Pilson, Chargers hang on, down Grayslake C.
During the first four minutes of play Wednesday, the Grayslake Central girls basketball team and visiting Dundee-Crown combined for zero points and 10 turnovers.
The rest of the quarter was a blur, with both teams draining 3-pointers and scoring points in the paint. Dundee-Crown was ahead 14-13 after one quarter and neither team led by more than 6 points the rest of the way.
Dundee-Crown went ahead 42-40 on a basket by senior center Kate-Leigh Pilson with a little more than a minute remaining. The Chargers hung on for a 45-40 nonconference victory.
"Our kids responded on the road and showed some moxie," Dundee-Crown coach Joe Komaromy said. "We played better once we cut down on the unforced turnovers."
Pilson scored a game-high 18 points despite playing with a bruised knee and a sore wrist.
"I tried not to think too much about it," Pilson said. "It affected me mostly on free throws, so I (really) had to focus."
Senior guard/forward Robyn Staudenmaier scored 11 points and hit 2 of the Chargers' 4 3-pointers. Dundee-Crown's ability to score inside and from behind the arc put pressure on the Rams' defense.
"That's a neat combination to have," Komaromy said. "There's a lot we can do with that."
The Chargers improved to 5-2, while Grayslake Central dropped to 1-5.
Grayslake Central played its best basketball in the second quarter, limiting the Chargers to four points. The Rams led 22-18 at halftime.
"Our defense was really good," Rams coach Roger Lass said. "They're a good team; we just didn't finish the game."
Grayslake Central senior center Erin Claxton played her best game of the season. She scored a team-high 13 points.
"She had her hands full with some big girls but she played well," Lass said. "She made shots and was aggressive."
Grayslake Central freshman guard Alexandria Scarbro and freshman forward Kathryn Dickson provided a spark for the Rams.
"They were going for loose balls and leading us on some breaks," Lass said. "They really gave us a lift."
Girls basketball
Huntley 43, McHenry 25: In nonconference action the Red Raiders (4-2) defeated McHenry. Leading for Huntley was Megan Martinez with a team-high 10 points. Katie Bergquist added 8 points for the winners.
Crystal Lake South 44, Crystal Lake Central 30: The Gators (5-2) came out strong as they faced Crystal Lake Central in nonconference play. Carly Juliano led for the Gators contributing a total of 11 points. Kaitlin Hardie was also able to add 8 points to Crystal Lake South's victory.
Jacobs 39, Grayslake North 35: Markie Rahn led the Golden Eagles (3-3) to victory scoring a team-high 10 points. Hailey Cnota scored 8 points for Jacobs.
Boys swimming
At St. Viator: Fremd, with 377 points, won the St. Viator Invitational. Loyola took second with 347 followed by St. Ignatius (298). Prospect (265) too fourth followed by Jacobs/Dundee-Crown (220), St. Viator (178), Wheeling (143), Nazareth (84) and Notre Dame (49).
Jacobs/D-C took fifth in the medley relay (1:49.38) thanks to Dan Geske, Nick Pankau, Sean Kelly and Ryan Krug. Pankau, Kelly, Alec Schmidt and Krug also took fifth in the 200 free relay (1:40.44). Pankau's 1:05.91 fourth in the breaststroke was less than a second off the winning pace.
"(We had) no seniors in the meet," said Jacobs coach Rick Andresen, whose team has been swimming a tough practice schedule. "I thought they swam really tired tonight. They looked fatigued. It's the beginning of the season and we have a long way to go."
Women's basketball
Aquinas 79, Judson 60: Kelly Friestad, Kirstin Johns and Crystal Goodall each had 10 points for Judson (3-7) in this nonconference loss at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Mich.
Aquinas (10-0) is the No. 14 ranked team in NAIA Division II.