It’s not official yet, but it sure looks like Section 1 schools are about to undergo a massive league realignment.

And you thought sports was a refuge from the perils of the new economy.

It seems this recession has gotten its tentacles into high school sports as well, prompting a drastic response from Section 1 schools. Starting in the fall, the leagues for most sports are expected to be completely reconfigured. Geography, not school size or team competitiveness, will be the overriding factor. That means you could be seeing current Class C programs like Haldane in a league with Class AA programs like Ossining, because they’re both on Route 9.

While the teams will still split into their proper classes for playoffs, get ready to see a lot more blowouts than before. Especially in sports like hockey and lacrosse, where power leagues have kept games close until now. Now you’ll be seeing developmental teams getting murdered twice a year by elite teams.

I’m sure no AD is crazy about the idea, but economic realities make it necessary. Budgets have to be cut. Gas and other travel expenses cost thousands of dollars a season. The new alignment will greatly reduce travel time and distance.

Read Harold Gutmann’s story for all the details.

Westchester already has a strong presence at Johns Hopkins, one of the top Division III baseball programs (and overall universities) in the country. That presence just got stronger, as John Jay senior Lou Ricci has been accepted at the school and will join the program next year.

Ricci, a pitcher/first baseman/outfielder, received some Division I interest but preferred to play further south because of the weather. That, combined with the strong academics at one of the best schools on the East Coast, made Johns Hopkins a perfect fit.

Ricci is an AP/honors student with an A average who plays three sports (baseball, football and hockey).  He missed the end of the football season to have his knee scoped, a procedure to repair torn cartilage that hindered him at the end of the baseball season last spring.

Hopkins advanced to the D-III national championship game last season but lost in the bottom of the ninth inning to Trinity College. The year before head coach Bob Babb led his team from behind to win the Centennial Conference championship.

Two members of the Blue Jays’ pitching staff last season were LoHud products Ryan Kealy (Ardsley) and Greg Gotimer (John Jay). They both were seniors, but this coming season Hopkins will add Pelham’s Matt Volpe and Zach Small.