WEST SENECA Girls Win Sectional Title

By Jerry Sullivan

West Seneca was expected to breeze against a Lancaster team it had beaten twice by 23 points in the regular season. But when the Legends went on an 8-0 run to get within seven after the third quarter, there was suddenly doubt.

“I was definitely a little nervous,” said Jayden Ecker, West Seneca’s fine senior point guard. “I knew I had to come out on top, not just me but all my teammates. We turned it on. We knew it had to get done and we got it done.”

They wasted no time, scoring the first six points of the final quarter and coasting to a 56-40 win in the Class AAA girls Section VI title game at Buffalo State. West Seneca, which combined with East this season, won its first sectional title since 1983. The Warhawks, now 20-2, advanced to the Far West Regional next Friday against the Section V champ at Finger Lakes CC.

Senior center Eva Gunnells scored 27 points for the War Hawks. Gunnells struggled a bit early, missing half a dozen three-pointers, but dominated in the post in the second half. She scored seven points and dished off for an assist during West Seneca’s decisive run early in the fourth quarter.

“Coach (Joe Dougherty) said make the easy shots inside,” said Gunnells, who will play at SUNY Brockport next year. “Our shots weren’t falling outside, so we worked as a team, got the ball inside and Davahya (Beard) had some great rebounds to push it outside. It was a great win.

“I felt a little nervous coming in,” said Gunnells, who played at St. Mary’s as a freshman and went back to West. “But once I got the ball and made my first basket, I knew it would be a good game. My teammates help me out and give me the ball inside. So I’m really grateful for them and proud of everyone.”

Ecker had 16 points, including a steal and layup during the fourth-quarter run. As usual, she ran the show and played a terrific floor game. Dougherty told her when she was a freshman she would be his point guard for the next four years, and she lived up to that expectation.

“She doesn’t play like she’s 5-2,” Dougherty said. He said Ecker wasn’t about to let her team lose. Lancaster, which had won four straight sectional titles in the Madison Francis era, got 15 points from freshman Reese Booker. The young Legends are a team to be reckoned with in the years ahead.

“Lancaster battled the whole game,” Dougherty said. “We expected them to be that way and they played us tough. We’ve got great leadership, a great group of girls that came to the gym every day, wanting to get better. Even during the summer, they came three times a week, and we got better.”

Ecker has drawn interest from colleges to play basketball, but she plans to be a long jumper at Slippery Rock and maybe play club ball. She’s not ready to see her high school career end just yet.

“No,” Ecker said. “I’m so ready to get to states. I know regionals will be hard, but we’re just as good as the other teams and I know we can do it.”

Feature Image/@Section6GirlsBB