elba

A huge third quarter run helped the Notre Dame girls basketball team take a 10-point advantage, which they held on to for a long time.

But there is never any quit in the Elba girls team.

The Lancers pressed their way to a comeback victory in the fourth quarter, stunning the host Fighting Irish 54-51.

Notre Dame had a 10-point advantage with 4 1/2 minutes left when Jill Marshall - an Elba transfer - scored a basket.

But the Lancers chipped away as Cassy Engle and Julie Webster hit consecutive baskets.

After Sarah Schwartzmeyer dropped in a pair of free throws, Notre Dame's lead was cut to 47-43.

It became even tighter when eighth-grader McKenzie Bezon drained a 3-pointer to get the Lancers within a point. Notre Dame traveled on the their next possession and Elba took the lead for good on a Julie Marshall two-pointer.

Webster followed with a put-back basket and a free throw and another foul shot.

Webster scored again, but the Fighting Irish were not about to quit at this point, in front of their home crowd.

Jill Marshall had a steal and a basket, then stole anouther inbounds pass with 12 seconds left on the clock.

She hit both free throws and Elba led 54-51.

Notre Dame's defense caused a turnover with 5.4 seconds remaining, but Nichole Hart chucked up a long 3-pointer that hit the back of the rim and bounced out, giving the Lancers the huge victory over their biggest rival.

Bezon's 3-pointer was one of the biggest baskets of the game, but she had a whole bunch of them. It's safe to say that without her game-high 18 points, Elba does not improve to 3-1.

Webster had 10 points and Schwartzmeyer added nine.

Notre Dame's Jill Marshall outscored her sister Julie 13-4, but her squad falls to 2-1 with the defeat.

Brittany Morelli led the Fighting Irish with 14 points with Liz Geandreau adding 10 points.

Stacy Hein hit four critical foul shots in the last two minutes and scored eight points to lead the Batavia girls basketball team to a 42-38 win over host Victor Friday, recovering from its first loss of the season earlier this week.

Brittany Wormley led the squad with 13 points and Brittany Mazurkiewicz followed with 11 points and seven assists.

Jaycee Shirk had six points and eight boards for the Blue Devils (5-1).

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 Anni Lehtola, the foreign exchange student from Finland, had another big game for Alexander, scoring 19 points to lead the Trojans to a 57-47 win over Pembroke.

Katie Kochmanski pitched in 11 points while Anna Dominick and Nicki Laird added eight points apiece.

Kelsey Lewis led the Dragons (2-2) with 14 points, seven rebounds and seven steals. Nicole Sharick scored a team-high 15 points.

Alexander is 3-1.

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Brynn Perfett was the leading scorer for Oakfield-Alabama with 11 points as the Hornets improved to 3-1 with a 46-28 win over Holley.

Dani Sage had seven points and 11 rebounds and Lindsay Chatt pitched in seven points.

Julie Brooks had 11 points for the Hawks (1-3).

 Andrew Hoy showed the maturity that a scoring leader needs to have, and Dakota Irvin continued his hot play as the Batavia boys basketball team came back from one of the biggest deficits the team has had in years to beat host Pittsford Mendon 51-50 Wednesday night.

"This is a group that had never really been behind like that, ever," Batavia coach Buddy Brasky said. "We were down 18 points and (assistant coach) Gene Cairo said that he's been with us for five years and he can't remember a game when we were down double figures before the half. To fall behind 18 points and believe we can win; that's why we are champions. We have the heart of champions."

Mendon had actually opened up a 28-10 lead in the first half before Hoy overcame a rough first half shooting the ball and hit a 3-pointer with less than 30 seconds left in the half to get Batavia to within 15.

Batavia only scored 13 points in the first half and went just 5-of-26 from the field. The Blue Devils only hit 3-of-18 3-point attempts.

"We knew we had to live or die by the jump shot and we were dying by it today," Brasky said. "We had wide open shots and couldn't knock them down. Our defense kept us in the game."

Hoy hit two 3-pointers early in the third quarter and Batavia wound up cutting the deficit to two points with four minutes left.

But Mendon opened it back up to a 10-point edge seconds later.

Brasky had went away from the full court press, but went back to it, and it paid off as Batavia had three straight turnovers that led to six points.

Irvin scored 13 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter and is a big reason why the Blue Devils won the game.

"He's been a pleasant surprise," Brasky said. "He had a good offseason. He was playing well in the fall, but I didn't know if he'd be a starter. He earned it in the scrimmages. For him to come up so big early in the season has been a pleasent surprise."

Jared Quinn recorded his first career double-double to lead Alexander to a 58-49 road win over Holley in a boys basketball game Tuesday night.

Quinn had 13 points and 10 boards to lead the Trojans, who improve to 2-2.

Kyle Woodruff connected on all 11 free throw attempts and scored 15 points, with Troy Shelnut adding 11.

