Battle-tested Spartans romp

PHOTOGRAPHER: Peter R. Barber

Alex Glowa of Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, right and Avery Cummins of Lansingburgh go after the ball Thursday, October 23, 2014. Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake advance by defeating Lansingburgh 11-0.

Share on Facebook

Save

Looks can be deceiving.

Take, for example, the 1-13-2 record the Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake boys managed playing in the Suburban Council this fall.

The Spartans sure didn’t look like a team that had scored eight goals all season when they took apart Lansingburgh, 11-0, Thursday in their Class A sectional opener.

“The level of competition we play all season gets us ready for sectionals,” said senior Ian Speck, who scored the first goal less than five minutes into the game, and finished with a pair of goals and four assists. “We didn’t expect it to be 11-0, but we knew if we played like we can, we’d be OK.”

Seven of Burnt Hills’ losses have come to the top four seeds in Class AA. The Spartans are in the same division with 14-1-1 Shaker and 13-2-1 Shenendehowa, the top two seeds, and 9-3-4 Niskayuna, the No. 4 seed.

“I had a coach ask me how we got a sixth seed,” said Burnt Hills coach George Dudas, who took over the team at midseason when Roy Pfeil stepped down. “Look at the teams we play.”

Lansingburgh came into the game with a record nearly identical to that of the Spartans, with one win and two ties in 14 games.

But the Knights play primarily Class B and C teams in their Colonial Council schedule.

That difference showed early and often, as Burnt Hills immediately went on the attack, keeping the Knights pinned in their own end for most of the game, which was played on the turf at Union College’s College Park.

Nick Hitt got the offense started, speeding down the right flank, beating the defense and sending a perfect pass across the goal mouth, where Speck was waiting.

Abed Shahin made it 2-0 moments later, as he won a ball near midfield, and moved in unmarked before shooting.

Hitt got a goal, and Jared Parsons scored the first two of his three goals to make it 5-0 at the half.

Hitt and eighth-grader Keven Hughes both finished with two goals, and freshman Robert Forlano closed the scoring with his first varsity goal as the sixth-seeded Spartans advanced to play at No. 3 seed Scotia-Glenville in Saturday’s quarterfinal round.

“It’s a good start. The first sectional game, there are always nerves,” Dudas said.

Dudas has made some changes in the lineup, the biggest getting Speck more involved up front.

“I’m more into the attack,” said Speck. “Once the midfielders got used to playing varsity, and were able to hold the ball, I could move up.

“Tyler [Doherty], Nick [Hitt] and I are working well together.”

“Once we got the midfield to hold the ball, Ian could get more forward,” said Dudas. “Ian played well today. Nick played well.

“We got a chance to get some of the younger kids I brought up from JV in, and they got the chance to play in a sectional game.”

The Spartans know the postseason competition will get stronger, beginning Saturday.

“The players on the other teams like Scotia and Queensbury, they know who we’ve been playing all year,” said Speck. “People might look at our record and wonder why we’re in sectionals, but the other teams that we play, they recognize who we’ve been playing.”