Leading off today: It looks like Somers will be defending its state championship yet again.
Reporter Kevin Devaney Jr. got the scoop on the impending move -- actually the non-move -- that will keep the Tuskers in Class A for football, where they are
the three-time defending state champions, in the New York State Public High School Athletic Association.
Based on enrollment, Somers should drop to Class B next season, but an unrelated development gave the school the opportunity to stay put. That came in the form of a football merger with North Salem, whose longstanding merger with John Jay Cross River recently ended.
Lacking enough players to field their own team, North Salem officials approached Somers about expanding a collaboration that already includes combined teams in ice hockey and wrestling.
The football deal still has to be approved by Somers' school board and then Section 1, which should be a formality.
Passings
• All-time Mount Vernon great Gus Williams, who helped the 1979 Seattle SuperSonics to their lone NBA championship, died on Wednesday in a care facility in Baltimore. He was 71.
Williams suffered a stroke in February 2020. His last known public appearance was at a 2019 ceremony in Seattle marking the 40th anniversary of their NBA championship.
In 1971, Williams and Mike Young became the first of many Mount Vernon stars to earn first-team all-state recognition from the New York State Sportswriters Association.
Williams played two seasons with Golden State after the Warriors selected him out of USC in 1975. He went on to play six seasons with the SuperSonics and was a two-time NBA All-Star.
• Veteran newspaperman
Bob Goetz, a towering figure in sports coverage in the North Country, died over the weekend at the age of 75.
Goetz arrived at the Press-Republican in 1971 and became the sports editor there four years later, beginning a 35-year run during which he wrote about a plethora of sports.
Even in retirement, the Saranac Lake native was a frequent spectator at Section 7 and college contests, reporter Ricky St. Clair wrote.
'Racially charged noise' incident
Administrators in the Wappingers school district have identified the fan who made "a racially charged noise" targeting a Spring Valley player during a varsity basketball game at Roy C. Ketcham High School,
LoHud.com reported.
Superintendent Dwight Bonk declined to identify the culprit but confirmed the person was subject to the district's code of conduct for students.
"All proper protocols and policies are being are being followed and the individual will be subject to a Superintendent's Hearing," Bonk said in an email.
An investigation triggered by a New York Dignity for All Students Act filing is ongoing.
The incident occurred while the player was taking free throws during the Jan. 11 game at Ketcham.
On Monday, Bonk issued a statement to the Wappingers school community apologizing to game attendees who were "subjected to such unacceptable and despicable behavior."
Texas legislator seeks to loosen transfer rule
Texas has one of the strictest policies when it comes to high school athletes changing schools, but that could change now that the politicians are getting involved one again.
State Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins has formally proposed legislation that would allow students to transfer schools and school districts one time for athletic purposes,
KSAT-TV reported.
The existing rules of the University Interscholastic League allow students to transfer schools for academic reasons, such as for magnet programs, but not for athletics.
For what it's worth, Gervin-Hawkins has brought the bill before the state representatives twice before but failed to garner meaningful support. Gervin-Hawkins counters criticism from coaches and administrators by arguing that prohibited recruiting already occurs.
