Photo of the 2025 Saratoga Springs High School football team at the JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse via the Saratoga Springs City School District.
VERONA — The New York State High School Football Coaches Association presented Saratoga Springs’ Eric Hayden with its Section 2 Class AA Coach of the Year award at a banquet last Friday. The event was held at the Turning Stone Resort Casino in Oneida County.
“This does not happen without my assistant coaches,” Hayden said in a social media post. “I’m lucky to be in a school district that supports our football program. Thank you to all the great players I’ve had the pleasure to coach as you made this award come true. Special thanks to my wife Danielle for being the rock at home and supporting me in my coaching journey.”
In 2025, Hayden’s varsity football squad competed in a state championship game for only the second time in program history. The Blue Streaks finished the season 11-3, their best record in years.
Hayden joined Saratoga as its new head coach in 2023.
Thoroughbreds’ pitcher Quinn Hocom struck out 10 hitters across five innings in a game against Baruch College last Sunday. Photo by Matt Milless via Skidmore Athletics.
FORT MYERS, FLORIDA — The Skidmore College baseball team swept Baruch College in a doubleheader last Sunday before then splitting another doubleheader against Rockford University on Monday.
The busy two days concluded with the Thoroughbreds earning a 3-1 start to their season at the Gene Cusic Classic in Florida.
Skidmore is currently scheduled to play its first home game at the new Ferrari Field in Saratoga Springs on Wednesday, March 18.
Against Baruch, five Skidmore pitchers combined to surrender just three earned runs in two games. The Thoroughbreds won game one, 6-2, on a 10-strikeout performance from Quinn Hocom, and then won game two, 2-1, thanks to a one-hit, five-inning start by Chase Siegel.
In game one, Matthew O’Neill had three hits in his collegiate debut. He led off the bottom of the first inning with an opposite-field double and then scored on an error. He led off both the third and fifth innings with a single and a stolen base. Eddie Galvao was 1-for-3 with two walks and a two-RBI homer in the third.
In game two, O’Neill earned two more hits, wrapping up his impressive opening day with five hits, three stolen bases, and four runs scored.
Against Rockford, the Thoroughbreds dropped a back-and-forth opener, 12-11, before responding with an 8-4 victory in the second game to hand Rockford its first loss of the year.
In game one, Skidmore scored five runs in the first inning, but Rockford rallied late to snatch away the W.
In game two, the Thoroughbreds tallied 11 hits total, led by a 3-for-3 performance by Nate Vandersea. Galvao added two hits, including a double.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — The New York Racing Association (NYRA) announced Tuesday the return of Belmont Toast the Turn, a hospitality experience during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival on Friday, June 5, and Saturday, June 6 at Saratoga Race Course.
Featuring a capacity of up to 200 guests per day, the Belmont Toast the Turn tented hospitality area will be located along the Clubhouse turn to provide fans with a premium vantage point of horses rounding the first turn. Each ticket will include general admission to Saratoga Race Course, admission to Belmont Toast the Turn, and two alcoholic beverages, with additional drinks available for purchase throughout the day. The area will also feature food trucks offering a variety of options for purchase during the afternoon. The hospitality space will also include mutuel bay terminals, televisions, and restrooms. Tickets may be purchased at gofevo.com/group/BSRFtoastturnG.
NYRA also recently announced ticket and hospitality on-sale dates for the 2026 summer meet at Saratoga, which will open on Friday, July 3 and continue through Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 7.
Season tickets will go on sale on Thursday, March 12 for the 46-day summer meet and include reserved seating in the Clubhouse, Grandstand, and Michelob Ultra Stretch. Season ticket holders can enjoy the same guaranteed seat throughout the summer, including Whitney Day and Travers Day. Season tickets and season passes may be purchased online at NYRA.com/Saratoga/Tickets.
Full-space group hospitality reservations will be available beginning at 10 a.m. on Thursday, March 5 for 1863 Club Suites, as well as for the Paddock Suite and Spa Verandas presented by Casamigos. Reservations may be made by phone at 855-NYRA-123 or by email at premiumsales@nyrainc.com.
