Sports Archives — The Altamont Enterprise, February 15, 2007
Bulldgos want to bark loud in sectionals
By Tim Matteson
BERNE — In an up-and-down season, the BKW boys’ basketball team has finished strong as it prepares for the next round of competition.
The Bulldogs won both of their Western Athletic cross-over games and are now preparing for the Class CC Section II playoffs. The Bulldogs are seeded 11th and will play on Tuesday at Cambridge High School.
BKW beat Fort Plain, 57-56, on Saturday and then Galway, 57-47, on Monday night.
"We’ll be all right," said BKW Coach Andy Wright. "I think we can surprise someone in the first round. We were up 17 against Fort Plain and we played to defend the lead, not to add to the lead, and they came back in the third quarter. You can’t play teams like that. You have to play and continue to take it to them and not hold onto the lead."
Lenny Coons led the Bulldogs with 20 points against Fort Plain. Rich Geist added 16 and Matt Lounsbury scored eight.
Against Galway on Monday, BKW was led by Lounsbury’s 20 points. Coons added 13 points, and Josh Skinner chipped in with eight.
The win was the fourth in a row for the Bulldogs. They wrapped up the regular season with wins over Sharon Springs and Middleburgh.
Hanging tough
"This is an athletic group and they can get on a roll," Wright said. "They are consistently building confidence. We’re executing and also correcting things. Not at any point this season has anyone blown us out. We can hang tough with anyone. I can play everyone on this team. They are sharing responsibility and not hanging on one guy’s shoulders."
The Bulldogs have two South Division all-stars. Coons was named to the first team in the division and Lounsbury is a second-team all-star.
"There are seven teams in the south and, if you add up all the players, there are 80 to 90 players from top to bottom," Wright said. "There were co-MVPs, so we have two of the top 12 players in the division. They come with it consistently."
The Bulldogs do not have to rely just on those two guys. They go much deeper.
"I can put four guys in double figures any night," Wright said. "We’re a tough team to play defense against."
The Bulldogs’ only recent losses have come from South Division champion Schenectady Christian. Due to an early-season cancellation, the Bulldogs and Falcons played twice in one week at the end of January.
"It was a closer score the second time we played them," Wright said. "If we played them a third time, I don’t know if that would happen, but I like our chances against them. It’s tough to play a team three times. Any coach that pays attention to their opponent for an entire two games, can really figure the team out and get a victory.
"In the first game, the difference with the second loss was that our big guys struggled," Wright added. "We didn’t play as tough in the second half as we needed to."
"Good teams at every level"
Wright was hoping that the Bulldogs would land a 10 or 11 seed for the very tough Class CC sectionals.
"The CC’s are the most difficult bracket in sectional boys’ tournament," Wright said. "There’s no disputing that. There are good teams at every level. There is the most talent in any of the small-school brackets. It’s dispensed evenly. There will be upsets; I predict that there will be upsets."
Wright thinks that his Bulldogs could be one of those teams that pulls off an upset.
"I’d say we have a real good chance, where we are at, to surprise somebody in the first round," the coach said. "We have a better shot at winning sectionals than in years past. I have a point guard, a two-guard, and big guys. If we play well and execute plays, we’ll be tough to beat. Schenectady Christian is ranked 11th in the state and we were within six points of them. We didn’t play a great game of basketball. If we play all four quarters, we would win the game against them."
With wins in their two cross-over games, Wright feels his team is playing its best basketball.
"I think if we have a convincing win tonight," Wright said on Monday afternoon, "it will lead to a first-round win. We need to get something going tonight. It can’t be a small margin; we need to win by 10 or more."
The Bulldogs got the big win against Galway on Monday and now the sectionals are here.
"I would say the sectionals have been a priority ever since we knew we were not going to win the league title," Wright said. "We don’t want another first-round loss. We want to play in the second round. We have a goal here to win every game. We want to get on a roll and play a few more. We have the ability, but the big question is our application."
