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Glenbard North speaks up in win over Willowbrook

Since she began playing Glenbard North varsity girls basketball as a freshman, senior guard Zakiya Newsome has become more confident, composed and significantly louder.

"I feel like I'm a lot more vocal leader because I have to be," Newsome said. "When I was a freshman, I was laid back and quiet. Now I have to step up."

The Panthers' combination of old and new came away with many positives Tuesday after defeating Willowbrook 50-28 in the season opener for both teams in Carol Stream.

Junior Lauren Lee had 12 points and two 3-pointers for the Panthers followed by 11 points for senior Kayla Quanstrum, 9 for Newsome and 6 apiece for junior Leah Miller and senior Frankie Malkin. Lee and Malkin had 7 rebounds.

Willowbrook sophomore Hanna Konrath had a game-high 15 points with back-to-back 3s in the fourth quarter. Sophomore CeCe Lizasuain added 6 points.

"Definitely a lot of hustle out of everyone. For the first game it was a great start," said Quanstrum, who missed her personal high by a point. "I'm usually more of a defensive player, going out, getting some steals. I think my offense could definitely come alive this season."

The Panthers return starters Newsome, Quanstrum, Lee and Miller from their 17-11 team that won seven straight before losing in the regional final to Batavia.

It's a totally new dynamic, however, with the graduation of All-Area forward Jennifer Deegan, now playing club basketball at Indiana. Freshman Arielle Capel was Tuesday's fifth starter.

"We've really been talking a lot about flipping the script. We're looking at a whole new identity," Glenbard North coach John Chamberlain said.

"I really liked our intensity. We played really hard on the defensive end, did a nice job on the boards. I liked our balanced scoring. We were driving the ball, shooting, throwing it in the post. We scored in all three phases, which was good to see."

Lee already had 9 points as Glenbard North led 11-2 after one quarter but sat out the second quarter with two fouls.

The Panthers scored the last 6 points of the half for a 28-12 lead in the final 20.4 seconds on free throws by Newsome and senior Hannah Heier, steals from Quanstrum and freshman Brea King and Quanstrum's buzzer-beater basket off the backboard.

Glenbard North made five straight shots in the third quarter, two by Capel, in pulling ahead 39-17.

"You tell them in the locker room that you want to establish those first couple of minutes and they really did it," Chamberlain said.

Willowbrook's halftime talk was mainly about missed opportunities. The Warriors' backcourt and half-court pressing yielded six straight steals to open the second quarter but only two resulted in baskets by Konrath.

Their 6-for-21 first-half shooting with no free throws and 21 of their 28 turnovers didn't help. Konrath finished 6-for-14 shooting.

"We didn't shoot well. And to be honest, we looked shellshocked," Willowbrook coach Terry Harrell said. "If you turn a team over, you've got to take advantage. You've got to make some layups."

This season Newsome hopes to provide leadership for the Panthers' three varsity freshmen. The 5-foot-5 Newsome will be greatly impacted by Deegan's absence in at least one aspect.

"It's a lot different because she was my other vocal partner on the floor," Newsome said. "We are going to miss her, her rebounding, and she was our scoring leader. But I think we're going to be fine because we're a lot quicker and we hustle a lot more."

Konrath and senior Grace Chantos are returning Willowbrook starters from last year's 8-20 team. Two more sophomores started Tuesday.

"Bottom line is we're a lot better than that. We've just got to play like that," Harrell said. "We played hard. We did what we wanted to do early. We just couldn't score. When you're playing four guards on the court, you can't have that many turnovers. A lot of our turnovers, we just got in a rush."

  Hanna Konrath of Willowbrook takes a shot over Glenbard North's Zakiya Newsome (15) during the Willowbrook at Glenbard North girls basketball game Tuesday. Paul Michna/pmichna@dailyherald.com
  Willowbrook's guard Grace Chantos (24) and Glenbard North's Leah Miller (21) vie for a loose ball during the Willowbrook at Glenbard North girls basketball game Tuesday. Paul Michna/pmichna@dailyherald.com
  Glenbard North's Zakiya Newsome (15) takes a shot during the Willowbrook at Glenbard North girls basketball game Tuesday. Paul Michna/pmichna@dailyherald.com
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