Mechanicville's Abby Maiello (left, with head coach Karl Gerstenberger) and Alysa Russell (below) were both named first team Colonial Council forwards in 2010.

First team

Forwards
Caitlin Abelseth, Sr., Voorheesville
Abby Maiello, Jr., Mechanicville
Alysa Russell, Jr., Mechanicville
Katie Saccocio, Jr., Schalmont
Megan Strijek, Jr., Schalmont
Ali Thompson, Sr., Cobleskill-Richmondville

Midfielders
Sarah Agan, Sr., Holy Names
Emily Downie, Jr., Albany Academy
Quinn Massaroni, Jr., Holy Names
Alicia Mink, Jr., Ichabod Crane
Kristen Webster, Sr., Schalmont

Defenders
Jenn Cillis, Jr., Voorheesville
Mikayla Gowett, Soph., Mechanicville
Julia Retell, Frosh., Lansingburgh
Haley Richter, Sr., Ravena
Hannah Saccocio, Jr., Schalmont

Goalkeeper
Lauren Renaud, Sr., Schalmont

Second team

Forwards
Morgan Loder, Frosh., Cobleskill-Richmondville
Bridget Malicki, Sr., Albany Academy
Lindsay Millett, Sr., Ravena

Midfielders
Alexandria Cardinal, Soph., Schalmont
Alysa Chartrand, Jr., Watervliet
Amber Maiello, Jr., Mechanicville
Jenna Retell, Frosh., Lansingburgh
Jenna Saccocio, Jr., Schalmont
Marissa Skaczkowski, Jr., Mechanicville
Meg Strube, Jr., Lansingburgh

Defenders
Catherine Dudek, Jr., Albany Academy
Alex Fasulo, Sr., Voorheesville
Danelle Haner, Jr., Mechanicville
Emily Lloyd, Sr., Albany Academy
Christina Spcier, Jr., Holy Names
Bailei Tetrault, Sr., Cohoes

Goalkeeper
MacKenzie Blake, Voorheesville

Third team

Forwards
Alex Armstrong, Jr., Ichabod Crane
Hannah Brackett, Soph., Voorheesville
Cassandra Egleton, Frosh., Fonda-Fultonville
Rachel Freuh, Sr., Ravena
Nicole Welcome, Jr., Lansingburgh

Midfielders
Kate Billington, Frosh., Cobleskill-Richmondville
Emily Blow, Jr., Voorheesville
Michaela Conway, Sr., Voorheesville
Lauren Graber, Sr., Lansingburgh
Bernadette Jordan, Jr., Holy Names
Emma Malicki, Soph., Albany Academy
Jessie Mink, Frosh., Ichabod Crane

Defenders
Danielle Gargullo, Sr., Fonda-Fultonville
Kaitlin LaBarge, Sr., Watervliet
Kelsey Manchester, Jr., Cobleskill-Richmondville
Kyleigh Roby, Jr., Cohoes
Casey Rue, Jr., Ravena
Katie Walker, Sr., Ichabod Crane

Goalkeepers
Kelsey Dessadore, Sr., Mechanicville
Calli Moise, Jr., Lansingburgh
Teagan Waddingham, Sr., Ravena

Note: As voted on by the league's head coaches. As submitted by Lansingburgh head coach John Cipperly.

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

Catholic Central's Casey O'Brien (left) and Julie McNeff (right) were named first team Big 10 Conference All-Stars. (Photos by Mike McMahon - The Record).

Player of the Year: Cabrielle Santorio, Jr., F, Schenectady
Keeper of the Year: Lilly Regan, Sr., Catholic Central

First team
Kia Ference, Jr., F/GK, Schenectady
Andrea Shaver, Jr., Def, Schenectady
Julie McNeff, Sr., F, Catholic Central
Casey O'Brien, Jr., F, Catholic Central
Morgan Avery, Sr., F, Troy High
Lissi Vink-Lainas, Frosh., Mid., Troy High
Leah Moran, Sr., Mid., Albany High
Alexandria Kellam, Jr., Def., Albany High
Tara Tiemann, Sr., Amsterdam
Angela Damiano, Sr., Amsterdam

Second team
Alex Metcalfe, Jr., GK, Schenectady
Lena LeGere, Sr., Def., Schenectady
Sara Mariois, Jr., Mid., Catholic Central
Jenna Yager, Sr., Def., Catholic Central
Bianca Jordan, Sr., Def., Troy High
Amanda Livolsi, Jr., Mid., Troy High
Hannah Moran, Soph., F, Albany High
Rebecca Vaughn, Sr., Mid., Albany High
Caitlin Czelusniak, Sr., F, Amsterdam
Alyssa Sands, Sr., GK, Amsterdam

Honorable mention
Schenectady: Cassie Harrell (Sr., Mid.) and Gabrielle Billsborrow (Jr., Mid.)
Catholic Central: Kelsey Moss (Frosh., Mid.) and Carley Stewart (Sr., Def.)
Troy High: Helen Dufel (Jr., Mid.)
Albany High: Anne Bell (Jr.)
Amsterdam: Morgan McNamara (Sr.)

Note: As voted on by the league's head coaches.

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

Maple Hill High School's senior striker, Meeghan Arno (20), was named the 2010 Patroon Conference MVP. (Photo by J.S. Carras - The Record).

MVP: Meeghan Arno – Maple Hill

First Team
Alexandria Van Auken - Greenville
Sierra Legge – Maple Hill
Cailey Nieto - Chatham
TaylorAnne Young - Greenville
Taylor Czajkowski – Maple Hill
Abigail Wheeler - Chatham
Somer Connolly – Maple Hill
Shaina Quinn-Furyk - Catskill
Danielle Chiudina – Coxsackie Athens
Regina Behn - Chatham
Janine Ham – Taconic Hills

Second Team
Brianna Blunck – Coxsackie Athens
Jackie Hall - Hudson
Heather Carl - Greenville
Erika Gerstberger – Cairo Durham
Brianna Calcavecchia – Cairo Durham
Alysha Cross – Maple Hill
Erin Mosher – Maple Hill
Jenelle Wallace - Chatham
Nichole Paolino - Catskill
Kelly Meyer - Catskill
Brittany Lossow - Chatham

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

Looking for results from all of the postseason tournaments in Section 2 this fall? We've got 'em. Click on any of the text in red below to be redirected to a digital bracket.
I will be bumping this post to the top of the blog every night, so check back for updates in the future.

