Not even a 13-5 regular-season mark could fully protect the Baldwinsville girls basketball team once the Section III Class AA playoffs got underway.
The Bees were handed a no. 9 seed, and forced to go on the road to face no. 8 seed Liverpool in Thursday night’s opening round. But B’ville handled the strange situation quite well, prevailing again in this neighborhood rivalry as it defeated the Warriors 48-39.
These two sides had split their regular-season meetings, but the Bees had won the most recent encounter, 48-36, on Jan. 29, and this version would not prove that much different, despite some late-game stress.
A tense first quarter saw B’ville inch out in front, 12-11, and it steadily increased that margin the rest of the half, going to the break nursing a 27-21 lead.
Then the Bees went cold in the third quarter, held to just four points. Fortunately, Liverpool could not take full advantage, only able to pull back within one, 31-30, and in the final period B’ville wore the Warriors down, getting clear in the process.
Rachael Miller got closer to another triple-double, earning 12 rebounds, nine points and nine blocks. Hope DeFazio had a team-high 14 points, plus four rebounds, three steals and two blocks,
Emily Pascale had nine points, five assists and three rebounds. Sarah Abraham added six points. On Liverpool’s side, Rachael Windhausen managed 12 points and Kyra Grimshaw added 10 points.
This advanced the Bees to Tuesday night’s AA quarterfinal against top seed West Genesee. The winner there plays Rome Free Academy or CBA in this weekend’s semifinals at Onondaga Community College’s SRC Arena.
B’ville had finished the regular season last Tuesday night, against Corcoran, long a power that had tormeneted the Bees in the past. But this time, roles had reversed, and it was the Bees in total command as it flattened the Cougars 74-42.
Corcoran, despite its 3-6 league record and 6-11 overall mark, still had a chance to qualify for the Section III playoffs because a win would give them a win percentage of .400 in the CNY Counties League, enough to make it.
B’ville never let it happen, though. Attacking from the opening tip, the Bees led 19-7 after one period and didn’t let up until it had a 36-20 lead at halftime. After a brief cooling-off period, B’ville tore through the fourth quarter, outscoring Corcoran 25-4 and turning a sizable lead into a romp.
DeFazio would lead the charge, putting up 21 points, including a trio of 3-pointers. Miller gained nine blocks and seven rebounds, to go with seven points. Riley Carlucci stepped up in a big way, earning 12 points and six rebounds, while Sarah Abraham also had 12 points. Pascale got eight points, seven assists and four rebounds.
