Instead of a major marker in advance of the Section III Class AA playoffs, the Baldwinsville girls basketball team only faced more questions in the wake of last Friday night’s 46-34 defeat to Fayetteville-Manlius.

Going into the game, the Bees nd the Hornets both carried overall records of 13-5. Not only were the won-loss marks identical, so was their head-to-head mark, for in their first meeting on Jan. 13, F-M squeaked out a 35-34 decision on its home floor.

Remembering how close that was, the Bees knew payback might also mean an improvement in its seed for the sectional tournament. It added urgency to a game already deemed a special occasion because all the proceeds were going to the “Hoops for the Hospital’ program and Upstate-Golisano Children’s Hospital.

Neither side gained any separation until the second quarter, when B’ville got outscored 17-8. Down 28-20 at halftime, the Bees held the Hornets to four points in the third period, yet could not take full advantage of it, only netting 10 points of its own.

Thus, F-M was able to regroup and close strong, with B’ville proving too reliant on Kaylee Lammers, who with 18 points had more than half the Bees’ total. Claire McAllister had a strong night, too, with eight points and six rebounds, but no one else had more than Katie Pascale’s total of four points.

F-M relied on its typical balanced attack. Lizzie Hall led with just nine points, but Alexis Gray and Alexandra Vinci each produced eight points, with Alexis Schneider, Carly Assimon  and Lily Fish getting six points apiece.

B’ville nearly tripped up before the F-M rematch. In last Tuesday night’s visit to Nottingham, the short-handed Bees required Katie Pascale’s fine all-around effort, plus some strong defense down the stretch, to gain a 45-40 victory over the Bulldogs.

This was the same Nottingham side B’ville had routed 56-33 less than two weeks earlier, on Jan. 26, but in that game the Bees played at full strength.

Here, Carolyn Brussel remained out of the lineup with a thumb injury, and without her the Bees fell behind Nottingham 13-7 through one quarter. Gradually, though, the attack got going and, by the third quarter, B’ville was out in front, but by a slim margin.

What saved the Bees was a defense that limited the Bulldogs to four points in the fourth quarter. Pascale led the way, having already scored 17 points but adding her defense during a night where she also got six rebounds, three assists and two steals.

McAllister helped on the defensive front, earning seven rebounds as the trio of Lammers, Jenna Costello and Alena Criss each finished with eight points and four rebounds, Lammers adding four assists and Costello three blocks. Meaghan Wilson chimed in with four rebounds.

Once B’ville had faced Cicero-North Syracuse on Tuesday, it could turn its attention to the sectional tournament, which would start a week later.