Blue Streaks Aim for First Sectional Title Since 1989

SARATOGA SPRINGS — A year after advancing to the Section II finals for the first time since 1989, the Saratoga Springs girls varsity team heads into this year’s postseason as the No. 1 seed.

At a team meeting before Tuesday’s practice, the returning girls from 2013 reflected on the feeling of being in last year’s finals before suffering a 2-0 loss to Niskayuna.

To get back to that point and have a chance to come out on top, Blue Streaks’ head coach Adrienne Dannehy knows it will be a tough road.

“This year it was a battle royal every single game we played,” Dannehy said. “And I think it was like that throughout the league. Even though we’re No. 1, it’s literally anybody’s game to take. It’s going to be a battle every game and we’re looking forward to it.”

Dannehy and returning players, like co-captains Ellery Bianco and Kennedy Cocozzo, know that lower seeded teams are a threat—after all, they were the No. 5 seed last season.

Heading into today’s start to the postseason, Shenendehowa is the No. 2 seed at 14-2, followed by No. 3 Columbia (12-2-2), No. 4 Guilderland (11-5), No. 5 Niskayuna (10-5-1) and No. 6 Bethlehem (10-4-2).

Dannehy is also familiar with the fact that a No. 1 seed doesn’t guarantee anything—except a first round bye and homefield advantage in the quarterfinal. When her Blue Streaks won back-to-back Suburban Council titles in 2010 and 2011, they also lost in back-to-back Section II Class AA semifinals.

“Our goal for the entire season was to keep doing something better than the game before and to keep going forward like that,” said Dannehy, who added that her team tends to have disorganized moments on the back end of the defense and there are times when the offense is not clicking. “I really do believe that over the course of the season we were able to do that. We don’t think we’ve peaked yet. We’re still coming into our own. The win streak just gives the girls confidence that we can continue to go forward and improve. Our hard work is paying off and we definitely are contenders.”

Dannehy’s “contenders” are on a hot streak, to say the least, heading into sectionals. The No. 5 ranked team in the state, at 14-2, hasn’t lost a game since Sept. 9 against Shen. They responded to that loss by winning 13 straight games, including an Oct. 9 rematch over Shen, 1-0.

That win helped secure an identical Suburban Council record with Shen, and the Blue Streaks secured the league title, outright, with the point system tie breaker. Saratoga Springs had one more point than the Plainsmen because of a 3-1 win over Columbia on Sept. 15.

Shen, on the other hand, lost 2-1 to Columbia the following day.

In addition to the offensive triple threat of Bianco, Ya’nique Van Ness and Sarah Covell and defensive leadership from the likes of Cocozzo, Dannehy added that one off-the-field presence has greatly attributed to this year’s success—senior Carley Slade.

Slade, who was poised to return this season as the senior starting goalie, tore her ACL last June, but it hasn’t stopped her from being on the sidelines.

“[Carley] has been at every single practice, at every single game,” Dannehy said. “She has worked non-stop with my goalkeepers since the beginning of the season and I credit all the success they’re having to her. She takes the keepers—I don’t have to worry about them, and she drills them. She’s really taken it on herself to say, ‘Hey, I want to help lead a legacy here.’ If she wasn’t a student, I’d pay her as a keeper coach.”

Since giving up six goals to Shenendehowa in Saratoga’s last loss, the Streaks haven’t allowed more than two goals in any game since.

Today’s opening game of the Class AA girls tournament pitches No. 8 Colonie against No. 9 Albany for the right to play at Saratoga Springs. That game is scheduled for Monday at 3 p.m.

The Blue Streaks have not seen Albany; however, the Blue Streaks defeated Colonie, 5-2, on the road Sept. 30.

“We need to continue working hard so we don’t look back and say ‘Oh I wish I would’ve done that harder or better,’” Dannehy said. “At this point, if we lose, it’s over. We don’t want to lose. And we don’t want it to be over.”