ONONDAGA COUNTY – Undefeated at 3-0, the Baldwinsville girls basketball team still had reason to feel wary about Tuesday’s Salt City Athletic Conference Metro division opener.
For although West Genesee had lost each of its first four games, the Wildcats had dealt with tough competition, falling to Bishop Grimes and Kaia Henderson-led New Hartford.
Then WG had played in the Lourdes Tournament in Poughkeepsie the weekend before, so its game with B’ville was the team’s third in four days.
And yet it proved nervous for B’ville, who had to hang on late for a 54-50 victory to keep its perfect record intact.
A closely fought first half saw both defenses assert themselves. The Bees weathered it and, ahead 20-17 at the break, proceeded to outscore the Wildcats 19-13 in what proved to be a decisive third quarter.
WG battled to the end, getting Mollie James (17 points), Molly Benetti (11 points) and Erin DiPaola (10 points) to all score in double figures.
Sydney Huhtala earned nine of her game-high 18 points at the free-throw line, while Carlie Young got hot from the perimeter, hitting on four 3-pointers to account for most of her career-best 16 points as Margaret Solomon added nine points.
This happened in between a pair of games for Baldwinsville’s boys basketball team where it could be credited for its late comeback efforts, even if they both ended in defeat.
When these Bees fell 55-51 to Bishop Ludden on Dec. 10 in the Peppino’s Invitational at SRC Arena, the way the game ended offered a hint at how the Bees could respond to adversity.
Playing on the same floor where the J.J. Startling-led B’ville side lost to Corcoran in the 2020 Section III Class AA final, the Bees watched as Ludden sophomore Jaiden Holloman scored all of his team’s first-quarter points, and the first 13 overall.
Despite this, the combination of Jason Bifulco and Eli Taft carried B’ville’s attack and kept the game relatively close until Ludden’s attack diversified and appeared to put things away.
Then, trailing 51-39 late in the fourth quarter, B’ville roared back, putting together an 11-0 run capped by Bifulco’s string of baskets as he worked his total to 26 points, one more than Holloman’s 25.
And the Bees got the ball twice in the final seconds with a chance to go ahead. Taft, who had 18 points, missed a wide-open 3-pointer, and after a Gaelic Knights free throw made it 52-50, Trey Ordway put up another go-ahead 3-pointer that went off the mark before Joe Dunham sank the clinching free throws.
When Salt City Athletic Conference Metro division play began Wednesday night at Corcoran, B’ville again was behind early, again made it close late – and again was on the wrong end of it, falling to the Cougars 62-57.
This time it was Corcoran steadily gaining a 33-22 halftime edge before Bifulco, remaining in the same hot form he showed against Ludden, helped trim that deficit.
All told, Bifulco had 25 points to bring the Bees within range, while Taft finished with nine points. Corcoran had a bit more depth, though, with Amir Reaves getting 22 points, Owen Burns 10 points and help from D’andre Jones (seven points), Bobby Debnam and La’Coleman Mitchell (six points each).