Guy Hills had 16 points and Brian Mitchell added 10 for the Hawks (0-3).

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 The Elba boys basketball team had a rough start to its league schedule, getting thrashed by visiting Kendall 62-36.

Colt Tooley hit five 3-pointers in scoring a game-high 21 points and Josh Laureano helped out with 16 points.

Sonny Guiliano led the Lancers (1-2) with 14 points.

Kendall is 2-1.

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Notre Dame had an impressive first showing of the season, whipping visiting Lyndonville 92-36.

Kevin Francis scored 14 of his game-high 22 points in the opening frame as the Fighting Irish jumped out to a 24-2 lead. He also had six steals in the game.

Greg Barr had 12 points and 12 rebounds and Tommy Rapone added a dozen points. Vinny Zambito pitched in 11 points.

Andrew Hydock led the Tigers with 13 points.

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Noah Seward dropped in 15 points while pulling down 12 boards as Oakfield-Alabama easily downed Byron-Bergen 65-38.

Brad Riner pitched in five points and seven dimes while both A.J. Kehlenbeck and Sam McCracken had 10 points apiece.

Tyler Sass and Trevor Laurie had 11 points each while Bryan White added 11 boards for the Bees (1-1)

O-A is 3-0.

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Joe Drummond scored 25 points and Jamell Johnson added 22 as C.G. Finney blasted host Wheatland-Chili 90-39.

Alex Stryker had 13 points and Andy Lund pitched in 12 for the Wildcats.

Finney is 6-0. 

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The Batavia hockey team evened up at 2-2 with a 5-3 win over Geneva/Waterloo.

Will Mulcahy and Erik Pokornowski had a pair of goals each for the Blue Devils, with Corey Kocent pitching in a goal with an assist.

Pat Finnell handed out three assists with Tim Finnell helping out with a pair.

Rich Paganello made 14 saves in net.

Geneva/Waterloo falls to 2-3.

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Holley got pins from Dillon Murphy (135 pounds), Quinton Murphy (125), Derek Fostano (189) and Kyle Steadman (215) in beating Kendall 42-33 in a GR wrestling match Tuesday.

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Alexander downed Barker 47-29 on the mat Tuesday.

Dylan Shea pinned Garrett Fuerch in 3:41 at 152 pounds and Dustin Say dropped  James Lapp in 3:57 at 171.

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The Notre Dame girls basketball team opened up with a 51-32 victory over host Lyndonville Tuesday.

Trisha Pike led the Fighting Irish with 15 points, five rebounds and six steals.

Jill Marshall had nine points with Nichole Hart and Liz Geandreau pitching in eight apiece.

Molly Burgess had 11 points for the Tigers (1-2).

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Despite Jenna Merica's 15 points and Allison Macomber's 11 points and nine boards, Le Roy couldn't get past Dansville, losing to the visiting squad 53-36.

Margaret Infantino had 18 points, 11 rebounds and six dimes for the Mustangs (6-1).

Le Roy falls to 0-3.

From the Elba Historical Society:

The Historical Society of Elba has a Christmas window on display at the Pinehill Fitness Center on Main St. in Elba (across from the Post Office).  The Elba Throws (maroon or blue) have been reduced to $35.00 including tax.  Also available are the 1995 Town of Elba 175th Anniversary book on the History of Elba.  $10.00.

Another window is featuring ELBA FIRSTS.  Did you know that Elba had a Windmill Company that sold to people all over the United States? Did you know that Elba had the first Rural Mail Delivery in New York State?

Call Ann at 757-9356  or June at 757-2791 for more information.

 When the Elba basketball team walked off the court in the Section 5 Class DD semifinals last year, it was after an amazing 12-point comeback victory over rival Notre Dame. It was a huge upset.

The Lancers then lost to Fillmore 53-43 in the finals, but are hoping to carry over the momentum from that sectional run to this season.

Juniors Phil Ostroski and Sonny Guiliano were major factors in that run and both return to lead a physically strong Elba squad into the 2008-2009 season.

Ostroski was a huge player on the squad last season when he had to fill in for a team that had suspension issues early on, and he was a unique talent - a big body that could step outside and shoot the 3 at any time.

The 6-foot-1, 210-pound forward will be the go-to guy for the Lancers and could very well be one of the top scorers in the league this season.

Guiliano is going to run the point this season after seeing good minutes a year ago. He's also big, at 6-foot-1, 210 pounds, and has the ability to put the ball in the basket as well. He will mix scoring with a pass-first attitude (he nearly had a triple-double in Elba's 54-33 win over Barker in the season opener).

Both players have the ability to star each and every night out.

But that isn't all the Lancers bring to the table.

Forwards Max Torrey and Theo Tomczak and guard Adam Shuknecht all received quality playing time last season and will add depth to the squad.

