Kevin Carney scored all seven of his goals in the first half when Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake took charge, and the top-seeded Spartans defeated fourth-seeded Averill Park 21-7 in a Section II Class C semifinal lacrosse game Friday at Centennial Field.
Colden Swisher and Shane McClernan both contributed all four of their goals in the opening half when the Spartans raced to a 19-1 advantage.
“We had to come out and do what we know how to do,” said Carney, a team captain and Canisius commit. “Today’s game was about taking care of business.”
Carney had three assists to go with his seven goals, and McClernan picked up an assist. Nick Bailey had two goals and three assists for Burnt Hills, Jack Scalise had two goals and Ryan Lussier and TJ Tullock both had a goal and an assist. Jake Phelps had two goals and an assist for Averill Park, Ethan Jamison scored two goals and Luke Hemple had a goal and three assists.
Burnt Hills (15-2) will be making its third straight Section II title-game appearance Tuesday at 5 p.m. against second-seeded South Glens Falls (15-0), with that contest pitting the Suburban Council and Foothills Council champions. Burnt Hills beat Ballston Spa for the 2021 Class B crown and lost to the Scotties in the 2019 Class B final, while there was no season in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
South Glens Falls won last year’s Class C flag with a one-goal victory over La Salle, and earned a return trip with an 18-6 triumph against third seed Glens Falls.
“The first step is getting to the sectional final,” said Burnt Hills coach Tom Schwan. “The next step is playing well, taking care of the little things, and scoring more than South Glens Falls.”
CLASS B
Top-seeded Niskayuna got 10 goals and two assists from Greyson Vorgang, and six goals and two assists from Davey Carroll, in a 21-11 Class B semifinal win over fourth-seeded La Salle. Saif Chowdhrey added a goal and three assists for the Silver Warriors, and Dillon Licht notched two goals and two assists. Liam Manin paced La Salle with two goals and five assists.
Niskayuna pulled away from a 6-4 lead with a 7-1, second-quarter spurt, and reached its 18th Section II title game in 19 seasons after suffering a Class A semifinal loss to Shaker in 2021. Niskayuna — a 17-time area champion — will meet second seed Ballston Spa in Tuesday’s 7:30 p.m. title matchup at Shaker.
Ballston Spa advanced with an 18-6 win over third-seeded Queensbury. John Serina had four goals and two assists for the Scotties, Matt King and Geno DeRubettis both had three goals and one assist, Sean Dwyer recorded a hat trick, Max Christiansen came away with two goals and Peter Siracuse collected a goal and two assists.
The game was tied at four after the first quarter, and Ballston Spa went on runs of 5-1 and 6-1 in the next two periods. Michael Deutsch scored a pair of goals for Queensbury, and Dan Collins and Ryan Sokol both had a goal and an assist.
CLASS A
Second-seeded Guilderland scored the last four goals, including Dillon Blanchard’s game-winner with 1:14 left, in a 10-9 Class A semifinal win over third-seeded Shaker. Mitch MacKissock scored his third and fourth goals in succession to pull the Dutchmen into a 9-9 tie.
Dan Macchariello had four goals and two assists for Guilderland, Blanchard scored two goals and MacKissock had an assist to go with his four tallies. Erin Hennessey had three goals and an assist for Shaker, James Easton scored three goals, Colin Devoe had a goal and an assist and Owen Wilson picked up three assists. Devoe’s goal gave Shaker a 9-6 lead. Guilderland beat Shaker in the 2021 Class A final.
Wednesday’s 7:30 final at Shaker will send Guilderland against top-seeded Shenendehowa, which beat fourth-seeded Bethlehem 13-3 behind three goals and four assists from Nathan Wolfe. Drew Canterbury had three goals and an assist, and Colin Bullock added three goals.
CLASS D
Second-seeded Schuylerville beat third-seeded Voorheesville 19-4 in a Class D semifinal game.
Schuylerville will play either top-seeded Stillwater/Mechanicville or fourth-seeded Greenwich/Cambridge in Wednesday’s 5 p.m. title game at Shaker.
Categories: -Sports-, High School Sports
