High school this 'n' that

This may just be LaSalle's year.

The skating Cadets advanced to the Section II championship game, defeating Burnt Hills-Ballston Spa, 3-2, on Saturday night at Union College. Christian Rudd led the way with two goals, with Kevin Mainello adding another tally, all in the first period. Coach Tim Flanigan's club will get a 3rd meeting with Shenendehowa, as the Plainsmen ended CBA's upset bid, 5-1. Shen & LaSalle will meet right back at Union College on Tuesday night.

Meanwhile, LaSalle's basketball team, in its 2nd season in the Colonial Council, upset Shen, the #2 seed in Class AA, to punch their ticket to the Glens Falls Civic Center for the AA semi-finals. Up next for coach Steve Sgambelluri's squad will be 3rd seeded Bethlehem. Meanwhile, the Suburban Council's division winners, Colonie & Schenectady, will meet in the other semi-final. The Garnet Raiders have now won 13 in a row after defeating Green Tech, an independent, in the quarter-finals. As for LaSalle, it wasn't so long ago that the Cadets were aching to just win. That the hockey & basketball teams have had bounce back seasons at the same time may be more than a coincidence.

The Class A quarter-finals in basketball take place today at Hudson Valley Community College.

As classes resume on Monday, I shan't be surprised if there are still some shockwaves at Troy High, after both of their basketball teams exited the sectional tournaments surprisingly early. We told you how the boys' team's season ended with a loss to Albany (which, in turn, lost to Bethlehem yesterday). More than 24 hours later, the girls' team had their modest three game winning streak snapped with a blowout loss to Shaker. In his report, published on Thursday, Sean Martin, reporting for the Albany Times-Union, claimed the Lady Bison had avenged their December 30 loss at Troy with the 64-30 victory. Actually, Sean, Shaker had already collected the receipt three weeks earlier, on January 31. Shaker's defense held Shalie Frierson, in her final high school game, to just 4 points, while Sabrina Wolfe led Troy with 16, matching Shaker senior Sierra "Ce Ce" Mayo. Shyla Sanford led Shaker with 21 points.

For Troy, spring sports will start, weather permitting, of course, on April 4 with home openers in baseball, lacrosse, & softball. The sports complex at Troy just needs lights for the baseball & softball fields, as the lacrosse matches are contested at Picken Field.

The New York state high school wrestling championships took place the last two days at Albany's Times-Union Center. Three Section II athletes took home state titles on Saturday night. Trent Svingala (Maple Hill), Orion Anderson (Schuylerville), and Tyler Barnes (Ballston Spa) each won on points. The upside is that Svingala (sophomore) and Anderson (junior) will likely be back next year. Barnes, though, is a senior, and will be moving on. Congratulations to all three.