Schalmont girls soccer coach Angelo Caschera isn’t lacking confidence.
Despite a late-season loss to Colonial Council rival Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk that led to a share of the league title, Caschera felt his team should still earn the No. 1 seed for the class B Sectionals over undefeated Tamarac when the tournament field was announced Tuesday.
We should get seeded No. 1, and they should be seeded No. 2, he said following Schalmont’s season-ending 3-0 victory over Voorheesville last Thursday.
The Sabres (13-1 league, 15-3 overall) had been rolling through the Colonial Council until RCS paid a visit to western Rotterdam last Tuesday. Neither team registered a goal through regulation and the first 10-minute overtime period, but Kelly McGuire changed that late in the second overtime with a goal that gave the Lady Indians a 1-0 victory.
`They were a little disappointed with the loss, but they played well,` said Caschera. `We did the right things during the game.`
The victory moved RCS into a tie with Schalmont for the league lead that neither side could break on the final day of the regular season. While Schalmont knocked off last-place Voorheesville, RCS defeated Mechanicville 3-1 to earn its share of the title.
Still, the loss may have helped the Sabres, Caschera said.
`It settled them down and made them come back to reality,` he said.
That was evident in Schalmont’s game against Voorheesville. The Sabres took a 2-0 first half lead on goals by Lisa Tarquino and Jessica Strang and never allowed the Blackbirds a quality shot on goal. Strang added a goal midway through the second half to complete the scoring.
Schalmont now turns its focus to the pursuit of a class B title after moving down from class A last year. The field won’t include such powers as Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake or Scotia-Glenville, but Caschera said there are some obstacles other than Tamarac that stand in the Sabres’ way.
`You’ve got Cohoes in there. This year, they’re doing good. They’ll play hard if we play them again,` he said.
Nisky ends Bethlehem’s shutout streak
The Niskayuna girls soccer team ended the season by ending Bethlehem’s six-game shutout streak with a 4-1 victory Monday.
The Lady Eagles entered the game off a 1-0 upset over previously-unbeaten Shenendehowa, but the Silver Warriors quickly gained the advantage with two first half goals. Niskayuna extended the lead in the second half before Becca Lee broke up the Silver Warriors’ shutout bid with a goal for Bethlehem.
Brooke Knowlton had three goals and assisted on Whitney Frary’s tally to lead Niskayuna to its fourth win in its last five games. Marie Mutryn made 11 saves.
The victory didn’t improve Niskayuna’s third-place finish in the Blue Division standings, but it gave the Silver Warriors some momentum heading into the class AA Sectionals, where they are the No. 4 seed. Shen is the No. 1 seed, followed by Columbia at No. 2 and Bethlehem at No. 3.
Mohon earns non-league win
In other girls soccer action Monday, the Mohonasen Lady Warriors won their second game of the season by shutting out Catholic Central 3-0 in a non-league contest.
Bridgette DeSantis notched a goal and two assists to lead Mohonasen (2-13-1). Natalie Acosta and Elise Coons also tallied, and Danielle Stabinski made eight saves to pick up the shutout.
Scotia-Glenville ended its regular season last Saturday with a 7-1 Foothills Council victory over Broadalbin-Perth.
Briana Crow had a goal and three assists to lead a balanced attack for the Lady Tartans (9-3-1, 11-6-1). Amy Kalinkewicz and Katie Bosy each contributed a goal and an assist, while Tammy Chow, Clarissa Myers, Rebecca Nardi and Caitlin Stahl added goals.
Boys seedings announced
Seedings for the boys soccer Sectionals were announced Tues-day, and several area teams earned top-four seeds in their classes.
Scotia-Glenville and Schalmont each received the No. 1 seeds in their respective classes. Scotia-Glenville got the top seed in class A after winning the Foothills Council title, while Schalmont claimed the No. 1 seed in class B after taking its 20th Colonial Council championship.
Both teams received first-round byes. Scotia-Glenville meets the winner of Wednesday’s Averill Park-South Glens Falls game Saturday at 2 p.m. in Scotia, while Schalmont hosts either Chatham or Cobleskill-Rich-mondville Saturday at 7 p.m. ` following the Schalmont girls soccer team’s home playoff game at 5 p.m.
Mohonasen received the No. 13 seed for the class A tourna-ment and a road game against No. 4 Ichabod Crane Wednersday.
Niskayuna earned the No. 3 seed out of the Suburban Coun-cil for the class AA playoffs and a Friday afternoon home game against Schenectady, the No. 6 seed out of the Big 10. The winner of that game plays either Colonie or Albany in Monday’s quarterfinal game.
Schenectady Christian will hit the road for its quarterfinal Sectional game in class CC. The No. 5 Falcons visit No. 4 Cambridge Saturday at 2 p.m.“