The 2016-17 New York high schools year in review, Page 8

[From Page 7]

   Competing at the Section 5 girls championships, where the Panthers won their 15th straight team title, Stone won the 500-yard freestyle in 4:46.80 to nip the time of 4:46.97 in 1995 by Friends Academy's Jessica Foschi, who went on to become a 15-time all-American at Stanford.

   Foschi tested positive for a banned substance the summer before setting he state mark, though she denied ever taking the substance and blamed the positive test on a saboteur. United States Swimming handed down a two-year probation that eventually was commuted so that she could compete at the 1996 Olympic Trials. Her scholastic eligibility status was batted around extensively before the NYSPHSAA decided that she would be eligible to compete for Friends Academy, setting the table for her state mark.

   Another noteworthy record fell when Pelham sophomore sensation Kate Douglass broke a national age-group mark and set a state high school best in the 50 freestyle at the Section 1 championships. Douglass, 14, finished in :22.32 to break the age-group mark of :22.44 by the legendary Dara Torres in 1982.

    • In girls basketball, Medina sophomore Maddie Williams broke the presumed state record by making 16 3-point baskets during an 82-23 victory over Holley during which she scored 54 points -- crushing her previous career best of 22.

Coming attraction

   Joseph Girard III of Glens Falls quarterbacked the football team to a NYSPHSAA championship in the fall. In the winter, he continued a march to what could be a state basketball record for career points that might stand for a long, long time.

   Girard scored 41 points in an 82-55 win over Coxsackie-Athens in the Section 2 Class B tournament to go over 2,000 for his career. He ended his sophomore season at 2,157 points over his three-year career, putting him within range of breaking the state record of 2,946 by Lance Stephenson before the end of his junior season.

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Impressive in their own way

   Section 5 schools scored a sweep of all five divisions in the second annual NYSPHSAA competitive cheerleading championships, with Fairport and Avon successfully defending.

   Section 1 boys soccer teams completed a dominating postseason by winning four NYSPHSAA championships in Middletown for an unprecedented sweep. The section's four playoff representatives (they did not have a Class D entry) outscored opponents 41-11 in 19 playoff victories. Prior to last fall, Section 1 only had a total of three state champions in boys soccer going back to 2008.

    • Sisters Lucy (a senior) and Sophie Tougas (a sophomore) reached 1,000 points apiece for their careers in Glens Falls' 58-37 girls basketball victory over Queensbury.

    • Livonia senior Reid VanScoter pitched a no-hitter, striking out 21 batters to beat Hornell 12-0 for the Section 5 Class B baseball crown. VanScoter did not allow a walk and was perfect through five innings, with one runner in each of the final two innings reaching on third-strike passed balls. According to the NYSPHSAA, Jim Cheneval of Levittown struck out 25 batters in a seven-inning game in 1983.

    • UConn recruit Andra Espinoza-Hunter scored 51, 52 and 53 points in a three-game stretch in mid-January.

Missing in action

    Three of the brightest stars in vastly different sports had their seasons derailed by injuries.

    Ossining sophomore Aubrey Griffin's basketball season ended before it even started due to a torn ACL suffered in the fall. The 6-foot forward was a first-team all-state pick in Class AA as a freshman after helping the Pride to their fourth straight NYSPHSAA crown and first Federation title.

   Elbow surgery early in the season followed by a procedure on the other arm put an end to the high school career of Hilton wrestler Yianni Diakomihalis. The four-time NYSPHSAA and two-time World Cadet champ left on a 210-match winning streak to push his career mark to 243-3.

    And middle-distance runner Kamryn McIntosh of Suffern, who for a time owned the national H.S. record in the indoor 600 meters, was diagnosed in January with a congenital heart defect requiring surgery. The procedure required doctors to stop her heart for 22 minutes.

Streaks extended or snapped

   New Hartford defeated Vernon-Verona-Sherrill 203-265 in golf April 12 to break the NYSPHSAA record for consecutive victories. The 93rd straight triumph eclipsed the previous mark by Skaneateles from 1987-1991.

    • The Saratoga girls won their 17th consecutive cross country championship in highly competitive Section 2 by finishing with 47 points to edge Shenendehowa (50) and Niskayuna (58).

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