Congratulations to the Shenendehowa High School ice hockey team, which had its 2009-10 media guide win a gold medal in the National High School Sports Publication Awards.

I can confirm it was the most comprehensive guide I've ever seen a high school team publish. It rivals anything the local colleges put out for their Division I teams.

Click here to read the press release.

Here is the excerpt:

Coach Juan De La Rocha and the Shenendehowa Varsity Hockey Booster Club and the Shen Hockey 2009-2010 Varsity Hockey Media And Fan Guide of Shenendehowa Central Schools in Clifton Park, New York is the 2009 Gold Award Winner in the Public School / Over 2,000 Enrollment / Parent-Prepared Category.

Troy High junior point guard Elijah Jenkins shakes off South Colonie defender Frankie Lombardi during Thursday's Section II Class AA opening round game at Colonie. (All Troy photos by J.S. Carras - The Record).

Troy High had eight days to rest since its last game (an overtime loss at Amsterdam) and spent the last two without practicing together because of snow days. The rust showed in the first half, as they headed to halftime with just 21 points, trailing Colonie by three.

John Pompey sparked the Flying Horses with a pair of three-point buckets off the bench in the second half and Josh Blaauboer filled in admirably for an ailing Kareem Brown, who did not score any points Thursday, as Troy won, 44-40. The Horses advance to the Section II Class AA quarterfinals for the first time since the 2007-08 season.

Colonie controlled the tempo, making it a halfcourt, Suburban Council style of game.

"It was played kind of the way they wanted it played and we tried to get out quick, but the problem is, when we’re not scoring a lot, we can’t get into our pressure," said Troy High head coach Jeff Sitterly. "It played into their hands that we weren’t scoring a lot of points. And give them credit. They did a great job. They took away Javion (Ogunyemmi) inside and they were tough defensively. To come out of there with a win, I’m very happy with that."

Troy High freshman center Javion Ogunyemmi looks to grab a rebound as Colonie's Mike Branche battles him for the ball during Thursday's game. Colonie's Onome Okpodu (23) and Jordan Meeks (4) look on.

Ogunyemmi put up some nice numbers Thursday, scoring a team-high 13 points and snaring seven rebounds. Only two of his points, however, came after halftime, as Colonie did a great job all night of crashing down on Troy's big men in the paint.

That, of course, opened the door for Troy's perimeter shooters. While they didn't exactly tee off from behind the arc, they provided enough of a spark to edge the Garnet Raiders.

Pompey drained a trio of treys, Elijah Jenkins added a pair and Raheem Felder and Greg Williams each knocked down one three-pointer for Troy.

"I try to tell the guys, ‘From night to night, you never know when it will be your time to step up," said Troy High head coach Jeff Sitterly. "When Kareem is not giving it, Josh has to come in and do big things. Defensively, he does some good things. Some other guys had to step up tonight and I think Johnny and Josh did."

Troy High sophomore forward Greg Williams looks for a route around Colonie's Frankie Lombardi during Thursday's Class AA playoff game at Colonie.

Next up for Troy? Only the state's No. 3 ranked team, Christian Brothers Academy.
In two regular season games against the Brothers this season, CBA walked away with a pair of victories, which came by an average margin of 27 points.

Troy last made the quarterfinal round in 2008 after upsetting Suburban No. 3 Shen in the first round. They played CBA in the quarters, losing 79-53.

If any team knows what they're up against in CBA, it's Troy High.

"We expect them to have shooters and play aggressive defense," Pompey said. "We just need to play with better intensity and play as a team and we can win."

"You never want to play CBA," Sitterly laughed. "CBA is obviously the best team in the area. But at this point, we’re happy to be playing. We played them twice, they know us, we know them pretty well and we know how tough it is going to be."

Saratoga Springs players react on the bench in the waning seconds of Thursday surprising loss to Big 10 Conference No. 7 seed Queensbury, a team from the Foothills Council. (Photo courtesy The Saratogian).

Troy High wasn't the only game in town Thursday night.

