Antioch reaches out, grabs outright Prairie title

In their postgame speeches about Carly McCameron on senior night, Antioch juniors Kelly Johnson and Alexis Duehr shared with the home crowd what they love about their teammate. Johnson recalled their first day of tryouts two years ago. Duehr noted the 6-foot-1 McCameron's long arms.

"They're the best," a smiling McCameron said of Johnson and Duehr. "They're smarty pants. Both of them."

McCameron and her Antioch teammates continued making memories Friday night.

Thanks to a 60-33 win over short-handed Grant, which played without leading scorer Jasmine Sangster (stomach flu), the Sequoits clinched their first outright North Suburban Prairie Division title. Antioch (24-2, 10-0), which shared the crown with Vernon Hills last year, will play in its first NSC championship game when it visits Stevenson on Feb. 11.

"I'm really excited," McCameron said after totaling 9 points, 4 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 blocks. "Stevenson's a great team, and I can't wait to get a chance to play against them."

McCameron and Antioch twins Amy and Ashley Reiser play AAU ball for the Lake County Challengers with Sangster. Coming off games of 21 and 26 points, Grant's junior guard missed her first game of the season.

"I love playing with her too," McCameron said of Sangster. "She's such a good player."

Sangster missed her second straight day of school Friday, and Bulldogs coach Matt Lukemeyer is not expecting her to play tonight when his team hosts Lake Zurich.

Antioch, which was led in scoring by Amy Reiser and Kelly Johnson (three 3-pointers) with 11 points each, led only 13-5 after one quarter and 23-12 at halftime. Amy Reiser also had 10 rebounds.

"We tried slowing the game down in the first half, but we just turned the ball over too much," Lukemeyer said.

"At halftime, I just walked in and said, 'Who's 23-2? Start playing like it,' " Antioch coach Tim Borries said. "That's the only thing I had to tell them."

McCameron helped spark Antioch defensively in the third quarter, while Johnson drained a pair of left-wing 3s. Ashley Reiser (9 points, 10 assists, 4 steals) and Amy Reiser opened the second half with baskets from beyond the arc. The Sequoits outscored the Bulldogs 22-6 in the third quarter to take a 45-18 edge into the fourth.

McCameron had several college coaches in attendance watching her play. She's received interest from - among other schools - Elmhurst, St. Francis, Judson, Augustana and Lakeland.

"Defensively, in the second half, she just came out of nowhere," Borries said. "With those long arms, she disrupted everything. It helps when you have her just as fast as the other team's point guard running down the court."

Grant (9-13, 5-6) was led by 5-10 freshman Mallory Harrity with 8 points and 8 rebounds. Junior Jordynn Hundley added 7 points, including a fourth-quarter 3-pointer, and 6 rebounds.

"They played hard," Lukemeyer said of his players. "They didn't give up, so that's all I can ask."

"I give them all the credit," Borries said of the Bulldogs. "Matt had them playing hard the whole night."