Mundelein weathers Grayslake North’s rally
Those girls basketball fans who left the Mundelein gym at halftime on Monday night thought they had the right idea.
After all, the visiting Grayslake Knights hadn’t yet scored in double figures as the Mustangs threatened to make a mockery out of opening night.
But with two seconds to play in this Turkey Tournament game, the Knights had pulled within a single point. Allie Ceglarek’s 3-pointer fell through the net, leaving the visitors 1 point short. Mundelein escaped 44-43.
“All of a sudden the lights went out,’’ said Mundelein coach Brian Evans. “We became tentative in the second half. And give credit to Grayslake North. They kept attacking us. We were lucky to come out with the victory.”
As the Mundelein side felt somewhat deflated with the victory, the losers in this game were proud of the second half comeback.
“We ran faster than they did,’’ said North coach Jim Sarver. “We played a great second half and we’ll leave it at that.”
On a rebound and bucket from Becca Woit, the home team was up 7-0. North had just three scorers with a single basket heading to the second quarter. It got worse from there. The Knights scored just 3 points in the second quarter, all on free throws. Mundelein didn’t have a great second quarter but looked in great shape at the halftime break up 27-9.
Maybe it was a sign of things to come as North freshman Kendall Detweiler opened the second half scoring with a 3-pointer. Her varsity debut would produce 10 points.
The Mundelein lead which had reached 18 points in the third quarter shrunk in half at 31-22 when junior center Joanna Guhl (12 points) scored inside. This junior may have opened some eyes with her quickness around the basket.
“For her first game it might have been a little fast,’’ Sarver said. “But at the end, she was doing well. I don’t mind a learning curve.”
On a layup from Taylor Davis (12 points), the Mustangs opened up another double digit lead in the fourth quarter at 40-29. Beginning with just over a minute to play, North did not miss a shot. Ceglarek scored all of her 5 points in that spree. Brooke Sauer’s flip shot cut the Mundelein lead to 43-40.
With 18 seconds to play, Mundelein freshman Natalie Busscher stepped to the foul line. She hit 1 of 2, giving the Mustangs a 4-point lead.
Little did anyone guess that free throws would be the difference in the game.
“She stepped up and made that free throw,’’ Evans said. “What a great experience for a freshman.”
Both freshmen on Mundelein’s team saw action in this contest. While Busscher added 5 points to the Mundelein attack, fellow ninth-grader Jessica Schultz chipped in 3 points. A third freshman on the roster, Maggie Mahar, was sidelined with a broken ankle.
Molly Rosenow finished with 10 points for the Mustangs. Woit finished with 8 points and Amanda Davis checked in with 5 points.