Defense lifts Huntley past Dundee-Crown
Huntley prides itself on its defense.
The Red Raiders' couldn't have asked for a better exhibition of their defense than the first quarter of Tuesday night's 58-42 Fox Valley Conference crossover girls basketball victory over Dundee-Crown in Carpentersville.
Huntley (4-1) limited the Chargers (1-4) to just 2 points on a 0 of 5 shooting effort, but more importantly set the tone for the entire game.
"Defense wins games," Huntley forward Hillary Johnson said. "We forced turnovers and made stops. We played our defense and finished on the offensive end."
Huntley's defense allowed it go on an 18-2 run and held Dundee-Crown without a field goal for the first 10 minutes, 12 seconds of play. Dundee-Crown also turned the ball over 8 times in the opening period, with Huntley guard Carly Goede scoring 8 of her game-high 12 points in the first quarter.
"We definitely got out to a slow start," Dundee-Crown coach Michelle Russell said. "We relaxed a little bit and realized the flow and how to attack. We turned on the press."
The Chargers' attack mode allowed them to come within 42-34 as Jill Gantz scored off an offensive putback with 7:26 left to play. After Huntley turned the ball over just one time in the first quarter, the Chargers forced 5 in each of the remaining periods.
They also got some offense going. Melissa Summaria (2 steals) scored 7 of her 8 points in the third quarter and Tori Scarpelli (2 steals, 1 assist) scored 6 of her 8 points in the second half.
Huntley was able to answer back every time.
After Dundee-Crown made it an 8-point game, Goede and Katie Lowery (8 points, 2 assists) made back-to-back baskets to extend Huntley's lead to 46-34. The Red Raiders then forced a Dundee-Crown turnover and got a free throw from Rachel Chapuis. Chapuis missed the second free-throw leading to a putback by Johnson (11 points, 8 rebounds) and a 49-34 advantage.
"We set the tone early in the first quarter," Huntley coach Steve Raethz said. "We were able to extend our lead a little bit in the second half. Amanda Wisniewski in particular really stepped up on the defensive end."
Huntley suffered a scare when starting point guard Megan Martinez fell to the floor in pain with 3:55 left in the second quarter. Martinez (2 steals, 1 assist) tweaked her already injured right ankle. She did not return to the game, with her ankle iced for most of the game, but Raethz said she should be able to play Friday.