Sports

In a tune-up before this weekend's Region III Tournament, the Genesee Community College baseball team hosted Lackawanna College on Wednesday afternoon in a final regular season doubleheader. The Cougars lost the first game 14-2 but came back to win in walk-off fashion in game two, 9-8.

Brandon Collins hit a solo home run in the bottom of the first, but Genesee surrendered two runs to Lackawanna in the top of the inning to fall behind.

GCC used a total of four pitchers in game one and allowed 14 runs (nine earned) on 12 hits.

Collins doubled in the fourth and scored on an RBI single by Josh Maier, but that was the extent of the Cougars offense in game one.

In game two, Lackawanna again put two runs on the board in the top of the first to take an early lead.

Ryan DiMartino singled with one out in the second inning and then scored on a triple by Jacob Sodja to cut Lackawanna's lead in half.

Trailing 3-1 in the bottom of the sixth, Fauchedre Celestijn delivered an RBI single that scored Jacob Kenney to get GCC to within 3-2. Manny Garcia added a sacrifice fly later in the inning to tie the game at 3-3.

Lackawanna responded in the top of the seventh with five runs to take an 8-3 lead.

The Cougars loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh and cut the Lackawanna lead in half after Celestijn was hit by a pitch, allowing Maier to score. Garcia then stepped to the plate and hit a game-tying grand slam out to left, notching the score at 8-8. The Cougars kept the rally going and loaded the bases again, before Jose Diaz was hit by a pitch, scoring Collins to give Genesee a 9-8 walk-off win.

The Cougars finish the regular season 21-11 and will now turn their sights on the Region III Tournament which will begin on Friday afternoon at Monroe Community College.

Kimberly Walsh tossed a complete game shutout Tuesday against Gates Chili leading Batavia's girls softball team to a 7-0 victory.

Walsh also had three hits and RBI to help contribute to the win.

Breanna Hurlbut and Kayleigh Tourt each had three hits and collecting two hits each were Taylor Stefaniak, Elizabeth Myers and Hannah Bowen.

Myers and Teiona Kemp each scored two runs.

From Batavia HS tennis coach John Kirkwood:

• 1st singles: Nate Palmer was defeated by Matt Renzi   1-6   5-7.
• 2nd singles: Jeff Redband was defeated by Venkatesh Ramkumar 4-6   2-6
• 3rd singles: Caleb Jackson was defeated by Pat OBrien 0-6   0-6
• 4th singles: Tim Moehlenkamp was defeated by Luke Weglarz 5-7   6-2   0-6
• First doubles:  Samir Jain and Ken McMaster were defeated by Travis Miller and Amit Neman 0-6   0-6
• Second doubles: Tim Martin and Trey Filbert were defeated by Niels Rasmussen and Andrew Palmiere 1-6   1-6
• Third doubles: Avery Midla and Jon McMaster were defeated by Jon Harper and Rishaan Sharwa 2-6    1-6

Summary:
Mendon is the class of section V this year. They are 8-0. Batavia drops to 3-2 in league and 1-1 in our division.

Despite what looks like a lopsided match, we played well in all positions. Playing Mendon and the other top section V teams will help us later this month in key sectional matches against class B schools.

Batavia travels to Harley Allendale Columbia tomorrow to play
Harley, HFL, Aquinas in the Class BB/B individual qualifier. The top 4 singles players and top 4 doubles teams will qualify to compete on May 11, 2013 at Pal Mac.

The Genesee Community College softball team lost both games of a doubleheader to Onondaga Community College on Monday afternoon, losing game one 12-8 and falling in game two, 8-4.

GCC honored sophomores Alishia Foss, Chelsea Lynch and Miki Kawaguchi to begin the afternoon as Monday marked the final doubleheader of the season.

Kawaguchi delivered three hits and scored three runs in game one, but Onondaga scored five runs in the first and five in the second to jump in front with a lead they would not give up.

