LAKE FOREST, IL. – With nearly a week gone by since their last home matchup against conference rival Warren, the Girls’ Varsity Basketball team squared off with the visiting Blue Devils yet again on Tuesday night–this time the stakes a bit higher than before. In what marked the third and final meeting of the two teams on the season, the Scouts displayed the type of play we’ve become accustomed to seeing against Coach John Stanczykiewicz’s Blue Devil team: a slow and methodical opening interrupted by a massive outbreak of scoring, defensive stops, and a substantial swing of mojo towards the beginning of the second half that ultimately elevates them to the promised land. Despite a beginning that may have been too close for comfort, a 15-0 run deep into the second period surged Coach Kyle Wilhelm’s group to a 50-31 statement win as Lake Forest continues its playoff run.

With a win-or-go-home atmosphere enveloping the Competition Gym from one end of the hardwood to the other, both teams came ready to play. And as we’ve come to expect, Warren wasn’t going to let the Scouts have it all that easy. Not to mention, with the talented combo guard and defensive specialist sophomore Molly Fisher exiting the game within minutes due to an apparent head injury that resulted from a collision with a Warren player, it’s fair to say Wilhelm and Co. stalled in the preliminary moments of their postseason push.

However, as if we’ve never seen this sort of turn of events unfold before, senior Grace Tirzmalis ignited a 15-0 run following the break after banking in a deep two-point field goal. What once had been a 24-21 difference rapidly grew from then on as the Scouts seemingly piled on the points and cruised to the finish line.

In arguably her best outing of the year, Tirzmalis was the pulse the Scouts needed to keep their postseason tear alive. Feeding off of her 24 points on a notable 9-14 shooting (3-6 from 3-point territory), Coach Wilhelm’s team was able to accumulate 26 total second half points and close out the contest with a refreshing 19 point lead over the visitors.

“Overall, it was as about as good a game we’ve played all around,” commented Tirzmalis on her team’s performance. “Our shots were going in, we made some big defensive stops, and we came out energized and motivated from the start.”

It’s also worth mentioning that just like teammate junior Halle Douglass had done several games back, Tirzmalis joins her along with three other to go down as the fifth player in Scouts’ history to record 1000 career points.

Lake Forest, now 24-7 , eye their second consecutive Regional Championship as they host Buffalo Grove (17-12) on Thursday night at 7pm. After narrowly defeating them over MLK weekend with a score of 46-42, Thursday’s matchup between the two teams will undoubtedly be one worth attending.