Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014: Rodriguez sparks Lincoln to PSAL championship

   Leading off today: Diminutive running back Luis Rodriguez scored two first-half touchdowns that held up as Abraham Lincoln edged Erasmus Hall 13-6 at Yankee Stadium in the PSAL football championship game Wednesday.

   Rodriguez, a 5-foot-6 senior, scored all nine of the Railsplitters' touchdowns during three playoff victories, tying a PSAL record and giving Lincoln (11-2) its second straight championship and third in four seasons.

   Erasmus Hall (11-2) went ahead on Shavar Brathwaite's 55-yard run early in the second quarter, but the Railsplitters answered in just three plays and 37 seconds, capped by Rodriguez' 53-yard run. Rodriguez also scores on a 6-yard carry with 1:49 left in the half.

   Western NY star honored: Middle blocker Leah Meyer of Lancaster St. Mary's has been selected the New York girls volleyball player of the year by Gatorade. The 6-3 senior led the Lancers to a 47-0-1 record, the state CHSAA championship and a No. 20 national ranking from PrepVolleyball.com. Meyer recorded 460 kills and 79 blocks en route to her third straight Monsignor Martin Association MVP award.

   Back on the job: Tottenville boys basketball coach John Woodman, who underwent a kidney transplant a month ago, returned to the bench Wednesday for the Pirates' 83-60 win over McKee/Staten Island Tech.

   Woodman watched a video feed of a season-opening win against Petrides on Nov. 26 and attended practice Tuesday after being cleared by his doctor a day earlier -- and nearly a month ahead of schedule -- so obviously the win that raised the team's record to 2-2 was a bit of blur.

   "I don't have much to compare it to," he joked with a reporter from The Advance.

   More boys basketball: Kyle Davis put up 20 points and eight rebounds as Leonardo da Vinci, the Buffalo School District's high school on the D'Youville College campus, opened its fifth season of play with the program's first win -- 55-47 over WNY Maritime.

   Coach Karl Maggiore won his debut with da Vinci. Divante Robinson added 10 points and 10 rebounds in the win.

   "We've been practicing on how to finish games and we finished," Maggiore told The Buffalo News. "It was a hard fought game and we enjoyed it. ... We work on defense every practice and it paid off."

   Coaching change: Michael Pollio is no longer the girls basketball coach at Ardsley, MSG's Kevin Devaney Jr. reported on Twitter. Pollio has been replaced by former JV coach Marc Hattem.

   The Panthers, having dropped down to Class B but returning much of their lineup, were projected to be Section 1 contenders this winter.

   Court rejects protest: An Oklahoma County District Court judge on Thursday denied the temporary injunction that would have allowed Oklahoma City Douglass High to have all or part of its Class 3A football quarterfinal game against Locust Grove replayed.

   Judge Bernard M. Jones said "there is neither clear nor convincing evidence supporting the granting of injunctive relief."

   The Oklahoma City Public Schools announced they will not appeal, meaning the semifinal between Locust Grove

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and Heritage Hall will be played as scheduled at 7 p.m. Friday.

   Huge task ahead: Joey DiPiazza, who just stepped down as baseball coach at Hudson Valley Community College, is expected to be appointed Albany High's football coach Thursday, The Times Union reported.

   Albany's football team is 3-58 since 2008 and has not had a winning season since 2005. Jon McClement resigned last month after a 1-8 season and 3-42 mark over five years.

   DiPiazza, who coached the school's baseball team from 2006-09, has worked at Albany for 12 years and is the transition coordinator of special education. He previously applied for the football job at Albany in 2010 before withdrawing from consideration, the paper reported.

   Going it alone: Symone Darius, whose sophomore year as a track sprinter including state championships in the indoor 300 meters and the outdoor 200, has left the New Rochelle team to run independently this year, The Journal News reported.

   Darius, a daughter of former NFL player Donovin Darius, has been training since the fall with Chris Malcolm of the New Horizon Track Club in Mount Vernon, where he is a volunteer high school assistant coach.

   "I really didn't approve but I couldn't stop it," New Rochelle coach Andy Capellan told the paper.

   Capellan, who has coached at New Rochelle for 35 years, said the sprinter's father proposed that his daughter split time between training and running for New Rochelle this winter and with Malcolm.

   "I didn't want a situation where it was 50 percent with (Malcolm) and 50 percent with me during the season. I wouldn't go for it," Capellan said. "(Her father) felt she needed individual attention to prosper and become an elite runner. He said I was too busy with the team and couldn't give her the attention she needs."