Game Winner in BOLD
7-6-1 League    12-7-1 Overall

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9/12 (non-league) Chittenango 0 Glens Falls 2 Glens Falls opened the first day of the High School Hall of Fame Cup with a gritty win against a tough and physical Chittenango side from Section 3. Glens Falls gained the upper hand midway through the first half on corner kick served by Josh Wadleigh to the top of the six-yard box. Sam Caruso’s first touch blasted the ball into the top netting to beat the keeper. The game was put away ten minutes later when Michael Rankin-Byrne gathered up a lose ball 30 yards from the net and fired a dynamite shot just inside the far post. The second half was scoreless as Glens Falls maintained possession and limited Chittenango’s chances. To just two shots on goal. Glens Falls advances to meet 2008 New York State Class B Champions Bronxville in the Championship Match.
9/13 (non-league) Bronxville 0 Glens Falls 2 Glens Falls captured the championship of the 2009 High School Hall of Fame Cup in a match that pitted them against the 2008 New York State Class B Champions Bronxville Broncos. A composed Glens Falls side that maintained the bulk of the possession but continually ran up against a tough Bronxville back line dominated the first half of play. Senior Matt Distler opened up the scoring on a long free kick from Indians center-back Peter Sliva. Sliva’s long ball took a bounce and was misread by the Broncos center back. The ensuing footrace ended with Distler taking a touch away from pressure and beating the Broncos keeper near side. Bronxville came out hard in the second half and continuously pressured the Glens Falls backs who did well to turn away several attempts in the final third of the field. Glens Falls’ Paul Pearl sealed the victory when he received a long pass from Sliva, shook off a tough challenge by the Broncos center-back and slid a low shot past the Bronxville net minder. This was the Indians’ first tournament win in four appearances in the tournament. The Glens Falls back line played a well on both days. Michael Rankin-Byrne, Matt Parsons, and Josh Wadleigh all had good performances in the championship match.
9/15 Gloversville 0 Glens Falls 1 In a game that neither team would like to repeat, Glens Falls ended up on the winning end of a double overtime against a stubborn Gloversville side. Despite controlling much of the possession throughout the game and having the definitive advantage in shots and corner kicks, Glens Falls was unable to finish. The Glens Falls back line of Peter Sliva, Patrick Smotzer, Joe Celeste and Mike Kowalski were the shining stars in this contest by limiting the Gloversville attack to just six shots and only one on frame. Likewise, Gloversville back line made life difficult for the Indians in attack.  A scoreless end of regulation sent the teams into double overtime. Glens Falls opened the second overtime kickoff with a long pass from Michael-Rankin Byrne to winger Josh Wadleigh who converted a long bending shot past the Dragons keeper Ethan Miller to secure the win. The score came in just under ten seconds of the second overtime.
9/18 Johnstown 1 Glens Falls 2 Today’s foothills match could be described as a tale of two halves. Johnstown opened up the scoring when Tommy Horning got behind the Glens Falls defense and struck a nice chip shot over Glens Falls keeper Ben Spilman to put the Sir Bills ahead. The half was relatively evenly played with a slight advantage going to the Sir Bills. In the second half however, Glens Falls got the wind at their backs and picked up their game. At the fifteen minutes mark, Matt Distler chased down a ball into the corner and managed to get by the Johnstown defender along the end line and send in a cross. His cross was touched by the Johnstown keeper, Nick Rovazzini who tipped it toward the far post where Josh Wadleigh collected the ball and put it in the back of the net for the equalizer. The Indians kept the pressure on the Johnstown defense throughout the remainder of the game and it paid off with eight minutes remaining. Michael Rankin-Byrne dribbled down the middle of the field and ripped a beautiful, line drive upper 90 goal from 25 yards out to give Glens Falls the 2-1 come from behind victory. Playing well for Glens Falls were: Rankin-Byrne, Peter Sliva, and Joe Celeste. The Sir Bills received strong performances from Horning, Kieran McCoy, and Mertcan Dogan.