One of the most shocking upsets was Queensbury's 84-67 Class AA boys basketball victory over the homestanding Blue Steaks, the No. 2 seed from the Suburban Council. The Spartans will play Albany High in Saturday's quarterfinal round.

On the other side of the Class AA bracket, things went as planned. Bishop Maginn and Albany Academy will square off in the quarters a year after meeting in the semis. Suburban No. 1 Shen will face a Millinghaus-less Schenectady squad.

In Class C action, Hoosick Falls' Kevin McMahon scored his 1,00th point in a 55-28 victory over Waterford. The Panthers, the No. 2 seed, will face No. 10 Mayfield in Saturday's quarters after Mayfield upset No. 7 Rensselaer 50-49.

The Heatly boys marched on in Class D action, topping Fort Ann, 68-43. For more on this game, check out Friday's edition of The Record to read Ryan Kircher's story on the Hornets' victory.

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In girls basketball action, Shenendehowa High head coach Ken Strube, a recent inductee into the Capital Region Basketball Hall of Fame, won his 547th game Thursday night when the Lady Plainsmen topped Troy High, 58-22 in a Class AA opening round clash.

He moves into first place in the Section II victory column for basketball coaches - boys or girls - surpassing legendary Watervliet High head coach George Mardigan, who won 546 games during a 30-year tenure with the Cannoneers.

In other girls games Thursday, Shaker romped to a 75-31 victory over Queensbury. The Blue Bison will face Big 10 No. 2 Albany in the quarterfinals. Saratoga Springs edged Bishop Maginn to advance to a quarterfinal game against Suburban No. 1 Colonie.

On the other side of the bracket, Bethlehem toppled Schenectady and the Eagles will head to Catholic Central for a quarterfinal showdown with the Lady Crusaders Saturday evening.

In Class A, Lansingburgh topped Bishop Gibbons, 57-29, advancing to face undefeated Colonial Council rival No. 2 Holy Names, which is without team leader Kierra Moore for the remainder of the postseason.

The Mechanicville girls, in one a two Class B games played Thursday, beat Tamarac, 50-37. The Red Raiders, the No. 3 seed, face the winner of tomorrow's game between Johnstown and Taconic Hills. That game will be played at Fonda should the No. 2 seeded Braves beat No. 15 Granville on Friday.

In Class CC, Cambridge beat Spa Catholic, setting up a meeting with No. 1 Maple Hill in the quarters. No. 2 Hoosic Valley will also host a pod Friday night, including a game against No. 10 Corinth.

The Loudonville Christian girls were bounced in the Class D playoffs, losing to Fort Edward, 38-26.

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Saratoga Springs' Dan Going is sandwiched between a pair of Shaker-Colonie defenders during Thursday's Section II Division I championship game at Union College. Saratoga won, 3-1, capturing its first Section II title in a decade. (Hockey photos by J.S. Carras - The Record).

Saratoga Springs' Tristan Sperry is covered along the boards by Shaker-Colonie's Nick Kryatzis during Thursday's Section II Division I championship game at Union College.

Saratoga Springs, the No. 1 seed in the Division I tournament, had been the class of the CDHSHL all season and capped it off with a title that had been a long time coming. Young head coach Mike Ricupero has done a wonderful job with the Blue Steaks over the past few seasons.

For more on the hockey game, check out Friday's edition of The Record, which will include a story by our pal Stan Hudy from The Saratogian.

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We will see what happens with the schedule in the next few days, but my plan on Saturday is to camp out all day at Hudson Valley Community College to cover the six boys basketball quarterfinal games (two Class As and four Class AAs) that will be played there, starting at Noon.

As long as I can get a wireless connection, I plan on hosting a live chat all day long while I watch the games and try to write my stories.

So if you're looking for updates from HVCC Saturday, Off The Record will be the place to be. I'll also be there Sunday for the four Class B quarterfinals to be played at HVCC.

We'll also have full coverage of the New York State wrestling championships to be held in Albany on Friday and Saturday, so check back soon for updates.

