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Baseball sectionals
Meyer’s walk-off homer sparks Bulldogs’ quarter-final victory
Great season run ends in loss to Pine Plains
Quarterfinals: Sullivan West 8, Ellenville 6
Semifinals: Pine
Plains 6, Sullivan West 0
By RICHARD
A. ROSS
JEFFERSONVILLE, NY — Sectionals: the second season. This is
what you work for all season: the chance to go as far as you can. The dream
is to make it all the way. With the regular season and the Division IV title
behind them, Sullivan West was stoked for the opportunity. A well-rested
Everett Saul took the mound on May 27 as the third-seeded Bulldogs sought
to use their homefield advantage against Ellenville.
An enthusiastic crowd cheered the Bulldogs on as they took
the field in the first inning. After striking out leadoff hitter Brian Collier,
Saul walked Matt Burn and gave up a single to Skyler Hoff. The hit and run
play was on and Burn reached third. With runners at the corners and one out,
catcher Joe Schuyler then hit a monstrous home run to right center and Ellenville
took a 3-0 lead. The crowd seemed dismayed but Saul, who has plenty of poise
and good stuff, struck out the next two batters.
Coach Scheibe gathered his players as they came in and told
them, “We’ve got them right where we want them.” Though they were losing,
the situation was familiar. In the Division title game against Burke, Saul
had yielded two runs in the first inning but settled in to pitch a gem. The
team rallied back and won. Both Scheibe and his team fully expected a similar
outcome.
Sullivan West failed to capitalize on a leadoff single by
Billy Nordenhold. Saul was called out after being hit in the back running
to first base on the wrong side of the baseline. Matt Berger hit into an
inning ending double play.
Ellenville failed to score in the top of the second. Jay Henry
hit a smash to deep left center but it was caught. His powerful bat would
be instrumental later in the game.
Saul continued to blank the Ellenville hitters and in the
bottom of the third inning, the Bulldogs finally got on the board. After
Sean Kelly and Ed Raum struck out, Bill Nordenhold singled and promptly stole
second. A passed ball brought him to third. Saul beat out an infield single
and Nordenhold scored making the score 3-1. Matt Berger was walked intentionally
and Henry hit another long fly-out, once again getting good wood on the ball
but missing the gap.
Every game has its dramatic innings. This one had two of them,
the fourth and the seventh. In the fourth inning, Saul got out of a bases-loaded
two out jam by striking out pitcher Brian Collier with bases loaded. In the
bottom of the frame, the fun started. Jake Sauer-Jones led off with a double.
Ryan Taylor’s sacrifice fly sent Sauer-Jones to third. An errant throw back
to the pitcher sent Sauer-Jones home to make it 3-2. Joe Meyer worked out
a walk. Sean Kelly singled. After Ed Raum fouled out, Billy Nordenhold ripped
a double to tie the game. That was all for Collins. Skyler Hoff came on in
relief and was greeted by Everett Saul’s two- run single to put the Bulldogs
up 5-3.
Saul pitched a scoreless fifth inning. Joe Meyer had an RBI
double in the bottom of the inning scoring Jake Sauer-Jones who had reached
on an error. Sauer-Jones got to third on a ground out by Taylor. Mike Washington
hit a tremendous fly-out that ended the inning. Sullivan West led 6-3.
Matt Berger came on in relief of Saul to start the sixth.
Ellenville gave up a leadoff single to Josh Polick who stole second. A double
by Kevin Burns made the score 6-4. Berger struck out two and got out of the
inning without any further damage.
The seventh inning was another story. After failing to score
in the bottom of the sixth, the Bulldogs watched their lead evaporate in
the top of the seventh. A lead off walk to Schuyler and a single to Jason
Budd gave Ellenville runners on first and second with no one out. A bunt
by Stephen Figueroa moved the runners up. Polick followed with a two-run
single to tie the score at 6-6. Polick was caught stealing and a subsequent
fly-out ended the inning.
Jay Henry hit a lead off single to start the bottom of the
seventh. The senior who has played great left field and hit the ball hard
all year came through when his team really needed him. Sauer-Jones bunted
Henry to second. After Taylor flew out, Meyer came up. Hoff dished up a fastball
right over the plate and before you could say “that ball is gone,” it was
soaring over the right field fence. Ball game over! Sectional game over!
