Sports

Following a 26-6 Section V Class D title victory of Clyde-Savannah, Notre Dame's Head Coach Rich Mancuso said a lot of the credit for the win could go to the offensive line.

"Our offensive line and Anthony Paladino did an absolutely outstanding job of blocking and that’s really controlled the game and won it for us," Mancuso said.

The stout line allowed Nick Taylor to rush for 192 yards on 22 carries and two touchdowns. Taylor was named MVP for the game.

The title is the first for ND since 2006 and the second in Mancuso's eight seasons as head coach.

Clyde-Savannah is a passing team, but the Golden Eagles were really forced to go the air by the third quarter with the Fighting Irish up 20-6.

While QB Tom Molisani was an impressive 17-29 for 246 yards (including a couple of competitions he tossed while in the grasp of ND defenders), the senior passer gave up four interceptions.

"The big thing is, we knew we had to stop them from throwing the ball and we knew we had to control the clock and we had to take care of the ball, which we did," Mancuso said. "We created a number of turnovers on their part. We did a great job with our game plan both offensively and defensively. I couldn’t be prouder of the kids at the moment."

The Irish amassed a total of 322 yards on the ground.

Andrew Mullen carried the ball for 88 yards on 16 carries and scored a touchdown. QB Tim McCulley added 37 yards on four carries.

McCulley was 1-3 for 23 yards, with the one pass completion going to Charlie Hebert for a touchdown.

The junior also had two key second-half interceptions.

Like Mancuso, McCulley was full of praise after the game for the offensive line.

"Our running game (was a key to victory)," McCulley said. "We ran the ball in the throat. Our line played great. Our running backs ran hard and everything just fell in place."

After the game Taylor said the win felt "awesome."

"I've been starting since my freshmen year and we’ve lost every time in the finals so it’s great that in my senior year, we actually win it," Taylor said. "It feels great."

Paladino, who helped led the lines on both offense and defense and was one of the players of the game, said his award wasn't just about him.

"We all work hard," Paladino said. "You shouldn’t really pick one person. The whole defensive line did everything."

On defense, Paladino had three tackles and Taylor had four, as well as a sack.

Jared Thornton had five tackles, Hebert four and Josh Johnson, four. Taylor and Aaron McDonald each had an interception.

Hebert also blocked an extra point try following Clyde-Savannah only TD.

On a night of constant rain for the entire game, neither side gave up a fumble.

Also receiving game trophies were Johnson and James Spear.

Next up for the Irish (8-1), Avon (8-1), who beat Red Jacket 14-6 to capture the Class DD title. That game will be played Saturday in Rochester.

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Le Roy football is back in the sectional finals after a 44-27 win over Bath-Haverling at Sahlen's Stadium in Rochester.

After three consecutive seasons without a winning record, the Oatkan Knights will attempt to win their 15th sectional championship in school history, the 14th under Head Coach Brian Moran.

Bath-Haverling entered Saturday afternoon’s contest at Sahlen’s Stadium looking to avenge a blowout loss earlier this season, and they came out fast. The Rams took the opening kickoff and marched 71 yards on nine plays before quarterback Daniel Leonard punched in the first score of the game from a yard out.

Le Roy responded quickly, as Tom Kelso took the ensuing kickoff back 79 yards for a touchdown. The teams would trade touchdowns, as the Knights’ leading rusher Peter Privitera returned from injury to score on a 29-yard scamper to take the lead, 14-13.

Leonard would score his third rushing touchdown of the game to retake the lead as time expired in the first quarter. At that point, the Knights began to put pressure on the senior and it led to good results. After Leonard recovered a fumble, he threw an ill-advised pass under pressure on the very next play that was intercepted by Kelso.

“[Leonard] has a great arm, he’s a four-year starter,” Moran said. “We had to put ourselves into a situation to make him move his feet, get him a little uncomfortable, and I thought we did that when we came off the corners.”

