Ron Moshier - Sports

A Whitesboro football star is born?

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 04:32:00 +0000

Don’t know who this Jordan Smith guy is, but it’s a good bet Class A National Division football teams are going to find out.

Whitesboro quarterback Junior Woodard certainly was impressive in the Warriors’ season-opening, 41-27 loss to Class AA rival Rome Free Academy. That was no surprise. But Jordan Smith?

He may have been too far down last year’s depth chart to raise many eyebrows as a junior, but the 5-foot-7, 155-pound Smith had an eye-catching, not to mention eventful, opening night at RFA Stadium.

The muffed punt can be excused. So can that 4th-and-8 pass that RFA’s Marco Dominic snatched away from him and teammate Chris Gibbs.

The speedy Smith was dazzling, to say the least, as a kick returner and pass receiver. He returned five kickoffs 192 yards, including a 90-yard touchdown, and he had five receptions for 106 yards, including a 20-yard touchdown.

If this was a preview of things to come, stay tuned. It should be fun to watch. Whitesboro’s Warriors may be known for their smash-mouth ways. But now, they’ve got a couple of shifty, big-play backs who will give Class A teams fits this season, especially in games played on artificial turf.

High school football's dream team?

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 03:13:00 +0000

Area high school football teams are ready to tee it up and play for real.

Just for the fantasy football fun of it, though, who might be the top picks if – for entertainment purposes only, of course – we were to hold an O-D All-Mohawk Valley High School Fantasy Football League draft?

QUARTERBACK: Oneida’s Ryan Kramer. This will be his third season calling signals for a wide-open, spread offense loaded with other proven weapons. Kramer’s thrown for over 2,500 yards and 24 touchdowns over the last two seasons, so give him the edge over two other seniors, New Hartford’s Mike Doyle and Thomas R. Proctor’s Kelly Olney. Doyle passed for 1,420 yards and 18 touchdowns last season, but prime target Mike Kelly, an all-state end, is among several Spartan receivers who were lost to graduation.

RUNNING BACK: Adirondack’s Scott Dunlap and Dolgeville’s Clay Ardoin. While sharing the load with QB-TB Cody Hitt (1,210 yards and 13 TDs) and FB Cody Spann (912 yards, 11 TDs), Dunlap still managed to rush for 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns as a junior. Now, he’ll be the Wildcats’ go-to guy, and he’s built for their smash-mouth ways. Ardoin only carried the ball 74 times last season, largely because the Blue Devils won six games by at least 35 points. He still averaged nearly eight yards per carry and scored 15 touchdowns, 10 on the ground, three as a receiver, and two more on interception returns. The area’s top returning rusher is Frankfort-Schuyler workhorse Jordan Lints (1,301 yards on 205 carries), but he ran for only seven touchdowns and the Maroon Knights have moved up to Class C.

RECEIVER: Rome Free Academy’s Marco Dominic and Herkimer’s J.J. Crandall. As a junior, Dominic caught 25 passes for 476 yards and eight touchdowns last year. Crandall, whose older brother Kyle is an Ithaca College receiver and former Herkimer High star, had 25 receptions for 267 yards and nine touchdowns. Proctor’s D.J. Pearson would be a high pick, too, after catching 25 passes for 313 yards and three touchdowns as a junior. Camden’s Kyle Conniff, who caught 27 passes last year, would be another consideration.

TIGHT END: Oneida’s Brandon Miles and RFA’s Corey White. Miles had 27 receptions for 558 yards and six touchdowns, and those numbers could be even better this season. White, often used as an “H-back” at RFA, had 26 catches for 262 yards and one touchdown last year.

KICKER: In “real” fantasy football, he’d be your last pick. Same here. Just for kicks, though, let’s go with Holland Patent’s Adam Santamour and Sauquoit Valley’s Devyn Hollenbeck, the latter if only because he was 7-for-7 in PAT attempts in last year’s 71-49 loss to Adirondack.

DEFENSE: Whitesboro (with veterans Matt Tutino and Sean Wlock at linebacker), Dolgeville (with Doug Gray at defensive end and Ardoin and Andy Johnston at linebacker) and Notre Dame (with Kevin Collins and Caden Romeo at linebacker and Luke Manolescu at safety).

Football realignment's good, bad, & ugly

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 03:45:00 +0000

This year’s reclassification of New York State’s football-playing high schools may have led to changes for the better for some area teams. For others? Not so much.

