Gloversville to face Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk in Class B semifinals

PHOTOGRAPHER: File Photo

Gloversville high school football practice at Park Terrace Elementary in Gloversville on Aug. 25, 2022.

GLOVERSVILLE — For the second straight postseason, the Gloversville football team will face Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk.

This time, the Huskies and Indians will meet in the Section II Class B semifinals Friday at 7 p.m. at Ravena.
Last year, the teams met for the Class B title at Christian Brothers Academy, with Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk posting a 33-14 victory. The Indians also won last year’s regular-season meeting by a 28-6 margin at Husky Field.

The latest meeting comes just two weeks after Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk posted a 48-0 shutout over Gloversville on Oct. 21.

“We made lots of mistakes in our last game with them. I give Ravena lots of credit as they are a very good team,” Gloversville coach Jim Robare said. “We must do a better job cleaning up mistakes on both sides of the ball.”

Aidan Lochner had touchdown runs of 66, 47, 47 and 2 yards for the Indians. He also caught a 47-yard touchdown pass in the win.

Third-seeded Gloversville (6-2 overall) closed out the regular season with a 38-0 victory over Cohoes last Friday at Husky Field.

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Caelan Porter threw three touchdown passes for the Huskies. Two went to Dom Dorman who scored on receptions of 56 and 60 yards. Logan Oathout added a 21-yard touchdown catch.

Porter completed 8 of 9 passes for 221 yards and three touchdowns, while Dorman finished with three catches for 134 yards and two scores.

Kyle Robare scored on a 5-yard touchdown run and offensive lineman Devon Sisco scored on a 2-yard run.

Nicholas Bradt added a 56-yard punt return for Gloversville’s other touchdown.

Second-seeded Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk (7-2 overall) posted a 53-16 victory over Green Tech in its regular-season finale last week. The Indians have won their last four games since dropping a 36-13 decision at Section XI’s James A. O’Neil on Sept. 30.

“Hopefully we can make an impact defensively and do a much better job offensively to move the ball,” Robare said. “The keys will be to control the line of scrimmage and eliminate mistakes on the field. We need to move the ball a bit better, so our defense isn’t on the field the entire game.”

The winner will face either fourth-seeded Lansingburgh (5-4 overall) or top-seeded Glens Falls (8-0 overall) in next Saturday’s Class B championship game at Shenendehowa High School.

B-P TRAVELS TO HOOSICK FALLS/TAMARAC FOR FINALE
In his first season as head coach, Broadalbin-Perth’s Rick Wallace has guided his team to a 6-4 overall record.
The Patriots will close out their season Thursday with a Class C crossover game at Hoosick Falls/Tamarac.

Both teams lost in the Class C quarterfinals last week, with B-P dropped a 49-8 decision to Stillwater in its first home playoff game since 2014. Hoosick Falls/Tamarac lost at Fonda-Fultonville by a 41-14 margin.

“From a competitor standpoint, the players are bummed. From a team perspective, they are excited to get one more game together as a group,” Wallace said. “Football has such a short shelf life for most athletes that play. Having the chance to play a game is a great opportunity.”

After a 5-0 start to the season, B-P is just 1-4 in its last five contests. Wallace said he’s hoping his group heads into the offseason on a positive note.

“This game is very important. We are going to prepare to win. We want to send our seniors off the right way,” he said. “We also want to have some momentum for our juniors and sophomores that will be on the team next season.”

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Colin Cotter scored the lone touchdown for B-P against Stillwater on a 1-yard run. The Patriots trailed 21-8 at halftime before the Warriors outscored them 28-0 in the second half.

Jake Sparks scored both touchdowns for the Wildcats in last week’s loss at Fonda-Fultonville, finding the end zone on runs of 6 and 3 yards.

“Hoosick Falls/Tamarac has very good team speed. It will be important that we maintain our gap responsibilities and tackle well. They are very well coached and will be eager to win for the same reasons that we want to,” Wallace said. “The key to winning this game will be to play loose and fast. We will have to match their explosiveness by playing sound defense and creating big plays on offense. We need to play turnover-free football this week.”

JOHNSTOWN TO HOST GRANVILLE/WHITEHALL

After alternate wins and losses over the first five weeks of the season, Johnstown has dropped its last three contests.

The Sir Bills have lost to Broadalbin-Perth (25-22), Ichabod Crane (28-25) and Cambridge/Salem (33-6) in their last three outings.

Johnstown (3-5 overall) will look to close out its season on a positive note Thursday, hosting Granville/Whitehall in a Class C crossover game at Knox Field at 6 p.m.

“To be honest, ending the season on a high note and winning this game would be a good way to end the season,” Johnstown coach Paul Furman said. “But the momentum we take into next season will depend solely on the amount of work we put in during the offseason.”

Johnstown junior running back Ryan Hoyt heads into the game with an opportunity to break three school records.
Hoyt has rushed for 1,193 yards this season and is just 12 yards away from breaking the single-season rushing record, currently held by Chris Velicky (1,205 rushing yards in 1999). Hoyt is also on pace to break the record for single season yards per carry, which is currently held by Jim Cleary (8.1 yards/attempt in 1979). This record is based on a minimum of 70 attempts. Hoyt could also eclipse the single season yards per game record which was set by Joe Wager (143.6 yards/game in 1972).

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Hoyt rushed for 111 yards on 15 carries and scored the only touchdown for the Sir Bills in last week’s loss at unbeaten Cambridge/Salem.

Granville/Whitehall (3-6 overall) had won its last two games before dropping a 26-20 decision to Chatham last Friday. Granville/Whitehall had posted wins over Watervliet (66-0) and Rensselaer/Loudonville Christian (33-6) before losing to the Panthers. Alex Torres, Nick Crum and and C.J. Monty scored for Granville/Whitehall against Chatham.

“Granville/Whitehall is a team that runs the same plays out of a ton of different formations, and they want to control the box with their personnel,” Furman said. “The key to this game will be our defense and rushing game.”