Baldwin falls short of state title

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Youthful Baldwin’s quest for a state championship fell one game short.

The Lady Bruins were defeated by Bishop Kearney, 63-57, in the New York State Class AA girls’ basketball title game last Saturday evening at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy. Junior Dallysshya Moreno had 21 points and 20 rebounds, and sophomore Renelle Grannum added 14 points for Baldwin, which won a thrilling semifinal, 56-54, in overtime over Cicero-North Syracuse last Friday afternoon to reach the finals.

“It’s disappointing we didn’t come home with a state championship, but this team battled all season long and I’m super proud of them,” said head coach Tom Catapano, who guided Baldwin to an eighth consecutive Nassau County crown and fifth Long Island championship in the past 13 seasons.

Bishop Kearney took control of the championship game by outscoring Baldwin by a 22-11 margin in the third quarter to lead by 13 points heading into the fourth. Moreno made two big plays in the final two minutes to keep the Lady Bruins (18-5 overall) within striking distance. Her putback off an offensive rebound closed the gap to 60-55 with 45 seconds remaining, but that was as close as they’d get.

“We fought hard until the very end,” Catapano said.

Baldwin, with only one starting senior, Paris Noseworthy, got a game-high 17 points from junior Katelyn Simpson in the state semifinal victory. The game featured 15 deadlocks and nine lead changes. Cicero-North Syracuse had a chance to win at the OT buzzer but missed a three-point attempt.