Defense keys Glenbard East victory
Heading into the Class 4A St. Charles North girls basketball regional quarterfinals, neither Glenbard East or Glenbard West likely needed any additional incentives to get geared up. The IHSA postseason is single elimination, and whether you're playing a district rival or somebody from across the state, the game itself takes center stage.
Glenbard East and Glenbard West are familiar with each other by proximity and school district, but that didn't matter much in a hard-fought game that the Rams won 37-27 on Monday.
Glenbard West managed to come out and turn Glenbard East over on a couple of possessions, converting the steals into easy layups and staking itself to a 4-1 lead.
However, the Hilltoppers didn't score again for more than 10 minutes. By the time they emerged on the other side of the scoring drought with an Emma Kiel 3-pointer, they trailed 17-7.
"Defensively, we're rated No. 1 by the Daily Herald, so it helps to have a good defensive ballclub when your offense isn't clicking," Glenbard East coach Don Finnie said.
While the defense was busy stymieing any offensive attempts of the Hilltoppers, Glenbard East forward Brasia Solid helped get things going offensively for the Rams.
Solid scored 8 points in the first quarter and scored all of her game-high 12 points in the first half while grabbing 8 rebounds on the night. Ashley Brown hit three straight runners to end the half and Glenbard East sported a 25-9 lead at halftime.
"Brasia played really well offensively and defensively she had a couple of steals for us," Finnie said. "I think in the second half we thought we could just get by, but we really couldn't."
In that second half Glenbard West's efforts defensively allowed them to slowly sneak back into the game. The Hilltoppers allowed just 1 point in the third quarter up until a buzzer-beating 3-pointer allowed Glenbard East to take a 29-15 lead into the fourth.
In the fourth quarter Glenbard West continued to grind on Glenbard East defensively, forcing 15 turnovers on the night while cutting the lead to 7 with less than two minutes remaining.
"That's something we've been most consistent with all year is our defensive effort," Hilltoppers coach Karen Persinger said. "We've hung our hat on that, and that's what's kept us in games."
Glenbard East (16-14) hit 6 of 7 free throws down the stretch to salt the game away. Ellen Daniels led Glenbard West with 7 points and 9 rebounds.