The good: With Ilion dropping down from Class B and Frankfort-Schuyler moving up from Class D, the Class C East schedule will renew some very old Mohawk Valley rivalries. Thanks to reclassification (by new enrollment cutoffs) and Section III realignment, Frankfort-Schuyler, Herkimer, Ilion, and Little Falls are together again, joining Adirondack, Cooperstown and Sauquoit Valley in a much more fan-friendly league.

The bad: Westmoreland, a perennial Class C North power whose Bulldogs had grown to love their long-distance rivalry with General Brown, now finds itself in the new Class C South with three former Class B teams – defending Section III champ Cazenovia, Clinton and Sherburne-Earlville – Canastota, and last year’s Class C East champ, Mount Markham.

The ugly: Class D West neighbors Hamilton and Morrisville-Eaton would be better off playing each other every week for the “Jug.” Their other league matchups aren’t that appealing. Including Watertown’s Immaculate Heart Central to the North and Weedsport to the West, we’re talking the outermost reaches of Section III. Bus trips to or from Beaver River and Sandy Creek are nothing to get excited about, either.

Unfortunately, this is what you get when league play must take a backseat to state playoffs. It’s a product of the system, like it or not. We’re always going to have to take the good with the bad, sometimes even the ugly, as long as we insist on crowning five (AA-A-B-C-D) state champions.

Spartan gridders homeless

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 02:54:00 +0000

New Hartford’s high school football team will be hitting the road for all of its games this season.

With New Hartford’s Don Edick Field scheduled to be torn up and covered by artificial turf, the Spartans will play their “home” games at Thomas R. Proctor High School’s D’Alessandro Stadium, Rome Free Academy Stadium, and Sauquoit Valley High School.

New Hartford, a Section III Class A finalist a year ago, plays National Division rival Camden at Proctor on opening night, Sept. 5.

“Obviously, we’d like to play at home, but it’s not going to change our approach,” said New Hartford head coach Bob Jones. “I just feel bad for the seniors not being able to play at home in their final season. I don’t think it will bother the kids, though. It’ll be different, that’s all.”

One Spartan who will probably look forward to playing those home games at neutral sites (all have artificial turf) is junior tailback Joey Carcone. At RFA Stadium last year, he showed his big-play potential in a 22-15 win over Whitesboro in the Section III Class A semifinals.

Section III's Class C draws football crowd

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 23:44:00 +0000

Winning a Section III football title is never easy. Winning a Section III Class C football title will be tougher than ever this season.

A change in New York State’s classification cutoff numbers means the number of Class C football teams in Section III has grown from 19 to 27, and the number of “C” leagues has grown from three to four divisions.

Now that schools with enrollment between 276-440 are considered Class C, Cazenovia, Sherburne-Earlville, Altmar-Parish-Williamstown, Ilion, Clinton, Jordan-Elbridge, and LaFayette/Fabius-Pompey have dropped from Class B to Class C, and Frankfort-Schuyler has moved up from Class D.

Two other schools – Oneida and Chittenango – have dropped from Class A to Class B.

The changes in classification cutoff numbers means Class AA includes schools with enrollment of 1,051 and up; Class A from 626-1,050; Class B from 441-625; Class C from 276-440; and Class D from 0-275.

After reclassification and realignment, here is how Section III’s 79 football-playing high schools will line up this season (which begins on Friday, Sept. 5):

