by Steve Bradley
The HFCS Panthers faced the Voorheesville Blackbirds in the Joseph L. Bruno Stadium in Troy for the Section II Class C finals on May 31, a beautiful day for a baseball game. Each team had faced an uphill battle just to be in the game, with Hoosick Falls seeded sixth and Voorheesville seeded eighth. Both teams were excited just to be playing in the final at the spacious stadium, and each team had a nice showing of fans. At the end of the game though, Voorheesville was the victor, recording a 6 – 1 win over the Panthers.
The Panthers got off to a rough start defensively and never got the offense rolling until the seventh and final inning when they loaded the bases and recorded their lone run. The first two innings were a nightmare for the Panthers, with walks, wild pitches, an error and a hit by pitch batter giving the Blackbirds plenty of base runners and easy chances to advance them. The Blackbirds took advantage of the opportunities and held a 4 – 0 lead after two innings. As the game progressed, the Panthers got runners on base but struggled to move them. HF actually had more hits than their opponent. It just wasn’t the Panthers’ day.
Three Sectional Man
An interesting side note to the game was senior Tanner Williams, a starter for the Panthers in football, baseball and basketball, participated in the Sectional Finals in all three sports. Tanner is the son of Jay and Brooke (Niles) Williams of White Creek.