So far the season has been more than kind to Buffalo Grove’s girls basketball team.
For the first time since 1994, the Bison won their own Thanksgiving tournament. And they have yet to lose, extending their unblemished record to 7-0 with an 84-45 romp over visiting Wheeling in a Mid-Suburban League East matchup Friday.
“The girls are working very hard, especially tonight in our first conference game,” said senior Ashley Sandstead, who led No. 8 Buffalo Grove’s effort with 24 points. “We came out real excited.”
Her teammates should be excited about their Illinois State-bound senior, who also grabbed six rebounds, had five steals and nailed four three-pointers along the way.
Wheeling (2-6, 0-1) had its moments in the first quarter and trailed only 11-7 after Lindsay Lewis’ three-point shot with 3 minutes 24 seconds left in the period. A minute later Sandstead answered with a three to start an 11-0 run.
The Wildcats had been counting on 6-1 freshman Taylor Lawless, who transferred from Fenwick five weeks into this school year. But Lawless, cousin of former Fenwick All-Stater Erin Lawless, was home ill.
That didn’t help. Buffalo Grove led 69-35 with 5:29 left in the game when coach Tom Dineen pulled his starters.
Freshman guard Rachel Buchek had 13 points and five steals for Buffalo Grove, while Kelly McIntyre came off the bench to score 13.
And Dineen’s most pleasant surprise, 5-11 senior Kristina Wrezel, who didn’t play basketball as a junior, had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Laura Joya’s 18 points were high for Wheeling.
“Rachel’s doing great,” Sandstead said. “For a freshman, she’s so poised. And Kristina is huge on the boards and putting up points for us.”
Wrezel focused on volleyball last year. She already has had a 15-rebound game against New Trier and 12 Tuesday in a victory over Schaumburg.
