Fremd's fast start nets fifth straight regional crown

Fremd's girls basketball team raced to a 16-7 lead over No. 7 over Grayslake Central after one quarter and never looked back in winning its 22nd regional in school history on Thursday night.

Bradley-bound Missy Adrian (4 assists, 4 steals) and Harvard recruit Grace Tworek (10 rebounds) each scored 12 points to lead the No. 2 seeded Vikings to a 56-27 win in the championship game of the Class 4A Barrington regional.

It was Fremd's fifth straight regional crown under coach Dave Yates.

The Vikings (25-6) will face the winner of Friday's Stevenson regional championship (No. 3 Stevenson vs No. 6 Libertyville) in Monday's 7:30 p.m. semifinal of the Libertyville sectional.

"It was a great team win," Yates said. "We had very balanced scoring and really shared the ball."

Tworek (10 rebounds) scored 10 points in the first quarter, including a pair of 3-pointers, as the Vikings took a 9-0 lead.

"Grace got us going and we got off to a great start," Yates said. "Missy did a great job on their leading scorer (senior Amanda Larson, who had 7 points)."

Sisters Hayley and Midori Williams each chipped in 9 points for Fremd while sophomore teammate Angie Zara and freshman Emily Klaczek had 6 apiece.

Klaczek also had 4 of the Vikings' 17 assists.

"I thought our team defense was excellent," Yates added. "Grayslake Central is well coached (by Steve Ikenn) and they play very hard. It was a very good win for our girls."