It was another busy weekend of girls high school hoops. Sectionals are right around the corner and teams are starting to elevate their games. Here's a look at some of this weekends big winners.
Niskayuna 51, Columbia 34: The Silver Warriors (10-1, 12-3) continue to play strong team basketball. Emily Bayly had 21 points against a Blue Devils team that prides itself on defense. They have a huge game against a resurgent Averill Park team on Tuesday night. The Warriors have won seven of their last eight, the loss coming to Suburban Council power Shenendehowa. Averill Park is the 17 ranked class A team in the state and has super sophomore Kaite Duma averaging 16.1 points a game.
Hoosic Valley 41, Hoosick Falls 17: I'm running out of words to describe the Indians defense. They just plain refuse to let opposing teams score. They gave up 4 points in the first half, that's right four points. Two in the first quarter, two in the second.It will be interesting to see if the move up in class from C to B will effect them at all in sectionals this year.
Schenectady 69, Bishop Maginn 47: The Lady Patriots routed their Big 10 rivals on Friday night. Maginn won its first 10 games of the year but have since lost five of their last six. Schenectady is now 6-4 in the Big 10 and 11-6 overall and is getting big games from the trio of Sheila Dixon, Samara Butler and Rachel Csakany.
Catholic Central 43, Nottingham 40: The Lady Crusaders have won 10 straight games since a loss to Amsterdam on December 21. Their getting contributions from on both ends of the floor from Olivia DeMarco, Alison McGrath, Lauren Iachetta, and Carly LaBombard. They'll put that winning streak on the line on Friday night when they travel to Amsterdam for a rematch. They'll need to stay hot if they're going to beat the number one class A team in the state.
Lansingburg 45, Voorheesville 32: The Knights used a big second half from sophomore Jamiesha Bruton to top the Blackbirds. The win keeps them in the mix in the tough Colonial Conference. They still have Mechanicville, Watervliet and Holy Names left on their schedule before sectionals roll around.