Genesee put together a four-run third inning to get to within 10-7, but managed only a run on four hits the rest of the way.

Foss finished game one 3-4 with a run scored and two runs batted in. Rachel VanDuser went 2-4 with a double, a triple and a run scored and Lynch added three hits, an RBI and a run scored.

Foss took the loss on the mound, throwing all seven innings, allowing 12 runs and striking out four.

(Catcher Brittnee Hallett-Jonathan tags out an OCC runner trying to score)

In game two, Genesee took a 1-0 lead in the second inning after Tori Kramer delivered an RBI double that scored Yui Sotah.

The Lady Lazers responded and scored four times in the third inning to take a 4-1 lead. GCC had a chance for a big inning in the bottom of the third, but scored only one run and left the bases loaded.

The Lady Cougars answered two OCC runs in the top of the fourth with two runs in the bottom of the inning, but did not score the rest of the game and managed only three hits in the final three innings.

Lynch scored two runs in game two and went 2-4 at the plate. Taylor Gayton delivered an RBI double, VanDuser went 2-3 with a run scored and Kawaguchi went 2-4 with two singles.

Andrea Pursel took the loss on the mound, allowing eight runs on 11 hits and struck out four.

Genesee falls to 10-24.

(GCC sophomores (L-R) Chelsea Lynch, Miki Kawaguchi and Alishia Foss)

The No.2 Genesee Community College men's lacrosse team fell to No.1 Onondaga Community College 15-8 on Sunday afternoon in the Region III Championship at Herkimer County Community College.

The Cougars started off fast scoring the first two goals of the game. Nick Gray got GCC on the board first with a goal at the 13:37 mark. Luke Grahnert had the assist. Gray then set up Christian Reiller who scored at the 10:22 mark to give Genesee a 2-0 lead. Onondaga came back to score the next two goals and the game was 2-2 after one.

GCC started the second quarter the same as the first, scoring two quick goals to take a 4-2 lead. Marcus Palvino and Cam Seneca had the Genesee goals. The Lazers got  one goal back late in the second quarter but GCC took a 4-3 lead into the half.

Onondaga took the lead in the third quarter, scoring the first five goals of the period to take an 8-4 lead. Seneca broke the GCC scoreless drought with a goal at the 6:41 mark, one of two goals he scored in the third. OCC led 10-6 after three.

Genesee was unable to draw closer in the fourth as the Lazers outscored the Cougars 5-2 in the final frame to win the Region III Championship and take the #1 seed in the NJCAA National Tournament.

Brady Lawrence played well in net for GCC, making 23 saves on the afternoon.

Seneca led all scorers with three goals, Gray finished the game with a goal and two assists, Reiller added a goal and two assists, Palvino finished with two goals, Saxon Weil chipped in a goal and Blake Hurt, Tyler Skowronski, and Grahnert each had one assist.

Johnny Astrologo and Jordan McElligott led the defense with three takeaways each.

Lawrence, Seneca and Charlie Evans were all named to the All-Tournament Team.

Genesee will enter the NJCAA National Tournament as the number two seed and have a bye until the semifinals. The Final Four will be played May 11th and 12th at Nassau Community College in Garden City, NY.

The Genesee Community College softball team managed just six total hits in a doubleheader against Monroe Community College on Thursday afternoon, falling 10-2 in game one and 11-2 in game two.

Monroe jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the top of the first in game one but Genesee responded with a run of its own in the bottom of the inning after Rachel VanDuser singled and eventually scored on fielders choice.

Starting pitcher Alishia Foss set the Lady Tribunes down in order in the second and third and then notched the game at 2-2 after reaching on a single, advancing to second on a wild pitch, reaching third on an infield single by Chelsea Lynch and then scoring after Lynch drew a throw to second on a stolen base.

