The Notre Dame Boys Basketball Team was honored last night in Rochester at the Section V banquet. The award was for finishing the season as the #1 seed in Class D1. The Fighting Irish open their sectional play at home Saturday. Game time is 7 p.m. and ND will play the winner of a round one match between Elba and Finney.
Photo submitted by Shelley Falitico.
We were remiss earlier this week in not posting about Laurie Call of Notre Dame reaching a significant basketball career milestone -- her 400th steal. She's the first player in Notre Dame history -- boys or girls -- to reach 400 steals. Pictured with Laurie are her parents Tim and Dawn.
Photo submitted by Tim Call.
Le Roy almost pulled off an upset against archrival Cal-Mum on Wednesday night.
But there's no almost in basketball. And there are no moral victories.
"They played good," said Rick Rapone, Le Roy's first-year head coach. "But you've got to play 32 minutes. You can't play 31 minutes and 50 seconds. You've got to play it the whole way out."
With the score knotted at 57, the Red Raiders took possession of the ball with less than 20 seconds left on the game clock.
It only took a couple of passes to get the ball to a wide open Chris Wilson just beyond the arch. His three-point swoosh gave Cal-Mum the lead with only 4.8 seconds left.
Three points is a big deficit to erase with only a few ticks to go and the Oatkan Knights were forced to settle -- no matter how well the game was played for 31 minutes and 50 seconds -- with a 60-57 loss.
"I told the kids I'll feel good when we finish one of these games off," Rapone said. "We've got to play 32 minutes."
Le Roy finishes the regular season with a 7-11 record and will open sectional play Feb. 18 against Bath-Haverling (8-10).
An upset over the 17-1 Red Raiders would have given Rapone's program a nice boost, but he still feels good about his team heading into the championship rounds.
The Oatkan Knights under Rapone play a fast-paced offense and pressure defense that should give a lot of teams fits.
"You really don't want to play us," Rapone said.
"Our program is going in the right direction," Rapone said. "We have gotten better every single week since I started and we're hoping now this catapults us into the tournament."
The Knights certainly had Cal-Mum's Dan Dickens pulling at his collar in the second quarter and the Raider's fans on the visitors' side of the bleachers grumbling, "we're better than this."
With the Raiders down by a dozen points in the second period, Dickens called a time out, sat his starters down and gave them a good tongue lashing.
A Raider's fan told another, "they deserve it."
But it's hard to stop a hot hand and Knights certainly had that going for them in the first half, dropping six three-point shots (compared to none in the second half).
As the second quarter wound down, Cal-Mum cut Le Roy's lead to two points and the second half would be a battle with neither team gaining a clear advantage until those fateful closing seconds.
"We held them to 60 points," Rapone said. "I don't think they've been held to 60 points very many times this season."
Zack Moore led the Knights with 20 points, including two threes, and going four of six from the foul line. Nick Egling had 10 points, including a pair of threes in the first quarter. Mike McCullen was four of five from the foul line and finished with six points. Ethan Witkowski and Kody Lamkin had seven points each.
Kurtis Haut and Will Van Auken had 18 points each for Cal-Mum and Chris Wilson scored 13.
For Le Roy, Lamkin had eight rebounds and Moore had seven. Steve Cappotelli and Moore each had three assists.
For Cal-Mum, Van Auken was a monster on the boards with 13 rebounds. He also blocked four shots.
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Around Christmastime, things were looking bleak for the Notre Dame basketball team.
In a span of 10 days, the Fighting Irish had their 70-game Genesee Region League winning streak snapped by Wheatland-Chili, and then they were beaten by Batavia in the Lions Club Tournament final.
Chances of winning their eighth consecutive G-R League title looked to be slipping away. But since the new year, Notre Dame has gone 9-1 and a win on Senior Night against the very same Wildcat team that had pounded them earlier in the season would give them a share of the league championship.
Just like in the past 10 games, Notre Dame responded to adversity and defeated Wheatland-Chili to tie them for the league crown, 74-57.
“We are playing better now,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Mike Rapone of his team’s progress. “At that time we were still struggling as a team, but now I think we have found our identity.”
The first quarter was marred by fouls, as both teams struggled to find a rhythm offensively.
Wildcats star guard Rodney Roberts managed 11 points in the first quarter, nine of which came from the foul line, but it was Notre Dame who led 17-15.
The Fighting Irish came out hot to start the second quarter, scoring the first seven points of the frame.
Tim McCulley began to go to work at that time, scoring eight Notre Dame points in a row.
