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Lauzze playing in MAC championship game tonight

By Brian Hillabush

Former Pembroke star offensive lineman  Chris Lauzze paid his dues and became a starter on the University at Buffalo football team this season. Now he's getting a chance to win a conference championship.

The 6-foot-2, 309-pound center was a backup center and starting long-snapper last season for the Bulls, but has moved into the starting lineup this year.

UB will be playing Ball State for the Mid American Conference championship game tonight. 

Lauzze's job will be to protect quarterback Drew Willy, who is a Unitas Golden Arm award nominee with 33 touchdowns and just five interceptions in his last 18 games played.

Coach Turner Gill has turned the Bulls into a winning program and has a shot to end Ball State's undefeated season tonight, and win the team's first MAC championship. UB is a two touchdown underdog.

Buffalo is 5-3 in the conference and 7-5 overall, while Ball State has gone 8-0 in conference and 12-0 overall. The two teams played during the regular season last year, with Ball State winning 49-14.

"We don't want to make it more than it is," Gill says on the UB Web site. "We will continue to do our thing. We've been exposed to any and every situation you can be exposed to as a football team."

Buffalo is bowl-eligible for the first time since the school started playing Division I football in 1999 and will probably be playing in the International Bowl in Toronto. UB had only won 10 games in seven years before Gill took over the program in 2006.

The game will be on ESPN2 at 8 p.m. tonight.

HS highlights for Wednesday

By Brian Hillabush

This year's Batavia wrestling team has the potential to be one of the best the school has ever had, and the season started off on a very positive note Wednesday.

The Blue Devils beat Victor 35-28 as Batavia had two pins and another tech fall win.

Ryan Darch had a huge pin fall victory at 160 pounds, beating Nick Payne in 1:40. Trey Henderson had the other Batavia pin as he dropped Dakota LaRue in 5:16 at 130 pounds.

Joe Muoio had the tech fall victory at 135 pounds, taking care of Matt Acquilano 17-0.

You can see the rest of the results here.

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After dropping its season opener, the Pembroke boys basketball team has gotten hot, winning the next two games.

The Dragons thumped visiting Holley Wednesday night 53-34 as Ken Babcock scored 14 points and pulled down 15 boards to lead the way.

Andrew Wright scored a game-high 16 points with Matt Phelps pitching in nine.

Holley lost its season opener and was led by Jeff Lutes, who scored 10 points. Brian Mitchell added nine. 

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No player scored in double figures for Attica as the Blue Devils lost a road game at Midlakes 54-34.

Brad Clark had nine points with Tate Westermeier and Craig Wolfley adding eight apiece.

Derek Reafsnyder had 15 points to pace Midlakes (1-0).

Attica falls to 1-2.

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A total of five Holley wrestlers pinned Alexander grapplers as the Hawks scored an easy 61-17 win.

Defending state champion Quenton Murphy led the way with a :58 pin over Brandon Toporczyk at 125 pounds.

Tim Banks, Dillon Murphy, Kyle Steadman and Sean Baylor had the other pins for the Hawks, who improve to 1-0 while the Trojans dip to 0-2.

 

HS highlights for Friday

By Brian Hillabush

The Batavia girls basketball team is already feeling the impact of hiring Bill Wade.

The Blue Devils were down 22-14 at halftime, but went on a 12-0 run in the third quarter and went on to beat Alexander 57-48 in the opening round of the Attica Tournament Friday.

Brittany Mazurkiewicz scored all 16 of her points in the second half and Jaycee Shirk pitched in 19 points with 10 rebounds, five steals and three blocks. Mazurkiewicz also dished out five dimes and had six steals.

Brittany Wormley and Kristen Klein added six points apiece for the Blue Devils (1-0), who will play Dansville in the finals.

Anna Dominick had 16 points to pace the Trojans (0-1), with Chelsea Turcer adding 11 points and Rachel Pettys finishing with 10.

The Mustangs (1-0) advance to play Batavia after thumping host Attica 55-25.

