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SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY -It had been nearly two years, to the day, since the last time Shen and Saratoga's baseball teams played each other. It took a Memorial Day weekend night game on Saturday to end that stretch, featuring the latest Battle of I-87.

"This has been going on since 2017," said Shen's Cal Vander Veer with a big smile, as he checked the date on the Battle of I-87 trophy. "Basically whenever we play each other we bring it and if you win you get to keep it until the next time."

Saturday night also marked the first time the Battle would be played at Saratoga's new home field at East Side Recreation Park, although it would end in disappointment for the Blue Streaks. The Plainsmen brought the large glove back to Clifton Park with a 4-2 victory.

Saratoga jumped out to an early lead in the bottom of the first inning, when Zander Teator doubled to center field, scoring Ryan Ash, who had reached on a walk.

In the top of the third, Brody Vincenzi would begin his big day, knocking inDavid Gustafson with a base hit to center, trying the game at one. Later in the inning, Guiseppe D'Elia would reach on an error by Ryan Ash at shortstop, allowing Vincenzi to score on the play and giving Shen a 2-1 lead.

Ryan Ash quickly made up for the mistake in the bottom half of the inning, lining a home run to left field to tie the game.

With the game still tied 2-2 in the top of the sixth inning, Colin Maloney doubled to lead off for Shen. Jacek Strain was then told to drop a sacrifice bunt, but was able to reach on the play. Cal Vander Veer would then come up to the plate with runners on first and third and one out.

"I saw Colin on third and coming up I was just thinking 'I have to hit it to the outfield'. There was only one out, so I knew I had a job to do, but I actually missed the suicide squeeze sign," Vander Veer explained. "But anything can happen in baseball and I just rolled with it."

While Shen coach Greg Christodulu had a squeeze play in mind to get the go-ahead run across and Vander Veer's thoughts were on a sacrifice fly, neither of those things happened. What did happen is Vander Veer hitting a chopper in the third base-shortstop hole. Evan Owens was able to snag it, but his only play was to first, as Maloney had a good secondary lead on third and broke home on contact.

The next batter for Shen would be Brody Vincenzi, with a runner on second and two outs.

"I'm just trying to put the ball in play," Vincenzi said. "You know Toga's gonna come out and try to put up some more runs."

The senior outfielder would double in the left-center field gap, driving in Strain and giving Shen a 4-2 lead.

"It relieved the whole team. It gave Sean (Flaherty) some insurance and we just played good defense and were able to come out with the win. In tight games like this, if we play defense and get timely hits, we're going to win every game."

Vincenzi's RBI double knocked out Saratoga ace, Patrick Deschaine, who battled through 5.1 innings, allowing four runs - three earned - on eight hits and five walks. He struck out five in the loss.

Ryan Pittz, who started the game for Shen, went five innings, allowing two runs on six hits and three walks, as he earned the win. Will Shea took over in the sixth, and Nathan Rodriguez would try to get the Streaks gong with a pinch-hit double. It would go to waste as Shea was able to work out of it.

Sean Flaherty then took over in the bottom of the seventh, looking to pick up the save. After Michael Mack reached on a pinch-hit infield single, he was erased on a double play, as Flaherty finished out the inning with Ryan Ash left in the on-deck circle.

With the win, Shen is now 10-4 overall this season and have won nine games in a row.

"The first couple of games were a little rocky, but we've really come together as a team," Vander Veer said. "We build off of each other's energy and it's a great thing what we've been able to do the last nine games."

The Blue Streaks fell to 7-9 with the loss.

BATTLE OF I-87 HISTORY

Since the glove started being passed around in 2017, all of Shen's and Saratoga's matchups against each other have been either one or two-run games, including the latest installment.

The last time the teams faced off was on May 30, 2019, nearly two years to the day of Saturday's game. There was a bit more at stake in the 2019 game, as it was the Section 2 semifinals - a painful memory for the Blue Streaks.

Evan Jones had shut-out Saratoga for the first six innings of that game. Nate Chudy had held Shen to just two runs, as the Plainsmen took a 2-0 lead to the seventh. In the top of the seventh after Shen ace Brendan Disonell took the mound, Chudy drove home Ryan Dolan and Christian Kondo with a two-run single, to tie the game. In the bottom half of the inning, Jake Reinisch smacked a walk-off single to left, scoring Patrick McGuire, as the Plainsmen began their run to the 2019 New York State Championship game.

