High school notes: Spa Catholic standout Coons picks Alvernia

PHOTOGRAPHER: Jim Schiltz

Saratoga Central Catholic first baseman Cameron Coons will continue his baseball career at Alvernia University in Reading, Pa.

Coons earned the Saints most valuable player award as a junior, and landed a spot on the Western Athletic Conference all-star team.

“He’s always had a dream of playing college baseball, and he worked hard to make it happen,” said Saratoga Catholic coach Phonsey Lambert. “He dedicated himself to becoming a stronger and faster athlete.”

Coons was batting .413 with seven doubles, 23 RBI and 20 runs scored through 13 games.

“He’ll fit in well there,” said Lambert. “He’ll do well.”

The 6-foot-1, 200-pound senior has competed in football, cross country and basketball at Saratoga Catholic. He is the son of former Saratoga Springs High School basketball coach Tom Coons.

Alvernia won its first Commonwealth Conference tournament championship last weekend, and will make its fifth straight appearance in the NCAA Division III playoffs.

McDonnell to Alfred

Ryan McDonnell, who quarterbacked Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake to a pair of state championship football games, has committed to Alfred University.

McDonnell not only passed and ran for the Spartans, but also excelled as a punter and kicker, and earned all-state first-team honors for his work on special teams following the 2012 season.

Burnt Hills beat Sweet Home in the state Class A title game, 40-20, last November at the Carrier Dome, with McDonnell firing touchdown passes to Dan Nuzzi and Eric Dillon. Burnt Hills lost to Maine-Endwell in the 2011 state final, 27-20.

McDonnell is finishing up his high school athletic career as a member of BH-BL’s baseball team.

Pasko signs

Maple Hill cross country standout Kelly Pasko has signed a national letter of intent with Siena College.

Pasko was selected to the all-state Class C fourth team following a superb senior season. She placed first at Maple Hill’s Glover Invitational, the Fort Plain Invitational and the Patroon Conference championship meet. She also took fourth at the Section II Class C meet, and ran 19th at the state meet.

Football game change

Schenectady High School’s season-opening varsity football game at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse has been moved to Friday night, Sept. 6, starting at 8.

The Class AA contest against Section II’s Fayetteville-Manlius, part of the Kickoff Classic, was originally scheduled for Sept. 7, with a 1:30 start time.

Schenectady and Fayetteville-Manlius both reached sectional semifinal games last season. Schenectady went 6-3 and Fayetteville-Manlius finished with a 7-2 record.

Christian Brothers Academy of Syracuse and Union-Endicott will also play on Sept. 6 at the Carrier Dome at 5:30.

Accurate Warriors

Niskayuna scored its 18 goals on 39 shots in Wednesday’s 18-5 Suburban Council boys’ lacrose win over Shenendehowa.

“Niskayuna was moving it and executing at a high level,” said Shenendehowa coach Jason Gifford. “They were making tight feeds in close, and they were finishing.”

Lucas Maloney scored all five of his goals to help unbeaten Niskayuna open up a 10-2 halftime lead. Luke Goldstock paced the Silver Warriors with six goals, and Ryan Lawson fired in three. Aidan O’Brien had a team-high four assists.

“We shot the ball pretty well today,” said Niskayuna coach Mike Vorgang after the game.

Niskayuna outshot Shenendehowa by a 39-17 margin, and beat the Plainsmen for the second time this season. Niskayuna held a 23-10 shooting edge in the opening half when Goldstock pumped in half of his goals.

Baseball gems

Charlie Peltz of Queensbury pitched back-to-back no-hitters in his last two starts, in a 4-0 victory over Glens Falls Wednesday and in a 3-0 triumph over South Glens Falls the Friday before.

Peltz, who has committed to the University at Albany, fanned 14 in both of his no-hitters. He also held Gloversville hitless as a junior, with 14 strikeouts in that gem, too.

The last Section II pitcher with back-to-back no-hitters was Zach Milton of Glens Falls in 2011 against Gloversville and Johnstown. Dan Randall of Salem pitched no-hitters in consecutive starts in 2004 against North Warren (perfect game) and Hartford, and Tim Stauffer of Saratoga Catholic did the same in 2000 against St. Johnsville and Mayfield.

Dustin Baker of Fort Plain hurled a pair of postseason no-hitters in 2008, in a Section II Class C quarterfinal game against Salem and in a state regional semifinal game against Ticonderoga.

