Niles West girls nip DG South for York title

The way the 8th Annual York Girls Thanksgiving Tournament championship game between Niles West and Downers Grove South was played, one would never believe it was just the fourth game for both

Played at the level of a Class 4A Supersectional in mid-March, Niles West (3-1) held on to defeat Downers Grove South, 48-47. The Wolves were led by their senior All-Tournament selection Sam Galanopoulos (18 points, eight rebounds) and 6-foot-1 senior, Nerina Alic (two points, 15 rebounds, five blocked shots).

Downers Grove South (3-1), was led by sophomore, Meghan Stapleton (22 points, four 3’s) and 6-1 senior, All-Tournament selection, Holly Lueken (12 points, eight rebounds, eight blocked shots).

With 3:41 left in the game, Lueken scored to tie the game at 44. With 2:15 left in the contest, Wolves’ senior guard, Jen Orbello came up with the play of the game.

Orbello’s (10 points, two steals) steal and driving layup gave the Wolves a 46-44 lead they would never relinquish.

With 16.8 seconds remaining, Niles’ West sophomore, Angelica Cirineo (11 points, three 3’s) was fouled and calmly made a pair of free throws to give the Wolves a 48-44 lead.

With 1.7 seconds left in the contest, Stapleton buried her fourth triple of the game to pull the Mustangs within 48-47.

Galanopoulos was immediately fouled and with Niles West in the super-bonus, she went to the line for two free throws.

Galanopoulos missed both free throws and Lueken grabbed the rebound and her desperation 60-footer was blocked by Galanopoulos.

“This championship really feels great because it has been a long journey for me since my freshman year,” Galanopoulos said. “To win this championship, all our hard work in the off-season and all year-round really pay off. Nerina and Dahlia’s presence down low, is so nice for me, because I can leak out, knowing they will get the rebounds.”

The first half was an all-out war, as both teams were allowed by the officials to beat each other up.

Niles West led 25-24, after using, its 2-3 zone to perfection, to shut out the 23 point-per-game scorer Lueken in the first  half.

“This championship feels so good because this is the first time we have won anything in a very long time,” Alic said. “Rebounding is all about positioning yourself down low and really battling your opponent for the rebound. Downers Grove’s Holly Lueken is a great player and we battled each other all night.”

When Cirineo buried her third triple of the game with 2:57 left in the third quarter, the Wolves’ had their largest lead of the game at 39-28.

“This championship is so exciting foe me, especially being my first year on varsity,” Cirineo said. “I stayed calm, took a deep breath and made both huge free throws. Nerina and Dahlia’s work on the boards, really got us more offensive opportunities which helped us win the game.”

Lueken closed out the third quarter with a personal 9-0 run, including a pair of 25-foot triples to pull the Mustangs within 39-37 after three quarters.

“We knew this was going to be a tough game,” Stapleton said. “Galanopoulos is such a great player for Niles West. We worked so hard to stop her and Niles West on defense. We let them go up by 11 and at the end we made it a one point game. I am so proud of everyone for playing so hard.”I was able to step up tonight and help out the team when we weren’t scoring. I kept shooting and even got a little tired at times. My three’s were falling again tonight.”

In the fourth quarter with Alic on the bench with fouls, the Wolves’ 5-11, senior Dahlia Maxwell, who just scored two points in the game, but grabbed five offensive boards, in the fourth quarter alone.

“I feel this championship is super well deserved,” Orbello said. “We worked so hard to achieve this. We played great defense tonight and played so hard to win the championship. On my steal, it was just in the moment and it went well for me. I worked really hard out there tonight on my overall game. As long I continue to work hard the chances for me to be successful, will increase with my hard work.”

“Niles West is a nice team. Our sophomore Meghan Stapleton had a great game tonight and a phenomenal tournament”

After watching the Wolves lose to Prospect 59-45, in their opening game on Monday night, no one would have ever thought the Wolves would win one game, let alone the tournament championship.

“It was a great game,” Niles West coach Kyle Braheny said. “We were in it all the way and played so hard. The game was a game of runs. Each team matched each others’ runs. We finally shut them down in the last few minutes to win the game and the tournament championship.

“We have really come together as a team here at York. This championship, really sets the tone for the whole season. Last year we went 1-3. This year we go 3-1 and win the tournament. It was a great team-effort and I am really excited for these girls, as we go forward this season. This is really something to build off of.”

Benet Academy (2-0) routed the Batavia 50-24 in the Redwings’ home opener in Lisle.

Lockport improved to 2-1 on the season with a 53-16 blowout of West Chicago at the Willlowbrook Thanksgiving Tournament in Villa Park Friday night.

Chicago Public League powerhouse Simeon (2-0) stunned Bolingbrook 70-64 in the Raiders’ season and home opener Friday night.

Trojans trounce Lady Saxons in Schaumburg Invite
Downers Grove North crushed tournament host Schaumburg 45-21 to even the Trojans record at 1-1 on the season.

After rallying past the tournament hosts from IC 52-49 on Tuesday, the Lions dispatched Chicago Northside Prep 39-29 Thursday

Maine South (1-1) defeated the Rams 42-35 at the Bison Invite at Buffalo Grove Thursday night.

Plainfield Central (1-0) slipped past the Lady Tomcats 51-49 in its opening-round game of the Willowbrook Thanksgiving Tournament.

Lockport and its old rivals from Romeoville met in Romeoville Wednesday night in a nonconference game. Present-day Romeoville High School, many years ago was Lockport West High School. The Porters (1-1) rolled past the host Spartans 57-45 behind senior Payton Grcevic and junior Sawyer Hollatz.