9/22 Glens Falls 3 Queensbury 1 Glens Falls came out the victor in a hard-nosed 3-1 contest between cross-town rivals that pitted two undefeated teams against one another. The Indians Joe Celeste opened the scoring when he managed to poke in a loose ball in the six-yard box that had been battered about by several players. Just three minutes later, Michael Rankin-Byrne netted the eventual game winner on a feed from Celeste. The Indians continued to control much of the play in the second half until the Spartans’ Sam Keenan made a game of it in the 77th minute to bring the Spartans to within one. Keenan received a pass on the left flank and lofted a beautiful ball from 25 yards out that floated into the far upper ninety to beat the Indians keeper Ben Spilman who was off his line. Glens Falls quickly maintained possession of the ball on the ensuing kickoff and Michael Rankin-Byrne put the game away one-minute later on an unassisted blast from the top of the box. The Indians had a great all-around team effort- including top performances from Sam Caruso, Matt Distler, and Josh Wadleigh- in putting three goals past a tough Spartans squad that had yet to concede a goal this season. The Indians back line of Peter Sliva, Pat Smotzer, Mike Kowalski, and Ben Davis did a great job at stifling the Spartan offense. The Spartans had strong efforts by Keenan, Ryan Cassidy, Cody Davis, Mike Majewski, and Andrew Goodemote.
9/24 Glens Falls 1 Broadalbin 2 Broadalbin-Perth stands alone as the only undefeated team still standing in the Foothills Council after winning a tight match against Glens Falls. B-P were the first to get on the board when Bryan Baia’s free kick skipped through the Indians defensive line, tapped by Alessandro Macchiarelli, and initially stopped by the Indians keeper who’s momentum allowed the ball to slip across the line for the goal. The half ended 1-0 Patriots. In the second half, both teams came out playing hard and working for a goal. Glens Falls eventually got on the board when they were awarded a free kick at the top of the box. The Indians’ Michael Rankin-Byrne stepped up to the shot and slipped it past the Patriots’ wall and into the net to tie the match at 1-1. B-P got the winning goal on another set piece from the flank. The ball was served into the box and bounced around between several players. The Indians keeper, Ben Spilman, was knocked to the ground during the ensuing scrum and the Patriot’s Jared Retersdorf poked the ball into the net for the win. Glens Falls tried desperately to mount an attack, but the B-P back line was able to push back the attempts. Glens Falls held the advantage on shots 11-6, while B-P led in corners 4-2.
9/26 Glens Falls 6 Hudson Falls 0 Michael Rankin-Byrne had a hat-trick and an assist to lead Glens Falls past a spirited Hudson Falls squad. Matt Distler added two goals and Peter Sliva rounded out the scoring for the Indians. Distler opened the scoring just five minutes into play when he put away a pass from Joe Celeste in the box. Five minutes later Rankin-Byrne received a pass from Sam Caruso and blasted a shot just under the crossbar from 35 yards out. The Tigers best opportunity of the day came from a left flank shot by Devan Kilmartin who nearly beat the Indians keeper, Ben Spilman, high, but Spilman was able to get a hand on the ball to force it over the crossbar. Shortly thereafter, Glens Falls was awarded a PK when the Tigers defender handled the ball in the box. The Tigers’ Steven Barrett held strong in stopping the shot by Peter Sliva with just one minute left in the half. Glens Falls opened up the game in the second half of play when Rankin-Byrne dribbled through the midfield and several defenders for an unassisted goal. Other goals came from Distler who was assisted by Won-Suh Nordquist; center-back Peter Sliva on an assist from Rankin-Byrne and Rankin-Byrne’s third goal came off a throw-in from Aaron Kanofsky with just four minutes left in the match.
9/29 Scotia-Glenville 0 Glens Falls 0

Glens Falls visited Scotia-Glenville for what proved to be a hard fought stalemate in Foothills Council action. Both teams had their chances but neither team was able to convert thanks to some tough defensive play and goaltending on behalf of each teams back lines. Chris Alescio and Bryce Campbell kept the Indians on their heels much of the game while Peter Sliva, Patrick Smotzer and Ben Davis worked hard to shut them down. Albert Auricchio did a fantastic job anchoring the Tartans defense and keeping the Indians at bay. The Tartans Scott Dibase played well in net while the Indians Ben Spilman recorded his fifth shutout of the season in the scoreless draw.
10/2 South Glens Falls 3 Glens Falls 2 South High and Glens Falls played tonight under the lights in a cross-town rivalry game with South High claiming the victory over #11 NYS ranked Glens Falls. Both teams were prepared and ready to play as soon as the 1st whistle blew. A good part of the game was played in the middle 3rd with South High attacking Glens Falls’ defense throughout the match. Ben Spilman made some very good saves in the net to keep Glens Falls close. However, South High struck 1st and went to halftime with a 2 to 1 lead. Early in the second half South High tallied another to go up 3 to 1, but a determined Glens Falls side worked hard to get another to make it 3-2. Ben Spilman stopped a PK in the second half as well to keep Glens Falls close. Shot s on goal favored South High 11-8 and corners were even at 2 each. Both teams played a great match.
