Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2017: MLK, Beacon set up PSAL soccer rematch

   Leading off today: Defending champion Martin Luther King Jr. is heading to a rematch against Beacon for the PSAL boys Class A soccer championship after the teams advanced Tuesday.

   MLK's Akeem Shelton scored 30 seconds into the semifinals and tacked on three more goals during a 6-0 win over Tottenville. Shelton's second goal came in the eight minute and got the Knights halfway to their 4-0 halftime lead.

   Beacon advanced to Saturday's championship game at St. John's University with a 5-1 win over Erasmus Hall at Randall's Island. Cameron Bonfils and Jaden Graber each scored two goals to help erase a 1-0 deficit.

    • Jhon Calderon scored two goals to pace Franklin Lane past Springfield Gardens 3-2 in the Class B semifinals. In the other contest, Flushing International reached its first title match by downing top-seeded H.S. For Math, Science and Engineering 2-1 on a pair of Fernando Ruiz goals in the second half.

    • Defending girls Class A champ Beacon jumped out to a two-goal lead in the opening three minutes and clinched a berth in Saturday's title game with a 3-1 win vs. Susan Wagner. Layla Devlin scored twice and Kate Diament assisted on all three goals.

   Francis Lewis' Stefania Skaliotis broke a 1-1 tie in the 70th minute to open the door to a 4-1 win over Brooklyn Tech in the other semi.

    • In the girls Class B semis, MLK and East Side Community played to a 1-1 tie before MLK advanced 3-1 on penalty kicks, and Columbia Secondary School edged New Explorations into Science, Technology & Math 3-2.

   Commitments: Wednesday kicks off the early signing period in NCAA sports other than football.

   Looking ahead: Bill Meylan has posted his annual projections -- always fun and typically very accurate -- for the NYSPHSAA cross country championships on TullyRunners.com.

   In addition, Milesplit has offered up its boys and girls previews for Saturday's meet at Wayne Central in Section 5.

   Two notes regarding the TullyRunners posting:

   (1) Meylan is highly detail-oriented, so it had to just kill him to have to omit Section 10's qualifiers from the projections due to a lack of full data from the past two weekends from that region.

   In the grand scheme of things it's what we would downplay as a "first world" problem, but it's nevertheless a disappointment in 2017 when reasonably detailed results from a championship event are not available.

   The again, take a look at the content -- or lack thereof -- on some of the sectional websites around the state. A few can definitely stand to up their game.

   (2) Meylan ominously wrote this: "Next year, assuming TullyRunners is still operating, cross country coverage for NY State will be modified and abbreviated compared to this year (details to come later)."

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   Though understandable to anyone trying to balance a labor of love with real-life respon- sibilities, that could be a blow to the running community.

   Closer to consolidation: Yonkers has moved a step closer to consoli- dating the football teams at eight struggling district high schools into just two programs beginning next fall.

   The majority of Section 1 schools signed off on the proposal this week, sending the matter to the section's athletic council and executive committee later this month, The Journal News reported.

   Players from Gorton, Roosevelt, Yonkers Montessori and Yonkers High would combine for one team. Saunders, Lincoln, Palisade Prep and Riverside students would form the other team. Both would compete in Class AA.

   If approved, each program will include a varsity and JV team. A district spokeswoman said Yonkers administrators hope to add modified programs in the future.

   Odd news of the week: A Maryland powerhouse has been booted from its state field hockey tournament after an annual celebration ritual went a little too far.

   The Washington Post reported that Severna Park was disqualified from the Class 4A semifinals after a traditional toilet-papering stunt at the coach's house turned into a larger endeavor.

   Players traditionally throw toilet paper on coach Ann Andrews's house after winning the region championship, a lighthearted prank that Andrews said she looks forward to every season because it's a sign of success. However, this year's celebration continued at what was supposed to be the homes of several friends.

   "They may have gotten some of the houses wrong," Andrews said.

   The Anne Arundel County schools superintendent decided the Falcons would forfeit their spot in the state tournament, reinstating South River, who had lost to the Falcons in the quarterfinals.