Friday, December 15, 2017

High School this 'n' that

Troy High's bowling team snapped a very long losing streak, dating back at least 2 years, in defeating Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, 17-15, on Thursday. This year's team is co-ed, as the school doesn't have a separate girls team for the sport. If I'm not mistaken, this may in fact be their first win since entering the Suburban Council 2 seasons ago. Here's to hoping this starts them on the up-swing.
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Inclement weather forced postponement of several events, largely involving Saratoga County schools (i.e. Burnt Hills, Shenendehowa), on Tuesday. Shen & Saratoga rescheduled their basketball games for the next day, with both the women's & men's games under the same roof. Saratoga swept both games, with the boys' game marred by a scuffle between the two teams in the 4th quarter that has resulted in a total of seven players (3 for Saratoga, 4 for Shen) suspended for tonight's games. Yes. it's early in the season, but Shen has already lost a game apiece on both the boys' & girls' ledgers.
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Wednesday was not a good day for Shen, it seems. The skating Plainsmen dropped a 3-0 decision to LaSalle in the Cadets' home opener, extending Shen's hockey losing streak to 3. LaSalle squares its record at 2-2 (1-1 in league play), and will visit Shaker-Colonie on Saturday night before returning home to play Queensbury next Friday night. After that, the defending Section II champs will defend their title in the Mohawks tournament at Union College.
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There doesn't appear to be any plans for Troy High to host a holiday basketball tournament this year. The Flying Horses have not fared well in their own tourney the last two years, as the women finished last in the 2015-16 edition, while the boys had the same thing happen last year. Apparently, this explains why the boys have three non-league weekend games on the calendar this year, starting with tomorrow's home game vs. Kingston. We'll see what the attendance looks like, depending on whether or not any of the local papers acknowledge the game's even taking place. The onus for that, of course, is also on athletic director Paul Reinisch to supply the local press with the schedules. If he can't find the time to do so, then it should be a matter of either parents and/or alumni to help.
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I have to stress this yet again. While it's great that Troy does have some non-league games on the docket for both men & women this season, and the ladies will host Lansingburgh next month on a Monday night, weather permitting, of course, I think there's still a remote possibility of reviving the long dormant Uncle Sam Basketball tournament, this time for both men & women.

As of now, Troy is on the outside looking in when it comes to in-city rivalries. There are some territorial rivalries in the Suburban Council (Averill Park, Columbia), plus the traditional home-&-home series with Albany & Schenectady (and for the boys, CBA), but what about bragging rights to the city itself? Lansingburgh, LaSalle, & Catholic Central all play in the Colonial Council, and will see each other twice a year. On the women's side, you could sub Emma Willard, which plays in the Central Hudson Valley League, as does Heatly, but both of those schools are in lower classes than Troy, which is in Class AA, along with LaSalle and Catholic Central (Lansingburgh is a B school this year).

Because of the football team's success in recent years, a boys tournament would be next to impossible to pull off. A women's Uncle Sam tournament, though? Different story, and one that can be done if Reinisch and his counterparts at Lansingburgh, CCHS, and either Emma Willard or Heatly can agree to it. Troy tested the waters in women's soccer last year, hosting Heatly on Senior Night, and a JV game vs. Emma Willard. Can't see why not in other sports.

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