UPDATE: Niskayuna’s game against Garden City, initially postponed to Thursday, has been postponed again and will be played Friday.
Citing air quality concerns in the Albany and Cortland areas, the New York State Public High School Athletic Association postponed today’s state boys’ lacrosse tournament semifinal games, including Niskayuna’s Class B contest against Garden City that was scheduled to take place at UAlbany’s Tom & Mary Casey Stadium.
When the decision was made Wednesday morning to postpone the game, it was initially pushed to Thursday afternoon. Later in the day, citing the Air Quality Index forecast for Thursday provided by the state Department of Environmental Conservation, the semifinals were pushed back once again, with games being held Friday.
Niskayuna’s game will be held Friday at 6:30 p.m. at Casey Stadium. The championship games, originally scheduled for Saturday, have been pushed back to Sunday at Hofstra University on Long Island.
“Unfortunately, the air quality does not appear to be improving in the next 24 hours to a level that will provide a safe environment for student-athletes to participate at the highest level,” NYSPHSAA executive director Robert Zayas said in a release announcing the postponement until Friday. “NYSPHSAA is dedicated to hosting all state championship events this spring for the student-athletes who have earned the right to compete for the title of state champion.”
In a social media post announcing the initial postponement, NYSPHSAA said it is “is relying on NYS DEC information & data. Games will not be played with AQI exceeding 100.”
Smoke from wildfires in eastern Canada has resulted in air quality advisories this week from the state departments of Health and Environmental Conservation.
According to DEC’s Air Quality Forecast, the predicted maximum AQI for Wednesday in the Upper Hudson Valley region, which includes Albany, is 110. Thursday’s forecasted maximum AQI is 105.
Reach Adam Shinder at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @Adam_Shinder.
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