“He just takes what’s there,” said Rapone of McCulley. “If you give it to him he takes it, if not he gives it to somebody else. He just does so many things well.”
Wheatland-Chili managed stay close, using the three-point line to their advantage and knocking down four triples in the quarter to cut the deficit to five at halftime.
The third quarter started as a shoot-out between stars.
McCulley scored 13 of his game-high 36 points in the quarter, while Roberts matched him with 13 of his 30 points on the night.
Then toward the end of the quarter McCulley got some help from his friends.
The Fighting Irish finished the quarter on a 10-2 run to pull away. A big factor was senior Alec Covel, who scored eight of his 13 points in the second half to give the Irish a second scoring punch.
“Alec is real good ball player,” Rapone said. “In the last couple of games he’s really found himself. That’s what we need going forward.”
One factor in the early season win by Wheatland-Chili was the play of forward Andre’ Gulley, who dominated with 18 points and 24 rebounds.
Notre Dame also played without big man Caleb Nellis in that contest, and first-year senior Charlie Herbert had little experience at the time.
Two months seemed to do the trick, as Nellis scored nine points and grabbed seven rebounds, while Herbert added four points and nine rebounds.
Meanwhile, Gulley was held in check all evening, managing only four points and six rebounds before fouling out midway through the fourth quarter.
McCulley was also superb in every aspect of the game, adding 12 rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks to go with his 36 points as Notre Dame (15-3) appears to peaking as they head into sectionals.
“I told them before the game that starting tonight, it’s about winning,” Rapone said. “The rest of the time it’s about getting better, but now it’s about winning. We needed to win to win the league tonight. Now we need to win to keep playing.”
Roberts added six rebounds to go along with his 30 points, while cousin Tyler Roberts connected on four three-pointers and scored 16 points for Wheatland-Chili (15-3).
It’s a game every athlete dreams of.
It’s senior night on the road against your big rival, with sectional implications on the line.
That’s what Le Roy was facing against Cal-Mum…and Montana Vescovi responded by pouring in a career-high 37 points and leading the Oatkan Knights to a comeback victory, avenging an earlier defeat to the Lady Raiders, 62-45.
In their first contest this season, freshman Gillian Flint went off for 25 points in a 5-point Cal-Mum win, and the start of this game appeared as if she was picking up where she left off.
Flint, who has been averaging 20 points per game over her last four contests, scored 11 points in the first quarter as Cal-Mum raced out to a 9-point lead.
Every aspect of Le Roy’s game seemed to be sputtering, as Vescovi only attempted one field goal from the field (a miss) and went 5-of-12 from the foul line in the first frame.
The second quarter was a different story however, as the Knights scored the first nine points to tie the game at 17.
Vescovi also came alive, scoring 10 points in the period, including eight in a row at one point.
“It was a hostile crowd, I told them to just settle down and relax,” said Le Roy Head Coach Brian Herdlein. “I just told my girls that they were going to have a run and they needed to just keep doing what they were doing.”
The Knights clamped down on Flint, holding her scoreless in the quarter, but Cal-Mum junior Hannah Anderson took charge, scoring six points in a row, and Adrianna Molisani buried a three-pointer at the buzzer to take a 28-25 lead into halftime.
But, Vescovi came out firing in the third quarter, scoring 11 points in the frame.
“She’s an exceptional player,” Herdlein said of Vescovi. “She’s always been a scorer, but she’s added to her game. I tell her all the time that there aren’t a lot of people that can stop her. Mentally she came to play and she didn’t want to lose tonight.”
The Knights took a 39-37 lead with 2:39 remaining in the quarter and never relinquished it.
Le Roy held Cal-Mum just four points, and Vescovi scored 11 more points to vanquish their rivals eight miles up Route 5.
Even more impressive, Flint was held to just seven points after her monster first quarter.
“Flint came out on fire,” Herdlein said. “We really needed to have a girl stay on her the whole time and deny her the ball. I think we did a better job of that as the game went along.”
The Knights also got a strong game from senior Alicia Conte, who finished with 13 points, 12 rebounds and three steals.
Vescovi’s 37 points puts her just 32 shy of 1,000 for her career, but she was solid in every facet of this game, adding nine rebounds and three steals to her stat line.
This win was not just important because of the rivalry, but because the win guarantees Le Roy (9-8) the fourth seed in Class B2 and one more home game.
“This was huge for us,” Herdlein said. “Any time you can play in this kind of environment, it gets you ready for that sectional environment. It’s always rough, you have to play four quarters and that’s what we had to do tonight.”
