Sports

 Perry (4-3) vs. Notre Dame (5-2)

3 p.m. Saturday, at East Rochester

Surprise, surprise. 

While everybody was looking forward to seeing post season rivals Notre Dame and C.G. Finney playing each other in the semifinals, Perry knocked off Finney and gets a crack at the Fighting Irish.

The Yellowjackets knocked off Finney 32-22 in the first round and are now playing the Cinderella role in this playoff.

James Devitt rushed the ball 19 times in that game for 124 yards and Zane Hendrickson pitched in 70 yards as Perry seems to be playing its best football of the season. The Yellowjackets started off 0-2 and have won 4-of-5 games since.

Notre Dame is playing some real solid football right now and is coming off a 55-6 conquering of DeSales. The Fighting Irish rushed for 313 yards in the game and were led by Kevin Schildwaster's 12 carries for 131 yards.

Schildwaster keeps getting better every week it seems and now has 617 yards and eight touchdowns. He's assisted in the backfield by Mike Pratt, who has 506 yards on the ground.

Notre Dame has been involved in a pair of blowouts over the last two weekends and have gotten a lot of experience for other runners, like Greg Barr, Beau Richter, Gianni Zambito and Jon Corona.

But ND might go away from the run a little bit in this game because the East Rochester field has turf.

Nick Bochicchio has proven to be one of the top quarterbacks in the league and has the ultimate weapon on his side in receiver Kevin Francis. He's probably the fastest player in the Genesee Region League and if Bochicchio can get him the ball in space; he's gone.

Francis returned a punt for a touchdown last week and caught 27 passes for 337 yards and five TDs during the regular season. He added a touchdown reception in the playoff opener.

Notre Dame received an honorable mention in the state rankings this week and would advance to the finals next weekend against the winner of the Dundee/Geneseo game with a victory.

 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.

 Dansville (3-4) at Oakfield-Alabama (7-0)

7 p.m. Friday

The Hornets were the best of the best in the Genesee Region League this season and are looking to win the first sectional title since 2006, after getting knocked out early because - well, many reasons last season.

Quarterback Tim Smith quit in the middle of last season, injuries decimated the roster and Bishop Kearney was a darn good football team.

But O-A is back on track this season, with Smith being one of nine all-stars on the roster. He's rushed for 771 yards and 11 touchdowns as the Hornets have ran for over 2,200 yards.

Coach of the Year John Dowd's offensive philosophy is to run the ball, take time off the clock and get points after long drives. This year's squad does that very well.

Fullback Brad Riner has picked up 639 yards and scored 10 times while Jason Stanley (309 yards), Joe Natalizia (270) and Josh Athoe (137) also get attempts.

Expect quarterback A.J. Kehlenbeck to get some passes off in this game as the Hornets prepare for down the road.

But this is not a no-brainer. Oakfield-Alabama - ranked eighth in the state - will be tested in the first round against a solid Dansville squad, that has had to play Hornell, Bath, Honeoye Falls-Lima and Livonia this season.

The Mustangs have a diverse offense and can attack with both a running and passing attack. 

Quarterback Garrett Hoag has experience and spreads the ball around. Hoag has completed 89-of-180 attempts for 1,361 yards with 11 touchdowns and five interceptions. 

Matt Schuster has caught 30 of those passes for 520 yards with five touchdowns, while Jordan Van Dunk and Colton Green have each hauled in 23 passes. Brandon Doyle has 13 catches.

Schuster is also the top rusher on the team, gaining 461 yards with five touchdowns on 40 carries.

Caleb Perry has 284 yards with four scores and Doyle has pitched in 227 yards.

Assuming the second-seeded Hornets get past the seventh-seeded Mustangs, there is the possibility O-A will play Pembroke again. The Hornets beat the Dragons by just one point in Week 6.

 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)

 Attica (4-3) at East Rochester/Gananda (6-1)

7 p.m. Friday

The Blue Devils simply haven't had any success in the playoffs in any of the "big three" sports, ever.

