Yorktown Buzzes Mahopac in Coaches vs. Cancer Finale

Peekskill, Haldane, Somers Bounced in National Fundraiser

By Ray Gallagher, Examiner Sports Editor @DirectRays

Hats off to MAHOPAC for hosting yet another special event this winter as the Wolf Pac opened their den to Saturday’s Coaches vs. Cancer Classic, which featured some of the top teams in Section 1, including Arlington’s come-from-behind win over Somers 71-57; Tuckahoe vs. Haldane, a 50-31 Tiger win; Suffern vs. Peekskill, a 59-58 OT Mountie win; and the night cap called on Yorktown vs. Mahopac, a madcap 56-53 Husker win that wasn’t decided until the waning seconds.

As always, Mahopac A.D Stephen Luciana and his staff put forth another terrific effort; this time for a cause that is second to none. #SuitsandSneakers 2025 was a major success in our neck of the woods, and we can also thank long-ago Brewster High grad Anthony Nicodemo for his work behind the scenes as the dean of the Lower Hudson Basketball Coaches Association, and many others, too.

In all, Section 1’s 13th annual Coaches vs. Cancer Tip Off Classic, along with the @IAABO Board 52, donated over $3,500 for cancer research #WellDone.

CLASS AA

MAHOPAC put its best foot forward but it was YORKTOWN that rang the final bell when Husker senior G Kaden Gonzalez (17 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists) dropped a corner 3-ball to snap a 53-all tie with 4.1 seconds left. Husker junior F Ryan Duffy’s double-double was instrumental (12 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists), as were Aidan Flynn (10 points, 8 rebounds #HugeIn4th) and menacing Brian Hansen (12 points, 6 rebounds).

Mahopac had done a fairly decent job of containing Gonzalez, but it’s just a matter of time before the cream exceeds the top. Gonzo, a two-sport stud (football), has done so often.

“I mean the shot felt great,” said Gonzalez, averaging 23 PPG. “We always go up with a good lead at half, then start slow in the third, and the emphasis was to not let it happen. Even though it did, we still fought back with some big shots by my teammates to set up something like that.”

“Kaden stepped up to hit a big shot when we needed it,” Yorktown Coach Mark Pavella said.

Mahopac junior Ryan LaRue, who has stepped up of late, led the way with 19 points, followed by junior wing Drew Lichtenberger (16 points), who was lethal from distance, Matt Reilly (9 points), who tied the game at 53-all with a clutch hoop, and Ethan Dedvukaj (8 points). If nothing else, Mahopac can take away a lot from a moral victory, knowing full well that it can challenge for a Final 4 venture in Class AA this winter.

Pac also beat PANAS earlier in the week when LaRue’s 19 points and five assists gyrated the crowd. Reilly, a junior who has taken on a significant role as the team’s point forward, had 17 points, eight rebounds and three steals. Grabeklis, Lichtenberger and Ronan Hunter all chipped in eight points.

Mahopac also posted a 56-49 win over Ketcham behind Reilly’s 16 points, nine boards and 13 more points from Dedvukaj and a dozen from LaRue.

Yorktown did come out on the shy side of a 56-40 loss to Arlington #Vexing despite Gonzalez (16 points, 6 assists) and Duffy (7 points, 6 boards) doing their thing.

Count on PEEKSKILL being there near the end #CountyCenterorBust, despite the loss to Suffern Saturday.

All-NYS swingman Jaden Chavis paced the Red Devils with 28 points and came within one free throw of forcing double OT, hitting two of three with 1.2 left after getting fouled behind the arc.

Teammate Isaiah Crawford added 16 points. Chavis, as usual, was real about the result after leading the Red Devils to a Section 1 title in 2024.

“You know every time we play Suffern, we know it’s gonna be a battle no matter what,” Chavis said. “A lot of love to (Suffern) Coach (Scott) Wright there, and we definitely feel like we could compete with any team in the section after that. We’re still putting the pieces together, but how we move on from here is to keep getting better and try to win out. That’s the plan and that is the standard we’ll set for the rest of the year.”

Suffern stud Jake Pampolina (28 points, 3 assists) was named MVP.

Peekskill also had a 67-53 win over Edgemont earlier in the week when Chavis (30 points) went off.

