Baldwinsville's previously perfect record was in peril as the Bees trailed Cicero-North Syracuse by two with 30 seconds left in regulation of Tuesday's girls basketball clash.
The Northstars' suffocating defense prevented the Bees from getting an open look at the basket for most of the possession, but sophomore Olivia Davis rejected a ball screen on the left wing, drove to the basket and finished with a scooping layup to knot the game up with five second left before overtime. C-NS coach Rob Siechen drew up the perfect in-bounds play to get junior Meadow Werts an open layup but the attempt came up short as time expired.
After a brief moment of disappointment, Werts and her C-NS teammates quickly recovered in overtime and outscored Baldwinsville 12-3 to seal the Northstars' season-opening victory. They won 59-50.
C-NS scored the first seven points of the overtime before Baldwinsville finally managed to get on the board. All five Northstars on the court scored in overtime as C-NS kept the Bees at a healthy distance to secure the win.
"It was our first game, and I think the first half showed that," Siechen said. "We played a little bit 'helter-skelterish.' Credit to Baldwinsville, they did a great job. They made a ton of shots today. They made the game kind of ugly for us early."
The first quarter was fairly evenly matched, but Baldwinsville broke the game open in the second quarter with its 3-point shooting. The Bees drained four shots from behind the arc to take a sizeable lead heading into halftime.
The Northstars fought their way back throughout the second half. With six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, C-NS standout Leah Benedict drained a 3-pointer to give the Northstars their first lead since the start of the second quarter. Neither team was able to separate themselves in the closing minutes of regulation.
"In the third and fourth quarters, we settled down a little bit," C-NS coach Rob Siechen said. "More so offensively, we were being a little bit more patient and made some shots."
Benedict led the way for C-NS with 19 points. The sophomore excelled in every aspect of the game.
"I'm more focused on the defense," she said. "That gets my teammates open, which eventually gets me open. Then we all work together."
Jillian Howell, Olivia Cook and Werts each chipped in with 10 points for C-NS. Senior center Grace Villnave added six points of her own.
"I think that's where we're different from a lot of teams," Siechen said. "All five kids on the floor have the ability to put the ball in the basket. Leah is going to get a lot of attention for what she did last year, but we have to have other people do some things as well." Baldwinsville was lethal from 3-point range throughout the game. The Bees combined for 10 made 3s, led by five from guard Natalie Hollingshead. The junior finished with a team-high 17 points. Madison Polky trailed closely behind with 16 points and four 3s. Baldwinsville's blazing-hot four-game winning streak to start the season was snapped with this loss. This is the seventh straight loss for the Bees against C-NS dating back to 2020.
Baldwinsville (4-1) has an intriguing matchup ahead of them against Christian Brothers Academy on Friday.
C-NS (1-0) has an out-of-section bout against Averill Park on Saturday.
"It's always great getting a win under your belt," Siechen said. "Having to play in a tough environment in a close game and executing down the stretch is a good way to start the season."
