Ballston Spa High School junior Gabrielle Bozeth is formally honored by the district’s Board of Education at a meeting on June 27. Photo via the event live stream.
BALLSTON SPA — Ballston Spa varsity girls track and field standout Gabrielle Bozeth was formally honored at a June 27 Board of Education meeting for what her coach called a “historic,” record-setting season.
At the meeting, Coach Matt Germann highlighted some of Bozeth’s accomplishments:
Times Union’s girls track and field Athlete of the Year
Holds eight school records in outdoor track and field
Made the Suburban Council All-Star list three times this year
Qualified for New Balance Nationals, where she placed 34th in the 200m dash
In Section 2, she’s ranked #1 for the 100m and the 200m
At the New York State championship meet, she won the 200m federation and placed 2nd in the 100m federation
Bozeth was also a member of a relay team that Germann called “the greatest relay team I’ve coached in 20 years.” In indoor events, the team broke more than 23 school records. They also won both the 4×100 and the 4×400 at the William F. Eddy Jr. Meet last month, among many other accomplishments.
Germann also praised Bozeth for her hard work and humility.
Elite Fighting Promotions is holding its first official event at the Saratoga Springs City Center on July 13. Image provided.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Don Walton was criss-crossing the country, chasing after the next opportunity to compete in combat sports. Vermont. New York City. Indiana. Delaware. He was always on the road, and tired of it. Then he had an idea: how hard would it be to launch a fighting promotion at home in Saratoga Springs?
To answer that question, he called Jay Ingleston, a former fighter and promoter who had booked Walton in the past. The more the duo thought about it, the more convinced they became that Saratoga needed its own fighting promotion; one that could offer more variety of competition.
“It’s an honorable product that we’re trying to give to the community,” Ingleston said. “We want these guys to have a showcase for their skills. That’s why I started this. That’s why I started fighting. I didn’t care if I won or lost. It was a respect thing, and it was the honor of going out and testing yourself.”
Although it wasn’t officially under the Elite Fighting Promotions banner, Walton and Ingleston held an event in March that, to their surprise, sold out. Hundreds of people strolling around Broadway bought tickets the day of the event, proving to Walton that Saratoga is indeed a fight town.
“Clearly there’s a demand and we hear what the people are saying, so we’re going to bring it back again and again,” Walton said.
“Saratoga will show up for you if you give them a product or brand to latch onto,” added Ingleston.
The plan is to start putting on three to four shows per year, starting with the first official Elite Fighting Promotions event at the Saratoga Springs City Center on Saturday, July 13.
The main event, with a Bantamweight MMA title on the line, will be Christian Alvarez versus Edward Brown. Alvarez is from Troy, and Brown hails from South Carolina. The co-main event, a 180-pound Muay Thai bout, will be Albany’s Logan Samarija versus Buffalo’s Malik Abdus-Sabr.
For Walton, it was important to book fighters from all over the country, many of whom he met while on the road. He believes that spectators ultimately care more about seeing a good show, and are less concerned with where the fighters come from.
“A lot of amateur-level shows rely on local fighters selling the tickets,” he said. “For us, it’s just good quality.”
The July 13 card includes ten fights total, including Muay Thai bouts, MMA bouts, and a grappling match. Event sponsors include Druthers Brewing and Northern Lights Dispensary. Doors open at 6 p.m., and the fights begin at 7 p.m. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.elitefightingpromotions.com/events.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga Central Catholic’s annual baseball camp will return on July 15-18 and August 5-8. The 35th iteration of the camp will be directed by coaches Alphonse Lambert and Dale Long Jr.
The camp is open to boys and girls ages 7-14 and will be located at the West Side Rec Little League fields at 166 Division Street in Saratoga Springs.
To learn more or to register, visit www.spasaints.com. Registration forms must be printed and mailed with a check to Coach Lambert.
GLENS FALLS — The Adirondack Thunder, an ECHL hockey team affiliated with the New Jersey Devils, won a handful of awards after concluding a successful season.
Team President Jeff Mead won the ECHL’s “Executive of the Year” award.
Player Darian Skeoch received the Professional Hockey Players’ Association’s “Built Tough” award.
The team received the ECHL’s “Specialty Jersey of the Year” award for its Country Night jerseys. It also won the ECHL’s “Ticket Department of the Year” award for year-over-year growth.
The Saratoga Springs varsity boys distance runners captured several state titles this year in cross-country, indoor relay, and outdoor relay events. Photo provided by Shane Zanetti.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Saratoga Springs varsity boys runners won the “triple crown” of distance running this year, a feat that Coach Shane Zanetti said may have never happened before in New York State history.
In November, they won the New York State Class A Cross-Country Championship. In March, they were state champs in the 4×800 indoor relay. Then, earlier this month, they won another state title in the 4×800 outdoor relay.
Coach Zanetti said that many of his runners have been talking about winning races, capturing titles, and setting records since they were in 7th grade. When the moment finally came to realize their ambitions, they were ready.
“A lot of these guys have been at it together for many years,” Zanetti said. “I think they build a lot of trust in each other and a lot of accountability towards each other.”
“When we’re going for these team championships, you know that everybody takes it seriously and it’s kind of just like pushing each other to see how far we can take it,” said Charlie Dybala, one of the outdoor 4×800 state champions.
“Being on a team like this,” said cross-country champ Hudson Shaw, “gives you the skills that you’re going to need after high school because you know how to persevere through a lot of hard work that I think is unique to distance running in particular.”
The long road to the “triple crown” began at the cross-country state championships in November, which the Saratoga crew won in a sixth-man tiebreaker. The first runner was only 25 seconds apart from the sixth, reinforcing Zanetti’s belief that his teams are filled with players who are near-equals in both talent and contribution.
