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From Volleyball to Baseball, PCN&R Athletes Were On Championship Trail
Top 10 2006/07 sports moments unveiled at Haldane, Putnam Valley
by Ray Gallagher
Responsible for the No. 1 Moment of the Year, the Haldane girls volleyball team pose before their NYSPHSAA championship match in Glens Falls last November.
Many student athletes at the Haldane and Putnam Valley school districts covered within the PCN&R region were blessed with the chance to compete this past year under the guidance of NYSPHSAA and Section 1 sports, making for a host of bona fide success stories, complete with its own Top 10 Moments of the year. As is so often the case in this neck of the woods, girl's basketball was at the forefront of the sports scene, as both districts were represented in the most gallant affair hosted by Westchester/Putnam/ Rockland/Dutchess-based sports association: The annual Section 1 Basketball Tournament.
But since the PCN&R-area basketball teams came up empty in terms of hoops championships, one would have to hit the volleyball scene to find the No.1 sports moment of the year between the two school districts covered in these pages.
What might be even more astounding is the fact that two tiny schools from Putnam County were able to provide 10 superlative varsity moments between them.
So without further adieu, I give you the first installment of the Top 10 PCN&R Moments of the Year.
No.1 ALL SPIKED UP - Haldane makes state finals in volleyball
After a vintage run through Section 1, the Class C champion Blue Devils (19-1) were the talk of the town last fall, making the trek to Glens Falls where they reached the state finals and fell just a few points short of winning the school's first volleyball state championship. With Coach Tony Caldiero looking on, Haldane sports fanatics were treated by the likes of a Megan Lyons, Liz Skrelja, Rachel Flaherty, Missy Gannon, Danielle Etta, Jen Cotennec and Jen Lombardo-led charge to the finals where the Blue Devils finally met their match against Section 6's Randolph for the second-straight year. Despite the loss, this unit put forth the finest effort in the history of Haldane volleyball; serving, digging and spiking their way into the record books. If the Blue Devils are to return next year, they'll do so with a new coach, as Caldiero has resigned.
No.2 HISTORY ON THE SQUARED CIRCLE - Grapplers galore
Putnam Valley grappling guru Willy Carano and Haldane wrestling coach Garth Merandy were on the scene at Albany last March when Tiger wrestler Alex Pastena and Blue Devil big man Collin LeMon were representing Section 1 in the NYSPHSAA Wrestling Tournament. Pastena's run through Section 1 was precious, in that it was the first Section 1 championship in P.V. wrestling history that enabled his trip north. Captain Pastena would go down in local sports history for exactly that moment, but it will be his fiveyear commitment to the program that will be missed most. Pastena took out Haldane's Adam Beard in the finals while LeMon pinned his way to the title by taking out Ardsley's Chris Vingo. Pastena, LeMon and Beard were joined by Putnam Valley's Karl Lange in the Section 1 D-II finals at Pace University before a packed house.
No.3 SPECIAL K's - P.V. hoops in County Center finale
Kemp and Kastuck: The two will be forever linked in Putnam Valley sports for their terrific years of service, respectively, to the folks in Tiger-land. For three years, Christine Kemp superbly ran the point of hoops Coach Kelly Thompson's Putnam Valley attack while Kim Kastuck put up five years at power forward. This dynamic duo had been rewarded in 2006 with a state field hockey championship, so it should come as no surprise that they led the Tigers to the Westchester County Center for the second time in school history in the winter of '07. The Tigers (16-8) made their first championship appearance ever in a 49-36 loss to Albertus Magnus. Kemp was clearly the driving force on the hardwood, elevating her game to new heights while leading the Tigers where they had not gone before with a mind-blowing 43-29 semifinal win over Briarcliff before a jam-packed house.
No.4 CHELSEA GIRL RULES - Haldane softball knocks off North Salem
Chelsea Lisikatos is only an 8th-grader, but she had the poise and determination of a senior for portions of her second varsity season, in which she helped lead former Coach Brian Ogden's Lady Blue Devils to a second consecutive Class C title game where the Blue Devils were beaten by Dobbs Ferry by a single run. No performance was more inspiring than the 3-0 shutout Lisikatos twirled over three-time defending sectional champion North Salem, in which she fired a one-hitter and carried a no-hitter for 6-2/ 3rds innings. Should the Blue Devils, who will have a new coach next season after Ogden's recent resignation, be fortunate enough to get back to the finals next spring, don't bet against them.
No. 5 THE BUCK STOPS HERE - Rye toasts P.V. in field hockey finals
The established Garnets have been the one constant thorn in Putnam Valley's side since the Tigers joined the Section 1 fray some six years ago. If it weren't for Rye, there's no telling how many sectional championships Putnam Valley might have to its credit, especially in lacrosse and field hockey where the two P.V. programs have seen Rye rip off a 6-2 record in championship events the past four years. Such was the case again in the fall of '06 when Coach Tracy Parchen's Tigers were ousted in a 1-0 Class B sectional field hockey contest at Lakeland High. Still, for the Tigers to continually make the scene; that's a pretty big deal win, lose or draw.
No.6 RYE NOT - More P.V. vs. Rye
Why not another Rye vs. Putnam Valley moment? For a fourth consecutive year, the Putnam Valley lacrosse program was on hand at the Section 1 Class C championship, but for a third straight year the Tigers would come up shy against Rye, which went on to qualify for the NYS semis, after a 6-5 win over Putnam Valley at Suffern Middle School. Though the Tigers came up short of a championship, they showed for sure that lax is alive and well in the Valley under coach Brian Kuczma, the former All-American and reining MLL lacrosse champion, who had a dang good year for himself.
No.7 BRITTANY SPEARS DOBBS - Haldane reaches County Center finale
In a heroic display of toughness, Haldane's All-NYS swingman Brittany Shields put forth a clinic in playing through pain for Coach Rich Desiderio. Hobbled by bum ankles that required off-season surgery, Shields returned in the second half of the Blue Devils' 43-38 semifinal victory, erasing a 11-point deficit her team had encountered while she lay on the trainer's table at the fabled Westchester County Center for much of the first half. The Blue Devils would eventually relinquish their 15-year grip on the Section 1 title basketball title in a stunning loss to Blind Brook, but Shields' gutsy performance was the only thing keeping the Dobbs Ferry Eagles from playing the Trojans instead.
No.8 MORE HISTORY ON SQUARED CIRCLE - Female wrestler top in NYS Putnam Valley's Jessica Kelvas finished fifth at 130 pounds at the 10th annual USGWA National Championships in Livonia Mich
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