Canajoharie bows in playoff

PHOTOGRAPHER: Jim Schiltz

With three-point baskets, fluid transition and its inside power game, Maple Hill kept its best season in a half-century alive Monday night at the Glens Falls Civic Center.

Maple Hill hit Canajoharie with a full-barrel barrage, and while the Cougars hung tough early, the Wildcats’ balanced and effective offense eventually took its toll in a 60-42 Section II Class CC-C playoff victory.

Class C most valuable player Payton Stahler excelled for Canajoharie (19-5) in the first half, pouring in 18 of his 23 points.

“Our strength is in our numbers,” said Maple Hill coach Scott Hanrahan. “We can get points from almost anybody. As long as they get their touches, they can score.”

Class CC MVP Trent Tibbits scored 14 points for Maple Hill, Adrian Donnelly had 11 points and six rebounds and David Briggs netted 10 points. Sean Danaher also made an impact with nine points and nine boards, Class CC title-game hero Jaime Schultz had eight points, and Dominic Prinzo contributed five steals and four assists off the bench.

“Canajoharie worried me. They played so well the other day,” Hanrahan said of the Cougars’ 55-36 dismantling of Duanesburg in the Class C final. “They’ve got a lot of guys who can do things out there.”

Maple Hill (23-1) does, too, and displayed all of its weaponry in a key 17-6 second quarter surge, turning an 18-15 lead in to a 35-21 advantage. Briggs started the assault with a three-point hoop and Tibbits ended it with two more. Briggs also drove for two baskets, Tibbits turned a steal into a layup, and Jake Jasewicz muscled for a putback.

Canajoharie answered with a 14-3 spurt spanning the second and third quarters, making it 38-35 on consecutive layups by Zach Weaver, before Maple Hill countered with an 8-2 run to run to go up, 46-37.

Prinzo’s steal and layup ended that quarter, and after Joe Dugan started the fourth with two foul shots, Danaher and Donnelly both connected down low for a 52-37 cushion.

“My guys are just out there playing and having fun,” said Hanrahan. “I think that’s been a big factor in our run.”

Weaver finished with eight points and 13 rebounds, and Anthony Taylor added seven points and four steals for the Cougars, who celebrated their first sectional title since 1961 Saturday.