Woodstock North upends Woodstock

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WOODSTOCK – Jamie White received an extra special birthday treat – some extended playing time.

Woodstock North’s seldom-used guard got the call and made the most of her opportunity on her 17th birthday Tuesday.

“I just went out there and was feeling pretty good,” White, a junior, said.

On a night when starting guards Haylee Nutter and Kaitlin Chamberlain shot a combined 2 for 17 from the field, White (six points) stepped in and drilled a pair of key three-pointers in a 48-36 win for the Thunder against rival Woodstock in Fox Valley Conference Fox Division action.

“We knew they were going to play some zone, and she knocked down two big three-pointers,” Thunder coach Mike Lewis said. “It was a real nice boost for us – and a nice thing for her.”

Junior Sami Ahr also came up big with 14 points and eight rebounds for North, which improved to 9-7 overall and 2-2 in the FVC Fox.

Classmate Emma Everly finished with 14 points on four three-pointers to help lead the charge for the Thunder.

“The good thing about our team is that if one of our better players is having an off game, we have other people who can step up,” Everly said. “We’re not really worried about who scores the most; we’re just worried about winning.”

In the first game in almost two weeks for both clubs, the visiting Blue Streaks (4-11, 0-4) gave the Thunder all they could handle in the first 19 minutes of the contest.

After scoring only two points in the opening half, Woodstock junior Arianna Davis played like a girl on a mission when came out for the third quarter.

The 5-foot-11 forward poured in the Streaks’ first eight points of the second half to close the gap to 27-25 with 4:54 left in the quarter.

The Thunder had led by as many as 10 in the first half.

“This is her first year and she’s finally coming into her own,” Woodstock coach Marty Hammond said. “She has a great work ethic and those kind of kids don’t come around very often.”

However, North’s Ahr and Everly teamed up to score seven consecutive points during an 8-0 run that pushed the advantage back out double digits at 35-25 late in the third.

White later found her groove in the corner and buried two three-pointers as the Thunder scored the first six points of the fourth quarter.

“We stayed pretty poised,” Lewis said. “We go in spurts a lot, so we knew we had a shot to fight back. We talked about it and they took care of business at the end.”

Davis (12 points, seven rebounds) attempted to lead the Streaks on one final push when she drilled a jumper from the free-throw line to cut the lead to 43-31 with five minutes to play. But it would be the only bucket of the quarter for Woodstock’s rising standout.

Everly, who came off the bench for just the second time in her career, put the game away by draining her fourth three-pointer with less than four minutes remaining.

“At first it was a little uncomfortable because I’m not really used to it, but then I was able to get in a little bit of a rhythm,” she said. “I felt good after that.”