On Jan. 17, the girls varsity basketball team fell in a non-conference game to the New Trier Trevians , 56-43. The Wildcats had won six of their last seven coming into the game.
The Trevians (13-8) got off to an early 19-13 lead at the end of the first quarter, after sinking five of their six attempted three-pointers. However, Cats forwards Claire Keefe (9 points) and Caroline Frea (11 points) kept the Cats in it.
“We don’t play very many teams that can knock down shots like New Trier can,” Cats coach Greg Pedersen said.
The Trevians dominated defensively in the second quarter, holding the Cats to six points. The Cats were 0-for-5 from three-point range and turned the ball over five times in the quarter. They trailed 30-19 at half.
New Trier extended their lead to 15 in the third quarter when coach Pedersen called a timeout with 3:44 remaining in the period. After that, the Cats ended the quarter on a 13-0 run.
“Defense was going to get us going,” Pedersen said when asked about what he told the girls in the timeout. “We needed more energy on closeouts because they were so hot.”
Defense is exactly what got Libertyville going in the third. They forced 7 Trevian turnovers. Consecutive three-pointers made by Lydia Crow (6 points), Frea, and Riley Weis (7 points) closed the third quarter.
The Cats brought that same intensity to start the fourth. Back-to-back lay-ups by Weis and Maddie Spaulding (6 points) gave the Cats their first lead of the game. However, the Cats went cold again after that and failed to score from that point on. The Trevians went on a 15-0 run of their own to end the game. Meg Murdock (15 points) led the charge for New Trier.
“It’s about not giving up open looks in the beginning, because you expend all that energy making the comeback.” Pedersen noted.
It is a quick turnaround for the girls team, as their next game is Thursday, Jan. 19, against Zion-Benton at home.
