Girls Basketball: Loyola holds off scrappy Niles North in overtime win
BY MATT HARNESS mharness@pioneerlocal.com January 21, 2012 5:20PM
Skokie-Lauren Kriz (left) oyola and Alissa Hirsh of Niles North battle for the rebound.Girls basketball pits the Ramblers of Loyola versus the the Vikings of Niles North.. | Joe Cyganowski ~ For Sun Times Media
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Updated: January 23, 2012 3:45PM
Loyola coach Jeremy Schoenecker is a young man, but he might need to check his blood pressure after this week’s set of games.
For the second time in three days, the No. 17-ranked Ramblers turned back a home team’s second-half rally to earn a win, this time beating Niles North 53-50 in overtime Saturday in Skokie.
After losing to No. 8 Maine South on Jan. 11, Loyola won its third game in a row. The Ramblers started the week with a win over No. 14 Fremd on Monday before beating Mother McAuley on Thursday.
Loyola led by as many as nine in the fourth quarter, but Niles North fought hard down the stretch.
Mariyah Henley, who missed nearly three quarters away at her grandmother’s funeral, sparked the comeback. The senior scored nine points in the final five minutes of the fourth to send the game into overtime.
After Alissa Hirsh gave the Vikings (13-10) a 50-48 advantage early in OT, it was all Loyola (18-6).
Michelle Ricolcol’s jumper at the 1:33 mark put the Ramblers ahead for good at 51-50. Colleen McShane then forced a Hirsh turnover, and Lauren Kriz iced the game with two free throws.
“We knew (Hirsh) was a good player from the beginning,” McShane said. “I wanted to pressure her more because we didn’t want her to get the ball to (Henley). I wanted to play her tight, and it worked.”
Loyola looked as if it was running away with the game, leading by 10 with 3:10 to go in the third quarter.
But Henley checked into the game with 2:51 left, and she immediately made a difference, scoring four points in the final two minutes to leave the Vikings down 38-35.
Henley did it again midway through the fourth, but the Ramblers were able to hold her off in OT. She finished with a team-best 13 points. Hirsh added 12 points. The loss snapped a four-game win streak for Niles North.
Anna Schueler led Loyola with a game-high 14 points. The junior made four three-pointers. Kriz contributed nine points.
“It was really tough not to get this win,” Hirsh said.
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