Flint finished with 18 points and six rebounds for Cal-Mum (11-7), while Anderson added 14 points and nine rebounds.
Le Roy track and field standout Ruben Owens, front row center, signed a national letter of intent yesterday to attend the University of Arkansas on a full scholarship.
Owens has won Section V titles in the high jump, long jump and triple jump. In all, for both winter and spring seasons, Owens holds 11 Section V titles.
He holds the school records in the high, long and triple jump.
Information and photo submitted by Tim McArdle.
The Notre Dame girls are just one win away from clinching their 11th Genesee Region League title in school history after pounding Elba, 69-37.
The resounding victory also marks the first time that the Lady Irish have swept Elba in league play since the 2010-2011 season.
The Lady Lancers kept things close in the first quarter, but Notre Dame blew the game open in the second, led by Mel Taylor.
Taylor scored 12 of her game-high 24 points in the second quarter as the Irish increased their seven-point lead after the first quarter to 23 at half time.
“It’s getting down near crunch time,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Dave Pero. “We’re trying to stress that you have to be more aggressive on whatever you do [well]. Mel is a scorer and we want her to try and score as much as possible.”
In the third quarter, junior Emma Francis picked up where Taylor left off, scoring 10 of her 15 points in the frame to put the contest out of reach.
“Emma’s got potential,” Pero said. “She’s starting to believe in herself and it’s a great time to believe. If we have Emma Francis at full-go come sectional time, we’ll be a tough team to beat.”
Taylor was not as terrific scoring the ball, but she had a splendid game overall, adding 11 rebounds, six steals and four assists.
Shea Norton also played strong underneath, scoring 13 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Laurie Call chipped in with seven steals, six assists and five rebounds for Notre Dame (15-1).
Kelsey Bezon had another solid game in defeat, scoring 14 points and grabbing four rebounds. Haley Brown chipped in with 10 points for Elba (12-4).
Photos by Howard Owens
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Brian Moran, with 194 career wins and 14 sectional titles, announced at Le Roy's annual football banquet Sunday evening that next year, his 26th leading the Oatkan Knights, will be his last as head coach.
"At the end of next year, I'll be 55 and I'll have either coached or played since I was 12," Moran said. "When we hired Brian Herdlein (left in photo), we had a conversation with him as a district about taking over for me. He's been in the program long enough and it just feels like it's time for him to take over the program."
Le Roy will return to the gridiron with a pretty talented team for the 2014 season, which should give Moran a great opportunity to notch his 200th career win, a milestone he said is in fact something he'd like to achieve.
"You think about it when you're young, getting to 200, but when you get here what you think about most are the memories," Moran said. "People don't realize as you get older, those are the things that are important. I've had a lot of great memories with a lot of great coaches and players and the support of our community, which just makes it a privilege to coach here."
Each senior player, such as Brandon Van Grol, above, received a small football helmet on a plaque. In each case, Moran shared a word of praise for each player.
At times, last night, it seemed almost impossible for Notre Dame's Tim McCulley to miss a shot from beyond the arc.
The senior standout hit six three-pointers on his way to a career high 35 points for the game and a 82-63 victory for the Fighting Irish (11-3).
"He had a big game," Head Coach Mike Rapone said. "He shot the ball well, but he also passed the ball well. He kept everybody involved. He moved the ball around. That's what he's capable of doing. He's really a multidimensional player. He sets up a lot of guys, too."
McCulley is closing in on a career 1,000 points.
Prattsburg never really threatened Notre Dame and the Irish pretty much closed the game out in the third period, outscoring the Vikings 29-21.
With a little more support around point guard Isaiah King, the Vikings (now 7-8) might have made more of a game of it.
King scored 22 points, but also created numerous scoring opportunities for his teammates with smart, on-target passing and a few key steals. He gave the Irish fits until he fouled out late in the fourth quarter.
"We gave up too much dribble penetration for my liking," Rapone said. "Thirteen (King) hurt us on the dribble penetration. He's a good ball player, but we've got to stop that better than we did tonight.
"He's quick and he's strong," Rapone added. "He's left-handed and you don't see a lot of left handers so kids have trouble adjusting. He caused us quite a few problems."
Rapone said the Irish are maturing as a team and he likes what he's seeing. Even in the loss earlier this week to University Prep, Rapone said he thought the team played well.
"We're starting to come together as a team," Rapone said.
In addition to his 35 points, McCulley 10 rebounds, eight assists and four steals. Josh Johnson scored 14 points, including a pair of threes. Alec Covel had nine points as did Jason Hart. Caleb Nellis had eight. Dylan Fix, coming off the bench in the closing minutes, scored on a layup, bringing a big cheer from the home crowd.