Tickets are also now on sale for the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame’s 10th annual Kentucky Derby Party on Saturday, May 2. From 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., the Derby-themed fundraiser will feature samplings of local brews and spirits, as well as signature bites from local restaurants. While exploring the Museum and its exhibits, guests can enjoy entertainment in the Hall of Fame before a live airing of the Kentucky Derby. An award for the most fashionable-themed attire will be presented before post time. There will also be a photobooth, live music, a sticker machine, a race-day-inspired 50/50 raffle, and a silent auction. Tickets may be purchased at: https://1049a.blackbaudhosting.com/1049a/10th-Annual-Derby-Party-Fundraiser.
BARRE, VERMONT — After emerging from the first quarter with a five-point deficit, the Saratoga Racers rebounded in their first game of the East Region Blue Division playoffs, finishing with a 148 to 114 victory against the Vermont Coyotes.
The Racers will now advance to the second round of the ABA postseason, where they’ll face the New England Lightning on Sunday afternoon.
In Vermont, Saratoga point guard and All-Star nominee Donovan Williams led his squad with 35 points, 8 boards, 6 assists, and 4 steals on 12-for-17 shooting. Cam Thomas netted 31 points, draining a whopping 8 of 10 attempts from beyond the arc. Saratoga standout John Ryals also added 20 points and 8 rebounds to help secure the W.
Anderson Baird at the state meet in Ithaca. Photo provided by Elizabeth Baird.
ITHACA — Saratoga Springs High School swimmer Anderson Baird had a spectacular showing at the state championships in Ithaca last weekend.
Baird returned home as the New York State public and federation title holder in the 200 individual medley, earning him automatic All American status with a winning time of 1:48:81. The Section 2 sportsmanship winner also placed fourth overall in the 100 breaststroke with an All-America consideration time of 55:73.
Four additional Blue Streaks competed at states. Preston Arnold swam the 100 butterfly individual event. The 200 medley relay team of Baird, Loic Goffioul, Jordan Nyatome, and Arnold earned a spot in the bonus final and placed 24th overall in the state. The 400 freestyle relay team of Baird, Arnold, Goffioul, and Magnus Lohse placed 20th overall in the bonus final.
The Saratoga Springs boy’s varsity swim team is coached by Bill Asay.
At last year’s state championships, Baird placed fourth in the 200 individual medley with a school record-breaking time of 1:50:72. He also placed seventh in the 500 freestyle with another school record-breaking time of 4:38:70.
The Lady Saints basketball team had a .500 winning percentage when they fought for their first-ever Section 2 Class D championship. The team had suffered misfortunes that included bouts with the flu, an injured ankle, and mono. But those obstacles weren’t enough to stop a squad determined to make history.
“We were clearly the underdog in a lot of ways, but we didn’t let that affect us going in,” Coach Athena DiLorenzo-Ryan told Saratoga TODAY. “You’re on a high when you’re winning, but then when you go on some type of losing streak, I think the important thing is to look ahead to better days and keep working hard in the gym, keeping your head held high. I try to instill that in them. This isn’t over. We’ve got to keep pushing through. And that’s what happened.”
On March 7, Saratoga Catholic narrowly defeated the two-time defending champions Northville, 43 to 41, in a game that was decided in its final moments. The victory clinched the Lady Saints’ first sectional title in program history.
Sophia Ryan, who broke her school’s all-time scoring record earlier this season, led with 30 points. In other words, she netted almost 70% of her team’s point total. It was a dominant performance but an unsurprising one from a standout who once told Saratoga TODAY that she most admires players who can maintain their composure in big moments.
To secure the W, Lady Saints Leanna Scaperrotta, Lily Norton, Madison Norton, Maggie Durfee, and Margaret Crowe all added digits to the scoreboard.
“I just told these girls, look what you’ve done, it’s totally amazing,” DiLorenzo-Ryan said. “They deserve it. They really do.”
SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Saratoga Fire Hockey Team will present the second-annual St. Baldrick’s Cup, a charity hockey game between Saratoga Fire and the Albany Firefighters hockey team, on Sunday, March 15 at the Weibel Ice Rink in Saratoga Springs (30 Weibel Avenue).
