Hoops: Varsity squad starts season with impressive tourney win Basketball… basketball… EVERYWHERE! Well, not exactly everywhere. Not yet, anyways. But college hoops are well under way, with Syracuse, currently ranked third in the nation, poised for a great run.

Meanwhile, the NBA owners and players finally figured out how to divvy up approximately four billion in revenue. Must be rough.

While most of us are trying to stay afloat, these guys took their sweet time splitting up a king’s ransom, making sure to hit the airwaves with a full slate of games on Christmas Day. Ho-Ho-Ho.

And, locally, our high school hardwood enthusiasts are heating things up, starting with an appearance in the holiday weekend Remsen Tip-Off Tournament. How did they fare? Read on, and see for yourself.

Boys JV & Varsity Basketball

Having presumably downed more than their fair share of turkey, stuffing, and yams, the boys were hoping to start their season off on the right foot as they traveled to Remsen on Saturday and Sunday, December 3rd and 4th.

The JV squad dropped their opening game against a strong Brookfield team, who went on to take top honors in the Jayvee Finals.

Old Forge did, however, come up with a winning performance on Sunday, dominating Oppenheim 49-32.

That victory propelled them to a third place finish overall, and provides some momentum as they move forward with their regular season schedule.

Dane Daiker led his team in the consolation game with a whopping twenty points, landing him All-Tournament Team honors.

He was followed by Will Johnson, who had a solid thirteen-point outing of his own.

As for the Varsity team… well, let’s just say that there was a great deal to give thanks for.

And area fans may very well be in store for a banner year, if this outing is any indication of things to come.

Prior to the tourney, I spoke with Coach Nate Smith who, while not overconfident, did say that “Our team has pretty good balance, with better than average size. A lot of things have to fall into place, but we should be very competitive.”

With four guys measuring well over six foot, he’s definitely on point regarding the “size” factor.

Not to mention a legitimate pre-season League MVP candidate in Sam Waterbury.

Still, Coach Smith understands that you don’t win games on paper.

The team has to stay healthy, motivated, and, in all likelihood, catch a few breaks here and there if they are to achieve their goals.

After all, last year’s State Champion, New York Mills, is still on the schedule, along with several other perennial rivals.

The opening game in the tourney had the Eskimos facing off against Brookfield.

It became pretty obvious early on who the better team was, with Old Forge sprinting out to a 17-6 lead by the end of the first quarter.

They then rode that edge to a 57-43 win which included having three players in double figures as well as several other key contributions along the way.

Waterbury led the way with 14 points, followed by Greg Hunkins (12), Calvin Risley (11), Ethan Kress (9), Parker Clemans (7), and Kenny Pastore (4). There’s that balance that Coach was talking about!

Next up, for all the marbles, was Oppenheim-Ephratah, who had easily ousted Remsen from their own tourney the day before.

Different day… same result for Old Forge.

Again, they built up a pretty-much insurmountable thirteen point lead going into the final stanza and never looked back, winning the Championship game by a final score of 50-43.

Waterbury finished with 15 points and was deservedly named the Tournament MVP.

Risley, who was named to the All-Tourney Team, added 13 points and 10 boards for his first double-double of the year.

Hopefully, there will be many more of those to come.

Hunkins, who may very well turn out to be the difference-maker for the Eskimos, had 11 points, with teammates Clemans (4), Kress (4), Matt Kratzenberg (2), and Pastore (1) rounding out the scoring.

Congratulations to all for bringing the trophy home. It’s an awesome start to what could be a memorable season. Stay tuned…

Girls Varsity Volleyball

The boys weren’t the only ones playing in a tourney over the weekend, as the girls team took part in the Dolgeville Volleyball Tournament on Saturday, December 3.

This competition utilizes “pool play,” where each team plays two games against every other team.

With six teams in the tournament, it was a very busy and exhausting day for the ladies.

When all was said and done, a most impressive Dolgeville squad went 9-1 and placed the winner’s trophy in their own case.

Old Forge beat Ilion twice on their way to a 3-7 overall mark, good enough for fifth place in the tourney.

And when the All-Tournament Team was announced, the Eskimo’s own Jessica Menges was on it.

As with the boys, there are many pieces to the puzzle that will have to fall into place if things are to turn out favorably.

All anyone can ask, though, is that these dedicated student-athletes give it their best shot and let the chips fall where they may.