Leading off today: Nine banned players from St. Francis Prep's girls basketball team are being given a fresh start but their parents remain personae non grata, The Daily News reported today.

   Brother Leonard Conway, the school's principal, restored the girls' athletic eligibility in a letter he sent to their parents on Wednesday, AD Sal Fischetti said. The players will be able to play any sport, but their parents won't be able to watch them: Conway has banned them from attending home and away basketball games because of a boycott they organized last season.

   "In meeting with the parents, many of them told Brother Conway that they were responsible, not their daughters," Fischetti said. "It was, 'Don't punish our daughters, please punish us.'"

   Conway had suspended the five juniors and four sophomores after their parents refused to let them board a bus for a CHSAA league game against Christ The King on Feb. 10. The parents were upset with coach JoAnn Wagner and had asked for her removal in late January.

   Now that's a lead: Bowling ain't my bag, so I rarely if ever read stories about the sport. However, the Observer-Dispatch's Jordan Rogowski came up with an irresistible lead in a story about the retirement of a long-time coach:

   "The funny thing about bowling shoes is nobody ever really stops to think about who filled those shoes before they did.

   "Most bowlers pay for their shoes, slip them on and bowl their games. That certainly will not be the case at Vernon-Verona-Sherrill when the CAC clubhouse starts to fill with high school bowlers this November. That’s

because Bill Boyd has stepped down after 25 successful years helping his boys teams negotiate the lanes."

   Boyd leaves while on a hot streak: His teams have won five straight Section 3 championships.

   "It’s a lifetime sport,” said Boyd of bowling. “I really enjoy seeing some of my former bowlers still participating in the sport. That’s what really pleases me."

   More football stars: Eighteen Long Island players are among the selections on the annual New York State High School Football Coaches Association Golden 50 Team announced recently. Among the 10 Section 8 and eight Section 11 honorees are six Hofstra recruits, including Gatorade New York player of the year Miguel Maysonet of Riverhead.

   Extra points: Lansingburgh's track and field season is all of two meets old, but junior Terrance Kemp has already unfurled an attention-getting effort. Kemp won the long jump in a triangular against Mechanicville and Voorheesville with an effort of 23 feet.

   The Ithaca school district appears to be taking its girls ice hockey program off the chopping block. In addition, the district has put a $27,000 value on savings stemming from the NYSPHSAA's decision earlier this year to shorten the regular season for most New York sports and teams.

   USA Today did a nice look this week at the George Washington baseball team, a traditionally strong program that's off to an 18-0 start this spring on the heels of a 46-2 showing a year ago. Manny Ramirez and Milwaukee Brewers catcher Angel Salome are among the more notable alums of GWHS.

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