Ashley Amidon led the way with 17 points, with Margaret Infantino pitching in 14.

Jackie Algiers scored seven points to lead the Blue Devils (0-1).

The finals are at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.

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The Pembroke boys opened up with a non-leaguer against host Penn Yan and fell short, losing 57-54.

The Dragons got big games from stars Ken Babcock and Andrew Wright, but not much else. Wright had 23 points with seven boards and Babcock poured in 21 points with nine rebounds, but the only other players to score were Kyle Stocking (7 points) and Andy Gabbey (3).

James Wilson led Penn Yan (1-0) with 18 points and 13 boards.

Pembroke starts off 0-1.

Dragons only have seven on roster, but have talent

By Brian Hillabush

 When you look at the Pembroke bench, you are not going to see a lot of players wearing uniforms.

The Dragons only have seven players on the roster. But even with those low numbers, expect Pembroke to be one of the top teams in the Genesee Region League this season.

The reason is because of two returning GR all-stars, both big men. Ken Babcock and Andrew Wright combined for over 50 points in a game three times last season and will probably do it a bunch of times this year.

Babcock is 6-foot-5 and a rock in the paint. He scored 18 points and grabbed 12 rebounds per game last season.

Wright is listed as a 6-foot-2 guard/forward and is a natural scorer. He picked up 18 points, 10 rebounds, two steals and four dimes per game last season.

Those two are givens and will garner most of the attention of other squads this season.

The third scoring option is also a returner in guard Andy Gabbey. Gabbey is a solid shooter and does not take it to the hole much, but can hit the three as well as anybody in the league.

Matt Seward, Eric Leffel, Matt Phelps and sophomore Kyle Stocking are the other players that are on the roster, and will all see significant playing time.

Pembroke went 10-11 last year after losing in the Class B quarterfinals.

 

ND, Pembroke represent area well at Cross Country States

By Eric Geitner

The fantastic season of the Notre Dame Boys Cross Country Team wrapped up with a third place finish at the New York State Cross Country Championships at Sunken Meadow State Park in Long Island.  Beaver River was the winning team with 57 points and Barker squeaked ahead of ND by one point.  Junior Kevin Pawlak was the top Irish harrier, finishing in 18th place in 18:05.  Freshman Quin O'Connor, ND's #1 man, was injured on the first downhill of the race after the mile mark, but fought through the final two miles to finish in 24th place in 18:15 (it was discovered yesterday that he fractured his heel in the race.  He will be back on his feet in late December).  Senior Eric Shormann had another great race and finished 40th, with Seniors Matt Jackson 44th, and Taylor Alexander 55th.  Junior Nate Flumerfeldt came in 71st and Freshman Marshall Argenta was 109th. 

The Pembroke team ran to a seventh place finish with 156 points.  Newark Valley won a one point decision with 62.  Colin Bartholomew taking 24th place.  Matt Seward was 48th, Adam Mahaney 69th, Kyle Mauer 70th, Mark Riegel 91st, Ben Farley 103rd, and Ethan Burns 108th. 

Other area racers included:  Class C Girls: Kristina Martin of Holley placed 21st, Katie Piechowiak of Attica placed 60th.  Class D Girls:  Kim Mills of Oakfield placed 7th, Liz Valento of Pavilion placed 10th.  Class B Girls:  Angela Jarvela of Batavia finished in 23rd place.  Class C Boys:  Frank Johnson of Letchworth placed 14th, Jaked Krautweist of Leroy placed 34th and Jack Bennett of LeRoy placed 51st.  Class D Boys:  Kevin Grazioplene placed 8th, Justin Richardson of Pavilion placed 17th, and Craig Cicero of Perry finished 25th.

Congrats to all the Cross Country runners from the area on a great season!

 

Notre Dame, Pembroke moving on to State Championships

By Eric Geitner

The Cross Country Programs at Notre Dame and Pembroke are celebrating as both will be representing Section V in the Boys New York State Cross Country Championships at Sunken Meadow State Park in Long Island. 

