 rjonas, Wed, December 12th, 2007 Remember how Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake dominated the fall high school sports scene? Well, don't look now, but Shenendehowa appears ready to dominate the winter sports scene. By the time all the Section II titles are decided in March, Shen will likely own at least three championships and possibly more depending on a few things breaking its way. Winning another class A wrestling title seems to be almost a foregone conclusion in Clifton Park, especially with the return of the Popolizio and Meys brothers. The Meys -- Hunter and Austin -- are aiming for their second state titles, while the Popolizios -- T.J. and Luke -- are hoping to capture their first state crowns after placing second at last year's tournament in Albany. So far, they've been impressive in pinning their opponents. Barring injuries, they should continue to do so, which gives Shen 24 points guaranteed every time. That's hard for any opposing team to overcome. The Division I hockey title also appears to be Shen's for the taking. Any concerns the Plainsmen had entering the season have quickly melted away with a strong start in the Capital District High School Hockey League. As long as they continue to get offensive production from the likes of Adam Hitchko, Bryan Hunter, E.J. Reutemann and Alec Pacheco and good goaltending, the Plainsmen should be in fine shape. In boys swimming, Shen has one of the deepest teams in the area again. Led by Ryan Brauer, Jacob Johnson and Ben Quay, the Plainsmen are primed to sweep through the dual meet season and win another large school division team title at Sectionals. Several more Shen teams will be in pursuit of titles, led by Ken Strube's girls basketball squad. With Tuesday's convincing 52-32 victory over Suburban Council pre-season favorite Bethlehem, the Plainsmen have shaken off the effects of their 41-33 opening night loss at Niskayuna and re-established themselves as a Sectional contender. They might have difficulty knocking off Amsterdam, which recently beat 21-time Federation champion Christ the King in New York City, but you can bet Strube will have the Plainsmen ready should they face the Rugged Rams in the playoffs. Never count them out. The Shen boys and girls indoor track teams should also be good again. The boys basketball team could make a deep Sectional run, but it will have a hard time preventing a CBA-Bishop Maginn final in class AA, considering how loaded the Brothers and Golden Griffins are this season. Even the boys and girls bowling teams have legitimate chances of winning Sectionals, since that tournament always comes down to which school is the most consistently good through the six games. Not counting boys basketball, that's eight possible Sectional titles Shen teams could win this winter. But even if the school only wins half that many championships, that's still an impressive number given all the different sports offered from November to March. One thing is certain -- the Shen "Green Machine" is running well once again. blog comments powered by Disqus  |
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