Lady Bulldogs want to take bite out of top seeds
By Tim Matteson
BERNE — The regular basketball season is over, and the Berne-Knox-Westerlo girls are ready for the playoffs to begin.
After finishing with a 9-3 record and in third place in the South Division of the Western Athletic Conference, the Lady Bulldogs are ready to show they can compete in the Class CC Section II tournament.
"We have a nice record and we’re playing well at the right time of year," said BKW Coach Tom Galvin. "We’re doing some things and we are playing well together. Everything is coming down the right way at the right time for us."
The Lady Bulldogs wrapped up the season with two games against teams in the North Division of the WAC.
BKW played Mayfield on Monday — winning 61-39 — after beating Saratoga Spa Catholic on Saturday.
Next up for the Lady Bulldogs is the sectional playoffs and seeding were announced on Wednesday. They will play on next Wednesday (Feb. 21) at home against Corinth. The Bulldogs are the number-six seed.
"Never looked back"
BKW beat Spa Catholic, 60-25, on Saturday.
"We played pretty well early," Galvin said. "We took the early lead and never looked back. They are down a little bit."
The Bulldogs had four players reach double digits in scoring in Saturday’s game.
Andrea Van Dyke led the way with 13 points. C.J. Vincent scored 12, and Anna Kusler and Brittany Krimisky each added 11 points.
BKW was relegated to the cross-over games, and not the WAC final four even though the Bulldogs finished with the same division record as Schenectady Christian. Christian moved on because they beat Fonda-Fultonville and BKW lost to the Braves.
"The tie-breaker was the common cross-over opponent," Galvin said.
The Bulldogs finished in a tie for second place the South Division after splitting two games with Schenectady Christian. But the Bulldogs lost two games to division champion Schoharie.
"We played pretty well against Schoharie," Galvin said. "We were down by six with three minutes to go but we couldn’t hit any shots. We needed to beat them to get a shot at the league championship."
A hornet’s nest
Next up will be the competitive Class CC playoffs.
"The CC’s are a hornet’s nest," Galvin said. "There are a ton of good teams. There’s Mechanicville, Hoosic Valley, Maple Hill, and Lake George; all of them have had success. I think we can be a six, seven, or eight, and get a home game."
BKW hopes to continue the success it has had in recent years and improve upon the upset it almost pulled at Hoosic Valley last year.
"Hopefully, the girls see what they can do when they play the game," Galvin said. "We can play with anybody in the CC’s. We played with Hoosic Valley last year. We’re ready to roll and get a couple of wins and surprise some people. We’re jelling when we need to."
The Bulldogs finished 12-7 overall but those losses are to good teams.
"We have quality losses," Galvin said. "We lost two to Schoharie, which should be number-one in the C’s. We lost one to Christian, which will be one of the top C’s. We also lost to Troy, Ichabod Crane, and to Greenwich, which will be a three or four in the CC’s. Those are tough teams. If I scheduled some easy games, we could be 17-3. Those losses will prepare us and I think play up our seeding a little bit."
The Bulldogs are excited to get the playoffs underway.
"They’re playing together," Galvin said of his players. "We still don’t execute at times, but some teams are still going through the meshing process. We’ve been successful in the sectionals. And this team can be great. This year, we’ve proved that we can hang with the big girls."
Dutch basketball teams gear up for sectinals
By Tim Matteson
GUILDERLAND — The Guilderland boys’ basketball team got a chance to take part in the Suburban Council Tournament of Champions and, as has been customary this season, the team gave two different performances.
The Dutchmen lost to Shenendehowa last Thursday but came back to beat Averill Park on Saturday in the consolation match.
The Dutch fell behind Shen in the first round of the tournament. They trailed 16-8 at the end of the first quarter and 30-16 at halftime.
Guilderland would go on to lose, 54-41, to the Plainsmen.
But on Saturday, the Suburban Council Gold Division co-champions came back for a 51-34 win over Averill Park, the White Division champions.
