Sports
Girls Basketball: Lemont Outslugs Rich East
Lemont 48, Rich East 33. The Indians don't allow a field goal until midway into the second quarter en route to advancing to the Class 3A Evegreen Park regional title game against Morgan Park.
The Hot Read: Lemont jumped ahead to a 20-1 lead with five different players scoring during the run to start the game. Rich East didn't convert a field goal until G'Roma Webb made a layup with 4:02 left in the second quarter. Webb's basket injected a boost of confidence in the Rockets as they closed the first half with a 9-2 run to cut the Indians’ lead to 22-11 at halftime. Lemont opened the second half with a 5-0 run and never led by less than double digits the rest of the ballgame.
Patch's MVP: Perhaps co-MVPs for this one. Both Annie Forzley and Amy Skowronski handled the press for the Indians and created many outstanding scoring opportunities for their teammates. Rich East was able to force a few turnovers on the press, but for the most part, Forzley and Skowronski not only broke the press but dished the ball to teammates for open shots.
Key Stats: The Indians forced 21 turnovers while committing 17 of their own. The Rockets went more than 11 minutes before scoring their first field goal and didn't convert a field goal for a combined 15:52 of the opening minutes of each quarter. Three different Lemont players collected at least seven rebounds and the Indians out-rebounded the Rockets, 36-31.
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Lemont’s Leaders: Brenna Koerner (18 points), Annie Forzley (12 points, 7 rebounds), Mykala Walton (5 points, 7 rebounds) and Amy Skowronski (7 points, 7 rebounds).
Rich East’s Leaders: Makeba Elliott (13 points), Shawntina Jones (9 points) and Gelina Webb (8 rebounds).
Find out what's happening in Lemontwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Quotable: Lemont coach Bill Bozue on whether or not he felt comfortable with a 20-1 lead: "You're never comfortable as a coach. We knew they could score and they had scored 60-something on Rich South, the No. 4 seed, last week, so we knew they could score some points."
Lemont point guard Annie Forzley on handling Rich East's physical and aggressive defensive play: "There wasn't a play that came easy, and we knew they were a real fast team. We just tried to stay calm."
Team Records: Lemont: 15-12; Rich East: 10-15.
What's Next: Lemont has less than 24 hours to recover for Thursday's Class 3A Evergreen Park title game against Morgan Park. Rich East's season is over.