This year's squad is looking to throw that trend to the curb and make a run. As a sixth-seed, they earn a game with No. 3 East Rochester/Gananda and the team is prepared,  having played very well this season against a strong Genesee Region League.

While the Blue Devils have lost three games, this is a strong Attica team with as much potential as any in recent years.

GR all-star running back Andy Ruddock is the key.

The senior has had a tremendous season so far, and will need to slow down the pace of the game as ER/Gananda is the fourth ranked team in the state and has a high powered passing attack.

Rudy carried the ball 104 times during the regular season for 936 yards and 10 touchdowns. Attica cannot get into a shootout with the Bombers.

Neil Dotterer is simply awesome.

The gun-slinger is one of the best quarterbacks Section 5 has ever seen and he torched Batavia in Week 6, throwing for 253 yards and four touchdowns.

Attica has seen some solid passing teams in Pembroke and Notre Dame, but nothing like this. Dotterer does not have that one favorite receiver and likes to spread the ball around.

Linebacker Kevin Gallinger - also a GR all-star - leads the defense with 24 solo tackles and 30 assists and will have to make sure his teammates are in the right place on the field and execute coach Jeff Cusmano's gameplan to perfection. 

While the Attica defense will have to focus on Dotterer, the offense will try to get Ruddock going. The Bombers have held opposing offenses to 45 points this season so long drives are going to have to result in points.

Quarterback Brandon Rollins and receiver Shawn Dupuis will have to make plays if Ruddock gets stopped.

An interesting side-note to this game is that these two teams were both knocked out in the first round of sectionals last season and tried to schedule a Pool Play game. For some reason, which was never made public, this game never wound up happening.

 Batavia (3-4) at Geneva (6-1)

7 p.m. Friday

Those Batavia football players that didn't believe they had a chance to beat Geneva before last week's regular season finale, now are believing the upset is possible.

It may sound funny, but that is because of the second half effort of a 40-12 loss. Now the eighth-seeded Batavia squad will try to upset the top-seed.

The Blue Devils found something in the Panther defense that coach Dan Geiger believes they can exploit. Geneva is a powerhouse and is ranked No. 3 in the state in Class B.

But it was clear after the homecoming loss last Friday, Batavia's players believe a victory is possible.

Oh yeah, a healthy Rob Williams will help.

Williams injured his hip in Week 6 and was initially not expected to play last week, but saw very limited action in the first Geneva game. And he didn't do much.

But he's close to 100-percent and will make a big difference rushing the football, returning kicks and covering the super-athletic Geneva receivers.

Williams will probably go over 1,000 yards rushing for the year in this game, which would be the second Batavia back to do so.

Anthony D'Aurizio had 24 carries for 183 yards last week and now has 1,009 yards and 10 touchdowns on the season.

The key to this game will be to obviously run the football, which the Blue did with success in the second half last week.

Batavia will also have to slow down the passing attack of Geneva as the Panthers receivers were wide open last week.

DeAnze Williams, Junior Collins and Derrious Thomas were all separating from the coverage with ease last week and quarterback Bobby Martin had no problem finding them at-will.

The secondary has to stick with those guys.

A victory in this game would be HUGE for the Batavia program and could set up the Blue Devils for a shot to shock the world and win a sectional title.

The Genesee/Livingston Cross Country League boasts some of the best runners in Section V.  Those runners will all face-off today at the GR/LC Cross Country Championships today at Genesee Community College.  This is the final tune-up before the Section V Championships held on November 1 at Marcus Whitman High School.  For some of the runners, this will be their last race, as only the top ten of each team can race at Sectionals (top seven in the varsity race, and 8-10 in a sub-race).   With many of the teams in this league ranked not only in Section V, but also the state, it will be an exciting race to watch.

Boys Race 4:30

Girls Race 5:05

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.

Alexander came away with a 2-0 win over Perry at Wheatland-Chili Tuesday night in what was less than ideal weather.  Williamson and Canisteo-Greenwood had played before at 5pm and the field was in very good condition despite the game prior to ours.