The Dutch trailed 18-15 at halftime, but came back with a 19-8 third quarter and a 17-8 fourth quarter to get the win.
Brett Marfurt scored 23 points to lead the Dutch and Drew Smith added 14 points.
"Against Shen, I didn’t think we did a good job," said Guilderland Coach Ron Osinski. "I was disappointed in our effort that night. They beat us to loose balls and out-rebounded us.
"We went back and talked about it," Osinski added. "And, in the second half against Averill Park, we played pretty good. Hopefully, we can continue that into sectionals."
The games didn’t count in the league record or toward sectional seeding. The Dutchmen are the number-six Suburban Council seed and will take on LaSalle Institute in Troy on Wednesday. The Cadets are the number-three seed from the Big 10.
The Dutchmen beat LaSalle handily in the first game of the season back in November. But that doesn’t give Guilderland an advantage, Osinski said.
"At that point in time," Osinski said. "We were playing quarters and halves different than we had all year. It was early and we had a full line-up and we only had a pre-season scrimmage, so we were ready to go. Neither one of us knew each other. We take that game with a grain of salt."
The time off between games might help his team, Osinski said.
"In our case, when you can say it’s one game and done," the coach said. "We really have an opportunity go beyond this game. We have a chance anyway if each and every kid plays the way they can and have gotten better as a team and individually, we can go deep into sectionals. But if we go backward and do things that we did to give up games, then we just had a lot of practices for one game.
"We’re going back to basics," Osinski added. "We’re making things simple and it’s good we don’t have two days to do that. It’s a chance to get our feet back together and play together and all understand each other."
Girls
The Guilderland girls’ basketball team lost both of its games in the Suburban Council Tournament of Champions.
The Lady Dutch lost to Shenendehowa in the first round and lost to Averill Park in the consolation game. The Lady Dutch will go to sectionals going as the number-three seed.
Guilderland will host Bishop Maginn on Wednesday. Maginn is the number-six seeded team from the Big 10.
Birthday Boy gives Dutch teammates a present
By Tim Matteson
GUILDERLAND — It was a game that had a lot on the line for the Guilderland hockey team. So why not put it in the hands of the Birthday Boy.
Freshman Greg Warnken scored the game-winning goal with one second left in overtime to give the Skating Dutchmen a 3-2 win over Glens Falls and Warnken more to celebrate on his 15th birthday.
"It’s a nice birthday present to get the game winner," Warnken said.
"That was huge," added Guilderland Coach John DeRubertis. "It’s bigger than just a win in an overtime game with a second left. That goal moves us up to a five seed from a six. If we lost or tied, we’d be the sixth seed. Now we are the fifth seed."
The Dutchmen will be skating with Niskayuna-Schenectady, the fourth seed, today (Thursday) in the first round of the Section II Division I playoffs. The Dutchmen avoided facing LaSalle Institute of Troy in the first round. Guilderland lost to Niskayuna-Schenectady, 5-4, earlier in the season, and was beaten handily by LaSalle earlier in the season.
"I’m pleased with the way the team performed in a game like this," DeRubertis said. "We’ve had our ups and downs. We’ve taken our beatings. The kids have been strong and they’ve kept working. We’ve beaten some solid teams."
Close games
The first period ended in a 0-0 draw, though the Dutchmen had the better play but couldn’t get a shot past Glens Falls’ goalie, Dylan Pasco.
But Pasco did not come out on the ice at Frank Messa Rink at Union College for the second period and Guilderland took advantage.
Warnken scored his first goal of the day just 58 seconds into the period. The puck was played wide of the net by Dan Dickinson and bounced off the dasher boards behind the goal and right to Warnken.
Warnken put the puck on his stick and fired a shot by Indian goalie Bryan Mulcahy, who was caught out of position.
Dickinson and senior captain John Potts were credited with assists on the goal.
The Skating Dutchmen took a 2-0 lead with 5:51 left in the middle stanza.
Jon Fogel scored on a power play as he crashed the goal and got to a rebound of a missed shot. Warnken and Potts assisted on the tally for the Dutchmen.
