The Amsterdam High School Lady Rams basketball program recently concluded its 17th annual basketball clinic Saturday at Amsterdam High School. Over 40 children in grades 2-8 participated in the event which expanded this year to three consecutive Saturdays in February. Coaches and players of the Amsterdam Lady Rams varsity and junior varsity teams taught each participant the fundamentals of the game of basketball with instruction on passing, shooting, rebounding, dribbling the ball, and defense, and with a little conditioning and a lot of fun thrown in. The youths also had a chance to show what they had learned when they were divided into teams during the last hour of each session. Every player received a certificate in recognition of their achievements at the clinic.
The free clinics are just one way the Lady Rams basketball program works with students. During Regents week in January, all ten members of the Amsterdam Lady Rams varsity team spent hours reading to the students of Barkley Elementary School and shared with them their experiences as high school student athletes, as well as sharing with them what they felt the younger students needed to do to prepare themselves for a future education in high school and beyond.
The Amsterdam Lady Rams season continues on Thursday, February 23rd, when the Amsterdam varsity hosts Lansingburgh in the quarterfinals of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Section 2 Class A tournament. Lansingburgh defeated South Glens Falls 54-40 in the first round. Amsterdam High School will host two quarterfinal games, with the Lady Rams taking the floor at 7:30pm. Mohonasen will play Queensbury, a 55-44 winner over Albany Leadership, in the first game scheduled to tip off at 6pm. Winners will meet in the semifinals at Colonie High School on Tuesday, February 28th.