Le Roy countered Bath’s passing game with their own aerial attack. After attempting only five passes last week against Holley, sophomore quarterback Mike McMullen came out throwing. McMullen went 7-for-10 passing for 151 yards and a dazzling 37-yard strike to Ryan McQuillen that would put the Knights up for good in the second quarter. Perhaps the most impressive statistic was the fact that he did not throw an interception.

“When they put 10 guys in the box, you have to take advantage of it,” Moran said. “(McMullen’s) a sophomore, but he’s played all year and he needed to step up for us. He played very well today.”

Leonard finshed 9-for-21, with 165 yards passing and three interceptions. He also ran for 109 yards and three touchdowns for Bath (6-4).

Privitera also had a big game for Le Roy, rushing for 126 yards on 14 carries with two touchdowns, including a 57-yard run on the first play of the second half. However, he was forced to leave the game in the third quarter with an apparent knee injury and did not return. The coaching staff is still optimistic that he will be able to play next week.

If Le Roy (8-1) wants to win another championship, they will have a daunting task in front of them as they will face top-seed Hornell. The Red Raiders are a three-time defending state champion and are riding a 48-game winning streak.

The Class C Championship game will take place Friday, Nov. 2, at Sahlen’s Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m.

PHOTOS by Howard Owens

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I messed up the settings of last week's contest and nobody was able to complete their picks, so no winner last week. Sorry. This week, same question, but of course the possible answers are different.

To enter, click here. (Hey, if you find a problem with a contest, let me know ASAP so we can get it corrected.)

#6 Bath Rams (5-3) vs. #2 Le Roy Oatkan Knights (7-1)

Le Roy survived a tough first round test from Holley last week to advance to the Class C Semifinals, where they will face sixth-seeded Bath.

The Knights ran for 314 yards last week, despite playing without leading rusher, Peter Privitera. Tom Kelso and Marcus Mistersaro continued to be workhorses, while Le Roy got a huge and perhaps unexpected spark from senior Kylan Carter, who ran for 110 yards on nine carries. 

They could get another boost Saturday. Privitera was cleared to begin practicing this week, but how much and if he plays is still in question.

There is no doubt that coach Brian Moran will attempt to control the clock again this week, after holding the ball for nearly 21 minutes in the second half against Holley, and limiting them to 11 offensive plays.

On the other end of the spectrum, Bath upset the third seed, Elba/Byron-Bergen in first round play, 6 to 0.

The Rams held the Genesee Region League’s leading rusher, Zack DuBois, to only 60 yards after he averaged over 220 per game for the entire season.

It was the first time that any defense had held DuBois to under 100 yards rushing all season.

Bath also held the Lancers to only 78 total yards of offense and three first downs for the entire game. While being a low seed, the Rams also have an impressive win over Class B’s Livonia earlier in the season. If they can duplicate last week’s defensive performance, and sustain drives offensively, they could pull another upset.

Kickoff is set for Saturday 1:30 p.m. at Sahlen’s Stadium, Rochester.

#2 Clyde-Savannah Golden Eagles (7-1) vs. #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-1)

Notre Dame advanced to the Class D Finals after vanquishing Dundee, 28 to 6.

Dundee had won five consecutive games against the Fighting Irish dating back to 1996, including three in a row from 2007 to 2009.

This week, they will face a much stiffer test in the second-seeded Clyde-Savannah Golden Eagles.

They will undoubtedly rely on quarterback Tim McCulley, who went 7 for 15 for 125 yards and a touchdown last week. The Notre Dame offense has revolved around the junior all season, and he has responded by throwing a school-record 17 touchdown passes.

If Head Coach Rick Mancuso and the Irish can get their passing game going, it will open up running lanes for Nick Taylor and Andrew Mullen, who combined for 219 yards and two touchdowns against Dundee.

Clyde-Savannah ousted third-seeded York in their semi-final matchup, 40 to 22.