Glens Falls cut the lead in half with 58 seconds left in the period.
Ryan Conklin scored on a power play with assists from Dan LaNoir and Mike Blair.
The Indians tied the game with 5:50 left in the third and final period.
Blair got the tally on an assist from Jeff Diamond.
Neither team scored in the rest of regulation, even though Guilderland, to preserve the tie, had to kill off a penalty in the final 30 seconds — and did so with a big glove save by Brendan Glennon.
Overtime
In the overtime period, the teams played evenly for the first four minutes but a Glens Falls penalty left the Indians short-handed. The Indians killed off the penalty but there were only two seconds left when Warnken got the loose puck and went on a breakaway.
He skated down the left side and backhanded a shot into the net and, by the time he circled around the back of the net, he was mobbed by his teammates.
"I knew I was going to score, once I got the puck," Warnken said. "I saw the net. I tried this move once before; tonight it worked."
Glennon made 29 saves for the Dutchmen and Mulcahy made 25 for Glens Falls in the final two periods and overtime. Pasco made 24 saves in the first period.
The win gave the Dutchmen a 10-13 overall record and a 9-6 record in the Capital District High School Hockey League. They earned 12 points in the league, tied with Colonie-Shaker. But Guilderland beat Shaker-Colonie twice during the season to get the tie-breaker.
The win also ended a three-game losing streak for the Dutchmen. All three losses were by large margins.
"Queensbury and Shenendehowa gave us a beating," DeRubertis said. "We want to win a game in sectionals. We wanted to come back and be able to take the higher seed. Everybody wants Nisky. But we have to be careful and bring focus to the game. It was a 4-4 game and one with less than a minute left. It’s a game we can compete in. LaSalle beat us 7-2."
The Dutch lost by scores of 10-0 to Queensbury and 10-2 to Shen. Guilderland had two wins over Saratoga and two more over Shaker-Colonie. They also beat Mohonasen-Schalmont, South Glens Falls, and Bethlehem, twice.
Potts was named to the Division I All-star First Team. Jeff Geisendorffer and Ben Fogel were named CDHSHL Honorable Mention All-stars.
"We were picked to finish dead last for Division I," DeRubertis said. "We finished 9-6, and that’s quite an accomplishment. It was a rally cry for us to not finish last. Anybody would be surprised that we are in sectionals with a .600 winning percentage with our record. No one picked us."
Dutchmen wrestling trio earn straight A’s in own way
By Tim Matteson
GUILDERLAND — For two Guilderland wrestlers the years of dedication and hard work have finally paid off.
Kyle Hussey and Ian DeSol, both seniors who have been on the varsity team for three years, took home titles in the 275-pound and 145-pound weight classes respectively at the Class A meet at Niskayuna High School on Friday and Saturday.
Though DeSol and Hussey were number-one seeds, they had trials and tribulations to reach the top of their weight classes.
Matt Cubillos, a sophomore, who has been in the line-up since he was in eighth grade, also won the title in the 119-pound weight class.
"I’ve never coached three Class A champions," said Guilderland Coach Regan Johnson. It’s damn nice to. All the kids in the finals wrestled hard. Josh Sawyer and Robert Romeo did great jobs. The kids worked real hard. The 275-pound match might have been the most exciting of the night. I’m real proud of the guys. I can’t say that enough. It takes a lot to put up with me."
It was a successful day for the Dutchmen who finished fourth overall in the team standings, behind Shenendehowa, Colonie, and Niskayuna. Guilderland finished a half point behind Niskayuna, 157 1/2 to 157.
The Dutch had a lot of individual success on the mat. Out of the 11 wrestlers who competed at the meet, nine placed in the top six to qualify for the Section II State Qualifier meet at the Glens Falls Civic Center on Friday and Saturday.
"That is awesome," Johnson said. "I ask our guys to do the extra work. They stay after practice and they come in the morning and lift. That is why we are able to have success. You can’t stay with the status quo with the Suburban Council or you’ll end up in the bottom. The teams below will pass you."