Football
Class AA
Class A
Class B
Class C
Class D

Girls soccer
Class AA
Class A
Class B
Class C
Class D

Boys soccer
Class AA
Class A
Class B
Class C
Class D

Field hockey
Class A 
Class B 
Class CC 
Class C 

Girls volleyball
Class AA
Class A
Class B
Class CC
Class C
Class D

Boys volleyball
Class A

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

Maple Hill High School girls soccer players react after being upset by Chatham in the Section II Class B championship game Saturday afternoon at Stillwater. (Maple Hill photos by Mike McMahon - The Record).

STILLWATER -- Meeghan Arno scored so many goals in her storied career, but the Maple Hill senior will likely remember the ones she couldn’t get to the back of the net on Saturday.

Arno had a number of chances, but couldn’t convert and the Wildcats fell for the first and last time of the 2010 season.

Chatham scored twice in a three-minute span to shock top-seeded Maple Hill 2-1 in the Section II Class B final at Stillwater High School.

Maple Hill senior striker Meeghan Arno (20) and Chatham's Regina Behn (25) battle for a loose ball during Saturday's Section II Class B championship game at Warrior Park at Stillwater High School.

The Panthers (16-2-0) only two losses of the season came at the hands of the Wildcats (19-1-0), New York State’s No. 12 ranked team.

On this day, the No. 7 seed in the bracket, extracted a little bit of revenge.

"We’ve been improving all along," said Chatham coach David Chrapowitzky. "Going into (this game), the girls felt confident."

The Panthers swarmed the section’s top goal scorer, marking her with soph¬omore Cheyenne Shufelt, who shadowed Arno’s every move.

--
Note: Our Andrew Santillo covered this game for us today. To read his full story, check out Sunday's edition of The Record.

From left, Chelsea Mannion (12), Alyxe Perry (10) and Meeghan Arno (20) react after Saturday's upset loss in the Section II Class B championship game at Stillwater.

The rest of Saturday's local roundup:

SARATOGA SPRINGS -- The Loudonville Christian girls’ volleyball team continues to impress.
The top-seeded Eagles defeated Fonda-Fultonville 3-0 to advance to the Section II Class CC final.
Loudonville Christian (17-2) won by scores of 25-10, 25-16 and 25-19.
Hattie Burgher led the way with 15 service points, 14 kills and 10 digs, while Sam Parry finished with 10 kills and eight digs.
Also chipping in for the Eagles were Chelsea Brown, who finished with 16 service points and five kills and Julia Brown with 25 assists.
Loudonville Christian will play Tamarac in the championship game on Tuesday at Hudson Falls High at 5 p.m.  
Tamarac 3, Schenectady Christian 0: The Bengals (14-4) advanced to Tuesday’s championship behind solid matches from Nancy Vickerson, who finished with 10 kills and 10 service points and Sarah Malsch, who added 10 assists, nine service points and four kills.
Tamarac won by scores of 25-22, 25-17 and 25-14.
Lindsay Doyle added eight service points and five kills for the Bengals, while Taylor Lewis added four kills and four service points.
Kate Nelson had six kills for the Falcons and Rebekah Kimble finished with six service points.   
Class C
Voorheesville 3, Maple Hill 1: The No. 1 seeded Blackbirds posted a semifinal victory over No. 4 Maple Hill by scores of 22-25, 25- 22, 25-13 and 25-11.
Galway 3, Lake George 0: Galway completed a three game sweep by scores of 25-23, 25-15 and 25-22.
They will play Voorheesville in the Class C championship match Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Hudson Falls High School.

Football
Class B
Schalmont 48, Ravena 13: The Sabres, the No. 1 seed from the West Division, won their second consecutive Section II title with a Super Bowl victory over Ravena, the Reinfurt Division’s No. 1 seed, on Larry Mulvaney Field at Schenectady High School.

Boys Soccer
Class A
Scotia-Glenville 4, Ichabod Crane 3 (2 OT): The Tartans, the No. 1 seed in the North Division, scored in the second overtime period to defeat Ichabod Crane, the South Division’s No. 1 in the Section II Class A championship match at Colonie High School.
Class C
Schoharie 2, Greenwich 1: No. 3 Schoharie topped No. 4 Greenwich in the Section II Class C championship match at Colonie High School.
Class D
Fort Ann 1, New Lebanon 0: The top-seeded Cardinals took home the hardware as Class D champions with a one-goal victory. 

Shenendehowa and Saratoga Springs clashed in the Section II Class AA semifinals at Schuylerville High School Saturday evening. (Photos courtsey The Saratogian).

Girls Soccer
Class AA
Shenendehowa 2, Saratoga 1 (OT): Elise Moinzadeh scored the game-winning for the Plainsmen.
Bethlehem 1, Niskayuna 1: The Eagles defeated the Silver Warriors 5-4 on penalty kicks to advance to Wednesday’s championship game.
Class A
Burnt Hills 3, Schalmont 0: Emily Pearce, Maria Malone and Nichole DeCresente all scored for the Spartans in claiming the sectional championship.

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

Maple Hill senior striker Meeghan Arno (20) threads the needle between Hoosick Falls' Alexis Hagadorn (20) and Liz Babson (12) during Wednesday's Section II Class B semifinal game at Stillwater High School. (Photos by J.S. Carras - The Record).

STILLWATER — For the first 20 minutes of Wednesday’s Section II Class B semifinal, the Hoosick Falls High School girls soccer team brought the pressure against No. 1 seeded Maple Hill.

The Panthers squeezed off a handful of shots on Wildcats keeper Elizabeth Briggs and Hoosick Falls senior Kristin Bird even hit the post on a shot attempt less than five minutes into the game.

Maple Hill’s Meeghan Arno, however, proved to be the finisher in a game of missed opportunities.

Arno, a senior striker, scored with 4:18 remaining in the first half on a high shot just out of the reach of Hoosick Falls keeper Katelyn Stowell. Arno scored again with 25:08 to play in the second half, which was all the Wildcats would need in a 2-0 victory over the No. 4 seeded Panthers at Warrior Park at Stillwater High School.

For video highlights from Wednesday's game, visit www.troyrecord.com/video/sports

Maple Hill (19-0-0), ranked No. 12 in the latest New York State Class B poll, advanced to face No. 7 Chatham (15-2-0) in Saturday’s Section II championship game, which will be played at Stillwater at 3 p.m.

“I knew coming into the game I had to shoot a lot,” Arno said. “We had to put a lot of shots on the keeper.”

Arno’s first goal, which came just before the halftime break, certainly swung the momentum toward Maple Hill, seeing as Hoosick Falls had forced Briggs to make six of her eight saves in the first 40 minutes alone.

