Vikings fine at slow pace

You hold a team to just 3 field goals in the first three quarters. Your opponent doesn't break into double-digit scoring until 7:08 left. And you force your cross-town rival into 18 turnovers.

But you still only win by 10?

It was one of those nights on Tuesday for Fremd, as it made only 8 field goals, committed 13 turnovers and went the entire fourth quarter without making a shot from the field.

But with Palatine shooting just 21 percent (8-of-38) from the floor and coughing up the ball 18 times, the Vikings were able to pull out their sixth win in a row 30-20.

Fremd's Mid-Suburban West victory, coupled with Schaumburg's 51-50 loss at Hoffman, pulled the Vikings (12-9, 5-2) into a second-place tie with the Saxons (20-3, 5-2) in the division.

But Tuesday's performance will not be one Fremd will look to duplicate if it hopes to overtake Conant atop the division.

"This wasn't a good one, we're better than that," said Fremd coach Dave Yates, whose team hosts Hoffman on Friday.

In round two of the Battle of Palatine -- Fremd won the first matchup 41-36 on Nov. 30 -- neither team came close to knocking the other out, or remotely keeping the scoreboard operator busy.

Fremd scored just 7 points in each of the first three quarters, while Palatine could only manage 3 points in each of the first three periods.

"We're not even looking to score as it is," said Palatine coach Ron Theberge.

After sophomore Heather Zimmerman scored the Pirates' first field goal on a floater in the lane with 3:18 left in the first quarter, Palatine (7-16, 1-5) did not convert a field goal until senior Nicole Linares scored on a putback at the halftime buzzer. The Pirates shot only 15 percent (2-of-13) from the field in the first half, while committing 9 turnovers.

"We came out ready to pressure them," said Fremd junior Sam Thelin, who scored 5 of her team-high 9 points in the third quarter.

Defense was solid for the Vikings, but offensively, they couldn't get anything to fall, missing 7-of-9 field goal attempts in the second half. After Thelin hit a 3-pointer to open the third and made a layup to close the quarter, Fremd scored just 9 points in the fourth, all from the foul line.

Palatine junior Katie MacFabe scored 5 of her team-high 7 in the fourth as the Pirates scored 11 points on 5-of-14 shooting.

"We've done a good job with (defense) all year," Yates said. "We talk a lot with our kids, when things aren't going very well on offense, you can always rest your laurels on defense."