For Prattsburgh, Baird Cameron was the only other player, besides King, in double digits scoring, with 11.
In the stands for the game was Jim Burke, a Section V Hall of Fame coach who amassed 517 wins leading the Prattsburgh boys for a number of years (Burke also had 177 victories coaching girls varsity). The only coach in the room last night with more boys varsity wins was Mike Rapone, who has 617 wins and counting.
Josh Johnson
Isaiah King and Charlie Herbert
Prattsburgh Head Coach Brian Putnam had a few disputes with the refs in the 4th quarter, eventually getting a technical foul after complaining about the foul call (which could have gone either way) that was King's fifth, causing him to foul out.
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An estimated 220,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and every 1 out of 8 women will be diagnosed in their lifetime.
Tonight Pembroke High School took a big step in helping to find a cure with its third annual Shoot for a Cure game against Oakfield-Alabama.
No admission was charged all evening, while all concession sales and donations were directly given to the Roswell Cancer Institute in Buffalo.
Not only were the gymnasium and hallways decked out in pink, but so were the Pembroke players, who wore all pink uniforms in honor of breast cancer awareness. They even played with a pink basketball.
Pembroke Head Coach Michael Wilson spearheaded the event after Athletic Director Ron Funke’s wife was diagnosed with breast cancer three years ago. A few players suggested a “pink game” and it took off from there. Most importantly, several women in the Pembroke community and school district were honored at halftime for surviving their fight with the disease.
Between the junior varsity and varsity contests, several people even donated their hair for “Bald for Bucks.” The Buffalo Bisons also displayed their support as mascot Buster T. Bison attended the contest.
“These kids have been all over Rochester, Buffalo and Batavia promoting this event and collecting donations,” Wilson said. “I’ve got an incredibly compassionate group of kids and they love it. You could see that in the way they played tonight. They were definitely shooting for a cure.”
The Lady Dragons certainly played with a purpose, as they routed Oakfield-Alabama 52-18.
Pembroke pulled away in the second quarter and never looked back as they outscored the Hornets 14-1 in the frame.
Rylee Moser led the way, scoring a game-high 13 points, while Aralyse Johnson scored 11 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, and Breanna Johnson chipped in with 11 points, seven rebounds and three steals for Pembroke (10-3).
“Getting a win on the court means a lot, but tonight was about recognizing women in the district who are currently battling breast cancer or who have won their battle or those that we have lost,” Wilson said. “It’s more about these kids coming together, showing that they’re civic-minded and showing that they are compassionate.”
In total, the night yielded nearly $10,000 that will be donated directly to Roswell by the entire Pembroke girl’s basketball team.
Photos by Howard Owens.
Sherie Grande was among the local breast cancer survivors who received a rose from a Pembroke player at half time.
The month of January has been a nightmare for the Notre Dame Hockey Team, but yesterday afternoon it may have woken up as the players defeated Batavia/Alexander, 2-1.
The Fighting Irish came into the contest just 1-4 this month, and had lost four straight by a combined score of 28 to 4. But, the win against crosstown rival Batavia/Alexander is a step in the right direction.
“We’ve been struggling recently,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Marc Staley. “We had two good practices getting prepared for this. We felt that we had hit rock bottom and the good thing about rock bottom is that you’re done falling. We thought we would come out and play a good game tonight.”
Notre Dame came out fast in the first period, controlling play for the majority of the period before Spencer Misiak pounced on a loose puck and put it by Blue Devil goaltender James Cryer 7:25 into the game.
“We wanted to focus on puck possession,” Staley said. “I thought we did a great job of that in the first period. We wanted to wear their defense down. The more we kept the puck down low, the more we can keep it out off of the stick of guys like Rich Francis.”
Just like the Irish did to start the game, Batavia/Alexander came out fast in the second period and their leading scorer, Francis, was able to get loose.
Francis picked up a nice pass from Julien Schimley and deked out goaltender Tyler Stroud for his 10th goal of the season.
“I think we had a little letdown in the second period,” Staley said. “But we also had three penalties called against us in the period, so that took a little steam out of us. We got focused again after the second period and righted the ship.”
The Irish would strike again on what would be the game-winner as Kevin Moscicki blasted a shot from the point that got through less than two minutes into the third period.
The Notre Dame defense did the rest of the work as Stroud stood tall in goal, making 19 saves on the night.
“Moscicki did a great job just getting it through to the net,” Staley said. “This game against Batavia is always that way. It’s one bounce or another and it ended up bouncing our way tonight.”
