by Ryan Mosher
The Hoosick Falls boys basketball team took one step closer to a Class C Championship on Tuesday night, beating 4th seeded Lake George 55-41 in their sectional semi-final game at the Glens Falls Civic Center. The win sets up a title game clash with 3rd seed Mechanicville, who knocked off the 2nd seed, Greenwich, on Tuesday as well.
This game was not the dramatic nail-biter the quarterfinal game was for the Panthers. Hoosick Falls led for all but about a minute and a half of the game. A free throw by Matt Gormley with 5:43 left in the first quarter put them up for good at 5-4. The Panther defense held the Warriors leading scorer, Joel Wincowski, to just 10 points, who sat on the bench much of the game in foul trouble.
Hoosick Falls widened its lead in the second quarter, putting up 19 points to take a 34-18 lead. The Panthers used book end three-pointers, one by Chris LaCroix on the opening drive and one by Alex Lilac at the buzzer, to take control of the game.
The third quarter may have been the only good part of the game for the Warriors. While outscoring Hoosick Falls 13-8, the Warriors used a trio of three-pointers to try to get them back into the game. Lake George’s Pete Fisher hit a three-pointer with :37 left in the quarter to bring the lead back to 9 points. The Panthers would slam the door shut, though, with a Matt Gormley basket just before time expired.
In the fourth quarter Tanner Williams took over for the Panthers. Williams scored points in the quarter, putting the Panthers up by as much as 18 points. Lake George hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to bring the final score to 55-41.
Three players hit double digits in points for the Panthers. Lilac led all with 15 points, followed by Gormley with 14 points and Williams with 11 points. Aaron Chambers led Lake George with 13 points.
The win puts Hoosick Falls at 20-1 on the season, and advances them to the 3:45 pm Class C Championship game on Saturday at the Glens Falls Civic Center.