That would be it for the Lady Cougars bats, however, as Genesee managed only one hit the rest of the way. Monroe sent nine batters to the plate in the fourth in a five-run inning and then added three runs in the fifth to take game one via the mercy rule (eight-run lead or higher after five full innings).

Monroe scored the first ten runs of game two and the Genesee hitters were retired in order in each of the first three innings before Miki Kawaguchi singled to give GCC its first hit of the game in the bottom of the fourth. VanDuser followed with a single of her own and both came around to score on RBI ground outs by Foss and Lynch respectively to get Genesee to within 10-2.

The Lady Tribunes added a run in the fifth to extend their lead and GCC went 1-2-3 in their final at bats, falling again via the mercy rule in game two.

VanDuser got a hit in each game for GCC and scored a run in each game as well. Foss collected two hits and scored a run in game one and had a run batted in during game two.

The Lady Cougars fall to 9-19 overall on the season and they will travel to Alfred State on Saturday afternoon for a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m.

The No.2 Genesee Community College men's lacrosse team overcame a slow start to down visiting Dean College (MA) 17-4 in the opening game of the Region III playoffs on Wednesday night.

Neither team got much going to begin the first quarter and Genesee was forced to go on the penalty kill early. After successfully killing off a man-down situation, Marcus Palvino gave GCC a 1-0 lead just shy of eight minutes into the opening frame.

Dean tied it just 30-seconds later and the Cougars again faced a penalty kill situation, this time down two men. Genesee successfully killed off both penalties and after returning to full-strength, Jonathan Gill scored his first of six goals in the game to give GCC a 2-1 lead with five-minutes remaining in the first.

Charlie Evans made it 3-1 after the Cougars killed off another penalty and Genesee took a two-goal lead into the second.

Christian Reiller and Cameron Seneca scored the first two goals of the second to put GCC in front 5-1 and the penalty kill came through again before goals from Reiller and Gill gave Genesee a 7-2 lead. The Cougars took a 7-3 lead into the break.

The third quarter was all Genesee as the home team out-scored the visitors 6-0 in the period to take a 13-3 lead into the fourth.

Seneca answered an early fourth quarter Dean goal before Gill recorded three consecutive goals to end the game and advance Genesee to the Region West Championship and a chance at an automatic bid into the NJCAA National Tournament.

Gill finished with six goals and an assist, Reiller added three goals and three assists, Palvino scored four times and also had an assist, Seneca finished with two goals and two assists, Tyler Skowronski and Saxon Weil each had two assists and Chris Rabung scored once.

Along with his goal, Evans was 6-9 on face-offs, Mike Breindel was 6-9 and Mike Tolli was 4-6.

Jordan McElligott and Pete DiLaura led the defense with four takeaways and seven ground balls each and Brady Lawrence made 23 saves in net.

Genesee will play for their chance at the automatic bid on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. Opponent to be determined.

Denae McGrath scored three goals for the Genesee Community College women's lacrosse team on Wednesday night, but it was not enough as the Lady Cougars fell to visiting Niagara County Community College, 16-4 in their final regular season home game of the season.

McGrath's first goal came at the 11:08 mark of the first half to cut Niagara's lead down to 3-1. Cassandra Dembik scored four-minutes later to get GCC to within 3-2 and Genesee was able to hang around. McGrath responded to a Niagara goal with her second goal of the game to keep the Lady Cougars within one, at 4-3.

The Lady Thunderwolves took control of the game in the final ten-minutes of the first half, however, scoring five unanswered goals to end the opening period, upping their lead to 9-3.

Niagara made it 13-3 before McGrath scored her third goal of the game late in the second half and the Lady Thunderwolves cashed in three more times before the night was over to earn the victory.

Sarah Bosa made 18 saves in net for Genesee.

Genesee falls to 0-7 on the season and will travel to Herkimer County Community College on Saturday for a 1 p.m. start.

Alishia Foss came through with a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the seventh inning of game one, but the Genesee Community College softball team fell in game two to split a Tuesday afternoon doubleheader with visiting Niagara County Community College.