“We were crushing them in the first 20 minutes and if we score two, all of a sudden, the momentum, we’re going crazy,” said Hoosick Falls head coach Tom Husser on his team’s early chances. “It’s a whole different game. Girls soccer is a funny thing. Some days it’s not meant to be.”

In the second half, Arno took advantage of a Hoosick Falls misplay in the backfield and raced in on Stowell one-on-one. Arno patiently waited for Stowell to make her move before firing the ball at the net, which gave the Wildcats an insurmountable two-goal lead.

Hoosick Falls sophomore goalkeeper Katelyn Stowell leaps to make a save during Wednesday's Section II Class B semifinal game against Maple Hill.

“The momentum changed a lot, really,” Arno said. “We knew if they got one quick one in the first half, they would have had the momentum. Their forwards had us on our heels. We knew we had to come out strong and just make sure we could stay back, focus on defense and on marking those very good Hoosick Falls girls.”

One year ago, Maple Hill fell in heartbreaking fashion in double overtime to another Wasaren League team, Cambridge, in the Section II Class CC semifinals on the artificial turf surface at Stillwater.

“We didn’t want to make the same mistakes we did last year,” said Arno. “We worked hard in practice the two days we had off between games and just fixed the mistakes from last year and came out strong.”

Hoosick Falls (13-4-2), ranked No. 17 in the latest Class B poll, will graduate six seniors, but with a number of underclassmen with experience, Husser is already looking forward to 2011.

“We’re very young,” he said. “We lost five good starters, three of them were All-State, from last year’s team and they still expected to be bringing it every time. We’re young and the good thing is we’ll have a lot of those girls back next year.”

Maple Hill's Chelsea Mannion evades a Hoosick Falls defender during Wednesday's semifinal game at Stillwater High School.

Chatham defeated No. 6 Schuylerville in double overtime Wednesday evening. Jenelle Wallace scored with 3:05 remaining in the second overtime period for the upset victory.

In the quarterfinals, Chatham had knocked out No. 2 Mechanicville and Schuylerville topped No. 3 Hoosic Valley.

Maple Hill defeated Chatham twice in the Patroon Conference regular season by scores of 3-1 and 4-1.

“We know what they are, they know what we do and it’s going to be a very good game,” Arno said. “It’s good for them to make it this far. They had a strong team this year.”

Hoosick Falls' Deanna Dubois leaps as Maple Hill's Meeghan Arno leans into a header during Wednesday's Section II Class B semifinal playoff game at Stillwater.

MAPLE HILL 2, HOOSICK FALLS 0

Hoosick Falls (13-4-2) 0 0 –0
Maple Hill (19-0-0) 1 1 — 2
Scoring: MH: Arno 2-0, Legge 0-1.
Goalie saves: HF: Stowell, 8. MH: Briggs, 8.
Corner kicks: HF: 0. MH: 2.

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

All apologies for the delay in posting the soccer brackets today. I also covered the Section II tennis finals this afternoon, and I'll be posting on story on that shortly.

Here are the brackets:
Girls soccer
Class AA
Class A
Class B
Class C
Class D

Boys soccer
Class AA
Class A
Class B
Class C
Class D

SECTION II BOYS SOCCER SCHEDULE

Wednesday, Oct. 27

Class AA Preliminary Round

S6 Shaker vs. B2 Albany at Bleecker, 7 p.m.

Class A Preliminary Round

6N Bishop Gibbons at 3S Albany Academy, 3 p.m.

7S Averill Park vs. 2N Catholic Central at CBA, 3 p.m.

6S Lansingburgh at 3N South Glens Falls, 7 p.m.

Class B Opening Round

No. 17 Fonda at No. 16 Cobleskill, 7 p.m.

Class B Preliminary Round

No. 15 Stillwater at No. 2 Schuylerville, 3 p.m.

No. 12 Chatham at No. 5 Broadalbin, 7 p.m.

Class C Preliminary Round

No. 16 Salem at Waterford, 3 p.m.

No. 8 Mayfield at No. 8 Ft. Plain, 3 p.m.

No. 12 Schenectady Christian at No. 5 Duanesburg, 3 p.m.

No. 13 Berlin at No. 4 Greenwich, 3 p.m.

No. 14 Argyle at No. 3 Schoharie, 3 p.m.

No. 11 Cambridge at No. 6 Galway, 3 p.m.

Thursday, Oct. 28

Class AA Preliminary Round

B4 La Salle at S4 Ballston Spa, 3 p.m.

S9 Columbia at B1 Troy, 3 p.m.

S5 Niskayuna at B3 Schenectady, 3 p.m.

S8 Guilderland at S7 Shenendehowa, 7 p.m.

Class A Preliminary Round

5N Glens Falls at 4S Mohonasen, 3 p.m.

5S Burnt Hills at 4N Queensbury, 3 p.m.

Class B Preliminary Round

No. 9 Tamarac at No. 8 Hoosic Valley, 3 p.m.

No. 13 Catskill at No. 4 Cohoes, 3 p.m.

No. 14 Mechanicville at No. 3 Cairo, 3 p.m.

No. 11 Hoosick Falls at No. 6 Greenville, 3 p.m.

No. 7 Coxsackie-Athens at No. 10 Johnstown, 3 p.m.

Class C Preliminary Round

No. 10 Middleburgh at No. 7 Voorheesville, 3 p.m.

No. 15 Berne-Knox at No. 2 Lake George, 3 p.m.

Class D Quarterfinals

No. 8 Sharon Springs vs. No. 1 Fort Ann at Hudson Falls, 3 p.m.

Friday, Oct. 29

Class AA Preliminary Round

B5 Amsterdam at S3 Colonie, 6 p.m.

Class C Quarterfinals

D’burg/S. Chr. winner vs. G’wich/Berlin winner, 3 p.m.

Sch/Argyle winner vs. Galway/Cambridge winner, 3 p.m.

Class D Quarterfinals

No. 5 Bolton vs. No. 4 Loudonville Christian at North Colonie Complex, 3 p.m.

No. 6 North Warren at No. 3 Hartford, 3 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 30

Class A Quarterfinals

GF/Mohon winner at 1N Scotia, 12 p.m.

AA/BG winner vs. AP/CCHS winner, 3 p.m.

SGF/Burgh winner at 2S Schalmont, 5 p.m.

BH/Qbury winner at 1S Ichabod Crane, 7 p.m.

Class B Preliminary Round

Coby/Fonda winner at No. 1 Maple Hill, 3 p.m.