The Bulldogs win! The Bulldogs win! (Sorry John Sterling, I couldn’t resist!)
The crowd erupted and the players hefted Meyer onto their
backs. It was a moment none of them will soon forget. Saul struck out ten,
Nordenhold was three for four and Meyer had driven in three runs. Going into
sectionals, Scheibe said, “We hope to make some noise.” This writer’s ears
are still ringing.
Fine Bulldogs’s season ends
with 6-0 loss to Pine Plains
PINE PLAINS, NY—Second-seeded Pine Plains had gone undefeated
in their division this year. Last year, they lost the sectional title to
Marlboro. Their agenda was clear: get back to the finals and try to knock
off the top-ranked B team in the state. But first, there was Sullivan West.
The Bulldogs had to face Pat Shanley who fired a five-hitter. He struck out
five and walked none on the way to a 6-0 shutout. Pine Plains’ disposal of
Sullivan West did not help them in their quest. They went on to lose the
final against Marlboro. Everett Saul went two for three as did Joe Meyer.
Mike Washington added a pinch hit in the losing effort. Ryan Taylor pitched
six innings and gave up six runs and nine hits. Only two of those runs were
earned.
Sullivan West’s coach Kurt Scheibe was proud of his team.
Speaking about the Ellenville win, he said “We got great contributions from
players up and down the lineup. Henry and Washington hit the ball well and
Nordenhold was on base nearly every time.” He spoke glowingly about Sauer-Jones
and Meyer as well. Scheibe felt his team was competitive and always expected
to win. “It’s something I learned from my high school coaches Phil Pompeii
and Andy Taggart at Tri-Valley. One of my biggest dreams was to coach against
Pompeii someday, someone I have the greatest respect for, but unfortunately,
he had to give up coaching before I got the chance.”
Scheibe was also very grateful for the help he received from
Phil Fanning and Doug Hart who stayed on and worked hard despite the fact
that the district had eliminated the assistant coaching positions. They did
it for the kids and the love of the game.
All in all it was a great season and despite the move up to
B that many predicted would be disastrous, the Bulldogs proved they were
right where they belonged. Congratulations to seniors Henry, Sauer-Jones,
Saul and Compton and to the rest of the Bulldogs on a truly memorable spring.
Softball sectionals
Late rally falls short in loss to Ellenville
Quarterfinals: Ellenville 5, Sullivan West 3
By RICHARD
A. ROSS
ELLENVILLE, NY — It’s not how hard you hit the ball; it’s
where you hit it that counts. That maxim turned out to be the story of the
game under the lights on May 27 as number four-seeded Ellenville and number
five-seeded Sullivan West played the rubber game of their season series.
This wasn’t just a question of winning the best of three as it
came down to one that mattered much more than the other two. After all,
this was the
Sectionals.
Getting here was noteworthy. Only about forty teams in the
state manage to do so. The regular season match-ups ended with each team
registering a win on its own field, the most recent being sparked by Lesley
Bright’s game winning single at Jeffersonville.
Bulldog hurler Erin Rosenberger and Ellenville’s Sara Finkbeiner
figured to be key in the match-up. Both had improved steadily as the season
progressed and both had proven they could pitch with authority. The first
three innings confirmed that fact. Defense was key as the teams matched scoreless
frames that featured good glove work and throwing. Time and again the Bulldogs
got good wood on the bat but seemed to always find a Lady Devil waiting just
at that location. That trend looked to be broken by Tiffany Hauser’s powerful
triple to right field in the second inning. Unfortunately, she was stranded
at third as the Bulldogs were unable to capitalize on the scoring opportunity.
Ellenville encountered the same difficulties stranding Finkbeiner at third
after she had a triple in the bottom of the third.