FOX LANE turned its four-game frown upside down with a three-game win streak, including a 69-46 thrashing of rival HORACE GREELEY Friday. Fox senior G Arthur Shevick was heard from, including a game-high 34 points and five assists.  Ethan Mayers (7 points, 3 rebounds), Logan Mammola (7 points, 6 rebounds), Evan Mayers (8 points, 2 boards), Mac Keller (3 assists, 5 rebounds), Janak Bain (6 points, 1 assist, 2 rebounds) and Eli Daglio (6 points, 3 assists, 3 rebounds) all ignited the home crowd.

“It was a great night, as always, at Fox Lane,” Fox Coach Mike Tomassi said. “The Fox Lane vs. Greeley matchup never disappoints, thanks to the long-standing rivalry. We needed a statement win, and the boys played fantastic to pull it off. Our focus is on continuing to improve and becoming a tough team come playoff time. The tough stretch in January will hopefully make us stronger as we push toward the finish line. We’ve dealt with a bunch of injuries, but I think it has made us deeper as we’ve gotten healthier over the past week or so. We’re looking forward to finishing strong.”

Greeley sniper Zach Boyriven had 27 points and six assists while Alex Horowitz had 16 points and five steals while Jake Sheehy worked a double-double (10 points, 10 boards).

Fox Lane also posted 77-42 win over Lincoln who had trouble with Shevick (25 points, 4 boards), Daglio (10 points, 4 boards, 3 assists) and Evan Mayers (7 points, 4 assists).

BREWSTER gave its all in a 60-48 loss to Putnam County rival CARMEL. The Rams went up 18-9 at the end of the first quarter but the Bears trimmed the lead to 18-13 at 6:00 of the second. A 3 by  Brody Snyder had Brewster within two, 18-16 Rams at 6:10. A shot clock violation by the Rams was inexcusable and gave the Bears a chance to tie, but Ram F King. Mercer hits two in the lane, 20-16 Rams. After an exchange of 3s it was 23-19 Rams. Mercer at line hits both, and the Rams were up 25-19 and then 28-24 Rams at the half.

Mercer (21 points) was too strong down the stretch, as was Connor Murphy (12), providing ample cushion for the Rams.

“Very hard-fought game,” Brewster assistant Coach Jay Weltman said. “The coaches felt that our effort was the best we have had all year. Mercer is a big problem for us. Murphy hit huge shots, daggers.”

Brewster was led by Harrison Schmitt’s 21 points. Brewster also lost to an excellent Poughkeepsie team, 64-30. Billy Pappas and Max Rivera led the Bears on offense while Andy Sagastume provided tremendous effort off the bench.

“The coaches were obviously not happy with the score, but gave credit to the players for never quitting and playing hard the whole game,” Weltman said.

CLASS A

BYRAM HILLS took a 60-50 decision from Class AA SOMERS, which hung tough behind 21 points from Phil Santore, but that could not offset the duo of Chris Amenedo (25 points) and Ben Wolf’s double-double (12 points, 11 boards).

WESTLAKE and Class B BRIARCLIIFF duked it out for four quarters before the Wildcats walked off with a 45-42 win with Anthony Marzziotti (14 points) and Marcus Jackette (13) leading the way. The Bears saw the Lawlor boys go off.

PUTNAM VALLEY marched past VALHALLA, 58-22, behind Tiger G James Apostolico’s game-high 32 points. Brody Teter (11) led the Vikings.

The Tigers also defeated North Salem, 51-41, behind Apostolico (22 points) and sophomore G Logan Moriarty (16).

CLASS AAA

OSSINING had its way with visiting GREELEY in a 64-46 romp as Kris Singh (16 points) and Donte Couch (15 points) led a balanced, athletic attack.

Jaxson Thomas (13 points) and Jake Sheehy (11 points, 7 boards) paced the Quakers, who struggled with the Pride’s length.

Before struggling with Mount Vernon, WHITE PLAINS crushed an overmatched Port Chester club, 86-19, behind big games from Justin Boateng (13 points, 6 assists), Nathan Plummer (12 points, 6 boards), RJ Marcano (11 points), Bryce Thomas (9), Otto Armstrong (8) and Judah Goldemberg (7).