Class B Quarterfinals

BP/Chat winner vs. Cohoes/Cat winner, TBA

CD/Me’ville vs. G’ville/HF winner, TBA

Class C Quarterfinals

W’ford/Salem winner vs. FtPlain/Mayfield winner, 12 p.m.

Class D Quarterfinals

No. 7 Northville at No. 2 New Lebanon, 5 p.m.

Monday, Nov. 1

Class AA Quarterfinals

Shen/Guilderland winner at S1 Bethlehem, 3 p.m.

LSI/BSpa winner vs. Colu/Troy winner, 3 p.m.

Shaker/Albany winner vs. Saratoga, TBA

Sch/Nisky winner vs. Ams/Colonie winner, TBA

Class B Quarterfinals

MH/Coby/Fonda winner vs. HV/Tamarac, 3 p.m.

Sch/Stil winner vs. CA/J’town winner, TBA

Class C Quarterfinals

V’ville/M’burgh winner vs. LG/BK winner, 3 p.m.

Tuesday, Nov. 2

Class A Semifinals

Semifinal at Johnstown, 5 p.m.

Semifinal at Johnstown, 7 p.m.

Class D Semifinals

Semifinal at Morse Field, 3 p.m.

Semifinal at Morse Field, 3 p.m.

Wednesday, Nov. 3

Class B Semifinals

Semifinal at Morse Field, 3 p.m.

Semifinal at Morse Field, 3 p.m.

Class C Semifinals

Semifinal at Johnstown, 5 p.m.

Semifinal at Johnstown, 7 p.m.

Thursday, Nov. 4

Class AA Semifinals

Semifinal at Colonie, 4 p.m.

Semifinal at Colonie, 7 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 6

Class A Final

Final at Colonie, 2 p.m.

Class B Final

Final at Colonie, 12 p.m.

Class C Final

Final at Colonie, 10 a.m.

Class D Final

Final at Colonie, 4 p.m.

Monday, Nov. 8

Class AA Final

Final at Colonie, 6 p.m.

SECTION II GIRLS SOCCER SCHEDULE

Wednesday, Oct. 27

Class A Preliminary Round

13 Gloversville at 4 Scotia-Glenville, 3 p.m.

10 Averill Park at 7 Queensbury, 3 p.m.

11 Glens Falls at 6 Catholic Central, 6:30 p.m.

9 Mohonasen at 8 Ichabod Crane, 6:30 p.m.

12 Holy Names at 5 Lansingburgh, 6:30 p.m.

Class B Preliminary Round

16 Granville at 1 Maple Hill, 3 p.m.

9 Tamarac at 8 Greenville, 3 p.m.

13 Ravena at 4 Hoosick Falls, 3 p.m.

14 Catskill at 3 Hoosic Valley, 3 p.m.

10 Emma Willard at 7 Chatham, 3 p.m.

15 Coxsackie-Athens at 2 Mechanicville, 3 p.m.

12 Cobleskill-Richmondville at 5 Broadalbin-Perth, 5 p.m.

11 Stillwater at 6 Schuylerville, 7 p.m.

Class C Play-in Round

17 Whitehall at 16 Salem, 3 p.m.

18 Rensselaer at 15 Hadley-Luzerne, 3 p.m.

Class D Quarterfinals

5 Bolton at 4 Loudonville Christian, 3 p.m.

6 Sharon Springs at 3 Heatly, 3 p.m.

Thursday, Oct. 28

Class AA Preliminary Round

9 Colonie at 8 Ballston Spa, 3 p.m.

12 Albany at 5 Shaker, 3 p.m.

11 Columbia at 6 Guilderland, 3 p.m.

10 Troy at 7 Schenectady, 6 p.m.

Friday, Oct. 29

Class C Preliminary Round

Whitehall/Salem winner at 1 Middleburgh, 3 p.m.

9 Fort Plain at 8 Albany Academy, 3 p.m.

12 St. Johnsville at 5 Galway, 3 p.m.

13 Greenwich at 4 Schoharie, 3 p.m.

14 Duanesburg at 3 Voorheesville, 3 p.m.

11 Berne-Knox-Westerlo at 6 Lake George, 3 p.m.

10 Canajoharie at 7 Berlin, 3 p.m.

Rensselaer/Hadley-Luzerne winner at 2 Cambridge, 3 p.m.

Saturday, Oct. 30

Class A Quarterfinals

Mohon/Crane winner at 1 Burnt Hills, 1 p.m.

Holy Names/Burgh winner vs. Gloversville/Scotia winner at highest seed, 3 p.m.

CCHS/Glens Falls winner vs. 3 South Glens Falls, 7 p.m.

Averill Park/Queensbury winner vs. 2 Schalmont, 7 p.m.

Class B Quarterfinals

Maple Hill/Granville winner vs. Tamarac/Greenville winner, higher seed, 1 p.m.

B-P/C-R winner vs. Ravena/Hoosick Falls winner, higher seed, 1 p.m.

Hoosic Valley/Catskill winner vs. Schuylerville/Stillwater winner, higher seed, 1 p.m.

Emma Willard/Chatham winner vs. Coxsackie/Mechanicville winner, higher seed, 1 p.m.

Class D Semifinals

Heatly/Sharon Springs winner vs. 2 Fort Ann at Broadalbin-Perth, 1 p.m.

Bolton/Loudonville Christian winner vs. 1 Northville at Broadalbin-Perth, 3 p.m.

Tuesday., Nov. 2

Class AA Quarterfinals

Columbia/Guilderland winner at 3 Bethlehem, 3 p.m.

Troy/Schenectady winner at 2 Niskayuna, 3 p.m.

Colonie/B Spa winner at 1 Saratoga Springs, 3 p.m.

Shaker/Albany winner at 4 Shenendehowa, 7 p.m.

Class C Quarterfinals

Middleburgh/Salem/Whitehall winner vs. Fort Plain/Academy winner at higher seed, 3 p.m.

Galway/Johnsville winner vs. Greenwich/Schoharie winner at higher seed, 3 p.m.

Voorheesville/Duanesburg winner vs. Berne-Knox/Lake George winner, higher seed, 3 p.m.

Berlin/Canajoharie winner vs. Rensselaer/Hadley/Cambridge winner, 3 p.m.

Wednesday, Nov. 3

Class A Semifinals

South High/Glens Falls/CCHS winner vs. Schalmont/Averill Park/Queensbury winner at Schuylerville, 4 p.m.

Burnt Hills/Mohon/Crane winner vs. Burgh/Holy Names/Gloversville/Scotia winner, 6 p.m.

