MAGIC IN A BOTTLE
The Mechanicville Girl’s season ends full of accomplishments, but without a final win or loss
MECHANICVILLE, NY » The Mechanicville Girl’s Basketball team was one of the teams in Section II still vying for a State Championship when the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) decided to officially cancel the winter championships due to COVID-19.
“It was hard when they broke the news to us,” said Mechanicville Girl’s Basketball Head Coach Blain Goverski. “We thought when they said it was going to be postponed that there was some hope. After it became official it was hard. The girls are hanging in there. It’s a tough situation. The world is facing a tough time right now.”
Mechanicville was scheduled to play in the Regional Championship against Northeastern Clinton on March 13. NYSPHSAA postponed that matchup and then officially cancelled all winter sports championships on March 23.
“It really hasn’t even set in. It’s set in, but you don’t want to have to see the negatives,” said Goverski. “We try to stay with the positives. I’m one of the guys that tries to see all the positives with this and hav
ing the seniors win back to back Section II Championships is such a huge accomplishment they should really be proud of and I know they are. I know all of them are.”
Mechanicville claimed the Section II, Class B Championship with a 56-46 win over Mekeel Christian Academy back on March 7. That sectional championship was their second in as many years after going nearly 30 years without one.
“They work so hard for it. This group of seniors put the time in with AAU, there the ones at the open guys, and for them to see how all that hard work paid off it really is special,” said Goverski.
Mechanicville graduates five seniors. Charli Goverski, Jada Brown, Gianna Cavotta, AJ Joseph, and Lyndsay Robens all bid farewell to their high school careers with a big asterisks on their senior year.
“Looking at it, those girls are going to have their spot in history with Mechanicville Girl’s Basketball,” said Goverski. “They’ve been watching Mechanicville Basketball and been a part of the program for a long time, going back to third or fourth grade in CYO, that’s when it started with these seniors.”
Graduating is Goverski’s daughter, Charli Goverski. Charli was the Section II Tournament MVP this season, a 1000 point scorer, a first team All-Wasaren selection in her junior and senior season, and helped lead Mechanicville to three straight Section II Final Fours.
“Charli has been a big, big part of the process here from day one when I started coaching her in the third grade, from her getting to where she is now as an unbelievable scorer,” said Coach Goverski. “She has been able to develop into the rebounding and to be able to see the court. She has been able to do whatever we asked her to do, but she is going to be missed. She really is. She has been able to find ways to score.”
Charli will continue to play basketball in college. Originally recruited by Saint Rose, recent coaching changes have that decision in the air. Goverski has other options and will be playing college basketball somewhere next season.
Also departing his assistant coach Mike Cavotta’s daughter, Gianna Cavotta.
“You have Gianna Cavotta, she’s just coming on developing her three point shooting, she’s probably the best three point shooter on the team. She’s been blossoming late. For her to be playing her best basketball this late is quite an accomplishment,” said Goverski.
For Goverski, having the chance to coach family is the best part of the accomplishments.
“For us as coaches and fathers, you wait for this time to finally come, for us to be able to see our daughters out there and put in the best at the highest level,” said Goverski. “You can’t really ask for more than that. They were such a great unselfish group.”
Also departing is point guard Jada Brown, and centers AJ Joseph and Kelsey Robens.
“[Brown] was guarding the best girl on the other teams,” said Goverski. “She was the one distributing the ball. She was really, really a great athlete. She had a rare talent of speed and quickness and she was able to see the court, which was unbelievable. Are we going to see that again? It may take awhile.”
Joseph joined Mechanicville late and was able to put two good years together for the Red Raiders. Goverski praised Joseph for her ability to join late and not skip a beat. Joseph fit in and bought into the team instantly.
“AJ Joseph has talent, rare talent that came to us two years ago. She was raw and we worked with her. She’s enlisted in the army and she was doing her training and being able to go to practice all year long. She is a tenacious rebounder. She finds a way to track the ball, she gets position, she is the toughest girl I have ever coached.”
Goverski praised Robens ability to be a role model and her maturity as a teammate.
“Lyndsey Robens is the Wasaren Shot Put champion of the league. She’s a great athlete and has been there from day one,” said Goverski. “She’s just a great kid, she has a great personality, and she was part of the glue, which was always positive within the team and with the younger kids and is a great role model for all the kids to look up to.”
Seniors are difficult to replace, and this group is no exception to that. Joseph tallied 203 points this season. Brown added 158. Charli led the way with 359 (and tallied over a thousand in her career).
Despite those big losses, Chloe Goverski returns 200 points and Amy DiSiena brings in 167 of her own from this season. Coach Goverski is positive that though this senior class includes some major losses, he is not too concerned yet.
“The younger groups have been watching and they have been getting the taste of what it is like to be there. We have Amy DiSiena who is going to be a senior, who has been here since the ninth grade,” said Goverski.
“We have Chloe who played against Canton with bronchitis and I had to tell my assistant that she’s not ready for this and we have to take her out,” continued Goverski. “She played the last six, seven games of the year in double figures every game. As a sophomore she stepped up big and she is going to be ready next year. Maddy Shakow, Ryleigh Hopeck, and Sophie Mastropietro didn’t get a whole lot of playing time this year, but they should be hungry to say, ‘it’s time for me to play.’”
The Mechanicville seniors have a lot to be proud of in their career despite an obvious disappointing ending. Even though the season ended with neither a win, nor a loss, Coach Goverski looks at the season as a success with three accomplishments in mind: winning the Wasaren Championship, reclaiming the Section II, Class B Championship, and avenging their 2019 loss to Canton.
“Last year, winning the Section II Championship was the biggest thing we’ve had in 30 years. That was so special,” said Goverski. “Now with some of the pressure and buildup, we put more pressure on ourselves to make sure we were back to back. We had pretty much everyone back from the year before and we were confident that we were going to be there. Making sure we were back in the finals definitely was important.”
“The highlight of winning the Wasaren League against Cambridge was probably harder than winning the Section II Championship. They’re talented, their State Champs back to back, to be able to catch them when we did, at one of the highest points of us playing, was definitely a highlight.”
Goverski reflected on Mechanicville’s loss to Canton in 2019 and how they fell at the buzzer after having a 14 point lead all game. Mechanicville had to sleep with the loss for a whole year and exactly one year later to the day, the Red Raiders were able to finally get their revenge with a 58-43 win over Canton on March 10.
“That sits with you for a whole year and then to have revenge on the same day one year later and to beat Canton by 14-15 points, those three things I think are just as important for a coach, for our team, for our community,” said Goverski. “Everybody came together and backed us and with that support and people believing in you, that’s the magic. We caught the magic in a bottle two years in a row.”