Munzer paces Highland Park past Mundelein
Lena Munzer’s point and rebounding totals screamed.
But what Highland Park girls basketball coach Jolie Bechtel heard more than anything was her junior guard’s voice. Munzer was productive and, equally important, vocal during the Giants’ season-opening 61-48 win over the host Mustangs in the Mundelein Thanksgiving tournament Tuesday night.
“She can score. She can rebound,” Bechtel said of her three-year varsity starter. “But her leadership skills have improved a lot. She’s a leader out there. Not just with her scoring, but she’s more vocal.”
The Giant posted giant numbers.
Munzer finished with 31 points.
And 20 rebounds.
“Really?” said Munzer, who claimed she never peeked at Mundelein’s scoreboard, which includes individual point totals.
She figures it’s her time to have a larger role this season.
“I’ve seen a lot of great leaders over the past two years,” Munzer said. “I’ve learned from them, and now it’s my turn to finally step in and be a leader on this team.”
Highland Park trailed 24-21 at halftime, before Munzer’s 8 points and a defensive effort that helped force 9 turnovers helped the Giants outscore the Mustangs 19-11 in the third quarter. Highland Park pulled away in the fourth, with the relentless Munzer scoring 11 points (3 of 5 from the floor, 5 of 5 from the line).
“I think we did a lot better job defensively in the second half, and that’s why we were able to win because we then didn’t have to run so much half-court offense,” Bechtel said. “That was where we struggled a little bit in the first half.”
Morgan Bartelstein added 12 points and 9 rebounds for Highland Park, while Jackie Berardi chipped in 9 points.
The 5-foot-8 Munzer finished 11 of 11 from the foul line and also dished out 5 assists.
“It’s definitely always nice to start the season off with a win,” Munzer said. “I think this is going to help us and motivate us to do even better. It’s just a positive start. I’m excited for the rest of the season.”
Mundelein (1-1) was led by Becca Woit’s 15 points and Taylor Davis’ 11 (three 3-pointers). Amanda Davis and Molly Rosenow added 9 and 8 points, respectively, for the Mustangs, who had no answer for Munzer and no one who could stop her.
“There are teams that run from success and teams that run to success,” Mundelein coach Brian Evans said. “Right now we’re caught in the middle. Are we going to run to it? Or are we going to run from it? Right now my girls don’t have an identity. They don’t know what they want to do.”