By ANDREW CHAMPAGNE
Twitter.com/AndrewChampagne
Chaos has reigned supreme so far in the
Section II lacrosse tournaments. The thunderstorms that introduced
themselves to the area earlier this week wreaked havoc on the
schedule, especially Wednesday, when all three girls finals at
UAlbany were postponed.
Here, now, is a quick analysis of the
six brackets, three for each gender.
BOYS
Class A: This is about the most
normalized bracket you could have imagined. The lone upset came when
No. 9 La Salle topped No. 8 Columbia in a play-in game, we haven't
had any weather issues to speak of, and we're left with the top four
seeds contesting the two semifinals on Thursday. Shen hosts
Guilderland in the 1-4 game, while CBA welcomes Shaker in the 2-3.
Class B: Weather forced audibles in two
quarterfinal games. BH-BL had to wait until Wednesday to play the
final minutes of their 11-4 win over Queensbury, while Scotia and
Albany Academy saw their entire game pushed back 24 hours. Meanwhile,
juggernaut Niskayuna looked flat-out unbeatable in their first
playoff game against Troy. The Silver Warriors scored 29 goals, 18 in
the first quarter, and have not been beaten this year. The winner of
Thursday's Ballston Spa-Burnt Hills game likely has a huge task on
their hands Saturday at UAlbany in the final.
Class C: Glens Falls rolled
Lansingburgh in their 1-4 semifinal, and Schuylerville is heavily
favored in theirs this evening against a Cambridge team they beat
twice this year. That would set up a rematch of Schuylerville's lone
Class C loss all year, a one-goal defeat at the hands of the Indians
late in the year that cost them the No. 1 seed.
GIRLS
Class A: Guilderland has looked every
bit the part of the No. 1 seed this year, and they'll battle another
very strong A team in Shaker, one that demolished No. 3 Shenendehowa
in their semifinal round. These two teams have built up quite a
rivalry, and the vibe after Shaker's semifinal win was that this game
was going to come down to the final minutes and whoever made more
plays.
Class B: Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake beat
perennial powerhouse Niskayuna in one of the best high school games
I've seen all year. Now, they get Queensbury, who they were tied with
late in their season opener before yielding five consecutive goals to
end the game. Coach Jake McHerron has said his squad is a much better
unit than they were that night at Union College, so this should be a
fun game to watch Thursday.
Class C: Albany Academy has been
rolling all season long. Their losses have come to bigger schools,
and in the one I was in attendance for (against Shen), the Bears kept
the game close with pressure defense. At this level, their offense
can be very potent. They go up against Emma Willard, who sprung an
upset over Glens Falls on the road in their semifinal and are, to an
extent, playing with house money at this point.
I'll definitely be at the
BH-BL/Queensbury girls game, which at this point is still set for
5:30 p.m. at UAlbany. Additionally, I'll definitely be at the Class B
boys final Saturday, and will be at the A and/or C finals if Shen
and/or Schuylerville win their semifinal games. You can follow me on
Twitter for all the latest updates from those games at
@AndrewChampagne.
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I'll update this list as I find out new info.
