Loyola, Trinity prevail in tournament play

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Loyola’s Meghan Holy, a 5-11 junior guard, sank all eight of her shots, including two three-pointers, to finish with a game-high 18 points, 11 rebounds and three steals as the No. 13 Ramblers crushed Downers Grove South 53-21 Saturday in the Suburban Holiday Showcase in Wilmette.

Loyola (12-4), which advanced to the championship bracket with a 3-0 record, has won eight straight after playing a strong early schedule.

‘‘We lost to really good teams but it really prepared us for the tough games that we have now,’’ Holy said. ‘‘I knew we could do it. We’re a good team. This game we were working on pushing the ball up the court a lot and talking on defense.’’

Holy scored the first two baskets on backdoor layups off passes from Ashley Thomas, and the Ramblers led 16-4 after one quarter. Lem Atanga-McCormick and Audrey Gaughan each scored eight points for Loyola, while Molly Nick added seven.

Lynn Mueller and Lauren Lisauskas scored six points each for Downers South (5-10), which has lost six straight.

Trinity also kept its tournament title hopes alive, bursting to an 18-2 lead before holding off Lake Park 58-50. The No. 12 Blazers (14-2) opened the game by hitting three consecutive three-pointers.

Monica Albano led Trinity with 26 points, and Shakyia Vassar scored 13. Erica Cross held Lake Park star Samantha Arnold to two points over the first 22 minutes. Arnold finished with 13 points and Alyssa Stacy had nine for the Lancers (10-4).

‘‘We know that they gave Loyola a pretty hard time, so we knew had to play extra hard,’’ Albano said. ‘‘I don’t think anyone expected [this start] from us, but we just play our heart out every game.’’