Lauren Schmalzk led off the bottom of the fourth with a single
to left field. She promptly stole second and then third. A bunt single by
Shannon Gash gave the Lady Devils first and third with no out. Gash stole
second. Kristen Cavanaugh’s single scored Schmalzk but Bright tagged Gash
out at the plate. Lacey Hamilton drove in another run with a single before
the inning ended giving Ellenville a 2-0 lead. The Bulldogs failed to score
in the top of the fifth after Heather Nober drew a leadoff walk and stole
second. A bunt by Amanda Patterson sent Nober to third, but once again the
inning ended leaving the runner only 60 feet away. Ellenville didn’t score
in the bottom of the fifth either.
In the top of the sixth, the Bulldogs had runners on first
and second with one out following a single by Katrina Meyer and a walk by
Lesley Bright. The inning proved to be unproductive following a double play
and a fly-out.
Ellenville got it going in the bottom of the sixth. Gash walked
and reached second on a fielder’s choice by Allison Comintino who hit a single
and then stole second. With runners on second and third and one out, Lacey
Hamilton hit a two-run single. Hamilton got to second and subsequently scored
on a single by Amanda Kaplan. The score stood at 5-0 as the Bulldogs came
up to get last licks.
The bottom of the inning proved interesting, featuring hits
by Heather Nober, Madelyn Argueta, Christina Vidal and Kim Jay. When the
smoke cleared, it was 5-3 with Jay on base. Katrina Meyer represented the
tying run at the plate, but Finkbeiner finally got Meyer out on a game-ending
pop up. Meyer had been 2-for-3 up to that point.
Coaches Ellmauer and Meyer gathered their team in the infield
to congratulate and console them. Ellmauer noted, “One of the hard things
about sectionals is losing. We played hard all year to get here, an honor
held by the top 40 teams in the state. We were young and we did well. We’ve
moved up two classes in two years and yet we were in a sectional game we
could have won. We had our chances.”
Coach Meyer told the girls, “You played like pros.”
Ellenville’s victory celebration was short-lived as it ran
into top-seeded Cornwall in the next round and lost 7-2. Christina Stathes
struck out eleven for the Green Dragons in the win.
Congratulations to the Lady Bulldogs on a fine season. Coach
Ellmauer was especially grateful for the leadership shown by seniors Kim
Jay, Tiffany Hauser and Heather Nober. Look for the Bulldogs to be back in
the mix next year with the experience from this year’s sectional game under
their belts.
Track state qualifier meet
Morgan and Ackerman punch a ticket to states
WARWICK, NY — Following the sectional meet, Sullivan
West coaches Bauer and Shakelton advised Jeremy Morgan to rest and heal.
The winner
of the Section 9 400-meter hurdles was going to face some serious competition
at the state qualifier.
Banged up and sore, Morgan heeded their advice. As a result,
he blew the competition away with a staggering time of 55.5 seconds. He beat
out all hurdlers in Section 9, though his time would have gotten him to states
even if he hadn’t. The state sets qualifying times that are rarely reached.
Morgan bested that standard by a full second.
He will continue his stellar season at the state track and
field championships on June 7 at Union-Endicott High School, where he will
face other nine sectional champion hurdlers.
Sullivan West fielded an impressive total of fifteen at the
state qualifier, while some large schools such as Kingston sent only three
or four.
The other Bulldog standout of the day was April Ackerman.
The freshman came in first in the Division II schools with a blistering 11:09
in the 3000-meter run. It was a personal best time for her. Like Morgan,
she will be facing the other sectional champs in her event. Given the fact
that she is a freshman, the experience will be incredibly valuable regardless
of the outcome.
The Lady Bulldog 4x400 relay team of April Ackerman, Kelly
Mullally, Jessica Wagner and Jamie Clifford were edged out of a spot at states
by Tri-Valley’s team of Jen Gorman, Heather Iaturo, Colleen Carey and Candice
Carroll. Tri-Valley’s time of 4:10 put them ahead of the Bulldogs by a slim
three seconds. Jessica Wagner ran her best 400 split with a 62.2. In the
3200-relay, Tri-Valley also denied Sullivan a chance to go to states with
a time of 10:02. The Bears (Erin Beach, Melinda O’Neill, Heather Iaturo and
Courtney Roosa) bested the Bulldogs by thirteen seconds. In this race, Kim
Parks replaced Kelly Mullally from the 4x400 team. The other three runners
were the same.
