Four different times, a shot that would give the Baldwinsville girls basketball team a crucial win against Baldwinsville Thursday night was in the air, heading toward the rim. Each time, though, the shot fell off course – and when the final buzzer sounded, the Bees had lost, 43-42, its second defeat of the week, a game that might have cost B’ville a seeding line in the Class AA playoffs down the road. The game’s opening sequence featured the only sustained offensive push for either side. Ally Zywicki’s pair of 3-pointers helped Liverpool race to a 10-2 lead – but B’ville picked up its defensive pressure and made its own 10-2 spurt in response, eventually leading 18-16 after one period. Liverpool’s defense took over in the second quarter, at one point holding B’ville without a field goal for eight-plus minutes as it went on an 11-0 run. Still, it went to the break only carrying a 27-22 lead, opening the door for B’ville to fight back. The entire second half turned into a tense struggle, the defenses making each possession a difficult maneuver full of hurried passes, off-target shots and forced turnovers. And each side hustled hard for loose balls, adding to the fatigue in the late stages. Despite the close nature of the game, B’ville never led in the second half. Yet Liverpool it couldn’t put things away and, with 1:31 left, Andrea Moore’s basket cut the Warriors’ margin to 43-42. Gabi Jordan’s missed free throw kept the Bees from pulling even, but with 40 seconds left B’ville had another opportunity, only to have Liz Giromini miss a jump shot from the corner. Liverpool tried to run out the clock while the Bees committed a series of fouls to get into the bonus situation. With 14.8 seconds left, Zywicki went to the line with a one-and-one opportunity. She missed, and B’ville’s Gaby Jordan chased down the rebound, giving the Bees one more shot to win it. Actually, it was more than one shot. Maggie Monnat drove to the basket and missed. Giromini gained the rebound, fired – and missed, too. The ball went to the corner, where Claire Monnat had one more chance, but her shot flew off line, and the Warriors held on. Zywicki cooled off after hitting those early outside shots, but still tied Lyteshia Price with 10 points to lead Liverpool as Shannon Seymour came off the bench to earn nine points and Nicole Ciricillo added eight points. On B’ville’s side, Claire Monnat (11 points) and Maggie Monnat (10 points) led the way as Jordan got nine points and Giromini eight points. What B’ville shared with Liverpool was the frustration of its experiences against Utica Proctor. Just three days after the Warriors lost its second encounter with the Raiders, the Bees took its turn – and squandered a fourth-quarter lead in a 54-47 defeat. Despite getting just five points in the first quarter, B’ville found its rhythm and outscored Proctor 24-12 the rest of the half to take a 29-24 lead. That margin held up until the fourth quarter, when the Bees suddenly made a series of mistake and Proctor star Brianna Kiesel took full advantage. Many of Kiesel’s 26 points came in that last frame as she and Jasmine Olds, who finished with 19 points, helped the hosts close on a 19-6 run. Thus, the Bees lost, despite having a more balanced attack. Giromini and Claire Monnat each had 12 points, with Maggie Monnat getting nine points. Jordan had eight points. Moore put in six points. B’ville will visit Henninger Tuesday, then return home this Friday to meet consensus All-American Breanna Stewart and two-time defending Class AA champion Cicero-North Syracuse.