VOORHEESVILLE — Last Tuesday’s loss might be hard to handle for the players on the girls’ basketball team, but it shows that they are taking the right steps to getting back to the tradition of winning at Voorheesville.

The Lady Blackbirds, who, up until the last two seasons, were one of the best small-school basketball teams in the area, lost in the first round of the Section II Class B playoffs. But it wasn’t without a fine performance.

Voorheesville lost in overtime to Hudson, 64-59.
"It was a close game," said Voorheesville Coach John McClement. "But honestly, it was poorly officiated. There were a lot of officiating mistakes. We were up six in the second half and were in the double bonus [for foul shots]. We took one of what should have been two foul shots; we missed, and they let the play go. They scored quickly and we threw a quick pass; they stole it and scored again, before we could get the officials’ attention that we should have taken two free throws. The officials said that they couldn’t take the points off the board. Instead of being up seven, it was a two-point game.
"It changes how we have to play," McClement added, "and how they play. It’s most damaging. Four points is four points."

Hudson tied the game and sent it to overtime, and then there were more problems at the beginning of the extra session.
"They lined us up wrong for the jump-off in overtime," McClement said. "We win the tap and we’re trying to set our offense. They realize the mistake and they got to the alternate possession with the ball. We don’t re-jump, and they get the ball."
"We had our chances"

Although McClement was upset with the officiating mistakes, he knows that his team still could have done some things better to try and win the game.
"Despite those occurrences," the coach said, "we had our chances. We needed to hit shots. We had a chance to win the game. We had an opportunity at the end of the game and had a chance to win. I felt we’re the better team. Things just didn’t break our way that would enable us to win."

Voorheesville forced 38 turnovers in the game and only committed 24.
"From that standpoint," McClement said, "things should be bright for you."

McClement was pleased with his team’s performance as they were the 12th seeded team in Class B and Hudson was fifth.

The Blackbirds finished the regular season with a 5-15 record.
"I’d say we played a good game," McClement said. "We played well enough to win. You take away the officiating errors, but the officiating didn’t cost us the game. I didn’t know what to say to the kids. There were big errors, but we played well enough to have a chance to win the game.
"They hit free throws at the end to win the game," McClement added of Hudson. "It’s hard for the kids to understand that they had a chance to win."

What McClement hopes his players understand is that they made another step in getting the program back to being one of the top in Section II. The Blackbirds won eight straight titles in Class CC and won titles in nine out of 10 years. The last came in 2004, though the Birds were finalists in 2005.

Voorheesville only won two games last season and also lost to Hudson in the first round of the sectionals.

"Working to get better"

This year’s version of the Blackbirds were very competitive in games this winter, despite only winning five games.
"Especially in the second half of the season," McClement said. "We played teams the first time around, and the margin of difference was in double figures. The second time around we lost to teams by four points or six points. We absolutely played better in the second half of the season."

McClement said it is just a matter of cleaning up their play, especially in crucial situations.
"We made mistakes that still hurt us at times," the coach said. "We had chances to win games. Late turnovers hurt us. We played well enough to win some of those games.
"Against Mechanicville, the first time they beat us by 20, the second time it was a four-point game and we had a chance to win it late. Schalmont, we played two close games with Schalmont, and they are the second-seeded team in Class B. Against Cohoes, the margin was 22 the first time. It was seven points the second time because we had to foul late.
"It was very encouraging," McClement added. "We are consistently working to get better. Our won-loss record has no indication of the huge improvement we made, as individuals and as a team."

The players on the team were disheartened by the outcome of games this season, it’s a sign of the team’s competitive spirit.
"The kids are disappointed by the outcome and our record," McClement said. "They have to understand that they did get better. They had a lot of fun, despite our record and they came together as a team. And that doesn’t always happen, especially with a team that’s not above .500."

"Future is bright"

Most of the team will return next year. There are only five seniors on the team — Sarah Belenchia, Kelly Larsen, Jenna Massaroni, Alyssa Schultz, and Kara Zimmerman.
"We have eight returning players," McClement said. "We’ll get Erika Schultz back from an injury. We also have some kids coming up that should be able to contribute right away as juniors. That is something we are looking forward too. We get our top two scorers and top rebounder back. The future is bright. Still it is so close to the end of the season, especially with teams still playing. It’s hard to look to the future and where we are at."

The junior varsity and freshmen teams had good seasons, McClement said. They should be able to play at the varsity level next season and to continue the tradition.
"Our goal every year is to get to the sectional finals," McClement said. "That is something that is attainable. I feel bad for the seniors. They wanted to get back there. They certainly wanted more. I wanted to make sure that they understood that they are part of the Voorheesville tradition. They wanted to go deeper in sectionals. But they are a lot better than how they finished."