Leading off today: Zach Gobel, an assistant at Ballston Spa for seven seasons, is the new varsity football coach at Averill Park, The Times Union reported today.

   Gobel, 40, replaces Bill Roemer, who has taken a job at Colonie. He was offensive coordinator at Ballston Spa and inherits a team that went 3-6 last fall after a 56-6 loss to Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake in the Section 2 Class A quarterfinals.

   Southampton wrestling coach resigns: Southampton wrestling coach Ryan McCready, arrested in March on several charges, resigned from his physical education job in the school district and his job has been posted, Hamptons.com reported.

   McCready was arrested on charges of driving while under the influence of drugs, possession of heroin and of a hypodermic needle, the site reported. All the charges are misdemeanors. McCready's arraignment on April 20 at Southampton Town Justice Court was postponed, as have been the last three scheduled dates, the sire reported.

   McCready coached for three seasons, and interviews to find his replacement will begin this month. Wrestling practice opens Nov. 18.

   Southampton placed two wrestlers into the state Division II tournament last March in Albany.

   "He had a bright future with us," AD Darren Phillips said. "Everyone was just enamored with him. He had a great rapport with the kids. You could tell he was passionate about what he did and every day he'd tell me about how much he enjoyed working in Southampton. He's going to be hard to replace."

   Section 1 changes: Ramapo basketball point guard Jameisha Parker will play her senior season at North Rockland following her family's change of address.

   The development should add to an interesting season for North Rockland, where Kevin Metcalf takes over as coach after 23 years of running boys teams and inherits six returning players from a rare losing (7-13) season. Becky Miller steppped down after five seasons as coach.

   "To be honest," Metcalf said of coaching girls, "the only thing that stands out to me is how polite they are."

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   Nisky volunteer coach accused: A volunteer high school softball coach at Niskayuna was jailed last week after being accused of having sex with a high school student and giving her an alcoholic beverage, The Times Union reported.

   Town police said Joseph A. Annello III, 46, is accused of having sex with the child, who was under age 17, at least five times. He is charged with five counts of third-degree rape, the paper reported.

   Schools Superintendent Kevin Baughman said Annello was a parent-volunteer softball coach for the high school for several years but not employed by the district.

   Annello is also charged with third-degree criminal sexual act, five counts of endangering the welfare of a child and a count of unlawfully dealing with a minor. He was in jail on $75,000 bail and returns to court on Wednesday, the paper reported.

   Extra points: Lehman College named John Pisano as its softball coach. Pisano was head coach at Fontbonne Hall in Brooklyn from 2001-04 and an assistant there since. He's also coached the New York Panthers travel team since 1994.