The Pembroke Team won a close one over Greece-Odyssey and Leroy, who tied for second in the Class C race.  Pembroke and Odyssey have been back and forth all year, but Pembroke got it done on Saturday.  Colin Bartholomew of Pembroke took second in the race with Matt Seward behind in 5th place.  Odyssey made a surge taking 7th, 9th 10th and 11th place, but Pembroke got their next three runners in, Kyle Maurer 13th, Adam Mahaney, 15th and Ethan Burns 16th to seal the win for Pembroke. 

In the Class D race, Notre Dame won its third consecutive sectional title, and outdistanced Oakfield by 15 points in the merged D/DD resutls to earn the school's first ever Boys Cross Country Team representation at the State Meet.  Freshman Quin O'Connor battled Kevin Grazioplene of Oakfield the whole way, finally breaking away with 1/2 mile to go in the race to break the tape in first.  Notre Dame put their top five in the top ten of the Class D race to easily win the Class D title.  Kevin Pawlak placed 5th, Eric Shormann 7th, Matt Jackson 8th, and Taylor Alexander 10th.

The Genesee-Livingston Cross Country League won ever class that it represented and has many representative moving on to the State Meet.  Here is a rundown:

Boys Team Championships:  Class B -- HFL,  Class C -- Pembroke,  Class CC -- Bath-Haverling,  Class D -- Notre Dame,  Class DD -- Oakfield

Girls Team Championships:  Class B -- HFL,  Class C -- Byron Bergen,  Class CC -- Attica,  Class D -- Geneseo,  Class DD -- Oakfield

Along with the Pembroke and Notre Dame Boys Teams qualifing for the state meet, HFL Boys and Girls Team also qualified.  Many league individuals also qulaified for the State Meet.  The boys that will be representing Section V and the GR/LC League are:  Frank Johnson of Letchworth Jake Krautwuist and Jack Bennett of Leroy, Cohen Miles Rath of Wayland-Cohocton, Kevin Grazioplene of Oakfield, Ben Strickland of Geneseo, Craig Cicero of Perry, Justin Richardson of Pavilion,

The girls that will be representing Section V and the GR/LC League are:  Kristina Martin of Holley,  McKenzie Bennett of Dansville, Katie Piechowiak of Attica, Abby Decker of Wayland-Cohocton, Kim Mills of Oakfield, and Liz Valento of Pavilion.

 

Athoe's interception puts Hornets in finals

By Brian Hillabush

 

Josh Athoe wasn't even supposed to be on the field Saturday afternoon.

The Oakfield-Alabama junior suffered a horrific broken leg at the start of last baseball season and was told he wasn't going to play baseball last year, or football this year.

But midway through the season, he got cleared from the doctor and has been seeing quality time for the Hornets as both a fullback and defensive back.

That alone makes for a great story.

Add in the fact that his interception was the biggest play of the game in O-A's 14-0 win over Pembroke in the Section 5 Class C semifinal game at Aquinas High School, and you've got a blockbuster.

The game was everything you would expect from the Pembroke/Oakfield-Alabama rivalry as both squad's defenses were stingy and scoring opportunities were few and far between.

The Dragons had one realistic chance to put points on the board in the first quarter, but turned the ball over on downs at the O-A 26-yard line.

The Hornets started marching early in the second quarter, but Andrew Wright intercepted an A.J. Kehlenbeck pass at the Pembroke 7.

There was some controversy soon after that as Chris Williams seemed to pull down Pembroke quarterback David Kleckler in the end zone, but officials said Kleckler got the ball away first and ruled it an incomplete pass.

After a short punt, O-A had great field position and set up a 33-yard field goal attempt by Jon Fisher, who set the Section 5 single game record for PATs in last week's 63-34 victory over Dansville. Fisher's kick missed its target and there was still no score.

After Kleckler ripped off a 22-yard run, the Dragons were in business with very little time left before the break. Kleckler tossed one up towards the end zone, but Tim Smith pulled it down for the Hornets with just five seconds left in the half.

