Girls Basketball: New Trier topples Maine South

Updated: December 2, 2011 9:32PM

New Trier didn’t want to start another season behind Maine South in the Central Suburban South. 

The No. 20-ranked Trevians held off the defending conference champion and No. 4 Hawks for a 55-44 win Friday in Winnetka to gain the early advantage in one of the toughest leagues in the state. The victory snapped Maine South’s three-game win streak over New Trier.

“It was really big to get this win,” Northwestern-bound Maggie Lyon said. “We wanted to make a statement to our conference. When they beat us to start last year, it really took away our momentum.”

Lyon finished with a team-best 19 points, but teammates Jessica Blackwell, Meg Rosinski and Brigit Ieuter were also instrumental in the victory. 

Blackwell scored 15, including a big basket off an offensive rebound to put the Trevians up 49-44 with 1:08 to go in the game. Meanwhile, Rosinski and Ieuter locked down Maine South’s Michelle Maher, who finished with six points.

“Jessica came up with some clutch plays,” said Lyon, whose team handed the Hawks their first loss of the year. “It was such a team effort.”

New Trier led the entire first half before Maher put the Hawks (7-1) ahead 29-27 with a layup midway through the third quarter.

But Lyon answered with a basket and a three-pointer to return the lead to New Trier (6-0) for good. The Trevians upped the advantage to as many as 10 in the fourth quarter, but the Hawks made it interesting with a 6-0 run to leave the score 47-44 with 1:37 remaining. 

That’s when Blackwell snuck through the lane for a layup. Rosinski and Ieuter then combined for four free throws to secure the victory.

Grant finished with a game-high 21 points. 

“We are not going to sneak up on anybody this year,” said Maine South coach Mark Smith, whose team took third place in the state last season. “Maybe this takes us off the pedestal. But we will keep focusing on the little details.”

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