Whatever else may yet take place, the Skaneateles girls basketball team can proudly wear the mantle of Onondaga High School League Liberty American division champions.
The Lakers clinched the title Friday night, going to Jordan-Elbridge and rolling past the short-handed Eagles 54-44 to finish with a 9-4 league mark, one game ahead of J-E’s 8-5 mark.
Not only that, but Skaneateles, at 10-8, clinched a winning record for 2011-12, adding to the positive momentum gained in head coach Jill Blasi’s first year at the helm.
Riding a three-game win streak, the Lakers caught a major break against J-E. Molly Hourigan, the Holy Cross-bound senior center who had a triple-double (15 points, 20 points, 11 blocks) in the Eagles’ 50-30 win over the Lakers on Jan. 12, was out with a strained knee suffered a week earlier in a loss to Cazenovia.
Now able to go inside without much penalty for it, the Lakers dominated the first half of the rematch, accumulating a 36-13 edge through a four-pronged attack.
Sophomore center Joanna Dobrovosky took full advantage of Hourigan’s absence, getting most of her 14 points in those first two periods and hitting on eight free throws.
Meanwhile, Jackie Leslie gave the Lakers an outside threat, hitting on three 3-pointers and leading the team with 15 points. Mary Buck had one of her best games of the season, managing 12 points, while Emily Call, with 10 points, was the fourth Skaneateles player to hit double figures.
J-E would make a furious fourth-quarter run, led by Amanda Wheeler (14 points) and Grace Dungey (11 points), but the Lakers were already out of reach, ready to celebrate league honors.
As this went on, the Skaneateles boys basketball team hosted J-E and, with an 80-39 romp over the Eagles, clinched second place in the Liberty American division behind Cazenovia.
As with the girls game, the first half was one-sided, Skaneateles scoring at will and overwhelming the Eagles on its way to a 51-12 advantage. This allowed the Lakers to use its bench for long stretches of the second half.
Jimmy Atkinson led with 16 points, with Brandon Barron adding 15 points and Ryan McQuiggan putting up 13 points. Kudik Abrams had a career-best 11 points, with Matt Delasin (seven points) and Austin Gardner (six points) also making solid contributions.
Given the no. 6 seed in Class B, Skaneateles got to host no. 11 seed Holland Patent in Tuesday’s opening round, with the winner to get Bishop Grimes or Mount Markham in the quarterfinals.
The girls Class B sectional tournament bracket split – a huge break for Skaneateles, who was placed as the no. 5 seed in Class B-2, away from powers like Westhill, South Jefferson and Utica-Notre Dame, all of whom went to the B-1 side.
However, to advance, the Lakers will need to beat J-E (the no. 4 seed) again this Friday at 7 p.m., and it might feature a return for Hourigan.
