SOFTBALL — Seeded No. 2 in the Section I, Class C tournament, Haldane easily advanced to the title game with a 16-4 win over No. 3 seed Alexander Hamilton on Monday (May 20). But they faced a tougher challenge against No. 1 seed Tuckahoe (13-5) at North Rockland High School.
After a devastating third inning, the Blue Devils lost to the Tigers, 13-1, on Thursday to finish at a respectable 7-11. It was the first season that the school had fielded a varsity softball team since 2019, and the team had four middle school players in the starting lineup and only one senior.
In the opening round against Hamilton, Sophia Taylor went 2-for-3 with three RBIs, Sydney Merriman was 1-for-2 with two RBIs and Callie Sniffen was 1-for-2 with a double and two RBIs.
Callie Sniffen and Lainey Donaghy were named All-League, and Sniffen was named All-Section team and as League Player of the Year.
Photos by Skip Pearlman
BOYS’ LACROSSE — After a second-round upset, the fifth-seeded Blue Devils (8-8) faced No. 1 Pleasantville (14-2) on Thursday (May 23) in the semifinals of the Section I, Class D tournament but lost, 19-4.
The Blue Devils reached the game with a victory on Monday at No. 4 Croton-Harmon, 13-12. Haldane led early, 6-3, before the game became a tit-for-tat, with the Blue Devils scoring and the Tigers matching.
Haldane managed a two-goal lead early in the fourth behind scores by Evan Giachinta and Fallou Faye, but the Tigers scored twice to tie. Faye notched his fifth goal for a 12-11 lead, which Croton-Harmon equaled with 3:16 left. Faye then hit the game-winner with just over a minute remaining.
Goalie Jordon Hankel, who had 20 saves, preserved the win. “Jordon has mastered his craft,” Faye said.
In the first round of the tournament on May 17, Haldane easily defeated No. 12 Rye Neck, 18-4. Giachinta scored six times.
BASEBALL — Assigned the third seed in the Section I, Class C tournament, Haldane upset No. 2 Leffell, 4-0, on Tuesday (May 21) to advance to the Thursday title game at Purchase College but didn’t have enough firepower to overcome No. 1 Tuckahoe (14-4-1), losing 12-3. The Blue Devils also lost to Tuckahoe in the first game of the season, 11-1, on their way to a 4-14 regular-season record.
Haldane blanked Leffell on Tuesday behind the pitching of Hunter Erickson, who threw a complete game, giving up one hit while striking out 18. Trajan McCarthy recorded three hits and Jake Hotaling had two.
TRACK AND FIELD — Haldane competed last weekend in the 10-team Section I Northern Counties Championship at Arlington High School. For the boys, Owen Powers won the 1,600 meters in 4:39 in a field of 48 runners and Jack Illian was sixth in 4:48.19; Jake Thomas was second in the javelin with a throw of 141-01; and Merrick Williams was fourth in the pentathlon with 2,277 points.
For the girls, the top finishers were Eloise Pearsall, who was eighth in the 800-meter run in 2:46.77; Ashley Sousa, who was third in the 1,500 meters in 5:28.59; Plum Severs, who was seventh in the javelin with a throw of 65-06; and Shayla Ochoa, who was third in the pentathlon with 1,541 points.
Haldane travels today (May 24) to Valhalla for the Class C championships.
