TRR photo by Richard A. Ross Evan Kirsch of Liberty High School became the first Sullivan County scholastic baseball player to make it to the Empire State Games. He will be playing for the Hudson Valley team, comprised of standouts from Westchester, Dutchess, Putnam, Orange, Ulster and Sullivan county. The team will take its quest to Binghamton on July 24 through 27. For the past two years, the Hudson Valley team has won the silver medal.

Baseball

Empire Zone

Liberty’s Evan Kirsch first-ever Sullivan County player chosen for team at the Empire State Games

By RICHARD A. ROSS

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY—Athletic milestones are always big news. So when a local player makes it to another level, it grabs headlines. Excelling on your high school team is one thing. But being selected as one of the best baseball players from the region, including Dutchess, Putnam, Rockland, Westchester, Orange, Ulster and Sullivan counties, is a whole other matter.

So imagine the excitement felt by Liberty’s Evan Kirsch when his successful tryout led to his selection as one of the 20 scholastic baseball players representing the Hudson Valley for the upcoming Empire State Games in Binghamton from July 24 through 27.

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Monticello Men’s Softball League

All Ways smiling

By RICHARD A. ROSS

MONTICELLO, NY—They may not be the top team in the Monticello Men’s Softball League at the moment, but one thing you can say about the 2007 league runner-up, All Ways Taxi, is they come to play hard and have fun.

When Taxi was swept by Fitness Factory last August in the championship series, this writer used the famous phrase that was once the hallmark of the Brooklyn Dodgers: “Wait ‘til next year.” (After years of heart-rending defeats to the New York Yankees in the World Series, the Dodgers finally broke through in 1955.)

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Baseball

Summer school

By RICHARD A. ROSS

LOCH SHELDRAKE, NY—“Baseball is a pitch and catch game. Whoever plays catch better usually wins.” Thus noted Floyd Keener Post 315 Rangers coach Mike Marra, following his team’s tough 16-10 loss to Binghamton Post 1645 team on July 4 in the Rangers’ opening game of the Clash of the Catskills Tournament.

Deep sixed in the sixth, the Rangers surrendered six runs to the surging Binghamton squad that profited from nine walks and six errors to pull out an unlikely win.

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Also in this issue:

• Goldstein’s hole in one highlights golf tourney to fund field lighting