All proceeds raised will go to the St. Baldrick’s Foundation, which has the goal of conquering childhood cancer by funding the most promising research to find cures for childhood cancers, develop better treatments with fewer long-term side effects, and help survivors lead long and healthy lives.
The day begins at 10 a.m. when doors open, offering attendees the opportunity to participate in head shavings, a signature St. Baldrick’s fundraising activity that raises additional funds while symbolizing solidarity with children undergoing treatment. Admission donations will be collected at the door to directly benefit the cause.
The hockey game itself has a scheduled puck drop time of 11 a.m. During the game, there will be multiple fundraising activities going on, including a 50/50 raffle, various donations being raffled off, and the jersey silent auction. The Saratoga Fire hockey team will be wearing a special edition St. Patrick’s Day theme jerseys which will be auctioned off and given to the winners after the game.
Following the game, the celebration will continue at King’s Tavern, where a portion of food sales from 1 to 5 p.m. will be donated to the St. Baldrick’s Foundation.
Last year’s inaugural St. Baldrick’s Cup, which featured the Saratoga Fire Hockey Team against the Worcester Firefighters, successfully raised $7,000 for childhood cancer research. Building on that momentum, the goal is to raise more than last year with all proceeds going to help fight childhood cancers.
For more information, visit www.stbaldricks.org/events/sbcup2026/teams.
Photo of Saratoga Springs wrestler Danny Dacey competing at states by Laura McDonald.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Injured, facing the 11th-best high school wrestler in the country, and derailed by a controversial call, Danny Dacey was hit with a series of insurmountable obstacles at the state championships in Albany last weekend.
How the Saratoga Springs grappler chose to deal with those hurdles left his coach gobsmacked.
“He did such an amazing thing at such an amazing moment,” Coach Jake Zanetti told Saratoga TODAY.
Dacey entered states as the No. 3 seed. He defeated Peter Mikedis in the semifinals, but may have torn his meniscus while doing so. Set to face Griffin LaPlante in the finals, Dacey had to overcome a bum knee to defeat a No. 1 seed who had already captured a state title. It would’ve been an uphill battle, even if Dacey was fully healthy.
But then something remarkable happened. About 45 seconds into the first period, Dacey executed a cement mixer that planted LaPlante onto his back. Holding him there for nearly a minute, it seemed like Dacey might be able to pull off the upset. But LaPlante began bleeding from his nose, so the referees stopped the action to check on LaPlante. A chorus of boos rained down on the officials as spectators questioned the decision to interrupt the match.
“It’s definitely a tough choice,” Zanetti said of the refs’ controversial call. “If they let the match run out till the end of the period, if they just let the match go for the six [remaining] seconds, that would have been fine… But by rule, they probably did the right thing because the referees can always say that they’re looking out for the safety of the wrestlers and the competitors. They’re able to do that in any position. But anyone who’s been around the world of wrestling knows that you don’t really take a guy off his back in that type of position. You just don’t really do it. It was kind of crazy.”
Dacey was up 9-3 heading into the second period, but LaPlante was back up on his feet. The nationally-ranked wrestler then scored enough points to secure the victory and the state title.
Many athletes, be they high schoolers or professionals, wouldn’t have taken those events in stride, especially with a state championship on the line. But Dacey “responded like a champion,” Zanetti said. “He was the last person to complain or call out the refs for doing the wrong thing. He took it like a class act, a good sport, a senior captain, and a leader who understands the sport and was aware that this ref made a call that really hurt him, but ultimately he had no control over it. The fact that Danny made it a close match, let alone getting that close to winning, was such a great thing that he should be proud of for the rest of his life.”
Dacey hopes to continue his wrestling journey at a Division 1 school, and Zanetti believes that at states, the Blue Streak “showed he’s capable of doing special things at the next level.”
SARATOGA SPRINGS — The New York Racing Association (NYRA) recently announced the stakes schedule for the 2026 summer meet at Saratoga Race Course, which will open July 3 and continue through Labor Day, Sept. 7.
