SYRACUSE – In order to end its 16-year quest for a Section III Class AA championship, the Liverpool girls basketball had to, at the last hurdle, conquer the rival largely responsible for that long wait.
And though it was far from easy, the Warriors pulled it off last Saturday night at SRC Arena, defeating Cicero-North Syracuse 57-50 to earn the sectional title, the program’s first since 2007.
“It’s special for the program,” said head coach Mike Wheeler. “(C-NS) was a great team and they pushed us, but we held it together and held strong.”
No less than 10 times in the 14 sectional tournaments held since 2008, the Northstars had finished on top in the section, often going through Liverpool on the way to those crowns.
Now, facing a C-NS side bent on turning around two regular-season defeats, Liverpool needed special performances by sophomore guard A’briyah Cunningham and senior forward Jakeira Stackhouse to claim the title they believed they were destined for right from the start of the season.
Again coming off the bench, Cunningham led all scorers with 20 points, but also starred on defense, grabbing six steals and adding six rebounds as she keyed the Warriors’ mid-game defensive turnaround.
“A’briyah played phenomenal,” said senior forward Neveah Wingate, and Wheeler agreed.
“She did big things for us, staying active and getting in the passing lanes,” the coach said.
Stackhouse took charge of Liverpool’s offense early when Wingate picked up two early fouls, netting eight of her team’s first 10 points. She would finish with 10 points but also picked up a team-high 13 rebounds and added a block.
Having already upended top seed Auburn in the semifinals, C-NS built a 21-15 lead midway through the second quarter when the Warriors, anchored by Cunningham, picked up mid-court pressure, leading to a long string of tipped passes and turnovers, that, scattered through the rest of the game, interrupted the rhythm the Northstars wanted.
It translated into a charge late in the half to lead 25-23 at the break and then an 11-2 run in the third quarter to build a 39-30 edge as, at one point, the Northstars went more than four minutes without a field goal.
Led by Kat McRobbie (18 points), Olivia Cook (12 points) and Maddy Howell (17 rebounds to go with her eight points), C-NS staged its own comeback, pulling within two, 45-43, with less than three minutes to play.
But after a pair of Wingate free throws, Cunningham provided a cushion with a foul shot and then a coast-to-coast drive to the basket for a layup with 2:17 left that made it 50-43.
Though a McRobbie 3-pointer cut the margin to four, 52-48, with a minute left, Liverpool, who had struggled all season with free throws, saw Cunningham and Gianna Washington go four-for-four at the line to seal it.
Now that the sectional title drought had ended, Liverpool could turn its attention to a possible state tournament run, as it will again be at SRC Arena this Saturday at 11 a.m. for the AA regional final against Section II champion Albany.
These teams met late in December and Albany won then, 79-63. The Warriors hope it can turn that around to earn a berth in the March 17-18 state final four at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy.