Pembroke received the second half kickoff and immediately began moving the ball down the field as Kleckler and Wright hooked up on a 20-yard pass.

But that drive came to a quick stop and wound up giving Oakfield-Alabama its first score of the game.

Kleckler tossed up a pass for Ken Babcock that Athoe snagged and returned about 60 yards for the TD. The extra point failed and O-A led 6-0.

There were three straight possessions without a first down before the third quarter ended.

The Hornets started a drive near the end of the frame and carried a five minute long drive into the fourth quarter before being faced with a fourth down. Fisher had an amazing put that rolled out of bounds at the Pembroke 1-yard line, giving the Dragons nearly impossible field position.

Kleckler found Babcock on a 10-yard pass and then ran for 11 yards, but Smith broke up a pass intended for Babcock on a fourth-and-4 at the Pembroke 29, with about four minutes left.

The Hornets marched down the short field, taking time off the clock, and wound up drawing Pembroke offsides on a fourth-and-2 inside the 5. 

Smith scored on a 1-yard run a few plays later, then ran in the two-point conversion for the final tally.

Pembroke falls to 7-2, with both losses coming at the hands of rival Oakfield-Alabama.

The Hornets are a perfect 9-0 and will be playing top-seeded Le Roy (9-0) in the finals next Friday night at PAETEC Park. 

 

Le Roy overcomes turnovers, moves on to finals

By Brian Hillabush

 The Le Roy football team turned the ball over five times, missed two field goals and nearly gave up a 21-0 lead, but managed to hold on and beat Letchworth 21-14 in the Section 5 Class C semifinals Saturday at Aquinas High School.

Andrew Alexander was a big reason why, rushing for 336 yards and two touchdowns on 32 carries.

The Oatkan Knights were dominant early with a high-powered rushing attack, but wound up seeing it turn into a game in the second half.

Le Roy marched right down the field and Andrew Alexander had his first touchdown of the game 3 minutes in on a 7-yard run.

After the Indians went three-and-out, Alexander broke off a 30-yard run and eventually scored on a 10-yard rush.

Le Roy had a 14-0 advantage after the opening period of play as Alexander picked up 139 on the ground in the first 12 minutes.

The game appeared to start becoming a blowout in the second quarter when Travis Fenstermaker scored on a 13-yard run. 

Alexander had an interception right before the half and the Oatkan Knights had a 21-0 lead.

The Oatkan Knights fumbled the ball away at the start of the second quarter, but Mike Humphrey saved a score when he picked off a pass.

Le Roy turned the ball over again when freshman Chris Nevinger caught a tipped pass and returned it 20 yards for a TD.
 

The Oatkan Knights coughed the ball up again, with the Indians recovering the ball. Quarterback Travis Tones scored a little bit later on a 1-yard TD run.

Le Roy had a shot to score early in the fourth quarter, but missed a second field goal attempt.

Letchworth failed to drive on its first series of the final frame, but forced Le Roy into a three-and-out.

Letchworth moved the ball into Le Roy territory and came up just short on a third down attempt, setting up a fourth-and-1. Nevinger took the handoff and was stopped inches short, allowing the Oatkan Knights to run out the clock and move on to the finals next week at PAETEC Park.

Tones finished with 103 yards rushing to lead the Indians.

Letchworth falls to 5-3 while Le Roy improves to 9-0.

 

Football fun day

By Brian Hillabush

 Today is the big day.

Notre Dame is playing Dundee at PAETEC Park at Noon in the Class D finals while Le Roy plays Letchworth and Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke do battle in Class C semifinal action at Aquinas High School.

Keep checking in to The Batavian today for results, photos and video from these games.

Class C, semifinals: Pembroke vs. Oakfield-Alabama

By Brian Hillabush

 Pembroke (7-1) vs. Oakfield-Alabama (8-0)

4 p.m. Saturday, at Aquinas

Here we go again.

Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke is the best Genesee Region League rivalry and the buildup for the regular season game was huge, the game was even better than could be imagined and now the two powerhouse squads are matching up in the Section 5 Class C semifinals.