La Salle Institute sophomore Kyle Sacks, who scored the Cadets' only goal Saturday, winds up for a shot as Saratoga Springs goaltender Graeme Bulmer braces for a shot during a CDHSHL Division I semifinal at Weibel Rink. (Photo by Ed Burke - The Saratogian).

No. 1 seed Saratoga Springs (16-4-1) received goals from Garrison Grant and Jamie Bartoszek and held off No. 4 La Salle, 2-1, in a CDHSHL Division I semifinal at Weibel Rink in Saratoga Saturday evening.

Saratoga will face No. 3 Shaker/Colonie, the defending Section II Division I champion at Union College Thursday night. The pucks drops at 6:30 p.m.

Kyle Sacks scored La Salle's (11-12-0) only goal and Brett Bernardo made 26 saves in net for La Salle.

"I think we surprised a lot of people tonight," La Salle head coach Tim Flanigan said. "We only have two seniors and after a 2-8 start, we went 9-3 in our last 12 games. Tonight I think we just ran out of guys in the third period."

For the latest Section II hockey brackets, click here.

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A big thanks goes out to Stan Hudy of The Saratogian, who covered this game for us. For the full story, pick up Sunday's edition of The Record or The Saratogian.

A pair of Section II Division I ice hockey games were played tonight.

Shaker/Colonie 4, CBA 0: Jim Lanne stopped 26 shots in the shutout effort as the No. 3 seeded Jets topped No. 6 Christian Brothers Academy in a CDHSHL Division I quarterfinal round playoff game at the Albany County Hockey Facility.
Four different players scored goals for Shaker/Colonie, but Brian Seniw was the only one to also add an assist.

Shenendehowa 9, Niskayuna/Schenectady 3: Mike McCarthy scored two goals and assisted on two others, as the No. 2 seeded Plainsmen topped No. 7 Niskayuna/Schenectady in a CDHSHL Division I quarterfinal at Clifton Park Arena.
Freshman goaltender Brian Walter stopped 14 shots for Shen, which advances to face No. 3 Shaker/Colonie in a Division I semifinal.
Lucas Maloney scored a pair of goals for the Mohawks.

Neither team indicated where and when the semifinal game will be played. I imagine No. 2 Shen will host it, but I can't speculate as to the day. I will update this post as soon as either team confirms a date, location and time.

UPDATE: The Shen vs. Shaker/Colonie game will be played Friday at Clifton Park Arena. The time is still to be determined.
UPDATE No. 2: The puck drops Friday night at 7:30 at Clifton Park Arena as No.3 Shaker/Colonie will face No. 2 Shenendehowa in a CDHSHL Division I semifinal. Admission is $6.

In the meantime, check out the Division I brackets here.

Glens Falls still has games to play this week in Division II action, which will determine how the No. 2 and 3 teams shake out.

The brackets for the Section II Ice Hockey tournament have been announced, at least for Division I.

Click here to see the Division I bracket in digital form.

Saratoga Springs earns the No. 1 seed and a bye. They'll host the La Salle/Guilderland winner at Weibel Rink on 2/20 at 5:45 pm.

Shenendehowa is the No. 2 seed and will face No. 7 Niskayuna/Schenectady in the quarterfinals.
Shaker/Colonie is the No. 3 and will host No. 6 CBA, also on 2/17.

The highest remaining seed from that half of the bracket will host a semifinal game on a date to be determined.

The final will be played at Union College on Thursday, Feb. 25. Admission is $6 to the final and semifinals games. Quarterfinals cost $3.

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The Division II brackets are still up in the air, but we know Burnt Hills/Ballston Spa will be the No. 4 seed.

Bethlehem, Queensbury and Glens Falls will be Nos. 1-2-3 in some order to be determined.
Mohonasen/Schalmont and South Glens Falls/Hudson Falls will be Nos. 5 and 6 in some order.

Click here to see the Division II bracket, which will be updated as soon as I receive the official seeds.

Two Colonial Council girls basketball players are nearing the 1,000-point milestone and could reach four figures for their careers tonight.

