Warriors vs. Wildcats for spot in final
On paper, the Stillwater vs. Mechanicville Section II Class C semifinal looks like a mismatch.
The Warriors are 18-4 this season, including two impressive playoff wins, while the Wildcats had to win a quarterfinal contest to inch above .500.
Games aren’t played on paper, however.
No. 14 seed Maple Hill (12-11) poses several problems for any opponent, as No. 2 Stillwater will find out in their 6 p.m. semifinal at the Glens Falls Civic Center Thursday evening. The winner of that contest plays the winner of the Lake George vs. Granville game in the Class C final scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday back at the Civic Center.
“They’re tough, they’re quick,” Stillwater senior Jared D’Aloia said. “We’re probably going to have to pound it in to our big guys — Zack (Travis) and Ryan (McNeil).”
Travis, McNiel and Ezra Echeandia gave the Stillwater the rebounding and scoring it needed to overcome a slow start against Duanesburg in the quarterfinals.
Stillwater coach Dave Hill watched Maple Hill’s victory over Mechanicville in the other quarterfinal at HVCC last Saturday from the stands.
“They showed a lot of grit and determination battling against what we know is a good Mechanicville team,” Cook said of the Wildcats. “The Civic Center is the goal for every team that starts in November. We’re one of the lucky ones that gets to go.”
Stillwater is making its first Civic Center playoff appearance since 2012.
Maple Hill had a poor start to the season but has continued to improve. The Wildcats have peaked in the playoffs to earn upsets over Greenville and Mechanicville as the No. 14 seed.
“At the beginning of the season I thought this group had something that might get us (to the Civic Center),” Maple Hill coach Scott Hanrahan said after the quarterfinal win. “You never look too far ahead ... in the middle of the season I started to waiver on that because we just weren’t taking care of the ball on offense. Then in the last two games we’ve got something going.”
Saratoga Catholic proved that a double-digit seed can win the Class C tournament in 2016. The Saints raised the plaque as a No. 10 seed last year.
The Wildcats featured a well-rounded offense in the quarterfinals. In fact four players — Garrett Axtmann, Austin Decker, Ethan Samarija and Jack Sandore showed range by making 3-pointers in the victory.
Stillwater, on the other hand, has benefitted from the explosive scoring of senior Jared D’Aloia all season. The point guard described his shooting as “really bad” in the first half of the quarterfinals, yet still finished with a gamehigh 22 points.
The third-year starter has played more than 60 high school contests with fellow senior Zack Travis. The cohesion between the two has led them to the Civic Center for a semifinal game for the first time.
“We knew this day was going to come,” D’Aloia said. “We’ve been waiting 2-3 years for it.”
“It’s exciting,” Travis said. “Third year trying to get there, finally got there. We’ve got to be ready for (Maple Hill’s) quickness and put points on the board.”