CLASS AA-1

Christian Brothers Academy

Cicero-North Syracuse

Fayetteville-Manlius

Liverpool

Thomas R. Proctor

West Genesee

CLASS AA-2

Auburn

Baldwinsville

Central Square

Corcoran

Henninger

Rome Free Academy

CLASS A AMERICAN

Cortland

East Syracuse-Minoa

Fowler

Fulton

Jamesville-DeWitt

Mexico

Oswego

CLASS A NATIONAL

Camden

Carthage

New Hartford

Nottingham

Watertown

Whitesboro

CLASS B EAST

Chittenango*

Vernon-Verona-Sherrill

South Jefferson

Holland Patent

Oneida*

CLASS B WEST

Homer

Marcellus

Phoenix

Skaneateles

Solvay

Westhill

CLASS C EAST

Adirondack

Cooperstown

Frankfort-Schuyler*

Herkimer

Ilion*

Little Falls

Sauquoit Valley

CLASS C NORTH

Alexandria Bay

Altmar-Parish-Williamstown*

General Brown

Lowville

Pulaski

South Lewis

Thousand Islands

CLASS C SOUTH

Canastota

Cazenovia*

Clinton*

Mount Markham

Sherburne-Earlville*

Westmoreland

CLASS C WEST

Bishop Ludden

Cato-Meridian

Hannibal

Jordan-Elbridge*

LaFayette*

Port Byron

Tully

CLASS D EAST

Dolgeville

Mohawk

New York Mills

Notre Dame

Oriskany

Richfield Springs

Waterville

West Canada Valley

CLASS D WEST

Beaver River

Bishop Grimes

Hamilton

Morrisville-Eaton

Onondaga

Sandy Creek

Watertown IHC

Weedsport

* Changed class

Favre out of favor

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 03:56:00 +0000

Brett a Jet? Say it ain’t so!

From The Pack and Green Bay’s frozen tundra to Gang Green and Broadway goes Brett Favre, with no happy ending in sight.

Villain or victim (you make the call), Brett Favre will never be the same. More than likely, another legendary NFL quarterback is about to go out with a whimper, not a bang.

As good as he still could be with the right team (like the one he used to play for), Favre won’t be leading the New York Jets to any promised land. And unfortunately, another storied career will end on a sour note.

No, it didn’t have to end this way, but Brett Favre reminded all of us after the trade that “this is a business,” and the business side of the NFL just turned a legacy into a sad, sorry saga.

Lomong deserves Olympic honor

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 03:11:00 +0000

Those who don’t know his story, should take the time to scour the internet and read anything they can find on U.S. Olympian Lopez Lomong.

Whether you’ve heard of him or not, something the distance runner who not long ago ran for Tully High School, near Syracuse, said in a recent New York Times story by Jere Longman should pique your interest:

“Before, I ran from danger and death. Now, I run for sport. It would be an honor to represent the country that saved me and showed me the way.”

Lomong, once a child prisoner in East Africa and a Sudanese refugee and now a proud American citizen, said that before the U.S. Olympic Trials. Now, he gets that chance to represent the United States. He has qualified in the 1,500-meter run, and his amazing story will most certainly be told again and again – most deservedly so – during these Olympic Games in Beijing.

Lomong, who won an NCAA track and field championship in the 1,500 when he was attending Northern Arizona, will also carry the American flag during the opening ceremonies. Whether he goes on to win a medal or not, Lopez Lomong’s story will be one of tremendous success, a story worth telling over and over again.

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At the Mike Hart of the matter

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 03:38:00 +0000

One preseason game an NFL career does not make, but it’s a good bet former Onondaga Central School and University of Michigan star running back Mike Hart proved a few more disbelievers wrong in his pro football debut with the Indianapolis Colts.

The 5-foot-9, 206-pound Hart, considered too small by most and too slow by many, rushed for 53 yards on four carries and caught three passes for 28 yards in the Colts’ 30-16 loss to the Washington Redskins in the opener of the NFL’s exhibition season.

This Syracuse kid has been proving people wrong for years, since he was leading Onondaga’s Tigers to three straight state championships and rushing for 11,232 yards and scoring 204 touchdowns during a national record-setting high school career. At Michigan, he did it again, rushing for a school-record 5,040 yards and 41 touchdowns.

Now, as a rookie chosen in the sixth-round of the draft, Hart is in the NFL, ready, willing, and you’d better believe, able, to prove more people wrong.

Small by NFL standards? Slow by NFL standards? So what? If you could measure Mike Hart’s heart, you would find he does measure up. He’s a football player, period, and for his sake, let’s hope the Colts, or some other NFL team, realizes it.

Notre Dame basketball looking good

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 01:18:00 +0000

The start of their high school basketball season is four months away, but if any Mohawk Valley team can dare to hoop dream, it’s Notre Dame’s Jugglers.

How they played in a 69-38 win over Rome Free Academy in the SUNYIT Summer League final was encouraging, to say the least. Even Notre Dame coach Mike Durr, who’s never easy to impress, has to feel good about the Jugglers and the 2008-2009 season.

“I think we’re going to have some fun this year,” Durr said after the win.

There is much to look forward to, including the return of senior guards Matt Petrone and Jerrell Hunter, and juniors Pat Moore and Mike Hill. Petrone, who played AAU basketball with the Albany City Rocks’ 17-and-under team this year, is a left-handed point guard who will be more of an offensive threat. Hill is a sharpshooter who can score from long range, Hunter can hurt you inside and out, and Moore, an AAU standout on the Albany City Rocks’ 16-and-under team, just might be the Mohawk Valley area’s best player now that Thomas R. Proctor’s Deandre Preaster has moved on.