The Eagles come in to this game averaging 46.5 points per game, and have not been scored less than 34 points in any game this season.

They are also winning by an average margin of 30.4 points per contest. Like Notre Dame, Clyde will rely on their quarterback Tom Molisani, who is coming off of a 19 for 22, 282-yard, 4-touchdown performance against York.

They did surrender over 200 yards of passing offense to York, although most of it was after the game had been put out of reach.

Expect to see a high-scoring affair on Saturday night at Sahlen’s Stadium, with both offenses looking to air it out. Both McCulley and Molisani have put up impressive statistics this season and have carried their teams to this point in the season. If McCulley gets off to a quick start, look for Mancuso to control the time of possession with the running game. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m.

Notre Dame's girls soccer team beat Fillmore today for their first-ever sectional win, 1-0.

Pete Welker supplied us with three photos from the game. Above, Burgandy Bartlett kicks the only goal of the game.

Bailee Welker

Tess Diskin with the ball.

Submitted by Mike Henry:

The Batavia Bulldawgs varsity squad beat Akron 36-12 to earn a spot in the NOFA League Championship game. They will play Bar-Lyn next Saturday at 5 p.m. in Medina.

Photo and info submitted by Justine Bonarigo:

Batavia High School's varsity cheerleading squad placed first in the Co-Ed Division at Webster Schroeder Competition held Sunday. They will take on the sectional competition this Saturday at R.I.T. for the Class B division title.

The team includes: Samantha Saraceni (captain), Codie Grazioplene (captain), Macey McCulley, Whitney Athoe, James Murphy, Megan Wilcox, Miranda Reed, Heather Lewis, Makaela Kitcho, Katie Garlock, Danielle DellaPenna, Kayla Corp, Alexandria Ernst, Allison Smith, Teiona Kemp and Alex Rebman. Coached by Marianne Sallome and Justine Bonarigo.

Notre Dame has faced Dundee in four of the past five seasons of sectional play, losing in overtime on a questionable no-call penalty, falling in a blow-out where some thought Dundee ran up the score, and then failing to hold a late fourth-quarter lead.

The tables were turned on Dundee today as the Fighting Irish notched a first-round victory 28-6.

ND went after Dundee with a well-distributed offense. Touchdowns were scored by Nick Taylor, Tim Culley and Anthony Paladino. McCulley also connected with Taylor on a TD pass.

McCulley was 7-15 on the day for 128 yards, the TD, plus two interceptions.

Taylor gained 128 yards on 17 carries. He also had four receptions for 65 yards. Andrew Mullen rushed 13 times for 91 yards.

Charlie Bebert caught the ball three times for 63 yards.

Defensively, Taylor had six tackles, Brian VonKramer, five, Herbert, 5.5 and Mullen 4.5. Mullen added an interception, as did Josh Johnson. Joe Ryan notched a sack.

For Dundee, Aksel Jensen scored their lone TD and rushed five times for 27 yards.

Photos by Bare Antolos.

More photos by Bare after the jump (click on the headline):

Bath put together two long drives in the first and second quarter, grinding out yards down after down, three and four yards at a time with runs up the gut, chewing up the clock.

On the first drive, a fumble on the two-yard line put the ball into the hands of the Elba/Byron-Bergen offense, but the Lancers were forced to punt four downs later.

On the second drive, the Rams punched through the right side of the Lancers line, and those six points stood the test of the remaining time.

In the second quarter, the Lancers' defense turned back Bath possession after possession, forcing multiple three-and-outs and claiming a couple of turn overs.

But tit-for-tat, the Rams' defense remained just as stout, bottling up the Lancers' big back, Zack DuBois, whose only long run from scrimmage was canceled by a penalty.

"They did a nice job of taking away cutback lanes and that’s where Zack has his success, cut back or get to the outside," said Lancers Head Coach Michael Cintorino.