East Side Recreation Park

Saratoga Springs, NY

SHENENDEHOWA 0-0-2-0-0-2-0 -- 4-8-0

SARATOGA 1-0-1-0-0-0-0 -- 2-8-2

WP:Ryan Pittz; LP:Patrick Deschaine; HLD:Will Shea; SV: Sean Flaherty

2B: Colin Maloney (SHEN), Brody Vincenzi (SHEN),Nathan Rodriguez (SAR), Alex Teator (SAR)

HR: Ryan Ash (SAR)

RBI: Cal Vander Veer (SHEN), Brody Vincenzi 2 (SHEN), Ryan Ash (SAR), Alex Teator (SAR)

SHEN PITCHING

Ryan Pittz 5.0 IP, 2R, 2ER, 6H, 3BB, 2K, W; Will Shea: 1.0 IP, 0R, 1H, 2K, HLD; Sean Flaherty: 1.0 IP, 0R, 1H, SV

SARATOGA PITCHING

Patrick Deschaine 5.1 IP, 4R, 3ER, 8H, 5BB, 5K, L;Mateo Avila: 1.1 IP, 0R, 1BB

Read this article:
HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL: Shen defeats Saratoga 4-2 to win Battle of I-87 after a nearly two-year hiatus - The Saratogian

The Westchester County track and field championships, which concluded Monday after a weekend rain delay in one area, took on a retooled look this year with multiple locations being used to divide athletes toreduce the possibility ofCOVID exposures and transmissions.

This translated into multiple winners per event, based on geographic groupings, The regions were loosely named, since some "Central" schools are north of the "North/West" schools. But the regions were nearly identical in size, each including10-12schools.

Hen Hud and Somers were the big winners, sweeping the girls and boys team titles in their respective regions.

Below arelists of the top finishers in each event with their region noted, as well as a listing of each region'stop three finishing teams.

Lakeland/Panas' JaLia Williams, shown here at the finish of a 4x200-meter relay at the U.S. Air Force Hispanic Games at The Armory January 4, 2020, logged the fastest 100-meter dash of all Westchester girls, clocking 12.81 at the county outdoor track and field championships, which were divided into regions this year.(Photo: John Meore/The Journal News)