10/6 Glens Falls 3 Gloversville 0 Glens Falls opened the second half of the Foothills Council seasons with a convincing win over Gloversville. Glens Falls controlled much of the pace and possession of the game and went up inside of 12 minutes of the game when Matt Distler’s cross was volleyed into the top shelf by Josh Wadleigh. The Indians continued to control the game throughout the first half and had several opportunities turned away to end the half 1-0. The Indians came out strong in the second half and scored their second goal on the day within the first minute of play. Sam Caruso, whose late run was well timed, headed Josh Wadleigh’s corner kick into the far post just past the Dragons keeper Andrew Beckman. Michael Rankin-Byrne finished off he scoring with a blast from just inside the penalty box. The Glens Falls defense did a superb job of limiting the Dragons to just two shots on goal throughout the game. In addition to the scorers, Joe Celeste played well for the Indians. Beckman, Maurice Carpenter and Ian Gillis all played well for the Dragons.
10/9 Glens Falls 1 Johnstown 0 Glens Falls and Johnstown played a sloppy contest on the Put Lamay Turf Field this afternoon with the Indians coming out the victors. The only score of the game came from a free kick with twenty seconds left in the first half. Josh Wadleigh’s free kick went far post and beat the Johnstown keeper, Nick Rovazzini, just at the base of the upright.
10/14 Queensbury 1 Glens Falls 0 Queensbury defeated cross-town rival Glens Falls 1-0 in a pivotal Foothills Council match up. Andrew Goodemote got the games only goal just 1:20 into the second half on a feed from Justin Haddadnia.   Haddadnia pushed up from his right back position and slid a ball into the box to Goodemote.   Goodemote beat an Indian defender and hit a left footed shot past Indians goalkeeper Ben Spilman.  The Spartans nearly went up 2-0 20 minutes into the half when Sam Keenan sent a beautiful cross onto the head of Tom Benedetto who flicked the ball on goal.  Spilman came out of nowhere to tip the ball wide and keep the game at 1-0.  The Spartans had several other quality chances in the game, but Spilman was up to the task.  Chris Coughlan played an outstanding defensive game for the Spartans in helping to limit the Indians to just four shots.
10/16 Broadalbin 3 Glens Falls0 0 Broadalbin-Perth scored 3 goals on their first 4 shots and cruised to a convincing 3-0 win over Glens Falls today. The Patriots got on the board with less than 2 minutes off the clock when Caleb Gruet received a nice ball from Jared Retersdorf, beat his defender and struck a perfect left footed shot into the upper 90. Just 3 minutes later, Adam Hoye-Simek collected his first goal of the season when he headed home a Vincent Zaluski corner kick.  Broadalbin made it 3-0 ten minutes after that when Ali Macchiarelli retrieved a ball in the far corner of the box and slid it to Gruet who tucked it home for his second of the day.  Goalie Jared LaPorte and his defense was able to hold strong the rest of the game and limited the Indians to just 4 shots on goal as they picked up their 10th shutout of the season. B-P registered 8 shots on goal and held the advantage in corner kicks 5-1.
10/19 Hudson Falls 0 Glens Falls 3 Matt Parsons led Glens Falls past Hudson Falls with two goals. Sam Caruso scored in the first half off a nice cross from Chris Reynolds. Pat Smotzer, Caruso, and Reynolds had great games for Glens Falls. Jeremiah Donahue, Elijah Kassie, and Kyle Pratt played well for the tigers. Ben Spilman had the shut-out with 4 saves while Devan Kilmartin had 15 saves for the Tigers.
10/21 Glens Falls 1 Scotia-Glenville 3 Glens Falls continued its season ending skid with a loss to Scotia-Glenville in Foothills action today. The Tartans controlled every aspect of the game as a depleted Indians squad struggled to manage any kind of solid attack. Scotia was first on the board when Mattias Carolsella gained control of the ball in the middle of the field and beat the Indians central defense with a blast on net. The tartan attackers struck again with an unassisted blast from Bryce Campbell at the top of the box. The Indians got on the board just one minute later when Josh Wadleigh received a through pass from Ben Davis, beat a defender with a nifty move and beat the keeper to the right post. The first half ended with Scotia-Glenville leading 2-1. In the second half, the Tartans once again maintained the bulk of the possession as Glens Falls once again labored to maintain connectivity. John Mancini put the game away with fifteen minutes left off a short corner that went bad turned into a great attack on the net. Chris Alescio’s centering pass found Mancini completely unmarked at the six-yard box and he had no problem putting it in the back of the net.