This was a game fought in the trenches.

"We knew we had to come out and play physical football and I think they did," Cintorino said. "It was a little bit of an awakening in the first half. In the second half, I think we came out and did exactly what we needed to do."

As the clock wore down in the fourth quarter, QB Zac Gillard was forced to look for open receivers down field and with less than three minutes to go he thought he found Kyle Dougherty. But Dougherty lost his footing when he tried to cut on the soggy turf. That left Bath's Matt Nevius alone to play centerfield and haul in Gillard's pass with a basket catch.

Another interception on the Lancers' next possession pretty much sealed Elba/BB's fate and sent the Rams to the next round of sectional play. Next Saturday, they play Le Roy.

"This is a team that can definitely make a run, but at the same time I’m proud of our boys, who came out and had an opportunity to win the football game on multiple occasions," Cintorino said.

Bath had lost this year to Batavia and Le Roy, but coming into sectionals, the Rams have two starters returning from injuries, including one, Cintorino said, who otherwise missed the entire season.

"We knew coming in they were a good team," Cintorino said. "We’re the third-seeded team and we’re playing a team that probably should have been somewhere in the top four. If you could squeeze five teams into the top four, Bath definitely belongs there."

Most of this year's Lancers have been playing together since eighth grade and they've come a long way as a team, as players and as men, Cintorino said.

"I am extremely proud of them," Cintorino said. "I wish we could have gotten a couple of more weeks of play together, but I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished in the time we’ve had."

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It was the running game that once again carried Le Roy to victory.

The Oatkan Knights rushed for 1,975 yards this season. Peter Privitera ran for nearly half of those yards, but with the junior out due to injury, the Knights leaned on a stable of backs to run past Holley in their Class C first round matchup, 26 to 18.

After averaging 282 yards per game on the ground during the regular season, Le Roy pounded the Holley defense for 314 yards on 58 attempts.

In the absence of Privitera, Coach Brian Moran used Tom Kelso, Marcus Mistersaro, Dylan Johnson and Kylan Carter to fill the void. While Mistersaro and Kelso have played an integral part of the offense all season long, it was Carter who stepped up with several big runs.

Coming into the game, Carter had only carried the ball two times all season.

On the last home game of his career, he exploded for 110 yards on nine carries, including a 52-yard dash that helped set up the second touchdown of the game.

“This was our last home game and I held nothing back,” Carter said. “I played like a senior tonight.”

Another senior stepped up to the plate for the Knights, and that was fullback Dylan Johnson, who accounted for all 26 Le Roy points. Johnson scored four touchdowns and added two extra points, including the game-winning 18-yard run and PAT with 2:16 remaining in the ball game.

Le Roy got a break early, as Holley marched into Knights’ territory on the first drive of the game, but Mistersaro recovered a Nick Conklin fumble on a short yardage play.

After a few Kelso runs, Mistersaro burst free for a 35-yard scamper to set up a Johnson scoring plunge. Johnson would score again to put the Knights up 13-0 at the end of the first quarter

It appeared as if Le Roy might run away with the game, but the Hawks responded quickly.

Holley senior running back Cadizsh Norford took control of the second frame, cutting the lead to 13-6 as he darted up the middle for a 23-yard touchdown run.

After forcing Le Roy to punt on their next possession, the Hawks got the ball on their own 38 with just before halftime. On the first play of the drive, Norford took a direct snap, faked a pass and sprinted 62 yards for another touchdown to make the score 13 to 12 at the half.

“I’ve been here 24 years and [Norford] is as good as I’ve ever seen,” Moran said.

In desperate need of keeping the ball out of Norford’s hands after running for 124 yards on nine carries in the first half, the Knights proceeded to march 60 yards on 18 plays, consuming 10:45 of the third quarter. The long drive was capped by Johnson’s third touchdown of the game.

Even after a chop block penalty pushed them back 15 yards, the Le Roy offense continued to pound at the Hawks' defense until reaching the end zone.

