Churchville-Chili blew open a one-point third quarter lead, outscoring Dansville 15-6 in the fourth as junior co-captain Mikayla Shipley hit a trey, a field goal, and two free throws and freshman Sydney Postell added four of her 11 points in a 54-41 win, to win their own girls basketball Holiday Tournament.
The two teams combined for 31 points over the first eight minutes, but only 17 in the second quarter as Dansville worked the ball down low. Saints senior Jade Distant scored two field goals in the second while junior Hannah Shipley added a trey and junior co-captain Jordan Loewke chipped in four points to help them to a 26-22 halftime advantage.
The third quarter featured three lead changes, but the Saints defense adjusted to limit the Mustangs to just two free throws and a field goal over the final five minutes while the Shipleys and Distant combined for 11 points.
Postell opened the fourth quarter with a jumper and Hannah Shipley converted a breakaway lay-up before a Mikayla Shipley trey extended the Saints lead to nine points. Dansville scored just two baskets over the final four minutes of the game while the Saints were four-of-six from the foul line in the final minute to seal the victory.
“Jade Distant really did a good job controlling the floor and I thought our girls played well in the second half,” Saints head coach Todd Esposito said. “She (Mikayla Shipley) is getting smarter and played with a lot of poise…so this was a good win for us.”
Mikayla Shipley led the Saints attack with 15 points and added five rebounds while Distant added 12 points with five steals and Postell was also in double figures with 11 points and also hauled down five boards. Hannah Shipley finished with eight points and junior Jasmine Gibbs chipped in four rebounds as the Saints won their fifth straight game after opening the season with two losses.
In the consolation game, everyone who played in the game scored at least one point as Hilton trounced Edison Tech 68-20.
The Cadets limited the Inventors to no more than seven points in any one quarter and had a 19-7 lead after eight minutes and 38-11 at halftime as they ended a three-game losing skid after winning three of their first four.
Senior Paige Favor and junior Elia Poveda led Hilton with ten points each with junior Sydney Carpenter netting nine, senior Amelia Schuster eight, eighth-grader Ella Clark and seventh-grader Mallory Heise seven each, and junior Vic Cangelosi added six points to the offense.
