GUILDERLAND — The Guilderland girls’ basketball team overcame a pair of close losses to win their Suburban Council opener, 42-32, against Shaker High School on Tuesday.

The Lady Dutch lost both of their games in the Bethlehem Tournament played at the Washington Avenue Armory on Friday and Saturday nights.
"We’re trying to get our first win and that can wear on you," said Guilderland Coach Frank Cacckello. "I would’ve like to win one of those two tournament games."

Guilderland lost each of those games by two points each including losing to Bethlehem on Friday in triple overtime.
"We got a lot of tournament," Cacckello said. "We’ve won two games in the five years I’ve been here."

On Tuesday, Guilderland was too talented for Shaker but couldn’t pull away from the Blue Bison until the second half.

The Lady Dutch led 15-8 at the end of the first quarter and 23-17 at halftime.

A jump shot by Shaker’s Michelle Prusack cut the Guilderland lead to four points early in the third quarter. Three minutes later, a three-point basket by Amanda Stopera cut the lead to two points — Guilderland got a free throw from Mary Kate O’Connell.

O’Connell made a basket from close range to start a 6-0 run.

Kristin Pezze made a jump shot and Rachel Rabbin scored on a running hook shot in the lane to give the Lady Dutch an eight-point lead, 30-22.

An inside basket by Stephanie Sloane ended the Guilderland run.

Guilderland then scored four consecutive points to add to the lead.

Pezze made a jump shot and followed that up with a lay-up. A jump shot by Ryan Graham cut the lead to eight points, 34-26, at the end of the third quarter.

"We kept the lead"

The Dutch couldn’t put away Shaker in the fourth quarter as they only outscored the Bison 9-6 in the final stanza.
"The key is to get an early lead on a team," Cacckello said. "No disrespect to Shaker, but we play up against good teams. In time, that needs to change."

The Dutch struggled to finish shots and grab rebounds in the contest.
"I think in tonight’s game our press [defense] frustrated them," Cacckello said after Tuesday’s game. "You try to bury teams early. That’s when teams believe they can win and lose. We had a couple of shovels full today."

Pezze led the Lady Dutch with 13 points. O’Connell added nine points and Rabbin and Tice, who is still recovering from strep throat, each scored seven points. Melanie Ostrowski made a three-point basket for her only points in the contest.

Shaker’s top scorer was Sloane, who scored 12 points.

Cacckello saw some good things on offense, but wishes his team could finish shots.
"Every good shot we get, we’ve got to finish," the coach said. "We don’t always know what to do with the basket on offense."

The defense has been strong during the early part of the season.
"It’s always there," Cacckello said. "We’re using a zone a little bit more. I got a little upset. We had some breakdowns at the end of the half in our zone that upset me."

But there were some things that made Cacckello happy.
"We kept the lead," the coach said. "We did little stuff well that really made me happy."

Cacckello wasn’t sure if the two close losses carried over into Tuesday’s game.
"Were they disappointed"" Cacckello asked of his players. "I know it carried over to Monday’s practice. Winning makes practice easier. We lost two games by a combined four points. One team banged in a three-pointer in overtime to get it into another overtime. We had a chance to win both those games.
"We basically played the same Colonie team that we played in the sectional final last year," Cacckello added. "We had our best chance to beat them. I was happy with the game. We know we can play with the best."

Getting the first win of the year can give the players confidence and take some of the pressure off.
"At certain times, bits and pieces grow more," Cacckello said. "We finally got into the gym over the weekend and we’ve got to keep getting into the gym and keep working. Winning makes getting into the gym much better."