We cut our warmup shorter than usual to avoid getting completely soaked before the game even started and hoped to come out quick.  We attacked right away and put some pressure on Perry's net with 5 shots in the first 8 minutes of the game.  Alexander went ahead 1-0 as Junior Anna Dominick crossed the ball to Senior Rachel Pettys and she fired a shot high in the far left corner to make the score 1-0 in the 11th minute of the game.  Alexander dominated possession in the 1st half and had several chances to go on top 2-0 but none found the back of the net.

Alexander came out in the 2nd half and continued to dominate possession but could not find the net, as has been the case all year long.  Perry had some dangerous moments and had 5 corners in the game but Alexander's defense stood strong and Sophomore goalie Hannah Wilson came up big on several saves throughout the game to earn her 7th shutout of the year.

A trio of sophomores did a great job in the middle, none of which started at the beginning of the year.  Morgan Mattice, Claire Hartl, and Ashley Szymanski logged all the minutes in the center of the pitch, won a majority of the headers, and had some great quick movement of the ball in and out of the field.  9th grader Julia Pettys and 8th grader Abby Shilvock were both moved from the positions they have played all year to the outside mids and did a fantastic job creating as Alexander saw a great improvement in the overall play of their midfield.

Alexander iced the game with 55 seconds left as Julia Pettys sent a cross from the left side of the field to Anna Dominick who settled, took a touch and beat the keeper high over her to give Alexander the 2-0 lead.

Alexander's defense played qutie well and was lead by Sophomore Savannah VanSon who logged her 19th straight start at sweeper and kept things organized.  8th grader Gabby Kwiatek, Junior Leah Johnson, and Sophomore Tessa Bigelow all did a great job in front her sticking with marks despite difficult footing throughout the game.

8th grader Maria Dominick and Senior Rachel Nielans both contributed key minutes at outside mid throughout the game.

Alexander's record improves to 9-6-4 on the season and they move on to play Geneseo on Friday at 6pm in Geneseo.  Geneseo is ranked in the top 10 in the state in the last poll that was released.

 Le Roy's Travis Fenstermaker was named Offensive Player of the Week for Class C today for his efforts in Friday night's 41-19 thrashing of Hornell.

The senior quarterback completed 11-of-15 pass attempts for 223 yards and four touchdowns.

The victory helped the No. 4 state-seeded Oatkan Knights finish the season undefeated and wrap up the top seed in the Section 5 Class C playoffs.

Le Roy will be hosting No. 8 South Seneca/Romulus on Friday night.

Chrissy Rennard was a rising star for the Attica girls soccer team last season as a freshman. She was the second leading scorer on the team.

But this year she has been slowed by an ankle injury and hasn't produced like she would like.

But it looks like she's back at the right time, and that's a good thing for the Blue Devils.

Attica is the No. 8 seed in the Section 5 Class BB tournament and because of Rennard's two goals and assist will be moving on to face No. 1 Hornell on Saturday because the Blue Devils topped No. 9 Dansville in the opening round 5-1.

Christina West, Kelsey Talley and Chelsea Lynch also scored and Attica improves to 2-13-4.

Oakfield-Alabama, Byron-Bergen, Alexander, Pembroke, Kendall and Lyndonville are all also playing sectional games tonight and results will be posted on the Section 5 Web site as they come in.

 Oakfield-Alabama graduate John Gerber finished in a tie for 27th out of 52 golfers at the McDaniel Fall Invitational this past weekend.

The tournament featured 10 teams from the East coast and the St. John Fisher College freshman helped his team to a sixth place finish.

Gerber shot an 82 in the first round and an 81 in the second, finishing 21 strokes behind medalist Robert Womble from Washington and Lee College, who shot even par at Piney Branch Golf Club in Hampstead, Md.

You can see the complete tournament results here. 

 Notre Dame junior Stephanie Lapple had a great showing this Monday at Ridgemont Country Club at the Section 5 Fall Golf Championships.

The guys play golf in the spring, but the girls play in the fall and she was the only Genesee Region League participant in the event. 

