Girls basketball: Crystal Lake Central defeats McHenry in FVC opener

CRYSTAL LAKE – After a challenging first week at the Buffalo Grove Bison Classic, Crystal Lake Central was looking forward to its Fox Valley Conference opener against McHenry.

The Tigers, who picked up their first win of the season Friday against Buffalo Grove, kept the good times rolling against the Warriors.

Led by 24 points, 10 rebounds and eight steals from junior point guard Katie Hamill, Central beat McHenry 46-36 at Central Fieldhouse for the Tigers’ second win in as many games.

Central started the season with losses to Grayslake Central, Hersey, Barrington and Maine South.

“It’s an exciting way to start a season that I’ve been really excited about,” said Hamill, who has averaged 28 points a game over her past three contests. “There were some tough teams and games [at Buffalo Grove], so to end there with a win and keep that momentum here feels great.”

Hamill scored 17 of her game-high 24 points in the first two quarters as Central (2-4, 1-0 FVC) took a 23-12 lead going into halftime. She also had six of her eight steals in the first half as she frustrated McHenry (2-3, 0-1) on both ends of the court.

“She’s tough, she’s very strong,” Warriors first-year coach John Lunkenheimer said. “She’s got the ability to shoot, but she can blow right by you. We tried to face-guard her with our best athletes, but she’s attacking the glass and getting the easy ones. Defensively, she’s real solid, too.”

Hamill, who had a career-high 33 points against Buffalo Grove on Friday, said her teammates have been a huge help early on.

“I put everything on my team,” Hamill said. “We work so well together. We always try to help each other get more points, assists, rebounds, everything. Everyone trusts each other, and everyone has each other’s back.”

Sophomore forward Leah Spychala said Hamill’s hard work rubs off on the rest of the team.

“She’s my best friend, and it’s so awesome to play with her,” Spychala said. “When we’re down, she picks everyone up. She knows when we need a bucket, she’ll go get one for us. Even on defense, she gets a tip or steal and really just leads our team.

“When we start seeing her get more intense, it just inspires the rest of us to play harder, too. It’s really good to have a role model like that.”

Spychala (five steals) had a big game herself with eight second-half points as McHenry tried to cut into the Tigers’ lead over the final two quarters.

After McHenry’s Abby Geis hit a 3-pointer with 3:59 left to cut Central’s lead to 38-33, Spychala had four of the next six points for the Tigers, including a pair of free throws after fighting for an offensive rebound.

“She’s another player who’s been working hard this offseason during the unseen hours,” Central coach Derek Crabill said of Spychala. “I think she’s going to keep growing and growing, and she will be a really big part of what we’re doing offensively and defensively.”

McHenry was led by Emerson Gasmann with 11 points, Reese Kominoski with eight points and two 3s, and Lynette Alsot with seven points and six rebounds. Ella Madalinski had five points for Central, and Addison Cleary had three points and five rebounds. Taja Bryan chipped in six rebounds.

Lunkenheimer has been encouraged by his team’s early-season progress.

“They correct each other, they get on each other a little bit, but they’re a really close group,” Lunkenheimer said. “When we clean it up and get things going, we’re capable of a lot. I’m not worried about leadership or anything like that. I’m the new guy trying to fit in. We’ve got [Prairie Ridge] on Friday, and then we’ve got Johnsburg on Saturday. We’ll learn from it and keep improving.”