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Watching a rematch of the December game that was decided by one point was not the only thing that packed the seats, but it was Cassadaga Valley junior Emiley Anderson just 21 points away from 1,000.

After regulation, Anderson was still 5 points away, but lucky for her a strong defensive stand by the Cougars sent the game to overtime tied 51-51. Anderson made two field goals in the overtime period, then with 21 seconds remaining she was sent to the foul line with a 60-58 lead.

Anderson made her first shot to not only reach 1,000 career points, but she extended the lead and forced Clymer to look for a 3-pointer on its final possession. The Cougars once again shut down Clymer’s buzzer-beating moment and after another two foul shots escaped with the 63-58 win.

“I didn’t know any of these girls four months ago and I got the opportunity to come from Maple Grove,” Cassadaga Valley head coach Al Roller said about Anderson’s 1,000 points. “She’s so quiet, I didn’t know she was close to 1,000 points and she even has another year left. It’s just a great moment for her, I think she was a little nervous. Overtime came and she got it, we’re glad she got it at home and now it’s over with. It’s great to see her smiling and having fun and all the kids loved it.”

Cassadaga Valley’s Emiley Anderson is congratulated by her parents after scoring her 1,000th point during Wednesday’s nonleague game against Clymer in Sinclairville.
OBSERVER Photo by Christian Storms

While Anderson ended up the overtime hero, it was a collective scoring effort from the Cougars. Every player on Cassadaga Valley that checked into the game scored, Anderson finished with 21 points, Hailey Anderson ended with 11, and the trio of Alexis Pattyson, Andrea Johnson and Breonna Hopkins scored 8 points apiece.

“It was a replay of our first game with them,” Roller added. “It was a great game, they’re the No. 1 team in Class D and we’re still trying to build and get better each week. New kids, young kids, I had an eighth-grader out there scoring tonight.”

In contrast, Clymer relied heavily on Alexys Neckers to be the hero and she nearly was with a game-high 33 points. Clymer received baskets from just two more players, including Ava Nyweide’s 19-point performance.

When both Neckers and Nyweide slowed, so did the visiting Pirates. Cassadaga Valley scored the final eight points of the second quarter to steal the halftime lead at 21-20, then the Cougars opened the second half on a 6-0 run which forced Clymer to play catchup.

Clymer chased Cassadaga Valley all the way into the fourth quarter and that’s when the Pirates played their best basketball. Neckers scored 14 points in the fourth quarter alone and managed to tie the game at 51-51 with 22 seconds left by carving through the Cassadaga Valley defense to the rim for a layup.

“This is what you get for working hard year-round and not just showing up from November until February,” Clymer head coach Dave Bodamer said about Neckers. “She’s a true testament to hard work and putting in the hours and the effort. I know she’s frustrated with how some things didn’t drop for her late in the game, but I’ll still give her the ball, that kid deserves it.”

In the final 22 seconds of regulation, both teams made trips to the free-throw line, but there still was no score change and the fourth ended with a Neckers’ shot at the buzzer.

With 3.4 seconds left, Clymer inbounded the ball to Neckers in the corner and she drove the baseline, but tight coverage from Emiley Anderson forced an awkward shot that missed the mark.

“We just played from behind a little too much tonight,” Bodamer stated. “We never quit, so I was real proud of battling back, especially on the road. They knocked down the shots and they made more plays at the end, but it was a great game, there’s nothing to hang their heads about.”

After a couple of recent lopsided losses to Randolph and Frewsburg with a win over Portville sandwiched between, and a narrow defeat to Westfield, Cassadaga Valley was keen on getting back on track with a win. The Cougars outscored Clymer 12-7 in the overtime period and grinded out a 63-58 victory for their second win over the Pirates.

“You go against Randolph and Frewsburg, they’re just well-oiled machines,” Roller stated. “They have great players. Lost to Randolph pretty bad, went to Portville who is ranked in Class B and beat them, emotions are high and we go to play Frewsburg and get totally whooped on. It’s a learning moment, it’s good to play in a hard league.”

Clymer’s (11-2, 6-0) second loss of the season comes yet again at the hands of Cassadaga Valley, but the No. 1 team in Class D will get a chance to bounce back on Friday at Chautauqua Lake in CCAA Division 2 West.

Cassadaga Valley (7-5, 1-2) travels to Falconer on Friday in Division 1 East action.

CLYMER (58)

Heslink 0 0 0, Nyweide 7 5 19, White 0 0 0, Burchanowski 0 0 0, Neckers 9 14 33, Johnson 0 0 0, Bodamer 2 0 6. Totals 18 19 58.

CASSADAGA VALLEY (63)

Pattyson 4 0 8, Meder 1 3 5, MFanara 1 0 2, Johnson 2 2 8, EAnderson 9 1 21, Hopkins 2 2 8, HAnderson 4 3 11. Totals 23 11 63.

3-point goals–Neckers, Bodamer 2, Johnson 2, EAnderson 2, Hopkins 2.

Clymer 13 7 12 19 7 — 58

Cassadaga Valley 11 10 18 12 12 — 63