The Jugglers also have been bolstered by the addition of senior Caden Romeo, a physical forward who can rebound as well as score from the perimeter.

“He’s good inside, real tough down low,” said Moore. “We need somebody like that.”

You can expect Notre Dame to be deeper than it was last year, too, with Luke Manolescu, Mike Grace and Dylan Davis in the frontcourt and Tom Giglio at guard, to name just a few. And you know that Durr will have each and every one of them playing hard, especially on the defensive end, or else.

Yes, it’s early, but when Mike Durr starts talking about having some “fun” this year, that can’t be good news for the rest of the Tri Valley League. Stay tuned.

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Nine innings two too many?

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 02:28:00 +0000

Their regular-season games were seven innings long. So were the games they played in last week’s Oneida County tournament.

Now, with the District V title and a berth in next week’s state championships at stake, American Legion baseball games from here on out are nine innings.

This is good baseball, to be sure. It’s not the major leagues, though. And too often, too many pitchers are throwing too many pitches because of those two extra innings. Arms can suffer, so can the game itself.

When you get to the postseason and you’re playing best-of-three series or double-elimination tournaments, few teams have enough pitching. Going from seven to nine innings makes it a different game, to be sure.

Do nine innings make it a better game? That’s debatable.

A call to (many) arms

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 03:11:00 +0000

Calling all arms, calling all arms. That’s what it is going to take to win the District V American Legion baseball title this week.

Now that games are nine innings, not seven, from here on out, pitching quality and quantity will be put to the test. As for quality, Rome’s Smith Post has two NCAA Division I arms in righty Joe Melioris and lefty Garrett Baker, and good luck trying to find another No. 3 starter as good as Kyle Richardson.

Nine-inning games, however, put more of an emphasis on quantity, and when it comes to strength in numbers, New Hartford Post – runner-up to Smith in the Oneida County tournament last week – may have the edge there. Armed with lefties Erik Sheridan, Eric Verbickas, Alex Giovannone and Tyler Porter and right-handers Chandler Evans, Dan Nelson and Pat Derrane, New Hartford has seven pitchers who have thrown at least 12 innings this season – Smith Post has the aforementioned Big Three.

That should add up to an interesting week of baseball at Rome’s DeLutis Field.

Legion tourney a bit thin?

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 02:45:00 +0000

The District V American Legion baseball tournament begins Wednesday, with Oneida County champion Smith Post of Rome as the clear favorite.

This year, only one other Oneida County team, runner-up New Hartford, has a shot at winning the district title and earning that coveted berth in next week’s state championship tournament in Newburgh.

Ilion and Sackets Harbor are the other teams in a best-of-3 style tournament that would carry even more weight (and generate even more local interest) if Oneida County had at least two more representatives. At least six of the other 11 Oneida County teams -- Whitestown, Utica, Adrean, Sherrill, Roberts and Love Post – would be worthy additions to this year’s districts.

Maybe next year, Oneida County will get more than two title shots. Let’s hope so! We deserve it.

Boilermaker is Utica's baby

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 03:43:00 +0000

That road race that has put Utica, N.Y., on the map is the Utica Boilermaker Road Race. It always has been referred to as Utica’s race, and it always should be.

Some have suggested a more regional approach to marketing the event, but the fact is, the Boilermaker was born and raised in Utica. It begins in Utica, it runs through Utica, and it ends in Utica.

Tim Reed, the Executive Director of the race, has said he wants it to be an event “that is open to everybody.” But it already is that, and much more.

For 31 years now, most have referred to the 15K as the Utica Boilermaker. There’s no need for a name change now.

Gas prices to threaten auto racing?

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 02:06:00 +0000

Gentlemen, don’t start your engines!!!

If you’re an auto racing fan of any kind, be it NASCAR, IndyCar, NHRA, or a Sunday night regular at the little dirt track down the road – in our case here, that would be Utica-Rome Speedway -- those aren’t the words you want to hear.

With gas prices still on the rise, however, and a gas crisis a scary but real possibility, the future of auto racing could be in jeopardy.

Race tracks around the country are reporting smaller crowds, presumably because of the rising gas prices. Could it be only a matter of time before somebody with plenty of political pull starts calling for a crackdown on the use of fuel for racing purposes altogether?