Here’s a look at Section II’s no-hitters this spring. The final score of the game is in parentheses.

May 11: Matt Capovani, Schalmont (22-0) vs. Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons; May 9: Casey Marvell, Niskayuna (3-0) vs. Ballston Spa; May 8: Charlie Peltz, Queensbury (4-0) vs. Glens Falls; May 6: Joe Nellis, Johnstown (11-1) vs. Broadalbin-Perth; May 3: Peltz, Queensbury (3-0) vs. South Glens Falls; May 1: Jimmy Hamilton, Schalmont (9-2) vs. Watervliet.

April 29: Tyler Oliver, Rensselaer (11-0) vs. Heatly; April 26: Christian Maldonado, Troy (28-0) vs. Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons (21 strikeouts, perfect game); April 26: Jesse Winters, Saratoga Catholic (13-0) vs. Duanesburg; April 25: A.J. Maney and Kevin Smith, Columbia (2-0) vs. Colonie; April 22: Devin Towne, Jake Taylor and Sean Major, Saratoga Springs (31-0) vs. Bishop Maginn; April 19: Zack Shippee, Corinth (13-0) vs. North Warren; April 17: David Miller, Bethlehem (4-0) vs. Ballston Spa; April 15: Trent Douglas, Jesse Heroth and Zach Sweet, Fort Plain (12-0) vs. Sharon Springs; April 13: Julian Gallup and Dylan Angelo, Amsterdam (13-0) vs. Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons (five inning perfect game); April 13: Zach Dufel and Kolbie Glionna, Amsterdam (22-2) vs. Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons; April 8: Liam Kane and Jonathan Brewster, Stillwater (16-1) vs. Granville.

Here and there

Senior Night for Shenendehowa’s varsity baseball team will take place Saturday at Clifton Common. The Shenendehowa Baseball Club will be putting on a barbeque fund-raiser starting at 5:30, with proceeds going to the school’s program. Tickets are $10. Shenendehowa will take on Queensbury in a junior varsity game at 6 and a varsity contest at 7:30. . . .

Hudson baseball coach Kevin Bowes picked up his 200th victory last week when the Blue Hawks beat Greenville, 8-1, in a Patroon Conference game. Bowes started his stint at Hudson in 2000. Baseball coaches Chris Wyanski of Duanesburg, Mike Lilac of Hoosick Falls and Dave Casey of Glens Falls reached 300 wins earlier this season. Duanesburg softball coach John Conway won his 300th game, too, and Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake boys’ lacrosse coach Tom Schwan celebrated his 200th victory. . . .

The Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons varsity softball team has three sets of sisters in twins Joelle and Alyssa Salisbury, Anna Grace and Lilly Maggs and Victoria and Julianna Massalone. Joelle, Lilly and Victoria are all batting over .400, and the others are all batting over .300. . . .

According to several sources, the athletic teams for the merged Oppenheim-Ephratah and St. Johnsville school districts will be called the Wolfpack. O-E teams are nicknamed the Hawks, and St. Johnsville teams are nicknamed the Saints.

What they’re doing

Niskayuna High School graduate and Syracuse University freshman lacrosse standout Kayla Treanor was named the nation’s rookie of the week by WomensLax.com after her performance in the Big East Tournament.

Treanor collected 13 points and earned the MVP trophy after leading the Orange to the championship and an automatic berth in the NCAA playoffs.

Treanor had four goals and two assists in a 19-6 win over Connecticut in the semifinals, and tied her career highs with six goals and seven points in a 14-7 title-game win over Georgetown. Her 78 points and team-high 59 goals are both Syracuse freshman records.

Treanor was three times selected a high school All-American. . . .

Mohonasen High School graduate Ashley Tallman has accepted an invitation to compete with a U.S.A. Athletes International basketball team at the Vienna Cup in Europe beginning later this month. Tallman, a junior at Nyack College, will join other Division II players for the event that includes games in Italy and Austria.

Tallman averaged 6.6 points and 2.5 rebounds for Nyack, making 17 starts and 26 game appearances. The 5-foot-11 guard had season highs of 21 points against Concordia and five threes against Felician.

As a high school senior, she set a Mohonasen single-game record with 31 points against Gloversville, and averaged 14.5. Tallman was named to the Suburban Council (first) and New York sportswriters (sixth) all-star teams.