each occasion West Chicago came roaring back, and while the Wildcats did not win their DuPage Valley Conference opener, they showed there is plenty of fight in Kim Wallner's club.
Glenbard East held on for a 44-37 victory.
"It was a pretty scrappy game," Miller said. "It was a physical game and it just came down to who had composure at the end of the ballgame."
That the game was still in doubt inside the final minute was due to a series of West Chicago rallies. Glenbard East (4-3, 1-0) raced to a 13-2 lead at the end of the first quarter, an advantage that grew to 18-2 two minutes into the second quarter.
West Chicago (0-7, 0-1) refused to quit and rallied to within 19-12 by halftime.
"Their defense really picked it up, and we didn't have an answer for that," Miller said. "We gathered ourselves at halftime and tried to come out and extend the lead again."
The rally continued into the second half and ended when Kayla Radloff hit a driving layup to tie the game 19-19.
"Thirteen-two," Wallner said, repeating the first-quarter score. "You tell me the difference between that team and the team you saw from us the rest of the game. We don't always do the right things, but at least the energy came around."
Glenbard East put on a quick burst and scored 6 straight points but West Chicago answered with a mini-run and was within 25-22 midway through the quarter.
The Rams tried for the knockout once more and used a 13-4 run to build take a 38-26 lead with five minutes to play in the game.
"Keep in mind that we will never fold our tent as long as I am the coach," Wallner said.
West Chicago again answered the call and was behind 40-37 entering the final minute. The Wildcats got the Rams to miss some free throws, but the hosts got all the key rebounds and eventually sealed the win.
Glenbard East's Erin Holden led all scorers with 14 points and added 7 rebounds. Kelsey Taylor chipped in 10 points.
Rebounding was a key in the game. Glenbard East outboarded the Wildcats 41-21.
Radloff led West Chicago with 11 points. Quin Gable chipped in 10, including 5 points down the stretch as the Wildcats tried to rally for the victory.
"I'm not into moral victories, but at least we put ourselves back in the game and had a chance to win it," Wallner said.
-- Darryl Mellema
Willowbrook 38, Joliet Catholic 34:ŒThe Warriors (5-2) went 22 of 30 from the foul line in earning a victory on the road.
Collette Williams made all 9 of her free throws on the way to a team-high 11 points and Angela Domin scored 10 for the winners.
Lisle 48, Seneca 46 (OT):ŒThe Lions (2-5, 2-0) outscored Seneca 11-6 in the fourth quarter to force overtime, then outscored the home team 7-5 in the extra period to win the Interstate Eight Conference game.
Jackie Todd led Lisle in scoring with 15 points. Megan Hannan chipped in 11.
Wheaton North 70, Naperville North 33:ŒThe Falcons (3-2, 1-1) opened the DuPage Valley Conference season with a 20-0 run in their blowout victory.
Madison Goudy scored 14, Michelle Scandora 12, Jamei Shin 11 and Brittany Nelson 10 for Wheaton North.
The Falcons went 5 for 11 from 3-point territory.
York 53, East Aurora 31:ŒCourtney Owens' 17 points and Brianne Graunke's 10 points and 5 rebounds sparked York (3-3) to a nonconference triumph.
The Dukes jumped ahead 13-2 in the first quarter, and wound up making 21 of 27 free throws.