Nazareth Academy saved its very best for last Thursday. The No. 16 Roadrunners (22-7) rallied from a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit to pull out a 64-62 Class AA regional victory over host Willowbrook.
With 4.7 seconds left and the game tied 62-62, sophomore Nicole Baich took an inbounds pass under the bucket from teammate Shannon Hartney and banked in the game-winner.
Willowbrook (25-6) had used a barrage of five three-pointers to build a 51-41 lead entering the final period and extended the advantage to 60-47 with four minutes to play. But Nazareth used its press to force a series of turnovers as it went on a 17-2 run over the final 3:46.
“We felt if we went man-to-man we could get them,” Nazareth coach Terry Spulak said. “The kids just played hard and we forced pressure on them [and] we got layups and we finished.”
Sarah McNicholas led the Roadrunners with 15 points. Willowbrook guard Meri Niehaus had a game-high 22 points, including five three-pointers.
In other Lyons sectional games, Morgan Kasperek and Melanie Ploger had 14 points each to lead No. 6 Hinsdale Central (28-1) to the school’s 12th straight regional title in a 51-28 win over Downers Grove South. Ashley Cwiakala had eight points to lead the Mustangs (16-13) and Heather Mansour, who leads Downers South with 17 points per game, was held scoreless. . . . Krystal Hugelier’s 21 points led No. 11 York past Proviso West 49-31. . . . Heather VanHoegarden had 13 points and Jen Belmonte added 12 points to lead No. 15 Hinsdale South to a 48-28 win over Downers Grove North (11-18).
Jack McCarthy.
Thornridge: Lauren Lacey had 17 points and seven rebounds for top-ranked Marian Catholic (26-1) in a 70-43 win over Thornton. . . . Danielle Lonie’s 34 points paced No. 9 Hillcrest (23-2) in a 86-55 victory over Crete-Monee.
Lake Zurich: No. 2 Lake Zurich (30-0) rolled past Libertyville 51-29 as Johanna Solverson scored 19 points. . . . Kayla Ming had 18 points as Grayslake (22-8) upset No. 18 Stevenson 45-33. . . . Danielle Tinkoff and Lindsay Richards scored 19 for Barrington (22-9) as the Fillies held off Warren 60-51. Amy Peters scored a game-high 20 points for the Blue Devils (23-7). . . . Ashley Stein had 21 points and six rebounds as Mundelein (22-11) won its first regional title since 1989 with a 60-47 victory over Carmel. Becky Smith’s 11 points led Carmel (21-8).
Public League playoffs: No. 3 Hope (28-2) advanced by beating Hyde Park 68-38 as Akila Harris netted 15 points and Lachelle Lyles chipped in 14 points and collected 17 rebounds.
Eisenhower: Erin Lawless’ 15 points led No. 4 Fenwick (29-3) in its 72-39 win over Oak Park. . . . Sandburg put together a 13-2 run in the fourth quarter to secure its 65-48 win over Stagg. Erika Nelson led Sandburg (22-9) with 24 points. Heather King had 20 points and 14 rebounds to lead Stagg (19-9). Margaret Gilmartin scored 20 as St. Ignatius (20-11) defeated Richards 67-53. Tina Hill’s 33 points led Richards (19-6).
Benet: Candace Parker’s 29 points paced No. 5 Naperville Central (27-2) over Wheaton Warrenville South, 55-29. . . . Chandra Smith hit two free throws with 13 seconds left and finished with 13 points as No. 13 Benet slipped past Waubonsie Valley 50-47. Jenny Callan scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for Benet (22-8). Carlie Janowiak had 24 points for Waubonsie Valley (13-16). . . . Lashawndra Brown had 20 points and Vanessa Antonino had the winning basket with six seconds left in overtime for Naperville North in a 51-50 win over Geneva. Lindsey Koehn had 17 points to lead Geneva (25-3).
Niles West: Christina Quaye had 15 points and 10 rebounds as No. 10 Regina (26-4) defeated Evanston 50-33. . . . Natasha Williams had 24 points, 19 rebounds and five blocks to lift Niles North (24-6) over Resurrection 71-51. Denise Bronski had 16 points to lead Resurrection (19-11). . . . Katie Panegasser had 14 points and four three-pointers as Maine West (22-10) eliminated Maine South 45-32. Liz Bondi led Maine South (20-13) with 14 points.
Elgin: Lauren Weber had 19 points as No. 12 St. Viator outscored Hersey 12-1 in the overtime of a 52-41 win. Michele Westerkamp had 12 points to lead Hersey and Shana Liebermann, whose two free throws sent the game to overtime, had 10. . . . Rachel Theodore scored 20 to lead Prospect (20-8) to a 52-29 win over No. 20 Fremd (18-11). . . . Buffalo Grove (22-10) edged Schaumburg 57-52 as Jennifer Guth scored 23 points.
Plainfield: Jessica Jones scored 19 to lead No. 19 Neuqua Valley (26-5) past Romeoville 65-44. . . . Chloe Kerr scored 25 points as Bolingbrook (25-3) eliminated Minooka 55-37.
Class A sectionals
Varna Midland: LeAnn Stahl and Amberley Callahan had 14 points each to lead Seneca (28-1) to a 52-46 overtime win over Chillicothe Illinois Valley Central to advance to Tuesday’s supersectional against Rock Island Alleman.
Illiana Christian: Jess Eenigenburg had 23 points as the host Vikings (22-8) rolled to a 63-45 win over Chicago Latin. Chrissy Dizon led the Romans (21-9) with 23 points and scored 18 of the team’s 22 second-half points.
