As far as the Westhill girls basketball team goes, the post-season, official or not, really starts in the last week of January.
That’s when the Warriors, with its 13-0 record, has to face the other two main OHSL Liberty division contenders, Cazenovia and Bishop Ludden, in a span of 48 hours, starting Wednesday night when the Lakers visit Westhill’s home gym.
At 10-2, Cazenovia, the defending Class B-2 champions, feature senior Kiley Evans, who is going to Sacred Heart next fall. The Lakers play terrific team defense, which allows it to stay close to any opponent, regardless of reputation.
Two nights later, the Warriors make the trip up the road to Ludden, a team it beat 70-59 back on Dec. 30 with eight 3-pointers and Carly Cooper getting 20 of her 22 points in the first half. Ludden has not lost since, including a win at Cazenovia on Jan. 6.
To warm up for this, Westhill went to Hannibal last Thursday night and toyed with those other Warriors in an easy 57-23 victory.
Having just won the Alliance Bank Tournament in Oneida on Jan. 17-18, Westhill withstood an early Hannibal flurry and limited the hosts to a scant 10 points in the last three periods, none in the fourth quarter.
On the offensive end, Cooper put up 14 points, with Valerie Golembiewski assuming a larger role as she got 12 points. Kathryn Christensen had seven points. Emily Mangicaro, Emily Haggerty and Kayla Stirpe got five points apiece. Westhill won big despite Annie O’Connor getting just one field goal all night.
