VOORHEESVILLE — The Voorheesville boys’ basketball team is picking up steam as it heads into the next phase of the season.

The Blackbirds have won four games in a row and seven of their last eight games.
"We got some real nice wins," said Voorheesville Coach Don Catellier. "We had a close one with Schalmont the first time we played them and the first time we lost a close one to Cohoes."

Voorheesville avenged those losses by beating Schalmont, 43-38, on Friday and then Cohoes, 52-43, on Tuesday.
"We’re playing real well right now," Catellier said. "I knew we’d be fine once we got some experience in our system. The kids are starting to get used to each other and are getting the plays."

The Blackbirds got 13 points each from Justin Arico and Evan Christner to lead the way against Schalmont on Friday. Joe Klembczyk scored eight points, as the Birds used a strong fourth quarter to get the victory.
"Joey Klembczyk at point guard is controlling the offense," Catellier said. "He’s done a nice job with the offense."
"The kids are getting their varsity experience," Catellier said. "The kids are coming together. Everybody is contributing. We’ve getting balanced scoring."

Big win

Tuesday night’s win might be the biggest win of the season so far for the Blackbirds.
"Last night was a good win," Catellier said on Wednesday. "It’s kind of a revenge win for us. It’s a good win on the road. The kids stepped up and played well."

The Blackbirds got a big game from Christner in the first half.
"Evan dominated," Catellier said. "He controlled the offensive and defensive boards and he shot seven for nine from the field. He scored 14 points in the first half. We did a good job against their big guys, and they have some of the better ones in the league. We shut them down completely."

Voorheesville held Bill Keeler to 10 points and Nick Benoit to just three foul shots.
"They scored a combined 41 points the first time we played them," Catellier said. "Timmy Robinson and Greg Carson played great defense on them."

In the second half, Arico took over the scoring for the Birds. He scored 13 of his 16 points in the half.
"Justin got open and hit some shots," Catellier said.

The wins will help the Blackbirds as they are building toward the sectionals. They beat two teams that are also in the same classification — Class B — and Cohoes is in second place in the Colonial Council.
"I think it is a big confidence builder," Catellier said. "We play Watervliet Friday night and that is another revenge game for us, too. They took our championship away from us. We were the defending league champs and they clinched the championship now. They are also a Class B school. We wanted to go in playing well."

Voorheesville lost to the Cannoneers by a narrow margin in their first meeting right after the Christmas break. It is just one of two losses the Blackbirds have suffered since the new year began.
"Watervliet is always the measuring stick," Catellier said. "We want to go in and play with them. If we play well with them, we can play well with anyone in the league and in Class B. They should be the top seed, I’d be surprised if they are not."

The Blackbirds hope to continue the stretch of good play as sectionals are right around the corner. Friday’s game at Watervliet will wrap up the regular season and the team is firing on all cylinders.
"We are right now," Catellier said. "It seems like anybody in the game for us does well. Hopefully, we can keep that going for another month."