And it really kicks off today! 11 boys games, 10 girls games. A lot of play-ins... yawn. I'll be at a couple of these tonight, stay tuned. For now... check it out and let me hear your thoughts!
A
Mohonasen @ Gloversville – Hooray for open sectionals:
Mohon hasn’t won a game yet. I’m actually cool with them being in though.
Unlike Section 3 (where I see no need for opens because leagues tend to consist
of teams within the same class), it bounces around in Section 2. You’ll find As
in AA leagues or B leagues, Ds in C leagues, all that. Mohon plays in the
Suburban, without question the best conference for soccer. Gloversville has
struggled this season in a Foothills division that is alright, but certainly
not what the Suburban is. Mohonasen’s made improvements throughout the season…
and I actually think they’ll get their first win of the season. Give it to the
Warriors 2-1.
B
Ravena @ Schalmont – This is why I don’t care for open
sectionals. Schalmont 5-0… at halftime. I’ll give them 8-0.
Corinth @ Hoosick Falls – Ehh, this one might be a little
interesting. I don’t think so though. Hoosick Falls knows what they’re doing
come sectional time and they’ll at least make it to the quarters against
Schalmont, 4-1 Panthers.
Tamarac @ Cairo-Durham – Tamarac averages over 3 goals a
game despite being a touch under .500 – AKA they like to score in bunches when
they get the chance. They won’t get the chance, as the Mustangs like to shut
their opponents down. 3-1 Cairo-Durham.
Cohoes @ Voorheesville – The name of the game when it
comes to beating Cohoes is stop Thilo Bell. In their previous meeting, the
Blackbirds held him to 1 and they won 3-1. Go figure! Voorheesville has played
a lot of good teams tough, and I expect the 8 seed to inch forward in a 2-1
victory.
C
Waterford @ Greenwich – Greenwich already beat Waterford
3-1 in an early season meeting. The Fordians have went 3-3 in the last 6 games,
which is a vast improvement from the 2-7 to start. They still have trouble
scoring though, having only scored more than 2 goals in a game twice this year.
In the battle of old fashioned team names that play on the last syllable of the
town, I’ll take the Witches over the Fordians 2-0.
Cambridge @ Middleburgh – How can you go wrong with a
name like Brody Smith? The Knights in shining shin guards will take it to the
lowest seed of the tournament, 4-0.
Schoharie @ Hadley-Luzerne – This game might be close,
but it won’t be fun to watch. If you stop Matt Loubier, you stop Schoharie’s
offense, and it will come down to that.. I’ll take H-L 2-0.
Canajoharie @ Oppenheim-Ephratah/St. Johnsville – That name
isn’t long enough or anything. WAC opponents just a few miles apart. I’m taking
the home team in this one and hoping someone sends me a pizza from Ripepi’s in
the process. OESJ 3-1.
Doane Stuart @ Mekeel – I actually think Mekeel has some
interesting pieces. Not to win beyond this game, but at least enough for this one. The Meisenholder kid can
play. Mekeel, AKA the former Schenectady Christian that’s actually in Scotia,
3-0.
Spa Catholic @ Berne-Knox-Westerlo – Finally, an actual 1st round game and not a play-in to
become a sacrificial lamb game. Even though the winner of this one may
become the proverbial sacrificial lamb for Stillwater, but that’s neither here
nor there. These two are in opposite divisions of the WAC, and BKW won their
lone meeting 1-0. Spa Catholic has the best player in Liam Rice, but it won’t
be enough again. I’ll call it 3-1 this time.
Girls Soccer –
A
Lansingburgh @ Emma Willard – Yuck. This has yuck written
all over it. So yucky, I’m going to go. Emma Willard has beaten up on its CHVL
Class C & D opponents, but got tormented by quality opponent CCHS and Class
A 6 seed Troy. You can’t say that much more about Lansingburgh, who went well
under .500 against mainly Class B schools. When all is said and done, winners
win, and I think Talia Segal and the Jesters crew will lead Emma Willard to a 3-2
home W.
Averill Park @ Amsterdam – Averill Park has only 1 win… buttt
they’re in the Suburban. I don’t think that matters enough in this one. They’re
coming off a win, they’re at home and they’re pumped, and Cassy Robataille
protects the pipes like Roto Rooter. 2-1 Ewes. Ha, get it? Lady Rams? Oh…
B
Catskill @ Johnstown – Ugh, these play-in games! Haven’t
seen Catskill but I’ve seen teams they played against. I saw Johnstown.
Toss-up. I’m thinking home field makes a difference in this one. Bills >
Kitties. 3-1 Johnstown.
Watervliet @ Ichabod Crane – The beatdown already took
place once, there’s no need for it to happen again!.. But it will. 5-1 winners
the first time they played, my vote goes to nearly the same score. This time,
the Riders won’t let the Cannoneers score. 5-0 Ichabod Crane.
Holy Names @ Cobleskill – Coby beat Holy Names 3-0
earlier in the season, and they have to make a return trip. The Bulldogs did
well against opponents not in the top tier of the Colonial – 0-6 against
Schalmont, AAG, and Voorheesville, 5-2-2 against everyone else – and Holy Names
isn’t in the top tier of the Colonial. 4-2 C-R.
C
Greenwich @ Whitehall – I think Greenwich is starting to
come around. I just caught them score against Hoosic Valley and then hang on
for dear life to win 1-0 on the road, which was a pretty nice win for them.
Riding the wave of momentum, the 17 seed is on the right path to winning this
play-in game and I’ll take them 2-1.
Hadley-Luzerne @ Fort Plain – The Hilltoppers deal with a
team that’s been ranked in the top 3 in NYS in Class C all year and the
defending Class D champs in their league. They’ve seen solid C schools headed
into sectionals. Fort Plain teams tend to take pride in defending home field,
and I think they’ll be fine getting a home win here, 3-0.
Mayfield @ Duanesburg – They’re both in the WAC but in
different divisions, so this one hasn’t happened yet. These two seem pretty
evenly matched, so it could go either way. I haven’t picked an underdog much,
so I’ll roll the dice with Mayfield getting a couple strikes from Julie Hampton
and winning 3-2.
Galway @ Berne-Knox-Westerlo – More WACtion! Opposite
divisions, first meeting for these squads too and it seems like another Even
Steven battle. BKW seems to be hitting their mark a little bit, so I’ll pick
them to advance in a 3-1 game.
D
Spa Catholic @ Sharon Springs – Basically a play-in game,
the 8/9 matchup with 9 teams in the bracket. Spa Catholic just got their 1st
win in program history recently, from what I remember. I’m still picking Sharon
Springs to be the one that has to deal with Bolton-Warrensburg. 3-1 Sharon.
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