Leading off today: Not that I particularly like settling high school sports issues in court, but this would have made for an interesting trial and a difficult verdict to render.
Plainedge administrators are allowing Charlotte Welsh to play varsity softball this spring after her parents filed a lawsuit challenging the district's policy against allowing eighth-graders to play on varsity teams.
Welsh's parents filed a lawsuit in Nassau County on March 24 after the 14-year-old tried out last month, was told she made the varsity pending board approval, and then was told she could not player above the JV level.
However, the school board listened to the family's appeal and put the decision in the hands of Superintendent Carol Muscarella. Newsday reported Muscarella granted Welsh the exception on Saturday, and the lawsuit became moot.
"Happily, we came to an agreement with the school district," Maria Welsh said, "and she was allowed to play varsity. We want to thank the school district for the opportunity."
Gatorade basketball honors
Christ the King center Olivia Vukosa has repeated as Gatorade's New York player of the year in girls basketball. The 6-foot-5 senior bound for UConn in the fall averaged 17.8 points, 18.1 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and 4.4 blocks for the Royals.
Vukosa, a member of the Croatian Under-20 women's team, is ranked the No. 3 recruit in the Class of 2026 by ESPN.
The boys award recipient is Archbishop Stepinac senior Jasiah Jervis. The 6-5 guard averaged 17.6 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 2.0 steals. He has committed to continue his career at Michigan State.
Catching up on some notable coaching moves
John Bowen, who has coached football at Schuylerville since 2013, has stepped down as head coach and will serve as an assistant on Nick Richard's Black Horses squad in the fall.
Bowen, also the school's athletic director, compiled a 113-21 record with five Section 2 titles. Schuylerville reached four NYSPHSAA finals and earned the 2024 Class C state crown with a 26-20 victory over Salamanca.
• Rob Siechen has stepped down at girls basketball coach at Cicero-North Syracuse after five seasons. Before taking the Northstars' rems, he spent 15 years at Jamesville-DeWitt and guided the Red Rams to three consecutive NYSPHSAA championships beginning in 2016.
• Iona Prep track and cross country coach Jan Mitchell plans to retire in June after his 51st year on the job. Mitchell also started the girls program at Ursuline in 1990.
LoHud.com did a wonderful profile last month.
• Webster Schroeder boys volleyball coach Greg Kennedy has retired after 37 seasons.
Milestone
Livonia baseball coach
Scott Gilman notched his 400th victory last week when the Bulldogs opened their season with a 5-0 victory over Perry.
Georgia governing body dips into reserves after football loss
If you think the manufacturer's cars are expensive, your jaw is going to hit the floor when you learn how much it costs to rent the stadium adorned with the Mercedes-Benz name.
The revelation comes courtesy of a report by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that the Georgia High School Association lost money on its football championships last fall for the first time.
As a result, the GHSA spent $150,000 from its reserves to makes its standard payout of $9,910 to each of 16 participating schools.
The paper reported that the eight games over three days attracted 46,132 paying customers. However, that wasn't enough to pay the bills.
The story did not cite revenue and expense figures for the 2025 championships. For perspective, however, Georgia High School Football Daily reported the rent for the 2023 championships in the same building was $582,520. A year earlier, the GHSA paid Georgia State $157,766 to play at Center Parc Stadium.
By way of comparison, the JMA Wireless Dome at Syracuse University charged the NYSPHSAA $79,000 for five games over two days last fall. The finals attracted only 6,190 fans, contributing to a $29,050 net loss for the weekend.
