High School Fridays: Emma Willard @ Troy, 2/15/19

There was a certain amount of significance to tonight's first round Class A women's basketball sectional between Troy and Emma Willard at Zotto Memorial Gym. Unfortunately, that significance was lost on the local press.

You see, this was, to my knowledge, the first ever meeting between the two city schools on the hardwood. The only other time in recent memory that Troy & Emma Willard had met was in soccer, and that was a JV game a couple of years ago at Picken Field. Because junior varsity sports as a rule are ignored by the press these days, the result was never reported.

Even more shocking is the fact that, even though this was a sectional game, there was no admission charge. The only time Section II will charge admission for women's sectionals will be for neutral site games in the later rounds, including the finals, which will be at Hudson Valley Community College in a couple of weeks. I guess the people in charge don't believe women's sports are enough of a draw.

There was no pre-game hype, promoting the fact that this was the first meeting of the two programs, so add this to the list of missed stories by the local press over the last seven years. Yes, there were television cameras present, recording the action for the late news. As maligned as Troy has been for prohibiting the hometown paper from interviewing student-athletes & coaches, the Jesters feel like the daughters of Rodney Dangerfield. No respect.

Had it come down to wins & losses, the Jesters would've had the home court for this one. They won 17 games in the regular season, even after an 11th hour decision to leave the Central Hudson Valley League (CHVL) to take on an independent schedule. Had they stayed, the Jesters would've won the league title, as they ran the table, going 12-0 against CHVL competition.

Instead, because Emma Willard hadn't played a school above Class B (their lone loss was to #1 seed Tamarac), and played mostly Class D schools, the Section II committee deemed the Jesters to be a #11 seed, sending them down the road to Troy.

To their credit, the Jesters' fans came out in force, a loud, lively group. Zotto Gym wasn't full, but that was largely because of the lack of promotion.

On to the game. Emma Willard had just 10 players on their roster, but dressed 8 due to injuries. Troy was again without Jenalyse Alarcon for the fourth straight game. For legal reasons more than anything, schools will not disclose injuries or disciplinary issues, unlike in college.

At first, the Jesters played like they deserved to be a higher seed, and rightfully so. Senior Khairat Raji scored the first four points of the game for the visitors, and finished with 12 points. However, Troy came roaring back in the second quarter behind sophomore forward Jakaiya Dewer, and were only down by two at 19-17 at the break.

In the second half, Troy picked up right where they left off, and once they took the lead, they never trailed again. Dewer led all scorers with 15 points, and Troy pulls off what amounts to an upset, beating Emma Willard, 45-37. Molly Zahnleuter led Emma Willard with 13 points.

Up next for Troy is a trip to the North Country, as they'll play Amsterdam in the first half of a double-header at Queensbury on Thursday. The Flying Horses have now won three in a row, and have to hope Alarcon can return on Thursday.
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Hockey news: The pairings for the CDHSHL sectional tournament are out. As expected, two-time Delvecchio Cup champ Bethlehem is the #1 seed, followed by Shenendehowa, Saratoga, CBA, & Albany Academy. The latter two will meet on Tuesday. LaSalle, seeded 7th, will host Adirondack (#10) in a rematch from Monday at HVCC tomorrow night. #6 Burnt Hills figures to get a lay-up as they'll host the hapless, winless Capital District Jets, with the winner to face Saratoga on Wednesday. "Guilderville" and Niskayuna-Schenectady-Albany will meet on Monday. Should LaSalle beat Adirondack, they would get a 3rd crack at #2 Shen.