“That’s old-school Le Roy football,” Moran said. “It shows that our kids are physically fit and it shows their mental preparation.”

Norford fired right back, receiving a pass from Kyle Bell for a 43-yard touchdown, cutting the deficit to 19-18.

After trading punts, the Knights embarked on an 80-yard scoring drive that took up 5:31 on the clock, and was finished off by Johnson’s final touchdown with 2:16 remaining to seal the game.

Moran made a point to control the clock in the second half, particularly with the explosive Norford on the opposite side. Le Roy dominated the time of possession down the stretch, ticking off 20:49.

When Holley took possession down 26-18, they had run only six offensive plays in the entire half.

“It does two things,” he said. “It puts pressure on them to score touchdowns and it puts us in a good situation to win because we have used up so much time.”

Holley (4-4) played a hard-fought game, with Norford finishing with 10 carries for 141 yards and two touchdowns, while catching four passes for 68 yards and a touchdown.

Kelso finished the game with 80 yards on 26 carries, while Mistersaro racked up 90 yards for the second consecutive week.

Le Roy (7-1) advances to the Class C Semi-Finals next Saturday at Sahlen’s Stadium in Rochester for a 1:30 p.m. start.

They will play the winner of today's Elba/Byron-Bergen and Bath game.

In other Friday night sectional play: Batavia fell to East Rochester in a Section V playoff match, 35-20. Justin Washington scored on a 14-yard pass from Brett Scheuerlein in the second quarter. In the fourth, James Soggs scored on a six-yard run and Cody Swimline caught a five-yard pass from Scheuerlein for another TD.

In Connors and Ferris Bowl games, Cal-Mum beat Alexander, 36-6, Oakfield-Alabama beat Bolivar-Richburg 42-0 and Pembroke topped Geneseo 26-0.

In other Section V playoff action today, Notre Dame hosts longtime post-season nemesis Dundee.

In other games of note on Friday, Attica stomped Mynderse 61-8, and Hornell, which dropped down a class this season, continued its 40+ game winning streak, beating Wayland-Cohocton 41-13. Elba, Le Roy, Attica and Hornell are all Class C teams. Hornell and Attica face off in a semi-final game next week in Rochester.

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Photos by Howard Owens.

Alexander High School has never had a hockey team, but starting this season, players there will get to play varsity level hockey for the first time.

Batavia HS is facing a shortage of varsity level players this year, so Alexander and Batavia will come together to form the Batavia/Alexander Ice Devils.

Batavia Athletic Director Mike Bromley said when school officials realized there would be a shortage of players this year, the school held a meeting with the parents of hockey players and the parents took the initiative to get the puck rolling on a possible merger with Alexander.

Once the idea was raised, things came together pretty quickly, Bromley said.

"Several students (in Alexander) expressed an interest," Bromley said. "We expect that anywhere from five to 10 students may try out."

The problem the Ice Devils faced, Bromley said, is that several seniors graduated after last season and then three varsity players elected to play in another, more advanced, hockey league.

That left Batavia not only with fewer players but also with a team of mostly ninth- and 10th-graders.

"There's a lot of hitting in hockey," Bromley said. "Hockey can be just as tough physically as football, but where you play only one game a week in football, with hockey sometimes you play two or three games a week, and trying to play ninth- and 10th-graders out there could be tough."

For Alexander, the opportunity is welcome by administrators, parents and players alike, said Athletic Director Ben Whitmore.

"All of these kids play together in youth leagues and they always dreamed of playing high school hockey, so to be able to give them that chance is very exciting," Whitmore said.

#7 Batavia Blue Devils (3-4) vs. #2 East Rochester/Gananda Bombers (6-1)
7 p.m., Friday

Batavia enters their Class B first round matchup against East Rochester/Gananda riding a three-game losing streak, and has lost three out of the last four.

