Vikings athletics set to return for winter season
Skylar Blankenship
Sports Editor
A new season of athletics is set to begin at the Valley as the last leaves fall to the ground.
Cross country, soccer, volleyball and football are ushered out and basketball and bowling are ushered in.
The men’s basketball team finished the 2016-2017 season with an 18-11 overall record, with an average of 83.1 points and 38.1 rebounds per game. They also had a 38 percent free throw average.
“Our goal is always to win 20 games and get in the regional championships,” said head coach Mike Long, regarding the upcoming season.
The men’s at-home season opener will be on Nov. 1 at 7 p.m. against Rockland Community College. Long will be at the helm with assistant coaches Ed Pierce, Phil Sellers and Maxwell Weaver.
“We lost quite a bit of our group from last year and trying to replace them is going to be difficult,” said Long.
Long has over 40 years of coaching experience and has been inducted into the Saint Rose Hall of Fame in 1992, Bishop Maginn Hall of Fame in 2006 and the New York State Capital District Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010.
Women’s basketball had an overall record of 4-20 at the end of last season. The team had an average of 53.1 points per game, with almost 27 rebounds and a 58.8 free throw percentage.
“We are really looking forward to this year’s season. We scheduled a lot of games against out-of-region opponents, going all the way to the city [and] Massachusetts,” said head coach Robert Coleman.
This year, the women also have their first home game on Nov. 1 at 5 p.m. against Rockland Community College. Coleman will coach alongside assistant coaches Sheena Harrington and Jacquelin Hotaling.
“We really recruited well over the year locally, as well as added a few players outside of the area from New York City [and] as far upstate as Saranac Lake,” continues Coleman.
Before becoming the women’s head coach at HVCC, Coleman was the school’s assistant men’s basketball coach and a coach at SUNY Cobleskill. He also helped build an AAU/CYO program at the Troy Boys and Girls Club.