Lansingburgh High School's Ariana Youngs is 11 points away and can set the mark tonight against Watervliet.

Amanda Cioffi, a senior at the Albany Academy for Girls, also has a chance to go over 1,000 points tonight.

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In hockey news, Saturday's CDHSHL game between Christian Brothers Academy and Shenendehowa will be played at Houston Field House and televised on TW3, starting at 7 p.m.
RPI plays a game at 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon.

Christian Brothers Academy defenseman David Wilgocki (15) and goalkeeper Zach Baron, shown here competing against La Salle Institute last week, both played a big role in the Brothers' 3-2 victory over Shaker/Colonie Saturday night. (Photo by Mike McMahon - The Record).

Baron, the son of first-year CBA head coach Matt Baron, made 31 saves in net and withstood an onslaught of attacks from Shaker/Colonie in the third period to hang on for the victory.

For more on what his secret is between the pipes with 11 minutes left on a clock and a one-goal lead, check out Sunday's edition of The Record.

It certainly was a big victory for the Brothers, as the Jets were the defending Section II champions and one of CBA's biggest rivals. There were few seats to be had Saturday night and the parking lot was packed - a great atmosphere for a thrilling game.

CBA's Mike Dougherty scored two goals in a 0:54 span in the first period and John Bassett added a power play goal with 1:15 to play in the second.

Shaker/Colonie's imposing defenseman Jeff Fuller scored a nifty spin-o-rama goal from the top of the circle in the third period, but that was as close as the Jets would get.

The Brothers' roster features only one senior - Zack Haggard - but a win like this could help boost the spirits of a young team on their run through the second half of the season. I haven't seen Shenendehowa play yet this season, but I'm getting the feeling that Division I in the Capital District High School Hockey League is completely up for grabs. We should be in for a very entertaining second half of the season.

La Salle Institute junior goalkeeper Brett Bernardo displays his form while making a save during Saturday's game against Christian Brothers Academy at the Albany County Hockey Facility. La Salle won, 5-2, by killing 11 of 12 CBA power plays. (Top three photos by Mike McMahon - The Record).

The Cadets can't find a way to keep out of the penalty box, just like last week's game against Saratoga Springs, in which they committed 13 penalties. This time, however, the La Salle penalty kill came through, lifting the Cadets to a CDHSHL victory over the Brothers.

La Salle junior center Alex Verchereau scores a first period goal past CBA goalkeeper Zach Baron. CBA's David Wilgocki (15) defends on the play.

Sophomore forward Matt Wagner added the game-winning and insurance goals later in the game. The Verchereau-Wagner-Nolan Crowley line is beginning to produce for La Salle, thanks in large part to a defensive challenge posed by La Salle head coach Tim Flanigan.

The line had allowed too many goals and Flanigan asked them to focus first on defense, telling them that the goals would come. The line has not had a goal scored against them in the last three games and they've lit up the scoreboard in the last two.

"If you play good defense and you get turnovers, you get scoring chances off of transition," Flanigan said. "They can do it, they just have to come together and cover up each other’s mistakes and help out."

Brett Bernardo (31) is spun around as CBA's Casey Hladik is pushed away by a La Salle defender during Saturday's game. CBA twice tied the game in the second period, but a pair of goals from Matt Wagner sealed the game for La Salle.

Steve Basile scored CBA's two goals and Zach Baron and Ryan Ward combined to make 29 saves in net for the Brothers.

There was plenty of hard-hitting in the open ice between both sides, something I would chalk up to the long-standing rivalry between the schools. It was a pretty entertaining game, especially because CBA practically always had an opportunity on the power play and the Cadets never really felt confident with the lead until an empty net goal in the final minute.

Matt Wagner (14) is about to score the game-winning goal in the second period of Saturday's CDHSHL game against CBA. (Photo submitted by Mark Wagner)

La Salle's Nolan Crowley was called for a hold here on Saratoga Springs' Tristan Sperry. The Blue Streaks scored the second power play goal of the game on the ensuing man advantage. (Hockey photos by Jeff Couch - The Record).

