CENTRAL NEW YORK – Saturday brought the release of the Section III basketball playoff brackets, with Chittenango part of the Class A field as the no. 12 seed, bound for a first-round game against no. 5 seed Central Valley Academy.
Meanwhile, Cazenovia, holding a 5-15 record, opted not to take part in the Class B tournament, so last week’s pair of games would end its season.
The Lakers took a setback last Monday with a 35-31 defeat to LaFayette, who broke out of a 15-15 halftime tie by inching out in front and staying there led by Ellie McElhannon and her 16 points.
On the Lakers’ side, most of the production came from Sophie Rheaume, who finished with 12 points, and Ella Baker, who got 11 points.
Two nights later, in the season finale at Syracuse Academy of Science, the Lakers demonstrated plenty of fight and character in the course of a 60-53 defeat to the Atoms.
SAS did its best work in the second quarter, outscoring Cazenovia 14-9, but for the entire second half the Atoms found it difficult to put the Lakers away.
That was because Baker was amassing 16 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals, while Rheaume earned 14 points and six rebounds and Bess Johnson got 13 points and six rebounds. Avaya Weismore had seven points and seven rebounds.
SAS held on, though, led by Shayla Baker’s double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds, to go with five blocks. Antaneya Burrage had 14 points, six rebounds and six assists, with Daniella McLean getting 10 points, plus eight points apiece from A’Lanna Patterson and Imija Williams.
