CENTRAL NEW YORK – Now that all was settled among the area girls basketball coaching ranks, local teams could focus solely on what it could accomplish on the court – if they got a chance to play.
For the first time all winter, weather problems curtailed the schedule, leading to a lighter slate that still featured some interesting developments and the continued strong play of Christian Brothers Academy at the forefront.
Though still not state-ranked in Class AA, the Brothers improved to 7-2 on the season by taking apart Homer 66-31 last Wednesday night, starting on a 15-4 run and then going on to outscore the Trojans 38-15 in the second half.
Cara Macaluso set a new career mark, finishing with 21 points to keep Homer from concentrating on Chianna Williams, who still had 16 points. Carmella Fairbanks earned 12 points and Lilah Kirch got nine points.
Now CBA would test itself in a big way on Saturday, visiting state Class B no. 4-ranked Rochester Aquinas, who prevailed 65-46 over the Brothers by building a 52-24 margin through three periods. Williams was held to four points as Macaluso got nine points, with Liana Thomas and Maya White-Dudhani had eight points apiece.
Local schools met one another last Tuesday when Fayetteville-Manlius clashed with East Syracuse Minoa, and a Hornets team with just one win all season broke out during a 60-41 win over the Spartans.
Yet even this game was close most of the way. Led by Aniyah Jones, who had a game-best 18 points, ESM mostly traded baskets through the first three quarters, only trailing 38-35 going to the final period.
But F-M wore the Spartans down and got clear thanks to having multiple offensive options. Lydia Land-Steves gained 16 points, with Piper Gentry setting a season mark as she and Mia Knuth both got 11 points. Taylor Novack chimed in with eight points and Morgan Goodman got six points, the same as the ESM trio of Leah Chavoustie, Bella Kroll and Angelina Cosentino.
Two nights later, F-M ran into state Class AAA no. 7-ranked Liverpool and lost, 59-31, with the Hornets not crossing the 20-point mark until the fourth quarter, though Gentry continued to improve, pouring in 14 points, nearly half her team’s output.
For all the turmoil it had faced, Bishop Grimes still hit the midway point of the regular season at 7-3 as it hosted its annual Martin Luther King Jr. Tournament last weekend.
Before that, the Cobras took apart Syracuse West 76-36 last Wednesday as it jumped out to a 28-9 lead by the end of the first quarter and also made a 21-9 push in the third quarter.
It proved a breakout performance for freshman Sicily Shaffer, who set a career mark with 25 points. Kierra Baxter gained 14 points, with Aaliyah Zachery and Gia Kinsey earning 12 points apiece.
Jamesville-DeWitt found itself at Fulton last Wednesday night, and discovered just how much the Red Dragons had improved when it lost by a score of 51-36.
Just 7-13 a season ago, Fulton had started 1-3 this winter but had won four in a row going into this game and kept it up, leaning on a defense that stifled J-D and limited it to just seven points each of the first two quarters.
The Rams improved a bit in the second half, but other than nine points from Ava Sandroni and Sadie Withers, no player had more than four points. Meanwhile, Fulton’s Natalie Frost nearly matched J-D by herself, dominating in the paint with 29 points as Laura Bartlett added 10 points.
ESM played on Friday and lost, 74-48, to Central Square, who easily overcame 26 points from Jones and 12 points from Bella Kroll as Natalie Bush (22 points), Addison Kelly (14 points) and Gabrielle Basile (11 points) led the Redhawks.