Year for year, Humphrey best Boilermaker local

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 03:49:00 +0000

Looking for a local runner to root for in this Sunday’s Utica Boilermaker 15K Road Race? Look no further than Deerfield’s Paul Humphrey.

He won’t be the leader of the pack, but he won’t be far off that pace. You can count on it.

Humphrey, who turned 41 on July 4, has been a frontrunner for years. If boxers are ranked pound-for-pound and runners are ranked year-for-year, he should rank as this area’s best Boilermaker runner because few (if anybody) has been this good for this long.

For the record, Sunday’s race will be his 21st consecutive Boilermaker, and the father of five has run the last 19 of them in less than 60 minutes. A year ago, he finished in 54 minutes, 44 seconds (54:44).

Not since his very first Boilermaker, way back in 1988 when he ran it in 1:13:36, has Humphrey needed more than an hour to finish the 9.3-mile race.

Look for his bib number in this year’s entries. Cheer him on this Sunday. He deserves it.

Boilermaker runners should use their heads

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 03:21:00 +0000

Running Sunday’s Boilermaker 15K Road Race? Running it for the health of it?

Then use your head.

The advance forecast, unfortunately for most of us, is calling for more heat and humidity. In other words, Boilermaker runners beware!

For most of us, finishing Utica’s great race with a smile should be your goal. So if that forecast holds true, leave your watch at home and have a nice day.

In the long run, you’ll be glad you did.

RCH baseball no loser

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 01:09:00 +0000

If it’s any consolation – and really, it should be -- Rome Catholic High School’s baseball team wasn’t a loser in the Class D state final at Binghamton University.

Let the record show that Chapel Field Christian School and Lions lefty Travis Renwick won 2-0, and leave it at that.

As state championship games go, this was about as good as it gets, and Rome Catholic High pitcher Joe Melioris Jr. and the Redwings had a lot to do with that.

Melioris pitched a two-hitter, struck out 10 and did not walk a batter and the Redwings – second baseman Eli Hedrington, center fielder Gino Campanaro, and first baseman Mike Henderson in particular – played well behind him.

It just so happened that one of those 10 strikeouts came on a 3-2 wild pitch, and that one of those hits was a mistake by the batter, not by Melioris, a swinging bunt down the third-base line that was followed by an opposite-field double that scored the only two runs of the game.

Unfortunately, that’s baseball, an at times frustrating game of “ifs” and “buts” whose outcome sometimes rages out of your control.

Unfortunately for the Redwings and their fans, that’s what kept RCH claiming its first state title. That, and the fact that unbeaten lefty Renwick was just as masterful, finishing with a three-hitter, eight strikeouts, and no walks.

No, the Redwings didn’t win. But anybody who saw that state championship game will tell you they didn’t lose it, either. Let the record show that Chapel Field’s Lions won 2-0, and that RCH made them earn it.

Proctor, Whitesboro baseball teams to play regional doubleheader Monday

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 14:30:00 +0000

Section III baseball champions Thomas R. Proctor High School and Whitesboro will be together again in a New York State Public High School Athletic Association regional doubleheader next Monday, June 9, at Shuttleworth Park in Amsterdam.

Whitesboro (20-5) plays a Class A regional semifinal at 4 p.m. and Proctor

(14-12) plays a Class AA regional championship game at 7 p.m. Both the Warriors and the Raiders will be playing the Section II champion from the Capital District area.

Section II semifinals are scheduled for today, June 4. In Class A, Ichabod Crane (18-7) plays Bishop Maginn (8-14) and Mohonasen (14-5) plays Scotia (15-9). In Class AA, Troy La Salle, 24-0 and ranked No. 1 in the state, plays Bethlehem (19-6) and Niskayuna (18-7) plays Columbia (17-9).

Whitesboro and Proctor won't know who they will play until Saturday night's Section II championship doubleheader at Joe Bruno Stadium.

A Whitesboro win Monday would send the Warriors to a Class A regional final Tuesday against a Section VII or Section X team at Alliance Bank Stadium in Syracuse. A Proctor win Monday would send the defending Class AA state champion Raiders back to the state Final Four.

The one-day, state championship Final Four tournament will again be held in the Binghamton area on Saturday, June 14. The Class A tournament will be played at NYSEG Stadium in Binghamton and the Class AA tournament will be played at Union-Endicott High School's Sylvester Field.

