Prospect makes its point, edges Carmel
One point is all the Prospect girls basketball team scored in the first quarter on Tuesday night. It turned out to be one very important point.
Because the No. 8 seed Knights turned things around the rest of the way and pulled out a 1-point victory over No. 9 Carmel 37-36 in Class 4A regional semifinal play at Deerfield.
“Basically, I told (the girls) to play like the way we’ve been practicing,” Prospect coach Martha Kelly said. “They were doing things that we’re just not used to doing.
“When we came out in the third quarter, we made layups and did things that we were practicing. That was the key, getting back to the way we wanted to play and we normally play.”
Prospect (15-12) will get its shot at top-seeded Libertyville (28-0) in the regional final at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Deerfield.
The Knights were down at one point in the second quarter 13-1 but chipped their way back and trailed 17-11 by halftime.
Prospect took the lead for the first time on Michelle Molini’s 3-pointer with 3:15 left in the third quarter for a 23-21 lead.
“It was pretty big and gave us the lead,” Molini said. “I figured I had to take a chance and we needed something big. It was a momentum-builder.”
The Knights didn’t let up, taking a 25-22 advantage into the final quarter and never treiled trailed.
Prospect’s Sarah Hunt scored 13 of her game-high 16 points in the second half and pulled down 13 boards.
“We definitely had a slow start,” Hunt said. “We picked up our energy after that. The shots just started dropping for us and we played better.
“Scoring was the biggest issue — I had to step it up and make some shots. Offensive boards also helped out.”
Christina Brucci contributed with 7 points and made 4 of 6 free throws in the final quarter.
Carmel (16-12) was led by Beth Scudder with 12 points; Sarah McHugh added 9.
“We had a drought in the second quarter, which was the difference in the game,” Carmel coach Kelly Perz said. “The girls played their heart out and left it all out on the court. It just wasn’t our night.”
Ÿ Libertyville raced past (No. 16) Deerfield 61-40 in the other semifinal Tuesday night, setting a school record with its 28th victory.
The Wildcats’ 1982-83 team was a state quarterfinalist and went 27-1.
Alex Haley led Libertyville with 14 points, Savannah Trees added 12 and 5 rebounds and Olivia Wilcox chipped in with 10 off the bench.
Deerfield’s Kathleen Forrest led the way with 18 points.
“Everybody coming in we play is now 0-0,” Libertyville coach Kathie Swanson said. “Anybody can beat anybody on any given night. Our mentality has to be that we have to play our best. Every team wants to give us their best game, especially now that we’re in the playoffs. It’s a totally different level.”