Saratoga Springs converted on four of its first six power play opportunities, romping to a 5-2 victory over the Cadets at Conway Ice Arena at Hudson Valley Community College.

La Salle pulled starting goalie Cody Johnson just 6:25 into the game after he had allowed two quick power play goals to the Blue Streaks. He had played great the night before in a 5-3 victory over South Glens Falls, La Salle's first win of the season.

La Salle's Joe Heffernan pins Saratoga Springs' Dan Going to the boards during Saturday's game. The Cadets committed 13 penalties in the 5-2 defeat.

La Salle played pretty well in five-on-five situations, but the penalties led to power plays and the Saratoga goal scorers quickly pounced on those opportunities. La Salle's second goalie, Brett Bernardo, played well, making 24 saves in the second period alone. He did his best to keep La Salle in the game, but too many trips to the sin bin sunk the Cadets Saturday night.

La Salle travels to the Albany County facility behind the airport on Saturday, Dec. 26 to take on CBA.

Check out Sunday's version of The Record or The Saratogian for more on this game.

Maple Hill senior center Sean Danaher is surrounded by a swarm of Cairo-Durham defenders. The Wildcats defended even better, posting a 50-34 victory over the Mustangs. (Basketball photos by Mike McMahon - The Record).

Danaher anchored the Wildcats' 2-3 zone and finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds. He was the only Maple Hill player to finish in double-digit points.

Maple Hill senior point guard Dominic Prinzo looks to passing room during Saturday's game. Prinzo sparked a 15-0 Maple Hill run to close out the first quarter.

Prinzo has emerged as a starter in the backcourt this season with the graduation of Jaime Schultz and Trent Tibbitts, who led the Wildcats to the New York State Class C championship game a season ago. Prinzo admitted his AAU experience and growing a few inches have helped him feel much more confident this year.

David Briggs, above, and Chris Despart, below, scored eight points apiece for Maple Hill. Big-impact players on the wing a season ago, Briggs and Despart are up to their old tricks again, filling the stat sheets with rebounds, assists and steals while creating opportunities for others.

This Maple Hill team is going to be very fun to watch in 2009-10, just like they were in 2008-09. I don't think they'll wind up scoring as many points - they miss Schultz and Tibbitts in this regard - but they're relying more on defense and sound fundamentals. They allowed just one field goal to Cairo in the third quarter and their aggressive zone defense clinically took apart anything the Mustangs tried to do. In essence, the Wildcats dominated all aspects of the game in what had to be a very satisfying victory for them.

They play two more games before Christmas - making that four games in six days. A big Patroon Conference clash with Rensselaer awaits in early January.

Check out the full story in Sunday's edition of The Record.

Coming next week, plenty of coverage of Tuesday's Big 10 Conference clash for first place between Schenectady and Christian Brothers Academy. We'll also be covering a big Colonial Council girls basketball game on Tuesday night when Watervliet invades Cohoes as both teams look to keep pace with Holy Names, Voorheesville and the Albany Academy for Girls.

2008-09 Capital District High School Hockey League All-Stars

2008-09 CDHSHL Player of the Year

Cody Nizolek - Saratoga Spring

2008-09 All-CDHSHL TEAM
Evan Greenwald		12	Goalie	South Glens Falls
Mike Casey		12	Defense	Niskayuna/Schenectady
Andrew Sellner		12	Defense	Christian Brothers
Kevin Corbett		12	Forward	Queensbury
Matt Vetrone		11	Forward	Shaker/Colonie
Colin Burg		12	Forward	Guilderland

2008-09 Division 1- 1st TEAM
Jim Lanne		11	Goalie	Shaker/Colonie
Kevin Syrotynski		12	Defense	LaSalle
Tyler Hubert		11	Defense	Shaker/Colonie
Mike Dougherty		10	Forward	Christian Brothers
Greg Warnken		11	Forward	Guilderland
Corey Brustle		11	Forward	Shaker/Colonie

