Hobday Comes Up Big In Athens' 61-50 Win Over Troy
By: Tim Birney / January 9, 2026
ATHENS - Senior Eli Hobday hit some key jumpers to help Athens build its lead, then made five straight free throws down the stretch to lead Athens to a 61-50 win over Troy here Thursday night in NTL Large School Division boys basketball action.
"I'm proud of Eli Hobday," said Athens coach Jim Lister. "He shot the ball very well tonight and hit some big-time free throws at the end of the game to get us the win. It was a prime example of a senior stepping up for his team," added Lister. "I love it."
Six different Wildcats put their names in the scoring column in the first quarter, including Hobday, who knocked down his first 3-pointer of the game, to help Athens to a 14-13 lead.
Read more about Eli's big game on Valley Sports Report.
About the Author
Tim Birney
Tim Birney is the founder / owner of River Road Media Group. He was born and raised in the Valley, graduating from Waverly High School in 1984.
Birney earned an Associate's Degree in Journalism from SUNY Morrisville in 1986 and a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism / Public Relations from Utica College of Syracuse University in 1988. He began his newspaper career at The Daily Review in Towanda in 1989, before moving on to The Evening Times in 1995. He spent more than 10 years at the Times, the last four as Managing Editor.
River Road Media Group includes five sites in "The Sports Reports" family that cover 24 school districts in five counties: Valley Sports Report (launched Aug. 10, 2009), Tioga County (NY) Sports Report (Aug. 13, 2018), and Northern Tier Sports Report (Aug. 31, 2020); Northern Tier West Sports Report (March 15, 2021) Southern Tier Sports Report (Aug. 16, 2021).