Cryer faced a barrage of shots all night, stopping 32 of 34 shots on the night for Batavia/Alexander (4-9-0).
“A win is always important,” Staley said. “We needed a win at this time of the year just to lift the spirits in the locker room.”
Notre Dame improves to 5-9-1.
They say you can’t teach size, and that was evident as Greece Arcadia out-muscled Batavia en route to a 61-56 win in Monroe County League play.
The Blue Devils got off to a slow start in the first quarter, as the Titans imposed their will inside and raced out to a 20-7 lead after the first frame.
“[Arcadia] is a physically tough team,” said Batavia Head Coach Buddy Brasky. “They’re the most talented team in the division. But, I was disappointed with our lack of toughness to start. We’re not big, we’re not strong, but we’re usually pretty scrappy. For some reason we didn’t bring that toughness to start the first quarter.”
Batavia scrapped their way back throughout the game, cutting the lead to as few as six in the second half after switching defenses and getting back-to-back three-pointers from Jerrett Laskett.
“I thought their size was hurting us in man-to-man,” Brasky said. “We switch on screens and we got some bad mismatches. We were hoping that the zone would get them a little more stationary. I thought it worked well, it helped get us back in the game.”
The leading scorers for the Blue Devils, Jeff Redband and Justice Fagan, struggled to find room to breathe all night and were smothered by the Arcadia defense.
Laskett stepped up in the second half while the defense was keyed in on Redband and Fagan. The junior reserve knocked down three three-point field goals in the second half and finished with 14 points.
“Everybody is taking Redband and Justice out of the game,” Brasky said. “Until someone else starts scoring consistently, it’s going to be difficult to be good teams. The tough thing is, the guys we’re asking to score are young guys.”
The Blue Devils, however, struggled all night to find an answer for Arcadia’s big men.
6-foot-6 senior Josh McFarland dominated inside all night, scoring 15 points, pulling 18 rebounds, blocking two shots and making two steals.
Jimmie Eddington, a 6-foot-5 senior, chipped in 14 points and grabbed five rebounds for Arcadia (7-4).
Fagan finished with a team-high 15 points, while Redband chipped in with 14, and Malachi Chenault added 11 points and eight rebounds for Batavia (7-4).
Top Photo: Jeff Redband attracted a crowd everywhere he went last night. A foul was called on the defense.
Photos by Howard Owens.
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Jeff Redband, again in a sea of maroon jerseys.
Jerrett Laskett driving for the basket.
Greg Mruczek awaits a rebound opportunity during a free-throw attempt.
Jerrett Laskett scores on a layup in the fourth quarter.
It's an established pattern for the Blue Devils so far this season: doldrums in the fourth quarter make it hard for Batavia close out a game.
Last night against Odyssey, the home squad turned a double-digit lead into a one-point deficit with 56 seconds left in the final period.
Clutch free throws in those closing seconds sealed a 57-55 victory for Batavia, but not without a few fingernails getting whittled down among the faithful.
"It's what happens every game," said Head Coach Buddy Brasky. "In the fourth quarters we can't score. We had a number of easy opportunities in that fourth quarter in the first four minutes or so, so we can maintain that lead or extend it and we missed them."
Fatigue late in the game for Jeff Redband and Justice Fagan, and defenses designed to thwart the two most consistent scores on the team, are the issues. Typically, the two standouts play nearly every minute of the game. Defenses run either a box and one (putting a man, typically, on Redband combined with an otherwise zone defense) or triangle and two(man on both Fagan and Redband and a three-defender zone).
It's a challenging puzzle for Brasky to solve.
"It's kind of hard because I can't afford to take Jeff and Justice out of the game for very long," Brasky said. "I don't have an answer to that, quite honestly. Other guys have to step up. They keep playing that triangle and two, and other guys are getting opportunities and they have to knock down some shots. That's the answer."
Batavia scored 17 in the first quarter, 20 in the second, 13 in the third and a miniscule seven in the fourth.
Last night, it was Jarrett Laskett who stepped up and took advantage of a lax defense in his vicinity. Laskett finished with 15 points, one more than Fagan's 14.
"Jarrett's capable of scoring," Brasky said. "He hadn't done it much, but he's starting to get a little bit of an opportunity now."
Redband led Batavia with 21 points, including three threes and eight free throws. He and Malachi Chenault had eight rebounds.
As the seconds ticketed away with the Blue Devils down a point, it was Redband the team turned to once again to sink the winning shots.
