Saturday's Fox Valley roundup
Burlington Central's girls basketball team has yet to play a game with its full lineup.
While the Rockets welcomed back the return of senior Molly Turk against Lisle on Saturday, they were without junior point guard Jordan Maisto after she sprained her wrist in Friday's loss to Sycamore.
Without her in the lineup, Central knew it was going to need to get all the help it could from the rest of the lineup.
Taylor Colby provided the offense, finishing with 20 points in the Rockets' 42-39 victory over Lisle in the Central Thanksgiving Classic Basketball Tournament.
The entire team provided the defense, as Central held Lisle (0-1) to 1 of 14 from the floor in the fourth quarter and was able to gut out a victory after trailing 32-31 entering the fourth quarter.
"A lot of girls had to pick up the slack," said Colby, who added 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. "Usually (Jordan) is a huge help. All of us picked it up."
After trailing 8-5 at the end of the first quarter, the Lions were the ones picking their shooting efforts up. Lisle went a combined 10 of 26 from the floor in the second and third quarters. Tara Sarb nailed three 3-pointers and Jackie Todd added 11 of her team-high 13 points in the stretch. Lisle coach Jeff Javior found out exactly what he was dealing with early into Lisle's first game.
"We found out real quick," he said. "Tara Sarb came off the bench and had a really good game. That's why she's here, to shoot. (Also) her overall game was pretty good."
For all of the damage that Todd and Sarb inflicted on Central, the Rockets didn't allow anything in the fourth quarter.
Sarb gave Lisle a 32-31 lead with 1:06 remaining in the third quarter, but it would be the Lions' last basket for over 6 minutes. Central did not allow a Lisle field goal for 6 minutes, 19 seconds while building a 37-32 lead by a pair of baskets from Alli Settanni (8 points, 7 rebounds) and a bucket by Colby.
Even after junior Colleen Drennan broke the drought with the Lions' lone basket of the fourth quarter, Colby responded with a 3-pointer on the Rockets' next trip down the floor to put Central ahead 40-34.
Todd had a chance to make bring Lisle with in a basket, but missed a pair of free throws with 1:02 left. Overall, Lisle was 5 of 11 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.
"I was real proud of everyone," Central coach Wade Maisto said. "They all stepped up a did a nice job. I was real pleased with our defensive intensity in the fourth quarter. Taylor had a huge game for us, she picked up some of the offense."
Maisto said he is hopeful his daughter can return to the lineup against Belvidere North on Tuesday, but also said it is possible that the right wrist sprain could keep her out for the entire Thanksgiving tournament.
Burlington Central 58, Harlem 50: Molly Turk scored 17 points, Taylor Colby added 13 and Alli Settanni 12 as the Rockets (2-2) made it a clean sweep for the day. Turk scored 13 of her points in the fourth quarter as the Rockets rallied from a 40-34 deficit entering the quarter.
Rosary 65, Elgin 34: There are certain keys to success that a program in transition can establish while it waits for the rest to come around.
Defensive intensity is one of those, and the young Rosary Royals proved Saturday that it's one area where they are capable of excelling.
The Rosary defense swarmed all over Elgin's ballhandlers in their opening round game of the Geneva Invitational, using 8 Maroon turnovers in the opening 4 minutes to build a 23-5 lead after one quarter.
"We came out really well," Rosary coach Dave Beebe said. "Most of the week our focus was on defense, and I was happy with that part of our game today."
With Lane Richmond running the offense, the Royals knocked the Maroons back on their heels, and kept them there throughout the first half.
"Offensively, we had a pretty good game," Beebe said. "Our guards showed that they can play really well, and I was very happy with our post players."
With Elgin's Ellen Holton forced to sit down after committing a quick pair fouls, the Royals tore off a 31-1 run, opening a 33-5 lead midway through the second quarter, on the way to a 65-34 win.
"That took us out of our game, and we didn't have much on offense after that," Elgin coach Angie Hudson said. "We were not ready to play at all today. There was a real lack of enthusiasm at the start of the game, and Rosary had a heck of a first half."
Without much resistance underneath, Rosary junior Jordan Rettig was free to operate at will, scoring 19 of her game high 25 points in the opening half.
