Mack drills 16 points as St. Viator wins again

What St. Viator girls basketball coach Paul Bjerkness likes best about his Lions right now is what they're doing away from the actual games.

"Everyone in practice is making everyone better," he said. "There is a great spirit with this team."

The Lions showed that spirit Monday against Palatine when they rallied from an 18-9 deficit, using a 13-1 run to take a 3-point lead which they never relinquished.

St. Viator (2-1), playing all three games without its top scorer (Susan Hohenadel) and rebounder (Mary Calov) from a year ago, went on to post a 62-45 victory in a third-round game of the Dundee-Crown Thanksgiving tourney at Lake Zurich High School.

"Our passing in general was really good," said Lions senior Ronnie Mack who tossed in game-high 16 points. "We were hitting the open player."

"Ronnie had a very big game," Bjerkness said. "It was a big game all-around for everyone."

The Lions showed great balance on offense as Taylor Skala chipped in 11 points and Emily Leazer, Meghan Malone, Bridget Urbanus and Meghan McGrath all added 8.

"And we did a very nice job rebounding as the game went along," said Bjerkness, who expects Rockhurst University recruit Hohenadel (ankle injury) possibly back for Wednesday's 8:30 p.m. game against Dundee-Crown on the Chargers' floor. "We always talk about rebounding as a group."

Leazer pulled down 10 rebounds (9 on defense), while Mack and McGrath each had 6.

Bjerkness said Calov, a strong rebounder, could miss anywhere from 2-4 weeks with a fractured rib.

Palatine (1-2) was led by junior Lauren Radtke (15 points), junior Katie Mnichowicz (12) and senior Katie Nawrot (11).

Pirates junior Alexis Bauer, the team's top scorer a year ago, will be out until at least early January with mononucleosis, according to Pirates coach Leslie Schock.

Senior Sydney Wiedemann also missed the game Monday with a foot injury but is expected back Wednesday when the Pirates face Hononegah at 7 p.m. at Dundee-Crown.

"Our numbers have been diluted," Schock said. "Defensively, we didn't have a sense of purpose in this game. We aren't going to beat teams giving up 60 and 70 points a game. We are not playing the kind of defense of which we are capable."

A 3-pointer by Mnichowicz and layup at the first-quarter buzzer by Radtke on a quick pass from Scovic gave the Pirates their biggest lead at 18-9.

But the Lions answered with their big 13-1 run, which included steals and a layup by Malone and Urbanus (3 assists).

"I thought Bridget did a great job defensively distracting them," Bjerkness said. "And Emily Leazer played outstanding defense."