VOORHEESVILLE — A bomb of a shot blew up the season for the Voorheesville boys’ basketball team.

Schuylerville’s Chris Carson hit a long-distance three-point shot at the final buzzer to hand the Blackbirds a stunning 37-35 loss in a Class B Section II semifinal at the Glens Falls Civic Center on Wednesday night.

Carson’s shot came from the three-point line that marks the distance for three-point shots used by professional basketball teams.
"He picked the right time to hit his first three-pointer of the season," said Voorheesville Coach Don Catellier. "It was a bomb. We gave them a bomb and he was able to hit it. That’s what happens sometimes.
"We knew the ball was going into his hands," Catellier said. "It was a good basketball game. Someone had to lose and, unfortunately, this time it was us. Last year was our turn and this year is was their turn."

Voorheesville beat Schuylerville by one point in last year’s sectional championship game.

Carson’s bomb put an ending to what wasn’t a great performance by the Blackbirds. They threw the ball away many times, especially in the early part of the contest.
"We killed ourselves," Catellier said. "We beat ourselves early. We didn’t do what we wanted to do and the game came down to the last second and then anything can happen."

The Blackbirds found themselves down in a hole in the first quarter. They trailed, 11-1, with 2:16 left in the opening stanza and 11-3 at the end of the quarter after Andy Catellier made a jump shot.

Flying Birds

But Voorheesville came flying back in the second quarter.

The Birds got defensive and held the Black Horses to four points in the second frame and scored nine of their own to just trail by three points, 15-12, at halftime.

The rest of the game was a nip-and-tuck affair all the way until the final horn sounded.

Voorheesville took its first lead of the game when Greg Klopfer hit a floater in the lane with three seconds left in the third period.

The basket sent the Birds into the final stanza with a 28-27 lead.

But Schuylerville regained the lead on a jump shot by Carson and later added a jumper by Blake Thomas, who will play football at Cornell University in the fall.

Voorheesville came back with three straight points — a foul shot by Evan Christner and an inside basket by Nick Duncan that tied the game, 31-31.

Again, Carson, a junior, came up big, hitting a jump shot that gave the Black Horses the lead with 5:03 left.

Schuylerville got a foul shot from Ryan Denisoff but Voorheesville answered with a turnaround jump shot by Duncan that made the score 34-33 with 1:58 left in the contest.

Both teams struggled to score until Duncan scored an inside basket with 19 seconds left to give the Birds the lead, 35-34.

Schuylerville got the ball back and called a timeout with 13 seconds left. Then the Black Horses couldn’t get a shot but the ball was knocked out of bounds on the baseline by a Voorheesville player.

On the ensuing in-bounds play, Carson went off a couple of screens, got the pass from Thomas, and fired up his shot that sent the Schuylerville players into joy and the Voorheesville players into dejection.

Carson led all scorers with 19 points. Dan Quirk added seven for the Black Horses.

Voorheesville was led by Duncan’s 12 points. Christner scored eight points and Andy Catellier added seven points. Klopfer finished his career with six points.

Handling Hudson

Andy Catellier struggled all day shooting the basketball, but the one shot he made was the biggest of the game.

Catellier hit a three-pointer with 2:57 left in the contest to propel the Birds on a late push to beat Hudson, 52-46, in a Class B quarterfinal game on Saturday at Hudson Valley Community College.

Catellier’s shot broke a 43-43 tie and the Blackbirds outscored the Blue Hawks, 6-3, in the final two minutes to hold on for the win.
"I thought we played well at the end," said Coach Catellier after the game. "We haven’t played in a week-and-a-half and it showed. Hudson is a good team. They had a four-game winning streak. They played hard."

Catellier said that the quickness the Hudson players had provided a tough match-up for his team.
"They were a quick little team," Catellier said after Saturday’s game. "Everyone battles us. We couldn’t do anything right for a while. But Evan stepped up tonight. He was huge."

Voorheesville sophomore Evan Christner had a big game inside for the Birds. He led the team with 18 points.

Christner also hit two big free throws with 23 seconds left that helped seal the win.
"I told him that he is no longer a sophomore," Catellier said. "He came to play and I’m happy for him."

Duncan scored 15 points for the Blackbirds and Klopfer added nine.

Wednesday’s loss ends the careers of three seniors who have started on the varsity for three years. Duncan, Klofer, and Catellier have led the team for the year and helped the Birds reach the Class B state semifinals last year.
"It’s a good group of seniors," Coach Catellier said. "They’ll be hard to replace. They went 39-8 over two years and they took the team to the state semifinals and made the [sectional] semis this year.
"The younger guys will have a lot to live up to and big shoes to fill," Catellier added. "But we will be back this year."

Rob Bareis, Mike Hopper, and Jake Norris are the other seniors on the team.

Despite the way the season ended, Coach Catellier is happy with the season.
"I’m very pleased," he said. "We won the Colonial Council for the first time in 23 years. The kids have a lot to be proud of."