This time, the offense set Redband up on the near-side wing with a look at a three-point jumper. As he got the shot off he was fouled by an Odyssey player, sending him to the line with three opportunities to at least tie the game, if not give Batavia the lead.
Redband missed the first shot.
Were you nervous? Brasky was asked after the game. He smiled. "Yes," he said, "of course."
But with the game on the line, the ball in Redband's hands is never a bad thing. His shooting stroke as sweet and smooth as honey from the comb consistently delivers results.
"Jeff's clutch," Brasky said. "I really anticipated he would make all three. I would have been shocked if he didn't make at least two out of the three. Yeah, I was nervous, but he's clutch, so I didn't really doubt he would make two out of the three."
Two shots made and Batavia is up by one with 18 seconds left in the game. Odyssey fails to score on its possession and then Tyler Crawford is fouled.
Crawford came through at the line.
"Crawford's free throw, that was a big one, too," Brasky said. "That put us up two. All they could do was tie it. We're weren't going to give them a three at that point, so worst case scenario, unless we took stupid pills, it was going to be an overtime game."
Odyssey got the ball back with seven seconds left on the clock. Plenty of time to score. A dash down the court, a scramble under the board, shoot and miss, shoot and miss, and the final buzzer blares and the Blue Devils jump for joy.
Brasky-coached teams are drilled on defense and taught to never give up more than 13 points in a quarter.
Odyssey scored 16 points in the second quarter, but those final three points came on a prayer of a jumper from 20 feet out that hit the backboard and banked into the basket. Braskey said it was almost like it didn't count from a 13-point and under calculation.
"We held them to six or eight in the third (it was eight)," Brasky said. "So it was 57-55. That's three points more than we want to give them, and that's that banked three in the second quarter, so I was happy with the defense."
For Odyssey, a player Brasky said hasn't gotten a lot of playing time this year and has done very little scoring, Jamie Magone, came through big for the visitors, leading his team with 20 points. The only other player in double figures for Odyssey was Jacob Dixon, who had 14.
The win puts Batavia at 6-3 on the year and 2-1 in league play. The Blue Devils next play Eastridge on the road and come home again Jan. 17 for a game against Greece-Arcadia. Game time is 7:45 p.m.
Top photo: Jeff Redband is fouled as he takes a three-point shot in the closing seconds of the game.
Jeff Redband drives to the basket in the first quarter.
Justice Fagan looking for a lane to the basket in the first half.
Tyler Crawford grabs a loose ball during the second quarter.
Cheerleaders during their routine at the half.
Jeff Redband Inbounding the ball in the fourth quarter to Malachi Chenault.
Jarrett Laskett
Victory celebration
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The 25th edition of the Rotary Club of Batavia Basketball Tournament has certainly been eventful.
After the tournament was postponed because of the blizzard earlier this week, the teams finally took to the court at Genesee Community College and for the second straight season, Batavia and Notre Dame will meet in the finals.
The Lady Blue Devils were forced to play without leading scorer and rebounder Tiara Filbert due to injury, but they prevailed, defeating Alexander 44-36 in the first game of the night.
The two teams appeared evenly matched after two quarters of play, as Batavia took a four-point lead into halftime.
The Trojans came out hot in the second half, eventually tying the game at 23 midway through the third quarter.
The Blue Devils responded though, using a 14-2 run to end the frame, and at one point extended their lead to 14.
Batavia looked to miss Filbert in the fourth quarter though, as Alexander cut the lead to five with just under two minutes to play.
“To lose one of your top players, you’re not the same team,” said Batavia Head Coach Marty Hein. “But the defense shouldn’t have let down. I’m disappointed we didn’t play 32 minutes of defense.”
Madison McCulley came up big though, as she knocked down a three-pointer to extend the lead to eight and the Blue Devils would not look back.
Sophomore Sam Cecere came up big all night for Batavia, as she scored a game-high 16 points on the night.
“I told Sam that this was a real big stepping stone game for her,” Hein said. “Tiara wasn’t here and it was time for her to step up, and she did that. The last three or four games she has been progressively getting better.”
McCulley pitched in 11 points for Batavia, which improves to 7-1.
Prior to this week’s snowstorm, Perry was scheduled to take on Notre Dame in the second game, but when the games were postponed, they had to drop out due to conflict. So, C.G. Finney stepped in to take on the Fighting Irish.
Unfortunately, they were overmatched by the defending state champions.
Notre Dame opened the game on a 34-0 run and continued onward, cruising to an 87-13 victory.
“I thought we got a lot of good minutes out of a lot girls,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Dave Pero. “Down the road, you never know. We might need some of those girls. We have been getting good bench play all year and this helps.”
