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Zion-Benton stops Libertyville

The third time wasn’t the charm for Zion-Benton.

Neither was the first or second.

But the fourth time sure was. And that was the one that mattered most.

The Zion-Benton girls basketball team had played Libertyville three times prior to Monday’s Class 4A sectional semifinal at Mundelein.

There were two North Suburban Conference games and a holiday tournament game. And all three games ended the same way for the Zee-Bees: with losses.

Not that there was anything shameful about that.

Libertyville dealt out a lot of losses this season. In fact, the Wildcats dealt out nothing but losses heading into the sectional semifinal game.

They were a perfect 29-0.

Were is the key word here.

Zion-Benton finally got it right against Libertyville.

The fifth-seeded Zee-Bees used a big third quarter to set the table for a stunning 43-35 upset of the No. 1 Wildcats.

Zion-Benton advances to Thursday’s sectional championship game and will face the winner of tonight’s semifinal between No. 2 Fremd and No. 6 Barrington. The Zee-Bees improve to 24-6 on the season.

“We won when it mattered,” Zion-Benton forward Juanita Robinson said. “We’re just a different team now. We’ve improved so much since the last three times we played Libertyville. We became more a team, we got close with each other, we were talking and I think that really helped us in this game. It’s why we came out with the ‘W’ this time.”

Composure helped, too.

Zion-Benton coach Tanya Johnson, who can’t remember the last time the program has played for a sectional championship, saw a big difference between the way her team handled adversity against Libertyville in the sectional semifinal versus the three regular season games.

“There have been times we have not kept our composure when we’ve played Libertyville,” Johnson said. “We were tested here, but we kept it together. That was a big key tonight.”

Ironically, the Zee-Bees seemed on the verge of unraveling in the fourth quarter.

Up by 10 points at the start, Zion-Benton saw its lead slowly shrink thanks to several crucial turnovers and even a technical foul.

Robinson was whistled for knocking a Libertyville player to the floor after a timeout had already been called. Libertyville guard Savannah Trees hit both technical free throws and that pulled the Wildcats to within 4 points (37-33) with 1:45 left.

But then Libertyville misfired on some good looks at the basket and Zion-Benton started playing keep away to run down the clock.

Morgan Garrett, Robinson and Octavia Crump, who led the Zee-Bees with a game-high 16 points by attacking relentlessly in the paint, all hit free throws down the stretch to help ice the victory.

“They didn’t do anything that was new to us,” Libertyville coach Kathie Swanson said of Zion-Benton. “I think it was that we played out of character tonight. We’re a team that shows a lot of composure and I think we lost our composure tonight. That’s been our hallmark all year long, so to see that was disappointing.”

The disappointment only began there.

Swanson said it was tough walking into her locker room after the game, facing a group of teary players whose tournament expectations had been driven sky high after completing such a remarkable regular season.

It was the cherry atop a remarkable four-year run for the seniors, who have lost just 8 games over their four-year careers and have won 49 of their last 51 games.

“We just worked so hard, it’s hard to end on this note,” said Libertyville senior guard Savannah Trees, who scored a team-high 15 points despite having to spend chunks of the second half on the bench in foul trouble. “Our first loss came in a game that meant so much.

“But we have so much to be proud of. It’s hard right now, but you’ve just got to look at all the good stuff we’ve done.”

Images: Libertyville vs. Zion-Benton girls basketball

  Libertyville’s Kerry Risley drives on Zion-Benton’s Octavia Crump in the sectional semifinals Monday night at Mundelein High School. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  From left, Libertyville’s Molly Moon, Valerie Van Roeyen and Kaca Savatic console one another after suffering a season-ending loss — their first of the season — to Zion-Benton in Class 4A sectional semifinal play Monday night at Mundelein. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Libertyville’s Savannah Trees drives on Zion-Benton’s Juanita Robinson in the sectional semifinals Monday night. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Zion-Benton’s Bench reacts during their win over Libertyvile in the sectional semifinals Monday night at Mundelein High School. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Libertyville’s, from left, Olivia Wilcox, Alex Haley and Nicole Kruckman walk off stunned after loosing to Zion-Benton in the sectional semifinals Monday night at Mundelein High School. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Libertyville’s Alex Haley, left, drives on Zion-Benton’s Morgan Franklin in sectional semifinal play Monday night at Mundelein. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com