By Jordan J. Michael

GLENS FALLS –– The bus ride home always seems longer after a loss.

The Voorheesville boys’ basketball team had no more games to play after a 59-to-42 loss against Hoosick Falls on Wednesday night in the Class C semifinal at the Glens Falls Civic Center.

Blackbirds’ Head Coach Don Catellier said that his team played hard and never quit. “We had a real hard time trying to stop them,” he said. “They made defensive plays and scored at will.”

Voorheesville was once ranked first in the state after starting the season 8-0. “The five losses we had were to quality opponents,” said Catellier. “I had a good group of players and they all should be proud.”

Senior Ethan Mackey, who scored his 1,000^th point for the Blackbirds last Saturday in the quarterfinal win over Canajoharie, found his match on Wednesday. Kevin McMahon scored 18 points for Hoosick Falls and Mackey put up 13 points.

“It was an interesting battle between two big guys,” Catellier said. “They balanced each other out.”

The road

The Blackbirds had back-to-back sectional games on Friday and Saturday. The first game was anticlimactic, but the second one was a thriller.

Voorheesville hosted Greenwich in the first round on Friday and the Witches were no match for the Blackbirds. Greenwich ran the same weave drill on every offensive possession and shot 30 three-pointers in the game, while only making eight.

Voorheesville plays up against Class B schools all season in the Colonial Council, only to drop down to Class C for the playoffs. Senior Nick Crawford said that situation has both advantages and disadvantages. “You can’t over look anything,” he said.

During the game against Greenwich, Mackey threw down a thunderous dunk in the fourth quarter that shook the entire gym. “I don’t get to dunk that often,” he said. “It’s a good way to let out some frustration.”

On Saturday, the Blackbirds went toe-to-toe with Canajoharie and squeaked out a 57-to-53 win. Mackey scored 26 points while putting on a stellar display and eclipsed 1,000 points for his career. Max Schuster had a strong performance off the bench by grabbing key rebounds and scoring eight points.

“Reaching 1,000 points felt good, but getting a win feels better,” Mackey said on Saturday. “You can’t win without a team effort.”

However, Voorheesville won’t have a chance at another win until next year.

“Not everything in life comes up in roses,” said Catellier.