Byram Hills Stunned in Double OT NYSPHSAA Final 4 Setback

Class A State-Ranked (No.2) Bobcats Fall to No.3 Mt. Sinai; Glens Falls Repeats as Champs 

By Ray Gallagher, Examiner Sports Editor @Directrays

When the Section 1 basketball season tipped off back in early December, 2024, Byram Hills boys’ Coach Ted Repa kept it tight to his vest, but the veteran mentor of all things hoops had a hunch that the 2025 season could be a special one for the state-ranked (No.2) Bobcats (24-3). Repa and the Bobcats followed that notion all the way to the NYSPHSAA Class A Final 4 at Visions Veterans Memorial Arena in Binghamton where Byram suffered what might be the most gut-wrenching loss in program history, a 67-64 double overtime setback to Section 11 champion (No.3) Mt. Sinai in Saturday’s semifinal.

The Sinai Mustangs advanced to Sunday’s state championship where they were they were humbled by Section 2 champion (No.1-ranked) Glens Falls, 77-57, which claimed its second straight NYSPHSAA Class A title and its third since 2019, the indomitable Black Bears (27-0) winning 54 straight games the last two years.

Glens Falls, known for its statewide basketball benevolence, knocked off Section 5 champion (No.4-ranked) Wayne, a finalist in 2024, in the other semifinal to advance. Section 2 continued to make a name for itself. The last two years Section II boys’ basketball has claimed seven state titles: Green Tech (AAA 2024), Shaker (AAA 2025), Glens Falls (A 2024-25), Stillwater (B 2024), Berne-Knox-Westerlo (C 2025) and North Warren (D 2024).

Against Long Island’s Mt. Sinai, Section 1’s two-time reigning champion Byram Hills needed some resourcefulness and three of the most clutch free throws in program history from senior G Brody Ceisler (13 points) to force overtime, and when they did so, the Bobcats didn’t play Bobcat basketball in the extra sessions. Whether or not the Mustangs forced them off their A-game, Byram Hills simply didn’t play up to its lofty standards; the kind of excellence that had produced five Section 1 titles (1978-2011-16-24-25) over the course of time, four under Coach Repa.

Byram Hills, though, living on the edge, was awry on six consecutive shots to open the first overtime, and if not for a pair of free throws from Ari Dreilinger with 39.3 seconds left, the game would be over. 

Ceisler opened the scoring with a triple in the first minute of double overtime, but the miscues – missed shots and uncharacteristic turnovers – would be Byram’s undoing in the end.

“I’m sure as a fan, it was a fantastic game to watch,” said Repa, the Section 1 Class A Coach of Year. “But as a coach, it was gut-wrenching. We just didn’t play defense the way we have been most of the year. Credit to Mount Sinai for making some big time plays, but we just had some rough breakdowns at crucial moments, coupled with a few calls that didn’t go our way.” 

At the start, Bobcat All-Section senior G Chris Amenedo, an All-NYS soccer star as well, opened up the scoring with a  pull-up for a two-point lead. Things seemed in order. However, Byram Hills did not shoot well the rest of the way, hitting 31 percent from the field while shooting an uncharacteristic 4 of 23 from distance. A superior rebounding advantage – provided by All-Section C Zach Efobi (10 points, 17 boards, 3 blocks), All-Section G Chris Amenedo (16 points, 7 rebounds) and Ben Wolf (9 points, 8 boards)  – was minimized by an uncharacteristic 16 Byram turnovers down the stretch. 

Some early sloppy play by the Bobcats led to a 7-3 Mustang lead before Efobi answered to make it 7-5 at 5:30 of the first. A Wolf foul led to three shots at the line and a 10-5 Mustang lead at 5:03 of the first. At 3:54 an Amenedo 3 cut the deficit to 10-8. Byram junior point guard Max Miller (11 points, 4 assists) followed to tie it at 10. It was 12-10 Mustangs after two at the line before Drellinger drew a charge. Despite a sloppy first quarter, Byram Hills junior Kevin Kendall landed a desperation heave from well beyond half court for three key points and a 14-13 deficit headed into the second quarter #MemorableHeave. 

In the second quarter, the Mustangs went up 16-13 and then 18-13, then 20-13 before Coach Repa called a timeout to quell a 7-0 run at 6:08. The Mustangs were dissecting the Byram defense like few if any had done all season. Siani went up 22-13 off a put-back before Ceisler stopped the bleeding at the charity stripe at 5:19 making one of two, 22-14. Sinai went back to the line and hit two. At 4:43, Efobi went to the line and made one of two, 24-15. A 3 by Sinai sniper Dominic Pennzello (23 points, 5 boards) led to a 12-point Mustang lead before Amenedo answered to make it 27-17 at 3:30. Bobcat Ben Wolf hit a spinning move to cut it to eight points before Wolf hit again to trim the deficit to six, 27-21, with just over 2:00 before the half. Miller drilled a 3 at the top of the key and cut it to three, but Pennzello, a real gamer, nailed another 3 to answer, 30-24, which is where the second quarter ended.

In the third, it was 33-28 when Wolf went to the stripe at 6:15 and cut it to 33-29 before an Efobi put-back off a miss made it 33-31; the Bobcats had clawed their way back. Ceisler made it 35-33 before the Mustangs answered, Pennzello again. Miller spinning and winning, 37-35, Mustangs. An Amenedo steal brought him to the line with a chance to tie, but one clean free throw, followed by a lane violation, turned it over, 37-36. Undeterred, a Ceisler layup provided a 38-37 Bobcat lead at 3:55. Momentum had swung in a big way. 

