Girls Basketball: Evergreen Park Speeds Past Eisenhower

The Evergreen Park girls basketball team used its speed to cruise past Eisenhower on Tuesday night.

Courtney Karstrand scored a game-high 22 points, setting the tone with one blistering drive to the basket after another in the Mustangs' 48-32 road win over the Cardinals.

Evergreen Park coach Dave O'Rourke said Karstrand was one of the Mustangs' keys to success with the way she and her teammates executed in the transition game.

"Courtney was really lighting it up with her drives and pushing the ball at the point," O'Rourke said. "The girls really did a nice job pushing the ball and breaking down their defense."

Junior Krystyna Orlowski chipped in with 10 points, while senior Emma Point added six for the Mustangs. Eisenhower was led by senior Kayla Scoggins, who tallied 19 points.

Evergreen Park (7-13) found itself trailing by one at the end of the first quarter before catching fire in the second.

The Mustangs outscored their opponents 10-2, holding Eisenhower without a made field goal. Only free throws made by junior Jamilla Jones and freshman Kaylah Bryant kept the Cardinals from going scoreless.

Buckets continued to drop in for Evergreen Park in the third quarter as the Mustangs poured in 20 points. Karstrand took it upon herself to personally outscoring the entire Eisenhower team 12-6 to start the second half.

The Mustangs ended the third quarter with a 39-18 lead after outscoring the Cardinals 30-8 in the second and third quarters.

Even though he was pleased with his team's effort and the result of that came with it on Tuesday night, O'Rourke said there are still aspects of the game he would like to see his team improve on when it returns to the hardwood.

"I'd still like to get our posts able to score and get some opportunities," he said. "We can run, we can shoot the outside shot, but having a little better inside game scoring-wise would be a big plus."