No. 1 New Trier survived a furious comeback by Buffalo Grove, and it was not simply a coincidence that Shana Franklin had something to do with that.
“Shana does a nice job of keeping us under control,” coach Teri Rodgers said after the Trevians’ 61-48 victory Friday in Buffalo Grove’s Thanksgiving tournament. “She does all the little stuff whether it’s rebounds or breaking the press.
“We need Shana out on the floor.”
The 6-foot senior wound up doing a lot of the big stuff, too, as New Trier ran its record to 4-0. Franklin came up with 17 points, eight rebounds and three steals. But she wasn’t able to help much while sitting on the bench for almost five minutes with her fourth foul while the Bison (2-2) trimmed a 21-point deficit to 52-48 with 3 minutes left.
“It was a little nerve-wracking,” Franklin said. “We really have to work on holding onto the ball. We got frustrated and turned the ball over too much.”
Think New Trier was frustrated? Imagine how Buffalo Grove’s Tom Dineen must have felt. The coach of the 1999 Class AA state champs benched his entire starting lineup after New Trier took a 20-11 lead after the first quarter. And those starters didn’t return until 2:49 remained in the third quarter with No. 9 Buffalo Grove down 44-25 and seemingly out of the game.
The lead grew to 46-25 before the home team–sparked by Kate Willing’s six second-half points and Molly Wendell’s tenaciousness–cut the Trevians’ lead to four. That’s about the time Franklin returned. She provided four points, three rebounds and a block the rest of the way–not to mention those “little things” that make Rodgers’ life easier.
“We got a comfortable lead, we’re feeling pretty good and got a little lackadaisical,” said Rodgers, who also got a career-high 14 points from 6-3 junior Monica Slota, 12 from freshman Deirdre Naughton and 11 points, 11 rebounds from Megan Slattery.
“I think we were still celebrating Thanksgiving that first quarter,” said Dineen, whose Bison were led in scoring by Willing (10). But the Bison, he noted, weren’t on holiday the final 10:49 when they outscored New Trier 23-17: “That’s the Buffalo Grove team I thought I’d see all the time.”
Lindsay Richards scored 23 points and Danielle Tinkoff came through with 12 points, 11 rebounds and four assists as Barrington (2-2) upset No. 12 Maine South 58-50. Anne Forde led the Hawks (4-1) with 14 points.
— Alan Sutton
Hinsdale South tournament: Melanie Ploger hit four three-pointers to finish with 16 points as second-ranked Hinsdale Central cruised past Vernon Hills 52-31. Maggie Acuna and Morgan Kasperek each added 11 points for the Red Devils (4-0). Beth Plucinski led Vernon Hills (0-5) with 16 points. . . . Plainfield (2-3) downed Larkin 77-57 behind Karin Olson’s 20 points and Heather Furr’s 17 points. . . . Neuqua Valley (3-1) slipped past Hinsdale South 66-63 behind Lindsay Wisdom’s 19 points, 11 rebounds and nine blocks.
Waubonsie Valley/West Aurora tournament: No. 3 Fenwick (4-0) breezed past Waubonsie Valley 89-52 as Breanne Smilie and Erin Lawless scored 19 and 17 points, respectively. Ellen Wood led all scorers with 21 points and also grabbed 16 rebounds for the Warriors (3-2). . . . Natasha Williams tallied 22 points and 16 rebounds to help Niles North hold off West Aurora 60-52. Jennifer Bryner added 11 points and six steals for the Vikings (4-0), while Kelly Park scored 13 of her 20 points in the final quarter to rally West Aurora (2-2) from a 46-26 third-quarter deficit. . . . Fremd (2-3) beat Joliet 59-45 behind Heather Glaser’s 19 points.
Naperville Central/East Aurora/Benet tournament: Seventh-ranked Regina (4-0) held on for a 57-53 defeat of Sandburg as Christina Quaye and Jenna Markoff scored 16 and 15 points, respectively. Sandburg’s Erika Nelson led all scorers with 18 points, but the No. 15 Eagles (3-2) couldn’t build on their 47-46 lead early in the fourth quarter. . . . No. 11 Naperville Central tipped Benet 40-36 behind Candace Parker’s 14 points. Sue Lannon scored 10 second-half points and Pam Ficarra added eight fourth-quarter points as the Redhawks (4-0) held off a late Benet surge. Jenny Callan led the No. 16 Redwings (2-3) with 16 points. . . . Katie Grens’ 15 points led Elgin (2-2) past East Aurora 50-29. . . . Kelly Krumwiede scored 10 points to help Glenbard West (1-3) defeat Batavia 36-25.
York tournament: Kristin Moore scored 21 points to lead No. 10 Hope past Proviso East 71-37. . . . Krystal Hugelier put in 21 points for the host Dukes in an 81-41 defeat of Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Maine West tournament: No. 14 Stevenson (4-0) rolled over Maria 56-39 as Erin Murtha scored 24 points. . . . Nora Dinneen’s 13 points and Margaret Gilmartin’s 11 points led No. 17 St. Ignatius (1-2) past Young 57-45. Candis Jackson led Young (1-1) with 18 points. . . . Katie Blonn collected 14 points and 10 rebounds for No. 18 Maine West (3-1) in a 55-44 win over Washington. . . . Angela Watt’s 13 points paced Evanston’s 53-50 win over Hersey. Michelle Westerkamp poured in 28 points for Hersey.
Deerfield tournament: Meggie Eck put in 16 points for Deerfield (4-1) in a 48-35 win over Loyola (2-3). . . . Katie Barr’s 16 points lifted Lake Forest over Round Lake 44-32. . . . Kim Lang scored 17 points as Waukegan (5-0) blasted Highland Park 70-31.
More Top Picks Best Coffee Grinder
Lincoln-Way Central tournament: The host Knights (3-0) topped Thornridge 58-49 behind Olga Viano’s 16 points. . . . Kate Gibbs scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for Morris (2-1) in a 50-34 win over Rich East (0-3).
Mundelein tournament: Christine Martinson scored 15 points as Carmel (5-0) beat Crystal Lake Central 57-34.
Schaumburg tournament: Pam Findlay’s 23 points and Danielle Nabolotny’s 17 points helped Glenbrook South (4-1) roll past Wheaton North 74-37.
University High tournament: Jennifer Hoffman turned in a 21-point, 21-rebound performance and Simone Veal added 19 points as Seton (5-0) captured the tournament title with a 65-54 victory over Lourdes. Cosima Tines put in 20 points for Lourdes (4-1). . . . In the third-place game, Gina Rose tallied 16 points and 14 rebounds to lift St. Francis de Sales (4-2) past Good Counsel 54-45.