At its most effective, the Cazenovia girls basketball team has several go-to players who can provide reliable offensive production, which is preferable to depending on one player to get hot from the field.
That was needed Thursday night at Buckley Gym, as the Lakers it took its shot at unbeaten, state Class B no. 2-ranked Bishop Grimes, who was inching closer to an undefeated regular season.
And for a long while, it looked like Cazenovia had discovered the formula to knocking off the Cobras, leading by as much as eight in the third quarter – but a well-timed outburst by Grimes completely turned things around, and led to the Lakers taking a 53-39 defeat.
From a match-up standpoint, Cazenovia, with its strong group of front-line players, had just what it needed to worry a Grimes frontcourt anchored by freshman star Azariah Wade.
Throughout the first half, the Lakers’ forwards took turns containing Wade, and with enough outside shots falling from the likes of Kelsi Fredericks and Kate Sullivan, Cazenovia led most of the way, taking a 20-18 edge to the break.
Then more 3-pointers fell early in the third period, and suddenly Cazenovia led 28-20, putting Grimes in a rare instance of having to rally from a sizable deficit.
But just when it was getting comfortable, the Lakers saw the Cobras pick up full-court pressure, causing a rash of turnovers that Grimes turned into baskets, mostly from its trio of captains – Jordan Vaught, Teresa Shattuck and Katy McInerney, who had 15 combined points in a 20-3 surge.
Now trailing 38-31, Cazenovia found itself unable to recover from Grimes’ outburst, despite Fredericks and Sullivan each finishing with 11 points and Audrey Burbidge adding seven points. Vaught led both sides with 14 points, with McInerney adding 12 points and Shattuck eight points as Wade, despite all the attention on her, still got 10 points.
Already, the Lakers had clinched a winning mark for its regular season, having ventured to Phoenix last Tuesday night and got its 10th victory, pulling away to beat the Firebirds 72-56.
All through a wild, active first half, Phoenix managed to match Cazenovia’s high level of production, especially in a 21-21 second quarter. But any notion of an upset vanished when the Lakers outscored the Firebirds 21-4 during the third period.
Outside, Burbidge caught fire, getting most of her team-high 17 points from five 3-pointers. Maggie Johnson provided the inside presence, earning 15 points, while Danielle Tedesco gained 13 points.
Sullivan (six points) and Lizzy Bigsby (eight points) also made solid contributions, helping to overcome the work of Phoenix’s Jessica Carter, who had 21 points, and Samantha Doupe, who had 14 points.
Following the loss to Grimes, Cazenovia takes its 10-6 record to Bishop Ludden next Tuesday, attempting to halt the Gaelic Knights’ five-game win streak before returning home to face Solvay two nights later as the regular season concludes.
