Interesting (and windy) day on the diamond Monday.

Suburban Council action began for both baseball and softball - and it sure sounded like an upset special between Columbia and Bethlehem.
Amy Halverson hit the game-winning single as Bethlehem scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth, after the Eagles gave up a run in the top of the inning.
Jen Frangella was 4-for-4 for Bethlehem and Columbia's Sam Chevalier went 3-for-4 with a triple and a run batted in.
Columbia, on the arm of pitcher Dana Rizzo, is expected to be one of the top teams in the area.

In Averill Park, the Lady Warriors battled all afternoon but just could not cool Shaker's bats.
The Blue Bison knocked out 12 hits en route to an opening day victory.
Averill Park's sophomore hurler Lauren Haggerty pitched well, but coughed up two runs in a fifth inning Shaker rally.
Haggerty and relief pitcher Danielle LaRocque pitched into and out of trouble in the sixth.
Shaker loaded the bases on three singles, but LaRocque came in and put out the fire, getting Shaker slugger Ana Purritano to tap out into a force at the dish.

AP's Kelly Haggerty had both of the Warriors' hits and drew a walk in the fourth inning.

Shaker's Kelsey Ogden had three hits, and Meghan Matah, Jenna Waltersdorf and Kayla Koumjian each had two hits apiece.

The Lady Warriors did a great job getting out of trouble and that 5-1 final could have been much worse. Shaker stranded 11 runners on the afternoon.

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Thanks to a great comment on the previous post from one of our readers. I'll post a condensed version below - a list of other players to look out for this season:

LARGE SCHOOLS:
P - Amanda Ferro -Shen
P - Jamie Cordell - Colonie
P - Jena Servidone - Columbia
P - Marissa Carpenter - So. Glens Falls
P - Krista Robarge - Saratoga
C - Casey Madden - Saratoga
C - Caitlyn Shultz - Queensbury
C - Kayla Koumjian - Shaker
1B - Anastasia Purritano - Shaker
SS - Samantha Cheveliar - Columbia
New Comers: Very Young
P - Erica Palleschi - Burnt Hills
P - Rachelle Annello - Niskayuna
C - Kirsten Grey - Niskayuna
SS - Emily Odonell - Niskayuna
SMALL SCHOOLS:
P - Shannon McBride - Mechanicville
SS - Stephanie Ladue - Cohoes
2B - Jennifer Ahearn - Cohoes
OF - Mary Kellogg - Cohoes
Electric City Bombers 18U
Megan Fitzgerald - Tamarac (Pitch)
Jena Servidone - Columbia (Pitch
Anastasia Purritano - Shaker (1B)
Jessica Dearstyne - Cohoes (C-2B)
Samantha Chevalier - Columbia (SS)
Kayla Lynch - Colonie (3B)
Lauren Napoli - Guilderland (CF)
Electric City Bombers 16U
Mikayla Wells - Schuylerville (Pitch)
Electric City Bombers 14U
P - Erica Palleschi - Burnt Hills
P - Rachelle Annello - Niskayuna
C - Kirsten Grey - Niskayuna
SS - Emily Odonell - Niskayuna
Other Electric City Bomber Players to Watch that have not been mentioned in the paper (yet)
Victoria Palleschi-Burnt Hills(3B)
Kayla Koumjian-Shaker (Catcher)
Morgan Sprague-Shen (Pitch)
Natalie Triano-Colonie (1B)
Lindsey Sickles-Scotia (2B)

Thanks for the tip - please keep them coming! (Koumjian and Purritano had good days at the plate this afternoon).

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For the baseball fans out there, check out Ryan's season-opening power polls here, and his story on La Salle's upcoming season here.
Look for full writeups and pictures on Averill Park softball and La Salle's victory over Albany in Tuesday's Record.

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Any info out there on this site all about sports at Troy High? There are some neat articles on there, including interviews with players and schedules of upcoming games.


-- Will Montgomery