Catholic New York has a story this week updating readers on start dates for high school and CYO athletes.
Click here to read the story.
Author Dan Pietrafesa
CYO Virtual Fall Contest
CYO New York is having a virtual essay/poetry/art/photo contest this fall, similar to the one held during the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring.
The contest is open to students in grades one through 12, and only parents, guardians or persons 18 or older may enter the information for the program. An 18 year old wishing to enter the program must have a parent or guardian enter them into the contest.
Entry deadline is Nov. 25. Winners will be announced by Dec. 15. Winners will be awarded by county and all entries automatically will be entered into the archdiocese contest.
Football Season Delayed to March
The Catholic High School Football League of Metropolitan New York (CHSFL) announced on Thursday it is delaying its season until March and April of 2021.
A release from the league said it will announce the exact start date at a future date.
The league also announced the New York State Catholic High School Athletic Association has approved a 7 v 7 flag football season for the fall. Practice may begin Sept. 21 and the first games will be scheduled for the weekend of Oct. 10.
The CHSFL said in a release that further details and a 7 v 7 game schedule will be “available soon.”
Start Dates for CYO Sports
CYO New York released its 2020-2021 Adjusted Calendar of Events.
Here are the start dates: cross country, Oct. 4; indoor basketball, Jan. 15; cheerleading, Staten Island CYO Championships April 24, archdiocese championships, May 15; Baseball, softball and outdoor track, April 17.
Staten Island CYO also announced it will begin its fall bowling program on Oct. 5.
Click here to learn more about CYO New York programs.
Click here to learn more about fall bowling and other CYO sports programs on Staten Island.
Anderson Lifts Army
Cardinal Hayes High School graduate Christian Anderson ran for 98 yards and two touchdowns in helping Army defeat La.-Monroe, 37-7, at West Point on Saturday.
“It was a good job by all the guys on the offense. The linemen created really big holes, the slots and receivers were doing a great job on the outside with their matchups and I was able to find holes in the defense and was able to exploit them,” Anderson said in the post-game press conference.
For the season, the quarterback has a team-high 149 to go with three touchdowns on 31 carries, averaging close to five yards per carry.
Army was scheduled to host BYU this weekend in a nationally televised game on CBS, but the game has been postponed due to a small number of positive COVID-19 tests at BYU. The two schools are attempting to reschedule the game.
Army will play at Cincinnati Sept. 26 in a game scheduled to be televised by ABC or ESPN.
FILE PHOTO BY DANNY WILD/ARMY ATHLETICS
NYSPHSAA Postpones Football, Volleyball, Cheer Seasons
The New York Public High School Athletic Association announced it has changed the football, volleyball and competitive cheer seasons from the fall to a start date of March 1, 2021.
Low-risk contact fall sports–boys and girls soccer, girls swimming, girls tennis, field hockey, cross country–may begin practicing on Sept. 21.
The start of spring sports will be pushed back to April 21.
The Ursuline School, Albertus Magnus, Our Lady of Lourdes and John S. Burke Catholic are Catholic schools in the archdiocese competing in the NYSPHSAA. John S. Burke competes in NYSPHSAA’s Section 9, which voted Thursday to postpone all fall sports–low- and high-risk contact–to March.
“We’ve spent two days speaking with nearly 500 athletic directors across the state and it’s clear that administering high-risk fall sports during the COVID-19 pandemic presents a significant challenge for our member schools,” said Dr. Robert Zayas, NYSPHSAA executive director, in a press release. “These are unprecedented times and unfortunately, difficult decisions will have to be made to address this ongoing crisis. We continue to stay committed to providing support to our member schools and quality participation experiences for the students we serve.”
Lamantia, Garcia Win Golf Event
James Lamantia and Abby Garcia were the overall boys and girls winners of the annual Theodore A. Atlas CYO Junior Golf Tournament at Silver Creek Golf Course on Staten Island Sept. 3.
The tournament took place after being postponed in June due to COVID-19. It was the first sporting event hosted by Staten Island CYO since March.
Click here to read more about the tournament.
Tee Times for Dr. Atlas Tournament
Here are the tee times for Thursday’s Dr. Theodore Atlas CYO Junior Golf Tournament at Silver Lake Golf Course on Staten Island:
10:00 a.m.: Isabella Sheikowitz, St. Joseph Hill Academy; Sienne Andersen, Our Lady Star of the Sea; Abigail Garcia, Sacred Heart. 10:10: Soren Andersen, Our Lady Star of the Sea; Michael Hui, IS 34; Luke O’Brien, Genesis; 10:20: Matthew Sheikowitz, St. Joseph Hill Academy; Michael Avallone, IS 7; Angelo Divencenzi, Blessed Sacrament School. 10:30: Euchang Kim, PS 4; Andrew Biscoho, IS 34; Joseph Schaaff, Blessed Sacrament School. 10:40: Sean Bailey, IS 34; Eugene Kim, IS 75; Marco Devincenzi, Blessed Sacrament School; Matthew Mistretta, St. Joseph Hill Academy. 10:50: Michael Molina, St. Joseph Hill Academy; Jack Minogue, Blessed Sacrament School; James Lamantia, IS 34; Joseph Derosa, IS 24.
Barger Leaving Stepinac for FDR
Ken Barger is leaving Archbishop Stepinac High School to become the head football coach at Franklin D. Roosevelt High School in Hyde Park.
Barger worked at Stepinac for five years, most recently serving as an academic support counselor in the school and offensive coordinator for the varsity football program at Stepinac, which won state titles in 2017 and 2018.
Barger, who has bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, was the head football coach of Poughkeepsie and Our Lady of Lourdes high schools before heading to Stepinac.
Baez Leads Worcester to Final
Mount St. Michael Academy graduate Angelo Baez helped the Worcester Bravehearts reach the third and final game of the championship series in the Futures Collegiate Baseball League of New England.
The Bravehearts lost to Nashua, 5-3, in the third game of the best-of-three championship series.
Baez finished with a league-low 1.29 earned run average, allowing five earned runs and striking out 46 in 35 innings. In 2019, he was named the league’s pitcher of the year.
Baez, a graduate student, will pitch his senior season at St. Thomas Aquinas College in Rockland County in the 2020-2021 school year.
Baez was one of the players featured in a Catholic New York story on players competing in summer leagues. Click here to read the story.
PHOTO BY CAROL MOROCCO/WORCESTER BRAVEHEARTS
