Back to defend: Bobcats return to Glens Falls for a shot at second state title
GLENS FALLS – Last season they snuck up on teams through the New York State Volleyball tournament. This year, everyone knows about the Lady Bobcats from Bainbridge-Guilford.
After losing one senior to graduation at the end of their state title run, fans and community members began saying Bainbridge-Guilford could easily turn around and do it again in 2018.
“No, it’s absolutely not in the bag for us this year,” said Bobcats’ head coach Tami Selfridge in a preseason interview. “If any of my kids begin to think they don’t have to work as hard in practice or challenge ourselves each and everyday at practices to return to the finals, I will not be happy as their coach.”
Teams that faced B-G knew what they were getting when they stepped on the court this season: a very fundamental, talented group that played like a team, not individuals.
While the Bobcats do have standouts throughout the roster, it is what each player does for the team that has made Bainbridge-Guilford nearly unstoppable the past two seasons.
“Playing as a group is what gave us a state championship [in 2017],” said Selfridge. “We had so many girls that had a really good day and we will need that to continue if we want to repeat this weekend.”
The goal for the Bobcats this season was not to win a title. It was to return back to the New York State Championships and defend their title.
“Now that we have won a state championship, putting that down as our goal feels small,” said Selfridge in the early season discussion.
The regular season has passed and the final weekend is here. The team has achieved part of their season goal, but capturing the title once again is their objective.
The Bobcats have gone undefeated in the regular season play and only dropped a few games during tournaments.
Struggling service
The Bobcats have been a force all season long as very few teams have kept a game close. Everything seems to be clicking in the eyes of Bainbridge-Guilford’s head coach––except serves. Anyone who knows or has played the sport of volleyball knows how crucial serving is.
“We struggled a little bit in Tioga last weekend against Bishop Grimes with our serving,” said Selfridge. “We missed five serves in the first set. We still won but if we are playing a team like the ones we will see this weekend, we can’t do that.”
Selfridge said the team scrimmaged Owego – the other Section IV team that will be competing for a championship in Glens Falls this weekend, and the serves still were where she would like them to be.
She had serving on her practice plans for Thursday’s final practice before heading out to the tournament but due to the weather, all after school activities at Bainbridge-Guilford were cancelled resulting in no practice at all. “I’m hoping we bring some serves with us to Glens Falls,” said the Bobcats coach.
Familiar foe
Bainbridge-Guilford and the Panama Panthers of Section VI faced each other in last’s season’s pool play on the opening day of the championship tournament.
The Panthers defeated the Bobcats in the matchup, winning both games 25-17 and 25-21. With their loss 25-23 to Argyle in the first game of the day played for B-G, a tiebreaker was needed to decide who was going to see Panama on the second day.
In the largest win of the day, Bainbridge-Guilford took down Argyle 25-13 and moved on to see the Panthers once again.
With the state title on the line, the Bobcats came out to a roaring start, winning the first two games 25-10 and 25-14. Needing just one more win to secure B-G’s first state championship, Panama came storming back to take game three and force at least one more game.
Not wanting to let the title slip out of their grasp, Bainbridge-Guilford closed out the fourth game by beating the Panthers 25-12.
Currently holding a 22-1 record for the season, Panama returns with nearly the same roster as a season ago. “Panama didn’t lose a whole lot from last year,” said Selfridge. “I’m sure they have gotten better but we have gotten better as well. It should be a fun match.” B-G will close out their match play against the Panthers.
The Bobcats have not seen two of the teams they will face in pool play action on Saturday. Mayfield of Section II and Mount Academy of Section IX.
The Mayfield Eagles, of the Capital Region, are 14-5-1 this season. Mayfield’s team leader is Mikayla Myers, a senior hitter. Myers leads the team in both assists (166), kills (85) and service points (27). Her teammate Samantha Kent is second in assists and kills on the team while Amy Laubenstein is second in serving points.
Bainbridge-Guilford will see the Eagles at 8:30 a.m. as the first match of pool play on Saturday in Class D. With a one match break after their first finishes, the Bobcats face the Mount Academy Eagles.
Mount Academy holds a 16-2 record under new head coach Sandy Mancuso-Lopez, formerly of Kington High School. In her previous head coaching job, Mancuso-Lopez led the Kingston Tigers to six Section IX titles.
Heavily favored Bobcats
As the defending champions in Class D, the Bobcats have the targets on the back this season. Selfridge said her team prefers to be the underdog in situations such as this.
“We liked where were last year much better than where we are this season,” said Selfridge. “Everyone is gunning for us and we are the easy target. Last year, no one knew about us and we like being in that situation.
“We don’t want people thinking, ‘Oh they’re super good.’ We want people thinking we aren’t good and catch them from behind. It’s hard to do that when you won states last year.”
The venue
The Cool Insuring Arena, formerly known as the Glens Falls Civic Center, seats 4,800 and has hosted numerous high school events for decades including the NYSPHSAA Boys Basketball State Tournament from 1981-2016.
“I believe the venue is a highlight because of the stadium seating. The athletes feel like they are competing on the ‘big stage,’” said Girls Volleyball Coordinator, Peggy Seese. “When teams walk into the venue it has a presence that is pretty spectacular. These athletes are competing at the highest level of their high school career.”
Seese said that the Glens Falls community is very welcoming during the high school events hosted in the area. She stated that the athletes and fans will be able to enjoy an great atmosphere while watching some fantastic volleyball.