Lapple shot a 44 on the front 9 and a 46 on the back for a 90, which was good for a sixth place tie.

Penfield senior Sarah Tranelli fired an impressive 73 to win the event, which featured the top 28 female golfers in  Section 5.

Saturday's Class D semifinal game between Perry and Notre Dame was originally scheduled to be played in Waterloo.

Section 5 did the right thing and moved the game closer, and to a great facility.

The game between No. 7 Perry (4-3) and No. 3 Notre Dame (5-2) will be at East Rochester High School at 3 p.m. Saturday.

I will be there and encourage as many GR football fans to attend the game and give our local team support as they look to make the finals.

The Notre Dame Girls Cross Country Team placed fifth in the small school race at the Clarence Invitational held at Akron Falls Park.  Ashley Calarco, still bothered by a tender foot,  placed second in the race in 21:31.  Teammate Jill Marshall placed 20th with 23:34.  Meghan Zickl (24:25), Rachel Berggren (25:12), and Haley Alexander (29:53) rounded out the scoring for the Irish.  Other finishers included Teresa Jackson (30:52), Kate Spadaccia (32:55), Tia Arnold (34:47), and LeeAnn Tindell (34:47).

While the Irish Varisty Team took the race off, the JV's raced to place 13th among all schools.  Andrew Fischer led the charge placing 53rd in 20:37.  Vince Stadler (22:10) and Matt Sausner (22:15) placed 95th and 98th respectively.  Conlan Edwards (30:55) and James Barcomb (41:43) rounded out the scoring for the Irish.

All Genesee/Livingston County Cross Country Teams will be in action on Thursday at Genesee Community College for the GR/LC County Championships.  The Boys race begins at 4:30, with the Girls to follow at 5:05.

I am one of the few sports guys that will call cheerleading a sport, but I love hearing about these girls competing in what is a difficult, and dangerous sporting event.

One of the best sectional championships - that I never get to attend - happended this past weekend as the Section 5 cheerleading competition took place.

I heard Batavia took first in Class B, which is awesome. This Democrat and Chronicle story says they did in the photo, but that Geneva did in the story.

Hopefully the BHS girls took home the title and we will get to see them on the sidelines for a while longer during football season.

UPDATE:

The D&C updated the story with results and Batavia did win. Holley's Heather Kelly also won Coach of the Year for Class C.

Congrats to all the girls on the BHS squad!

The game counts as a non-leaguer because the Class D playoffs are underway, but Genesee Region League powers Attica and Pembroke still put on a show Saturday.

Both squads had big games moving the football, but it was the Dragons that defended their home turf, 38-15, and wrapped up the No. 3 seed in the Class C playoffs next weekend.

Pembroke started the game with an 80-yard drive, but missed a field goal. The Blue Devils had a long drive of their own and were able to capitalize when Andy Ruddock finished off an 80-yard drive with a  5-yard TD run.

Pembroke drove again and this time got points as Andrew Wright had a 2-yard scoring run early in the second quarter.

After a stop, the Dragons added seven more points when David Kleckler tossed a 33-yard touchdown pass to Ken Babcock.

Attica had a golden chance to score to start the third quarter when the team marched all the way down to Pembroke's 3-yard line, but then fumbled the ball away. Pembroke drove 98 yards and Kleckler scored on an 8-yard keeper.

Kleckler had officially taken over at this point.

He intercepted a pass and returned it 31-yards for a score on Attica's next drive and then put an end to the following Blue Devil possession with another pick.

Wright took the ball 71 yards for a touchdown to wrap up Pembroke's scoring.

Attica had a late touchdown run.

Wright finished the game with 14 carries for 151 yards and two touchdowns and Mike Dibble added 90 yards on 17 attempts.

Kleckler completed 5-of-6 attempts for 51 yards and also rushed for 52 yards on nine carries.

J.P. Phillips had 48 yards on seven rushes.

The Blue Devils fall to 4-3 and will be at East Rochester/Gananda (not Bath) in the opening round of the Class B tournament next weekend while Pembroke improves to 6-1 and will host Bishop Kearney.