State Champions… Again!

Spa Catholic Baseball are repeat Class C State Champions despite graduating five seniors last year. This year, seven seniors leave their legacy at Saratoga Central Catholic.

The championship weekend started early for the team. The boys left school early on Thursday, cheered on by their classmates and families as they boarded their bus to Binghamton. 

Their bus was escorted by Saratoga police and fire department from Broadway down Route 9 as they looked forward to their semi-final clash on Friday, June 12, against Tuckahoe High School. 

“It looked bleak going into the last inning” said Coach Alphonse Lambert. 

With the Saints down 3-2, Junior Sandy McDonald managed to earn a walk off the Tuckahoe star pitcher, Connor Brice. This caused Brice to reach his 125-pitch limit, leading to relief pitcher Kyle Carney taking the mound. 

Spa Catholic batters rattled in 3 runs in the top of the seventh to earn their first lead of the night. Central Catholic shut out Tuckahoe High batters in the bottom of the seventh inning to punch their ticket to a second consecutive spot in the Class C State Championship game.

The State Championship game was Saturday, June 13, against Kendall High School. Siena commit, Pierce Bryne, had a dominant pitching performance, only allowing 1 run.

Runs from Joey Linder, Kehil Kelly, Martin Ellie and Zach Streicher secured back-to-back State Championships for Saratoga Central Catholic. 

“They just don’t give these things out,” was said frankly by Coach Lambert. “We had to dig deep.”

It took Coach Lambert 37 seasons as head coach of Spa Catholic’s baseball program to win a NYSPHSAA title. His team repeated that feat just one year later.

The Saints finished the season with an overall record of 23-3.