Monday Basketball: GV/Belfast’s hot 1st quarter run, B-R’s Senior Night victory over Fri/Scio highlights girls hoops wins; C-R’s Wight smashes 3-point record with 10 at Houghton

CUBA — As of late, the Genesee Valley/Belfast ladies have been on fire. And at this very stage of the game, there is quite simply no better time for it than at this moment, here and now.

Winners in seven of their last eight games, Genesee Valley/Belfast’s aim was to keep that regular season-ending inferno burning all the way into Sectionals come next week. With one more obstacle in the shape of Cuba-Rushford standing in their way, it would provide an opportunity to add more fuel to their fire.

Right out of the gate on Gary Wight Court, they would do just that with a first quarter run that allowed them to twist the game in their favor against the Lady Rebels. With the hot hand of Abby Sullivan leading the way, they would not be denied victory at the end of the night, as they worked their way towards a 46-33 win to close out a stupendous second half to their regular season campaign.

Sullivan worked up some early first quarter magic for Genesee Valley/Belfast to get the party started from downtown, hitting all three of her triples to aid what was a 15-5 run of Cuba-Rushford, which would ultimately serve as the x-factor in the contest to give them a lead they never lost going forward.

But from the second quarter on, the Lady Rebels (5-13) would hang right with their visiting opposition in black, with the last three quarters of play being determined by no more than two points, including a 12-point last stand from the hosts in white and blue led by Brynn Lavery and her seven fourth quarter points.

Sullivan would finish as Genesee Valley/Belfast’s leading scorer behind a team-high 15 points. Sophie Zillgitt was not far behind, as she posted 12 points of her own. Mary Hamer recorded nine points.

For the Lady Rebels, Lavery concluded with 15 points to lead the way. Lily Tompkins had seven points. The regular season will come to a close for Cuba-Rushford tonight right back on their home floor, as they host Fillmore at 7:30 p.m. on Senior Night.

Genesee Valley/Belfast will now await their Sectional seeding this weekend before starting their playoff journey next week, as they wrap up the regular season campaign with a record of 16-4 overall.

Genesee Valley/Belfast 15 6 11 14 – 46

Cuba-Rushford 5 7 9 12 – 33

GV/BELFAST: Abby Sullivan 6 0-0 15, Sophie Zillgitt 6 0-2 12, Kendra Bigelow 1 0-0 2, Whitney Young 1 0-0 2, Mary Hamer 4 1-2 9, Jenna Hill 3 0-0 6. Totals: 21 1-4 46.

CUBA-RUSHFORD: Shae Maples 1 0-0 2, Lily Tompkins 3 1-2 7, Brynn Lavery 5 3-4 15, Mireya Rutkowski 1 0-0 2, Lilly Farwell 1 0-0 2, Raegan Poore 2 1-2 5. Totals: 13 5-8 33.

3-point goals: GVB 3 (Sullivan), C-R 2 (Lavery).
Total Fouls: GVB 11, C-R 11. Fouled out: None.

Bolivar-Richburg 43, Friendship/Scio 36

BOLIVAR — With the regular season beginning to wind down, Senior Night now took center stage for Caitlyn Steiner — the lone senior for the Lady Wolverines of Bolivar-Richburg.

In what was their final game before the playoffs next week, Steiner and the Lady Wolverines took aim at a strong finish to their campaign with a visit from Friendship/Scio in store for Monday night. To start, they would have to navigate through a first quarter that saw both teams provide slow beginnings of the hardwood. But it was one that Friendship/Scio gained the edge on, holding the hosts to just an inside basket’s worth of points.

But it wasn’t about the start, it was more about how Bolivar-Richburg finished the first half propelling their way towards a deadlock behind a big finish that allowed them to turn the tide in the third quarter behind the counsel of Steiner and a big fourth quarter from Carmen Crowley along the way, as they swiped the momentum away from Friendship/Scio and scored a massive 43-36 victory.

“It was a great team win. It was one of the best games we’ve played all year,” said Lady Wolverines coach Hadley Ferris. “Every single one of the girls had a key part in the win, whether it was defense, offense or both. It was awesome to see Caitlyn and Carmen work together on both ends of the floor, Nadia (Baldwin) and Raegan (Giardini) did a great job limiting the (Nevaeh and Morghyn) Ross sisters. It was just an overall great team win, and it was nice to see the hard work pay off.”

Both offenses were slow to get off and running in the opening eight minutes, where it was primarily controlled by Friendship/Scio, as they posted six of the game’s first eight points to set up shop. But despite being held to just two points, the Lady Wolverines were able to fight back and provide a stellar finish to the opening half, posting a 14-point frame to tie the game at 16, with Crowley and Nadia Baldwin coming together to score 11 combined points.

In the same swing, it would allow Bolivar-Richburg to begin turning the momentum in their favor, as they posted a big third quarter run to hold Friendship/Scio in check, jogging off on a 15-8 jaunt led by Steiner inside, along with a pair of threes from Baldwin and Jaelyn Kinnicutt, to propel into the driver’s seat for the remainder of the way.