2008-09 Division 1- 2nd TEAM
Peter Rakowsky		11	Goalie	Shenendehowa
T.J. Lane		12	Defense	Christian Brothers
Tom Asterino		11	Defense	Shenendehowa
Dan Dickinson		12	Forward	Guilderland
Ryan Phillips		11	Forward	Shaker/Colonie
Vincent Planz		11	Forward	LaSalle

2008-09 Division 2- 1st TEAM
Dylan Hafner		10	Goalie	Queensbury
Anthony Soprano		11	Defense	Queensbury
Greg Dwyer		12	Defense	Burnt Hills/Scotia
Kevin Valenti		10	Forward	Queensbury
Jack Bulmer		12	Forward	Glens Falls
Kyle McKelvey		12	Forward	Mohonasen/Schalmont

2008-08 Division 2- 2nd TEAM
Travis Marlow		11	Goalie	Queensbury
Lucas Hay		11	Defense	Queensbury
Petter Lundgren		12	Defense	Mohonasen/Schalmont
Kenny Hand		12	Forward	Queensbury
Ryan Brown		12	Forward	Glens Falls
Max Munsey		11	Forward	Burnt Hills/Scotia

2008-09 CDHSHL Honorable Mention
Stephen Russo	11	Forward	Bethlehem
Mike Tennenboym	12	Forward	Niskayuna/Schenectady
Greg Ducharme	12	Forward	Niskayuna/Schenectady
Steve Basile	10	Forward	Christian Brothers
Nick Rainville	12	Forward	Shenendehowa
Patrick Raike	12	Forward	Christian Brothers
Mike Cronin	11	Forward	Glens Falls
Alex Verchereau	10	Forward	LaSalle
Dan Lanoir	11	Defense	Glens Falls
Adam Snyder	12	Defense	Queensbury
Scott Brayden	12	Defense	Shenendehowa
Stephen O'Sick	10	Defense	Glens Falls
Ryan Lee	10	Defense	Saratoga Springs
Jarrod Bugbee	12	Defense	Bethlehem
Shawn Buzzard	11	Defense	Guilderland
Will Kiley	12	Defense	LaSalle
Kris Hildenbrandt	12	Defense	Shaker/Colonie
Andrew Blood	11	Goalie	Christian Brothers
Graeme Bulmer	11	Goalie	Saratoga Springs
Alex Cooper	11	Goalie	Bethlehem
Anthony Delaney	11	Goalie	Saratoga
Ben Phillips	12	Goalie	Niskayuna/Schenectady

Check out the playoff sechedule and brackets by clicking here.

Section II Ice Hockey Tournament- 1st Round (Quarterfinals)
(D1-#1 Seed receives a Bye to the 2nd Round) (D2-#1 & #2 Seeds receive a Bye to the 2nd Round)
Wed	2/18	6:30		#7 Niskayuna/Schenectady	0	#2 Christian Brothers	0	ACHF	D1
Wed	2/18	6:45		#6 Shenendehowa	0	#3 Saratoga Springs	0	WIR	D1
Tue	2/17	7:30		#5 LaSalle	0	#4 Guilderland	0	ACUC	D1
(D1-#1 Seed receives a Bye to the 2nd Round)
Sat	2/21	TBA		#6 South Glens Falls	0	#3 BCS or BH/S	0	TBA	D2
Fri	2/21	TBA		#5 Mohonasen/Schalmont	0	#4 BCS or BH/S	0	TBA	D2
(D2-#1 & #2 Seeds receives a Bye to the 2nd Round)
Section II Tournament- 2nd Round (Semifinals)
Fri	2/20	8:00		TBD	0	#1 Shaker/Colonie	0	ACHF	D1
TBA	TBA	TBA		TBD	0	TBD	0	TBA	D1
Wed	2/25	5:00		TBD	0	#2 Glens Falls	0	GFRC	D2
Wed	2/25	8:00		TBD	0	#1 Queensbury	0	GFRC	D2
Section II Tournament- 3rd Round (Finals)
Thur	2/26	7:00		TBD	0	TBD	0	ACUC	D1
Sat	2/28	4:00		TBD	0	TBD	0	GFCC	D2

