The Bears (22-9) held a 33-32 lead with 3 minutes 18 seconds left when Olivia Allen hustled all the way out to half court for a long rebound that allowed her team to keep possession.
Then sophomore Audrey Bauer grabbed two rebounds in the final 36 seconds to help regional host Lake Zurich maintain its lead and advance to Friday’s title game against No. 3 Wheeling–the same school the Bears upset in the same game last season.
“We didn’t score as much as we usually do, so I think our defense was really important,” said Bauer, who grabbed teammate Gabby Chapa’s missed free throw with 14 seconds left and scored to give the Bears a six-point lead.
Allen led Lake Zurich with 14 points while Bauer, whose sister Lydia was lost for the season with a shoulder separation in early January, contributed nine points and 10 rebounds.
Lake Forest (16-13), which trailed 18-8 at the half, was led by Jean Rebarchak’s 15 points. Claire Dimario, a 6-1 sophomore who went scoreless in the first half, helped rally the Scouts with eight points in the second.
Wheeling (26-3) slogged to a 19-8 halftime lead before rolling to a 54-28 semifinal victory over Mid-Suburban East rival Hersey.
Ashley Wilson scored 13 of her game-high 19 points for Wheeling. Bianca Szafarowicz added 15 and is obviously looking forward to the rematch with Lake Zurich, which rallied to knock out the Wildcats last season.
“Last year we got upset, so we were really nervous at the beginning,” said Szafarowicz, a 5-11 sophomore guard. “I know at the beginning I didn’t do so well, but I picked it up in the second half.”
Szafarowicz managed to score five points in the opening 16 minutes to help Wheeling take an 11-point lead. Then her eight points in the third quarter helped the Wildcats pull away.
Wilson, a junior who already has committed to Purdue, had seven rebounds, five steals, three assists and two blocks as Wheeling beat Hersey for the third time this season.
The loss left Huskies coach Mary Fendley still sitting on 199 career victories. Freshman Megan Rogowski led Hersey (11-20) with 15 points.
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