No. 4 Colonie survived a scare from No. 5 Guilderland to defeat the Lady Dutch 59-54 Thursday, Feb. 21, in the Section 2 Class AA girls basketball quarterfinals at Shenendehowa High School.
Guilderland led the defending Class AA champions by four points entering the fourth quarter, but Colonie closed the game on a 22-13 run to pull out the victory and advance to Wednesday’s semifinal against top-seeded Shen at Hudson Valley Community College.
Aliyah Wright scored 19 points, and Alivia Paeglow contributed 16 points for Colonie. Graci Serreavillo led Guilderland with 16 points, and Valencia Fontenelle-Posson chipped in with 14 points.
Shen advanced to the semifinals with a 59-42 victory over No. 8 Niskayuna. Catherine Almeida had 18 points, and Kaitlyn Watrobski added 11 points for the Plainsmen, who built a 29-18 halftime lead. Olivia Olsen paced Niskayuna with 13 points.
Wednesday’s other semifinal pits No. 2 Albany against No. 3 Saratoga Springs after both teams avoided quarterfinal upsets. Albany pulled away from No. 7 Bethlehem 56-47, while Saratoga fended off No. 6 Shaker 59-50.
Hasijna Gaddy scored 16 points, and Ahniysha Jackson added 12 points for Albany, which needed a 21-4 run in the fourth quarter to put away Bethlehem. Ava LaClair drained four three-pointers and finished with a game-high 19 points for the Lady Eagles.
Saratoga saw a 13-point halftime lead whittled down to single digits by a determined Shaker squad before pulling out a nine-point victory. Catherine Cairns poured in 22 points for the Blue Streaks, while Jules DeBeatham netted 17 points for the Blue Bison.