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The Altamont
Enterprise—
Thursday, November 4, 1999
29
Final mark is 5-4
Twenty-two Blackbirds
played like champions'
By Carol M. Kaelin
VOORHEESVILLE — Last
Saturday, an hour after the
Voorheesville football team beat
Bishop Gibbons, 41-12, many of
the Blackbirds still sat on the
field.
For the seniors, it was their
last game on Buckley Field, the
end of high school football. For
the junior varsity players, such
as Mark Murray and Jeff Nelson, who played in the fourth
quarter, it was the beginning of
their varsity career.
"You played like champions
this season," Sapienza told the
team after the pame. "We were
a few players short."
Football at Voorheesville "was
one of the most positive things
I've ever been a part of," said
Joe Nelson, one of four team
captains. "We accomplished a
lot."
At first look, back in August, it
was hard to believe that the
team would end with a winning
record (3-3 league, 5-4 overall).
Straggling in after conditioning
runs, they looked almost like a
sandlot team.
"Last year, our claim to fame
was size," Sapienza said during
preseason practice. "This year,
we're going to be quicker."
But except for 6'2", 230 pound
Colin Hargis, they were also
smaller, less bulky.
Quarterback Brian Matthews
is tall and thin. At 6'5", 195
pounds, he's the center on the
basketball team.
Looking at him during the
first practices, it was hard to
imagine that he'd withstand
more than a couple of hits, no
less survive the season at
"monster" (strong safety) and
wreak a lot of havoc on other
teams' runners.
The Birds had several
sophomores on the team, and
some seniors who were in their
first season of football, like
Christian J a c k s t a d t , who
seemed to be in on most tackles
by the end of the season.
"Christian came out his first
year and he wanted it [the playoffs] as bad as the kids who had
played for years," said John
Mosley, a tailback and a team
captain.
"It's a hard-working group,"
Sapienza said back in August.
And they were. They went from
a collection of predominately
inexperienced players to a team
that was one touchdown shy of
making the playoffs.
Championship hopes
On Sept. 25, when the Blackbirds lost to Watervliet, 14-7,
they knew they couldn't make
the playoffs. Unlike Class A,
where a team can lose several
games and still make the eight -
team playoff, in Class C, with
two league losses a team is most
likely out of contention in the
four-team format.
The
week
before,
Voorheesville lost to CoxsackieAthens, 26-19. They had led late
in the fourth quarter, 19-18, but
a last-minute Coxsackie touchdown ended the Birds' hopes.
Both contests were close; either team could have won. Luck
and close calls just didn't go the
Blackbirds' way.
"Even though we didn't have
the season we hoped we were
going to have," said James
Case, a Blackbird captain, "it
was still fun."
"Every game we lost this season, we were ahead at some
point," Sapienza said. "If anything, it was our lack of depth
and numbers that made the difference."
There were only 22 players
on the Blackbird team, including four juniors, five sophomores, and a freshman. But
what they lacked in size they
made up for in heart and dedication.
"We still wanted to go play,
go out and win," said Mosley.
He didn't begin as tailback until
the fourth game, but still gained
855 yards rushing for the season.
After the team was out of the
playoffs, the senior's determination to win was difficult for the
underclassmen to understand,
Mosley said. The coaches —
Sapienza, John Sittig, and
Torey Severino — helped the
team set new goals.
"Everybody came in thinking
we couldn't do anything,"
Mosley said. "We lost everyone
from last year's team, like lineman Eric Papandrea." The year
before, the team had won the
section and gone on to the regional competition.
"We came out and won two
games," Mosley said. The
Blackbirds won the first two
games of the year against
Schalmont and Canajoharie.
"It was a tough season for us
seniors coming off last season,"
said Hargis, a team captain.
"We made it our own. We did
better than everyone expected
uc to do...We were still good
enough to compete. That meant
a lot to the seniors."
All of them wish that the
Blackbirds were playing Mechanicville for the Class C Section II title this weekend — that
they had made the playoffs.
"Overall, I had
fun,"
Matthews said. "I hope next
year's team can be successful
and get to the sectionals."
(Continued on Page 31)
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The Enterprise — Carol M. Kaelin
All-star touchdown: Blackbird captain Colin Hargis (52) ran 21 yards for his first career
touchdown in Voorheepville's last game this season. Jeremiah Pucci (31) held the Bishop
Gibbons defender and Blake Livingston (56) hustled to back up the play. Hargis, a tackle, was
named to the Section II All-star team. Voorheesville beat Bishop Gibbons, 41-12.
