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Antioch blows by Hampshire for Lisle crown

Yes, the Antioch girls basketball team put on a show of offense in Tuesday's 59-31 win over Hampshire to capture the championship of the Lisle Holiday Cage Classic.

What was also crucial, though, was seeing the Sequoits close up the Whip-Purs' passing lanes and making life difficult for any Hampshire player that had the ball. Defense has also been a big reason why Antioch is 14-2, on an 11-game winning streak and won this tournament for the first time since 2010.

"Our defense has been phenomenal the last 8 games," said Sequoits' coach Tim Borries. "We've been keeping teams in the 40s except for one game. Defense and rebounding are crucial for us."

Ashley Reiser and Amy Reiser were game-high scorers with 17 points each. Amy Reiser was named tournament MVP and Ashley Reiser was named to the all-tournament team.

"I'm excited. I was surprised. All of my teammates did well," Amy Reiser said of her MVP honor. Both Reisers also stressed that defense has made life good for Antioch.

"Defense wins games. Tonight, we closed them out and they had to switch up their offense," said Ashley Reiser. Keeping teams guessing about the Sequoits' defense has also been important.

"We change it up and do different things," said Amy Reiser.

The Sequoits led 17-11 after the first quarter and 35-21 at intermission thanks to Amy Reiser's 8 points in the second quarter. The Antioch defense did not let up in the second half, limiting Hampshire (11-3) to 10 second-half points including just 2 in the third quarter. Rebounding was also important to the Sequoits as they turned up the heat on the boards in the final two quarters and led for the game, 37-20. Ashley Reiser had 10 rebounds, Carly McCameron had 9 and Amy Reiser 8. Kelly Johnson was the third Antioch player to reach double-digit scoring with 10 points.

Borries said the play of the Reisers is making the rest of the lineup good as well.

"Everybody's play is coming up to their play," he said. "We have five Amy and Ashleys instead of two. It's quite a show," he said.

The Whip-Purs, who had an eight-game winning streak snapped, were led by 10 points from Peyton DeChant. Emma Benoit was named to the all-tournament team.

"Antioch has so many weapons. We couldn't find any answers. They moved well without the ball. The best I've seen," said Hampshire coach Mike Featherly. "I thought we played well together as a team the last three games although tonight was not a good indication of that. I thought we would handle the pressure tonight better. We had done that all season."

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