Staff Photo by Jake Olson: GHEC/T/ML guard Londyn Bowers powers through the contact during the first half of Monday night's game against Loyola Catholic at Granada Huntley East Chain High School. The Jaguars took down the Crusaders 68-46.

GRANADA – Granada Huntley East Chain/Truman/Martin Luther girls basketball head coach TJ Pytleski showed fans of the team what to expect from his roster going forward, displaying an impressive defensive effort during Monday night’s 68-46 season opener victory over Loyola Catholic in Granada.

Pytleski’s guard trio of Londyn Bowers, Keira Benck, and Addison Nowicki combined for 15 steals, using their length and athleticism to disrupt and contain the Crusaders’ offensive attack the entire night. As a whole, the Jaguars forced 24 turnovers over 36 minutes of play, leading to a handful of easy layups and other transition scoring opportunities.

“I thought we did a great job being aggressive on the defensive end,” Pytleski said. “That’s going to be our philosophy this year, to try and dictate a little more on the defensive end. I thought the girls did a great job.”

The balanced scoring effort from GHEC/T/ML saw four different players reach double figures. Benck and Bowers led the bunch with 20 and 15 points, respectively. Nowicki’s cutting ability set up a handful of easy shots around the rim, cashing in 12 points on the evening. Finally, Kayla Mattson chipped in 11 points during her first start of the season. Pytleski expects a bigger role for the guard after she logged heavy reserve minutes the year prior.

The Jaguars’ fast transition game took hold early, with Benck capping off a 15-5 scoring run by going coast-to-coast for a layup in transition. Moments later, Bowers turned defense to offense, snatching the ball at mid court and finishing through the contact to extend GHEC/T/ML’s lead to 25-13.

Loyola Catholic briefly cut the deficit to 25-16 with a 3-pointer from Madi Linder, but the Jaguars’ defensive pressure was too much for the remaining seven minutes of the half.

“I was really happy with our rotation on defense and the girls hustled,” Pytleski said. “That’s kind of what we have been preaching; just hustle to the ball, help each other out, find the girl that’s open, and go play defense.”

A give-and-go scoring sequence between Mattson and Benck jump-started a 13-2 run heading into intermission. The duo of Benck and Bowers scored the team’s final 10 points of the half, helping the Jaguars take a 38-18 lead heading into the break.

GHEC/T/ML’s pressure in the beginning started to slow down during the opening segments of the second half. Whether it was early-season fatigue or an overall lack of urgency, the Crusaders chipped away at the Jaguar lead little by little as the minutes went by.

An Amelia Speckle driving layup cut the margin to 43-27, forcing a Pytleski timeout to stop the momentum and give his team a breather. Linder added even more fuel to the fire after sinking another three from the right side of the wing moments after the stoppage.

However, it was the Jaguars’ senior leaders who ultimately broke the scoring drought. A Nowicki jumper and layups from Benck and Bowers fueled a mini 13-5 scoring run to bring the lead back in firm control.

“It’s huge having those three girls back,” Pytleski said. “Keira is a four-year starter, Londyn is a three-year starter and Addison is a two-year starter, so to have those girls’ knowledge to calm things down a little bit when things go sideways is huge. They are our three captains and do a great job for us.”

Phoebe Madsen scored the final handful of points for GHEC/T/ML during the remaining couple of minutes, solidifying the 22-point victory and giving Pytleski’s team its first win of the season. The Jaguars will continue the winter campaign on Thursday with another home game against Jackson County Central. Tipoff in Granada is set for 7 p.m.