Foss' single capped off a five-run seventh inning for the Lady Cougars, who battled back and forth with the Lady Thunderwolves in a high scoring first game.

Genesee scored four times in the bottom of the first but trailed 6-4 before their at bats in the third. Andrea Pursel and Yui Sotah put together back-to-back doubles and both scored runs to tie the game at six after three.

Niagara then scored three runs in the fourth inning to take a 9-6 lead and held GCC to just two hits during their next three at bats. The Lady Thunderwolves upped their lead to 10-6 with a run in the top of the seventh, before Genesee sent all nine batters to the plate in the seventh, highlighted by the walk-off single by Foss.

Sotah finished the game 3-4 with two doubles and three runs scored, Pursel went 2-4 and scored three runs and Rachel VanDuser went 3-4 with a triple, two singles and a run scored.

Along with the game-winning hit, Foss also earned the win on the mound, throwing all seven innings.

(Members of the GCC softball team celebrate after Alishia Foss delivers the game-winning hit in game one of a doubleheader against Niagara County Community College)

In game two, Niagara used a six-run second inning to take an 7-0 lead, but Genesee was able to climb back into the game. Taylor Gayton plated Pursel in the bottom of the second inning with an RBI groundout to get the Lady Cougars on the board and VanDuser delivered a run scoring single to get GCC to within 7-2.

Pursel, the game two starter, pitched around a hit in the third and fourth and kept Niagara off the board in both innings.

After two runs in the third, GCC put together a four-run fourth to take an 8-7 lead. Chelsea Lynch, Pursel, Sotah and Gayton each delivered RBI's in the inning.

That would be it for the GCC offense however, as Niagara took the lead with three runs in the fifth and added four in the seventh and held Genesee without a run over the final three innings to win 14-8.

Pursel went 3-4 in game two, scored three runs and drove in one, Lynch scored twice and stole a base and Gayton had two runs batted in.

With the split, Genesee is now 9-17 overall on the season. They will host Monroe Community College for a doubleheader on Thursday beginning at 3 p.m.

Submitted by Coach John Kirkwood:

BHS 5  - Victor 2

1st singles: Nate Palmer defeated Anthony Valenti 6-1 6-0
2nd: Jeff Redband defeated Tommy Nguyen 6-0 6-0
3rd: Samir Jain defeated Jon Ballard 6-0 6-4
4th: Trey Filbert defeated Andrei Gutierrez 6-1 6-4

1st doubles: Ken McMaster and Tim Martin defeated Mike Carusone and Jeff Diehl 6-1 6-3
2nd: Avery Midla and Caleb Jackson lost to Sam Zhou and Tyler McGrath 4-6 2-6
3rd: Tim Moehlenkamp and Jon McMaster lost to Jon Famurewa and Joe Landry 3-6 3-6

Summary:
This was a quality win for our team. Victor is known to have athletic teams.
That moves us to 2-1 in Monroe County and 1-0 in our division.
We played very well all through our lineup. Any victory over an East side team is a solid accomplishment!

Batavia is away Wednesday at Brockport.

The Genesee Community College softball team came up empty in a doubleheader against Mercyhurst North East on Monday afternoon, falling to the visiting Lady Saints, 18-0 in game one and 14-6 in game two.

Genesse was held hitless in game one for 4 1/3 innings before Yui Sotah hustled out an infield single with one out in the fifth. Mercyhurst powered its way to an 18-0 mercy rule win, smashing two home runs in the game and scoring nine runs in the third inning.

In game two, Tori Kramer extended a 3-2 GCC lead with a two-run home run to left center field in the bottom of the fourth inning to put the Lady Cougars in front 5-2. Genesee held a 6-4 lead after five innings, but the Lady Saints put together a four-run sixth to take back the lead for good. Mercyhurst shut the Genesee bats down over the final two innings and added six runs in the seventh to complete the sweep with a 14-6 win.