Class B Semifinals

Hoosic Valley/Catskill/Stillwater/Schuylerville vs. Chatham/Emma Willard/Coxsackie/Mechanicville winner at Stillwater, 5 p.m.

Maple Hill/Granville/Tamarac/Greenville winner vs. B-P/C-R/Ravena/Hoosick Falls winner at Stillwater, 7 p.m.

Class D Final

Final at Stillwater, 3 p.m.

Friday, Nov. 5

Class C Semifinals

Middleburgh pod winner vs. Schoharie pod winner at Stillwater, 3 p.m.

Voorheesville pod winner vs. Cambridge pod winner at Schuylerville, 3 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 6

Class AA Semifinals

Bethlehem/Columbia/Guilderland winner vs. Troy/Schenectady/Niskayuna winner, 4 p.m.

Saratoga/Colonie/B Spa winner vs. Shen/Shaker/Albany winner at Schuylerville, 6 p.m.

Class A Final

Final at Stillwater, 5 p.m.

Class B Final

Final at Stillwater, 3 p.m.

Wednesday, Nov. 10

Class AA Final

Final at Stillwater, 6 p.m.

Class C Final

Final at Stillwater, 4 p.m.

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

Hoosic Valley sophomore midfielder Kim Kocienski hugs head coach Joel Beecroft following the Indians' 1-1 tie with Cambridge Monday, which clinched the Wasaren League regular season title for Hoosic Valley, the first in school history. (Photos by Mike McMahon - The Record).

SCHAGHTICOKE — Call the Hoosic Valley High School girls soccer team crazy for running and screaming off the field following Monday’s 1-1 double overtime tie against Cambridge, but they had their reason.

The team had just clinched the first-ever Wasaren League regular season title in school history.

Senior striker Mollie Gilchrist scored a goal with under two minutes to play in the first half and freshman goalkeeper Sam Carlo made 10 saves - including three in overtime – as Hoosic Valley was able to remain one win ahead in the Wasaren standings.

What made Hoosic Valley’s dream season even sweeter was that not only were the Indians not expected to be one of the top contenders in the Wasaren League, the players didn’t dare dream that big when the season opened.

“I don’t think we expected us to be in the running until we kind of got into our season and said, ‘Hey, we can do this,” Gilchrist said. “We can pull this off. After our Hoosick Falls win (Thursday), which was huge, I think we all wanted to make school history.”

Hoosic Valley's Mollie Gilchrist looks to advance the ball as Cambridge's Sandra Andrew chases during Monday's game in Schaghticoke.

Hoosic Valley, (11-2-1, 13-2-1), the No. 17 ranked Class B in New York State, will likely be one of the top seeds in the Section II Class B tournament. Wednesday, the Indians will host an opening round playoff game against an opponent to be announced today when the Section II brackets are released.

“It’s really exciting and crazy,” Carlo said. “I can’t believe we did it. Oh my gosh. We worked so hard all season and I’m so glad we did it.”

Mechanicville, Maple Hill and Hoosick Falls are the other Section II teams ranked in the latest New York State Class B poll.

Allie Robert, a junior midfielder for Hoosic Valley, battles for control of the ball with Cambridge's Bridget Cuddihy during Monday's game.

Gilchrist suffered a scare before the game even began. She backed onto a soccer ball passed by one of her teammates in pregame warm-ups and said she “heard a pop.”

“I wasn’t quite 100%, but it worked itself out as the game went on,” she said. “I pushed through it.”

With under two minutes to play in the first half, Gilchrist corralled a ball that bounced off a Cambridge defender and blasted a left-footed shot toward the net. It hit the crossbar and bounced straight down, over the goal line and out of the grasp of Cambridge keeper Cheyanne Hall, who made 17 saves in the game.

“It was funny because they do a really nice job. The Cambridge defense was containing me all game,”
Gilchrist, at left, said. “All they do is keep their space so I can’t make a move to get around them and they just allowed me a little bit of space and I was able to chip a shot in and got a lucky bounce down, I guess.”

Cambridge (10-2-2, 11-3-2), the No. 16 Class C team in New York, received an equalizing goal from Kelsey Lawlor with 3:01 remaining in regulation.

As darkness descended on Indians Field, the teams battled in a pair of 10-minute overtime periods. Cambridge’s best chance came when it hit the post with 3:10 remaining in the first overtime. Hoosic Valley’s Allie Robert blasted a direct kick from 30 yards out with less than one minute to play in the second period, but the Indians couldn’t convert.

Hoosic Valley head coach Joel Beecroft, a former goalkeeper on the boys teams at Hoosic Valley, won his first Wasaren League regular season title as a coach Monday evening.

Still, the tie was good enough for an outright league championship.

“I don’t think anyone was expecting it,” said Carlo, at right, who played on the modified team as an eighth-grader last season. “We kind of just came out and showed everybody what we had and surprised everybody. So, that was really cool. It’s very exciting.”

“They’ve got such a mentality for winning,” said head coach Joel Beecroft. “They’ve had success in the basketball program and success in the softball program. And you know what? It’s our turn.”

 
CAMBRIDGE 1, HOOSIC VALLEY 1 (2 OT)

Cambridge (10-2-2, 11-3-2) 0 1 0 0 — 1
Hoosic Valley (11-2-1, 13-2-1) 1 0 0 0 — 1
Scoring: C: Kelsey Lawlor 1-0. HV: Mollie Gilchrist 1-0.
Goalie saves: C: Cheyanne Hall, 17. HV: Sam Carlo, 10.
Corner kicks: C: 12. HV: 10.

• Notes: Hoosic Valley peppered Cambridge with a bunch of scoring chances right from the opening whistle. HV hit the crossbar two minutes into the game. A long shot off the left foot of Gilchrist nearly, slowly, rolled into the far corner of the Cambridge net 10 minutes into the half, but was scooped by by Cambridge keeper Cheyanne Hall. 
• Five minutes after that, Cambridge's Bridget Cuddihy nearly scored off a corner kick.
• I've never seen so many corner kicks in a soccer game before. Cambridge had 12 and Hoosic Valley took 10, all of which came in regulation.
• Gilchrist, who not only suffered a pregame scare, took a soccer ball straight to the face off an intended pass by Cambridge's Sandra Andrew midway through the second half.
• Sam Carlo took a big risk with 17 minutes to play, running way out of the box to make a sliding save attempt on Cambridge's Sara Tironi.
• Quotes from the notebook: "It helps. It’s going to definitely make us better and I think we’re going to learn a lot from this game," Carlo said on the tough games Hoosic Valley played right before sectionals.
• "Last year, we had a good game against Maple Hill where we almost got it done," Gilchrist said. "It was looking good, but we’ve never really been successful in sectionals. I think we’re all looking forward to it."
• "I told them, you just watch, pay attention and learn. When you do something like this, it’s a great experience for them," head coach Joel Beecroft said of all the junior varsity players called up for the Indians' postseason run.
• "There is no drama on this team. They’re all friends," Beecroft said. "They’ve all played together since they were kids. They joke around, they kid around. It’s nice to have a team like that. You roll the balls out there, say 'OK, this is what we’re going to do' and they do it. And they have a great leader in Mollie. Janelle, she gives you everything she’s got. She’s outstanding there on the right wing."

