ONONDAGA COUNTY – Having gone through plenty of ups and downs already this winter, the Bishop Grimes girls basketball team got particular satisfaction from one win it has earned.
The Cobras defeated Christian Brothers Academy 59-48 last Thursday night, using a late surge to thwart the Brothers’ attempt to break its six-game skid.
Hot shooting, especially from Leana Heitmann, helped CBA snare a 19-10 lead through one quarter, and the Brothers stayed out in front through the middle stages, finding itself up 39-37 going to the final period,
Only here did all the pressure the Cobras put on lead to consistent baskets on the other end, Grimes seeing Naywel Ayeil earn 17 points, Jenna Sloan get 16 points and Althea Simmons earn 13 points.
All of this negated what Heitmann did, as her career-best 28 points featured seven 3-pointers. Emily Ball converted three times beyond the arc on her way to 13 points.
In its other game last week, Grimes shut out Tully Saturday in the first quarter, 12-0, and while the Black Knights recovered for a while, the Cobras still pulled away for a 51-20 victory.
Improving to 4-2 overall, Grimes featured Ayeil and Sloan each producing 15 points, helped by Simmons, who had nine points.
Fayetteville-Manlius returned to action after missing games on Feb. 15 (against J-D) and Feb. 17 (against Cicero-North Syracuse) for a COVID-19 stoppage.
And after a 49-44 loss to Liverpool early in the week, the Hornets met the same West Genesee side J-D lost to earlier in the week and got a career-best performance from Lexie Roe to beat the Wildcats 65-59 in overtime.
In a game close from start to finish, neither side could break clear. Up 42-40 going to the fourth quarter, F-M could not hold on as WG did enough to tie it, 57-57, only to have the Hornets hold them to just two points in the four-minute OT period.
And all through the night, the Niagara University-bound Roe burned the Wildcats, hitting on nine three-pointers and setting a career mark with 41 points. So WG lost despite Catie unningham getting 22 points, Molly Benetti hitting on 16 points and Molly Coyne contributing 10 points.
Two nights earlier,, the Hornets visited Liverpool. Even though it held Liverpool to three points in the first quarter, it could not take full advantage as the Warriors, down at halftime, caught up and got the lead for good in the fourth quarter.
Roe did manage 25 points, including four 3-pointers, but no other F-M player had more than the five points put up by Haile Daino. The Warriors had a more balanced attack as Naveah Wingate had 13 points, helped by Victoria Morgan (10 points), Sophie Saeger (eight points) and Karlyssa Shifflett (seven points).
Having started 2-0 with a pair of road victories, Jamesville-DeWitt wanted to continue that run when it returned home for the first time this season.
Senior Momo LaClair, who passed 1,000 career points when the Red Rams beat CBA on Feb. 20, was honored with her fellow senior prior to last Monday’s game against West Genesee.
Yet it did not translate into on-court success, J-D falling 48-40 to the Wildcats. An early 13-11 lead vanished when the Red Rams got held to seven total points in the second and third quarters.
LaClair only managed nine points overall, and despite Lily Loewenguth’s 18 points, no one on J-D could stop Wildcats senior Catie Cunningham, who poured in 28 points to go with nine rebounds as Erin DiPaola got 10 points.
J-D lost again on Friday to Liverpool 57-48, seeing the Warriors erase the Rams’ early 16-8 lead by halftime and not able to recover despite LaClair’s 22 points as Everly Kessler got eight points.
CBA’s rough start had continued last Tuesday with a 73-31 defeat to Marcellus. Leana Heitmann, Emily Ball and Kailey Campbell each finished with eight points, though it was far behind the Mustangs’ Katie MacLachlan, who with 30 points nearly matched the Brothers by herself as Hannah Durand got 19 points.
