Whether in town or in other parts of New York State, area high school girls basketball teams would face all kinds of challenges from the opposition in various holiday tournaments.
In the Amsterdam College Holiday Showcase, Bishop Ludden played Tuesday against Section II’s Bethlehem and, despite a big effort from Amarah Streiff, lost 62-50 to the Eagles.
The two sides traded the lead and stayed close for two-plus quarters, but Bethlehem went on an 11-0 run at the end of the third period from which the Gaelic Knights could not recover.
Streiff poured in 33 points and added six rebounds, but no one else on the Ludden roster had more than two field goals as Bridget Dunham got six points and Elizabeth Gaughan five points.
Against another Section II side, Shenendehowa, the next morning, Ludden was overwhelmed in a 79-44 loss to the state no. 15-ranked Plainsmen. Five Shen players scored in double figures, four of them with 12 points apiece.
But Streiff led all individuals with 21 points and, in the process, made some significant history. Those 21 points put Streiff past Danielle Rauch as Ludden’s all-time leading scorer with 1,815 points.
Streiff has considered Rauch, who went on to star at the University of Michigan after accumulating 1,811 points with the Gaelic Knights, her basketball idol.
Westhill found itself in the Hoops for the Hospital Tournament at Webster Thomas (Section V) where it lost, 52-33, to to the Titans, outscored 15-4 in the fourth quarter. Janiah Robinson still had 14 points and 14 rebounds, with Tess Roesch adding eight points.
But the Warriors were able to rebound a day later by beating South Jefferson 49-29, gradually pulling away over the game’s latter stages as Robinson poured in 20 points, with Izzy Young adding 11 points, Roesch 10 points and Jules Bleskoski eight points.
West Genesee also played in the Hoops for the Hospital Tournament, where in last Tuesday’s opening round it took a 55-34 defeat to Section IV’s Maine-Endwell.
The Spartans went up 26-10 by halftime and never let the Wildcats catch up. No WG player hit double figures, with Emily Schiffer getting nine points as Colleen Barry had seven points and Isabella Quinones six points.
WG would defeat another Section IV side, Binghamton, 46-41 in overtime on Wednesday, absorbing the Patriots’ fourth-quarter comeback and then limiting them to just two points in the extra period. Quinones and Hannah Sparks led the Wildcats with 12 points apiece as Kelly Jones added nine points.
Jordan-Elbridge was in the Chittenango Tournament, where in the opening round against Phoenix the Eagles lost to the Firebirds 40-30.
Even as it played solid defense all afternoon, J-E found itself unable to convert on a consistent basis, especially in a third quarter where Phoenix outscored them 13-5 after establishing a 21-18 halftime advantage.
Haley Root, in defeat, had eight points, with Ava Hildebrant getting seven points and Brooke Chiaramonte six points. Sara Reutsch led the Firebirds with 15 points.
Against host Chittenango in the consolation game, the Eagles won big, 53-24, blazing out to a 21-5 lead on the Bears by the end of the first quarter and breezing from there to improve to 4-4 overall.
