News & notes

Could the state high school hockey finals come down to a pair of Section II teams?

As we reported yesterday, Bethlehem finally got over the hump in beating Suffern, 1-0, on Saturday. That puts the Eagles on a collision course with a very familiar foe in Queensbury, which represents Division 2. The Spartans defeated Saranac Lake, 6-4, also on Saturday, and the two Section II schools will travel to Buffalo on Saturday for the semi-finals, with the finals on Sunday.

Bethlehem will play Massena, while Queensbury faces Whitesboro, on Saturday. You have to believe the rest of the coaches in the CDHSHL are delirious in anticipation.
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RPI graduate Andrew Franks had two field goals in a losing cause Sunday night, as Tampa Bay fell to Los Angeles in the first XFL game of the season to start in primetime. The Vipers are in last place in the XFL's East division, with the other teams--St. Louis, NY, & DC---in a three-way tie for first at 3-2. Tampa Bay (1-4) is 2 games back at the halfway station.
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As sports fans, the last thing you want to see happen to your hometown college team, or an alma mater out of state, for that matter, is for the school to be tagged for NCAA violations.

It's happened at Siena.

Two days before the current Saints prepare to begin play in the MAAC tournament, it was revealed that the school had committed some violations during Jimmy Patsos' tenure as coach (2015-18), including staff giving rides to players, which they're not supposed to do, and the usual "impermissible benefits", attributed to Patsos and his staff.

The following video is from the Albany Times-Union's website:



Patsos had an endorsement deal with a local clothier, as current coach Carmen Maciariello does now, but what possessed him to think that he needed to help his players off the court? I guess we'll never know. All 46 wins over that three year period have been vacated, which, I think, includes the College Basketball Insiders title won in 2016.

There are three players left from the Patsos era--seniors Ben Diamond (Shaker High), Sammy Friday, & Manny Camper, whose career stats will likely be altered going forward as a result of the penalties. Luckily, the Saints are eligible for either the NCAA, NIT, CBI, or any other tournament due to self-reporting the violations. Once Patsos was dumped in 2018, the gravy train went with him. He's currently an analyst, but any school that hires him now would not have him available for 30 days or somesuch, and there's a vetting process before he can be hired.

Coach Patsos, please call your service. Your career is over.