Cicero-North Syracuse trailed Bishop Ludden by four points heading into the fourth quarter of Thursday's girls basketball matchup.
The Northstars' transition offense allowed them to outscore the Gaelic Knights 17-5 in the quarter and secure a 51-43 comeback victory.
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"Bishop Ludden took us out of what we wanted to do early. They played great defense, they were physical and hit us in the right spots," C-NS coach Rob Siechen said. "But we were able to execute, settle down and do what we do best (later on)."
Aside from getting over the hump versus Bishop Ludden, the Northstars were playing shorthanded. Grace Villnave was out with an injury, and Olivia Cook sustained an injury in the second quarter.
But, Siechen said, C-NS was resilient and responded well, crediting his team for stepping up in crunch time.
The Gaelic Knights held onto a 20-19 lead at the half. After an 18-15 third quarter, Bishop Ludden had a 38-34 advantage.
The Northstars had a brief lead early on in the opening quarter. Their second lead of the game came with five minutes in left in regulation, courtesy of a 3-pointer by Kat McRobbie-Taru in transition.
"Once we started hitting transition buckets (in the fourth), I knew we would be ok," Siechen said. "Basketball is simple when you make a couple of shots and extend it from there."
McRobbie-Taru, who finished with a team-leading 17 points, was the one who "settled down" and "pushed the ball" up the floor for transition buckets.
"She was hesitant (in the first half), but she was good late," Siechen said. "As the game went on, she played with more confidence and was good to go from there."
Jilly Howell chipped in 12 points for the Northstars. Leah Benedict added nine points.
For the Gaelic Knights, Jordyn Townes tallied 11 points. Elizabeth Gaughan and Ava Carpenter provided nine points apiece, while Sophia Chemotti contributed eight.
C-NS (4-1), winner of three straight games, is scheduled to compete at a tournament in Albany next week. Bishop Ludden (2-2) takes on New Hartford at 5 p.m. on Dec. 29.