North/West: JaLia Williams, Lakeland/Panas, 12.81

South: Olivia Moxey, New Rochelle, 13.24

Central:Maeve Roney, Pleasantville, 13.15

East/Central:Abigail Charles, Fox Lane, 13.59

North/West: Ethan Scott, Lakeland/Panas, 11.39

South:Johnny Moynihan, Bronxville, 11:54

Central:Andrew Lucassen, John Jay-Cross River,11.56

East/Central: Moray Walker, White Plains, 11.71

North/West: Grace Adeyeye, Lakeland/Panas, 18.2

South:Jules Gravier, Bronxville, 17.74

Central: Isabelle Kapoor, Pleasantville, 15.63

East/Central: Elizabeth Fine, Scarsdale, 17.3

North/West: Jaleel Moody, Irvington, 15.72

South:Antwone Messado, Mount Vernon, 14.84

Central: Brian Halper, Somers, 17.07

East/Central: Eric Antonecchia, White Plains 16.3

North/West: JaLia Williams, Lakeland/Panas, 26.65

South: Olivia Moxey, New Rochelle, 27.84

Central:Abigail Scinicariello, John Jay-Cross River,28.49

East/Central:Abigail Charles, Fox Lane, 28.07

North/West: Ethan Scott, Lakeland/Panas 23.08

South: Johnny Moynihan, Bronxville, 24.24

Central:Leelan Maxwell, Woodlands, 23.47

East/Central: Moray Walker, White Plains, 23.93

North/West: Juliette Salazar, Peekskill, 1:00.82

South:Kaela Godfrey, New Rochelle, 1:02.83

Central:Chelsea Lewitt, Somers, 1:01.77

East/Central:Kathlyn Coyne, Rye,1:00.4

North/West: Artis Powell, Peekskill, 51.59

South:Jabari Barrife, Mount Vernon, 52.64

Central:Kevin Callaghan, Briarcliff, 51.64

East/Central:Elliott Coulter, Fox Lane, 54.19

North/West: Keira Flaherty, Yorktown,1:10.92

South:Elena Olson, Ursuline, 1:15.74

Central:Isabella Milojevic, Somers, 1:12.65

East/Central: Elizabeth Fine, Scarsdale1:16.7

North/West:Jonathon Wong, Hen Hud, 1:00.23

South:Antwone Messado, Mount Vernon, 58.94

Central:Luke Briody, Byram Hills, 1:02.03

East/Central: Eric Antonecchia, White Plains 1:04.4

Hen Hud's Zoe Rose, shown here running a 600-meter race in February in the Hudson Valley Sportsdome in Milton, recorded the fastest time among Westchester girls in the outdoor 400 at the 2021 county championships, which were held on multiple days and in multiple locations.(Photo: John Meore/The Journal News)

North/West: Zoe Rose, Hen Hud,2:23.09

South:Madeline Stupart, Bronxville, 2:25.94

Central: Ava Jolley, North Salem, 2:25.2

East/Central:Willie Cuono, Fox Lane, 2:29.64

North/West: Nik Springer, Sleepy Hollow,1:58.71

South:Jabari Barrife, Mount Vernon, 2:07.74

Central: TJ Collins, Briarcliff, 2:03.98

East/Central:Gent Malushaga, Mamaroneck, 2:00.29

North/West:Katharine McLaughlin, Irvington, 9:22.83

South:Lucia Lavallee, Pelham,7:57.44

Central: Jordan Hahn, Somers, 8:23.11

East/Central:Mia Priore, White Plains, 8:18.77

North/West: Isolde McManus, Hen Hud,4:55.39

South: Daphne Banino, Ursuline, 4:41.54

Central: Ava Jolley, North Salem, 4:59.07

East/Central:Morgan Eigel, Fox Lane, 5:09.80

It has been a strong spring for Horace Greeley's Rishi Young. Here he wins the 3,200-meter race at the Loucks Games at White Plains High School May 7, 2021. And he also ran the fastest time, 4:23.31, among Westchester boys competing at 1,600 meters at the Westchester County track and field championships.(Photo: John Meore/The Journal News)

North/West: Marc Lucasey, Dobbs Ferry,4:35.32

South:Ben Levine, Pelham, 4:45.34

Central: RishiYoung, Horace Greeley, 4:23.31

East/Central: Jason Markopoulos, Mamaroneck, 4:26.68

North/West: Sydney Leitner, Yorktown, 10:27.46

South:Kaitlyn Casas, New Rochelle, 11:00.24

Central: Adriana Catalano, Pleasantville, 10:41.62

East/Central:Sophie Ginsberg, White Plains, 11:00.83

North/West: Colin McCarthy, Yorktown 10:04.87

South: Aidan Gemme, Hastings, 9:49.14

Central:Giovanni Culotta, Briarcliff, 10:31.27

East/Central: Jake Coleman, Scarsdale, 9:39.23

North/West: Brianna Carter, Peekskill, 7:35.6

South:Rory Keane, Ursuline, 8:49.1

Central:Jennifer Mui, Byram Hills, 7:30.6

East/Central:Not held

North/West: William McCarthy, Yorktown, 7:19.5

South: John Ryan, Bronxville, 6:56.20

Central:Thomas Dachik, John Jay-Cross River,6:44.82

East/Central: Not held

Rain, cold, records: Track and field: Hen Hud relay, North Rockland's Manny Joseph notch Red Raider meet records

Cooking a plan: Track and field: Louis with big debut, Harrison 200 battle, Miller wins 4 times at Mountie Madness

Fan-less, still fun: Track and field: Suffern wins boys and girls titles at Nanuet Relays; Nanuet and TZ second