A Mustang 3 changed the lead, 40-38. But Efobi tied it at 40 with a slam. Miller followed with a floater at 2:35 for a Bobcat lead, 42-40. Pennzello went back to the line and hit two for a 42-all tie. The Mustangs went up 44-42 at 1:49 before Amemedo scored from Miller to make it 44-all. Efobi owned the boards on the next possession but did not lead to points before a Repa timeout with :28 to go in the third, 44-44 end of three.

In the fourth, Amenedo drew a charge to regain possession. An NBA 3 by Andrew McNeely, the freshman son of Coach Ryan McNeely, made it 47-44, Mustangs. Efobi, in full attack mode, missed what would have been a monster flush straight down the lane, and the Mustangs transitioned and went to the line where Pennzello hit two for a 49-44 lead at 6:00. Amenedo, off a gorgeous inbound, scored to cut the deficit to 3, 49-46. Amenedo scored again, off a tap-out, 49-48 before Wolf spotted the ’Cats a 50-49 lead off a mismatch. At 3:30, Amenedo drew a foul and went to the line for two where he hit both for a 3-point lead (52-49) with 3:30 to play; things were going Byram’s way. 

Sinai at the line hit two, 52-51, before another Efobi block denied the Mustangs at 2:40. A Bobcat turnover ensued at 2:09, and the Mustangs did likewise at 1:51. A Miller floater after an Efobi offensive rebound gave the Bobcats a 54-51 lead at 1:08. Efobi had dominated the glass in the fourth, leading to multiple extra possessions. 

Sinai’s Brian Vales chalked up an easy layup off a defensive breakdown to make it 54-53 at :55. A Byram turnover, Sinai ball at :35. Mustang G Alex Campanelli scored off an and-1 try off an offensive board at :17 for a one point lead. A tough, tough call on Efobi at :16 gave Sinai the ball off the and 1 miss. Pennzello went to the line with :10 left and a 1-point lead where he hit two to go up three, 57-54. 

That’s when Ceisler drew a foul and chance for 3 at the line. He hit the first and second with :06 left before Sinai called timeout. Ceisler, with ice in his veins, then hit the third in one of the most clutch moments in Byram sports history to tie the game at 57 with :06 left and force overtime. 

In OT, after a pair of missed chances in the fourth, Sinai senior G Blake Kolsch drew a foul from Efobi for two at the line, where he delivered both at 3:09, 59-57. Kolsch again over Efobi, 61-57, Mustangs. Sinai went back to the line for two at 1:23 for Vales. He missed both but Mustangs grabbed the board, milked some clock before the Bobcats forced a turnover and two shots at the line for Ceisler who hit two to make it 61-59. 

A Byram steal led to two at the line for Drellinger, who hit both for the tie, 61-all, which is where it went into double overtime; leading to perhaps the most emotionally exhausting moments in program history.

In the second extra stanza, a seismic 3 by Ceisler off an Efobi offensive rebound provided a 64-61 lead. But Kolsch answered again to tie it, 64-all. A hobbled Pennzello scored in transition to put Sinai up two, 66-64. 

A Bobcat turnover led to a Sinai timeout at 1:40 before yet another Bobcat turnover #crusher. Pennzello hit one at the line for a three-point lead, which the Bobcats could not overcome in the waning seconds. 

“Offensively, we struggled to finish the easy ones all game, and had a few too many untimely turnovers,” Coach Repa said. “As a result, we never really got clicking. And yet, we were still right there. Sometimes the ball just doesn’t bounce your way. That’s life. It’s a tough pill to swallow when you feel like you were the better team. 

“And who knows what would’ve happened the next day – obviously Glens Falls was a two-time undefeated state champion, but man, we would’ve loved the opportunity to compete for a state title. These opportunities are so rare.”

Drellinger won the sportsmanship award for the Bobcats, who advanced to the Final 4 with NYS tourney blowout wins by 20 and 22 points over Section 9’s New Paltz and Section 4’s Seton Catholic, respectively. It was bound to get tougher, and it did, but nothing should take away from the greatness of the 2025 Bobcats, perhaps the finest boys’ hoops outfit in school history.

“It’s Really hard to put into words how much these guys mean to me,’ Coach Repa said. “It goes beyond winning games and titles. They are like family… irreplaceable! Then you talk about what they have accomplished basketball wise in the last four years.”

Essentially, it’s historical. Over that four-year span the Bobcats have won 77 games, made four straight County Center Final 4 appearances, three straight finals, two consecutive Gold Balls, and a trip to the State Final 4.  

“Pretty sure that resume stacks up with anyone in Section 1, let alone New York State,” Repa said, “and we are forever grateful for what these boys have done.”

We don’t know for sure the direction this program will take as Coach Repa, among the most respected in Section 1, processes what has been and what might be in the future, but we do know the Bobcats were put upon the state and Section 1 map when he assumed the reins in 2002. 

“I’m in no position to make any big decisions right now,” Repa admitted. “I’m going to get away for a while, allow time to heal and process everything. This basketball program goes way beyond coaching to me. It’s the relationships and culture that’s been built over the years that means the most. I feel very blessed to be associated with Byram Hills basketball.”

That feeling is beyond mutual within many respects…

Next week, we’ll take a dive into the Section 1 boys’ and girls’ lacrosse pool, asking players and coaches on the circuit to give us the lowdown on what is normally a very prosperous scene for our Ex-area teams. Catch ya then!

 

CHRIS SMAJLAJ PHOTOS