Miki Kawaguchi went 3-4 with a run batted in, Brittnee Hallett-Jonathan scored two runs and went 2-4 at the plate and Kramer finished the game 2-4 with a run scored and three runs batted in.

Genesee falls to 8-16 on the season and will return to action tomorrow when they host Niagara County Community College for a doubleheader beginning at 3 p.m.

(#10 Yui Sotah connects on a pitch against Mercyhurst North East)

Sean Sutton hit a home run in both games of Thursday afternoon's doubleheader and the Genesee Community College baseball team picked up two wins against Mercyhurst North East.

Sutton started his afternoon with a two-run homerun in the bottom of the first inning in game one after Fauchedre Celestijn delivered a three-run triple and the Cougars were in front 5-0 after one.

Brandon Stagg threw a complete game for GCC allowing five runs on nine hits while striking out two.

Brandon Collins went 3-3 with a single and two doubles. He also scored twice and drove in a run. Shakeel Newton added a three hit effort with three singles and scored three runs.

Genesee scored in each of the first five innings and won game one, 12-5.

(Sean Sutton (left) celebrates with Fauchedre Celestijn after hitting a two-run home run in the first inning of game one against Mercyhurst North East on Thursday afternoon)

In game two, Mercyhurst jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a couple of runs in the second inning. GCC cut the lead in half in the bottom of the third with an RBI double from Zach Ranta that scored Collins.

Pitcher Malik Mitchell kept the visiting Saints off the board in the fourth and the fifth, and Sutton blasted his second home run over the right field wall to give Genesee a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth.

Mitchell gave way to Eric Villalobos after 5.2 innings with a 4-2 lead and Villalobos allowed an inherited runner to score and one run of his own on just one hit the rest of the way to earn the four out save. Genesee won game two, 6-4.

Mitchell allowed three runs on five hits and struck out six and earned the win.

Collins went 2-4 in game two, scored two runs and also drove in a run. Celestijn was 1-1 with a single, a run scored, two walks and was hit by a pitch.

Genesee improves to 13-6 overall on the season and are now 2-4 in conference play. They will host Mercyhurst North East again on Saturday at the GCC campus for a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m.

(Malik Mitchell pitches for GCC in game two against Mercyhurst North East)

The Genesee Community College softball team dropped both games of a doubleheader to Jefferson Community College on Thursday afternoon, falling 11-6 in game one and 7-5 in game two.

Genesee had an early lead with three runs in the bottom of the first inning in game one, but allowed five runs to Jefferson in the fifth to give up the lead for good.

Chelsea Lynch scored two runs, stole two bases and delivered a double. Miki Kawaguchi also scored a run for GCC.

In game two, GCC trailed 3-0 before putting together a five-run fourth inning to take the lead. Taylor Gayton sparked the rally with an RBI single that scored Yui Sotah. Tori Kramer followed with an RBI single and Rachel VanDuser tied the game at three with an RBI double. Kramer then gave the Lady Cougars the lead after scoring on a passed ball and with the bases loaded, Kawaguchi scored to make it 5-3 GCC after Andrea Pursel was hit by a pitch.

Jefferson came back to tie the game at 5-5 in the top of the fifth and then used a two-run home run in the seventh to take a 7-5, which they held on to.

Genesee falls to 6-14 on the season and will host Columbia-Greene Community College on Saturday for a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m.

(Alishia Foss (white) delivers a single in game two of GCC's doubleheader against Jefferson CC)

The No.2 Genesee Community College men's lacrosse team scored the first nine goals of the game on Wednesday night to roll past the visiting Hornets of Broome Community College by a final score of 20-4.

Cameron Seneca scored three first quarter goals to help GCC to a 7-0 lead after one.

Jonathan Gill scored two of his four first half goals in the second quarter and the Cougars did not allow Broome to score until the 8:40 mark of the second frame. GCC led 12-2 at the break.

