Maine West downs Vernon Hills to go unbeaten in CSL North
For Maine West's girls basketball team, the beat goes on.
The Warriors rolled past Vernon Hills 73-39 Wednesday to claim the Central Suburban North title. It was Maine West's 33rd consecutive CSL North win with its last loss coming in 2016. With the win, Maine West (27-0, 10-0) clinched its fourth consecutive conference title.
"So far it has gone in our favor" said Maine West coach Kim de Marigny, whose team has never lost a conference game in her three years as head coach.
"We are enjoying riding it right now. "
Maine West will play at Marist Thursday in its last regular-season game. The Warriors, who are ranked No. 1 in the state in Class 4A begin state tournament play next Wednesday at the Lane Tech regional in Chicago.
Wednesday was the last home game of the season for Maine West and de Marigny started five seniors who normally are not on the court to begin a game.
"The girls played hard," de Marigny said. "I think they were tired. They weren't used to that intensity."
Vernon Hills (14-12, 8-2) jumped out to a 9-2 bulge with 3:04 left in the first quarter. That score remained the same until Maine West made a mass substitution with 2:39 left in the period.
The pace quickened as Maine West turned up the defensive pressure and forced turnovers on the next four possessions, erasing the deficit.
"When they put their starters back in, it forced us into a speed we clearly weren't comfortable with," Vernon Hills coach Paul Brettner said. "As much as I like to believe we can compete at that level, we didn't show as well as we could."
The speed of the game made the difference, agreed de Marigny.
"We like to play fast," she said. "When our first group was out there, they played as fast they could. When the second team comes in, they just enjoy getting up and down the floor."
It was all Maine West from there as the Warriors scored the final 11 points of the quarter on its way to a 19-0 run. After a free throw by Vernon Hills' Piper Bidell, Maine West rattled off another 9 straight to make it a 29-10 lead. The Warriors kept the pressure up to break it open at the half with a 42-17 advantage.
"Coming off the bench was a little different," said Rachel Kent, who finished with 14 points for the Warriors. "I think our defense made the difference. When you come up on them and pressure them, you force them to make mistakes."
Jocelyn Jacob, who sees plenty of time regularly but got the start said it was fun.
"It was really exciting to be able to start," said Jacob, who led the Warriors with 16 points thanks to four 3-pointers. "I was a little nervous at the beginning, that is why my shot was a little off."
Vanessa Reyes had 14 points for Maine West, Angela Dugalic had 10 points and 10 rebounds and Dylan VanFleet added 9 points.
The Cougars were led by Kayla Caudle, who had 16 points and 9 rebounds, and Abby Brown who had 10 points.