Despite the recent lack of success and a few injuries this week, first year Head Coach Brennan Briggs is still optimistic about his team’s chances of pulling off the upset.

“We are due to play 48 minutes of football because we haven’t in the last three weeks,” Briggs said. “If we execute and know our assignments, we can win this football game.”

To key to the Blue Devils’ success will be the playmaking ability of wide receiver Justin Washington. The senior is capable of making big plans in the return game, running and catching the ball.

“We have been working on a few different ways to get him the ball, whether it’s running or passing,” Briggs said. “We think [Washington] is the best athlete on the field on any given night.”

If Washington can break loose, and the Blue Devils overcome their injuries, they have a chance to beat the Bombers on Friday night.

#7 Holley Hawks (4-3) vs. #2 Le Roy Oatkan Knights (6-1)
7 p.m., Friday

Second-seeded Le Roy will host the seventh seed Holley in the first round of the Section V Class C Football Playoffs on Friday night in a matchup of Livingston County and Genesee Region League teams.

Le Roy is coming off an emotional come-from-behind win against rival Cal-Mum last week, as they scored 10 points in the final four minutes of the game to squeak out a victory.

The Knights’ only loss on the season came against Perry in Week 6, but leading rusher Peter Privitera did not play in the game, nor did he last week due to injury. Privitera has rushed for 834 yards and 10 touchdowns in five games this season, while Marcus Mistersaro has 362 yards, 3 touchdowns and 9.8 yards per carry.

Mistersaro stepped in for the injured Privitera last week and ran for 90 yards, including 63 on the game-winning drive against Cal-Mum.

Le Roy averages 282 rushing yards per game, so Holley will have to slow down the running attack in order to have an opportunity to win.

While the Hawks enter the game with more wins than losses, they have a 1-3 record against teams with a winning record for the season.

#6 Bath Rams (4-3) vs. #2 Elba/Byron-Bergen Lancers (6-1)
1:30 p.m., Saturday

Elba/Byron-Bergen will host Bath in a Class C first round matchup on Saturday afternoon and the player to watch is undoubtedly Lancers running back Zack DuBois.

The senior led the Genesee Region League in rushing with 1,572 yards and 16 touchdowns. DuBois also ran for 200 yards in 5 of 7 games he played this year, and never rushed for less than 113. His average of 224.6 yards per game and 10.3 yards per carry were also tops in the league.

If Elba can get DuBois rolling early, it will open up the passing game for quarterback Zac Gillard, who has 881 yards, 12 touchdowns and only 3 interceptions on the season.

Defensively, they are led by four-time Section V Class C Defensive Player of the Week Andy Underhill.

The junior linebacker led the Lancers with 132 tackles, averaging almost 19 per game. While Bath comes in with a 1-3 record against teams with winning records, they did defeat a strong Livonia squad, so the Rams will be a tough first round matchup for Elba/Byron-Bergen.

#4 Dundee Scotsmen (3-4) vs. #1 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-1)
1:30 p.m., Saturday

While Notre Dame is coming off an emotional high last week after defeating Attica to force a three-way tie for the Genesee Region League Championship, the 76 to 14 drubbing that Dundee gave the Irish in the 2009 Class D Championship game is still fresh in the mind of Head Coach Rick Mancuso.

Notre Dame will look to avenge that loss and the attack will begin with do-it-all quarterback Tim McCulley. The junior led the G-R League in passing yards and his 16 touchdown passes were also tops in the league.

McCulley is also extremely effective running the ball if the pocket breaks down, as he did last week 11 times for 79 yards. The McCulley-to-Jared Thornton connection has been hot as of late, with the two hooking up 10 times for 240 yards and 3 touchdowns in the victory against Attica.

If Dundee wants to upset the number-one seed in Class D, they will have to do so by shutting down Irish passing attack.

Notre Dame fell in the Class D Finals a year ago, and has not won a championship since 2006.