Fremd nets overtime triumph
As Haley Gorecki stepped to the free-throw line in overtime Tuesday evening for Fremd, the freshman faced the biggest pressure of her very short high school career.
Gorecki calmly made three free-throws in the final minute to give the Vikings a 60-54 win over Hononegah at the 29th annual Dundee-Crown Christmas Classic, ending Hononegah’s 17-game winning streak to start the season and sending Fremd (12-1) to the semifinals tonight against Bartlett at 8 p.m. Fremd beat Hononegah in last season’s quarterfinals before losing to Bartlett in the semifinals.
Gorecki finished with a career-high 22 points, 17 of which came in the second half and overtime. She said that there were a lot of nerves on the overtime free throws.
“I made the first two but it was a little scary,” Gorecki said. “We were able to get through it.”
Fremd wouldn’t have made it to overtime without Gorecki, especially in the third quarter when she scored 12 of the team’s 14 points in the quarter to keep the game close. With the Vikings trailing by 5 with five minutes left in regulation, Fremd began to rally.
Ashley McConnell, who finished with 18 points, hit her fifth 3-pointer of the game to pull Fremd within 2. Jessi Wiedemann hit another 3-pointer with 2:30 to play to give Fremd the lead and after 2 free throws by Marilyn Lortz, Fremd led 48-45 with 1:39 to go.
Hononegah’s Krystal James hit her third 3-pointer of the second half with a minute to go to tie the game again. Fremd had a chance to win in regulation but Lortz’s shot with five seconds left was short.
In overtime, Wiedemann, who finished with 12 points, hit another 3-pointer to give Fremd the lead for good. The teams combined for 17 3-pointers.
Gorecki said it was a big win to beat a team that had come in undefeated.
“They are a really good team and we came out to play,” Gorecki said. “It was a tough battle but we won.”
While Gorecki kept the team afloat in the third quarter, McConnell kept Fremd in the game in the first half while making 4 3-pointers as Fremd trailed 28-23 at the break. Fremd coach Dave Yates said he was pleased with how his team persevered.
“Someone here said that this game is a championship game in a lot of tournaments,” Yates said. “For us to hit some big shots . . . we hung around and hung around. It seemed like we were in a trouble a couple of times, but I was proud of us being resilient and hanging in there.”
Karley Korberg scored 13 points to pace the Indians. James and Liz Jordan both added 11 points while Iowa recruit Nicole Smith scored 10.
Hononegah next meets Buffalo Grove at 5 p.m. Wednesday.