Many different parts of the Baldwinsville girls basketball team’s narrative, from a winning record to securing a Section III Class AA playoff berth early, were in the books.
But the need for momentum before the sectional tournament motivated the 11-4 Bees, who tried to change that again in last Thursday night’s visit to Fayetteville-Manlius, only to run into a highly-motivated Hornets team that, on Senior Night, derailed B’ville 69-54.
Both teams were hot at the start, trading baskets in a manner that fit the fast-paced Bees well, even though it trailed 21-20 when the first quarter was done.
But it was B’ville that would cool down in the second period, outscored 15-6 as F-M took control. And for the rest of the game, the Bees would try and chase the Hornets down, constantly making runs that were answered.
Rachael Miller, long a defensive force for B’ville, this time led on the other end with 17 points, adding five rebounds. Hope DeFazio, with 15 points, was right behind as Emily Pascale contributed eight points, six assists and four steals. On her senior night, Lauren Getman led F-M with 23 points, with D’Jhai Patterson-Ricks (15 points) and Madison Beck (13 points) offering ample support.
The snow that postponed the F-M game until Thursday left the Bees no time for rest before coming back home Friday night to face Oswego, but that didn’t matter as B’ville got a triple-double from Miller and needed every bit of it to rally and get a 64-57 victory over the Buccaneers.
Mostly based on its work in the second quarter, Oswego grabbed a 31-24 lead by halftime, only to watch B’ville pick up its pressure in the third quarter and outscore the Bucs 19-8 to move in front.
To hang on, the Bees leaned on Miller, who grabbed 15 rebounds and earned 10 blocks to go with her 11 points for her first career triple-double.
Pascale nearly had her own triple-double, finishing with 18 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. DeFazio gained most of her 19 points from red-hot outside shooting as she sank a season-best six 3-pointers, while Sarah Abraham connected twice from beyond the arc and finished with 10 points.