Hoosic Valley senior forward Janelle Stannard races for the ball with Cambridge's Ellen Villafuerte during Monday's game.

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

It's going to be an exciting week ahead. Here is a partial list of events to watch. Did we miss anything?

Sunday: The Section II field hockey brackets will be released. Check back for more details here on Sunday.

Monday: A pair of regular season championships will be on the line.
The Cambridge girls (10-2-1, 11-3-1) travel to Schaghticoke to take on Hoosic Valley (11-2-0, 13-2-0) in the Wasaren League finale. Hoosic Valley, which has never won a Wasaren League regular season title in school history, can clinch first place outright with a win or tie.

In Troy, the Troy High boys (13-0-0, 14-0-0), who have allowed just two goals all season, host Albany High (12-1-0, 14-1-0) in the Big 10 Conference finale. Troy can clinch its first regular season championship since 1994 with a win or tie.


Tuesday: The boys and girls soccer brackets will be released, which is always an exciting day. I will post those up in Bracketmaker as soon as I can get them on the site Tuesday.

Also, the Section II girls tennis tournament wraps up Tuesday at Sportime in Schenectady.

The top four seeds in the singles tournament will square off Monday afternoon in semifinals..

No. 1 Cat Crummy (Shaker) will play No. 4 Gaby Peda (Guilderland).
No. 2 Claire Schmitz (Emma Willard) will play No. 3 Jessica Macaluso (Shenendehowa).

In doubles action,
No. 1 Mitali Das and Molly Goodman (Emma Willard) will play No. 8 Elena Wolner and Molly O'Conner (Shaker).
No. 2 Catherine Jenkins and Shannon Mukerji (Shaker) will play No. 7 Tara Greene and Kristen Brayden (Shenendehowa).

Don't forget the Patroon Conference cross country championships at Saratoga Spa State Park.

Wednesday:The Big 10 Conference cross country championships will be run at Saratoga Spa State Park.

Thursday: The Section II girls volleyball brackets will be released. Again, look for those in Bracketmaker form here sometime Thursday.

Don't forget the Wasaren League cross country championships at Saratoga Spa State Park.

Friday: The Section II football semifinals start, with an interesting matchup in Lansingburgh (the Knights host Bishop Maginn) and a great game in Rotterdam, as Schalmont hosts Albany Academy.

Don't forget the Colonial Council cross country championships at Saratoga Spa State Park.

Saturday: Section II semifinal football action continues with Nisky at Troy and Fonda tangling with Hoosick Falls at Stillwater High School.

Don't forget the Suburban Council cross country championships at Saratoga Spa State Park.

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

This is Tuesday night's roundup with a few pictures from Monday night. Catholic Central girls soccer team defeated Schenectady, 3-1. The Crusaders (4-1-1, 10-3-1) kept pace with the Patriots (6-1-0, 9-4-0) in the Big 10 Conference standings.

At bottom, current Penn State head wrestling coach Cael Sanderson, who is the only wrestler to complete four years of NCAA action with four individual titles and not a single defeat, also appeared at a clinic at Shenendehowa High School Monday afternoon.

All photos were taken by Mike McMahon - The Record.

SCHUYLERVILLE -- Mollie Gilchrist scored two goals and added an assist for the Hoosic Valley High School girls soccer team in a 3-1 Wasaren League victory over Schuylerville Tuesday night.
Janelle Stannard tallied the Indians’ other goal.
Laura Capobianco scored the Horses’ (7-4-0, 8-4-1) lone goal.
Samantha Carlo made 15 saves in net for Hoosic Valley (10-2-0, 12-2-0).

Burnt Hills 4, Niskayuna 0: Jess Lyden paced the Lady Spartans (11-3) with two goals and an assist while Bryony Striffler added a goal and two helpers in a Suburban Council tilt. Nicole DeCresente chipped in with a goal and an assist for Burnt Hills.
Shenendehowa 6, Ballston Spa 1: The Plainsmen cruised to a Suburban Council win behind two goals and an assist from Shannon McMillan. Kristin Connors, Madeline Mylod, Ali Lewis and Danielle Rizzicone added single goals for the Lady Plainsmen.
Sarah Chandler tallied a goal for the Scotties.
Heatly 6, Rensselaer 1: Alexi Anderson, Angelica DeCianni, Melissa Heffern and Jessica Strizzi notched single goals for Heatly in a CHVL win. Elora Repula scored Rensselaer’s only goal.
Berlin 5, New Lebanon 0: Maria Gordon and Brianna Stowell sparked the Mountaineer offense with two goals each. Rachel Ferries accounted for Berlin’s other goal. Lauren Sears stopped 15 shots for New Lebanon in the loss.
CCHS 4, Amsterdam 0: The Lady Crusaders improved to 5-1-1 in the Big 10 and 10-3-1 overall after a league victory. Gia Sergovich, Gabby Maninfilo, Kelsey Moss and Julie McNeff registered single goals for CCHS.
Hoosick Falls 5, Salem 0: Samantha Scott tallied a goal and two assists to lead the Panthers, who had five different players score in a non-league romp. Ashley Constantino, Karley Morin, Alyssa Schneider and Emily Hoag added single goals for Hoosick Falls (7-1, 15-1).
Mackenzie Dumas made 30 saves in net for Salem (0-7).
Troy 2, Lake George 1: Morgan Avery and Lissi Vink-Lanias scored a goal each for the Flying Horses in a non league victory. Caroline Murphy scored the lone goal for Lake George.

