By ADAM SHINDER

For the C-S-E

CANAJOHARIE — Monday night, the Canajoharie Lady Cougars and Fort Plain Lady Hilltoppers had one last chance to make a good impression heading into Wednesday’s seeding meeting for the Section II Class C girls basketball tournament.

Mackenzie Stahler made sure the Lady Cougars got the last word.

Stahler capped off the regular season in style with 17 points, 12 rebounds, four steals and two blocked shots, while effectively shutting down Fort Plain’s leading scorer, Haley Kilmartin, to lead Canajoharie to a 45-34 victory in the WAC Cup third-place game.

Canajoharie head coach Marie Stahler said it was a welcome sight after the Lady Cougars’ 45-39 loss Friday against Duanesburg in the WAC Cup semifinals.

“We just didn’t play up to our potential on Friday night, but we had 10 days off without a game,” she said. “Tonight, we came out and said, ‘Let’s leave nothing on that court.’ They all agreed that’s what they wanted to do.”

Mackenzie Stahler provided timely sparks for Canajoharie’s (14-4) offense, including a personal 7-0 run to start the second half that helped boost the Lady Cougars’ lead from 11 points at halftime to 31-13.

Though Fort Plain (13-5) reeled the deficit in the rest of the way, it never got closer than nine points.

Much of the reason for that was Mackenzie Stahler’s defensive effort against Kilmartin. The Fort Plain sophomore has averaged nearly 13 points this season, but in three meetings with Stahler and the Lady Cougars, Kilmartin has scored just 25 total points and never once reached double figures. Monday, Kilmartin was limited to eight points, and after scoring four late in the first quarter, didn’t get back on the board until there were five minutes left in the fourth quarter.

“Haley wasn’t herself tonight,” said Fort Plain head coach Phil Karker. “I’m not sure what happened there.”

The victory was especially sweet for Canajoharie, as the Lady Cougars finished ahead 2-1 in the season series and avenged their one-point Jan. 17 loss to Fort Plain that forced the two teams to split the WAC North Division regular season title. Marie Stahler said she believed that played a factor in how her senior star — and daughter — rose to the occasion Monday.

“She wanted the rematch because of the last game,” Marie Stahler said. “They all did. If we had to play in the consolation game, then we wanted to play Fort Plain.”

Canajoharie also got a major contribution from freshman Alexis Kane, who came off the bench to score 11 points. Kara Schwab chipped in seven points and seven rebounds, while Alicia Stetin managed six points to go along with 11 rebounds and five blocked shots. With Kilmartin unable to get in an offensive groove for the Lady Hilltoppers, Abby Boyer shouldered the scoring burden with a team-high 15 points.

The Lady Cougars never trailed Monday, opening the game on a 10-1 run and never letting Fort Plain get closer than three points at any time. The Lady Hilltoppers started to swing the momentum late and got within 39-30 on Boyer’s short jumper with two minutes to play, but Schwab converted a 3-point play with 1:40 left that essentially sealed the deal for Canajoharie.

“We should’ve beat them tonight, we just didn’t play well,” Karker said. “(But) give them credit, they played well. Mackenzie’s a great player, Alicia’s a great player and they always have someone step up like Alexis Kane did tonight.”