Mel Taylor led the way for Notre Dame, scoring a game-high 16 points, grabbing five rebounds and adding seven steals.
Rebecca Krenzer chipped in 12 points and six rebounds, while Shea Norton added 10 points and six rebounds and Burgundy Bartlett scored 11 points for Notre Dame (7-0).
Batavia and Notre Dame will meet in the championship game for the second consecutive season, as the Lady Irish took home the title with a 41-38 victory.
“Batavia is going to give us all we want,” Pero said.
“They will be ready for us. We played them last year in the finals and had a three-point game, and I don’t see it any different this year. They have good shooters and rebounders. We have to come out to play if we are going to take home the title again.”
The Blue Devils won the title back in 2012.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Saturday at Genesee Community College.
Photos by Howard Owens.
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The DellaPenna family is pretty certain this has never happened before in the history of Batavia basketball: Two sisters, on opposite sides of the court, cheering for their respective teams, when Batavia High School and Notre Dame meet Monday in the championship game of the Lions Club Tournament at GCC. Danielle is a senior at Batavia and Gabrielle is a freshman at ND.
Information and photo submitted by Tim Tucker.
Kendall proved to be just a bit much for Alexander to handle Friday night as the Eagles took command of the game in the first period and were never in danger of losing their lead.
The final, 63-41.
Alexander is now 3-2 on the year.
"We definitely had Kendall marked on our calendar," said Head Coach Josh Bender. "I think they're one of the best teams in the GR. They've got all the right pieces. They've got a big guy, athletic guards, shooters, size. It's tough when you don't have a 6'5" guy to battle their center. They're a pretty experienced bunch. Good coach. They run a good system."
The Tigers did a good job of getting good looks for themselves throughout the first half, and a lot of those shots dropped for points.
By the half, the Trojans were already down 37-18.
Kendall almost let Alexander sneak back into the game in the third quarter, scoring only eight points, but the Trojans found their own little scoring slump late in the period and only added 13 points for the eight minutes.
"I told the guys if we want to make a real run at it, we can't trade baskets," Bender said. "We were getting good looks. The high post area was open all night. We had cutters slashing, but at the end of the day, if you're trading baskets with a team like this, you're going to come up short."
Bender, in his first year as varsity coach after three years leading the JV squad, said his team is young yet. Even though it includes seven seniors, none of his starters got many minutes last year, he said.
"I think you'll see down the road, the more games we get in, the more cohesive we'll be and the more effective we'll be in game situations," Bender said.
Nelson Burke led the Trojans with 10 points.
For Kendall, four players were in double digits scoring. D'Andre Nauden, 12, Devin Appleton, 11, Garret Love, 14, and Isaiah Brown, 11.
In other Genesee County hoops action, Friday:
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The final score was as lopsided as the size differential between Notre Dame and Lyndonville in an early season basketball match on the home court of the Fighting Irish on Wednesday night.
The Irish notched the team's third win of the season 90-51.
While Notre Dame has some clear offensive firepower, the ability to grab rebounds at both ends of the court created more scoring opportunities.
"I thought the Lyndonville kids played hard," said ND's Head Coach Mike Rapone. "They got some good play off their guards, but they're undersized underneath and they had trouble with us off the boards."
The Tigers put only two 6'0" players on the court through all 32 minutes of play while the Irish could call on Jarrod Wall at 6'2", Josh Johnson at 6'1", Alec Covel at 6'2", Alex Domkowski at 6'3", Tim McCulley at 6'3" and Charlie Herbert at 6'5".
In some ways, Herbert was the story of the game.
Called upon to start at center after Caleb Nellis sprained his ankle in practice yesterday, Herbert, who never played basketball at all before this year, left Rapone wondering what could be if the school's star wide receiver listened to his peers begging him last year to fullfill their hoops dreams.
"I think had he played last year he'd really be a force this year because he gets better every day," Rapone said. "I think by the end of the season, he's going to be pretty solid."
Herbert, whose past athletic prowess was confined to the gridiron showed a strong sense of how to muscle opponents under the glass for points and rebounds.
With 10 rebounds, only he and McCulley (13) reached double digits. Herbert, with eight points, missed a double-double by one field goal.
McCulley also had 23 points and with three more assists would have had a triple-double.
Guard Josh Johnson was second on the team in scoring with 18, and had eight rebounds, but only two assists.
Covel and Domkowski each added eight points.
Lyndonville scored 18 points in the first half, but most of that came before more than a couple of minutes had passed in the second period as ND's full-court press cut off passing lanes, forced mistakes and eventually wore down the Tigers.