"We've worked on being more aggressive as a team, and that really helps with rebounding," Rettig said.
Rettig's 10 rebounds were part of a 44-22 advantage Rosary enjoyed on the boards.
When Rettig wasn't exploiting holes in the Elgin defense, Katie Petrando was, scoring 15 points to go with 12 boards.
"We wanted to put a lot of pressure on them," Petrando said.
Though Rosary (2-0) led 40-14 after two quarters, the Maroons came out energized and on the attack after the break.
"At the half I talked to a couple of kids who are usually our leaders, and that seemed to make a difference," Hudson said.
The Maroons did a much better job of taking care of the ball at the start of the second half, and though that effort did not always translate into points, the way his team responded did give Beebe some cause for concern.
"At times we looked like a really good team, at other times we looked like a team that still has a lot of work to do in practice," Beebe said.
Holton led the Maroons (1-1) with 14 points in limited time.
Stephanie Haugen joined teammates Rettig and Petrando in double-digit scoring with 14 points.
-Henry Perez
Hampshire splits: Hampshire (3-1) endured its first loss of the season dropping a close 56-51 battle to Peoria Woodruff, but quickly bounced back to beat Yorkville 61-36 in Round 3 of the 6th Annual DeKalb Turkey Toss-Up.
Down 30-22 at the half of the opener, the Whips got to within 5 points before falling. Christine Heine led the way with 23 points backed by Alex Dumoulin (13 points) and Cassie Dumoulin (11 points).
"Woodruff was a very athletic, very well coached team," said Hampshire coach Sue Ellett. "We were a pass or two away from catching them. Our inside play was excellent with Christine, Alex and Cassie leading the way. We definitely got better today."
The Whips went on to beat Yorkville 61-36 led by Cassie Dumoulin with 19 points. Christine Schumacher added 10 points while Heine and Alex Dumoulin each scored 8 points.
At Dundee-Crown: With 8 points each from Caitlin Marchant and Arielle Gallione, Streamwood (2-1) topped McHenry 38-33 in the Dundee-Crown Thanksgiving Tournament. Lizi Liberman and Michele Tomczak each added 6 points... A solid 17-point showing from Maria Tamburrino helped Jacobs beat Palatine 47-28. Katy Cook (8 points), Hailey Cnota (7 points) and Keri Bultman (6 points) contributed... Leading 34-31 entering the fourth quarter, Cary-Grove (3-0) outscored Palatine 18-8 to beat the Pirates 52-39. The Trojans saw three players score in double digits. Christina Bear and Claire Jakubicek led the way with 12 points each, while Tori Sandstrom added 11 points. Meg Straumann scored 9 points to hep the Trojan offense... Tiffany Mosher and Alex Lococo each scored 8 points but Dundee-Crown (1-2) fell to Fremd 63-36.
South Elgin 55, Elk Grove 47: South Elgin improved to 2-1 overall with this win in the Elk Grove/Fenton/Lake Park Tournament. Genevieve Johnson and Cortney Kumerow each scored 12 points for the Storm. Alyssa Krause tacked on 11 points, and Dijon Smith added 10 points in the winning effort.
Crystal Lake South 48, Libertyville 32: Knotted at 9-9 after the first quarter, Crystal Lake South (2-0) pulled away in the second quarter to beat Libertyville in Game 2 of the Bison Thanksgiving Basketball Tournament. Caitlin Mize led all scorers with 11 points, while Jessica Taldone and Michelle Gaede each added 10 points in the Gator win.
Huntley 58, Naperville North 48: With double-digit offensive production from four different players, Huntley opened the season with this win over Naperville North in the Waubonsie WarHawk Tournament. Hillary Johnson led the attack with 14 points followed by Kadie Lowery (12 points), Cecilia Tsevas (11 points) and Allyson Stellmach with 10 points. Johnson also had 5 rebounds, while Carly Goede contributed with 7 points, 7 assists and 4 steals.
Larkin falls twice: The Royals lost twice at the Oregon tournament, falling to the host school 76-37 and then to Mendota 41-23. Nadyah Spencer had 8 points for Larkin in the loss to Oregon.