Tickets for Saturday’s pool play can be purchased on site for $10 but fans can purchase them for $8 by ordering online at www.gofan.co in advance. A new ticket much be purchased for Sunday’s championship day. Sunday’s tickets can be purchased the same way.
After losing one senior to graduation at the end of their state title run, fans and community members began saying Bainbridge-Guilford could easily turn around and do it again in 2018.
“No, it’s absolutely not in the bag for us this year,” said Bobcats’ head coach Tami Selfridge in a preseason interview. “If any of my kids begin to think they don’t have to work as hard in practice or challenge ourselves each and everyday at practices to return to the finals, I will not be happy as their coach.”
Teams that faced B-G knew what they were getting when they stepped on the court this season: a very fundamental, talented group that played like a team, not individuals.
While the Bobcats do have standouts throughout the roster, it is what each player does for the team that has made Bainbridge-Guilford nearly unstoppable the past two seasons.
“Playing as a group is what gave us a state championship [in 2017],” said Selfridge. “We had so many girls that had a really good day and we will need that to continue if we want to repeat this weekend.”
The goal for the Bobcats this season was not to win a title. It was to return back to the New York State Championships and defend their title.
“Now that we have won a state championship, putting that down as our goal feels small,” said Selfridge in the early season discussion.
The regular season has passed and the final weekend is here. The team has achieved part of their season goal, but capturing the title once again is their objective.
The Bobcats have gone undefeated in the regular season play and only dropped a few games during tournaments.
Struggling service
The Bobcats have been a force all season long as very few teams have kept a game close. Everything seems to be clicking in the eyes of Bainbridge-Guilford’s head coach––except serves. Anyone who knows or has played the sport of volleyball knows how crucial serving is.
“We struggled a little bit in Tioga last weekend against Bishop Grimes with our serving,” said Selfridge. “We missed five serves in the first set. We still won but if we are playing a team like the ones we will see this weekend, we can’t do that.”
Selfridge said the team scrimmaged Owego – the other Section IV team that will be competing for a championship in Glens Falls this weekend, and the serves still were where she would like them to be.
She had serving on her practice plans for Thursday’s final practice before heading out to the tournament but due to the weather, all after school activities at Bainbridge-Guilford were cancelled resulting in no practice at all. “I’m hoping we bring some serves with us to Glens Falls,” said the Bobcats coach.
Familiar foe
Bainbridge-Guilford and the Panama Panthers of Section VI faced each other in last’s season’s pool play on the opening day of the championship tournament.
The Panthers defeated the Bobcats in the matchup, winning both games 25-17 and 25-21. With their loss 25-23 to Argyle in the first game of the day played for B-G, a tiebreaker was needed to decide who was going to see Panama on the second day.
In the largest win of the day, Bainbridge-Guilford took down Argyle 25-13 and moved on to see the Panthers once again.
With the state title on the line, the Bobcats came out to a roaring start, winning the first two games 25-10 and 25-14. Needing just one more win to secure B-G’s first state championship, Panama came storming back to take game three and force at least one more game.
Not wanting to let the title slip out of their grasp, Bainbridge-Guilford closed out the fourth game by beating the Panthers 25-12.
Currently holding a 22-1 record for the season, Panama returns with nearly the same roster as a season ago. “Panama didn’t lose a whole lot from last year,” said Selfridge. “I’m sure they have gotten better but we have gotten better as well. It should be a fun match.” B-G will close out their match play against the Panthers.
The Bobcats have not seen two of the teams they will face in pool play action on Saturday. Mayfield of Section II and Mount Academy of Section IX.
The Mayfield Eagles, of the Capital Region, are 14-5-1 this season. Mayfield’s team leader is Mikayla Myers, a senior hitter. Myers leads the team in both assists (166), kills (85) and service points (27). Her teammate Samantha Kent is second in assists and kills on the team while Amy Laubenstein is second in serving points.
Bainbridge-Guilford will see the Eagles at 8:30 a.m. as the first match of pool play on Saturday in Class D. With a one match break after their first finishes, the Bobcats face the Mount Academy Eagles.
Mount Academy holds a 16-2 record under new head coach Sandy Mancuso-Lopez, formerly of Kington High School. In her previous head coaching job, Mancuso-Lopez led the Kingston Tigers to six Section IX titles.
Heavily favored Bobcats
As the defending champions in Class D, the Bobcats have the targets on the back this season. Selfridge said her team prefers to be the underdog in situations such as this.
“We liked where were last year much better than where we are this season,” said Selfridge. “Everyone is gunning for us and we are the easy target. Last year, no one knew about us and we like being in that situation.
“We don’t want people thinking, ‘Oh they’re super good.’ We want people thinking we aren’t good and catch them from behind. It’s hard to do that when you won states last year.”
The venue
The Cool Insuring Arena, formerly known as the Glens Falls Civic Center, seats 4,800 and has hosted numerous high school events for decades including the NYSPHSAA Boys Basketball State Tournament from 1981-2016.
“I believe the venue is a highlight because of the stadium seating. The athletes feel like they are competing on the ‘big stage,’” said Girls Volleyball Coordinator, Peggy Seese. “When teams walk into the venue it has a presence that is pretty spectacular. These athletes are competing at the highest level of their high school career.”
Seese said that the Glens Falls community is very welcoming during the high school events hosted in the area. She stated that the athletes and fans will be able to enjoy an great atmosphere while watching some fantastic volleyball.
Tickets for Saturday’s pool play can be purchased on site for $10 but fans can purchase them for $8 by ordering online at www.gofan.co in advance. A new ticket much be purchased for Sunday’s championship day. Sunday’s tickets can be purchased the same way.
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