Preview: Coxsackie-Athens Riverhawks vs. Chatham Panthers
Coxsackie-Athens has enjoyed a two-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will square off against the Chatham Panthers at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. Coxsackie-Athens has been dominant on offense recently, as they've racked up an incredible 285 points over their last four matches.
Coxsackie-Athens can now show off six landslide victories after their most recent game on Friday. They blew past Rensselaer 73-34 at home. Given Coxsackie-Athens' advantage in MaxPreps' New York basketball rankings (they are ranked 132nd, while the Rams are ranked 490th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Coxsackie-Athens' win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Riley Sitcer, who dropped a double-double on 25 points and 11 rebounds. Sitcer has been hot recently, having posted 16 or more points the last four times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Reaghan Hellen, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and ten rebounds.
Meanwhile, Chatham's recent rough patch got a bit rougher last Wednesday after their third straight defeat. They ended up on the wrong side of a tough 46-23 walloping at the hands of Ichabod Crane. The match was a close 18-16 at the break, but unfortunately for Chatham it sure didn't stay that way.
Coxsackie-Athens pushed their record up to 11-3 with that victory, which was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 70.7 points per game. As for Chatham, their defeat dropped their record down to 2-6.
Everything went Coxsackie-Athens' way against the Panthers in their previous meeting back in December of 2023 as the Riverhawks made off with a 40-17 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Coxsackie-Athens since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