In Tuesday night's Section III championship doubleheader at Rome's Larry DeLutis Field, both Whitesboro and Proctor won in dramatic fashion, and both knocked off top-seeded teams.

In the Class A opener, top-seeded Mexico and Tigers ace James Williamson were on cruise control through six innings. Williamson had not allowed a Whitesboro hit and had thrown only 55 pitches, but after putting leadoff hitter George Hajjar in an 0-2 hole, he plunked him with a 1-2 pitch and then gave up a long run-scoring double to Al Ferenti. Matt Wilk tied it with a run-scoring single, and with two outs, No. 8 hitter Chris Vomer drove in the game-winner with a single to right field.

Senior pitcher T.J. Abounader, now 7-0, went the distance for Whitesboro, helping the Warriors win their first Section III title since 1974.

In the Class AA nightcap at DeLutis Field, Proctor also got a complete-game effort from its senior pitcher, Joe Perrotta. The right-hander allowed three unearned runs on four hits and struck out 10, but the Raiders had to erase 1-0, 2-1, and 3-2 deficits before Jacob Henry scored the sixth-inning game-winner on a two-out wild pitch. Leadoff man Devin Warmack had two hits, two stolen bases, and an RBI for the Raiders, who earlier in the Class AA tournament had eliminated two state-ranked teams, Rome Free Academy and Liverpool.

Clinton commands baseball respect

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Fri, 02 May 2008 19:10:00 +0000

Think this Clinton Central baseball team isn't for real? Think again.

That 5-3 win at New Hartford on Thursday may have been lost in Friday morning's fine print as just another score, but as far as Clinton head coach Brian Scoones and his Warriors were concerned, this was another big step in the right direction for a Class B program forced to face the Class A likes of Tri Valley League rivals Whitesboro, New Hartford, Vernon-Verona-Sherrill, Oneida and Camden on a regular, home-and-away basis.

"It's as big as you can get, considering it was New Hartford," Scoones said of the upset win over the Spartans, who had entered Thursday's game a perfect 11-0 and ranked No. 3 in New York State's Class A poll. "Now, I think our guys believe we can beat anybody."

And rightly so. Clinton's Warriors, whose pitchers had allowed only four hits in a 5-2 loss to two-time defending TVL East champion Whitesboro in their previous outing, got some more great pitching from starter Justin Corney and reliever Cory Gogola, a game-winning two-run double by Tyler Heck in the top of the seventh inning, and a potential game-saving catch from center fielder Jordan Hobaica in the bottom of the seventh and knocked offNew Hartford for the second straight season.

Corney has three quality starters and three no-decisions, and he leads Clinton with a .500 batting average. Lee Foxton is batting .472 with 24 RBIs, Chris Hughes (.485) and Heck (.440) are batting over .400, and Hobaica
(.385) isn't far behind. The Warriors are 3-3 in the TVL, 6-4 overall, and pitchers Zach Griffiths and Trevor Ford each have two wins.

Clinton didn't field a junior varsity team last year, but the Warriors made some noise in the Section III Class B-2 playoffs. They beat Ilion in the opening round, then lost to top-seeded Hannibal 4-3.

Don't be surprised if they are heard from again in this year's Section III tournament.

Keeping track of field events the problem

noreply@blogger.com (Ron Moshier) — Thu, 01 May 2008 03:34:00 +0000

Ever been to a track and field meet?

Go to New Hartford High School for Friday’s 55th annual New Hartford Invitational and look for Clinton’s Tom Wagner or Oneida’s Pat McLaughlin or Rome Free Academy’s Shawn Carter or Holland Patent’s Dan Fruscella. They’re among the best high school athletes in the area, most definitely worth watching.

Good luck finding them, though. If you’re not family or friend, you probably won’t know who’s who, and you won’t know who’s done what or where they stand until it’s over. That’s a shame.

On the track, the running events take center stage. In the field, the jumpers and the throwers and the pole vaulters toil in relative obscurity. That’s the problem.

Fan-friendly it isn’t. Uniform numbers and a program listing each participant, event-by-event, would help, but only a little. It’s too bad the jumpers and the throwers and the pole vaulters couldn’t have “invitationals” of their own, giving them a chance to compete, front and center, up close and personal with a crowd that otherwise can’t be sure what’s going on.

Only then will the casual fan really be able to appreciate just how talented, how competitive these athletes are. Only then will those athletes get the attention they so richly deserve.