ACHF		-		Albany Count Hockey Facility, Colonie
ACUC		-		Achilles Center at Union College, Schenectady

GFCC		-		Glens Falls Civic Center, Glens Falls
GFRC		-		Glens Falls Recreation Center, Glens Falls

WIR

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Weibel Ice Rink, Saratoga Springs

Shaker-Colonie forward Corey Brustle (8) scored the game-winning goal in the Jets' 5-2 CDHSHL victory over La Salle on Tuesday night. He finished with a goal and two assists. With the win, Shaker-Colonie is almost assured of winning the Division I crown. Saratoga Springs can still earn five poitns if they win out and are 4.5 points behind. Shaker-Colonie has one league game remaining. (All photos by Tom Killips - The Record)

Alex Verchereau(19) assisted on Mitch Allen's first period goal and the Cadets stuck again with a goal 18 seconds later to take a quick 2-0 lead. Shaker-Colonie, however, rallied with a pair of goals ten seconds apart in the final minute of the first period to steal the momentum.

La Salle's Cameron Colloton celebrates one of La Salle's first period goals. Both La Salle and Shaker had defeated Saratoga Springs last week and the Jets vaulted into first with that victory over the Blue Streaks. The Cadets return to action on Friday in a two-point CDHSHL game against Niskayuna-Schenectady at the rink on Route 50 in Glenville.

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Sorensen update: Waterford-Halfmoon junior guard Jackie Sorensen scored nine points in Tuesday's game against Albany Academy for Girls, leaving her four points shy of 1,000 for her career. The Lady Fordians travel to Troy to take on Emma Willard on Thursday in a crucial CHVL game to boot.

La Salle's Alex Verchereau (19) scored a shorthanded goal and assisted on Vinny Planz's goal in the first but sophomore goaltender Brett Bernardo shone the brightest for La Salle on Thursday night. Bernardo began the season as the Cadets main goaltender but was relegated to the bench in recent weeks as Caleb Crowley began to heat up. La Salle head coach Tim Flanigan decided to start Bernardo against Saratoga Springs, the No. 8 team in New York, and, boy, did it pay off. Bernardo stopped all 39 shots he faced en route to a 2-0 shutout victory for the Cadets at Conway Ice Arena. (All photos by J.S. Carras - The Record).

Verchereau takes a spill in front of Saratoga's Luke Fauler (right). The Cadets killed all seven Saratoga Springs power plays, including a 6-on-4 advantage for the last 2:05 of the game.

La Salle senior captain Will Kiley (12) fights for the puck with a Saratoga defender in Thursday's victory. The Cadets host CDHSHL Division II leader Glens Falls this Saturday at Conway Ice Rink. The puck drops at 7:20 p.m.

Mitch Wacholder (left) fights Saratoga's Justin Wormley (right) down the ice in Thursday's contest. The Cadets now have 10.5 points in CDHSHL play, one and a half points behind Shaker-Colonie and two behind Saratoga.

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Catholic Central's Colleen Dignum (above) and Maria Foglia play the role of the lockdown defenders for the Lady Crusaders. Coming off a weekend in which they knocked off NYS No. 6 Lourdes, CCHS hosts Schenectady tonight in a crucial Big 10 matchup. The Lady Crusaders are mired in a four-way tie for second place while the Lady Patriots (14-1) are ranked No. 12 in the state. Schenectady has defeated CCHS twice already this season, once in a non-league game and 10 days ago in a 53-50 Big 10 game in the Electric City.

Maria Foglia (above) said that she and Dignum sometimes feel like the class clowns on the team because they tend to dish out the jokes in practice. That's just fine with them because they aren't kidding around on the defensive end. They'll have their hands full Friday night trying to defend Schenectady's Shelia Dixon and Antonia Williams.

Check out the full scoop on the CCHS girls basketball team and the game story from the La Salle-Saratoga Springs hockey game in Friday's edition of The Record, along with basketball standings through Wednesday night's games.