Besides the three champions, Guilderland got two second-place finishes from Josh Sawyer in the 160-pound weight class and Robert Romeo in the 125-pound weight class.
Travis Wolanski finished third in the 96-pound weight class and Bobby Dygert was third at 130 pounds.
Tyler Qulia was fifth in the 215-pound class and Greg Serafin was sixth at 135 pounds. Both will wrestle in Glens Falls this weekend.
Wrestling with adversity
Five Guilderland wrestlers competed under the dimmed lights of the championship matches and all five put forth tremendous efforts.
Hussey was the most dominant in his match. Though he didn’t pin Garrett Moldoff of Columbia, he controlled the match from the outset before posting a 15-3 win.
Hussey led, 4-1, after the first two-minute period. He scored two takedowns in the period and just gave up an escape.
Hussey got another takedown on Moldoff and led, 6-2, at two periods. Hussey got nine points in the third period. Hussey got another takedown and had Moldoff in control on the mat and garnered three back points. After giving up an escape, Hussey scored another takedown and got two more back points.
"I didn’t know what to expect," Hussey said. "He has improved since I wrestled him in the Class A final. He really has. He has tremendous strength and he gave me some trouble. I was happy to finish on top."
The win was the second in a row for Hussey, and the second he did without a full season of wrestling under his belt.
Last year, Hussey missed most of the season because of a knee injury. This winter was also difficult for Hussey.
"This meant a little bit more," Hussey said of this year’s title. "This year, I got mono at the middle of the season. I found that out on the Friday the weekend before Christmas and my dad died that Sunday. This is a good one to win."
Hussey admitted it was tough to come back, but he did it because of his love of the sport and his love of his coach.
"I was talking to Coach J," Hussey said of Johnson. "No matter what was going on in my life, you have to move on. I am lucky I have sports to turn back to. With all the stuff that has happened to me, I’m glad I had this opportunity. Coach Johnson is like a second dad to me. He really helped me get another Class A title."
Hussey was able to keep his focus and has not lost a match since he came to wrestle in late January.
"I was able to concentrate and focus on the year," Hussey said. "I will not settle until I win sectionals and states."
"He’s had a lot of adversity thrown at him the last two years," Johnson said. "Since he’s been on varsity, he comes to practice every day. He’s a great kid to be around and his attitude is infectious. He’s always asking questions to try and get better. He deserves everything he gets. I’m happy he is going to Albany, so then I can see him play football."
Hussey hopes to qualify for the state meet, after losing in the semifinals last year at the Section II qualifier meet.
Hussey didn’t even have to wrestle this season. He has committed to play football at the University at Albany after being one of the best offensive and defensive lineman in Section II this fall.
"I felt like I owed another year to Coach Johnson," Hussey said. "He’s like my second dad and I wanted to give him one more year.
"I love wrestling," Hussey added. "It’s one of the only sports where it’s just you. You’re by yourself on the mat. You decide if you win or lose."
He hopes to have three more weeks of wrestling before he focuses on college and football full-time. He will also have his father with him.
"He’s always in the back of my mind," Hussey said. "It would be nice to win the section and states. He was always a huge supporter and interested in what I did."
Finally a champ
DeSol has been on the varsity team for five years. He was a Class A place finisher as a freshman but he has never been able to reach the top level of the champion’s podium until this year.
"This feels pretty good," DeSol said. "It took long enough. This is my fifth year and Coach Johnson has beat in my head what I can do. It shows that the last five years of work has paid off.
"This has always been on my list," he added. "But number-one is to win a Section II title and go to states. This is a good step on the way."
DeSol came into the tournament as the top seed, and lived up to his billing as he cruised to the championship match.
"Being the top seed, there is some pressure," he said. "I know what I can do and everyone is expecting that from you. That’s cool and it can work into your favor before you walk into the gym. But it’s just one of those things. You have to wrestle no matter who it is and what seed you are."
