PHOTOS BY STEVE HARRISON, STORY BY CHRIS BROOKS
HORNELL — Separated by just a 10-minute drive down the road, some early high stakes were on the table between neighbors Hornell and Canisteo-Greenwood on Monday.
A high-octane and ferocious offensive clinic possessed by the Lady Red Raiders against one of the area’s most stout, stalwart defenses all under one roof at one time for a massive collision.
Would you have wanted it any other way at the Seneca Street Zoo?
Although the Lady Redskins gave up 20 big points to Hornell to open the contest, they would counter with a near mirror image of offense themselves, trailing by one after the first eight minutes. Then, a complete flip of the script. Canisteo-Greenwood’s defense would come to life, beginning in the second quarter.
Down by a 20-19 count, the C-G defense would buckle down and deliver one of, if not, their finest performance of the season against the Lady Red Raiders, as the defense held their opposition in check to just 24 more points across the remaining three quarters while posting a trio of 12-point frames to outscore them along the way, en route towards their seventh straight win to open the season — a 55-44 win over Hornell.
“This was a big win from such a great opponent. Hornell is such a good all-around team with great shooters, great ball-handlers, and they’re just as good defensively as we are,” said C-G coach Les York. “Our girls have finally matured into tough Varsity players. This team started back when one was in seventh grade and the rest were on Varsity. Now they’re playing with a never-quick attitude, even when we went down at one point. The girls played a great, tough defensive game tonight, and I told them to tighten it up at halftime.”
Hornell coach Brian Dyring said Canisteo’s defensive intensity was really the difference in the second half.
“They forced us into 20 total turnovers and that’s been our achilles heel all season,” Dyring said. “We give away too many possessions and then we get frustrated and make mistakes that carry over on defense. Our youthfulness shows at times and it really hurts us but it’s a long season and there’s a lot of basketball left to be played and we will figure it out.
Our girls played their hearts out tonight and left everything they had on the floor,” Dyring continued. “Canisteo has a really good team, I look forward to watching them make a run in the postseason.”
It seemed as if Canisteo-Greenwood (7-0) had everything working in their favor. Offense, defense, and even on special teams. To go with a brilliant night off the glass with 41 team rebounds, the Lady Redskins would also have a hand on 17 of the team’s 20 baskets to keep the momentum maintained in their favor.
Although the back-and-forth battle ensued through the first eight minutes, the visitors in red and black went straight back to work with their defense against a fast and electric Hornell offense, holding them to under 10 minutes in the last three frames of play while adding punctuations themselves to seal their victory.
All four of Canisteo-Greenwood’s scorers recorded at least 10 points to propel the offense. Leading the scoring was Lillian Mullen, who had a team-high 18 points to pair with nine assists and five steals. Brooke Burd was absolutely dominant off the glass to help the cause, scoring 15 points and grabbing 20 massive rebounds. Peyton Peters finished with 12 points and five rebounds, while Bailey Mullen had 10 points to go with five more rebounds.
Adding some additional help on special teams was Elaine Roach, who had seven points.
Canisteo-Greenwood will now head back home to host their final game of the calendar season, as they welcome in the Addison Knights for a 7:15 p.m. contest on Wednesday.
“We play another tough game with Addison coming up,” York said. “We have started our toughest stretch with a win tonight, and hopefully we can do the same with the next three games that lay ahead. Hornell, Addison, Dansville, Andover/Whitesville in the Barkley Showcase. It’s going to be a tough four games in a row to try and contend with.”
Canisteo-Greenwood 19 12 12 12 – 55
Hornell 20 8 7 9 – 44
CANISTEO-GREENWOOD: Bailey Mullen 3 3-4 10, Lillian Mullen 5 4-6 18, Peyton Peters 6 0-0 12, Brooke Burd 6 3-4 15. Totals: 20 10-14 55.
HORNELL: Parker Graham 2 1-2 7, Jordyn Dyring 7 1-2 18, Lillian Hoyt 0 0-2 0, Payton Bentley 1 0-0 2, Selena Maldonado 2 2-2 6, Reagan Evingham 4 0-0 10, Madelyn Moore 0 1-2 1. Totals: 16 5-10 44.
3-point goals: C-G 5 (L. Mullen 4, B. Mullen), Hornell 7 (Dyring 3, Graham 2, Evingham 2).
Total Fouls: C-G 14, Hornell 19. Fouled out: None.
STEVE HARRISON PHOTO GALLERY:
