Girls basketball: Maine South takes control early vs. Hersey

Often you'll hear how important the first few minutes of the second half are in a basketball game.

On Saturday, in the second round of the Buffalo Grove tournament, everyone seemed to agree the most important part of the game between Daily Herald Top 10 teams Maine South (No. 6) and Hersey (No. 5) was the first three minutes of the first half.

Maine South (2-0) took a 6-0 lead forcing Hersey (1-1) to call a timeout with 5:59 left.

The Hawks were hardly derailed, pulling away to a 16-4 lead after one quarter en route to a 54-31 triumph over the Huskies.

"Something we talk about before we play is setting the tone initially," said 5-foot-10 senior guard Katie Barker. "So getting that lead definitely set us up for a good start."

"I think they set the tone in the first three minutes," said Hersey talented junior guard Kate Donovan. "They came out real strong and we never came back after. We did have a couple of good runs but it was the first couple of minutes that decided the game."

It was two inside buckets by 6-1 senior Asia Kobylarczyk, one on a putback to start the game, and a bank shot in the lane by 5-9 senior Kara Chaplin that staked the Hawks to their 6-0 cushion.

"We said the first three minutes would set the tone and it did," said second-year Hersey coach Courtney Ludois. "But not in our favor. They outplayed us, they outworked us and we did the things we said we couldn't do from our scouting.

"We're not quite there yet. What's frustrating is that we have experience, too, with four of our five starters playing big minutes last year. So I expected that to help us today but obviously Maine South earned that one."

It was South's second win in the tourney after a 53-17 win over Rich Township on Wednesday.

Not a bad start for coach Jeff Hamann's defending BG tourney champs who have some lofty expectations.

"Hopefully state," said senior Ally Pape, a 5-11 Cornell University pledge (where her sister Emily plays). "I think we are good enough to go but I don't want to get too far ahead of ourselves. If we keep pushing at practice and keep working hard we have a lot of potential to do really well this season.

"This gives us a lot of confidence going into our season," Barker added. "Knowing it's still early on in the season, we have a lot more to get better at. But starting off strong just gives us a nice push forward."

South kept pushing in the second quarter, creating turnovers (double digits) and grabbing rebounds.

The Hawks built the lead to 25-10 when Barker lobbed a nice entry pass into Kobylarczyk for an easy layup.

Kobylarcyzak led Maine South with 6 rebounds while tossing in 8 points.

Pape led the winners with 14 points and 7 steals while Barker finished with 11 points.

Sophomore Hayden Fahey scored 7 while juniors Amelian Fernandez and Emilyn Ciurrey each added 5.

"It started with our defensive energy and that translates to the offense,“ Hamann said. "We are very versatile on defense and we're very lucky to have girls who can guard multiple positions. We knew if we switched our defenses that could rattle them a little. It rattles most teams when we are able to do that.

"Our girls play together. They play fast and I counted at least 16 offensive rebounds and that's always a key for us. To rebound like we did gives us a lot of opportunities."

Hersey was led in scoring by 6-2 sophomore Sadie Marks, who produced all 12 of her points in the middle quarters. Donovan added 7 while seniors Grace Grabowy and Morgan Daly each had 3-pointers.

"I think it was their zone press that really got us. We couldn't get the ball over half court for a while," Donovan said. "It's only our second game of the season and now we can see where we can grow to become better. We're not ready for the big leagues yet but we're going to be a good team and it's just going to take a little more time to get there."

"I think everyone on our team can say that we're disappointed with our effort," Ludois added. "I thought it was going to be a good challenge for us, They're a really good team and well coached. And they have a lot of veteran kids."

"We were rushing and not taking care of the ball but it was their defense, too. They play really hard and their hands are on everything. They anticipate really well."

Barker said defense is always something the Hawks pride themselves on.

"We work really hard on it in practice," she said. "Having so many players who are so versatile and able to defend such great guards really impacts our team. That's what kind of seals the deal for us."

The win sealed Hamann's 141st win against just 40 losses in his seven seasons.

"We knew going into the game Hersey's a great team and well coached," he said. "We were confident going in. Not over-confident. But we knew if we played at our pace and with our intensity at both ends of the floor, we are very difficult to beat as you could see."