Boys Soccer
CCHS 2, Amsterdam 0: Edwin Asena put the Crusaders on the board on a goal set up by Giacomo Giglio. The Crusaders second score came on an Amsterdam own goal. Charlie Farrell stopped four shots to earn the shutout while Jon Toper made 11 saves for Amsterdam.
Cairo-Durham 2, Greenville 1 (2 OT): Andy Fishman’s shot trickled into the net with one second remaining in the second overtime to give the Mustangs a thrilling victory over its cross-town rival. James Tschinkel put the Spartans up 20 minutes into the match before Fishman tied it at one off a corner kick.
Albany Academy 3, Fonda 2: Peter Lobel and Nick Abel scored goals four minutes apart to secure a Colonial Council victory for the Cadets. Jordan Newton put Academy on the board in the 16th minute. Erik Franklin and Tom Lyons kept Fonda in the game with a goal each.
Mechanicville 2, Ravena 2 (OT): Mark Gaetano notched two goals to pace the Red Raiders in a Colonial Council draw. Danny Benvenutti and Kenny Fuqua tallied single goals for Ravena. Caleb Foard stopped nine shots in net for Mechanicville.
Ichabod Crane 5, Cohoes 1: The Riders soundly defeated the Tigers in a Colonial Council match on two goals by Bernie Watts and a goal each by Tyler Jablanski, Ricardo Cruz and Mitchell Niemeyer. Mohammed Rasoully tallied the Tigers only goal while Ryan Laughlin made six saves in net.
Schalmont 2, Voorheesville 1: Zack Saccocio scored the game-winning goal for the Sabres in a Colonial Council victory over the Blackbirds.
Mohonasen 6, Averill Park 1: Attilio Tebano, Chris Parisi, Connor McDermott, Shane Connell and Keith Park registered singles goals for the Mighty Warriors in a Suburban Council rout. Nick Hess scored Averill Park’s lone goa.
Bethlehem 3, Colonie 2: The Eagles held on for a Suburban Council victory to bring its season mark to 11-1. Pat Gunty tallied two goals and Zach Rockmore scored the Eagles final goal. Tommy Osipitan and Mossimo Smiroldo accounted for Colonie’s two scores.
Niskayuna 2, Burnt Hills 0: Ryan Tauss scored on a drive from ten yards out in the 22nd minute to put the Silver Warriors on top in a Suburban Council match. Monil Patel tallied Niskayuna’s second goal and Ahmad Salamah stopped five shots in net.
Matt Horan made seven saves in goal for the Spartans.

Girls Volleyball
Troy High 4, Bishop Gibbons 1: The Flying Horses (9-1, 12-1) dropped the first set 23-25, before rallying to post scores of 25-15, 25-15, and 25-21 in the final three sets. Rachel Martin had seven kills while Lauren Cooney added four kills and five digs. Vanessa Addo chipped in with three blocks and three kills for Troy.
Gibbons was led by Caroline Bouchard’s 11 service points, three aces and 14 digs while Alexandra Gosh dished out 16 assists and smashed 13 digs.
Berlin 3, New Lebanon 0: Sarah Bentley scored eight service points, 12 aces and five kills in a CHVL victory for the Moutaineers (2-7, 3-12) by scores of 25-10, 25-11 and 25-10. Brandy Morine added five service points, four aces and two digs for Berlin. Sarah Eaton led New Lebanon with two kills and three digs.
Maple Hill 3, Catskill 0: Maple Hill remains unbeaten in the Patroon Conference at 13-0 after a three game sweep of Catskill by scores of 25-12, 25-17 and 25-8.
Bethlehem 3, Colonie 0: The Lady Eagles (12-2, 13-2) swept Colonie with scores of 25-11, 25-9 and 25-20 in a Suburban Council match. Kat Rice registered 10 kills, four service aces and one block while Lydia Loy-Santelli dished out 25 assists for Bethlehem.
Stephanie Reinhart led Colonie with two service aces and six assists and Emily Finlan added five kills.

Boys Cross Country
Lansingburgh 24, Cohoes 34: The Knights captured a Colonial Council 2.5 mile race at Lansingburgh High with C.J. Sousis crossing the line first in 13:26. Johnny SotoMoya was second for Cohoes in 14:15. Lansingburgh’s Albert Scardera was third in 14:18.
Hudson 23, Maple Hill 34: Hudson’s Brendan Connor came in first in 17:34 while teammate Patrick LaChance was second in 17:54 and Zac Sohotra was third in 18:08.
Shaker wins Suburban dual: Jon Vallacorsa finished Colonie Town Park’s 3.1 mile course in 15:33.90 for Shaker, who defeated Shenenedehowa 16-45 and Ballston Spa 15-50. Christian Delago was second in 15:54.70 and Mike Libruk was third in 15:55.30 for the Blue Bison.
Suburban dual at Colonie: Columbia’s Kyle Gronostaj completed the 4860-meter course at the Crossings of Colonie in 15:58.84 for first place. Andrew Coy was second in 16:16.41 for Guilderland, who beat Colonie 25-31 and Columbia 24-37. Colonie’s Ed Bronn was third in 20.81.
Colonial Council dual: Cobleskill’s Mike Lape captured a top time of 13:46 at Schalmont High’s 2.25 mile course. Xavier Baggetta finished just one second behind to lead Schuylerville. Mike Suchacki was third in 13:53 for Cobleskill. Albany Academy’s top finisher was Peter Schmitz-Morfe who was fourth in 13:55.

Girls Cross Country
Cohoes 22, Lansingburgh 37: Jessica Ayotte and Lydia Dawes finished 21 seconds apart in a Colonial Council victory for Cohoes at Lansingburgh’s 2.5 mile course. Blair Meeson finished third in 16:59 for the Lady Knights.
Maple Hill 19, Hudson inc: Hannah Riordan finished in first place in a time of 20:53 to lead Maple Hill while Kelsey Oglesby was second in 21:07. McKenzie Colwell was Hudson’s top finisher in third with a time of 21:50.
Blue Bison take dual meet: Christine Coughlin was the top finisher in a Suburban Council dual meet at Colonie Town Park. She completed the 3.1 mile course in 19:52.30 while Marianna Lansing was second in 19:53.20 and Shannon Lavender third in 19:55.00 for Shaker.
Colonie wins division: Colonie’s Kaylee Scott completed the 4860-meter course at the Crossings of Colonie in 18:51.75 for a first place finish. The Lady Red Raiders defeated Columbia 26-33 and Guilderland 25-30 to capture the Southern Division with an 8-3 mark.
Columbia’s Anna Boughtwood was second in 18:53.84 and Guilderland’s Jenna Robinson finished third in 18:58.96.
Colonial Council dual: Larissa Melendez was first in the 2.25 mile race in a time of 15:19 while teammate Marisa Hitchcock was second with a time of 15:37 for Cobleskill. Morgan Waitosik was third in 16:05 to pace Albany Academy.

