Prep school issued postseason ban for all sports over violation of practice rule

Preseason scrimmage by the school's varsity baseball team earns high school playoff ban in all sports in 2025-26

Baseball Net / © Todd Shanesy / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

A prep school in New York State is facing a postseason ban for all its varsity sports following a committee vote.

La Salle Institute, located in Troy near the Albany area, was issued a ban from the Section II playoffs through the entire 2025-26 high school sports season, reported News10 ABC.

The Section II executive committee on May 15 voted 20-1 in favor of accepting the resolution directed to the Cadets after the school's varsity baseball team violated a New York State Public High School Athletic Association rule in the handbook.

According to reports, La Salle’s baseball squad violated a 10-practice rule when they participated in a March 22 scrimmage against Delaware Military Academy during a preseason trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

The Cadets’ baseball team, currently ranked sixth in the New York State Sportswriters Association’s Class A poll, is 15-3 so far this season. La Salle is scheduled to face Ichabod Crane on Monday.

The NYSPHSAA executive committee recently voted to cut the requirement to six practices, but that ruling won’t go into effect until 2026.

Doug Gejay, Section II’s executive director, provided a statement in regard to the committee’s ruling:

“The Section II athletic council has formally approved the penalty recommended by the Section II executive committee following a confirmed violation by La Salle Institute of a New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) regulation concerning minimum practice requirements for interscholastic athletics.

“The executive committee determined that La Salle Institute’s varsity baseball team participated in a scrimmage on March 22, 2025, after completing only five practices. NYSPHSAA regulations require 10 practices before a team is eligible to represent its school in a scrimmage or contest. Based on this finding, the committee concluded that a violation occurred and recommended a penalty consistent with NYSPHSAA procedures, Section II protocol and the terms of the probationary agreement.”

La Salle’s baseball team can compete in sectionals for the 2024-25 season but without coach Ryan Ruddy at the helm.

The ban festered from La Salle’s seventh documented violation since 2014, and fifth since Fall 2022. The school will remain on probation through Oct. 20, 2027.

A report noted that the Cadets football team was banned from sectionals in 2023 due to an ineligible player. In 2022 and 2023, the girls soccer team received postseason bans from ineligibility rulings identical to the football program’s violation.

The school will appeal the ruling. Kevin Calacone, president of La Salle Institute, submitted a statement to News10 ABC:

“La Salle Institute will appeal a ruling and potentially take legal action to overturn a May 15, 2025 ruling that claims its baseball team violated a NYSPHSAA regulation. We believe the ruling is distinctly unfair and without merit.  

“La Salle has been accused of violating a New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) rule that requires a certain number of practices prior to participating in a scrimmage. La Salle does not believe that its baseball program violated any regulations governing this situation during a March 2025 trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C. 

“Section II’s executive committee has proposed a biased punishment that will impact over 290 student-athletes. That decision was upheld by the Section II Athletic Council on May 15, 2025.

“We contend the regulation’s wording was vague and open to interpretation. Indeed, the NYSPHSAA handbook was changed this week with updated language that specifically addressed our issue. La Salle Institute fully supports its athletes and looks forward to a just resolution of this matter.”

According to reports, Calacone also stated NYSPHSAA’s handbook notes that a scrimmage is considered a practice.

Download the SBLive App

To get live updates on your phone — as well as follow your favorite teams and top games — you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App | Download Android App