'Vliet girls hold off Schuylerville in 2 OT thriller

Watervliet head coach Gordie Johnson wrote two numbers on the blackboard in the Lady Cannoneers' locker room. 94 & 32. He wanted his team to use all 94 feet of the court for all 32 minutes.
His message was well received, even if he shortchanged his team by eight minutes of basketball.
No. 1 Watervliet held off No. 8 Schuylerville 57-47 in double overtime to advance to the Section II Class B semifinals against No. 12 Mechanicville. Tuesday's game at Saratoga Springs High School begins at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $6.

Schuylerville's Leah Hathaway tries to move the ball against Watervliet's Ailaya Demand (l) during Friday's game at Watervliet High School. Nae White (3) looks on. (All photos by J.S. Carras - The Record).

Watervliet's Julie Keegan attempts a shot as Schuylerville's Bridgette Plummer (44) defends. Plummer finished with 17 rebounds and six blocks and anchored a Black Horses 2-3 zone defense that stymied the Cannoneers through much of the first half. Lashana Tolliver, an eighth grader, also grabbed 17 rebounds for Watervliet in valuable minutes off the bench.

Nae White (r) and Keegan (l) try to strip the ball from Plummer during Friday's game on George Mardigan Court. Watervliet senior Jen Gates sparked the Cannoneers with two seperate one-person five-point runs in the third quarter and junior guard Tierney McGlynn stepped up her game in the second overtime period.

Mechanicville junior point guard Nicole Manupella led the Red Raiders to an upset of No. 5 Greenville in the opening round of the Section II Class B tournament and she sparked an upset of No. 4 Catskill in the quarterfinals Friday at Watervliet High School. The Red Raiders will face Colonial Council rival Watervliet in the semis on Tuesday at Saratoga Springs High School.

Alysa Russell, a freshman, elevates to the rim in Friday's victory over Catskill. She played third base on Mechanicville's state championship-winning softball team as an eighth grader and she's having a big impact on the basketball team as well.

Updated Section II boys basketball brackets

Updated Section II girls basketball brackets