CLASS B

HALDANE knocked off CROTON, 67-41, doing so behind strong efforts from

Nate Stickle (20 points), Luke Bozsik (17), Fallou Faye (8) and Zane Del Pozo (8). Croton was led by Vin Flynn’s 12 points. The defending Section 1 Class C champion Blue Devils also bested Pawling, 62-50, with Bozsik (20 points), Del Pozo (15) and Faye (14) leading the charge.

Examiner-Area Top 10 Hoops Poll

(No offense intended, useless polls just make for good reading)

No.1 BYRAM HILLS – Since losing to Rye, state-ranked (No.6) Class A Bobcats (13-2) have extracted a measure of revenge that has included routs of NFA, Harrison, state-ranked (No.12) Class AA TZ, Somers and state-ranked (No.20) Class AA Eastchester #BookBinghamtonNow.

No.2 YORKTOWN – #They, whoever #TheyAre, say we overrate the Class AA Huskers (9-4) on a weekly basis, but here they are. Bet they wish they had that Greeley loss back, though.

No.3 OSSINING – Class AAA Pride (8-6) club have won 5 in a row, including impressive triumphs of Arlington, Greeley and Fox Lane. Seemingly, the Pride are pretty good, just not in the same lane as state-ranked AAA powers (8) Mamo’, (No.16) New Ro’, (No.18) Mt. Vernon & (No.29) Scarsdale.

No.4 FOX LANE – Class AA Foxes (8-6) have gotten back on course after the Ossining dud with 3-straight wins, including rival Greeley.

No.5 GREELEY – Class AA Quakers (9-5) have a pair of tuneups with Lincoln in order to set the record straight against Ossining and Fox Lane down the stretch.

No.5A PEEKSKILL – Class AA Red Devils (9-6) might be the hardest team in Section 1 to get a read on right now.

No.7 WESTLAKE – Nudging the Class A Wildcats (9-2) into the top 5/6 is tough to do given the schedule Fox Lane, Greeley, Peekskill etc. play, but these guys, are as well-coached and talented as anyone in class, and will be a postseason nightmare to topple.

No.8 BRIARCLIFF – Class B Bears (6-6) have hit a rough patch despite the play of them Lawlor boys (Jason Lawler 16 points, 3 assists and Luke Lawler 10 points, 8 boards) in a nip-and-tuck loss to Westlake.

No.9 MAHOPAC – Class AA Wolf Pac (7-6) demonstrated big-time hope in wins of 3 of last 4, even Saturday’s loss to Yorktown showed some promise to build on.

No.10 WHITE PLAINS – Class AAA Tigers (3-8) had wins in 3 of 4 before Mount Vernon tamed ’em.

HM BREWSTER – Since beating Mahopac, Class AA Bears (5-8) had propped into top 10 before 3-game skid said otherwise.

HM CARMEL – Class AA Rams (5-8) were written off by this pollster, who has pushed hard for their early success, and then the King comes back to drop a double-double on Brewster.

HM LAKELAND – Class AA Hornets (6-7) have some very winnable games upcoming that could turn them from No.15ish to No.10/11-ish seed if played properly.

HM PUTNAM VALLEY –  Class A Tigers (8-7) have 4 straight wins but it’ll come down to a pair against Haldane on 1/27 and 2/21 for league supremacy #IsItInYou. Gonna be a typical war with Haldane.

HM HALDANE – Reigning Section 1 Class C champion Blue Devils (8-5) took a 19-point loss to rival Tuckahoe, which doesn’t bode well for a Final 4 appearance in Class B this winter but, oh, Put Valley #Horizon.

Other Honorable Mentions – Pleasantville (3-9, win over Rye Neck should provide confidence); Croton (3-9, got cooked by Haldane); Valhalla (1-10, is there a Basiaka Butcher in the pipeline); Panas (4-10, Somers and Lakeland are winnable game this week); Somers (2-12, terrific 1st half vs Arlington prior to 2nd #Yikes), Hen Hud (3-10,  Justin Parkes 16 points and Drew Hiltsley 12 scoring in loss to Ardsley) #MuchLuvtoAll

 

ANDY JACOBS/DAVID TABER/CHRIS SMAJLAJ PHOTOS