Girls’ Basketball
Oxford 50, Groton 30
OXFORD – Oxford won its Section IV playoff opener for the third straight season eliminating Groton from Class C play Tuesday night at Oxford High School.
Senior Haley Witchella had a game-high 22 points in just half a game of playing time, and added 13 rebounds and eight steals for the Blackhawks (14-5), who play at top-seeded and defending Section IV champion Tioga on Friday.
“Tioga has ended our season the last two years, and they lost last year’s state championship game on a buzzer beater,” said Oxford coach Chris Palmer. “They are a legit Class C school.”
The Blackhawks smothered Groton (8-10) on defense forcing 21 turnovers in the first half, and barely allowed the Bulldogs past halfcourt much less a shot at the basket. Allie Nelson had two steals in the game’s first 30 seconds for Oxford to set the tone on defense. On the night, the Blackhawks induced 33 Groton turnovers – most of those over the first three quarters.
Witchella scored 10 of her team’s first 12 points as Oxford moved to a 12-0 lead with 3 1/2 minutes left in the first quarter. Witchella scored on an assist from Jackie Heggie to start the run, and before taking a seat in the opening quarter, Witchella had a steal and driving layup.
Groton’s first points of the game took nearly 5 1/2 minutes, and Oxford was even more stingy in the second quarter. The Blackhawks rattled off 18 points before a basket from Groton’s Kerri Rhodes 18 seconds before halftime ended the spurt as the Blackhawks held a 34-9 lead.
Most of the points came out of a full-court press, and the halfcourt defense for Oxford – mostly a two-three zone – wasn’t half bad. “We knew their ballhandling was weak, so we were hoping to get some turnovers out of the press and get some easy buckets,” Palmer said. “It was nice for our defense to create some easy offense.”
Groton: Ashley Keister, 0; Kerri rhodes, 4 0-1-8; Emma Graham, 1 0-0-2; Ruthanne Forehand, 3 5-5-11; Courtney Ward, 1 0-0-2; Tiffany James, 2 0-0-5; Mallorie Murray, 0 0-2-0; Kylene Hall, 0 1-2-1; Shyane Wheaton, 0; Stephanie Preston, 0; Stacey Case, 1 0-0-2. Totals: 12 6-10-30.
Oxford: Emily Smith, 1 0-0-2, Megan Golden, 0; Allie Nelson, 0 0-0-0; Ginny Burdick, 2 0-0-4, Samantha Barrows, 0 0-1-0; Jackie Heggie, 3 0-0-6, Julie Heggie, 3 1-4-7; Kayla Golden, 0 1-2-1; Lacey Barry, 1 0-0-2, Sarah Renaud, 0; Brooke Noble, 3 0-1-6, Haley Witchella, 9 3-3-22. Totals: 22 5-10-50.
Grot. 7 2 6 15–30
Oxfd. 16 18 15 1–50
Fouled out: none. Three-point goals: (O) Witchella. Officials: Coleman, Dadamio.
B-G 53, Unatego 46
BAINBRIDGE – Bainbridge-Guilford rebounded from a lopsided loss in the Midstate Athletic Conference finals last weekend beating Unatego for the third time this season Tuesday in the Class C playoffs.
Corrine Riegel scored a season-best 19 points, and hit two three-pointers in the second quarter – one at the halftime buzzer – to kickstart the Bobcats’ offense. Randi Conway had a three-pointer and five points in the second stanza as B-G built a 23-15 lead. “We knew Unatego would be a tough game, and for us to win after our struggles last Saturday was a confidence booster,” said B-G coach Bob Conway. “The kids needed some confidence in themselves again.”
B-G built its lead to as many as 15 points in the third quarter, but allowed Unatego to edge back into the game hitting just 3-for-11 from the foul line in the fourth quarter. Randi Conway finished with 14 points and four assists. Shania Vandermark grabbed 14 rebounds, and Chelsi Rosa had eight points, nine rebounds, and four assists.
Casey Manzanero scored 13 points for Unatego.
B-G plays at Marathon Friday.
Unatego: KG Quick, 0; Robin Foster, 1 0-3-2; Shelby Puffer, 2 1-3-5 ; Amanda Peloso, 1 0-0-2; Sarah Mannina, 3 2-4-10 ; Casey Manzanero, 4 1-2-13; Katrina Clark, 2 2-4-6; Kayla Talbot, 2 0-0-6; Katie Woods, 1 0-3-2. Totals: 16 6-19-46.
B-G: Shania Vandermark, 2 2-7-6; Randi Conway, 5 1-4-14; Corrine Riegel, 7 2-4-19; Chelsi Rosa, 3 2-4-8 ; Raileigh Hall, 0 2-2-2; Chelsea Tewksbury, 2 0-0-4; Kayla Davis, 0. Totals: 19 9-21-53.
Unat. 8 7 13 18–46
B-G 9 14 16 14–53
Fouled out: (U) Manzanero, Talbot. Three-point goals: (BG) Conway 3, Riegel 3 (U) Manzanero 4, Mannina 2, Talbot 2. Officials: Ciccarelli, Szelkowski.
Bishop Ludden 65, Sherburne-Earlville 56
SHERBURNE – Bishop Ludden put up the highest point total on Sherburne-Earlville this season, and ousted the Marauders from the Section III playoffs Tuesday night.
Kayla Gibling hit three three-pointers and finished with 20 points for Ludden, and Lauren Roy drained a pair of treys totaling 19 markers.
“We knew they had some good outside shooters, and couple times in transition we didn’t find their shooters or contest shots,” said S-E coach Karen Mulligan. “We were playing man, and they still found ways to get their outside shots off.”
S-E (15-4) lost leading scorer Caitlynn Adams for most of the second half after Adams suffered a late second-quarter ankle sprain. Adams had her ankle re-taped for the second half, but was unable to continue after playing less than two minutes of the third quarter.
“It was tough playing without Caitlynn – there’s definitely a difference without her on the court,” Mulligan said.
In her final varsity game with S-E, Bridget Irwin led the Marauders with 18 points including six in the last quarter as S-E cut a 15-point deficit to six points in the last 45 seconds. Cassie Beaver had eight of her 10 in the last stanza, and Sierra Morris finished with nine points.
“It was a tough way for the kids to go down, but I was proud of the way we played,” Mulligan said. “We had a great season.”
Bishop Ludden: Kayla Kibling, 7 3-5-20; Kelly Grantied, 2 0-2-5; Grace Rooney, 1 2-6-4; Ashley Macey, 0; Nicole Grantied, 2 2-2-6; Brazell, 0; Natalie Barletta, 4 3-4-11; Lauren Roy, 5 7-9-19; Emily Morrow, 0. Totals: 21 17-28-65
S-E: Sierra Morris, 4 1-2-9; Briana Vibbard, 0; Jordan Van Althuis, 2 0-0-6; Caitlynn Adams, 3 0-0-7; Karly Wagner, 2 0-0-4; Bridget Irwin, 5 8-13-18; Katherine Robertson, 0; Mikayla Solloway, 1 0-0-2; Kelsey Christian, 0; Cassie Beaver, 3 4-5-10. Totals: 20 13-20-56.