Elba also has a couple of new editions that will help out.

Senior Cody Torpey did not play basketball last season, but returns to the court and brings a lot of speed to the squad. He isn't expected to do a lot of scoring, but will do the things that don't show up in the boxscore.

The other name to watch is sophomore Crosby Lamont, who is called up to the varsity squad because of his potential. He will come off the bench and provide a spark for coach Rick Pcionek.

Elba's record was just 13-11 last year, and the team lost stars Ian Woodworth, Rocco Zambito and Casey Hoover to graduation, but should be able to challenge some of the elite teams in the Genesee Region League this season because of a physical style of play that will frustrate teams that lack size.

 The Elba girls basketball team had an off year last season, losing seven games and only making it to the sectional semifinals.

But the Lancers beat rival Notre Dame to make those finals, and return a lot of players from that squad in addition to some new faces that make this one of the most athletic and deep Elba teams in years.

Seniors Katie Newton and Julie Webster and juniors Julie Marshall and Chelsie Pangrazio all have varsity experience and will all get plenty of playing time as coach Tom Nowak intends on pressing hard and playing everybody on the roster.

But possibly the two biggest names on Elba's roster heading into the season were not on the team last year.

Senior guard Sarah Schwartzmeyer was a star on varsity as a sophomore, with the ability to score, rebound, pass and play defense. But she took a year away from the game to work on her softball skills. She is one of the top pitchers in Section 5.

She returns and immediately steps into a leadership role. She will be relied upon to score and maintain the flow of the game.

The other different face is Missy Call.

Call is a junior this year, but got a ton of experience playing on the Oakfield-Alabama varsity team last season. She can shoot the ball, play defense and is a good distributor of the ball.

There are a few youngsters up on the varsity squad that will also make an impact. Sophomore guard Cassy Engle, freshman Meg Stucko and eighth-grader McKenzie Bezon should all provide sparks this season.

Both Notre Dame and Elba had off years last season, but both are back up this year, and the Dec. 16 and Feb 10 games are highly anticipated games on the GR schedule.

The Genesee Region League has some quality basketball, but typically stuggles in the sectional playoffs (with the exception of Notre Dame in Class D).

There is proof of that when you look at the results from last season, when Elba was the only team to make the finals where they lost to Fillmore 53-43.

Batavia also made the finals in Class A, playing in the Monroe County League during the season.

As teams have started practice this week, we are looking at a season in which the GR has the potential to make some noise down the road.

Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke are expected to be two of the favorites, but are going to have some tough teams to battle in the larger of the C classes, including East Rochester, Gananda, Avon and Cal-Mum.

Alexander and Kendall are improved programs that are going to look to surprise people during the regular season, but have to deal with Perry and Lyons (which is usually stronger in basketball than football) in the lower C bracket.

Elba and Notre Dame have a very memorable game in Class DD last year and are amongst the favorites again this year. But Genesee Valley and Arkport have had solid teams in the past.

There is obviously a long way to go and this should be a great year for GR boys hoops, but it is interesting to see how the classifications break down and imagine the league bringing home a couple of championships.

I haven't been getting results from Elba/Byron-Bergen's football squad since the Pool Play started, but I did find a story on the semifinals win over Bolivar-Richburg on Saturday.

Elba/B-B did lose in the finals, but had a successful run, winning three games in a row before this.

(Updated to fix my mistake)

 Barker (1-6) at Alexander (4-4)

2:30 p.m. Saturday

The Trojans are looking to end the year on a positive note. They lost to Canisteo-Greenwood in the opening round of the playoffs before beating Red Jacket 31-20 last weekend. Jay Schafer leads the squad with 779 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. The Raiders are led by Greg Brown.

Bolivar-Richburg (3-5) at Elba/Byron-Bergen (3-4)

1:30 p.m. Saturday

The Lancers won for the second consecutive week, beating Warsaw 19-12 in a Pool Play game. Zach Green has been putting up big numbers all year and they've gotten insane in recent weeks. He ran for 205 yards with three touchdowns last week.

The Elba/Byron-Bergen football won for the second consecutive time, downing Warsaw in a Pool Play game, 19-12.

The Lancers were down 12-0 midway through the third quarter but stormed back with two third quarter scores and another in the fourth.

Zack Green had another monster game with 26 carries for 205 yards and three TDS and Cody Torpey completed 2-of-2 pass attempts for 34 yards. He also made 10 tackles.

Brent Crawford had 14.

Warsaw falls to 0-8 while Elba/Byron-Bergen improves to 3-5.

 Holley (0-7) at Bolivar-Richburg (2-5)

1:30 p.m. Saturday

Guy Hills and his Holley football team are looking to get their first win of the season. It has been a long, difficult struggle but Pool Play is for building for the following year and that's exactly what coach Chad DeRock is looking to do.

