In the last full week before the holiday break, the Westhill girls basketball team broke out of the struggles that marked its early play, including a Dec. 10 defeat to Bishop Ludden.
Right after defeating Bishop Grimes 54-35, the Warriors took on Skaneateles last Thursday and played tremendous first-half defense, something that made the difference in a 58-28 romp over the Lakers.
All that Skaneateles could manage in the first quarter was two points. Westhill, meanwhile, steadily turned those turnovers into baskets, and by halftime it held a 31-9 lead, which kept on growing in the third period behind a well-balanced attack.
Mary Kate Washburn put together 12 points, six rebounds and five assists. Delaney Martin had another double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds, with Mackenzie Martin adding 11 points and seven rebounds, plus three assists and two steals. Katelyn Karleski had 10 points, four steals and three assists. For Skaneateles, Shannon Foehl led Skaneateles with 14 points, half her team’s output.
In a non-league game last Saturday at Vernon-Verona-Sherrill, Westhill had to battle through a tough first half before putting away the Red Devils 62-45.
Through those first two periods, VVS kept things close, only trailing 32-30, but adjusting the defense in the third quarter led to turnovers and easy baskets during a 24-5 Warriors blitz.
Delaney Martin got 16 points and 12 rebounds, plus four steals. Mackenzie Martin had 11 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while Washburn put together seven points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Karleski and Morgan Elmer had nine points apiece as Brigid Heinrich contributed five rebounds.
In the Peter Hyde Tournament this week, Westhill, tied for no. 15 in the first state Class B ranking of the season, will face Maine-Endwell and Union-Endicott.
The one team to beat Westhill this season, Bishop Ludden, rose to no. 9 in those state Class B rankings. It had not played for more than a week since knocking off the Warriors, but flourished in its return to the court last Friday as Danielle Rauch achieved a triple-double in the Gaelic Knights’ 57-45 win over Jordan-Elbridge.
Ludden tore through the first half, steadily building a 37-15 lead, only giving up that cushion in the latter stages long after Rauch had done her damage.
Accumulating 25 points, Rauch also managed 10 rebounds and 10 assists, and threw in seven steals, too, while Sara Hayes contributed 14 points and four rebounds. Ally Weigand had six points and six assists. J-E’s Alexis Braun had 16 points to lead her side as Emily Klock added 10 points and Emily Somes got nine points.
The hot streak for Ludden continued Monday with a 53-34 win over Skaneateles, where it rocked the Lakers and built a 31-11 halftime lead, never to get caught. Rauch nearly got another triple-double, but still had 24 points, nine rebounds, eight assists and six steals as Weigand added 10 rebounds, to go with the six points matched by Hayes and Meg Sierotnik.
After falling to Ludden, J-E lost, 55-36, to Altmar-Parish-Williamstown Tuesday night, a game where the Rebels outscored the Eagles 28-13 in the last two quarters after a tight first half. Klock had 11 points, just ahead of Braun (10 points) and Somes (nine points) as APW’s DeShae Jones led all individuals with 18 points.
Marcellus had suffered a massive blow when it lost to Skaneateles on Dec. 8. Early in that game, Liz White, one of the team’s top scorers, was fouled on her way to the basket and crashed to the floor hard, breaking her wrist.
Without White, who is out until at least mid-January, the Mustangs had fallen to the Lakers and then, against surprising Homer Last Friday and, lost, 53-34 to the Trojans, who took charge by outscoring Marcellus 15-6 in the second quarter,
Sydney Lewis did get 11 points for the Mustangs, with Grace Hoey adding seven rebounds. Kassidy Smithler had six rebounds as Shannon White got five points and five rebounds. Homer, who improved to 6-1 on the season, featured Hannah Casey, who had 16 points, and Caley Cornwell, who had 15 points and six rebounds.
On Monday, Marcellus fell to Bishop Grimes 70-44. Led by Azariah Wade’s 28 points, the Cobras steadily built a 57-27 lead through three periods, though Julia Piorkowski had 13 points for the Mustangs. Eve Hughes had eight points, with White, Hoey and Lewis each getting seven points.
For Solvay, things were rough in a 60-8 defeat to Bishop Grimes on Dec. 17. The Bearcats did not score a point in the entire first half, only getting on the board in the second quarter after the Cobras led 35-0 at the break and would eventually get 17 points apiece from Azariah Wade and Katy McInerney.
It got a little better in the Bearcats’ 56-27 defeat to Cazenovia Monday night, where Solvay at least scored some first-half points, but were never close. Aleah Yaizzo had seven points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals, while Nadea Davis and Johnae Crenshaw had six points apiece. Elle Hodge added five points.
Solvay hosts its own holiday tournament next week, playing J-E in Monday’s first round as Cato-Meridian and Henninger meet in the other part of the opening round. Marcellus, as part of the More Than A Game Tournament at SRC Arena, is in Pool One, taking on Hannibal Saturday before a Sunday game with Indian River or Whitesboro.