News & notes

 High school sports season is officially over after state titles were decided on Saturday.

Section II had 8 teams between baseball & softball left in state play, and ended the day with 4 state championships.

In softball, Ichabod Crane won its first state crown since 2018, when they & Fort Ann were the last Section II teams to win championships. This year, the Lady Riders were joined by Class C champion Greenwich. 

Most folks figured Troy High would join them, but the dream season came to a shocking end on Saturday afternoon, as Vestal ended Troy's 19 game winning streak, 4-2. However, the Golden Bears would, in turn, lose to Webster Schroeder in the state finals later in the day.

On the baseball side, Averill Park (Class A) & Chatham (Class C) captured state titles.

Congratulations to all four teams.

As for Troy, they'll be back, as Coach Sean Geisel has a strong nucleus returning, including ace lefthander Olivia DeCitise. I think the theme in 2023 is "unfinished business".

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The Albany Patroons, with their backs against the wall, eliminated the Atlantic City Gambits in convincing fashion Saturday night, 109-86, to advance to the TBL Eastern Conference Finals.

The Pats will next face a team from Huntsville, Alabama, with all three games in the series taking place at the Washington Avenue Armory to save money on transportation costs. The Patroons will also pay for hotel accomodations for the Huntsville players & coaches. The games will be Thursday & Friday at 7 pm, with game 3, if needed, on Saturday.

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If you thought COVID-19 was no longer an issue, think again.

Tri-City Valleycats manager Pete Incaviglia had to isolate himself at home in the Pittsburgh area, and, while not a coincidence, the 'Cats dropped four straight, including the first two games of their series vs. Quebec.

Incaviglia returned on Sunday, and the 'Cats took the Capitales to extras before ending the losing streak, 7-6. Tri-City sits in 3rd place in the Eastern division of the Frontier League.

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The Albany Empire, meanwhile, have now dropped two straight after falling to San Antonio, 59-56, on Saturday afternoon. No one saw that coming, as the Gunslingers had not won a game prior to Saturday.

If the name sounds familiar, it should. The Gunslingers were a franchise in the original USFL in the 80's.

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LaSalle track & field ace Getachew "Gitch" Hayes ended his varsity career with a state title over the weekend. Hayes will run for North Carolina for the next four years, and we'll likely see him in major events like the Millrose Games, and, dare we think it, the Olympics, before his college career is over.

In other LaSalle news, while nothing has been confirmed as yet, a source at Hudson Valley Community College has informed ye scribe that the college is closing Robert Conway Ice Arena at the McDonough Field House.

This leaves LaSalle hockey without a home rink for the 2022-3 season and beyond. The source said RPI can't rent the Houston Field House rink, and there would be scheduling conflicts with the varsity hockey teams there. Knickerbocker Ice Arena in Lansingburgh is not an option, as the city would rather wait for the temperatures to go below freezing to open the rink in the winter. As for Frear Park? LaSalle played their home games there in the shortened 2020-1 season, and it was, by all accounts, a disaster.

We have reached out to LaSalle coach Tim Flanigan for comment, and are waiting on a response.