Tim Smith scored a late touchdown and Brad Riner ran in a two-point conversion as the Hornets won the regular season contest 25-24 in Week 6, giving fans the best show in the rivalry game's history.

O-A went on to beat Holley in the final week of the regular season and won the league title outright, going undefeated for the first time since 1986. Pembroke beat Attica in the final week of the season and finished one point away from the title and a perfect season.

The Hornets thumped Dansville 63-34 in the opening round of the playoffs and the Dragons had a big second half to beat Bishop Kearney 32-12. Now the scene shifts to Rochester, as the game will be played on the turf at Aquinas High School.

Smith and Riner were the stars in the first game and will be the focal point of the O-A offense yet again as the two GR all-stars are having monster seasons.

Smith has 112 rushing attempts for 971 yards and 15 touchdowns while Riner has tallied 817 yards and 12 scores on 108 rushes. Joe Natalizia, Jason Stanley and Josh Athoe will also see the ball.

The Hornets didn't have to throw the ball much in the regular season game, but if Pembroke is successful in stuffing the run, look for A.J. Kehlenbeck to put the ball in the air. The quarterback has a great arm but has had not had to use it much this year because of O-A's run-first approach.

Kehlenbeck has thrown to seven different receivers while completing 18-of-41 attempts for 271 yards and six touchdowns.

Some people might give Pembroke's offense the advantage because of the playing surface with speedster Andrew Wright and cutting-runner Mike Dibble.

Wright can do it all and has excelled on special teams, running the ball and catching it. He is looking forward to running on turf and adding to his 896 rushing yards with 10 touchdowns and 340-plus receiving yards with three scores.

Dibble is over 800 yards rushing with 10 touchdowns.

Quarterback David Kleckler and tight end Ken Babcock are a great passing duo, with Kleckler completing 33-of-62 attempts for 733 yards and 11 scores.

The Dragons are dealing with some injury issues, most notably starting center Josh Hanel, who is out for the game. O-A has some minor injury issues, but comes in mostly healthy.

Oakfield-Alabama is ranked eighth in the state while Pembroke comes in at No. 17.

 

 

5 local teams still alive

By Brian Hillabush

 I'll be visiting the five teams that are still playing in the Section 5 playoffs this week, doing video previews as well as my written ones. They will all be on The Batavian on Thursday to help fans get ready for the games.

Notre Dame will be playing Dundee on Saturday at  noon at PAETEC Park in the Class D finals.

Le Roy will play Letchworth at 1 p.m. with Pembroke vs. Oakfield-Alabama to follow at Aquinas in the Class C semifinals on Saturday.

Then Attica will play Bath at 6 p.m. Sunday at PAETEC in a Class B semifinal game.

I attended two practices today and will visit the other three teams on Wednesday and Thursday. You will get the most in-depth previews for local teams as we go deeper into the playoffs here at The Batavian.

I will also be covering games this weekend as well as doing a radio preview and guest appearance during the game on WVIN for the Attica/Bath game on Sunday. You will be able to hear the broadcast locally at www.localsportsedge.com. 

WBTA will also be broadcasting local games this weekend. The Notre Dame/Dundee game can be heard on 1490 AM or at www.wbta1490.com, and then at the conclusion of that game, Le Roy/Letchworth will be picked up. WBTA will stay on the air to cover the Oakfield-Alabama/Pembroke contest.

You will be able to see video highlights, a game story and photos of each game as soon as possible on The Batavian as well.

 

GR gets four Players of the Week

By Brian Hillabush

 With four teams still alive in the Section 5 playoffs, the Genesee Region League is having a heck of a postseason.

That was shown this week as four league players earned Player of the Week honors.

Notre Dame thumped Perry 56-0 in the Class D semifinals and got both the offensive and defensive POY.

Running back Mike Pratt rushed the ball nine times for 109 yards and three touchdowns and gets the offensive honor. Pratt is a 5-foot-9, 180-pound sophomore that led the Fighting Irish as the team rushed for 259 yards in the contest.