In the last eight minutes, Friendship/Scio continued to chip away at their deficit to remain right behind Bolivar-Richburg the remainder of the game, cutting it down to as low as six points. But the Lady Wolverines would hang on and claim victory to end their regular season on a high note.

Crowley and Steiner combined to record 29 of the team’s 43 total points, with Crowley’s 15 points leading the Lady Wolverines. Steiner pitched in with 14 points, while Baldwin followed with eight. For Friendship/Scio, Emily Lamberson led the scoring with a team-high 10 points. Nevaeh Ross had nine points to with 17 rebounds off the glass, while Morghyn Ross had six points off a pair of fourth quarter triples.

The regular season has reached its conclusion for both teams, as the wait for Sectionals now begins, with Bolivar-Richburg ending with a record of 5-12 overall, and Friendship/Scio standing at 10-8 overall.

Friendship/Scio 6 10 8 12 – 36

Bolivar-Richburg 2 14 15 12 – 43

FRIENDSHIP/SCIO: Grace Drumm 2 0-0 4, Emily Lamberson 5 0-0 10, Nevaeh Ross 4 1-2 9, Hunter Hint 1 1-3 3, Avery Lamberson 2 0-0 4, Sophie Bolzan 0 0-2 0, Morghyn Ross 2 0-0 6. Totals: 16 2-7 36.

BOLIVAR-RICHBURG: Nadia Baldwin 3 0-2 8, Jaelyn Kinnicutt 1 0-0 3, Raegan Giardini 0 0-2 0, Sydney Faulkner 1 1-2 3, Carmen Crowley 6 3-5 15, Caitlyn Steiner 5 4-5 14. Totals: 16 8-16 43.

3-point goals: F/S 2 (M. Ross), B-R 3 (Baldwin 2, Kinnicutt).
Total Fouls: F/S 19, B-R 14. Fouled out: None.

BOYS BASKETBALL

Cuba-Rushford 59, Houghton Academy 33

HOUGHTON — There was some digging to be had early on for the Rebels of Cuba-Rushford on Monday, battling side-by-side with Houghton Academy for much of the opening sequences. While they continued to delve deep, that metaphorical shovel was later taken into possession by senior Braeden Wight.

With it, Wight proceeded to hit buried treasure. The contents inside: A new school record.

When the second quarter went into effect, the Cuba-Rushford senior went forth and proceeded to shoot the lights out inside the gym, knocking down six humongous three-pointers to aid the team’s largest stand of offense that helped turn the tide in their favor. In all, Wight would hit 10 triples from beyond the arc to become the school’s newest record-holder — the last being Josh Matijas back in 2009, in what was a 59-33 win for the Rebels over the host Panthers.

“It’s a testament to the other guys to make this big night for Braeden happen for him,” said Rebels coach Pat Wight. “Setting solid screens and looking for him. It was great to see that, and they were really excited for him once he was getting closer to breaking the record. The offense played great tonight, but we weren’t as locked in on defense as I would have liked us to be. Fillmore is coming up in a couple days, and we’ll need everything we got to go up against them. This will be a great, solid opponent to go into the playoffs with.”

Before the fireworks kicked into gear for the Rebels (12-7), they would have to traverse a closely-contested first quarter battle right alongside Houghton Academy to build their lead, going on top by an 11-6 count. With the advantage in hand, they would begin to proceed building it behind the guidance of Wight’s hot hand from the parking lot, as he put down a half-dozen triples to aid the team’s 21-7 run of the Panthers that kept them in the driver’s seat permanently.

Wight would go on to finish his historic night for Cuba-Rushford with a game-high 32 points. Adding assistance along the way was Tristan Clayson and his nine points, while Finn RIcketts had six.

For Houghton Academy, Josh Davidson sank four of the team’s six triples from outside to pace the offense with his team-leading 16 points. Jack Prentice chipped in with 11 of his own, while James Adenuga and Jack Qi rounded off the scoring with four and two points each, respectively. The Panthers will now await Sectionals coming up next week, as they finish the regular season with a record of 6-12 overall.

Cuba-Rushford heads back home for their regular season finale on Gary Wight Court coming up on Wednesday, as they prepare to host the Fillmore Eagles in a 7:30 p.m. showdown.

Cuba-Rushford 11 21 11 16 – 59

Houghton Academy 6 7 9 11 – 33

CUBA-RUSHFORD: Braeden Wight 11 0-0 32, Luke Brooks 0 2-4 2, Zach Deck 1 0-0 2, Eli Sleggs 1 0-0 3, Finn Ricketts 3 0-2 6, Tristan Clayson 4 0-0 9, Adam Roe 0 1-2 1, Peyton Joy 2 0-0 4. Totals: 22 3-8 59.
HOUGHTON ACADEMY: Jack Prentice 3 3-4 11, Josh Davidson 6 0-0 16, James Adenuga 2 0-0 4, Jack Qi 1 0-0 2. Totals: 12 3-4 33.

3-point goals: C-R 12 (Wight 10, Sleggs, Clayson), HA 6 (Davidson 4, Prentice 2).
Total Fouls: C-R 5, HA 6. Fouled out: None.