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Reiser, Antioch make NSC history

The first North Suburban Conference basketball championship in Antioch history was followed by what might have been another first.

Tears of joy by Ashley Reiser.

Which the sophomore point guard wiped away as deftly as she handled the ball all night.

"Making history," Reiser said.

By "making history," Reiser meant what she and her teammates accomplished Wednesday night at Stevenson. Reiser's season- and game-high 26 points and 5 assists led the way in a 68-54 win for the Sequoits, who were playing in the NSC title game for the first time.

"We didn't have an answer for her," Stevenson coach Tom Dineen said. "She was awful tough."

A tough break for Stevenson was having to play without Butler-bound forward Taylor Buford, who said she missed the game due to miscommunication regarding a class assignment.

"My grades are fine," Buford said. "I just turned in (the assignment) late."

Carly McCameron added 17 points for Antioch (26-3), while Shannon Zogran scored all 11 of her points (three 3-pointers) in the first half, which the Sequoits dominated. Sophia Way led Stevenson (25-4) with 16 points and 5 rebounds.

Reiser sank two of her four 3-pointers in the first quarter. She was aggressive with the ball all night.

"I owe it all to my teammates," Reiser said. "We just went out there and played our game, and we killed it."

After falling behind 8-2 to begin the game, Antioch started getting to the basket, where the Sequoits hit shots, and shooting from the perimeter, where they hit more shots.

The visitors led 23-16 after one quarter and, thanks to a huge lift off the bench from sophomore Erika Gallimore, extended their advantage to 40-27 by halftime. The Sequoits shot 17 of 29 from the field, including 6 of 8 from three-point range, in what might have been their best half of basketball this season.

"We were hitting shots right off the bat," Reiser said. "We were communicating really well in this loud gym and this atmosphere that we've never played in."

"To put up 40 points (in one half) against Stevenson, that's probably as good as it can get," Antioch coach Tim Borries said. "Everything was clicking."

Gallimore picked up the slack for Amy Reiser, who picked up 3 fouls in the game's first five minutes. Gallimore scored 6 of her 8 points in the second quarter, while also grabbing 4 rebounds. On one play, she scored while tumbling to the court and drawing the foul.

"If you had told me we'd build a lead with Amy Reiser on the bench for the whole second quarter and go into halftime with a 13-point lead, I would say you got to be kidding me," Borries said. "Erika Gallimore stepped up. She was huge. She came in and she mixed it up. She wasn't afraid."

Neither was McCameron, who had one of her best offensive games of the season. The 6-foot center scored 12 points in the opening quarter and finished with 7 rebounds. She was also a huge force at the defensive end, blocking 6 shots.

She shot 8 of 10 from the floor.

"I was just feeling good," McCameron said. "I had a good weekend, and I came in early today to shoot and just practiced making my shots and placing them on the glass. I guess I was just ready to go."

Any chance Stevenson had of making a second-half run by was done it by the Patriots' inability to hit shots. They got outscored 14-9 in the third, going only 3 of 15 from the field.

Stevenson freshman Skylar Blackstock, who started in place of Buford, scored 14 points, going 10 of 12 from the foul line, and also had 8 rebounds. Ashley Richardson also had 14 points for the Patriots. Dineen offered no excuses for his team, which recently played six games without Buford due to an ankle injury.

"Sure, you would love to have a player of (Buford's) abilities on the floor, but we didn't tonight," Dineen said. "It gave some other kids an opportunity to step up, and I thought they did. We played hard. We just got beat by a good team. We did not defend well tonight. They're tough."

After the Lake division won the first 12 NSC championship games, the Prairie has won the last three (Vernon Hills in 2013 and 2014).

"I know a lot of people didn't think we were going to win," McCameron said. "We had an awesome group of fans and all of our parents. I always get excited about wins, but this one is just a little more special."

Images: Stevenson vs. Antioch, girls basketball

  Antioch's Ashley Reiser, bottom, drives on Stevenson's Ashley Richardson during the North Suburban Conference championship game Wednesday at Stevenson. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Antioch's Ashley Reiser, left, drives on Stevenson's Janine Fajardo during the North Suburban Conference championship game Wednesday at Stevenson. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Antioch's Shannon Zogran, left, and Stevenson's Ashley Richardson battle for a rebound during the North Suburban Conference championship game Wednesday at Stevenson. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Antioch's Amy Reiser, left, and Stevenson's Ashley Richardson scramble for a loose ball during the North Suburban Conference championship game Wednesday at Stevenson. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Antioch's Carly McCameron, right, blocks the shot of Stevenson's Sophia Way during the North Suburban Conference championship game Wednesday at Stevenson. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
  Antioch players hoist the North Suburban Conference championship trophy Wednesday at Stevenson. Steve Lundy/slundy@dailyherald.com
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