Wheeling three-peats in MSL East
Pressure defense led Wheeling to another Mid-Suburban League East Division girls basketball championship.
The Wildcats used a frenetic fullcourt press in the first half Friday night to stymie visiting Rolling Meadows, defeating the Mustangs 48-37 to win a third consecutive East title.
Wheeling (24-4, 8-2), which lost to Hersey and Buffalo Grove in the division, plays for the MSL championship at Fremd on Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m.
Wheeling had 8 steals before 10 minutes were gone, led by senior Bianca Szafarowicz's 5 steals in the first half.
Szafarowicz added a game-high 16 points to go along with 5 rebounds in a dominating performance.
"We came out with a lot of energy," Szafarowicz said. "This (the East title) is one of our goals every year. There are some tough teams in the East this year. I think we underestimated Hersey a little, and at Buffalo Grove (a 2-point loss) we let our guard down."
Wildcats coach Shelly Wiegel was happy for Szafarowicz and the rest of the Wildcats seniors - including Janelle Cannon (12 points), Stephanie Kuzmanic (6 points), Larissa Aguero (2 points), Selma Smajlovic, Chloe Majkowski, Samie Spinabella and Amanda Greiter.
"I'm proud of the girls, and this is especially nice for the seniors," Wiegel said. "This is their last home game and it's great they could finish it out with a win."
The Wildcats opened up a 24-point lead in the second quarter, but the Mustangs refused to quit.
Led by 6-foot freshman center Morgan Keller (12 points), the Mustangs rallied and cut the lead to single digits in the fourth quarter.
"We came out in a zone (in the third quarter) and it was obvious that Wheeling had no clue how to handle it," said Mustangs coach Todd Hatfield. "I'm proud of our team. They played hard and came out and hit some big shots in the second half."
Wildcats sophomore forward Kellie Kuzmanic added 10 points.
"We came out and forced the issue early, and took control of the game," Wiegel said. "I didn't think the outcome was ever in doubt."