Grant eases past Grayslake North

A Gold Glove infielder would appreciate the last name of Grant basketball player Cora Hughs.

There is no "E."

That's no error on Grant's roster.

"(It gets misspelled) a lot," Hughs said with a smile.

"I asked her, 'Am I saying it right?' " Grant coach Kevin Geist said. " 'Is it (pronounced), 'Hugs?' "

Friday night, Hughs (sounds like "Hughes") came up huge, earning hugs. So did the sophomore guard's teammates. Despite squandering a 10-point lead after one quarter, and with all-area center Jazzlyn Linbo on the bench after fouling out, Grant pulled out a 37-33 win over Grayslake North in fourth-round play of the Mundelein Thanksgiving tournament.

Two nights earlier, the Bulldogs beat Mundelein in similar fashion, hitting clutch free throws down the stretch.

"We're winning with a lot of foul trouble, having to put people in different roles and different positions," Geist said after his Bulldogs improved to 2-2 going into Saturday's tourney finale against Glenbrook South (noon tipoff). "They've been keeping their composure and executing down the stretch. Hopefully it builds their confidence, and hopefully we can carry this over into (next week)."

Hughs' free throw with 1:17 left broke a 31-31 tie after Eden Hartigan's basket off an inbounds pass knotted the score for Grayslake North (1-3), which trailed 11-1 after one quarter. Grant got another free throw, from Kaitlyn Flader, and then 4 in as many attempts from MaCalyn Flores (team-high 9 points) in the final 16 seconds.

Hughs came off the bench to score 5 points. Fellow reserves Ashlyn Santos (3-pointer) and Kylie Whyte added 5 and 3 points, respectively, as well as 3 rebounds each.

"We were all talking on the court so it lifted up our confidence," Hughs said.

Hughs, who played on varsity last season and was a candidate to start heading into the season, missed the Bulldogs' season-opening loss to Carmel, as she was home with the flu. She also missed a practice.

"I was trying to rest so I could heal for Tuesday (vs. Highland Park)," Hughs said. "I was disappointed I couldn't make it, but I was happy to be there Tuesday."

"She's a tough girl," Geist said of Hughs. "She doesn't say anything. She lets her game do the talking for her. I think she learned a lot last year (being up on varsity). She's like a sponge, she's always in the right position, and she's always going hard."

Linbo finished with 7 points and 6 rebounds. Katelyn Dupree grabbed 10 rebounds for the Bulldogs, who beat Grayslake North three times during the regular season only to lose to the Knights in a play-in game of the Class 4A Hersey regional.

Grayslake North was led by Morgan Atwell's 10 points and Jayden Curtis' 13 rebounds. Freshman Peyton Gerdes, who picked up 4 fouls in the first half, sparked the Knights' fourth-quarter rally, as she scored all 8 of her points, including 4 free throws in as many attempts.