Mundelein 58, Zion-Benton 50
The game didn't start particularly well for Mundelein and it didn't end all that great for the Mustangs either.
But the middle portion of Mundelein's North Suburban Lake Division home contest against Zion-Benton was just the way coach Brian Evans and the Mustangs wanted.
Mundelein outscored Zion-Benton 17-5 in the third quarter and overcame a furious rally by Z-B over the final five minutes to win 58-50 Friday night.
The victory helped vault the Mustangs to over .500 in the NSC Lake at 5-4 while improving their overall record to 18-6. Z-B fell to 11-13 overall and just 1-9 in league play.
"I don't know what prompted us to look at the scoreboard and think that Zion was just going to roll over," Evans said. "This isn't the same Zion team in the second half of the season. They are much improved since the first half of the season."
The Mustangs opened the game up in the third quarter thanks to quality defense. Mundelein forced 6 turnovers in the period and limited the Zee-Bees to just 2 field goals in 14 attempts.
"Coach (Evans) talked to us about keeping our energy and intensity up at halftime," said Mundelein sophomore Toni Knar. "When we play with good energy and intensity it really picks up our game."
That same energy and intensity helped Knar and the Mustangs open the period on an 11-2 burst. J.J. Sawchuk sliced through the Z-B defense, scoring 6 of her 12 points in aiding the Mundelein offensive effort.
Knar was equally dangerous, scoring 12 points to share team-high scoring honors with Sawchuk. Kelsey O'Connor, who torched the Zee-Bees the first time the two teams met for 37 points, contributed 10, 8 of which came in the second half.
"We haven't shot the ball real well lately and it was something that we have worked on in practice all week," Evans said. "It helped because we shot the ball better tonight."
Zion-Benton began to chip away with Illinois-bound senior Brittany Simmons. Though she was relatively quiet for three quarters, Simmons scored 10 straight points in the Zee-Bees' comeback in the fourth quarter. Even her game-high 20-point effort wasn't enough to bring Zion-Benton back.
The Zee-Bees pulled as close as 53-44 on a short jumper by Simmons, but could not get any closer until the 8-point final margin.
Samantha Panitch hit key free throws down the stretch to finish with 6 points for Mundelein, but her 6 assists and 3 steals were keys in helping Mundelein build an 18-point fourth-quarter lead.
Warren 49, Libertyville 35: Sarah Boothe recorded her 1,000th career rebound and scored 18 points, as the Blue Devils improved to 22-2 and 10-0 in the North Suburban Lake Division.
Megan Wozniak, who started, grabbed a team-best 12 rebounds for Warren. Boothe and Lory Shaw had 10 and 9 boards, respectively.
Shana Shepherd (10 points) was the Blue Devils' only other scorer in double figures.
Libertyville (10-14, 2-8) received 9 points from Ali Haws.
Stevenson 46, Lake Forest 45: Caitlin Morrissey scored a team-high 12 points as the visiting Patriots edged the Scouts in an NSC Lake contest.
Stevenson (10-15, 5-4) has won six games in a row.
Claire DiMario had a game-high 14 points for Lake Forest (12-10, 5-4).
Antioch 53, N. Chicago 42: Andi Potkonjak scored 23 points, as the Sequoits won in North Suburban Prairie Division action.
Potkonjak hit all four of her 3-pointers in the third quarter, helping Antioch (10-12, 5-6) outscore the Warhawks 23-10.
Christine Gaborek added 10 points and 8 rebounds for Antioch. Katrina Holm contributed 5 assists, 5 rebounds and 4 points.
Tatiana Webb and Raven Snowden had 15 and 13 points, respectively, for North Chicago.
Wauconda 65, Lakes 48: Lauren Mead scored 22 points, including four 3-pointers, to lead the visiting Bulldogs in North Suburban Prairie Division action.
Wauconda (10-11, 6-4) also received 13 points from Tammy Ellis and 10 from Courtney Kimes.
Keshia Cunningham scored 20 points for Lakes (0-25, 0-10), and Mandy Schellinger added 10.