Though close to earning a Section III Class B playoff berth, the Skaneateles girls basketball team is not quite there yet. The Lakers had a great chance to get near that milestone in Friday night’s game against Solvay, but could not put much on the board in a 36-26 loss to the Bearcats. Skaneateles did not have the best timing to meet Solvay – it happened just as one of the Bearcats’ top players, Abbey Jones, returned from an injury that had sidelined her most of the season. As a result, the Lakers had to diversify its defensive approach, not concentrating on Solvay’s all-time leading scorer, Tessa Pucello, as it did before. Both Pucello and Jones would finish with 10 points, which meant Skaneateles did contain them well. However, the Lakers’ offense was another matter. With Jones and Pucello in the middle to block their path, Skaneateles could not put together any kind of scoring run, managing no more than nine points in any single period. Emily Call did finish with 12 points, nearly half the Lakers’ total. Ashley Sheldon had six points, but eighth-grader Elizabeth Lane managed just one free throw all night, far below her average of nearly 12 points per game. Skaneateles, at 6-9 (5-8 league), plays three times in the final week of the regular season – against Marcellus, Bishop Grimes and Westhill. Wins in two of those games would lock up a playoff spot.