Shaker girls' basketball cruises past Albany, earns spot in Class AAA championship game
· Yahoo Sports
TROY-The Shaker girls' basketball team has not forgotten about the 2025 Section 2 Class AAA championship game.
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In that game, Shaker came up short in its quest for the program's first sectional title since 2011 with a loss against Colonie - but the Blue Bison will have the chance to avenge that defeat on Saturday.
Top-seeded Shaker punched its ticket to the Class AAA sectional final by upending No. 4 Albany 67-40 in Monday's semifinal round at Hudson Valley Community College, setting up a rematch with No. 2 Colonie.
"It's the last thing that you remember and that taste stays in your mouth for a long time," Shaker coach Jaimee Shipley said. "I think that really fueled a lot of their motivation in the summer."
"Losing as a team and bringing most of the team back this year, we all felt it," Shaker senior Peyton Hoblock said. "That fueled us over the offseason."
Shaker (19-2), ranked sixth in the state Class AAA poll, never trailed in Monday's contest and ended the first quarter in front 17-7.
The Blue Bison continued to overwhelm the Falcons from there and held a commanding 55-29 lead entering the fourth quarter.
"I think that our defense was really good," Shipley said. "We were able to stop the drives really well, which is something that we've been emphasizing. I think that we controlled, for the most part, the glass, the defensive and offensive rebounds. That was something that we knew was going to be important."
Key moment
Shaker did not waste much time and opened up a 6-0 lead to start the contest.
"(Albany is) very good and we knew that they weren't going to quit," Shipley said. "We knew that they were going to hang around and play hard until the very end, which they did. We knew that we needed to get out quick and get some baskets to fall. We've played here before and we've had some pretty slow starts, so it was important to get out to a quick start."
Star of the game
Hoblock was a constant force throughout the game and registered a game-high 16 points.
"She is our rock," Shipley said. "She's somebody that we know we can go to. Somebody who will put her teammates ahead of herself every single game. She's always looking for that extra pass and the right play. I said to her before the game, ‘This is your time. This is your time and you need to lead us to this win.'
"She took it to heart and she played great."
Numbers to know
28: Points Shaker twin sisters Sofia and Giada Lanni combined to score in the game.
12: Points Albany junior Janae Byrams totaled, which was a team-high.
3: Sectional finals Shaker has reached in a row.
What's next
Shaker: The Blue Bison will take on No. 2 Colonie at 12:45 p.m. Saturday at HVCC.
Albany: The Falcons ended their 2025-26 campaign with a 14-8 record.
This article originally published at Shaker girls' basketball cruises past Albany, earns spot in Class AAA championship game.