Nearly a year to the day, then-Maple Hill senior Jaime Schultz said this to reporters after the Wildcats' 61-55 loss to Avon in the New York State Class C championship game:
“It’s always special when you’re a senior and you get this far when no one is expecting it,” Schultz said. “It was an honor to be on this team and I hope these guys get back here next year.”

He hoped and it came true.

Maple Hill made it back to the state championship game in 2010, but the result was the same as it was in 2009. The Wildcats headed home to Castleton without a state championship trophy.

OTC Middle College, a Buffalo school, raced out on the fast break and never relented in the 74-41 victory. Four OTC starters finished in double figures and the Wildcats could never claw within 10 points in the second half.

“It would have been bad if we lost by two. It would have been bad if we lost by 102,” said Maple Hill head coach Scott Hanrahan. “It's still going to hurt. But I don't think that they felt like they were non-competitive. They definitely were. We just didn't finish and they finished.”

Chris Despart tried to spark the Wildcats by hitting a three-point bucket to open the third quarter, but the Maple Hill magic had run its course at the Civic Center. It was Maple Hill's ninth game in Glens Falls in the last two postseasons.

The Wildcats, however, made one heck of a run through the Section II Class C playoffs. They needed a 20-0 run to beat back Schoharie in the fourth quarter in the semifinals and rallied from a 16-3 first quarter deficit to beat Hoosick Falls in the title game.

"It was more dramatic," Maple Hill senior David Briggs said. "It wasn't like last year."

Although the band of five Maple Hill senior starters have been together since CYO ball as youngsters, this wasn't the last time they'll play together. Briggs said he hopes they continue to compete as an AAU team in the future.

It was an emotional day for Maple Hill basketball, as the girls lost a NYS Class C semifinal to Tioga at Hudson Valley Community College earlier in the day. Still, this Class of 2010 left its mark on the Maple Hill sports scene and with another baseball and track season coming up, there may be more yet to come.

"I think what we can take out of this day and out of this run by both of these teams is that this is a special group of kids we have coming through here and they should all be proud of themselves, Hanrahan said. "The time and the effort...you don't get to these games by accident. You don't get to state championship games by accident. It comes by a lot of hard work and it's not just all the hard work they put in this year. It's all the hard work they put in since they were in CYO in first grade. There have been a lot of people coaching them beside myself and coach Bubniak that put the boys and the girls through a lot of work. These kids have worked at it and worked at it very hard. It didn't happen by accident. They've earned their right to be here and we're all very proud of them."

2010 NYSPHSAA Class C boys basketball All-Tournament Team

Troy Dubrowsky, Sr., Blind Brook
Jeremy Stewart, Sr., Moravia
Chris Despart, Sr., Maple Hill
Justin Stokes, Sr., OTC Middle College
Darale Young, Sr., OTC Middle College
MVP - Davon Alexander, Jr., OTC Middle College

2010 NYSPHSAA Class D boys basketball All-Tournament Team

Cody Broast, Jr., Germantown
Fred Russ, Jr., New York Mills
Chris Chatelain, Jr., Coleman Catholic
Jake Palmer, Sr., Coleman Catholic
Alex Grace, Soph., Maple Grove
MVP – Chris Secky, Sr., Maple Grove

Sunday's Schedule

BOYS BASKETBALL
All games at Glens Falls Civic Center
Class A Championship Game
Jamesville-Dewitt vs. Newark, 1 p.m.
Class AA Championship Game
CBA-Albany vs. Half Hollow Hills West, 2:45 p.m.

GIRLS BASKETBALL
All games at Hudson Valley Community College, Troy
Class D Championship Game
Harrisville vs. Clymer, Noon
Class C Championship Game
Marion vs. Tioga, 1:45 p.m.