Having played well for most of the early portion of its schedule, the Bishop Grimes girls basketball team knew it would learn a lot about its long-term hopes when it visited unbeaten Westhill on Thursday night.

What it learned, in the course of a 48-44 defeat to the Warriors, is that it has the goods to stay with any other top-flight opponent, but just needs to finish better.

With the no. 4 spot in the first state Class B rankings of the winter, Westhill knew that it was a prime target, especially for someone like Grimes, who carried a 4-1 record into the game that included a tough 51-45 win over Marcellus earlier in the week.

And even when one of the Cobras’ top players, Tina Hoag, left the game with an ankle injury in the first quarter, Teresa Shattuck came in and scored eight points in the first half.

Led by Shattuck, Jordan Vaught (seven points) and Julia Freeman (six points), Grimes constantly found gaps in Westhill’s defenses during an impressive second-quarter surge. By halftime, the Cobras owned a 31-23 lead.

But Westhill was far from done. Led again by seniors Anna Ross and Sam Peebles, the Warriors made up that eight-point deficit in just four minutes of third-quarter time, but that was just a warm-up for what it would do in the pivotal fourth quarter.

Peebles’ back-to-back 3-pointers helped Westhill move ahead for good, and it went on a 10-0 run. With the Warriors’ defense in top form, Grimes was held without a field goal for more than eight minutes, until the final seconds, when it proved too late.

Vaught (14 points), Shattuck (12 points) and Freeman (10 points) all hit double figures for Grimes despite those late struggles. Of Peebles’ 13 points, 10 of them came in the second half. Ross led with 15 points, while Emily Washburn earned eight points.

At least the Cobras went into that game off a tough, hard-earned victory, as Hoag’s hot start and Vaught’s late heroics made the difference against Marcellus.

Grimes got off to a hot start – or more specifically, Hoag got off to a hot start. Before the game was three minutes old, Hoag had drilled three 3-pointers and a jumper, giving her 11 points, a total Marcellus, as a team, would not top until late in the second quarter.

Though Hoag would cool off and get just four points the rest of the way, her teammates, especially Vaught, made up for it, and with Marcellus missing all kinds of inside baskets, Grimes led 28-15 at the break.

Gradually, the Mustangs closed the gap, but every time it threatened to draw real close, Grimes would hit a timely 3-point shot, such as Megan Costello’s long-range jumper late in the third quarter that stretched the margin to 36-25.

Thanks to a trio of 3-pointers from Lauren Soule, Marcellus got within four, 36-32, early in the fourth quarter, only to have Vaught drain a big 3-pointer with five minutes left, followed by Katy McInerney’s 3-pointer two minutes later.

Vaught, who finished with 18 points, made all four of her free throws in the final minute to seal the victory, as Hoag added 15 points and Costello eight points. For Marcellus, Soule scored all 16 of her points in the second half, while Erica Nye finished with 10 points.

Grimes will play next Friday and Saturday in the “More Than A Game” Tournament at Onondaga Community College, with both CBA and Fayetteville-Manlius in the field, too, along with Rochester Mercy.

CBA had returned to action Wednesday night, at Fulton, and made it three wins in a row by continuing to broaden its attack in a 64-42 victory over the Red Raiders.

Fulton did start strong, leading 14-10 after one period, but the Brothers’ pressure quickly took a toll as it managed just 15 total points in the next two quarters, giving CBA ample time to grab control.

Thanks to a 23-9 third-quarter blitz, the Brothers did just that, and while Julie Cuomo continued to lead the way with 16 points, seven assists and four steals, she had plenty of support as four players finished in double figures.

Paige Nicholson, draining a trio of 3-pointers, finished with 13 points. Natalie Nardella had 11 points, while Rosalee Winderl put up 10 points. Josie Hakizimana earned six points.