And DeSol did wrestle, though his competition in the final made it tough. He scored a 4-2 win over Josh Simmons of Columbia.
DeSol led, 2-1, after the second period but scored a takedown to go up 4-1. An escape by Simmons cut the lead to two, but DeSol held on to win the 145-pound class.
"We wrestled in a dual meet and I beat him I think, 7-4," DeSol said. "I wrestled a bit better today, though it was closer. He wasn’t doing much. He was stalling and I was pushing, trying to open things up."
DeSol will have a short time to enjoy the win.
"I’ve got all day tomorrow to enjoy it," DeSol said on Saturday. "Come Monday, Coach J will be in my face."
The win in the championship match was the 100th for DeSol, a big milestone for wrestlers.
"I had it inside a notebook, and I just looked at it," Johnson said. "I saw how many career wins he had and how many he needed to get 100 takedowns. He is close to that record. I saw that, if he wins the tournament, he gets his 100th win. It’s great to win Class A championship and get the 100th win. Both of those things can’t be taken away from you. They’re great accomplishments. There are not too many kids walking the halls that can say they won a Class A championship."
DeSol is looking to wrestle in college and is interested in Clarion, Bloomsberg, the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown, or Binghamton University.
"Matt’s Matt"
The first Guilderland champion to be crowned on Saturday was sophomore Matt Cubillos. He won the 119-pound class with an 8-2 decision over Jason Chudzinski of Colonie. He joins his older brother, Mike, as a Class A champion.
Cubillos scored a takedown in the first period, two in the second period, and another in the third period to take the win. He gave up just two escapes to Chudzinski.
"The last two years, I was in the finals," said the softspoken Cubillos. "It’s good to win. It’s been my goal all year. But I want to win the sectionals next week, I want to win that."
"Matt’s Matt," Johnson said. "He’s wrestling hard. He’s a two-time runner up. It’s nice for him to finally break the ice and get a championship under his belt."
With Cubillos’s early success, he can go down as one of the best wrestlers in the long, strong history of the Guilderland program.
He definitely has the confidence.
"It’s not that hard of a tournament," Cubillos said. "I expected this, because I wrestle against most of these guys. I’m happy it’s done."
Romeo falls
The most entertaining of Saturday night’s matches came in the 125-pound match. Robert Romeo put together a strong effort to try and knock off Kyle Kilburn of Ballston Spa.
Romeo trailed, 2-0, at the end of the first period and was down, 4-1, in the second period when he made a comeback.
Romeo scored a takedown but trailed, 7-3, late in the period when he reversed out of a hold by Kilburn in the final seconds for two points to make the score, 7-5.
But Kilburn was able to hold on for a 9-6 win and Romeo, a junior, had to settle for second.
"I did pretty good," Romeo said. "I wrestled the best that I ever had. I worked harder and that all shows"This is the first time I made it to the finals."
Romeo was the second seed in the class and is looking forward to this weekend’s large school tournament, where Class A and Class B schools will determine who will go to the state meet at the Times Union Center in Albany.
"We’ll see how it goes," Romeo said. "We’ve done a lot better than last year. We have a good team this year, and everyone works hard and we have a good coach."
Sawyer wrestled tough in the 160-pound final but was on the short end of a 5-2 decision against Alex Steciuk of Ballston Spa.
Sawyer trailed just 2-1 at the end of the first period and 4-2 at the end of the second, but couldn’t catch Steciuk in the final two minutes.
But Johnson is happy with the way his wrestlers competed in the two-day tournament.
"It’s just an awesome feeling," he said. "To be associated with young men like that is why I went into coaching and teaching. It’s an absolute pleasure to be with these guys."
Birds show toughness outside home nest
By Tim Matteson
VOORHEESVILLE — The Voorheesville boys’ basketball team proved Friday night that not only can it hang with the big boys, it also might be one of the them.
