To Be and Not to Be: Saratoga Heads to State Championship, Schuylerville Falls in Semifinals
Saratoga Springs celebrates its 2025 Section 2 Class AA football championship, while Schuylerville repeats as 2025 Section 2 Class C champs. Photos via Section 2 Athletics.
MIDDLETOWN — For only the second time in the team’s history, the Blue Streaks football squad is headed to the JMA Wireless Dome in Syracuse to compete in a state title game.
Saratoga Springs will vie for the Class AA championship against the undefeated, Syracuse-based Christian Brothers Academy (CBA) on Saturday.
To earn their shot, the Blue Streaks first had to vanquish Mamaroneck in the semifinals. They did it, with a final score of 28 to 14, by earning three touchdowns in the first quarter, creating a deficit the Tigers couldn’t overcome. In that contest, quarterback Bobby Morris completed all 5 of his pass attempts for 94 yards and a touchdown. On the receiving end of the 55-yard touchdown completion was junior wideout Gavin Lafrance.
The run game, per usual with standout back Benjamin Coryea, was exceptional. Coryea rushed for 172 yards and 2 touchdowns on 19 carries. Morris added 5 carries, 35 yards, and a rushing touchdown of his own. Also clutch in the contest, nailing all four extra point attempts, was kicker Olivia Mancini, who is currently ranked 13th in the state in PAT kicks made and 20th in total kicking points.
The next hill to climb will be a steep one for Saratoga. CBA Syracuse hasn’t lost a game since Nov. 13, 2023. They are 12-0 this season and finished 14-0 the past two seasons. A Blue Streak victory would be unexpected, but then again, the team’s entire season has been one big, successful surprise.
Elsewhere in high school football postseason play, the reigning Section 2 Class C champion Schuylerville Black Horses were felled by the Bronxville Broncos, 49 to 16, in the state semifinals. The Horses mounted a fourth-quarter comeback attempt, racking up 16 points in the final stanza, but it was too little too late for a team overwhelmed by Bronxville’s steady stream of touchdowns.
For Schuylerville, quarterback Ben VanVegthen tossed for 126 yards and a touchdown, adding 42 rushing yards. On the ground, junior Blake Cumm led his team’s rushing efforts, scooping up 52 yards and a touchdown on 9 carries.
The loss to Bronxville snapped the Horses’ 22-game win streak. Their season ended with an 11-1 record.