It was the clash of the Warriors Friday night in Deerfield, pitting No. 6 Maine West against Deerfield, but only Maine West came out fighting like its namesake on the way to a 46-30 win.
Sparked by balanced scoring from both the frontcourt and backcourt, Maine West (18-1, 4-1) scored the first 13 points of the Central-Suburban North contest. Deerfield (4-16, 1-4) could only manage two
points and ended up trailing, 13-2 at the end of the first quarter.
Deerfield came out much more composed and patient on the offensive end in the second period and managed to climb to within 19-10 going into halftime.
“I was proud of the way our girls battled back after the tough start,” said Deerfield coach John Wrenn. “We played one of the top teams in the state, and they played a great game all the way.”
Any momentum Deerfield seized going into the locker room quickly vanished as Maine West’s all-everything center, Dawn Vana, established control of the paint at both ends of the floor in the second half. The 6-foot-2 senior scored 11 of her game-high 14 points in the half and pulled down 9 rebounds for the
game. Vana also got her teammates involved with a game-high six assists. “Their defense collapsed on me in the first half, so I looked for my teammates to get involved,” said the Illinois-bound Vana. “At the end, I started shooting more when I was able to get open for some shots.”
Senior forward Erica Lambert pitched in eight points, as eight different Maine West players
scored in the game.
“We were trying different combinations of players throughout the game, but our starting lineup
helped us pull away in the third quarter,” said Maine West coach Derril Kipp.
Sophomore Chelsea Kammerer led Deerfield with nine points, all on three-point field goals.
