Hampshire wins 37th straight in BN-East
There wasn't a whole lot that Hampshire did wrong against North Boone on Saturday.
The Whips jumped out to 28-9 by the end of the first quarter and forced North Boone into 17 first-half turnovers. Hampshire had all 5 starters score in the first quarter with even ball distribution.
But the most impressive stat of the night was Hampshire's overall team defense, which limited North Boone (8-12, 3-5) to just 10 shot attempts in the first half. The lack of shots allowed Hampshire to cruise to a 75-29 Big Northern Conference East victory, the Whips' 37th straight win in the league.
"Our defense really stepped up tonight," Hampshire guard Jessie Van Dorin said. "We played really well tonight. We really played as a team."
The team concept worked perfectly for the Whips (22-2, 8-0).
Van Dorin had 18 points off six 3-pointers to lead all players, Karla Vietinghoff tallied 17 points, Alex Dumoulin added 12 and Michelle Dumoulin chipped in 8.
Grace Jakubowski scored 5 points, but finished with 8 assists and 5 steals, while Jennifer Dumoulin scored 8 points off the bench.
"We talk about equal opportunity and taking shots from where we are shooting well," Hampshire coach Ed Haugens said. "It's not like we're setting up any one player to score. The girls are seeing each other better. They're not just looking for the strong side players, they're looking for the weak side."
Vietinghoff was a recipient of the weakside ball movement. The senior forward opened the game up going 3 of 3 in the first quarter, including draining a pair of 3-pointers coming off a weakside screen.
"My teammates were helping me out," said Vietinghoff, who also added 5 steals and 2 assists in the win. "We're looking for each other more."
Hampshire finished with 19 assists on its 30 shots, with 7 players recording at least 1 assist. Hampshire's patience showed as it shot 61.1 percent (11 of 18) from the floor in the first quarter. Michelle Dumoulin (3 steals, 2 assists) connected on all 3 of her shot attempts in the first period.
Alex Dumoulin scored 8 points in the second quarter as Hampshire outscored North Boone 20-6 in the period. The Vikings did not get a shot attempt off until there was 3 minutes, 7 seconds left in the quarter. Hampshire was leading 41-11 before North Boone connected on its first basket of the second quarter to cut the lead to 41-13 with 2:30 left in the first half.
Ashlea Ekberg and Megan Johnson finished with 6 points apiece to lead North Boone, while Elisa Wood added 6 rebounds for Hampshire.
Girls basketball
Cary-Grove 57, McHenry 41: Claire Jakubicek scored 22 points and Paige Lincicum had 14 as the Trojans (21-3, 8-0) rolled to another Fox Valley Conference Valley Division win. Cary-Grove can clinch at least a share of its second straight Valley title with a win over Jacobs Tuesday. Megan Straumann added 9 points for the Trojans in Saturday's win.
Huntley 41, Dundee-Crown 31: Down 24-22 entering the fourth quarter, Huntley (15-6, 7-1) found its offense and kept pace in the FVC Valley by defeating Dundee-Crown. If the Red Raiders beat McHenry on Tuesday, they will host Cary-Grove next Saturday with a share of the Valley title on the line, provided C-G beats Jacobs Tuesday. Kadie Lowery led Huntley, which is still without injured scoring leader Carly Goede, with 10 points while CeCe Tsevas and Meagan Flynn had 8 each. Diamond Williams had 9 points for the Chargers (6-16, 1-7).
CL South 36, Jacobs 31: The Gators (3-20, 1-7) won their first FVC Valley game of the season as Brittany Pittas scored 12 points and Stephanie Melone 11. Melanie Schwerdtmann had 19 points to lead Jacobs (3-20, 2-6).
St. Charles East 47, Elgin 30: The Maroons trailed just 26-18 at halftime but could only manage 12 second-half points in losing this Upstate Eight River game. Briana Hamilton had 10 points to lead Elgin (0-23, 0-10). "Our kids played really well," said Elgin coach Dr. Nick Bumbales. "They hung in there and played hard."
Kirkland Hiawatha 35, Westminster Christian 30: Mikala Hays had 9 points for Westminster (12-10) in a nonconference loss.
Geneva 86, Larkin 16: Jill Casebeer led Larkin (3-19, 2-7) with 8 points in this lopsided Upstate Eight River game.
Burlington Central 52, Harvard 34: Alli Settanni had 18 points and Sarah Nelson added 10 as the Rockets (11-12, 5-3) won in the Big Northern East. Central was still without starting center Brenda Thasavong, who is out with illness. Amanda Ritchie and Jessica Laird added 8 points each for BC. "We had a lot of support off the bench. It was a good team win," said Rockets coach Stephanie Smith.
Boys basketball
CL South 48, Marian Central 30: Kevin Rogers scored 15 points and Tyler Kretchner had 10 for the Gators (11-8) in this nonconference win.
John Radtke contributed to this report.