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New Trier rallies past Fremd

New Trier girls basketball coach Teri Rodgers told her team it was “gut-check” time Thursday after a 31-point loss to Fenwick the night before.

But for 2½ quarters of the third-place game of the 28th annual Dundee-Crown Charger Classic, it was Fremd showing its gutty defense.

The Vikings were in command 20-12 with under three minutes to play.

But the Trevians then checked in with their best offense.

After scoring 12 points in the first 21 minutes, New Trier produced 30 in the final 11 to post a 42-26 triumph over the Vikings.

“We did a better job being more aggressive on offense,” said Rodgers, whose team improved to 11-5. “We continued to play good defense and we did a little more trapping in the second half.”

Junior guard Maggie Lyon, one of top players in the Chicago area, helped the Trevians avoid being trapped by Fremd's stifling man-to-man defense.

When converged upon, the 6-foot-1 guard dished off to open teammates. When left open, she hit from the outside or drove to the hoop.

Lyon finished with 18 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists in a solid all-around performance.

“What did they call Scottie Pippen? A point-forward?” Rodgers asked. “I would call her something similar, or just ‘invaluable.'”

Lyon has become even more valuable after Rodgers lost two starters to ACL injuries — seniors Hayley Campbell (10 ppg) and Abbey Schmitt (18 ppg).

“Without two of our best players, we are showing we can still win games,” Lyon said. “We are not the team that showed up against Fenwick. We learned a lot from that game, I don't think we'll ever play that bad again.”

Fremd (13-4) didn't play bad at all for the first three quarters, and led 22-19 when Megan Gray hit 2 free throws with less than seven minutes left in the game.

But a rebound layup by junior forward Emma Rossi ignited a 23-4 run by New Trier.

Sophomore guard Ashley McConnell led the Vikings with 9 points while Jaimie Groot had 7, including a 3-pointer which gave Fremd a 6-3 lead less than two minutes into the game.

Junior Jessi Wiedemann pulled down 7 rebounds to lead Fremd and teammate Megan Horn was credited with 6.

“We played very well through the first three quarters,” said Fremd coach Dave Yates. “But you've got to put the ball in basket. We missed layups and free throws which we had been making before. In a five-minute span (in fourth quarter) we couldn't do anything.

“New Trier is a very good team but that was our own doing.”

The fourth-place finish is the best by Fremd in Yates's five seasons.

“In that aspect, these kids have taken a lot of steps,” Yates said. “In our last five games (Marist, Johnsburg, Rockton Hononegah, Bartlett and New Trier), we have played five very good teams and every one has had at least one D-I player.

“There was just that one quarter and half in this game where things didn't go well. Other than that, we've been toe-to-toe with some of the best teams in the state so I am very proud of the kids.”

  New Treir’s Meg Rosinski, 10, wrestles with Fremd’s Megan Horn, 22, during Fremd vs New Trier in the Third place game of the Charger Classic girls basketball tournament at Dundee-Crown High School in Carpentersville Thursday, December 30, 2010. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Fremd’s Jessi Wiedemann 44, goes to the hoop over New Trier’s Jessica Blackwell, 35, during Fremd vs New Trier in the Third place game of the Charger Classic girls basketball tournament at Dundee-Crown High School in Carpentersville Thursday, December 30, 2010. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com
  Fremd coach Dave Yates watches his team during the last quarter of Fremd vs New Trier in the Third place game of the Charger Classic girls basketball tournament at Dundee-Crown High School in Carpentersville Thursday, December 30, 2010. Brian Hill/bhill@dailyherald.com