Sandburg’s Megan Cummens said she’s been struggling with her shot, but you couldn’t tell that was a problem in Thursday’s SICA West game against No. 17 Lincoln-Way East.
The 5-foot-10-inch junior came off the bench to score 10 points, including a three-pointer that gave the Eagles the lead for good, and lift Sandburg to a 54-40 victory over the visiting Griffins.
“She says that, but I think she has a good shot,” said Sandburg coach Christine Bochnak, whose team is 10-7 with a conference-leading mark of 4-0. “She’s just sometimes too timid to take it.”
Timidity wasn’t Cummens’ problem when she came in with 2 minutes 50 seconds left in the first quarter after Erika Nelson picked up her second foul. Cummens delivered two steals and then a three-pointer that rolled around the rim and in with 1:22 left to cap a 14-1 run that gave Sandburg a 16-7 lead.
Sandburg led by nine points three more times in the first half, but Lincoln-Way East (13-3, 3-1) came to life behind 6-foot DePaul recruit Jenna Rubino. She scored eight of her game-high 21 points in the second quarter and the Griffins trailed only 29-26 at the half.
Then Rubino nailed a three-pointer to tie the game 29-29. Her three-pointer with 7:50 left put the Griffins ahead 36-33, their first lead since the first quarter.
But it was defense at the start and the end of this game, Lincoln-Way East coach Jim Martin said, that did in his Griffins.
Sandburg scored 20 points in the first quarter and 21 in the fourth, including the last 15 points of the game. Cummens’ three-pointer with 4:45 left gave the Eagles a 42-40 lead, and they just kept on scoring.
Erin Cattell led Sandburg with 12 points, eight in the fourth quarter on 4-of-4 shooting. Jill Keresztes added eight points.
“We wanted to beat Lincoln-Way East so bad,” Cummens said. “They were 3-0 in the conference and ranked. It’s a great feeling to win that game.”