In other highlights of the day, Amanda Ward ran an 8:17 in
the 2000 steeplechase, which was a minute faster than her initial try at
9:35 not that long ago. Heather Iaturo beat all comers with a qualifier shattering
time of 6:53.9. Ian Parnett came in fifth in the 1600 but failed to qualify
despite running an impressive 4:40.6. Matt Manzi of Liberty won the Division
II 800 with a time of 2:00.9.
Other locals heading to states include Liberty’s Renauld Buck
who led all Division II shot putters with a 49-7 and Monticello’s Katy Schlichtman
who led all 400-meter hurdlers with a time of 62.5.
Patrick Branning of Livingston Manor turned in a noteworthy
performance placing fourth in the triple jump (42-11). Kyle Anthony of Eldred
came in fifth in the same event (42-9 ¾). As only a freshman, his jump surpassed
a school record of 42-6 set by Glenn Borselmann in 1975.
The Briggs’ sisters from Cornwall comprised half of the needed
4x400 team that is headed to states after besting the state qualifying time
with a 3:52.7. They also beat out all Division II teams.
For Sullivan West track, it has been an amazing spring. With
a Division IV title for the boys, a 7-1 Division record for the girls, sectional
titles achieved by Morgan and VanWagenen and overall results at the state
qualifiers, the Bulldogs have shown they are a force to be reckoned with.
Hopefully, many of the key team members will be following the running regimens
that their coaches set for them to follow this summer. That should translate
into an exceptional cross country and indoor-track season and remarkable
results for next year’s Bulldogs track team. Great job kids and coaches.
Your school, parents, friends and community are very proud of you.
Sullivan West will hold its athletic awards presentation on
Friday, June 13 at 6:30 p.m. in the gym on the Jeffersonville Campus.
Academic recognition
SCCC honors student athletes
Semenetz Named Athlete of the Year
LOCH SHELDRAKE, NY — Sullivan County Community College honored
its student athletes at the annual athletic banquet on May 12. Director of
Athletics Christopher DePew was master of ceremonies for the evening. He
was joined in recognizing various teams by women’s volleyball coach Bryan
Bury, cross-country coach Chad Nykamp, women’s basketball coach Kyle Walter,
golf coach Matt Turnbull and men’s basketball coach Chad Beeten.
The Athlete of the Year Award was presented to sophomore Gregg
Semenetz, a member of the golf team selected from a group of athletes recommended
by each coach. Semenetz has been selected twice for each of the following:
the first team Mid-Hudson Golf Team, the first team National Junior College
Athletic Association (NJCAA), the Region XV Golf Team, and the NJCAA National
Championship Qualifier. He will compete for the NJCAA Division III National
Men’s Golf Championship from June 1 to 6 in Buffalo, NY. Semenetz will attend
Arizona State University this fall.
Chad Beeten was recognized as the NJCAA, Division III, Region
XV Men’s Basketball Coach of the Year, and Tyler White was added to the Mid-Hudson
All-Conference 2003 Golf Team.
Sullivan West to present athletic awards
By RICHARD
A. ROSS
JEFFERSONVILLE, NY—The spring athletic awards presentation
will be held on Friday, June 13 at 7:00 p.m. in the ’94 gymnasium of
the Jeffersonville campus. The final 2002-2003 presentation will not only
honor spring athletes, but senior athletes as well. Awards being presented
will include senior plaques, Milt Gaebel awards, coaches awards, most valuable
player awards, and the Billy Moran Scholarship Award.
A spring athletic awards assembly for all modified athletes
will be held on Friday, June 6 at 9:30 a.m. in the ’94 gymnasium of
the Jeffersonville campus.
All parents, friends and family are welcome to attend.
Golf
Golf tournament at SC Golf Club
LIBERTY, NY —The Kiwanis Club of Liberty will hold the
Priority One Golf Tournament on Saturday June 7 at 1:00 p.m., hosted by the
Sullivan County Golf Club on Route 52. The $55 entry fee includes a cart,
greens fees, barbecue and prizes. Proceeds from will go to the Liberty Kiwanis
Community Service Fund.
For more information call Harold Tighe at 845/583-6097 or
Art Turse at 845/292-8846.
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