Victory is sweet and shared

It has been a banner year already for Troy High. In the fall, the boys' soccer team won their first ever Section  II title, but were promptly eliminated from the regional tournament. That they made it that far was an achievement in and of itself for a program that had been one of the stronger sports at THS when I was there in the early 80's.

Over the last four days, however, it is the school's basketball teams who have become the toast of the campus. First, it was the girls' team, who defeated the top ranked class A women's team in New York, the Academy of Holy Names, on Saturday afternoon, and merited the front page of the Record the next day. On Tuesday, the girls traveled to LeMoyne College and won a regional semi-final. Next stop is SUNY Potsdam on Saturday to face Massena. The ultimate goal would be the Federation tournament later this month at Times Union Center.

Troy's boys would love to return to the Albany arena, provided, of course, they get through regional play unscathed. A year after a heart wrenching loss to Christian Brothers Academy, which some still say was tainted by a pro-CBA bias on the part of the game officials from the 2nd quarter onward, Troy High redeemed itself by ending the Cinderella bid of Green Tech, a 3rd year varsity program, on Monday. For the boys, regional play begins on Saturday.

However, the Record, while giving the boys a back page headline on Tuesday, didn't give them the front page, as they did with the girls two days earlier, another instance of inconsistency in the editorial department. Granted, there was a more important story that merited the front page, but if the Troy girls could get the front page for winning a championship, why not the boys? It makes little sense from a fan's viewpoint. Where are the editor's priorities?

All of this would become moot if the school succeeds in garnering state titles in both women's Class A & boys' class AA by the end of the month, with both teams likely getting invited to march in the city's annual Flag Day parade on June 9, as football teams have done in the past after winning state titles. It would only be fitting and fair.

The same would be said for Watervliet's boys' & girls' basketball teams, who swept the Class B titles a week ago, and begin regional play tonight in Plattsburgh. The Cannoneers, at least on the boys' side, have recovered from having to forfeit a few early victories because of an ineligible player, and ran the table, culminating in a Class B title win in Glens Falls. While Troy High's boys' team used redemption as their theme after last year's screwjob loss, the same would apply in 'Vliet.

I can recall when the 'Vliet & Troy football teams gathered at the Congress Street-Watervliet bridge after winning their state titles. Can you picture the basketball teams from those schools doing the same thing? Yep. The job isn't finished yet, but I've a feeling history will repeat itself.

Of course, I could be wrong.