6-foot-1, 225-pound senior linebacker Craig Houseknecht had a sack on the opening Perry possession and finished the game with six solo tackles, six assists, the sack, a forced fumble and 1 1/2 tackles for losses of 26 yards to earn the defensive honor.

Pembroke beat Bishop Kearney 32-12 and 6-foot-5, 220-pound defensive end Ken Babcock was named the defensive POY. He had eight solo tackles, seven assists and knocked down a pass in the victory. Babcock also caught a touchdown pass in the win.

Attica's Dave Jennings was key in a historic 18-0 victory over East Rochester/Gananda this past weekend.

The 5-foot-10, 205-pound linebacker had nine tackles, a sack and an interception in the victory as the Blue Devils won a sectional football game for the second time ever.

Attica will be playing Bath in a semifinal game on Sunday while Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke play each other in the semifinals on Saturday. Notre Dame gets to try to avenge last season's loss to Dundee in the finals on Saturday as well.

Snub alert: Oakfield-Alabama's Tim Smith rushed for 196 yards, had 331 all-purpose yards and scored six touchdowns in a 63-34 win over Dansville in a Class C game. How did he not get recognized?

 

Pembroke VS Oakfield-Alabama

By Sam Martino

The Pembroke Dragons are just waiting eagerly for the rematch with O-A.  They are pumped and ready to roll from the get-go.  It's going to be a nail grinder, but Pembroke has the where-with-all to pull this one off.  There are no surprises from O-A this time - the Dragons are ready to win!

Dragons win and get another shot at Oakfield-Alabama

By Brian Hillabush

 Sloppy playing conditions held Pembroke down early, but the Dragons got rolling late in the game and topped Bishop Kearney 32-12 Saturday.

The win sets up a semifinal game against league-rival Oakfield-Alabama at Aquinas next Saturday.

"It was a great game the first time around and I'm glad both teams won and we get to play again," said Pembroke coach Chip Foster. "We are going to be playing on a great turf surface; it's going to be a great game."

Andrew Wright and David Kleckler both had huge games, with Wright rushing the ball 20 times for 122 yards and three touchdowns and Kleckler rushing six times for 77 yards and a score. He also completed 3-of-6 pass attempts for 82 yards and a TD.

Kearny took the lead in the second quarter when Quentin Gause picked up a fumble and took it 38 yards into the end zone.

Late in the second quarter, Pembroke took the lead when Wright broke a 48-yard touchdown run on a fourth-and-2 and Matt Phelps hit the extra point.

Kearney took a third quarter lead when Jake Meek hooked up with Blaine Roberts on a 46-yard touchdown pass, but that was it for the Kings scoring.

Wright scored the game-winning points on a 66-yard touchdown run later in the third.

Kleckler hooked up with Ken Babcock on a 23-yard TD pass, Wright had a 1-yard touchdown run and Kleckler scored on a 53-yard keeper late in the game for the final score.

Kearney drops to 4-4 while the third-seeded Dragons improve to 7-1 and will be playing No. 2 O-A in the semifinals.

Class C, first round: Bishop Kearney at Pembroke

By Brian Hillabush

 Bishop Kearney (4-3) at Pembroke (6-1)

1:30 p.m. Saturday

Pembroke got a pretty tough draw in the opening round.

Kearney had the same record last year and played at Oakfield-Alabama, pulling off the upset. 

Coach Chip Foster and his Dragons will be preparing for this game like it is the sectional finals, especially knowing the heartbreak of getting knocked out of sectionals in the semifinals and finals of the last two years; with both losses coming to Le Roy.

Kearney is a dangerous team.

There are rumors that the team is dealing with several injuries, including star running back Justin Forte. Forte has 717 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns and could play, even if he's not at 100-percent.

If he doesn't play, the Kings don't have another running back that has had even 10 carries.

So if Forte is banged up, all of the pressure goes on quarterback Jake Meek and the receiving corps. Meet completed 40-of-75 pass attempts this season for 1,002 yards, 10 touchdowns and four interceptions.

