Girls water polo: St. Charles North gets past Lockport

St. Charles North girls water polo coach Nick Engel constantly stresses the importance of defense to his team.

When necessary, a little offense can also come in handy.

Seniors Hannah Turner and Sarah Gibson each scored 3 goals to lift the North Stars (3-1) to a 9-6 victory over Lockport (1-2) Thursday night in St. Charles.

"We have to be making sure that we're trying different things on offense," said Turner. "There are things we need to fix but it was good that we had that extra offensive push."

The North Stars needed that boost despite jumping out to a 3-1 lead in the first 6:45 of the opening quarter.

Lockport, relying on a pair of long-shot goals from junior Emily Adelman and a nifty backhand shot by junior Kennedy Ruther, tied the match at 3-3 midway through the second quarter.

"Those shock you - you're not used to teams taking those," Engel said of Adelman's long-distance shot attempts. "When it happens, you have to learn from it a little quicker. I think we were a little slow to figuring out that was where they wanted to shoot from."

Turner admitted her team was caught a little off guard by Adelman's range.

"One thing we don't normally deal with is people that can shoot from the middle of the pool," she said. "That's something you have to look out for after that point. When someone makes that goal, you have to know your shooters."

After 3 consecutive shot attempts rattled off the post and crossbar, the North Stars grabbed a 4-3 lead with a 3:23 left in the second quarter on a goal by junior Hannah Springer off a cross-pool pass from Gibson.

Ruther, who scored a game-high 4 goals for the Porters, notched the equalizer late in the second quarter before the North Stars seized control.

Senior Beth Ann Ellingson's rebound tally with 4:47 remaining in the third quarter put the North Stars on top for good.

Despite facing defensive pressure in the middle, Turner scored back-to-back goals - the first on a rebound of a shot taken by Ellingson - and Gibson's lofted tally extended the North Stars' lead to 8-4.

"A lot of the time that we're in the set, the other girl is pushing me under (water)," said Turner. "It's good that we draw those kick-outs. That allows for more offensive opportunities."

Consecutive goals from Ruther narrowed the North Stars' lead to 8-6 midway through the final quarter before senior Katie Steele's patient insurance goal with 1:51 sealed the decision.

"If they're going to give you space, you might as well walk up and take a shot," said Engel, whose team recorded a season-high 9 goals. "The nice part is this year we can score a little more than we have in the past."

Senior goalie Claire Rich recorded 10 saves for the North Stars, who will face Andrew, Buffalo Grove and Maine West in their own invite Saturday.