Lineman goes on touchdown jaunt
By Carol ML Kaelin
VOORHEESVILLE — The
football tucked under his arm,
Colin Hargis sprinted down
Buckley Field at Voorheesville
high school with players from
Bishop Gibbons chasing him.
"Go Colin, go!" his mother
called from the sidelines.
As an offensive tackle, Hargis
never carries the football.
"When am I going to get to run
the ball?" Voorheesville Head
Coach Joe Sapienza said Hargis
always asked him.
It was the last Blackbird game
of the season. It was the last
Blackbird game for Hargis, a
senior and team captain. He's
fierce on the field. Against
Bishop Gibbons, jersey number
52 had six sacks, a new school
record, and 14 tackles total.
"I told him I would give him
one run," Sapienza said. He put
Hargis in as fullback for a play
in the third quarter. No one figured Hargis would get more
than a couple of yards. After all,
how many offensive tackles are .
nimble rushers?
Hargis ran it into the end zone
— a 21-yard touchdown run,
Voorheesville went on to win
41-12.
"He's been waiting for years
to do that," his mother said.
"It was surprising at first because he took me out of the
game," Hargis said. "I really
didn't know what to do. Brian
[quarterback Brian Matthews]
handed the ball off to me and I
started running. The line
opened up a huge hole. All I
could see was end zone."
"It was his first carry," said
Matthews. "It was pretty exciting. He broke one -ackle and he
was gone."
"The offensive line never gets
Info on volleyball
The Capital District Volleyball
Club is holding an information
and registration night on
Sunday, Nov. 7, at 6:30 p.m. at
the Colonie Elks Lodge in
Latham.
There are boys' and girls'
teams for all ages and skill levels.
A parental signature and initial fee is necessary for registra tion. Call 346-4647.
any credit," said John Mosley, a
captain and the team's tailback,
"unless the tailback or the fullback says they had great
blocking. I'm happy for him. It
was a good way to end the season."
Hargis was selected for the
All-Star, exceptional senior,
team.
He'll always remember his
one touchdown. Hargis said: "It
was definitely my best experience so far in the game."
Comets win their first game
GUILDERLAND — The
Guilderland Comets under-12
girls' soccer team won its first
game in the State Cup competition on Oct. 23, by beating
Massapequa, 3-1.
The team will travel to Long
Island Nov. 7 for its next game
in the statewide single-elimination tournament, which starts in
the fall and continues in the
spring.
Guilderland scored its first
goal early in the first half, when
Janis Jackson charged up from
the sweeper position to take a
shot on goal, which was deflected by the keeper. Forward
Julie Gabriel was first to get the
loose ball and fired it into the
goal. Carrie Markiewicz, playing
center forward drove up the
middle and scored twice.
The opponents were able to
evade Guilderland's defense and
score near the end of the first
half. The Guilderland girls took
many shots the second half, but
an outstanding effort by the
Massapequa keeper kept the
ball out of the net. The
Guilderland team is coached by
Kate Gillis.
G E N E R A L I)
DENTISTR
FYDI
For Your Dental Information
WHY TWO SETS OF TEETH?
QUESTION: Why do humans
have two sets of. teeth?
ANSWER: There is not enough
room in a child's small mouth for a
full set of permanent teeth. There
are only 20 primary teeth and 32
permanent teeth. We begin to lose
our first set of teeth at the age of 6 or
7. Before that time, primary (often
called baby) teeth play a key role in
stimulating and guiding the development of our jaw bone and permanent teeth. At birth, the beginning of
our second set of teeth are already
present below the gumline. During
early childhood, our permanent
teeth develop and start to push
Stuart F. Fass
D.D.S.
through the. jaw. When they move,
they cause the roots of our baby
teeth to dissolve. The baby teeth
then fall out, making room for our
second set of teeth.
Did you know that sharks continually produce new teeth, while other
animals, such as bats and guinea
pigs, shed their first set of teeth
while they're still in the womb?
Presented As A Public
Service By The Office of:
STUART F. FASS, D.D.S.
ADAM A. EDWARDS, D.D.S.
103 Malft St<-Altamont.
Phone:661-5136