His top receiving option is Blair Roberts, who has caught 16 passes for 542 yards and six TDs. Jerome Lewis, Quentin Gause and Mike Robinson are all over 100 yards receiving this season.

Pembroke will look to take an early lead, so there are no worries late in the game.

That is a likely possibility as an explosive offense can so a lot of different things well, all starting at the quarterback position.

David Kleckler is the GR's all-star QB after completing 30-of-56 pass attempts for 651 yards, with 10 touchdowns. He can make passes to Andrew Wright coming out of the backfield or lined up as a wide receiver or can find tight end Ken Babcock down the field.

Wright has caught 13 passes for 340 yards and three touchdowns while Babcock has hauled in 15 passes for 279 yards and five touchdowns.

The run game is also solid with Mike Dibble being the guy that is expected to eat up yardage. The unselfish back has rushed for 522 yards with eight touchdowns and is the quiet player on the field that does all the hard work without the glory.

Wright is the other back and he gets a lot of attention no matter where he is on the field. He has ran the ball for 774 yards and 10 touchdowns and has the ability to break a big play anytime he touches the ball.

Pembroke - ranked 17th in the state - is fairly healthy, but suffered a big blow with OL/DL Josh Hanel getting banged up. With him out of the game, the Dragons couldn't even attempt extra points last week and the squad has probably looked to find a long-snapper to replace him.

A victory could mean another shot at Oakfield-Alabama, which handed the Dragons their only loss of the regular season, 25-24.

Class C, first round: S. Seneca/Romulus at Le Roy

By Brian Hillabush

 South Seneca/Romulus (3-3) at Le Roy (7-0)

7:30 p.m. Friday

The Oatkan Knights are starting the march towards sectional championship No. 14 and have all the tools to get it done.

Le Roy is the top-seed in Class C, ranked third in the state in Class C and have had very little  trouble compiling an undefeated record in the regular season, capturing the Livingston Conference Division II title.

Coach Brian Moran has built another powerhouse in a year many area fans thought Le Roy was going to be down, due the graduation of some great players.

Not the case.

The Oatkan Knights have had a spectacular offense, scoring an impressive 257 points. And the defense has been pretty solid as well, only giving up 103 points.

Travis Fenstermaker earned Offensive Player of the Week for Class C last week after a huge 223-yard, four touchdown performance in a win over Hornell last week. He's had a great year passing the ball and will also serves as a runner as well.

When he's throwing the ball, most of the time it is going in the direction of Mike Humphrey, who has proven to be one of the best in all of Section 5 this season. He has 502 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns.

Le Roy also has a running game because that is usually the way to win a championship. Andrew Alexander is as good as anybody and many times gets overshadowed by the flashy quarterback and receiver duo. But he's for real.

Alexander has 952 yards rushing with nine touchdowns.

South Seneca/Romulus was the fourth best team in a pretty weak Finger Lakes West this year and has been outscored 176-135.

The town of Le Roy would be in shock - and probably shut down - if the Oatkan Knights lose this game. The sectional championship game and state aspirations are deserved by these kids and Le Roy will be in what is expected to be an epic final as a home team on a foreign turf.

(photo borrowed from www.leroyfootball.com)

Area teams getting some state rankings

By Brian Hillabush

I am getting a jump on my previews for tomorrow and just saw something that made me crack a little smile.

 The newest version of the New York State Sportswriters Association state rankings came out today and our area teams are doing very well.

Le Roy moved up from fourth to third in Class C after demolishing Hornell last week and Oakfield-Alabama made the jump from No. 10 to No. 8.

Pembroke had not been ranked all season long and was getting an honorable mention before losing to O-A in Week 6, but fell off the board after that. The Dragons are making their first appearance on the official top 20 list at No. 17 this week.

Notre Dame received its first honorable mention this week in Class D after thumping DeSales last week.

It is nice to see the state is giving props to teams from our area. Now hopefully our local teams can prove them right.

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