Genesee scored five times in the third quarter, including two goals from Chris Rabung, and allowed only one Hornets goal to increase its lead to 17-3 after three.

Rabung rounded out the scoring at the 7:14 mark of the fourth quarter, following goals from Blake Hurt and Saxon Weil, who also scored three times on the night, and Genesee cruised to its 12th win of the season.

Gill led the offense and added two assists to his four goals, Weil added two assists to his three goals, Rabung finished with three goals and an assist, Christian Reiller had three assists on the night and Charlie Evans, Tyler Meegan and Doug Ellsworth all had a goal and an assist.

Evans was 9-12 on face-offs, Mike Tolli was 5-6 and Mike Breindel was 5-9.

Brady Lawrence made two saves in 30-minutes of work it net, Craig Seneca made one save in 15-minutes and Mark Pucek made five saves in 15-minutes of play.

Pete DiLaura led the defense with five takeaways and seven ground balls and Tyler Skowronski had five takeaways.

Genesee improves to 12-1 overall on the season and will host Finger Lakes Community College in their final regular season home game on Saturday night at 7 p.m.

A five-run fifth inning doomed the Genesee Community College softball team against Broome Community College on Tuesday afternoon, as the visiting Hornets picked up an 8-2 win in the only game of what was supposed to be a doubleheader.

Rain fell all afternoon, cancelling game two, and caused slick conditions throughout game one.

Genesee trailed 3-2 in the fifth before giving up the five runs, and the Lady Cougars could not bounce back.

Andrea Pursel pitched 4.1 innings before giving way to Alishia Foss who finished the final 2.3 innings of the game without giving up a hit.

Both GCC runs came as a result of wild pitches as Miki Kawaguchi scored to tie the game at one in the bottom of the first and Chelsea Lynch crossed the plate in the fourth to get Genesee to within 3-2.

Kawaguchi, Lynch and Brittnee Hallett-Jonathan all collected hits for GCC.

Genesee is now 6-12 on the season and will host Jefferson Community College for a doubleheader on Thursday beginning at 3 p.m.

(Pitcher Andrea Pursel (white) tries to cover the plate as a Broome CC runner slides in safe)

For the second straight year the Genesee Community College men's lacrosse team are the Western New York Athletic Conference champions after defeating Mercyhurst North East on Sunday and finishing a perfect 4-0 in conference play this season.

The game resumed after being postponed due to weather on April 10th with 50-seconds remaining in the first quarter and the Cougars on top 4-1. Chris Rabung made it 5-1 with a goal just after the restart to give GCC, which took over the No. 2 NJCAA National raking this week, a four goal lead after one.

Genesee scored ten times in second quarter including three from Christian Reiller, who finished with six in the game, and two from Nick Gray. GCC led 15-3 at the half.

The Cougars kept up their strong play in the second half, leading 19-3 after three and cruising to a 24-5 victory.

Brady Lawrence played a total of 36 minutes in net and then gave way to Mark Pucek who played 24 minutes. Both combined to make nine saves.

Mike Tolli was 7-8 on face-offs on the afternoon.

Pete DiLaura led the defense with four takeaways, five ground balls and two assists. Johnny Astrologo, Jordan McElligott, Bobby Wheeler, Adam Jacobs, Evan Horton, Jon Ryan and Blair Berg combined for 10 takeaways and 10 ground balls.

Reiller finished with six goals, Gray posted four goals and two assists, Rabung ended with three goals, Dave Ellsworth added a goal and two assists, Doug Ellsworth chipped in two goals, Jonathan Gill and Tyler Meegan each scored two goals, Luke Grahnert added a goal and an assist and Marcus Palvino and Blake Hurt each assisted on two goals.

Sunday's win followed a 14-5 Cougars win over Cayuga Community College on Saturday.

Genesee is now 11-1 overall on the season and will host Broome Community College this Wednesday night at 7 p.m.