Chagrin Falls used the first and fourth quarters to pull away from visiting Hawken in a key Chagrin Valley Conference Chagrin Division game on Wednesday, 53-32.
The Tigers opened the game on a 16-6 run and closed out by outscoring Hawken in the fourth quarter, 16-4.
“Hawken is having a great season and we know that they play tough for a full 32 minutes,” Chagrin Falls coach Brittany Anderson said. “Their only conference loss coming into the game was to West Geauga, so we knew that we had our work cut out for us. We had a strong start in the first quarter, but they made some adjustments and got their offense going. We were able to regroup for the fourth quarter and get some good looks by working an inside-outside game.”
Carolyn Bencko led the Tigers with a game-high 17 points. Bella Dalessandro added 15 and Katie Kwasny finished with eight.
“Carolyn started the game hot, which is great to build momentum, but overall, our scoring was balanced,” Anderson said. “We had good ball movement and we were able to find our open teammates. Katie Kwasny had a solid game for us. She really looked to be a scoring threat, which opened up her teammates outside. Hawken had to switch their defense, then that gave Bella an opportunity to set up for some good looks in the third quarter.”
Makayla White led Hawken with 14 points.
The Tigers improved to 10-5 overall and 6-2 in league play while Hawken dropped to 10-5, 6-2.
“Coach (David) Murray does a wonderful job with this program,” Anderson said of the Hawks. “That is a young team and they get after it for a full 32 minutes. Makayla White is a vocal leader as a sophomore and the way she plays backs it up.”
Chagrin 53, Hawken 32
Hawken (10-5, 6-2): White 14, Dori 5, Courtad 5, Circerini 3, Wolf 3, Kutash 2
Chagrin Falls: (10-5, 6-2): Bencko 17, Dalessandro 15, Kwasny 8, Karyo 4, Barr 3, Santamaria 3, Livingston 2, Gellin 1
Hawken 6 11 11 4 – 32
Chagrin 16 11 10 16 – 53
Free throws: Hawken 0 of 2, Chagrin 7 of 10; 3-pointers: Hawken 4 (Wolf, Dori, Circerini, Courtad), Chagrin 6 (Dalessandro 3, Bencko 3)
