Leading off today: Rich Lange made quite the impression in his varsity baseball debut yesterday, throwing 4 1/3 innings of one-hit relief with 11 strikeouts to carry Utica Notre Dame to an 11-6 victory as part of a doubleheader sweep of South Lewis.

   The 6-foot-2, 215-pound Lange tore up a knee during his sophomore basketball season, costing him a whole season of baseball. He was brought in with the bases loaded in a 5-5 game and struck out the first batter he faced to end the threat.

   "He throws hard, but sometimes struggles with his control a little bit," Notre Dame coach Gene Leuthauser told The Observer-Dispatch. "That will come around. He has nice action on his curveball, and keeps the ball down in the zone."

   More Saturday highlights: Sophomore Melanie Ruderman homered in the third, fourth and fifth innings for Valley Stream Central and drove in four runs during a 17-0 softball victory over Hempstead.

   Newark Valley's Erin Cawley set a Section 4 record of 18:19.5 in the seldom-contested girls' 5,000 meters during the Red, White, Blue & Gold Invitational at Vestal. The previous record of 18:51.3 was set in 2006 by Ithaca's Ali Cornell.

   Work in progress: Glens Falls will shut down its main athletic field May 5 to begin the installation of artificial turf. It's part of a $3.1 million project that includes new bleachers, a press box and a scoreboard. The field should be ready for use in time for the fall season.

   On the subject of artificial turf, the Democrat and Chronicle in Rochester was the latest to write about health concerns being raised by some groups and individuals.

   In the story, Judy Braiman, president of Rochesterians Against the Misuse of Pesticides, said her group examined several turf fields and concluded that no artificial field was safe.

   It's not my intent to take sides in this issue, which is complicated to say the least. But isn't the name of Braiman's slightly ironic with regard to this issue. After all, large parcels of natural grass suitable for football, soccer, baseball and lacrosse require considerable care and

maintenance, which usually includes fertilizers, pesticides and other chemical treatments that likely aren't any healthier. And I know this because the law requires the lawn service that I use for my yard to send me each year a disclosure manual that's as thick as a small-town phone book (and about as interesting to browse).

   Shaping the future: This doesn't have anything directly to do with high school sports, but there are nevertheless implications, so I'll just give it a brief mention.

   The Buffalo News reported today that a state commission will recommend 76 ways to control property taxes by calling for dramatic revisions to local government operations — including many school districts.

   The report by the New York State Commission on Local Government Efficiency and Competitiveness says mergers of local governments, including school districts, should be made easier to accomplish. Former Lt. Gov. Stan Lundine of Jamestown headed the commission.

   "Citizens are demanding change, because they are frustrated by their local tax burden, which is the highest in the nation. They also want modern, efficient services and more progress on issues that must be addressed regionally, like economic growth and quality of life," the report says.

   The report calculates that there are 698 school districts in New York and that merging a pair of 900-pupil districts can save 9 percent. Savings could reach 20 percent for small districts, the commission contends. The draft plan would give the state education commissioner the power to order school district mergers based on pupil performance, enrollment and tax burdens.

   Once officially released, the report will be political dynamite because it threatens to shrink the size of government — which means cutting jobs and surrending some local autonomy. I did a quick look at a map this morning and found 11 instances of side-by-side small school districts that might be candidates for consolidation in Section 5, and I'd guess there must be at least 75 other possibilities across New York.

   Progress report: I'll be spending a chuck of today doing the first wholesale update of the 2008 season track and field leaderboard. Coaches and league chairmen who know reliable sources of updated local information can send me an e-mail.

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