Girls Swimming
Guilderland 88, Bethlehem 98: Jenna Bickel paced the Lady Dutch with first place victories in the 50 freestyle in a time of 24.81 and the 100 backstroke in 57.38. Bethany Powhida was the Lady Eagles top swimmer, winning the 200 individual medley in 2:13.29 and the 100 butterfly in 1:01.08.
Burnt Hills 90, Saratoga Springs 72: Kelly Ludeke was tops in the 200 freestyle with a time of 2:07.57 and the 500 freestyle in 5:50.75 to pace the Lady Spartans. Mary Katherine Rice won the 100 backstroke in 1:08.31 while Sabrina Daoui captured the 100 breastroke in 1:23.84 to lead Saratoga.
Shenendehowa 112, Niskayuna 74: Olivia Samson finished first in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:55.17 and the 100 freestyle in 53.26 for the Lady Plainsmen. Kina Zhou paced Niskayuna with first place finishes in the 200 individual medley in 2:08.32 and the 100 butterfly in 59.19.
Gloversville-Mayfield 110, Scotia-Glenville 66: Justine Woodend completed the 100 freestyle in 55.83 and the 50 freestyle in 26.00 for first place for Gloversville-Mayfield. Gabriana Beckford took the top spot in the 200 individual medley in a time of 2:18.07 and was second in the 100 freestyle with a time of 55.88 to lead the Lady Tartans.

Cael Sanderson addresses a group of young wrestlers at a clinic Monday afternoon at Shenendehowa High School.

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com

Lansingburgh's Rachael McDonough leaps over Mechanicville's Danelle Haner to head the ball during Thursday's Colonial Council girls soccer game at Lansingburgh. (Photos by J.S. Carras - The Record).

TROY — A handicapper would have graded the Lansingburgh High School soccer field as ‘sloppy’, but that didn’t stop Mechanicville’s speedy forwards from galloping around the Lady Knights’ defense Thursday night.

Alysa Russell scored a pair of goals in the second half and Abby Maiello and Marissa Skaczkowski added single tallies for the Red Raiders in a 4-1 Colonial Council victory played under a steady drizzle at Lansingburgh High School.

"It just makes the atmosphere so much better," Russell said of the rain. "It’s just so much more intense because you never know. You have to be ready at all times."

“You have to recognize that they have a lot of heart and a lot of determination and when you put that with the speed they have up front, it’s hard to deal with,” said Lansingburgh head coach John Cipperly.

For video highlights from Thursday's game, visit www.troyrecord.com/video/sports

Mechanicville (11-1-0, 11-1-0), ranked No. 2 in the latest New York State Sportswriters Association Class B poll got on the board 3:20 into the game when Maiello broke toward the Lansingburgh net and was chased by Julia Retell. Both players fell to the ground in front of the left post and Mechanicville was awarded a penalty kick.

Skaczkowski blasted the penalty kick past Lansingburgh keeper Calli Moise to put the Red Raiders on the board.

Although Lansingburgh (7-4-0, 7-4-0) buckled down defensively for the rest of the first half, Russell, a junior, scored on an assist from Maiello, also a junior, just over five minutes into the second half to give Mechanicville another quick strike goal.

Mechanicville's Abby Maiello, right, and head coach Karl Gerstenberger, left, took a minute to meet the press after Thursday's game.

"It’s not just another game because they’re a good team," Maiello said of Lansingburgh. "They have good athletes throughout the school and they can come out here and play. They have their good defense and they’re good offensively and they can move the ball in the midfield. It’s a good game. We get pumped up when we come here, especially because it’s always under the lights."

Lansingburgh’s Jenna Retell pulled the Lady Knights back within one six minutes after that, but that was as close as the team would get. Having played a tough makeup game against Voorheesville on Wednesday (a 2-0 victory for Lansingburgh), the Lady Knights just didn’t have enough energy left for a second half comeback.

Russell and Maiello wove their way around the Lansingburgh defenders at will late in the game, even on the wet turf, creating chance after chance on net.

Lansingburgh's Katie Palermo tangles with Mechanicville's Amber Maiello for control of the ball during Thursday's Colonial Council girls soccer game at Lansingburgh.

“We didn’t get the benefit of any fresh legs for tonight,” Cipperly said. “But for that, I give my kids a lot of credit for coming and playing their hearts out anyway despite the fact that they didn’t have anything in the tank.”

Moise, a junior captain, made 13 tough saves for Lansingburgh. Mechanicville’s Kelsey Desadore stopped eight shots.

Both teams are chasing Schalmont (12-0-0, 12-0-0), ranked No. 6 in the latest Class A poll, in the Colonial Council standings.

Mechanicville, which appeared in the New York State Class B championship game a season ago and took Briarcliff to four overtimes before losing 4-3, also has big dreams for the 2010 season.

“We lost a bunch of starters and everything,” said Russell, pictured above. “But this team, it’s unbelievable how well we’ve been able to find what we needed to find. We replaced it as best as we can. We’re working just as well together as we did last year. It’s just awesome.”

Not only do Russell and Maiello excel on the pitch, but they do so on the basketball court and the softball diamond as well. They have had extensive postseason success in other sports as well, but where do they find the time and the passion to be so competitive year-round?

“We come as a package and we just work hard and we practice,” Maiello said. “Every sport will help another sport.

“Even when you don’t think basketball could help soccer and soccer couldn’t help basketball and softball couldn’t help basketball, they all help each other working on different skills and building different muscles. We just work hard at all three.”

“It’s amazing what these guys do,” said Mechanicville head coach Karl Gerstenberger. “It really is amazing. Every sport they excel at. I’m amazed by it. They’re winners, they really are.”

"They have some kids that know how to win and they do it in more than one sport," said Cipperly, who also coachces the varsity softball team at Lansingburgh. "They know how. They make it a priority and they do whatever they have to to make it their result." 

Mechanicville's Mikayla Gowett tries to stop on a dime and control the ball as Lansingburgh's Rachael McDonough breathes down her neck during Thursday's game under the lights at Lansingburgh.

MECHANICVILLE 4, LANSINGBURGH 1

Mechanicville (11-1-0, 11-1-0) 1 3 -- 4
Lansingburgh (7-4-0, 7-4-0) 0 1 -- 1
Scoring: M: Russell 2-0, Maiello 1-1, Skaczkowski 1-0. L: Retell 1-0.
Goalie saves: M: Desadore, 8. L: Moise, 13.
Corner kicks: M: 1. L: 1.

Follow OTR: Twitter
Facebook
YouTube Channel
RSS feed for links to blog posts as soon as they are published
Send an email to OTR
High school football central on www.troyrecord.com