Extra works pays off for Lake Park
After struggling from the free-throw line in the previous girls basketball game, Carson Vance took 100 shots from the line in practice.
On Thursday the extra work paid off for the Lake Park junior.
Knocking down three free throws over the final 12 seconds, the first of which broke a tie, Vance led the Lancers to a 50-47 DuPage Valley Conference victory over Naperville North in Roselle.
The guard finished with a game-high 19 points.
"It felt good," Vance said. "It's a great feeling. They have always been one of our big rivals; we play them pretty much three times a year. It's fun to play them."
For much of the contest, it didn't look like the outcome would be in doubt, thanks to the long-range shooting of the home team. Lake Park (3-5, 2-1) connected on eight 3-pointers, accounting for nearly half of their points, and led by as many as 9 in the fourth quarter.
"I think we had, like, five girls hit 3s," Lake Park coach Brian Rupp said. "That's how we try to play, all of our girls have to be long-range threats."
But Naperville North (3-4, 1-3) made a valiant comeback, pulling within 2 points on a pair of occasions before finally knotting the score on an offensive rebound and hoop by Sadie Jurkovic with 15 seconds left.
The junior center had 4 points, 9 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Lauren Platou and Morgan Lockridge led the Huskies with 12 points apiece and Cami Bilardello added 11 for the visitors, who trailed 11-3 after the opening quarter.
"That was a spirited game," Naperville North coach Jason Dycus said. "When someone opens the door, you have to walk through it. But we are a young team and we make some mistakes. We are going to get better.
"It sounds like a broken record, but I'm proud of their effort. They work hard."
Emily Golab totaled 13 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals for the Lancers, who lost freshman standout Darrione Rogers to a torn ACL in the first game of the season. Camryn James finished with 7 points.
"I wasn't happy with how we closed the game out," Rupp said. "But they are a good team and they didn't quit. We have a lot of things to clean up."