Items tagged with 'sports'
Andrew Catalon knows more about team handball than you do
Andrew's gotta be one of the nicest guys in TV.
The Summer Olympics started today in China. And, of course, that means wall-to-wall TV coverage. One of the people behind the mic for some of the games will be Andrew Catalon, the weekend sports anchor at Channel 13 here in the Capital Region. We bounced a few questions his way last week.
How'd you get hooked up with this Olympics gig?
I did a curling show for NBC Sports in December. And they called me up a couple months ago and said, "Listen, we have an opportunity for you to do some Olympics stuff if you're interested." And I jumped at it -- it's a great opportunity.
David Tyree, Super Bowl hero and temporary A-Towner
For whatever reason, things just seem to stick to his head.
If you didn't see it, you've probably heard about David Tyree's catch during the last Super Bowl. It's the one where the ball looked like it just stuck to his helmet. Some people are calling it the best play in Super Bowl history -- and it's one of the reasons the Giants were able to beat the Patriots.
But the new season is about to start and that means it's back to work... in Albany. Tyree and the rest of the Giants are in town for a month to train for the upcoming season. He took a few minutes away from practice (lunch, actually) at U-Albany to talk with AOA about what it's like to be a temporary A-Towner...
Since the Super Bowl, do you go around introducing yourself as David Tyree, Super Bowl Hero?
No, no, I definitely don't. It's never been my character -- never will be. Sometimes I have a hard time -- as much as I love a free meal, sometimes I think I should use this thing more often but I have a hard time doing that.
The Buzz about Serena and Anna
Serena Williams will be in town next Wednesday for a World Team Tennis match at the Washington Ave Armory, the new home of the NY Buzz (they had previously played in Schenectady's Central Park). And with a few breaks (tennis joke), Serena could very well be the new Wimbledon champ by next week.
The other big star on this year's Buzz schedule is Anna Kournikova. She'll be here July 22. Tickets aren't cheap for either match ($39, $49, $59). But if you're thinking you'd like to see both of them play, you might consider just buying a season pass to the Buzz. It's $99 for every game, which is only $20 less more than tickets to see the two stars.
Jerry Jennings bobblehead night
It's "Albany Night" at the ValleyCats game tonight and the first 1,500 people through the turnstiles will get their very own Jerry Jennings bobblehead.
But before you go running to line up at The Joe, you must know that the verisimilitude* of the Jennings bobblehead has been called into question. Judging from the image we've seen, Bobblehead Jerry is perhaps a bit more trim than the real thing. And apparently his eyes are the wrong color.
When confronted about the differences by Capital News 9 (the video's not online), here's what ValleyCats assistant GM Vic Christopher said: "The man is larger than life. How do you capture a personality like Jerry Jennings in a 7-inch ceramic doll?"
Well, we're guessing you start by picking a shade of orange.
*yes, this is most likely the only time "verisimilitude" will ever be used on AOA
image: Tri-City ValleyCats
Bobble, bobble, bobble
When people from out of town ask us what the Capital Region's like, we sometimes have a little trouble. "Oh, you know, it's... well... the state's a big presence... and... umm... the summers are usually nice... " and so we continue mumbling. It's not that there aren't interesting things to mention. We just have a little trouble capturing the essence of the place in a sentence.
A quote in today's Daily Gazette might have given us just the line to use when people ask the next time. In a story about a ValleyCats promotion that involves bobbleheads of Jerry Jennings, Harry Tutunjian and Brian Stratton, the minor league baseball team's general manager noted how well a Joe Bruno bobblehead (insert your own joke here) night did two years ago. "Politicans do better than athletes around here," Rick Murphy told the Gazette.
And after we read that quote, we thought, "Yeah, that sounds about right."
Smackdown at the capitol
Coming to an arena near you?
Arm twisting is nothing new at the state capitol, but yesterday they brought in some real experts. Reps from the Ultimate Fighting Championship were in town to lobby state legislators to lift a ban on the sport. New York is currently the only state that bans the fights -- in large part it seems because George Pataki found them distasteful.