Even ND's bench, taking over much of the duties about half-way through the second period, kept the pressure on Lyndonville.
While Rapone put his starters back in the game to start the third period, he stopped using the press (because it was the right thing to do, he said), and the Tigers went on a little scoring run and got enough looks through the half to notch 31 points.
Pat Hinkson (15) and Evan Milleville (11) led the Tigers in scoring.
Even so, the play of the second team was impressive. They stayed calmed, stuck to the game plan and stayed aggressive through the final minute of play.
"They work us hard in practice every day," Rapone said. "What I like about them is they play basketball when they come in. They don't just see who can get a shot off first. They run our offense. They run our defense. They do what they're supposed to do. I'm really proud of them."
Ironically, perhaps, among the leaders on the second team was the shortest player to handle a ball Wednesday, 5'6" junior Dylan Fix.
Fix was in control with a ball in his hands, making few mistakes, staying confident and calm and demonstrating an unmistakeable fearlessness. He shot laser-sharp passes between defenders, fought for rebounds against bigger players and fired three-pointers with every open look, even though it was an off night for his shooting stroke.
"He plays hard," Rapone said. "He knows they game. He shoots the ball very well. He didn't have one of his better shooting nights tonight, but normally he shoots the ball very well. The only thing that's ever held him back is he's a little undersized. He grew a little bit during this year and hopefully he grows a little more next year. He's definitely comes in and makes things happen."
Top photo: McCulley; bottom photo, Fix.
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Notre Dame 83, Elba 39
Tim McCulley scored 25 points and had 10 rebounds to lead the Fighting Irish to their second win of the season.
The Elba Lancers opened up the scoring in the first quarter when John Hochmuth put up three points, but they quickly found themselves behind later in the second quarter.
The Lancers were not able to stop Tim McCulley as he scored 21 points on 18 shots in the first half. Notre Dame held a 37-15 lead at halftime.
In the third quarter Notre Dame went on a scoring streak. Scoring 29 points to Elba's 10. By the fourth quarter the game was out of reach.
Notre Dame's Josh Johnson and Elba's John Hochmuth each had 15 points.
Notre Dame's next game will be at home next Wednesday against Lyndonville.
Elba is 1-3 on the season.
The Batavia Boys basketball team beat Williamsville South today in a game scheduled as part of the Niagara Falls Cataract City Classic, an invitational tournament for the top prep teams in WNY.
Jeff Redband led the Blue Devils to a 58-46 win with 18 points. Justice Fagan contributed 13 and Malachi Chenault added 11.
Batavia jumped out to an early 34-18 lead, but the game tightened in the 4th period with Williamsville closing in at 40-35. From there, Batavia pretty much controlled the game and put Williamsville away.
Mendon has always presented a challenge for the Batavia High School girls basketball team, often over the years snatching double-digit victories over the Lady Devils, which was why Head Coach Marty Hein put the Vikings on the schedule early in the season.
It was a chance for Hein to see where his team stood.
The verdict? Not really different from what he said about his team in the pre-season: The Lady Devils lack bench depth and until the younger players step up their game, Batavia will struggle against teams that can rotate seven or eight players.
"Some of the girls will understand that we've got to work hard and work our way to having a deep bench like Mendon does," Hein said. "Hopefully, we'll be there by mid-season."
To start the game, the Lady Devils looked like the dominate team and held a lead until just about a minute left in the second period, and even through most of the third period, Batavia kept the game within a basket or two.
Then the wheels came off. The plays didn't run as smoothly, the passes weren't as crisp, if not higher risk, and the steals came easier for the Vikings.
"Todd's (Todd Julien) a very smart coach," Hein said. "He didn't use any time-outs (in) quarters one, two and three because he didn't give any opportunity for my girls to get a rest. He knew the longer I kept my starters on the floor, the sooner they were going to wear out."
The final score: Mendon 43, Batavia 36.
Sam Cecere led Batavia in scoring with 14 points. Mendon's Darby Kreienberg presented a challenge for the Lady Devils. She scored 26 points.
Maddie McCulley, who hit a clutch three late in the second period just when it looked like the Vikings might be poised to pull away, suffered what appeared to be an ankle or foot injury early in the third period. She returned to the game a few minutes later and Hein said she'll be fine.
"When we play one-three-one she's down at the bottom with some giants so she takes a beating sometimes," Hein said.
Top photo: Essence Williams drives for a successful layup.
Maddie McCulley
McCulley and Alley Phillips scramble for a loose ball.
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