North/West: Madeline Wong, Ardsley, 4-10

South:Neel Viswanathan, Eastchester, 5-2

Central:Brienna Ahmetaj, Pleasantville, 4-9

East/Central:Corinne Wierzchowski, Fox Lane, 5-0

North/West:Liam Sawian, Irvington, 6-2

South:Liam Heraty, Bronxville, 5-2

Central:Glen Ahern, Westlake, 5-9

East/Central:Evan Newburgh, Fox Lane, 5-4

North/West: Caroline Bayer, Dobbs Ferry, 14-9

South:Ivana Richards, Ursuline, 13-4

Central:Amber Nanaj, Pleasantville, 15-1

East/Central: Diya Shadaksharappa, Scarsdale, 16-7

North/West:Yu-Chen Lung, Ardsley, 19-3

South:Jaheim Gregory, New Rochelle, 19-10

Read more:
Track and field: Hen Hud and Somers big winners of regionalized Westchester championships - The Journal News

Priti Patel

Thom Brooks, The Independent

The latest net migration statistics published on 27 May are a much-delayed snapshot of England and Wales. The Office for National Statistics notes that new data from the year up to June 2019 should be viewed with some caution as Covid impacted its data collection.

Nonetheless, these new figures raise serious questions about the future plans for immigration reform announced by the government, led by Premier Boris Johnson, earlier this week.

The latest data shows drops in all areas from EU and non-EU citizens alike. Visits to England or Wales for work or study for three months to a year fell from 160,000 in June 2018 to 100,000 by June 2019. The only category where migration rose was in British citizens seeking work abroad. This doubled from 30,000 to 60,000 over the same period.

The picture being painted is clear. Most did not see England and Wales as a place welcoming global talent, with a greater number of citizens looking elsewhere for opportunities. The trend continues in estimates up to this spring, where work-related visas were down by over one third on last year, with more than two thirds due to falls in intra-company transfers.

While there should be some caution regarding these estimates, they show that in the run-up to 1 January 2020, those seeking work and study opportunities were looking elsewhere and this was before the pandemic arrived. It seems all but certain that this is the start of an unfortunate trend that the government may want to address urgently.

Since 2010, the Conservatives have made election manifesto promises to cut net migration to the tens of thousands. One regular criticism is that net migration has not, in fact, been higher than under the Tories. This highlights how their rhetoric does not match reality. Talking tough has not translated into results.

A second frequently raised concern is about the use of net migration for setting policy. Net migration counts all individuals entering or leaving over the year regardless of their nationality and mostly estimated using passenger data, making it more guesswork than science.

It has been noticeable for years that net migration would actually be higher if British citizens who are more likely to leave for abroad than return were discounted from the figures.

Earlier this week, home secretary Priti Patel vowed to strengthen the UKs digital border and introduce greater accuracy, avoiding hypothetical guesstimates of how much migration is actually happening. It is a shocking indictment that it has taken the Conservatives more than a decade to finally commit the government to getting a more accurate count, although no such system will be in place until 2025.

Paradoxically, the Tories have said they will not make any promises on migration reductions as they strive towards better accounting. This comes after making promises to cut numbers when the figures were known to be problematic for policy making.

This move towards improved accuracy is a part of Patels new plan for immigration, which sets out how she will fix the broken immigration system that her government has overseen for 11 years. While Patel wont say whether the new plan would lead to more or less immigration, it is clear she wants to position these plans as radical and positive changes. But in short, does it matter?

Her plans include a much-heralded points-based system. What Patel leaves out is that the new system was actually already in place since 2008, when launched by New Labour. Patels plans mean that the already complex and confusing system will be changing for the worse.

Given that the system was already in place for non-EU citizens in 2019, these changes do not appear likely to encourage global talent to work in the UK.

See the article here:
Patel's immigration reform is a confusing mess - Gulf Today

By Rogette Harris

Only 28 percent of registered Dauphin County voters participated in the May 18, 2021, election. Did the other 72 percent choose not to participate, or did they not realize an election took place? I would argue its a mix of the two, which is unfortunate since the political world looks incredibly bleak these days.

We dont always get the government we want, but we do get the government we deserve if we do not participate.

I acknowledge Im a politico, but even I admit government/elections is like a soap opera. With a soap opera, you can stop watching, pick up the same show years later and you can catch the storyline within a couple of episodes since the writers recycle the same plot. Its the same with government and our elected officials. After all these years, we are still waiting on commonsense immigration reform, a raise in the minimum wage, higher paying jobs, ending systematic racism, gender equality, making debt-free college a reality, securing universal health care, real action on climate change, curbing crime and a host of other challenges that confront our country that require immediate attention.

