Lovitsch, Guenther help Grayslake North past Jacobs
OK, so she's not quite a state secret.
Sometime during the winter vacation, Grayslake North reached down to the freshman level and picked out a plum.
That would be ninth-grader Savannah Guenther. And she has quite the pretty shot.
On Tuesday night, the Knights invited Jacobs for a Fox Valley Conference girls basketball divisional crossover game.
Late in the first quarter, the Golden Eagles pulled within a single point at 7-6. But from that point, the Knights (16-13) went on a 16-2 run to break the game open on the way to a 53-32 victory.
Grayslake North junior Sidney Lovitsch (20 points, 6 steals) handed out the scouting report on young Guenther.
"Savannah dominated on the freshman level,'' Lovitsch said. "I was her partner in shooting drills and she's something special."
Officially it was four 3-pointers that Guenther tossed in, on the way to 14 points.
They came in handy for Grayslake North coach Rob Nicoletti, whose team needed a little help with an injury to standout Brandi Thibeaux. The Knights are hoping to see this gifted sophomore back in action during regional play next week.
In any case, the coach was glad to see his team dominate on both sides of the ball.
"We came out energized,'' Nicoletti said. "We played a full four quarters tonight."
On Guenther's second 3-pointer of the first half, the Knights looked in control at 26-10.
The visiting Golden Eagles were led by guard Talia Surges, who scored 11 points. The 5-foot-1 senior certainly measured up with a 6-for-6 effort at the free throw line.
"Talia is a spark for us in every game,'' said Jacobs coach Joe Benoit. "She never complains. She just puts the team on her back."
Surges scored her team's first 6 points after halftime, a run that included 4 of her free throws.
Guenther tried to match the Jacobs senior with a 5-point run of her own in that quarter; it included a 3 and a 10-footer.
Lovitsch landed her lone 3-pointer late in the third quarter, and the Knights' lead was still solid at 36-19.
Jacobs (9-16) kicked up its scoring in the second half as Benoit's club went 13-for-15 from the free throw line.
"In the second half, we did a better job,'' Benoit said.
Both teams substituted freely in the final quarter. The Knights still landed three 3s in the fourth, as Guenther had her final one. Both Morgan Lyon and Alyssa Gunn added 3-pointers.
Jacobs junior Emily Anderson scored all of her 6 points in the fourth quarter, while Grayslake North junior Sydney Paez scored all of her 7 points in the first half.
"Sydney played really hard in practice and earned her spot,'' Nicoletti said.