But the UFC people were ready this time with a bunch of killer rhetorical moves:
Housing market stable, pork off-limits, manhole cover mystery continues, dramas over water and hot dogs, warm weather beats Rats like a rented goalie
The median sale price for houses in the Capital Region rose in March compared to the same period last year. The number of sales was way down, though. [TU]
Even as the state goes looking through the couch cushions for extra cash, the money assigned to legislative member items -- you know, pork -- is still off limits. [TU]
National Grid still isn't sure what caused the manhole-cover-shooting underground explosion in Troy. [CapNews9]
A full-on political soap opera has emerged among Clifton Park Republicans over... the water board. [TU]
Speaking of melodrama... Saratoga Springs is watching one of it own. The center piece of this plot: hot dogs. [Saratogian]
The city of Schenectady says it can't afford a Big Brother, so one resident says he'll do it for free. [Daily Gazette]
Seniors riding scooters and their "accident-prone" behaviors have prompted Saratoga officials to get the word out about safer scootering. Among the tips: slow down, don't scooter while sleepy. [Daily Gazette]
In a face off with sunshine and warm weather, it seems the River Rats lose almost every time. [TU]
Siena vs. Vanderbilt fast break
Woof.
Here are few details and tidbits to get you up to speed before the Saints' NCAA tournament game tonight.
(Tip time is scheduled for 7:10 pm. CBS6 will have the game on TV.)
Does Siena have a chance Friday against Vandy?
Well, it depends on whom you ask. Are you a wisdom-of-the-crowds kind of person, or do you put your trust in the experts? Because there's some disagreement about the Saints' chances.
MAAC Tournament fast break
This weekend at the TU Center, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference -- that's Siena's conference -- is holding its tournament to decide who's headed to the NCAA basketball tournament. This is a huge event for mid-major teams like Siena because a spot in "The Dance" would be a career highlight for pretty much everyone involved with the team -- not to mention the publicity it earns for the school.
But, what? You haven't been following the MAAC regular season? Worry not. We'll get you in the game. So when you're co-worker says something like "How about Edwin Ubiles last night!" (that's Edwin to the right), you'll be able to grab the ball and take the conversation the other way. We got the scoop from our good friend Robert Lee, voice of the Siena Saints...
Freaking out at RPI: an interview with Puckman
Doesn't he ever get sick of being slapped around?
Tomorrow is RPI's 31st annual Big Red Freakout. So on the eve of the institute's biggest hockey game of the year, AOA got an exclusive interview with the RPI mascot, Puckman.
Rules of etiquette for RPI hockey
It's not that RPI hockey fans are very intense about their sport, it's just that RPI hockey fans are VERY intense about their sport. Engineers fans have lots of important rules and traditions for spectators.
You don't necessarily NEED to know all of those rules and traditions to enjoy an RPI hockey game, but if you don't, you may find yourself looking around going, "WTF?" So here's a primer on how to fit in at tomorrow's Big Red Freakout, or any RPI hockey game:
- Wear red
-During the national anthem, yell out the word RED (you know, at the rockets red glare part).
- No matter who's playing , Clarkson still sucks.
- When the phone rings in the press box yell "Phone!"
- When the other team is introduced yell, "You suck!" after every player is announced, and "You suck too!" after the coach is announced.
- When the other team gets penalties: interrupt by screaming "Sucking" and "Sucks" after they announce the players name: "Number 23 John Doe [SUCKS!], has received a 2 minute penalty for [SUCKING!]"
- If anyone asks, "Clarkson still sucks!"
- After every RPI goal be sure to chant, "1, 2, 3, 4, ... , (N) we want more! Sieve, Sieve, Sieve!" where (N) is the new RPI score. (This is an engineering school, of course there's an equation involved.)
- And when there's one minute left be sure and yell: "One minute left, and Clarkson still sucks!"
... said Amelia about local college rankings