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Girls Basketball: Kristin Conniff carries Bartlett to Dundee-Crown title
Updated: December 30, 2011 12:42AM
If Bartlett senior Kristin Conniff had to choose between scoring her 1,000th career point or helping her team win the prestigious Dundee-Crown Charger Classic, she would pick the victory.
Conniff actually got both Thursday night, scoring 24 points as the Hawks captured their first Charger Classic championship by defeating New Trier 76-66.
“I’m happy that my team helped me to reach my 1,000 points and I couldn’t do it without them,” said Conniff, who now has 1,008 career points. “(Winning) feels really good; first time in our school history.”
Conniff surpassed the milestone when she scored on a layup 36 seconds into the second half. That triggered a big third quarter for the Hawks (18-0), who outscored New Trier 26-10 in the period as Conniff and Indiana recruit Haley Videckis (25 points) combined to score 18 points on 7-for-10 shooting.
Bartlett’s surge actually began late in the second quarter when Conniff scored eight points during a 10-0 run that erased a 28-25 deficit. A jumper by New Trier’s Meg Rosinski at the buzzer made it 35-30 Hawks at the half.
“We picked up our team defense and we found the open player and we played well as a team,” Conniff said.
New Trier (12-3) was without its best player, Northwestern recruit Maggie Lyon, who had to sit out on doctor’s orders to rest a sprained ankle suffered in the Trevians’ semifinal win over Fenwick.
The Trevians played tough in the first half as Rosinski scored 10 of her 12 points and Isabella Bosco tallied nine of her career-high 16 points before the break. But Bosco and post players Jessica Blackwell and Colleen McConnell all picked up three fouls while trying to defend Videckis and Conniff.
“They’re a good team so we expected them to come out like that,” Conniff said. “(Lyon) is a good player and we figured that she may go, so we stuck to our guns.”
Videckis said the Hawks were ready for anything.
“I can say confidently that my team came out and we were prepared for anything, regardless if Maggie was in the game or not,” Videckis said. “We had to play a full, completely different defensive mindset and I’m so proud of my team. We were really prepared.
“I am so proud of my team, my senior girls. They come out with great fire. It’s a team effort every game and I couldn’t be happier to be playing with these girls.”
Lisa Palmer had nine points, seven rebounds and three blocks and Janessa Baker chipped in eight points for the Hawks, who led by as many as 25 points in the fourth quarter before the Trevians made a late run to pull within 72-61 on a basket by Emma Rossi with 1:16 left. A three-pointer by Elaine Hurley as time expired finished the scoring.
“Without Maggie we really had to step it up,” said Bosco, a 5-9 sophomore guard who sank 7 of 11 shots. “Overall we’re a really fast team. With Maggie we’re great but without Maggie we’re still really good. Everyone contributed.”
The Trevians put four players in double figures, with Brigit Ieuter scoring 15 points and Rossi 10 points to go with eight rebounds. Blackwell added seven points.
“I think we really proved today as a whole team that we’re not just individuals, that we’re actually a team,” Bosco said. “We worked really well together, we’ve improved a ton and we can really compete out there.”
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