A few highlights include:
• Leo O’Brien on July 5
• Diana on July 18
• American Oaks on July 25
• Jim Dandy on Aug. 1
• A.P. Smithwick Memorial on Aug. 5
• John Morrissey on Aug. 6
• Whitney on Aug. 8
• Christophe Clement Turf on Aug. 15
• Alabama on Aug. 22
• Travers on Aug. 29
• Jonathan Sheppard Memorial on Sept. 2
• Spinaway on Sept. 5
• Spendthrift Farm Hopeful on Sept. 6
The full schedule is available on NYRA’s website here: https://www.nyra.com/saratoga/racing/stakes-schedule/.
Saratoga Racer Juwan Malone dunks during a March 1 game against the top-ranked Buffalo Extreme. Photo via the Saratoga Racers.
MECHANICVILLE — The Saratoga Racers’ near-Cinderella story collapsed in the second half of a tense March 1 game against the undefeated, top-ranked Buffalo Extreme.
The first quarter was a vicious back-and-forth battle that produced a few fouls, a few turnovers, and a lot of chatter from the Buffalo bench. Obviously intent on preserving their flawless regular season record, Buffalo began widening their lead in the opening stanza until Saratoga nailed a triple, induced a turnover, and then laid in an easy bucket to bring themselves within three points.
As the final seconds of the first quarter ticked away, the Racers’ RJ Rosa sank another three-pointer, literally at the buzzer, to tie the game at 31-31. The crowd, one of the biggest and most enthusiastic Racers audiences in the team’s two-year history, erupted.
Early in the second quarter, Saratoga pulled ahead by five, thanks to its relentless defense. With a touch under nine minutes left before halftime, the first of at least two on-court altercations broke out. A pair of officials and a coach broke up the dispute before a technical foul was issued.
Despite the distraction, Saratoga fought to maintain an edge, leading by anywhere from three to six points during the second stanza. With just two minutes remaining in the first half, the Racers had a one-point lead. A thunderous dunk from Racer’s star Juwan Malone helped deny a Buffalo comeback. At halftime, Saratoga was ahead 62-59 and on their way to becoming the first American Basketball Association (ABA) team to take down the Extreme.
But then fortunes changed. Buffalo launched into the second half with a 9-0 run until Rosa stopped the bleeding with a jumper. In only a few minutes, however, the Extreme had rocketed to a ten-point lead. That advantage steadily climbed until suddenly Buffalo was up by 20 points and seemed to be manhandling Saratoga with ease.
Saratoga was also the victim of its own errors. A number of missed free throws kept the squad from reducing their disadvantage to single digits. One missed free throw resulted in another technical foul that inspired a Buffalo coach to hurl his clipboard across the corner of the court. As tensions mounted, the Extreme nailed a shot from well behind the arc at the third quarter buzzer, solidifying what would prove to be an insurmountable lead.
The fourth quarter was an ugly one. The game ended at 143-127 after another on-court altercation caused officials to call off the contest with 40-some seconds still on the clock. John Ryals III led all Saratoga scorers with 30 points. Malone added 22 and Donovan Williams contributed 21.
Despite the tough finish to their regular season, the Racers are nonetheless well-positioned for the playoffs. The team has been placed in the ABA East Region Blue Division as the No. 3 seed. They’ll next head to Vermont, to take on the No. 2 seed Coyotes, for a 7 p.m. Sunday night game at Barre Municipal Auditorium.
Although only one seed apart, the 11-5 Racers have a considerable advantage over the 12-11 Coyotes. They’ve beaten the Vermont squad in three out of four contests this season.
Now ranked #24 nationally among all ABA teams, Saratoga will hope to make a dent in their second-ever postseason appearance.
The Racers also have two players up for ABA All-Star contention: Ryals and Williams.
Williams, a point guard, averaged 15 points on 57% shooting this year, adding an average of 4 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2.5 steals per game. He accumulated 3 double-doubles and 1 triple-double this season.
Ryals averaged 21 points per game on 53% shooting. He also averaged 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals per contest. He scored more than 30 points three times this season, including an impressive 36-point performance against Buffalo.
