Fieldcrest tops Chicago (Noble/Butler) to reach Class 2A final four

CICERO — Defense was the key, especially in the fourth quarter, as Fieldcrest edged Chicago (Noble/Butler) 43-40 to advance to the final four of the Class 2A girls' basketball tournament Monday at Morton College.

The win puts the Knights (34-2) into the semifinal round against Winnebago Thursday at 4:15 p.m. at Redbird Arena in Normal.

Fieldcrest trailed 32-27 after three periods and was down seven before chipping away down the stretch. Kaitlin White connected to put the Knights ahead with 1:07 to go.

Ella Goodrich and Ashlyn May got Fieldcrest going early with six points apiece in the first quarter as the Knights took a 14-10 lead. White buried a 3-pointer and FHS was 4 of 8 from the charity stripe in the second to take a 21-18 lead into the halftime break.

The Lynx have a pair of Division I guards, including Camille Jackson who is signed to play at Illinois. Jackson and Xamiya Walton combined for 11 points in the third quarter as Butler outscored Fieldcrest 14-6. Again, free throws were a b it of an issue for FHS as it made just 2 of 8 tosses.

But hitting from the line in the final frame was better as the Knights dropped 7 of 10 shots to complement the four field goals. One of the field goals was a key trey from May.

The defense held Jackson to 8 points. Walton led the Lynx with a game-high 27 points.

Goodrich led a balanced Fieldcrest attack with 11 points. White, May and Carolyn Megow scored 10 points apiece and Haley Carver added 2 points.

Fieldcrest will face Winnebago in the second semifinal game Thursday afternoon. Tip-off time is 4:15 p.m. The first semifinal game will pit Quincy (Notre Dame) against Pana. The third-place game will take place Thursday evening at 8:15. The championship will be Saturday at 1 p.m.

This article originally appeared on Pontiac Daily Leader: Fieldcrest tops Chicago (Butler) to reach Class 2A final four