CENTRAL NEW YORK – It was just a free throw, a very small part of what turned out to be another large and comprehensive performance.
But it was that first-quarter foul shot in Friday’s game against Auburn that gave Liverpool girls basketball senior Neveah Wingate her 1,000th career point, a cause for celebration and plenty of pictures, during and after the game.
And it proved quite a game, too, Wingate needing every bit of her vast skills to fend off Leah Middleton’s own star turn and help the Warriors edge the Maroons 62-57.
Entering the night with 994 career points, Wingate used two jumpers, one of them a 3-pointer, and that foul shot to quickly grab the milestone.
Soon, though, attention was paid to what Auburn was doing. Middleton’s 18 first- half points helped the Maroons go on a 14-1 run and move in front before Liverpool rallied to lead 30-27 at halftime.
It would continue to go back and forth throughout the second half, Middleton at the forefront as she would give Auburn 32 points, five rebounds and five steals.
Yet it was Wingate who, with the score tied and two minutes left, hit the go-ahead basket and, after an Auburn miss, banked in a 3-pointer with a minute to play, ultimately more than the Maroons could overcome.
All told, Wingate had 33 points, nearly half of it from five 3-pointers. Help came from Gianna Washington, who had 10 points, and Jakeira Stackhouse, who put in in nine points.
Before this, the Warriors experienced plenty of excitement and emotion last Tuesday night at Rome Free Academy.
Just when it looked lke the Warriors had pulled out a last-second win, the Black Knights, led by Amya McLeod, pushed it to overtime, where it went on to prevail by a 68-64 margin.
It was a battle from the outset, RFA jumping out 8-0 before Liverpool even got a basket, but the visitors rallying to tie it, 11-11, by the end of the first quarter.
During the game’s middle stages, the Warriors attempted to gain control, building a 29-23 advantage and then extending the margin to double digits at one point in the third quarter.
McLeod brought the Black Knights back, proving unstoppable as she helped RFA zoom back in front in the fourth quarter before a late Liverpool run regained the edge.
As regulation time wound down, the Warriors led 54-52, but with a chance to tie, the Black Knights again gave it to McLeod, whose short running jumper tied it.
In the four-minute extra period, Liverpool did put up baskets but McLeod still got RFA to win it, running her total to 37 points, 23 of which came in the fourth quarter and OT.
Wingate, with 19 points, paced the Warriors. Janea Hamilton-Brown earned 10 points, while Grace Sleeth got nine points, Stackhouse eight points and A’briyah Cunningham six points.
A day after Liverpool faced Auburn, Cicero-North Syracuse, the reigning sectional and regional Class AA champions, opened its season against Elmira, its task in 2022-23 trying to replace the likes of Alexa Kulakowski and Alita Carey-Santangelo.
The task was handled here as the Northstars beat the Express 69-59, playing at a brisk tempo from the outset and establishing a comfortable margin, eventually leading 40-27 by halftime.
Turning back all of Elmira’s runs, C-NS had a near-perfect scoring balance. Maddie Howell put up 17 points while three of her teammates – Kathleen Taru, Sydney Nesci and Jillian Howell – had 14 points apiece.
C-NS would have its own trip to RFA on Tuesday before facing Bishop Ludden Thursday night. Then Liverpool faces Maine-Endwell Saturday and St. Mary’s (Lancaster) Sunday as part of the Zebra Classic.