10/23 Glens Falls 0 South Glens Falls 1 In what amounted to a midfield battle royale, Glens Falls and South High each fought hard in the final match of the Foothills season with plenty on the line. South High came into the game with a potential Foothills title on the line. Glens Falls entered the game with a need to get them back into competitive play following some poor recent showings. The first half was scoreless with neither team able to convert the few opportunities they had. The tempo picked up in the second half as each team gave every bit of energy to eek out the winning goal. Finally, with just 5:31 remaining in regulation, South High’s Aaron Batkay netted the eventual game winner on a centering pass from Jack Bouchard. Glens Falls worked desperately to get the equalizer, but the South High midfield and backs held strong.

SECTIONALS
10/29 Glens Falls 2 Averill Park 1 24 seconds. That was the apparent magic amount of time at each of the match that Glens Falls counted on for their win over a spunky Averill Park squad. The Indians came out strong off the opening kickoff and attacked the Warriors net the first chance they had. 24 seconds into the game, Josh Wadleigh sent a short crossing pass to the far post where Matt Parsons headed it into the net. Glens Falls controlled much of the action for the next 15-20 minutes. However, their play began to get a little sloppy and AP was able to make some breaks on the Indians faltering back line. The second half opened with both teams struggling at midfield, with the Indians again owning much of the possession and created the most opportunities. At the 28-minute mark, a sloppy touch in the middle of the field provided the break AP needed. Dylan Larkin snatched up the mishandled ball and centered it to a streaking Ethen Edmonds who’s centering run resulted in the equalizer. The game ended with a frustrated and panicky Glens Falls attack rifling shots everywhere but on frame. In the overtime, Glens Falls’ pressure almost paid off but Warriors goalie, Liam Collins, made a tremendous diving fingertip save at the near post to keep the game alive. The game was put away with 24 seconds remaining I the second overtime when Michael Rankin-Byrne took a 25-yard shot that nicked an AP player and deflected into the net. For the game, Glens Falls led on shots 38-7  and corner kicks 7-0. The Warriors had good performances from Nick Hess and Liam Collins in net. Glens Falls had standout performances from Matt Parsons, Peter Sliva, and Ben Spilman in net. The Indians advance to meet  #2 seeded Lansingburgh on Saturday.
10/31 Lansingburgh 0 Glens Falls 2 #3N Glens Falls made the trip down to #2S Lansingburgh for what turned out to be a windy affair. On a day that sported wind gust up to 45 mph both teams had to contend balls that died in mid-air, balls that went backward and goal kicks in excess of 60+ yards. Lansingburgh opened up the first half hoping to take advantage of having that wind at their backs. However, the Glens Falls defense was on task; limiting the Knights to just 4 shots on net while having their own attack suppressed by having to play into the wind. In the second half, the answer was blowing in the wind . . . Glens Falls now had the opportunity to use the wind to their advantage, and that’s exactly what they did. Michael Rankin-Byrne, who came into the game as a second half substitute, received a centering pass from Joe Celeste at 25 yards out. His first touch was a turning move and he blasted the shot past the Lansingburgh keeper Josh Wangler to put the Indians up 1-0. Two minutes later, the Knights sent a shot into the box that was headed back o the Indians keeper by center back Peter Sliva. Ben Spilman’s ensuing wind assisted punt traveled a good 65 yards in the air, bounced over the Knights defensive line, took another bounce over Wangler’s head and landed in the net. All told, Spilman’s goal amounted to a 90 yard unassisted (and unintended) strike. Glens Falls had several more attempts at net, but were unable to convert. The Indians move on to meet the winner of the South Glens Falls vs. BH-BL match in Thursday’s semifinals at Queensbury HS.
11/5 South Glens Falls 1 Glens Falls 2 Glens Falls came out the victor in a classic cross-town battle between two very competitive teams. Glens falls opened the scoring at the 10:30 mark of the first half when Josh Wadleigh picked up a loose ball in front of the net and nailed it past the South high keeper Chase Brooks. The half ended at 1-0 Indians. The tide shifted a little in the second half. The Bulldogs came out hard and picked up the tempo of the game. They got the equalizer with just seven minutes remaining in regulation. Aaron Batkay’s through ball met Zach Horvath at the top of the box and Horvath beat the Indian’s keeper Ben Spilman on the near side. Both sides had opportunities in the first overtime period but neither could convert. Michael Rankin-Byrne netted the game winner on a penalty kick when he was taken down in the box. Glens Falls moves on to the Class A sectional final against Mohonasen on Saturday at 4:00 pm at Colonie HS.
11/7 Glens Falls 2 Mohonasen 3  

*Updated 11-8-09

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