Warsaw (0-7) at Elba/Byron-Bergen (2-4)

1:30 p.m. Saturday

The Lancers won a much needed game last week, dropping Section 6's Bishop Walsh 34-16. Zach Green continued to impress, gaining 255 yards with two touchdowns in the game. Elba/B-B is looking to build on that victory and get the returning players from Elba and Byron-Bergen confidence heading into the offseason.

Barker (1-6) at C.G. Finney (4-2)

1:30 p.m. Saturday

Barker nearly shocked top-seeded Clyde Savannah in Class DD last week, showing how good the Genesee Region League is, losing 7-6. Greg Brown and his teammates can be proud of that effort, but will be tested against Finney, which was upset by Perry last week in Class D.

Red Jacket (1-6) at Alexander (3-4)

1:30 p.m. Saturday

The junior-filled Trojans were thrilled after a 3-3 regular season and then disappointed after penalties killed them in a 28-14 loss to Canisteo-Greenwood last week in the opening round of the playoffs. The juniors just want to keep playing and getting better.

 Elba/Byron-Bergen (1-5) at Bishop Walsh (1-4).

7 p.m. Friday

Some games are close to a must-win, even if a team isn't going to make the playoffs.

This is one of them.

Elba/Byron-Bergen has that situation this weekend as Walsh is not a very good football team that could be the home underdog. The Eagles have only scored 66 points in five games, while giving up a whopping 187.

The Section 6 school is coming off a 43-12 beat-down at the hands of C.G. Finney last week and has only beaten Niagara Catholic this season in a 26-22 game. 

The Lancers need a win in this game to quiet some of the many critics that are not happy with the way the program is going.

Last week's 48-14 loss to Notre Dame was rough to look at on the field, but the reason isn't because of the skill of the players. The Elba/Byron-Bergen penalty count - including personal fouls - is out of control and the fans have grown impatient with the losing and penalties; and they are becoming very vocal.

When the team doesn't turn the ball over or shoot itself in the foot with the penalties, they are competitive.

Zach Green is one of the more talented athletes in the Genesee Region League and people will remember him as the biggest bright spot for this team, this year.

He gained the majority of Elba/Byron-Bergen's 129 rushing yards last week and can break off a big run at any time. Brandon Spurling also has that breakaway ability and will get his share of carries.

The Lancers had been starting Eric Kowalik at quarterback for most of the season, but switched back to Cody Torpey last week. It is unclear at this point as to which one will get the start or the bulk of the plays behind center this week.

The Byron-Bergen players have improved throughout the season and have now gained enough varsity experience to play with a team like Walsh. 

The Lancers are looking to win this game and try to turn some of the negative talk into positives heading into Pool Play.

 After some consideration, I've decided to bring the current situation in Elba to the sports tab of The Batavian. 

I was one that figured that football merger with Elba and Byron-Bergen was going to improve the situation, but at this point I don't see people in Elba giving this a fair chance.

This thread on Section 5 Talksback really brings up a lot of concerns, true or not.

I've been hearing about players taking cheap shots at other players since I was a kid watching football for the first time. But some of the accusations made in this thread are pretty serious.

A poster going by the handle of "The Truth" writes this very serious accusation in that thread:

YES. This is exactly what happened. Zambito scored twice and had a very nice game against his former team. On his first touchdown an elba player got flagged for a blatant late hit on him. All throughout the game it was pretty obvious they were gunning for him not only during play (which is fine) but after the whistle had blown (which is not). The announcers on the radio even brought up the point of elba going after Zambito in an unsportsmanlike way.

But I cant even place most of the blame on the players for this, the true reason is utterly disgusting. The ND chain gang on the elba bb sideline overheard elba's head coach offering $5 to whoever hurt Zambito and took him out of the game. I think that right there says enough about the class act elba has leading its program. DISGUSTING.

Remember that posters are anonymous, but if you get into reading that thread, your stomach is going to churn a little bit as everybody involved (players, coaches, parents, school administrators) have to hate that these kind of topics are not going away.

I was at the game on Saturday and I admit that the situation was pretty ugly on the field. When Gianni Zambito - a former Elba student - scored his first touchdown, there was a late hit and personal foul call issued.

I know that there were several occasions when near-fights were broken up on the field, and a lot of it brings back the ugliness of the Joe Zambito firing of three years ago.

At the start of the season, it looked as if the merger was great for both schools and all of the kids, but the negativity isn't going away. In fact, it isn't even slowing.

I like Elba/B-B coach Streb and I'm not going to believe some of the ugly rumors being floated out there until I hear something like that myself. In fact, I feel for the coach as he walked into an impossible situation that isn't getting any easier for him.

High school athletics is all about the kids, and somehow Elba/Byron-Bergen football has to get back to being about the kids on the field, playing a great game.

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