Girls basketball: Libertyville’s blistering start sinks Mundelein
From the opening tipoff, top-seeded Libertyville never gave No. 4-seeded host Mundelein a chance to breathe in the championship game of this IHSA Class 4A regional Thursday night.
The Wildcats defense totally stymied the Mustangs' offense as they built an 18-2 lead after one quarter before taking a commanding 34-9 lead into halftime. From there, Libertyville (26-6) rolled to an easy 53-22 victory as it hit a major milestone with its 30th regional title in school history.
The Wildcats will face Huntley (24-9) in the Rockford Guilford sectional semifinals Tuesday at 6 p.m.
Mundelein (21-12) trailed 9-2 early before Libertyville senior Ella Pawelczyk (game-high 14 points) hit three of her four 3-pointers to end the first quarter as the Mustangs faced a quick 16-point deficit.
The Wildcats didn't let up in the second quarter as Pawelczyk's fourth 3-pointer followed by an inside basket by Elle Knight (9 points) boosted the lead to 29-6 with 3:42 left in the period.
"It's just amazing how so many of these kids have become varsity players throughout the course of the season and then stepping up and really producing," said Libertyville coach Greg Pedersen, whose team lost three key players to knee injuries before the season started. "We were committed to keeping Casey (Vyverman) in check because she's an amazing player, and I thought our zone defense was very active in not leaving any stray shooters open."
Libertyville outscored Mundelein 12-5 in the third quarter to take a 46-14 lead into the fourth quarter as the rest of the game was played with a running clock.
Libertyville's Lily Fisher had 9 points and 4 assists while Vyverman scored a team-high 9 points. Freshman Addie Casey had 8 points and 5 rebounds for the Wildcats while teammate KateRyan Castro had 7 points and 5 rebounds.
Anahya Castro had 6 points for Mundelein while Charlotte Harrison had 5 steals for Libertyville.
"We wanted to come out with energy on defense and that channeled into our offense," said Pawelczyk, whose team outrebounded Mundelein 30-14. "We have good chemistry, we work really well together, and we are always encouraging each other to take the open shot and tonight we were making those shots."
Despite the tough ending, Mundelein coach Sarah Teipel was proud of the season her squad put together.
"Credit to them (Libertyville). We had some early turnovers that allowed them to get that big lead," Teipel said. "Twenty-one wins is the most wins we've had since 2008, and I'm so proud of our seniors and what they've given to this program."