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Neuqua Valley defeats Hinsdale Central

You've got to start somewhere, and Neuqua Valley wasn't about to forget Thursday's Hinsdale South Tip Off Tournament girls basketball game was just the start.

Neuqua Valley's 64-49 victory against Hinsdale Central on Thursday afternoon won't win any style points, but the Wildcats weren't about to give it back, either.

"We'll be fine," Wildcats coach Mike Williams said. "It'll take us a little time to get going. We don't want to peak right now, do we?"

"We'll take it," added senior guard Kai Moon. "A win is a win. I know there's stuff I need to work on. My shooting was atrocious this game, so I have to step up."

The Wildcats also struggled with turnovers and foul trouble, but they defeated a good team.

"We've got to get a better post presence, and I think it will come. We've got the athletes to do it," Williams said. "It'll be fine, but obviously our guards are our key right now."

Guards Myia Starks and Moon, both Division I recruits, will be expected to lead Neuqua through the season, and Thursday was no exception. Moon scored a team-high 16 points and had 5 steals and 3 assists. Starks added 15 points, 4 assists and 5 rebounds.

Junior MaKenzie DeHaan led the Wildcats post players with 11 points and 4 rebounds.

Neuqua Valley led most of the game, often by double digits. But every time the Wildcats threatened to pull away, the Red Devils (0-2) just drew them closer.

"The foul situation was not on our side the first half," Moon said. "The second half I looked up and it was 7-0. So for us it was about staying in front, not fouling. A lot of our defenses are aggressive, running out and getting passes. We're sporadic and all over the place, so a lot of times we'll get into that situation where we'll bump somebody or foul, and the refs were calling it really tight."

That back-and-forth pattern lasted until the fourth quarter, when the Wildcats held the Red Devils to just 4 points, all on free throws.

"We're a work in progress still," Hinsdale Central coach Tom McKenna said. "It's a process, and we're going to get there. We played better than we did the other day, so I like that. We're not quite there yet."

Junior Paige Bareck led the Red Devils in scoring for the second straight game, this time with 24 points on 5-of-9 3-point shooting. She left the game with 5:29 to play and the Red Devils trailing 53-45 with an apparent leg injury.

"It was funny because Coach Williams was telling us they have a shooter, she'll shoot from anywhere," Moon said. "I've seen some good shooters, but she was really good. ... She was able to get open and we weren't able to find her on defense, and I think that's what hurt us the most. I think if we could have taken her out of the game more and taken away the 3-point shot, we would have had more of a cushion. But we'll still take the win."

Montini 74, Sandburg 40:

Also at Hinsdale South, the Broncos ran their record to 2-0, both victories blowouts.

Senior guard Lea Kerstein scored 22 points, hitting three 3-pointers in the first half alone. Center Lindsey Jarosinski broke loose for 10 points.

The Broncos led 37-15 at halftime, finishing the half on a 22-5 run.

Follow Orrin on Twitter @Orrin_Schwarz

Paul Michna/pmichna@dailyherald.comHannah Smiles and Riley Burr of Hinsdale Central surround Kelly Vonnahme of Neuqua during the Neuqua Valley vs. Hinsdale Central girls basketball game at the Hinsdale South tournament Thursday.
Paul Michna/pmichna@dailyherald.comHannah Smiles of Hinsdale Central vies for the ball against Myia Starks of Neuqua at the Hinsdale South tournament Thursday.
Paul Michna/pmichna@dailyherald.comHannah Smiles of Hinsdale Central vies for the ball against Myia Starks of Neuqua at the Hinsdale South tournament Thursday.
Paul Michna/pmichna@dailyherald.comHannah Smiles of Hinsdale Central vies for the ball against Myia Starks of Neuqua at the Hinsdale South tournament Thursday.
Paul Michna/pmichna@dailyherald.comHannah Smiles of Hinsdale Central vies for the ball against Myia Starks of Neuqua at the Hinsdale South tournament Thursday.
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