South Kortright’s boys completed a unique sort of triple crown last week. The baseball team gave the school its third sectional championship in as many sports seasons when it defeated Jefferson. Last fall, the soccer team won a Section IV title. During the winter, the basketball team went unbeaten winning the Section IV and Class D state titles. A remarkable accomplishment for any school, and as was pointed out to me at a recent “Greene” softball game, the sectional titles were done with primarily the same athletes.
I responded to my friend, before the aforementioned game’s outcome was determined, that if Greene’s softball team defeated Tioga, it would have three sectional championships in as many seasons as well.
It didn’t quite work out as planned for the Trojans, who lost in the Section IV, Class C championship game by four runs.
Nonetheless, it may be one of the best-ever overall girls’ sports seasons – if not the best – in Greene history.
The evidence for my assertion is staggering: I believe every varsity sports team in which Greene’s ladies competed had at least a .500 or winning record this school year. And there were many sports.
Pinpointing the standout accomplishments, the girls’ soccer team won its first Midstate Athletic Conference championship in 13 years of competition, and that came after three straight years of runner-up finishes. Along the way, the Trojans’ soccer team was ranked among the top 15 Class C schools in the state – another first.
The standard-bearer of Greene excellence, the field hockey team, performed to expectations, and claimed another in a long list of Section IV championships. The school represented the section well in the state playoffs before losing a regional final in overtime.
On to the winter months. The Trojans, in recent years, toiled in the Class B basketball ranks, and were typically among the smallest schools. Due to a decline in enrollment, the Trojans returned to their rightful place in Class C this year, and promptly advanced to the Section IV championship game. There, the school won its fifth Section IV championship, and advanced to the state semifinals. The season ended in the semis when the Trojans lost to the eventual state champion. The program also ended with one of its best records in school history.
This spring, we recently witnessed the softball team’s best finish in school history. The Trojans won their first Midstate Athletic Conference division title, and reached the school’s first sectional championship game.
That the Trojans’ athletic talent is spread out over multiple sports in each sports season makes their accomplishments this past school year second to none among area schools.
Just so they aren’t forgotten, Greene’s boys had a fairly memorable season, too. Greene’s football team reached its first Section IV championship game in the 16 years of sectionwide conference play. A few months later, Tyler Beckwith and Nick Wilcox won state wrestling titles.
Not half bad for a small school that provides as many different sports for its students as schools twice its size.