So, whether you voted in the primary election on May 18th, why vote for the general election on Nov. 2 when it seems like nothing is being accomplished?

Ill tell you why. You vote because every election matters and the candidates that win will matter. You vote because elections are more than just about your individual representatives in Washington, governor or who is president. Who you choose on Nov. 2nd to lead your local and county governments whether as our county judge, township supervisor or commissioner, mayor, city council member, or even school board member will have a serious direct impact on your life, your loved ones and your community.

The people who win this year will more directly impact your lives and affect your wallets even more than who wins the U.S. Senate and governor races next year!

Voting does matter and has a lasting impact on all our lives. Take for instance the four statewide judicial candidates on the ballot this year. Whoever gets elected on Nov. 2 will almost surely serve for life. And if anything has been proven this past year, the courts are our democracys last line of defense against ill-willed policies and legislation. When voters dont turn out to vote, they receive a government that doesnt represent them.

Consider all the uproar and protests against police officers shooting and ultimately killing unarmed black men and women. Community groups and activists continue to loudly protest and complain about police and community relationships, the lack of accountability in police departments and lack of reform in our criminal justice system.

A lot of these local governments and police departments arent responding to these community requests and needs. One could argue its because the majority of the community didnt vote to represent their needs.

Answer these questions: Who hires the police officers? The police chief.

Who hires the police chief? The mayor.

Who hires the mayor? Who elects the council? The answer is clear the voters.

Its easy to forget that local elections matterfrankly, its easy to forget that local elections even happen. But there is no such thing as an off year election. The news may not cover local/county elections as much, and we arent constantly bombarded with negative political ads (this is a good thing!). The chances of any of our local or county candidates being portrayed by Tina Fey, or Alec Baldwin on SNL is pretty much non-existent. However, if you want the potholes on the street in front of your house fixed, concerns about your property taxes, childs education and/or your trash picked up youd better start voting in these local elections

Voting for county and local officials has very real consequences. Congress and Harrisburg may be as unproductive as ever, but the health and prosperity of our communities isnt determined solely by them. Every eligible and registered voter must turn out to vote on Nov. 2, and every election day for the community to be respected and represented. Let your VOTE be your VOICE on Nov. 2!

Rogette Harris is a political analyst and was the Democratic pundit on PennLives Battleground PA.

Read more here:
Unfinished business. Did you know an election just happened? | Opinion - pennlive.com

Sen. Rand Paul received a death threat at his Kentucky home on Monday containing a white substance and a picture of the Republican with a gun to his head.

Ill finish what your neighbor started you mother*****, read the threat with an image of Paul bruised and bandaged, reports Fox News.

In 2017, Paul was viciously attacked by his neighbor Rene Boucher while he was mowing his lawn, resulting in six broken ribs, lung damage, and multiple bouts of pneumonia.

According to the Daily Mail, "the photoshopped image attached to the package was doctored from a photo illustration of Paul that was created by GQ magazine as part of a 2017 feature story on the assault that left the Republican senator badly injured."

"I take these threats immensely seriously," Paul said in a statement Monday. "I have been targeted multiple times now, it is reprehensible that Twitter allows C-list celebrities to advocated for violence against me and my family.

This must stop. Just this weekend Richard Marx called for violence against me and now we receive this despicable powder filled letter, he added, referring to the singer who tweeted that if he ever met Boucher he was going to hug him and buy him as many drinks as he can consume.

Pauls wife, Kelley, who received the letter and called the FBI, said she was tired of the threats against her husband. Nevertheless, the tactics will not intimidate him, she added, reminding people that they are armed.

"I am sick of the hatred and vitriol from people who boast of their 'empathy and compassion' in their bios," she tweeted. "Rand will continue to stand up for our constitutionally protected liberties. He will keep questioning the 'experts.' We wont be intimidated. And yes, we have guns."

The FBI has launched an investigation.

See the original post:
Rand Paul's Wife Has a Serious Message After Latest Death ...