Oxford and S-E downed in close games

NEW BERLIN – Down three starters due to illness and injuries, the Lady Storm relied on the senior leadership of Meegan White to lead a team full of younger players. White fulfilled her role, scoring 20 in the 45-36 win over Sidney on Thursday to bring the five-game losing streak by the Storm to an end.
“I’m extremely proud of them for pulling this win out without three starters,” said UV’s head coach Brandi Whitbeck. “These girls dug down deep and played with so much heart. They were composed, scrappy and intense. They buckled down and played great team defense and it was pretty awesome for such young players to step up the way we did.”
In the first game of the regular season, the Warriors hosted Unadilla Valley and came away with the early season win by six points.
Starting the second match up between the two teams where they left off, Sidney took the 15-13 after the first quarter and built on it in the second to go into the locker room ahead by eight.
The Warriors nearly shut down the Storm’s offense, limiting the home to just three made free throws in the stanza.
Whatever it was that Whitbeck said to her team in the locker room at the intermission, stuck with her players as they found the intensity the head coach stated the girls had.
Shaking off the slow second quarter, UV shifted the momentum in their favor with 14-4 run in the third. The spurt ended with a Kadence York basket, giving the Storm a two point lead heading into the final eight minutes of play.
Unadilla Valley kept pushing on to start the fourth, extending their lead to six before Sidney’s Savannah Baldwin knocked down a 3-pointer to cut the deficit in half.
After the Baldwin bucket, the Storm went on a 6-0 run to lead 40-31 with just under four minutes remaining in the contest.
Back came the Warriors as they responded with a five point spurt of their own to bring the lead down to four with 2:08 left. However, that was the final basket registered by Sidney.
White secured the win in the final two minutes with five made free throws.
Keona Courtright stepped up in a big way according to Whitbeck. The head coach said Courtright finished the game with 14 rebounds. She also scored 10 points to record her first double-double of the season.
York, who contributed nine points in the win, also had a huge night on glass as she came away with 13 rebounds.
Sidney was led by Emma Simmons’ nine points and Baldwin finished with six.
The Storm take on Chenango Forks Wednesday for a non-league contest. Game time is scheduled for 7:15 p.m.
Walton 56, Oxford 47
WALTON – Turnovers once again hurt the Blackhawks in the Midstate Athletic Conference showdown with host Walton Thursday night. The Warriors claimed the 56-47 victory over Oxford and 13 of their points came from the 22 miscues by the visiting team.
Both teams found their scoring rhythm early in the contest as the score at the intermission was 42-29. However, Walton and Oxford’s offense slowed in the third quarter as both teams were able to put just four points each on the scoreboard.
In the fourth, the Blackhawks outscored the host Warriors 14-10 but the last chance rally came too late for the visiting team as they fell by nine points.
Oxford was led by Madalyn Barrows 21 points and 10 rebounds. Teammate Karley Miller chipped in nine points and pulled down a team-best 12 boards. Olivia Kelsey also had a big night on the glass, grabbing 10 rebounds.
Walton’s McKenzie Clough scored 20 to pace the home team in the win. She added 16 rebounds to her statline. Clough was aided in the scoring column by Jacqulyn Gransbury’s 15 points and Makara MacGibbon’s 12.
Oxford came into the game against Walton looking for back-to-back wins as the Blackhawks defeated Windsor earlier in the week 49-37.
Miller and Barrows recorded their first double-double in the past seven days against the Black Knights as Miller scored a game-high 23 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Barrows tallied 10 points and pulled down 13 boards off the glass.
The Blackhawks outscored the Windsor squad in three out of the fourth quarters and shot 39-percent from the floor to capture the win.
Oxford hosts Harpursville on Tuesday for a MAC league contest. Game-time is slated for 7:15 p.m.
Mount Markham 65, Sherburne-Earlville 62
SHERBURNE – The Lady Marauders nearly topped the then 9-2 Lady Mustangs of Mount Markham last Friday night but the visiting team secured the three point win over Sherburne-Earlville.
The Marauders’ Tessa Cole dropped a game-best 31 points and pulled in 10 rebounds for yet another double-double to the 2019-2020 season. Teammate Elizabeth Peila chipped in big numbers in both stat columns as the S-E senior grabbed eight boards and scored eight points.
However, the rebounding and scoring efforts by the home team wasn’t enough to overcome the Mustangs. Three players for Mount Markham reached double figures in the win and were led by Hayleigh Gates’ 18 points.
The contest was never separated by more than six points as the two teams battled, going back and forth with the lead changes throughout.
The Mustangs went ahead by four at the end of the first quarter but the Marauders were able to cut the lead two just two points at the halftime break.
The end of the third quarter saw the home team hold a one point lead, setting up an exciting finish to determine the outcome of the Center State Conference crossover.
With the ball in their offensive half with seconds remaining, Sherburne-Earlville set up a play for the chance at a game-winning shot. Three Mount Markham players took the task of covering the Marauders’ leading scorer on the final left S-E’s Alexis James open.
Cole dished the ball to James but the pass went off the hands of James and out of bounds, giving the ball back to the Mustangs and ending the chance of the upset for the home team.
Cole’s 31 in the contest led all of Section III scorers last week. She and the Marauders will look to bounce back from loss after the week off when they take on Waterville Friday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Waterville.