The Blackbirds beat Watervliet, the winner of the Colonial Council, 55-44, in a tense, physical game that featured Watervliet’s legendary coach, George Mardigan, getting ejected and 41 foul shots awarded to the Blackbirds.
"This is a great road win," said Voorheesville Coach Don Catellier after the game. "We’ve won two in a row. The sectional committee has to sit up and take a look at us now."
Friday’s game wrapped up the regular season for the Blackbirds, and sectional seedings were announced on Wednesday. Voorheesville is the number-six seed and will play on Tuesday. The Blackbirds will host Berkshire.
On Friday, Voorheesville fought the physical Cannoneers in one of the toughest gyms in Section II.
"We came into the game with four things we wanted to accomplish," Catellier said. "We wanted to control the offensive boards, we wanted to play with them, and play as hard as they did. And we played hard."
The Blackbirds lost to the Cannoneers by two points earlier in the season, and were not cowed coming into Watervliet.
"We’ve won here three years in a row," Catellier said. "We were not intimidated."
The Blackbirds led for most of the contest. They trailed after the first quarter, 8-6, but took over in the second quarter. The Birds led, 24-17, at halftime.
Voorheesville took the lead on a hook shot by Evan Christner, who was in foul trouble and sat out for a lot of the contest. Tim Robinson scored after grabbing a rebound.
Joe Klembczyk made two foul shots, to make the score 15-10.
Voorheesville led, 19-13, and outscored Watervliet, 5-4, for the rest of the period to take a seven-point halftime lead.
Voorheesville built upon its lead with tough defense and strong work on the boards. The Birds led, 35-26, at the end of the third quarter.
The game featured four technical fouls, the last one against Mardigan and led to his ejection. It was the coach’s second technical foul of the game and by rule he had to leave.
"Our defense did a great job," Catellier said. "We had a great game plan defensively, and the kids executed."
The Blackbirds made 27 out of 41 attempts at the free-throw line. Klembczyk made 15 foul shots in the contest and finished the game with 17 points for the Blackbirds.
"What can I say about Joey Klembczyk"" Catellier asked. "He did a great job."
The Blackbirds also did a great job of battling the Cannoneers on rebounds.
"On offensive boards, we won, 9-8," Catellier said. "And it was 21 to 21 overall. We can hang with the big boys. We went to their courts and beat them both."
Beating the best
Voorheesville beat three of the four top teams in the Colonial Council in the past week to finish the season. The Blackbirds beat Schalmont on Feb. 2 and followed that with a road win against second-place Cohoes last Tuesday. The Blackbirds also beat Albany Academy, the third-place team, last month.
Against Watervliet, Robinson scored 10 points to aid Klembczyk’s 17. Justin Arico added nine and Christner chipped in with seven.
"We’ve beaten the teams we’ve had to play," Catellier said. "All three teams ahead of us, we beat. And we’ve done it with different people stepping it up. Evan didn’t have his best game tonight, but Greg Carson and Timmy did a great job. They played great on defense and hustled to the boards and did what we had to do to win."
Catellier and his players had to wait until Wednesday to see who their next opponent would be. The Blackbirds have a scrimmage on Friday against Bethlehem.
"We want to keep sharp for sectionals," Catellier said. "The committee has to look at us. I see us as a top-four seed right now."
Voorheesville finished the regular season with a 12-8 overall record and an 11-5 record in Colonial Council play. The Birds have won eight of 10 games since returning to play after the new year began.
"We’ve improved," Catellier said. "I knew all along that we had a pretty decent team and now we’re growing into it. We just need to keep it going."
Sectionals ahead for V’ville girls
By Tim Matteson
VOORHEESVILLE — The Voorheesville girls’ basketball has learned its seeding for the upcoming Section II Class B tournament.
The Lady Blackbirds are seeded 12th and will travel to Hudson on Tuesday to take on the fifth-seeded Blue Hawks.
Voorheesville finished the regular season with a 5-15 overall record and 5-11 in the Colonial Council. They lost their last three games of the regular season against Schalmont, Cohoes, and Watervliet.