Good morning. 🏀🏒 It’s Friday, March 20. Rye High School claimed two state championships in the fall and has a shot at repeating the feat in the winter.

The hockey team won the first state title in program history Sunday, scoring five straight goals to beat Byram Hills in an all-Section 1 championship game.

In just a few hours, the boys basketball team tips off the state semifinals at 11:45 a.m., one win away from playing in tomorrow’s Class AA championship game in Binghamton.

Win or lose, it’s the final weekend of another successful sports season in Rye. Let’s go “Between the Lines.”

“Between the Lines” is curated by Chris Marshall.

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State Semifinal Preview: Another Title in Sight

Record-wise, Rye has more losses than the other three Class AA state semifinalists combined. But the Garnets have proven all postseason that records don’t matter in March.

Whether it’s because Rye (21-5) faced better regular-season competition in Section 1, or because the players who don the garnet and black simply know how to win when it matters most (in seemingly every sport), the boys basketball team is surging into this weekend’s semifinals.

Today’s opponent, Amsterdam (22-2), dropped two of its four games around the holidays — on Dec. 20 and Jan. 3 — then won 15 straight to claim the Section 2 title and join Rye in Binghamton. Every playoff game for the Rams has gone down to the final horn, with all four wins coming by single digits and an average margin of victory of just 3.5 points.

Amsterdam beat Section 3 champion Nottingham 61-55 in last weekend’s regional championship, leading the entire game except for one minute in the third quarter.

In Friday’s other state semifinal, Penfield (27-1) has won 19 straight, including the Section 5 title and a 14-point regional title victory. Seton Catholic (22-1), champions of Section 4, has won 16 straight, capped by a 60-55 regional final.

If Rye advances to Sunday’s championship game, it will face a one-loss team for the third time this postseason. The Garnets beat Suffern, the top seed in Section 1, in Westchester County Center, then sent Smithtown West back to Long Island with a 51-47 loss in the regional championship.

Smithtown West was the No. 3-ranked team in Class AA, and Rye entered the fourth quarter trailing 37-30 last Friday. Shots wouldn’t drop, untimely and unforced errors were mounting, and there realistically might have been just eight minutes left in the season.

But with a late 9-0 run, Rye surged ahead of the Bulls in the closing minutes to reach the state semifinals for the first time since 1989.

With 6:20 remaining, Carson Miller hit a three – and then a two. A couple of back-and-forth, sweaty-palm minutes later, with just 2:47 left, Sebastian Lewis converted his first bucket of the night and was fouled. He made the free throw, and in a heartbeat, the game was tied, 45-45.

A minute later, Henry Shoemaker scored, was fouled, and made the free throw to put ahead, 48-45. The Bulls, who entered the game with a 23-1 record, were held more than 30 points below their season average of 78, and never led again.

The final 1:30 were the only 90 seconds that Rye was in control.

Not a bad time to play your best basketball of the season.

Weather Report: Check out the weekend weather forecast for Rye here.

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Performers of the Week: Rye Hockey Team 🏆

🏒 Congrats to the Rye hockey team — winners of the Sportech Performer of the Week.

After giving up the game’s opening goal, the Garnets applied a level of pressure Byram Hills hadn’t experienced all season, scoring five straight times to win the Division 2 state title and avenge a section championship loss in commanding fashion.

“We always have a plan and a process in place before every game,” said senior captain Ryan Draddy. “This group is so tight, so strong together, that we knew if we stuck to what we do, good things would come. I love all of my teammates. I’m really going to miss playing hockey with these guys.”

Rye senior Jamie Morris – who had a sensational state tournament and season – scored Rye’s first goal with 8:46 to play in the first. Two minutes later, the Niejadlik twins, sophomores Will and Max, collaborated on Rye’s second goal. Will with the shot, Max with the deflection for a 2-1 Rye lead.

With the memory of their 3-2 overtime loss to Byram Hills on March 1 seemingly tattooed on the inside of their face masks, the Garnets peppered Bobcat goalie Lucas Guggenheimer with shots by the baker’s dozen. With 54 seconds left in the opening period, Rye sophomore Colin Nigro made it 3-1 Rye after one period.

Senior Will Weinman, who scored the game-tying goal to force overtime in the state semifinals, added another score Sunday with 4:55 to play in the second period. Weinman, the Division 2 state tournament MVP, gave Rye a 4-1 lead at the end of two periods.

Late in the third period, sophomore Finn Draddy scored Rye’s final goal, and five minutes later, the Garnets were officially state champions.

“This is the greatest feeling any of us have ever had playing the game we all love so much,” said senior captain Trevor Dolan. “To have gone through all of it with this group makes it extra special.”

— By Steven Kearney

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