“I was the third runner that day and I just thought it was really cool as a team to run in such a tight pack,” said Darren Pasek. “That day, we all were as close as we were the whole year and that’s how we won. It was all about teamwork.”
The second leg of the “triple crown” was the indoor state championships in March, where Saratoga’s near-equal relay team had no apparent weak spots.
“We could’ve alternated or changed our order completely around and it would’ve come out to really the same result,” Zanetti said.
That strategy also worked for the outdoor relay team earlier this month when they secured the third leg of their “triple crown.”
“We had a bunch of guys who could be interchangeable that took whatever spot they were in really seriously on that given day,” Zanetti said.
When Saratoga Springs High School held its commencement ceremony on Wednesday morning, five Saratoga runners bid farewell to their teammates. Despite this loss of talent, sights are still set high for next year. On the distance running crew’s to-do list: repeating all of their state title victories, and making it to nationals.
“We definitely are coming back with a vengeance,” said Darren Pasek.
Rower Christian Penny poses with his dad Chris after winning a silver medal at the USRowing Youth National Championships in Sarasota, Florida this month. Photo provided by Chris Penny.
Homeschooler Wins Silver Medal
SARASOTA, FLORIDA — Despite not having the advantages of a public school athletic program, Mohawk Homeschool Rowing Association’s Christian Penny captured a silver medal in the Men’s U17 1x at the USRowing Youth National Championships in Florida earlier this month.
Christian, who lives in Saratoga Springs, was coached by his father Chris Penny at the event.
“Based on his times,” Chris said, “we were pretty confident or hopeful that he would make it to the grand finals.”
In the finals, Christian finished with a time of 07:38.46, about 7 seconds behind first.
Chris, who is also board president of the Mohawk Homeschool Rowing Association, said it’s important for homeschoolers to “have an athletic outlet that isn’t just recreation, where you can compete at a pretty high level.”
The association doesn’t have the funding or resources of public school rowing teams, and thus subsists on dues and private fundraising efforts.
“Homeschoolers are sort of a different breed,” Chris said. “Our resources are relatively limited.”
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But none of that has stopped Christian from becoming a successful rower. He took up the sport in fifth grade and hopes to continue through college. He placed first in the Men’s U17 Single event at the New York State Rowing Championships, which allowed him to qualify for the Youth National Championships in Florida.
Girls and Boys Teams Successful
The Saratoga Rowing Association (SRA) also competed at nationals, with six teams qualifying for the event in Florida.
“After having watched the group qualify in person at the State Championships, I can attest that this group was on a clear mission to not only achieve top results with the most senior boats, but qualify and contend with a strong deep program,” SRA’s Co-Executive Director Eric Catalano told Saratoga TODAY.
The U16 girls team finished 9th in the country in the eights division.
Team members included Emilia Acquavella (coxswain), Sophie Sampanthar (seat 8/stroke), Caroline Jackson (seat 7), Isabella “Pisa” Bonitatibus (seat 6), Meghan Kempf (seat 5), Sabrina Maglienti (seat 4), Rylie Sheldon (seat 3) Katie Oke (seat 2), and Catherine Fedoroff (seat 1/bow).
The team is coached by Ronnie Cantrell, who recently accepted an offer to become the men’s freshman rowing coach at the University of Virginia.
Other SRA achievements included top 10 finishes with the senior boys eight and the senior girls eight.
“We, the greater community, are so proud of the work and effort the youth rowers put into this sport, and were thrilled to see those efforts rewarded with strong performances at the national level,” Catalano said.
Ramon Hernandez Jr., from the Jason Morris Judo Center, took home a silver medal in the 81kg final at the Peruvian Open in Lima on June 23. It was the second career medal at a Pan Am open for Hernandez, who won bronze in Chile last month. The second-place finish in Peru allowed Hernandez to jump 85 spots on the World Ranking List up to a career-high #179. Photo provided by Jason Morris.
MECHANICVILLE — Three members of the Saratoga Central Catholic varsity softball team were crowned tournament champions at the Electric City Bombers Upstate City Classic 18u event earlier this month in Mechanicville.
Grace Schaefer, Paige Bujno, and Allison Fuller were members of the winning Saratoga Thunder team, which went 7-0 during the two-day tournament.
MECHANICVILLE — Three members of the Saratoga Central Catholic varsity softball team were crowned tournament champions at the Electric City Bombers Upstate City Classic 18u event earlier this month in Mechanicville.
Grace Schaefer, Paige Bujno, and Allison Fuller were members of the winning Saratoga Thunder team, which went 7-0 during the two-day tournament.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Skidmore College softball program has announced four new players who will join the Thoroughbreds this fall as part of the class of 2028.
The newcomers include Cayla Schubmehl, a left-handed pitcher from Catholic Central High School in Troy; Shayne Cleeve, a right-hander from Newark Academy in New Jersey; Isabel Moreno, an outfielder from Wachusett Regional High School in Massachusetts; and Delaney Swain, a middle infielder from the Pingry School in New Jersey.
The Skidmore softball team is looking to rebound from a tough season in which they finished 9-27 overall and 3-11 in their conference.
GLENS FALLS —The Adirondack Thunder announced last week that the team has extended its affiliation with the NHL’s New Jersey Devils and the AHL’s Utica Comets through the 2025-26 season.
“We are coming off our best season yet, both on and off the ice. With the help and support from New Jersey and Utica, we are looking forward to putting another winning team on the ice this season while also developing prospects,” said Adirondack Thunder President Jeff Mead in a statement.
This past season, the ECHL’s Thunder won their third regular-season North Division title, finished first in the Eastern Conference during the regular season, and advanced to the Eastern Conference Final, where they lost to Florida in six games. The team also set an attendance record with 17 sellouts.
